Writing 20 - Cora
Agatucci
Basic Writing I
Sentence
Analysis Review Handouts - Fall 2001
for CRN #40561, Tues.-Thurs. 11:00 am -
12:15 pm, Jefferson 101 (Cora Agatucci)
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See Fall 2001 WR 20 Course
Plan for Deadlines
Short Cuts on this Webpage:
Sentence Analysis Skills, Part I (Identifying Subject-Verb
Combinations) & Part I Practice Ex.
Sentence Analysis Skills, Part II (Identifying Clauses)
& Part II Practice Ex.
Sentence Analysis Skills, Part III (Identifying Types of
Clauses & Sentences)
Sentence
Analysis Skills, Part I
Identifying
Subject-Verb Combinations
To develop your sentence analysis skills in identifying
subject-verb combinations, explanations, with examples, are offered below.
In the following example sentences, the main Subject-Verb
combinations have been identified:
simple subject words
are labeled “S,” and their complete
finite verbs are labeled “V.”
Note that sentences may contain more than one subject-verb
combination.
A.
Simple
Sentences
contain
only
one complete
subject-verb
combination.
1.
Review Sentence Basics in
Odyssey Ch. 17: Finite
Verbs can express action (action verb), or a condition
or state of being (linking verb) (see p. 237); Simple
Subjects can either be a noun or a pronoun (see p. 239).
Examples:
S
V
Jane
walked to
the store.
S
V
She
bought some
groceries.
S
V
The
typewriter
ribbon is old.
S
V
The
print looks very
light.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.
It is often easier to locate the verb first and then look
for its subject (p.
239).
- One sign of a
finite verb is
that its form can be
changed to indicate a change in tense (e.g.
from past tense to present tense, or vice versa).
- After you locate the verb, find
the subject by asking yourself, Who
or what is doing the action or being discussed?
The
subject usually comes before the verb in
normal English word order (known as syntax).
Examples:
S V
Jane
walks to
the store everyday day.
S
V
The
typewriter
ribbon was old.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3.
A
complete finite verb can contain more than one word (known
as a
verb phrase): that is,
the
main action or linking verb (labeled “MV” below)
can be accompanied by
helping verbs (labeled “HV” below)
to express some verb tenses or
conditions. (See pp. 237-238:
list of “Common Helping
Verbs,” p. 238.)
Examples:
S HV +
MV
Jane
has walked to
the store everyday day for a month now.
S
HV
+ HV+ MV
The
typewriter
ribbon must be getting old.
S
HV + MV
Aunt
Sarah
should listen once in a while.
S
HV+HV + MV
John
may have missed
the bus today.
To review Verb Tenses that
require helping verbs, and
hard-to-recognize Irregular
“To Be” Verb forms,
see these Odyssey chapters:
- Simple Future Tense (Ch.
22: Box, p. 312
& Recap, pp. 318-319)
- Perfect Tenses (Ch.
22: Box, p. 315 &
Recap, pp. 318-319)
- Progressive & Perfect
Progressive Tenses (Ch. 24,
pp. 339-340)
- Recognizing Forms of
To Be (Ch. 23:
Box, p. 327 & Recap, p. 335)
More Examples:
S
HV+ MV
I will
call my
friends tomorrow
morning.
………S……HV + MV
My
brother
has worked all
summer long.
S HV+
HV + MV
By
August,
Juanita will have earned enough
money for a new snowboard.
S
HV+ MV
One of
the boys
was going to
the carnival after school.
S HV+MV
My
cranky old uncle is being very
difficult today!
NOTE: Certain verbal phrases may
fill out the meaning of a
sentence but they cannot
serve as the
finite verb of a
complete subject-verb combination:
(a)
infinitives
= to + simple verb form (like
to be, to walk, to think) and
(b)
verbals ending in
–ing (like
being, walking, thinking) without a helping verb.
Examples:
S V
infinitive
phrase
I plan to
organize my
study schedule tomorrow morning.
-ing
verbal
phrase
S
V
After
organizing my study schedule,
I
feel
more in control of my life.
*TIP:
Avoid Verbal PHRASE FRAGMENTS (See
Ch. 17, pp. 250-251) lacking
a complete subject-finite verb
combination.
