Name: _______________________________________
Beach Park
Sentences Type 1
Objective:
In this lesson, you will learn to recognize the different types of sentences and their purposes.
Recognizing Sentence Purposes
Writers have one of four basic purposes in mind when they write a sentence: to make a statement, to
show excitement or strong emotion, to ask a question, or to give a command. Sentence content, word
order, and end punctuation give a reader clues to the writer's purpose.
Declarative Sentences
Declarative sentences make statements. In a declarative sentence, word order follows the typical
English sentence pattern: subject-verb-and the rest of the sentence. End punctuation is always a period,
which signals a reader to stop before moving on to the next thought. Declarative sentences may be one
independent clause (a simple sentence) or two or more independent clauses (a compound sentence).
Here are examples of declarative sentences.
In 1980, Ronald Reagan won the presidency with 51 percent of the vote.
Hockey player Scott Olsen (20) and his brother Brennan (16) founded Rollerblade, Inc.
Chris Van Allsburg wrote the award-winning book Jumanji.
Your Turn
Using the following general topics as "starters," write five declarative sentences. Use the information
you know about the twentieth century or gather more facts from an almanac or encyclopedia about
people and events from the decade between 1980 and 1990.
1. (sports)
2. (entertainment)
3. (politics)
4. (foreign
5. (science and medicine)
Exclamatory Sentences
Exclamatory sentences express strong emotions like anger or excitement. They are similar to headlines
designed to shock readers. Word content and the exclamation point at the end of a sentence are clues
to the writer's purpose. Occasionally, writers place exclamation marks after fragments to show strong
emotion; however, exclamation marks should be used sparingly and never more than one at a time.
Name: _______________________________________
Beach Park
Sentences Type 1
Here are examples of exclamatory sentences:
Like a terrible plague, AIDS infected millions worldwide!
Terrorists blew up the U.S. Embassy in Beirut, Lebanon killing 63!
Suddenly, walkways in the lobby of Kansas City's Hyatt Regency collapsed, killing 113 and injuring 186!
American consumers, obsessed with owning Cabbage Patch dolls, spent $600 million dollars to purchase
them! And that doesn't include money spent on the black market!
Using the following general topics as "starters," write five exclamatory sentences. For sentence content,
use an almanac or encyclopedia to gather information about people and events from the decade
between 1980 and 1990.
1. (sports)
2. (entertainment)
3. (politics)
4. (foreign
5. (science and medicine)
Interrogative Sentences
Interrogative sentences ask a question. Detectives on television and in the movies interrogate suspects
by asking questions such as "Where were you on the night of October 5?" and "Why are your
fingerprints on the doorknob?" Most, but not all, interrogative sentences begin with an interrogative
word, either a pronoun (who, whom, whose, which) or an adverb (when, where, why, how). Some
questions begin with a verb helper, such as "Did you make a telephone call to this number?" "Were you
acquainted with the victim?" Sometimes a declarative sentence ends with an interrogative tag, such as
"You were in this room on October 5, weren't you?" The question mark at the end of the sentence is the
reader's clue to the writer's purpose. Occasionally, a writer will place a question mark after a fragment,
usually in dialogue, like this:
"Oh? But you said you were out of town on October 5."
Name: _______________________________________
Beach Park
Sentences Type 1
Here are examples of interrogative sentences.
Which new non-prescription drug replaced aspirin and acetaminophen in popularity for treatment of the
pain of arthritis?
Who came up with the slogan "Just Say No!" to combat drug use?
Why does El Nino upset weather patterns?
When did Trivial Pursuit become a popular board game?
Did Coca-Cola drinkers accept a newer, sweeter formula?
President Reagan called the U.S.S.R. "an evil empire," didn't he?
Using the following general topics as "starters," write 5 interrogative sentences. Use information from
an almanac or encyclopedia to create sentences about people and events from the decade between
1980-1990.
1. (sports)
2. (entertainment)
3. (politics)
4. (foreign
5. (science and medicine)
Imperative Sentences
An imperative sentence gives a command or issues a request. Connect the word imperative with the
words empire, emperor, or imperial to help you remember the purpose of an imperative sentence. This
doesn't mean, however, that commands always have to be rude or abrupt. Many imperative sentences
have a please, or thank you attached. Because the speaker or writer is addressing a particular audience,
the subject of an imperative sentence is the pronoun you, which is not stated but understood. The first
word in the sentence is usually an action verb. Most imperative sentences end with a period, but some
end with an exclamation mark, depending upon the urgency of the command.
Name: _______________________________________
Beach Park
Sentences Type 1
Here are examples of imperative sentences.
Read the western-adventure novel Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry.
Play "The Legend of Zelda," a new Nintendo video game. You'll like it.
Please give me enough money to buy Michael Jackson's new album Bad.
"Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!" said President Ronald Reagan.
Using the following general topics as "starters," write 5 imperative sentences in the spaces below
1. (sports)
2. (entertainment)
3. (politics)
4. (foreign
5. (science and medicine)
Wrap Up
As you can tell, there are many different types of sentences. When combined or used together correctly,
these different sentences can help you get your point across to your reader, and also make your writing
as effective as you want it to be. Remember these sentence types as we move along to bigger and
better writing assignments.