Sentence

English Grammatical Terminology

 a meaningful sound or combination of sounds
Words that is a unit of language or its representation
in a text.

a group of words that has a complete and

Sentence independent thought.

a group of related sentences that

Paragraph expresses one single idea or main topic.
Sentence
A group of words that has a complete and independent thought and has a
subject and a predicate. Also, it is always composed of at least one independent clause.
A. Subject
The subject is the doer of the action or the one being talked about in the sentence.
All subjects are either nouns, pronouns, gerunds, infinitives, or clauses and are placed before or after
the verb.
example: Jane went home late.
(doer of the action)

Myla is the smartest student in our class.

(one being talked about)
A. Subject
Complete Subjects
a noun, a pronoun, or a group of words which is the doer of the one or being talked about in
the sentence. It may include modifiers.

Simple Subjects
is the important noun, pronoun or group of words that cannot be taken out of the complete
subject.
A. Subject
example: The new instructor taught English to foreign
students from China.

Complete Subject: The new instructor

Simple Subject: instructor
A. Subject
Compound Subjects
composed of two or more subjects that have the same verb. The subjects are joined by the
coordinating conjunction and or or.
example: Martha and her young daughter left the house early.

Martha and her young daughter

(Complete Compound Subject)

Martha, daughter
(Simple Compound Subject)
A. Subject
Other kinds of subjects:
a. Dummy Subject the subject with no concrete reference or non-referential body.
ex. It is raining hard outside.
It is dark inside the room.
b. Hidden Subject the subject before the verb in imperative sentence.
ex. Keep up the good work! (You)
Please, pass the salt. (You)
In which of the following sentences the use of 'it' cannot be regarded as non-
referential? 2016-abt

A) It is about 100 miles to Boston.

B) It is never crowded at the Pontiac Hotel.

C) The last time I saw the newspaper, it was in the living room.

D) It gets a little noisy, especially when everyone is warming up.

E) It was a very blustery autumn day.

B. Predicate
- it is the information about the subject.
- composed of a group of words that states what the subject does or is.
Example: Jane went home late. (what the subject does)
Myla is the smartest student in our class. (what the subject is)
B. Predicate
Complete Predicate
is the verb or verb phrase, as well as any modified and/or complements that tell what the
subject does or is.

Simple Predicate
the important verb/verb phrase in the sentence that cannot be taken out of the complete
predicate.
B. Predicate

example: My teacher gave us a quiz on grammar and reading comprehension.

Complete Predicate: gave us a quiz on grammar and reading comprehension.

Simple Predicate: gave

B. Predicate
Compound Predicate
composed of two or more verbs that have the same subject. The verbs are joined by a
coordinating conjunction.
example: Martha left the house early but arrived late for work.

left the house early but arrived late for work

(Complete Predicate)

left, arrived
(Simple Predicate)
 Elliptical
A word or group of words that do not express but point to a subject or predicate or both, but the
thought is complete if it is in relation with the previous statement.
Example:
1. Who called? Marta. (predicate)
[ Marta called. ]

2. What did you do? Asked her to come in. (subject)

[ I asked her to come in ]