Example
Verbal Phrase Fragment:
-ing
verbal
infinitive
Fragment:
John
organizing
his
study schedule to
feel
more
in control of his life.
Example
Corrections:
S HV+ MV
John
is
organizing
his study schedule to feel more in control of his life.
S V
After
organizing his study schedule, John
feels
more in control of his life.
*TIP:
SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT problems
(Ch. 21) can occur when words
come between a subject and its verb—especially…
*Prepositional
Phrases = a preposition
+ (introducing) a
noun or
pronoun (the
object of the preposition:
see Ch. 17: list
of “Common
Prepositions,” p. 240).
The
main (simple) subject of a sentence is
never found in a prepositional phrase.
Examples:
S
HV + MV
One of
the boys
was going to
the carnival
after school.
prepositional
phrase
prepositional phrase
prepositional phrase
S
HV + HV +
MV
The
list of
books and magazines
has been posted on
the library door.
prepositional
phrase
prepositional
phrase
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4.
Compound Subjects and/or Verbs.
Compound Subjects (p. 241) are two (or
more) subject nouns/pronouns (usually connected by the words and
or or) that share the same finite verb action or condition.
Compound Verbs (p. 238) are two (or more) finite verbs
(usually connected by the words and or or) that
share the same subject.
Examples:
S
+ S
V
Julia
and Juan came to visit us this morning.
S
V
+ V
Jane
walked to the store and bought some
groceries.
S
V
+ V…………………………+
V
Jane
walked to the store,
bought some groceries, and then returned
home.
S
or
S* V
Either
the
computers or
the
printer is in
need of repair.
*TIP
on
SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT (Ch.
21):
With a
compound subject joined by
“or”, make your verb agree with the second/last subject
given (i.e. in the sentence
above, make the verb agree with the singular subject:
“printer
is”).
NOTE:
A Simple Sentence may
contain both a compound
subject and a compound verb:
S
+ S
V
+ V
Julia
and Juan came to visit us this morning and
stayed for three hours.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
5.
When
the Verb Comes Before the Subject.
As stated
earlier, in normal sentence order, the subject usually comes first and the
verb comes after. However,
in some special kinds of sentences, like questions
and “there is” type constructions,
the verb--or one of the helping verbs—will come before
the subject of the sentence.
Examples:
HV
S MV
Where
are you going after school?
V
S
There
are many problems to solve.
|
*TIPS:
SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT problems (Ch.
21) may be caused because of this reversal
of normal verb-subject order with
questions and “there
is” type constructions. To
help you identify the true subject with
which you must make your verb agree:
- Restate a
Question in
“Answer” form to
get the sentence back in normal word order.
Examples:
HV
S MV
Question:
Where are you going after
school?
S HV+ MV
Restated:
You are going to the library (answer to
where?) after school.
- Look for this pattern:
“There” or “Here” + (followed by) a verb; then
expect to find
the subject (a
noun and/or pronoun)
after the verb. NOTE:
“There” and “Here” are almost never the subject of
a verb!
Examples:
V
S
There
are
many problems to solve.
V
S
Here
is
one possible solution.
|
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
B.
A
sentence may
contain
more
than one subject-verb combination. If
so, it is no longer a simple sentence
(more on other sentence types later).
But you can still
use the same procedures given
above to identify
subject-verb combinations.
Examples:
S
V
S V
The
print looks very light, for
the typewriter ribbon is old.
S
V
S HV+HV+
MV
The
print looks very light, so
the typewriter ribbon must be getting old.
S
HV+MV
S V
George
is going
to college because he intends to become a nurse.
V
S
V
S
There
are many problems to solve, but here is one possible solution.
S
+ S
V
S HV
+ MV
Julia
and Juan came to visit us this morning, but they did
not stay very long.
S
V
S V
After
John
organizes
his
study schedule, he
feels
more in control of his life.
S
HV + MV
S
One of
the boys
was going to
the carnival after school,
while
the other
boys
V
went
to
the movies.
S
V
S
V
S HV
The
fishermen
trolled for
hours, but
they caught nothing
because
they were
MV
using
the
wrong bait.
