Diana Hanson’s Sentence and Punctuation Exercises
Four Basic Sentence Patterns
BSP 1:
1) The hamster ran.
2) Katy cooked.
BSP 2:
1) Taylor hung a picture.
2) Susan built her house.
BSP 3:
1) Scruffy is the dog.
2) Tom is a teacher.
BSP 4:
1) The trucks are brown.
2) The carpet was dirty.
Passive BSP 2s:
1) The picture was hung by Taylor.
2) The house was built by Susan.
Bound Modifiers
1) The hamster ran.
Only (obm) the anxious (adj) hamster feverishly (adv) ran in her wheel (pp).
2) Katy cooked.
At her new (adj) house (pp), Katy cooked the most seemingly (adv) delicious (adj)
meal that I’d ever seen (pp) until I tried a big (adj) bite (pp).
3) Scruffy is the dog.
Perhaps (obm) the old (adj) and grumpy (adj) Scruffy is the naughty (adj) dog that
mysteriously (adv) stole your favorite (adj) green (adj) slippers from under your bed (pp).
Main Clauses
1) Since Jason didn’t pay his bill on time, he was charged a late fee.
2) Once the wedding ceremony started, the bride and groom knew there was no turning back.
3) Although Sam broke her foot, she still went on vacation.
4) If Chris wasn’t home by curfew, he was going to be in a heap of trouble.
5) Before Richard closed the door, he checked to see that the cat was outside.
Verb Clusters
1) Falling down the stairs, Katy screamed.
2) Hanging the picture, Taylor made sure it was level.
3) Washing the clothes, Eric made sure to scrub the stains.
4) Catching the ball, the dog was delighted with what he had done.
5) Tubing behind the pontoon, the girls had fun all afternoon.
Noun Clusters
It was one of those parks, a quaint, quiet place that seemed too good to be true. Kari and Nate,
passers by, stopped at the riverside, enjoying the view, their minds consumed with thoughts of
peace and tranquility. Upstream at the bend in the creek, stood a majestic sight, a cow moose
and her calf stopped for a drink of water, that they were sure to snap a quick photo of.
Adjective Clusters
1) Annoyed by his inconsiderate roommate, Taylor yelled at him to clean up his mess.
2) Fascinated with the architecture, Brandon decided to buy the century old house.
3) Tara, aware of her surroundings, cautiously backed her car out into the street.
4) Tired by all the commercials on the radio, Emily put in a CD.
5) When Johanna blew him a kiss, Tom, embarrassed from the public display of affection,
just smiled and waved.
Relative Clauses
Relative Pronoun as Subject
1) The hamster, which escaped from its cage, was hard to catch.
2) Bill, who loves to eat candy, had three cavities.
3) The floor, which was cold and wet, needed to be mopped.
Relative Pronoun as Object
4) Robert, to whom Frank owes money, is irate that he hasn’t been paid.
Relative Pronoun as Possessive
5) Katy, whose kitchen is now dirty, wishes she had ordered take out instead of cooking
her own supper.
Absolutes
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
Her dog barking, Amanda looked out the window to see what was going on.
The garage being full of boxes, Michelle was forced to park on the street.
His mind clouded by his thoughts, Chuck decided to go for a walk.
The bank being closed for a holiday, Dan had to deposit his check in the ATM.
Her food cold, Sarah put her plate in the microwave.
Analysis of Complex Sentences
4. As a designer of clothes, an admirer of beauty, and a collector of artifacts, she enjoyed visiting
museums.
As a designer of clothes, sc
an admirer of beauty, nc
and a collector of artifacts, nc
she enjoyed visiting museums. MC
5. Frightened, confused, giggling hysterically, Lucille collapsed into the nearest fountain.
Frightened, confused, adjc
giggling hysterically, vc
Lucille collapsed into the nearest fountain. MC
6. He drove to school, gazing at the morning sun, wiping the sleep from his eyes, preparing his
mind for the coming activities of the day.
He drove to school, MC
gazing at the morning sun, vc
wiping the sleep from his eyes, vc
preparing his mind for the coming activities of the day. vc
7. Gray-bearded and toothless, dressed in jockey shorts and a stash bag, he walked up and down
the sidewalk, restlessly waiting to begin.
Gray-bearded and toothless, adjc
Dressed in jockey shorts and a stash bag, adjc
He walked up and down the sidewalk, MC
Restlessly waiting to begin. adverb cluster
8. In the early evening, as the sun went down, shining its brilliant colors through the sky, he
stood transfixed, watching the playful ponies in the pasture, listening to the sounds of chirping
crickets and the nocturnal world of insects and animals coming to life, and realizing with awe
that the complex workings of nature made him feel insignificant.