3. What did she want? Tickets for the concert. (s&p)

[ She wanted tickets for the concert ]
Exercise
Identify the simple and complete subject and predicate.
1. The participants left early this morning.
2. Tokyo is the capital of Japan.
3. The city was designed to include many beautiful parks.
4. The boxer gave his final blow.
5. Her harsh remarks annoyed everyone.
Exercise
6. The missionaries have returned home safely.
7. In the exhibit were several paintings by some amateur artists.
8. At the end of the line stood my brother.
9. Do you like green mangoes?
10. Is your mother coming today?
Complements
Complement
This is a word or group of words in a sentence that completes a thought that has been
partially formed by the subject and its verb.
They could do one of two things:
a. receive the action of the verb.
b. follow a linking verb and refer back to the subject.
A. Complements / Action Verb
Direct Object
the direct object is not the subject of the sentence but the noun or pronoun receiving the
action. It answers the questions Whom or What after the action verb.
examples: Jane made a cake for her sister.
Mrs. Pots cleaned the living room.
The young boy called his mother at the office.
My youngest sister admires Daniel Radcliffe.
Exercise
Find the direct object in each sentence.
1. The janitor was given a better position because of his character.
2. The orchestra played five classical pieces.
3. He encountered a formidable foe.
4. The concerned student filled a formal protest.
5. She wrote a letter of apology.
A. Complements / Action Verb
Indirect Object
this acts as a noun and does not receive the action but indicates for whom or to whom
something is done. Ask for/to whom or for/to what after the action verb.
examples: Jane made her sister a cake.
Chariz gave her a box of chocolate.
Krichelle threw Jack the flower bouquet.
The you boy taught his dog new tricks.
Exercise
Find the direct object and indirect object in each sentence.
1. Mother hid the matches in the drawer.
2. The child found the matches and started a bonfire in the living room.
3. The fireman gave the boy a bucket of water.
4. As the flames leapt higher, the boy threw himself on the ground and cried.
5. Later, the mother bought him a new toy fire truck and then told him the story of Prometheus.
A. Complements w/ Action Verb
Objective Complement
it is an adjective or noun that appears with a direct object and describes or renames it. It
can only be found in a sentence that has a direct object. (v+do, then ask what?)
examples: I consider Froi my best friend.
The principal appointed Ms. Santos Prefect of Students.
Exercise
Find the objective complement in each sentence.
1. Sansa calls her parrot Snow.
2. A simple greeting made my mom happy.
3. They elected Laurente president of the Student Supreme Council.
4. The Chinese considered Confucius a great man.
5. The ambitious employee appointed himself chairman of the board.
B. Subject Complements
These are nouns, pronouns or adjectives that appears with a linking verb and tells something
about the subject of the sentence.
There are two kinds of subject complements found in a sentence after the linking verb:
predicate nominative and predicate adjective.
Note: What are linking verbs (copula)? Copular / linking verbs: to be (In all its forms, e.g., am, is, are,
was, were, will be, was being, has been.) / to appear / to be / to become / to feel / to look / to seem
/ to smell / to sound / to taste
B. Subject Complements
Predicate Nominative
it is the noun or the pronoun that appears with a linking verb and renames, identifies, or
explains the subject of the sentence.
example: A good dictionary is a valuable tool for
assignments.
Shyla is a great chef.
Socrates was a famous philosopher.
B. Subject Complements
Predicate Adjective
it is an adjective that appears with a linking verb and describes the subject of the sentence.
example: The violin solo sounded mournful but beautiful.
Illuminated manuscripts are rare and valuable.
The young boy looks smart.
Exercise
Identify the Predicate Nominative and Predicate Adjective
1. Cassandras family became rich overnight.
2. Judes favorite sport is basketball.
3. Mothers voice sounded sad.
4. A pit viper is a poisonous snake.
5. The beef stew tastes delicious.
6. Porcupines are slow moving creatures.
Parts of Speech
Three little words you often see
Are ARTICLES: a, an, and the.
A NOUN's the name of anything,
As: school or garden, toy, or swing.
ADJECTIVES tell the kind of noun,
As: great, small, pretty, white, or brown.
VERBS tell of something being done:
To read, write, count, sing, jump, or run.
How things are done the ADVERBS tell,
As: slowly, quickly, badly, well.
CONJUNCTIONS join the words together,
As: men and women, wind or weather.
The PREPOSITION stands before
A noun as: in or through a door.
The INTERJECTION shows surprise
As: Oh, how pretty! Ah! how wise!
The whole are called the PARTS of
SPEECH,
Which reading, writing, speaking teach.
Determiners articles (art) - (an, a, the);
(Det) possessive nouns (PossN)(Joe's, the priest's, my
mother's);
possessive pronouns (PossPro), (his, your,
their, whose.);
numbers (N) (one, two, etc.);
indefinite pronouns (IndefPro) (few, more,
each, every, either, all, both, some, any, etc.);
demonstrative pronouns (DemonsPro) (this,
that, these, those, such).
Indefinite Pronouns - Quantifiers
Countable Nouns Non-countable Countable & Non-
Nouns countable Nouns
many trees not much dancing all of the trees/dancing
a few trees a little dancing some trees/dancing
few trees little dancing most of the
several trees a bit of dancing trees/dancing
a couple of trees a good deal of dancing enough trees/dancing
none of the trees a great deal of dancing a lot of trees/dancing
no dancing lots of trees/dancing
plenty of trees/dancing
a lack of trees/dancing
In the early 1980s, the world was introduced to the
personal computer and it soon became a familiar
household item. (abt 2016)

Which of the following word-classes does not appear

in the sentence?

