Types of Sentences

Simple Sentences A simple sentence has one subject and one verb, although the subject and the
verb may be compound
Example:
- Every so often, wild turkeys can be seen in the forest preserve over
by the lake.
- Simon and Garfunkel recorded and released the Sounds of Silence
album in 1966.

1. Prepositional phrases; phrases that are preceded by the prepositions

and contain nouns as the object of preposition, are not the subjects of
the sentences.
Example:
The stories in that book were translated by my professor.

2. Appositives; words or phrases that provide more information about

subjects or objects, are not the subjects of the sentences.
Example:
The Otis Elevator Company, the world’s oldest and biggest elevator
manufacturer, claims that its products carry the equivalent of the
world’s population every five days.

3. Participial phrases; phrases that are preceded by present or past

participle, are not the verb of the sentences.
Example:
- Present participle: have active meaning
Ricky Wrigley, swimming against the tide, was jabbed by a
floating twig.

- Past participle: have passive meaning

Carried on the shoulders of his baseball team member, John
Dingle dangled his foot precariously for all his fans to grab.
Compound Compound sentence has two or more main clauses joined by a coordinate
Sentences conjunction.
Coordinate conjunction:
1. And, to express additional information
Example: She didn’t want to play, and she didn’t want to take a nap

2. But/yet, to connect contrasting ideas

Example: The sun had set, but it was still light outside

3. So, to show a result

Example: I wanted to buy the latest gadget, so I started to save my
money

4. For, to express a reason

Example: Let’s go to the beach, for it is hot inside the house

5. Or, to show the result of a condition not fulfilled

Example: Gerry has to finish the project, or he will be sued for
breaching the contract

Complex - Complex sentence consists of one main clause and one or more
Sentences dependent clauses, which has its own subject and verb, but it can’t
stand by itself.
- The information in the dependent clause is additional to that of the
main clause and connected to it by subordinators.
- A dependent clause functioned as an:
1. Adjective clause, dependent clause that modifies a
noun/pronoun.

2. Adverb clause, group of words that contain a subject and a

predicate beginning with a subordinate conjunction.
a. Adverb clause of time, indicate the time of the
actions/events stated in the main clauses.
- He was talking on the phone when I arrived
- Whenever he comes, he goes to have lunch at
Dickinson’s
- While I am studying tonight, I’m going to listen to
Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony
- I’ll stay as long as you need me
- Before his family gave him allowance to continue his
studies, he worked part-time to cover his expenses
- I have played tennis since I was a young boy
- After she graduated from university of Hanoi, she
worked as a researcher
- As I was finishing my homework, there was a black out
- We waited until he finished checking all of the
specimens

b. Adverb clause of place, indicate the place of the

actions/events stated in the main clauses.
- Where there is a war, there we find discontent
- He travels wherever he likes

c. Adverb clause of reason, indicate the reason of the

actions/events stated in the main clauses.
- I was late because I could not catch the bus
- As the weather was bad, we cancelled the picnic
- Since I was late to school, I took a taxi

d. Adverb clause of condition, expresses a condition to be

fulfilled to carry out the action or event in the main clause.
- If children are given enough encouragement and
opportunities, they will perform well both academically
 and physically.
- Unless you work hard you will fail the exam
- You may forgive your friend on condition that he will
not repeat this mistake
- Provided that there are still enough seats, you will be
given priority to obtain the tickets
- You must go whether you hear from him or not
- In the event that an original Indian burial site is located,
it will be examined within five business days of
discovery
- In case that it rains, we shall stay at home

e. Adverb clause of contrast, expresses contrast with the

main clause.
- Although they tried to drive very fast, they could not
reach the station on time
- Though she was disappointed by his failure, she still
trusted his ability
- Even though it was cold outside, the little boy walked
around without a coat on
- The computer can function quite well, in spite of the
fact that it was infected by melissa virus
- While she was dissatisfied with the ending of the movie,
she still enjoyed the performance thoroughly
- Where the architect has designed the building to be well
ventilated without air conditioner, the building
management insisted on installing several air
conditioners
- Bill Gate is an entrepreneur whereas Al Gore is a public
official

f. Adverb clause of manner, describes how the action/event

in the main clause occurs.
 - After watching a superhero movie, the boy acted as if
he were a superhero by running around
- The toddler wandered around his room as though he
were sleep walking
- The show was magnificent just as it was expected

g. Adverb clause of purpose, show the purpose of the action

mentioned in the main clause.
- The anthrophologist decided to stay among the tribe
that he might learn about their language and customs.
- Hockey players wear lots of protective clothing in
order that they don’t get hurt
- He has repaired his car so that he could use it for his
upcoming trip

h. Adverb clause of result, talks about the outcome of the

activity mentioned in the main clause.
- The weather last year was so unfriendly that many
formers were unable to harvest their crops
- It was such an easy exam that all students could pass it
with flying colours
- We keep our bread in the fridge, so that it doesn’t go
bad

i. Adverb clause of comparison, compares a

person/thing/action with one of those in the main clause
whether it shows the same degree or not.
- The ice cream tasted as good as I remembered
- It’s an attractive car but not so expensive as the ford
mustang
- Preventing conflicts is not the same as avoiding
conflicts.
- He is older than he looks
 - The project turned out to be more complicated than I
expected

Strategies:
1. Avoid using because of or due to in introducing an adverb clause
of reason
Example:
- I’m not vegetarian since (not due to) I love meat
- The manager dismissed Mary, because (not because of)
she was very lazy

2. Don’t misuse because and because of. Because is followed by a

clause, while because of followed by a phrase
Example:
- Travis didn’t continue studies at college because he
thinks it is a waste of time
- My computer monitor was broken because of the
lightning strike

3. Do not confuse in spite of with despite (without of) to begin a

phrase
4. Make sure that the auxiliary verbs in the main clause and the
adverb clause are parallel
Example:
- The reason people find it so hard to be happy is that
they always see the past better than it was, the present
worse than it is, and the future less resolved than it will
be
- Property in Guangzhou isn’t as expensive as that in
Hong Kong

3. Noun clause, a dependent clause that functions to substitute a

 noun in the main clause. The noun clause is introduced by an
introductory word (IW)
- IW from statements: that, what
- IW from yes/no questions: whether, if
- IW from WH questions: what, where, which, whose, why,
when, how, who

The noun clause has functions as:

- Subject
Example:
That peter didn’t do his homework is usual
What Jackson decided made his parents proud of him

- Subject complement (coming after a linking verb)

Example:
The truth is that Bob actually gets a very small living
allowance to study abroad

- Object of a verb
Example:
We don’t know that the event will be outdoors

- Object of a preposition
Example:
Rasyid frowns at whoever waves at him

- Appositive
Example:
Your problem, which major you must take, should be discussed
with your academic counselor