Identify
the subject-verb combinations in the following sentences.
Note:
Some
sentences contain more
than one
subject-verb combination.
1.
The fishermen trolled for hours.
2.
The fishermen trolled for hours, but they caught nothing.
3.
I huddled against a wall.
4.
Shivering and grumbling, I huddled against a wall on the street corner.
5.
Susan is an expert mechanic.
6.
Don and Susan are expert mechanics.
7.
Where have you been for the last five hours?
8.
I have been right here for the last five hours.
9.
Here are the late assignments.
10.
Sarah probably forgot to do her homework again.
11.
The print looks very light because the typewriter ribbon is old.
12.
Jane intends to become a doctor, so she is going to college.
13.
The list of books is posted next to the bulletin board in the library.
14.
After an exciting chase scene, the two lovers flee to Mexico at the end
of the novel.
15.
The tired old woman stopped and looked anxiously behind her.
16.
The play had already started when we arrived.
17.
Instinctively, the abandoned dog began to make his way home.
18.
Airplanes should be inspected regularly and carefully, or they may not
be safe to fly.
19.
My new neighbors seem very kind and friendly.
20.
The quartz wall clock looks beautiful, but it doesn’t work.
21.
In the1960s, the Beatles burst on the rock music scene and changed
music forever.
22.
Difficult situations on the playing field bring out the best, as well
as the worst, in people.
Sentence
Analysis Part II: Identifying Clauses
A.
A clause must have a complete subject-verb combination.
This
is the identifying feature of a clause, although it may also contain many
other sentence parts.
The number of subject-verb combinations = the number of
clauses.
1.
Each
of the following example
sentences contains one clause because it contains only one complete
subject-verb combination:
S
V
The
dog barks. (1
clause)
S
V
Every
morning at 7:00 a.m., the neighbor’s big black dog barks at
the paperboy. (1 clause)
S
V
+ V + V
John
may have missed
the bus today. (1
clause)
S +
S
V
Julia
and John are coming to visit today.
(1
clause)
(compound subject)
S V
+ V
Julia
went to the store and bought some
groceries. (1
clause)
(compound
verb)
V S
V
Where
are you going after school?
(1
clause)
S V
+ V
You
are
going
to the library after school. (1
clause)
V
S
There
are many problems to solve.
(1
clause)
2.
Sentences contain more than one
clause if they contain more
than one complete subject-verb combination.
To determine how many clauses that a sentence has, you simply
need to identify and count the number of complete
subject-verb combinations that it contains.
Examples:
S
V
Julia
went to the store. (1
clause)
S V
V
Julia
went to the store and bought some
groceries. (1
clause)
(compound
verb)
S V
S
V
Julia
went to the store, and she bought
some groceries. (2
clauses)
S V
S V
The
print looks very light,
for the typewriter ribbon
is old. (2
clauses)
S V
+ V
S V
S V
Jane
is going to college and she studies
very hard because she intends
to
become a nurse. (3
clauses)
S
V
S V
After
starting college,
Jane always
studied
very
hard because
she wanted
to
become
a nurse.
(2 clauses)
Sentence
Analysis, Part III:
Identifying Types of Clauses & Sentences, including
Coordination & Subordination
In Sentence Analysis, Parts I & II, you gained
practice in identifying subject-verb combinations, and the number of
clauses in sentences. Now
you are ready to learn how to identify different types of clauses and different
sentence types.
There
are two
general types of clauses:
#1:
Main
or Independent clauses
#2:
Subordinate
or Dependent clauses
|
There
are
four general types of sentences, classified
by the
number and types of clauses that
the sentence has:
#1:
Simple Sentence
(Only
1 Clause,
which must be a Main
or Independent Clause
to be a complete, well-formed sentence)
#2:
Compound Sentence
(2
or more Main/Independent Clauses).
#3:
Complex Sentence
(At
least 1 Subordinate/Dependent Clause,
joined to 1 Main/Independent
Clause)
#4:
Compound-Complex
Sentence
(combines the two
above: i.e. at
least 2 Main/Independent Clauses
with at least one 1 Subordinate/Dependent
Clause)
|
A.