A) Preposition
B) Adjective
C) Determiner
D) Possessive pronoun
E) Adverb
Some practical Notes
First and subsequent reference: When we first refer to something in written
text, we often use an indefinite article to modify it.
A newspaper has an obligation to seek out and tell the truth.
In a subsequent reference to this newspaper, however, we will use the definite
article:
There are situations, however, when the newspaper must
determine whether the public's safety is jeopardized by
knowing the truth.
 Generic reference: We can refer to something in a generic
way by using any of the three articles. We can do the same
thing by omitting the article altogether.
A beagle makes a great hunting dog and family companion.
An airedale is sometimes a rather skittish animal.
The golden retriever is a marvelous pet for children.
Irish setters are not the highly intelligent animals they used
to be.
 Proper nouns: We use the definite article with certain kinds of
proper nouns:
Geographical places: the Sound, the Sea of Japan, the Mississippi,
the West, the Smokies, the Sahara (but often not when the main
part of the proper noun seems to be modified by an earlier
attributive noun or adjective: We went swimming at the Ocean
Park)
Pluralized names (geographic, family, teams): the Netherlands, the
Bahamas, the Hamptons, the Johnsons, the New England Patriots
Public institutions/facilities/groups: the Wadsworth Atheneum, the
Sheraton, the House, the Presbyterian Church
Newspapers: the Hartford Courant, the Times
Nouns followed by a prepositional phrase beginning with "of": the
leader of the gang, the president of our club
 Zero articles:
Several kinds of nouns never use articles. We do not use articles
with the names of languages ("He was learning Chinese." [But
when the word Chinese refers to the people, the definite article
might come into play: "The Chinese are hoping to get the next
Olympics."]),
names of sports ("She plays badminton and basketball."),
academic subjects ("She's taking economics and math. Her
major is Religious Studies.")
In which of the following sentences is the definite article the
misused? (2013 abt)

A)The extreme volumes of car emissions produced in developing

countries can be a leading factor in overall environmental
pollution.
B)With screaming hooligans, the stadium was a place of total
chaos.
C)People from the Maldives are used to travelling long hours to
get anywhere.
D)The men approach conflict differently in comparison to their
opposite gender.
E)The White House is a monumental building worth seeing in
Washington D.C.
Noun
This part of a speech refers to words that are used to name persons, things, animals, places, ideas, or
events.
Proper proper nouns always start with a capital letter and refers to specific names of persons,
places, or things.
Examples: Volkswagen Beetle, Shakeys Pizza, Game of Thrones
Common common nouns are the opposite of proper nouns. These are just generic names of
persons, things, or places.
Examples: car, pizza parlor, TV series
Concrete this kind refers to nouns which you can perceive through your five senses.
Examples: folder, sand, board
Abstract- unlike concrete nouns, abstract nouns are those which you cant perceive through your five
senses.
Examples: happiness, grudge, bravery
Count it refers to anything that is countable, and has a singular and plural form.
Examples: kitten, video, ball
Mass this is the opposite of count nouns. Mass nouns are also called non-countable nouns, and they
need to have counters to quantify them.
Examples of Counters: kilo, cup, meter
Examples of Mass Nouns: rice, flour, garter
Collective refers to a group of persons, animals, or things.
Example: faculty (group of teachers), class (group of students), pride (group of lions)
Which of the following sentences does not contain a
collective noun? (abt 2013)

A) The target audience for the advertisement was

mainly teenagers.
B) All the local clergy were asked to attend the
ceremony.
C) The family has decided to move to another city.
D) Measles causes fever and small red spots that cover
the whole body.
E) The Government has been considering further tax
cuts.
Adjective premodifiers

a nice day my new armchair

a very happy life that big, black umbrella

Nouns acting as premodifiers

two 18th-century solid

a university education
silver cups

a fur coat the post-war economy

Noun phrases: complements

pre-
head complement type
head

prepositional
a Rise in inflation
phrase

prepositional
a feeling of fear and loneliness
phrase

the dea that schools should control their own finances clause

the Fact that the planet is getting warmer clause

Noun Phrases: Postmodifiers

pre-
head postmodifier type
head

an old cottage Nearby adverb phrase

a tall man with grey hair prepositional phrase

that
table she bought last year clause
antique

prepositional phrase (on my

on my desk that Philip left
the parcel desk) + clause (that Philip left
for you
for you)

prepositional phrase (in the

in the black dress talking
the woman black dress) + clause (talking
to Marcus
to Marcus)
determiner + premodifier + head + postmodifier

Which of the following phrases has the above structure?

