Sentence Structure Review
1. Clause: mệnh đề  S + V
2. Phrase: cụm từ # mệnh đề. Phrase = group of words, not a clause yet, without S or V
3. Clauses in a sentence:
a. Independent clause: main clause (mệnh đề chính)
b. Dependent clause: subordinate clause (mệnh đề phụ)
4. Signals to recognize a dependent clase
a. Conjunctions (nối giữa 2 mệnh đề) # transitions (nối giữa 2 câu)
i. Coordinate conjunctions: For, And, Nor, But, Or, Yet, So (FANBOYS)  must stand after
a comma and in the middle of a sentence.
1. Example: I am a teacher, and you are a student. (I am: independent clause I.C. ;
AND you are: D.C dependent clause)
ii. Subordinate conjunctions: since, because, if, as, whenever, as soon as, as long as,
provided that (miễn là), whether, wherever, although, even though.
1. Example: Because she’s pretty, he likes her  comma after DC. (BECAUSE she is:
D.C; he likes: I.C) = He likes her because she’s pretty.  no comma before DC
(except for “although”  He doesn’t like her, although she’s pretty.).
2. Depts.dyc.edu/learningcenter/owl
b. Relative clauses
i. Who, which, where, when, whom, that
ii. Ex: This is the girl whom he loves. (this is: IC; WHOM he loves: D.C.)
c. All other that-clauses
i. Ex1: He said THAT he loved her.
ii. Ex2: It was in 2001 THAT I was born.
5. Sentence structure rule: In a sentence, there must be EXACTLY ONE independent clause; dependent
clauses are optional.
6. Errors related to sentence structure.
a. Conjuction errors: no comma before FANBOYS or although.
b. Double verb: 2 continuous verbs without “and.” Ex: There is a girl sits at that table.  double
verb (X)  Correction: There is a girl sitting/who is sitting at that table.
c. Fragment: incomplete sentence structures in which there is NO independent clause and there
are only dependent clauses or phrases.
i. Ex: The house where I live.  I live in that house.
ii. Ex2: He likes her. Because she is pretty (fragment).  He likes her because she’s pretty.
iii. Ex3: He gave proof. Thereby, disproving the professor (fragment).  He gave proof,
thereby disproving the professor.
d. Run-on sentences: sentences in which there are more than 1 independent clause. Corrections:
1/ change one clause to dependent; 2/ change comma to period or semi-colon;
i. Ex: I am a teach you are a student.  run-on  I am a teacher, AND you are a student. /
I am a teacher. You are a student. / I am a teacher; you are a student.
ERRORS RELATED TO SENTENCE MODIFIERS
1. Subject-verb agreement (sự hoà hợp chủ từ - động từ)
Subject
Verb
Plural
Original form
Singular
s/es
a. “And” is included in the subject, but modifiers (as well as, followed by, with, together with, just
like) are not included in the subject.
i. Ex: My father and I are going on a trip.
ii. Ex: I, as well as my father, am going on a trip.
iii. Ex: The princess, accompanied by 20 soldiers, is very pretty.
b. Either…or, Neither…nor, Or, Not only….but also: verb agrees with the nearest subject (normally
the last, but for questions  the first).
i. Ex: Not only my classmates but I am also going on the trip.
ii. Neither he nor my friends are smart.
c. Everyone, someone, my family, my team, my group, my school, the army, the organization, the
country are all singular subjects.
2. Pronoun-antecedent agreeement:
a. Ex: If Peter (antecedent) wants to succeed, he (pronoun) has to work on his (pronoun) own.
b. Rule: pronouns must agree with their antecedents (singular  singular; plural  plural)
i. If Pete and Many…they…their
ii. If people…they…their
iii. Somebody…he or she…his or her.
iv. Everybody….he or she…his or her
v. One….one….one’s
vi. If my family….it….its….  My family: noun of collection always goes with “it” or “its”
and are singular.
c. Note 1: When you use “it” or “they,” make sure they have clear antecedents. If you use “it” or
“they,” check immediately. If there is no clear antecedent or if there are two many nouns
(antecedents) previously, you must clarify the pronoun/not use it.
i. Ex: Peter helps Wilson with his homework. (X)  Peter helps Wilson with Wilson’s
homework.
d. Note 2: Never use “this” or “that” alone. You must add a noun after “this” or “that.”
i. Ex: Children are becoming lazier. This is very alarming. (X)  This
SITUATION/PHENOMENON is alarming.
ii. After that, he went to bed.  Afterwards, he went to bed.
e. Note 3: Subject must also agree with object. If subject is singular/plural, object must be
singular/plural respectively.
i. Ex: PEOPLE turn their HEADS to the president.
ii. Ex: This situation negatively affect PEOPLE’s LIVES.
iii. Ex: Children’s ATTITUDES towards schooling have changed.
f. Note 4: For possessives (‘s), the noun with the apostrophe s is NOT considered an antecedent.
i. Ex: People’s work is increasingly consuming their time.  wrong  People’s work is
increasingly consuming people’s time.