Main
Clauses, Simple Sentences & Compound Sentences
Clause
Type #1.
Main
or Independent Clause expresses a main
idea of a sentence; it is also known as an independent
clause because, grammatically speaking, it
can stand alone as a complete, well-formed sentence.
See Odyssey Ch. 19, & Recap Box, pp. 272.
Examples:
S
V
The
dog barks. [1
Main/Independent Clause]
S V
Every
morning at 7:00 a.m., the neighbor’s big black dog barks at
the paperboy.
[1
Main/Independent
Clause]
Sentence
Type #1:
Simple
Sentence: A
sentence that contains only one main/independent clause is
categorized as a Simple Sentence. See Odyssey Ch. 19,
& Recap Box, p. 271. See
also “Sentence Analysis, Part I
. A,” handout p. 1.
Examples:
S
V
The
dog barks.
[1
Main/Independent Clause = Simple Sentence]
S V
Every
morning at 7:00 a.m., the neighbor’s big black dog barks at
the paperboy.
[1
Main/Independent
Clause = Simple Sentence]
Sentence
Type #2.
Compound
Sentence: A sentence
may contain more
than one Main/Independent Clause.
If a sentence contains at least two main
or independent clauses, it is a compound
sentence. See Odyssey
Ch. 19, Recap Boxes, pp. 272 & 273; & handout “Punctuating
Common Sentence Patterns”: Patterns #1,
#2, & #3.
Examples:
Pattern
#1 (Compound Sentence):
S
V
S V
Every
morning the dog barks at the paperboy,
/ but
he delivers the
newspaper anyway.
Main/Independent
Clause
+
Main/Independent Clause
Pattern
#3 (Compound Sentence):
S
V
S
V
V
Every
morning the dog barks at the paperboy; / however,
the paperboy doesn’t mind.
Main/Independent Clause
+
Main/Independent Clause
Pattern
#2 (Compound Sentence):
S
V
S
V V
The
print looks very light;
/ the
typewriter ribbon must be old.
Main/Independent
Clause +
Main/Independent Clause
Coordination
is a general principle of effective English sentence
Style.
Odyssey Ch. 19 deals with one aspect of
“Using Coordination,” dealing with how to join two
or more Main
or Independent Clauses with correct punctuation to form
Compound
Sentences. (See Odyssey
Ch. 19 definitions given in Recap Boxes, pp. 271, 272, 273.)
So do Patterns #1, #2, & #3
in the handout “Punctuating Common
Sentence Patterns.” (See
example sentences given in the handout for Patterns
#1, #2, & #3.)
*TIP:
Avoiding COMMA
SPLICES (CS) and RUN-ON
SENTENCES (RS)
(See Odyssey Ch. 20): Major
sentence errors CS & RS only occur in Compound
Sentences, when two or more
main or independent clauses are joined
incorrectly with the wrong or no
punctuation. Review Odyssey
Chs. 20 & 19, and
the handout “Punctuating
Common Sentence Patterns” to
learn different ways to correct CS
& RS!!
Examples:
COMMA
SPLICE:
The print looks very light,
the typewriter ribbon must be old.
RUN-ON:
The print looks very light the typewriter ribbon must be old.
Two Possible
Corrections:
The print looks very light;
the typewriter ribbon must
be old.
[Pattern #2]
The print looks very light,
so
the typewriter ribbon must be old.
[Pattern #1]
B.
Subordinate Clauses &
Complex Sentences
Clause
Type #2.
Subordinate or dependent clause expresses
a subordinate idea in a
sentence—an idea less important, that is, than the main idea
(expressed in a Main or Independent Clause:
see A above). Grammatically
speaking, a subordinate clause cannot
stand alone as a complete, well-formed sentence: it is also known as a dependent
clause because it depends
on--and must be joined to--a main (or
independent) clause to complete its meaning.
*Subordination
is another general principle of effective English sentence
Style.
Odyssey Ch. 19 presents one aspect of
“Using Subordination,” dealing with how to identify
Subordinate or Dependent Clauses.
*The key = being able to identify Subordinating
Conjunctions [SC]
and Relative Pronouns
[RP]—see
Odyssey Lists, p. 262—which introduce
subject-verb combinations in
Subordinate/Dependent Clauses.