In the early evening, ppc
as the sun went down, sc
shining its brilliant colors through the sky, vc
he stood transfixed, MC
watching the playful ponies in the pasture, vc
listening to the sounds of chirping crickets and the nocturnal world of insects and
animals coming to life, vc
and realizing with awe that the complex workings of nature made him feel
insignificant. vc
9. In the spring, for example, runoff from melting snow can carry a tremendous amount of silt to
the river, causing increased turbidity.
In the spring, ppc
for example, ppc
runoff from melting snow can carry a tremendous amount of silt to the river, MC
causing increased turbidity. vc
10. Horticulturists usually fall within two distinct categories: 1) those utilizing man-made
fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides, and 2) those favoring the use of natural agents in garden
maintenance.
Horticulturists usually fall within two distinct categories: MC
1) those utilizing man-made fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides, and rc
2) those favoring the use of natural agents in garden maintenance. rc
11. As ascertained from systematic qualitative observation, Baetis shodani and an unidentified
chironomid species were co- dominants at the Arkansas River's Udall station, though
hydrophilids and notonectids were abundant also, particularly within the sammon community
along the depositional eastern shoreline.
As ascertained from systematic qualitative observation, ppc
Baetis shodani and an unidentified chironomid species were co- dominants at the
Arkansas River’s Udall station, MC
though hydrophilids and notonectids were abundant also, sc
particularly within the sammon community along the depositional eastern
shoreline. adverb clause
12. He strode along the corridor, clumping loudly in his heavy boots, almost imperceptibly
pausing every so often to shake his hair back from his face.
He strode along the corridor, MC
clumping loudly in his heavy boots, vc
almost imperceptibly pausing every so often to shake his hair back from
his face. adjc
Sentence Combining
Original
Once there was a man. He was a woodsman. He was small. He had a beard. He
had long hair. He wore old clothes. The clothes were made of denim. The
denim was blue. He lived with his dog. The dog was big. He was a lab. He
had short hair. He was black. They lived in a shack. It was rickety. It
was made of wood. The windows were broken. It had a front porch. There was
a chair on the porch. The chair rocked. The house sat on the edge of a
meadow. It sat next to a wood. The wood was swampy. The man did something
every day. He worked in his garden. The garden was in the meadow. He grew
corn. The corn didn't grow very well. He grew potatoes. They were red. He
grew squash. Some of the squash was acorn squash. Some was butternut. The
squash grew every where. The days were hot. The days were sticky. The work
was hard. The man liked his work. He did it tirelessly. He did it joyfully.
He did it religiously. But he did not do it on Sunday. The old man made
supper every night. They had nothing except what they could supply themselves.
He would make supper out of stuff from his garden. He would make it from
squash. He would make it from potatoes. He would make it from corn.
Sometimes he would make it from squirrel. Sometimes he would make it from
fish. They would share their meal. The old man would talk to his dog. The
dog would look at the man. The dog would wag his tail. They would go to the
front porch. The man would rock in his chair. The dog would lie on the
porch. They would watch the sun go down.
Revision
Once there was a man (MC), a small woodsman (nc). Bearded and long haired
(adjc), he wore old clothes made of blue denim (MC). He lived with his big,
black dog (MC), a short haired lab (nc). They lived in a rickety, wooden
shack (MC), which had windows that were broken (rc), that had a front porch
where there was a rocking chair (adjc). The house sat on the edge of a meadow
(MC) as well as next to a swampy wood (sc). Every day (ppc), the man worked
in his garden that was in the meadow (MC). In his garden (ppc), he grew corn,
red potatoes, and two types of squash (MC), acorn and butternut (nc). Even
though the corn didn't grow very well (sc), the squash grew every where (MC).
Although the days were hot and sticky (sc), the man liked his hard work (MC).
He did it tirelessly, joyfully, and religiously except for on Sundays. Every
night (ppc), the old man made supper from only what they could supply
themselves (MC). He would make it out of stuff from his garden such as
squash, potatoes, and corn. Sometimes (ppc), he would also make supper from
squirrel or from fish (MC). After sharing their meal (ppc), when the old man
would talk to his dog (sc), the dog would look at the man and wag his tail
(mc). Then they would go to the front porch. The man, who’d rock in his
chair (rc), and the dog, which would lie on the porch (rc), would watch the
sun go down (MC).