SENTENCE
STRUCTURE
Grammar and Syntax
English 1
SENTENCES
 In
order to share ideas
successfully, you must use
complete sentences
 Definition:
a group of words that
expresses a complete thought
 There
must be a structure!
SENTENCES
 Illustrated
 The
Man
 Slept Moved
 And the
 Pictures
 The
Illustrated Man slept and the
pictures moved.
Sentence must have subject and predicate.
Either the subject or predicate (or both) may not
be stated, but both must be clearly understood.
SUBJECT

Definition – part of the sentence that is doing
something or about which something is said

(whom or what it’s about)
Identify – always a noun or pronoun
1. locate the verb
2. ask who or what is doing the action

SUBJECT TYPES


Simple subject – the main noun or pronoun
that tells whom or what the sentence is about
 Usually only one word, unless it is a proper
noun (New England, Great Britain, Miss B.)
Example:
A triumphant Justin Bieber stepped up to the
microphone.
Complete subject: a triumphant Justin Bieber
Simple subject: Justin Bieber
SUBJECT TYPES


Compound subject – composed of two or more
simple subjects that share the same verb
 Subjects are joined by a conjunction
Example:
Google, Bing, and Yahoo provide search engines for you to
use.
A flood or an earthquake devastates a city.
SWITCH IT UP!
PREDICATE



Definition – the part of the sentence that tells
what the subject is doing
Identify – always starts with the verb or helping
verb – ask what the subject does or is
Can be broken up with subject in the middle or at
the end.

Example: Many Americans celebrate Halloween.
Celebrate Halloween many Americans do.
PREDICATE TYPES

Simple predicate – the verb without any of the
words that modify or describe it

Helping (auxiliary) verbs are still included in the
simple predicate
Example:
The ambulance raced out of the driveway and down
the street.

Sandy may have borrowed my book.
PREDICATE TYPES

Compound predicate – composed of two or
more simple predicates, joined by a conjunction
Example:
Blog owners produce and publish their writing on
the internet.

VERB TYPES


Main Verb – can be action verb or linking verb
Action verb – tells what the subject does even if
it can’t be seen


Transitive or intransitive
Linking verb – tells what the subject is
Form of the verb be: is am was were be been being
 Others: appear, feel, taste, look, sound, seem, smell,
grow, become

VERB TYPES

Helping (auxiliary) verbs – added to the main
verb to help express action or show time
*still included in simple predicate
Be: is am was were be been
Do: do does did
Have: has have had
Others: may might can could will won’t would
should shall
PRACTICE!

*highlight the simple subject and underline the
simple predicate.

In medical laboratories, robots handle hazardous
materials.

At the General Motors Corporation, robots work on
assembly lines performing tasks like welding and
painting.

Most boring or dangerous tasks are done by GMC’s
robots.
PRACTICE!


Circle the simple or compound subject and
highlight the simple or compound predicate.
Keenan and Angelica watched Tiger play in the
tournament and got his autograph at the ninth
hole.

Tiger and his family traveled to the Asian Honda
Classic Golf Tournament in Thailand.
ACTIVITY!!!
Sentence Structure Sparkle!
 Stand in semicircle in back of room
 The first student gives the student next to
him/her a single word as the subject of a
sentence. The second student has five seconds to
complete a sentence by adding a predicate. Then
that student turns to student three and gives a
subject. The game continues, with students being
eliminated if they “freeze” and cannot think or if
predicate doesn’t make sense.
 Add noun and verb phrases!

ENTRANCE TICKET
Happy Wednesday 
 Please begin working on handout


this is based on what we learned yesterday and your
readings from last night
You may use your notes!
 Stay quiet and think and work hard


Today:



Clauses
Begin sentence types
Work on projects
WHAT DO YOU KNOW?

What makes a sentence

Why complete sentences are important

Subject

Predicate
CIRCLE THE SUBJECT AND UNDERLINE THE
PREDICATE IN THE FOLLOWING SENTENCES.

The cow jumped over the moon.

Are you ready to go to the game?

I will not be at the restaurant until 7:00 p.m.

Taylor Swift is a successful and entertaining
musician.
TRUE OR FALSE

An independent clause can stand on its own.

A dependent clause is a complete sentence.

Simple sentences are only five words long or less.

Compound sentences include words like lunchbox
and homeroom.
WHAT IS A CLAUSE?
A
group of words that contains a
subject and a verb
 Clauses
make up sentences
Longer
 Ideas are not in phrases


Ex: Brainstorm / Pre-write for projects
 Highlight
on paper
INDEPENDENT CLAUSE
Subject and verb that expresses a complete
thought
 Can stand alone as a sentence
 *All sentences must have an independent clause
 Example:


The children dreamed of the veldt.
DEPENDENT CLAUSE

Does not express a complete thought



Even though it may contain a subject or verb
Cannot stand as a sentence on its own
Depends on (needs) more
Independent clause
DEPENDENT CLAUSE

If the marionette took over

Because they heard the screams

Which Bradbury dislikes

Because they lived on Mars
*** A A W W U B B I S ***
After although when while before because if so
WHY IT IS IMPORTANT!


When you write, watch out for sentences that
start with because, when, so, or other words that
signal a dependent clause.
*make sure there is not a fragment
PRACTICE!
1. Joyce enjoyed geometry
more than she enjoyed algebra.
2. She liked the fact
that the class began with simple
shapes.
3. A point was the first thing
that the students learned about.
PRACTICE!!
4. A point has no length or width.
5. When you study geometry, you must use terms
accurately.
6. For example, you may not say line when you
mean line segment.
7. A triangle, which everyone recognizes, is a
shape made of three line segments.
KINDS OF SENTENCES


There are different kinds of sentences.
When you write, use different types, or a variety,
to spice up your writing!
SIMPLE SENTENCES

Has one independent clause

NO dependent clauses

*It can include many details and be elaborate

Example:
1. He slept.
2. The illustrated man slept soundly throughout
the night underneath the stars on top of the soft,
grassy hill.
COMPOUND SENTENCES

Too many short sentences can make your writing
choppy



You can fix this with compound sentences!
Contains two or more independent clauses
NO dependent clauses
Example:
The children cried. The children were upset. They
made a plan. They would do it.

The children cried; they were upset. They made a plan,
and they would do it.
PRACTICE!
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
It was pouring rain; getting a cab was
impossible.
Miguel patched and cleaned the sides of the
boat.
The magazine was both timely and readable.
Ted read the instructions, and then he built the
model.
At first, television stations were on the air only
a few hours a day, but now many broadcast 24
hours a day.
Computers and printers are standard
equipment in most classrooms.
ACTIVITY TIME!
IDENTIFY INDEPENDENT/DEPENDENT CLAUSES AND SENTENCE TYPES.

"The Veldt" By deadmau5 featuring Chris James
Happy life, with the machines scattered around the room.
Look what they made; they made it for me. Happy technology!
Outside, the Lions roam, feeding on remains.
We'll never leave. Look at us now;
So in love with the way we are—here!
[Chorus:]
The world that the children made.
The world that the children made, here!
The world that the children made, here!
The world that the children made.
Every night they rock us to sleep, digital family!
Is it real? Or is it a dream? Can you believe in machines?
Outside, the beating sun, can you hear the screams?
We'll never leave. Look at us now.
So in love with the way we are—here!