Examples:
Subordinate
Clauses introduced by Subordinating Conjunctions
[SC]:
Pattern
#4 (Complex Sentence):
S
V
SC
S
V
The
fishermen caught nothing
/
though
they trolled in the bay for hours.
Main//Independent Clause
+
Subordinate/Dependent Clause
Pattern
#5 (Complex Sentence):
SC
S
V
S
V
Because
the
typewriter ribbon is old,
/
the print looks
very light.
Subordinate/Dependent Clause
+
Main/Independent
Clause
Pattern
#5 (Complex Sentence):
SC
S
V
S
V V
If
Sherman
watches his
diet vigilantly,
/
he will be able to keep his weight down.
Subordinate/Dependent
Clause
+
Main/Independent
Clause
Examples:
Subordinate
Clauses introduced by Relative Pronouns
[RP]:
S
V
RP
S V
I
went
to the airport to meet the woman
/
that
I
love.
Main//Independent Clause
+
Subordinate Clause
Subordinate
Clause
S
S&RP
V
V
V
The
clerk
/
who
is
wearing the red tie
/
is my uncle.
Main
Clause
Sentence
Type #3.
Complex
Sentence: A
sentence that contains at least one subordinate or
dependent clause joined to a main or
independent clause is known as a complex sentence.
See Odyssey Recap Boxes, pp. 271 & 272.
Examples:
Each
of the sentence examples given above containing Subordinate/
Dependent Clauses is a Complex Sentence, because each
contains one Main/Independent Clause and
at least one Subordinate/Dependent Clause.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
There
are two
types of Subordinate or Dependent Clauses—
which are distinguished in Odyssey Ch. 18, pp. 252-257:
·
1.
“Subordinate
Clauses” (Subordinating
Conjunction introduces
a Subject-Verb
Combination: see list of
some common
Subordinating Conjunctions, Odyssey
p. 262.)
·
2.
“Appositive
Clauses” (Relative
Pronoun introduces the subject-verb
combination, or a Relative
Pronoun serves as the Subject in a subject-verb
combination: see list of
the key Relative
Pronouns, Odyssey
p. 262; and
Recap Box, p. 271.) An
Appositive is “a group of words that is meant to rename or
explain” the noun or pronoun that the appositive modifies (and
should be positioned next to in the sentence). To be a clause,
an appositive must contain a complete subject-verb combination.
Relative Pronouns are
still Pronouns, and thus can be the simple subject of
a finite verb in a subject-verb combination.
(See handout Sentence
Analysis, Part I . A . #1; and
Odyssey Ch. 17, p. 239.)
APPOSITIVE Clauses are also discussed in Odyssey
Ch. 18 (pp. 255-257)
|
Sentence
Type #4.
Compound-Complex
Sentence: A
sentence that contains
at least one subordinate or dependent clause
and at least two main or independent clauses
is known as a compound-complex
sentence. See Odyssey
Recap Boxes, pp. 271 – 273.
Examples:
S
V
S
V
V
Every
morning the dog barks at the paperboy; / however,
the paperboy doesn’t seem
Main/Independent Clause
+
Main/Independent Clause
SC
S V
to
mind / because he
delivers the newspaper anyway.
Subordinate / Dependent Clause
SC
S
V
S
V
Whenever
the paperboy comes to deliver the newpaper, /
our dog always barks at
Subordinate
/ Dependent Clause
Main/Independent
Clause
S
V
him,
/ but the paperboy delivers the paper anyway.
Main/Independent Clause
Cora's
Fall 2001 WR 20 Syllabus | Course Plan
|
Assignments
are being webposted after they are discussed in class.
WR 20 Course Home
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Sentence Analysis Review,
Parts I, II, II
~ Fall 2001
URL of this webpage: http://www.cocc.edu/cagatucci/classes/wr20/sentenceanalysis.htm
Last updated: 12 August 2002
This webpage is maintained by Cora
Agatucci, Professor of English,
Humanities Department, Central
Oregon Community College
I welcome comments: cagatucci@cocc.edu
© Cora Agatucci, 1997-2001
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