3. Parallelism
a. Ex: I likes grapes, apples, and oranges.  Parallelism: A, B, and C (a list) must be of the same
part of speech (noun, verbs, adjectives)
b. Ex: I like swimming, running, and reading.
c. Note: For a list of two (A and B)  no comma before “and”  Ex: I like grapes and apple. Ex: If
you are smart and you would like to finish homework immediately, you can do it now.
d. Note: For a list of three or more (A, B, and C)  must have a comma before “and.” Ex: In the
room, there are two strippers, George Bush, and Donald Trump.
e. Note 3: For idioms such as “neither A nor B” “either A or B” “not so much A as B” “not only A
but also B,” A and B must be parallel in ALL CASES.
i. Ex: I work not so much FOR money as FOR my passion.
ii. Ex: Not only is my sister beautiful, but she is also smart. (A and B are clauses)
iii. Ex: Not only my brother but also I am bored.
4. Faulty Comparison
a. Ex: She is more interested in her cat than her boyfriend. faulty comparison 
i. Correction 1: She is more interested in her cat than her boyfriend is.
ii. Correction 2: She is more interested in her cat than (she is) in her boyfriend.
b. Ex 2: Unlike Mr. Peter, Mr. Tom’s class is very boring.  error
i. Corr 1: Unlike Mr. Peter, Mr. Tom teaches a very boring class.
ii. Corr 2: Unlike Mr. Peter’s class, Mr. Tom’s is very boring.
c. Ex 3: This restaurant is very cheap. The restaurant at the end of the street is more expensive.
i.  This restaurant is cheaper than that at the end of the street.
d. Ex 4: Streets in Vietnam are narrower than those in the US.
e. Ex 5: Children’s attitudes are different from previous generations.  Children’s attitudes are
different from previous generations’.
f. Note: After “than” or “as…as,” it the subject is more than 2 words long, you can move the
modal verb to the front of the subject. Ex: My brother can play basket ball better than can the
best player in my school.
5. Dangling modifier
a. Ex: When I was crossing the street, I saw an accident.
i.  Crossing the street, I saw an accident.  correct modifier
ii.  Crossing the street, an accident occurred before my eyes.  dangling modifier error
(modifier modifies wrong subject)
iii. In order to develop the country, it is necessary for the government to improve
healthcare.  dangling modifier
1. Correction: In order to develop the country, the government has to improve
healthcare.
b. Note: never use “being” in a modifier. Simply remove the word being to make your sentence
correct.
i. Ex: Being the only girl in class, she feels embarrassed.  incorrect  correction: The
only girl in class, she feels embarrassed.
ii. Ex: This situation has led to many people’s being robbed.  This situation has led to
many people robbed.
c. Note 2: correct uses of “being” include:
i. “Human being”
ii. Correct after a preposition. Ex: In addition to BEING the only girl in class, she is also the
smartest.  correct
iii. Main verb in a passive sentence. Ex: The house is BEING rebuilt.
6. Misplaced modifier:
a. Ex: He returned her the money with appreciation (modifier).  incorrect  Correction: With
appreciation, he returned her the money.
b. Ex: She is holding a cat with two hands.  With two hands, she’s holding a cat.
SPEAKING TIPS
1. Intonation  rules: you speak; listeners must be able to distinguish your words in order for them to
understand what you are speaking/saying.
a. In a sentence, there are 2 types of words:
i. Content words: nouns, verbs, and adjectives
ii. Function words: articles and prepositions
iii. Examples: I have never been here before. (Content words: I, never, here; function
words: have, been, before)
b. Stress rules in a sentence:
i. You stress (pronounce loudly) on the stressed syllable of the content words of a
sentence
ii. No stress (pronounce lightly) the function words
iii. Stress the heaviest on the stressed syllable of the last content word in the sentence.
iv. Ex: I have never been HERE before.
c. Elongation rules
i. At the end of the word, if the syllable is voiceless, the word/vowel is pronounced very
short. S, SH, CH, P, T, K, TH (wrath). Ex: riCE. hOT, LEAK, liST,
ii. If the ending consonant is voiced, the previous vowel is elongated. Z, /pressure/, dz, B,
D, G, TH (this). Ex: riSE, league, Liz
iii. All other syllables are voiced
2. No vocal fillers  minimalizes vocal fillers (u…uhm…., “you know” “well” “like”). Speaking slowly is
better than speaking with vocal fillers.
3. No uptalk.