(abt 2016)

A) A red car for boys

B) The beautifully dancing flag
C) Two-storey houses with a large balcony
D) Some relatively interesting ideas
E) Excellent books by the same author
The Different Types of Pronouns
Demonstrative Pronouns
These pronouns are used to demonstrate (or
indicate). This, that, these and those are all
demonstrative pronouns.
Indefinite Pronouns
They are used for non-specific things. This is
the largest group of pronouns. All, some, any,
several, anyone, nobody, each, both, few,
either, none, one and no one are the most
common.
Interrogative Pronouns
These pronouns are used in questions. Who,
which, what, where and how are all interrogative
pronouns.
Personal Pronouns
The personal pronouns are I, you, he, she, it,
we, they.
Possessive Pronouns
Possessive pronouns are used to show
possession. As they are used as adjectives,
they are also known as possessive adjectives.
My, your, his, her, its, our and their are all
possessive pronouns.
Object Pronouns
The pronouns following the verbs. Me, you, him,
her, them, us, it are included in this category.
Relative Pronouns
Relative pronouns are used to add more
information to a sentence. Which, that, who
(including whom and whose) and where are all
relative pronouns.
Absolute Possessive Pronouns
These pronouns also show possession. Unlike
possessive pronouns (see above), which are
adjectives to nouns, these pronouns sit by
themselves. Mine, yours, his, hers, ours and
theirs are all absolute possessive pronouns.
Reciprocal Pronouns
Reciprocal pronouns are used for actions or
feelings that are reciprocated. The two most
common reciprocal pronouns are each other and
one another.
Reflexive Pronouns
A reflexive pronoun ends ...self or ...selves and
refers to another noun or pronoun in the
sentence (usually the subject of the sentence).
The reflexive pronouns are myself, yourself,
herself, himself, itself, ourselves, yourselves and
themselves.
Intensive (or Emphatic) Pronouns
An intensive pronoun (sometimes called an
emphatic pronoun) refers back to another noun
or pronoun in the sentence to emphasize it (e.g.,
to emphasize that it is the thing carrying out the
action).
In which of the following sentences is the underlined expression
misused?
(abt 2013)

A) The three sisters are devoted to one another.

B) The children had a fight and started to hit each other.
C) After ten years, Patrick and Ted were happy to see themselves
again.
D) Im not sure if Ill type my paper myself.
E) Hes lived by himself since his wife died.
I. Reflexive Pronoun
II. Relative Pronoun
III. Indefinite Pronoun
IV. Object Pronoun
V. Demonstrative Pronoun

People tend to deny their faults given that somebody warns them about faults, but if
they recognize their faults themselves, it is usually easier to accept them.
(abt 2015)

Which kinds of pronouns are used in the given sentence?

A) I-II-III
B) I-III-IV
C) II-III-V
D) II-IV-V
E) III-IV-V
Auxiliary Verbs and Lexical Verbs

An auxiliary verb determines the mood or tense of another verb in a phrase. In the sentence "It will
rain tonight," for example, the verb will "helps" the verb rain by pointing to the future. The primary
auxiliaries are the various forms of be, have, and do. The modal auxiliaries include can, could, may,
must, should, will, and would.

A lexical verb (also known as a full or main verb) is any verb in English that isn't an auxiliary verb: it
conveys a real meaning and doesn't depend on another verb: "It rained all night."

Dynamic Verbs and Stative Verbs

A dynamic verb indicates an action, process, or sensation: "I bought a new guitar."
A stative verb (such as be, have, know, like, own, and seem) describes a state, situation, or condition:
"Now I own a Gibson Explorer."

Finite Verbs and Nonfinite Verbs

A finite verb expresses tense and can occur on its own in a main clause: "She walked to school."
A nonfinite verb (an infinitive or participle) doesn't show a distinction in tense and can occur on its own
only in a dependent phrase or clause: "While walking to school, she spotted a bluejay."

Regular Verbs and Irregular Verbs

A regular verb (also known as a weak verb) forms its past tense and past participle by adding -d or -ed
(or in some cases -t) to the base form: "We finished the project."
An irregular verb (also known as a strong verb) doesn't form the past tense by adding -d or -ed: "Gus
ate the wrapper on his candy bar."

Transitive Verbs and Intransitive Verbs

A transitive verb is followed by a direct object: "She sells seashells."
An intransitive verb doesn't take a direct object: "She sat there quietly." (This distinction is especially
tricky because many verbs have both transitive and intransitive functions.)

Ditransitive Verbs and Ergative (Orator) Verbs

Ditransitive Verbs have double objects as direct and indirect ones. Common ditransitive verbs are:
give show award buy send

Ergative verbs are both transitive and intransitive

Common ergative verbs are: begin break change close drop crack dry end finish grow
A Causative verb is a verb used to indicate that some person or thing makes (or helps to make)
something happen. Examples of causative verbs include make, cause, allow, help, have, enable,
keep, hold, let, force, and require.

A Catenative verb is a verb that can link with other verbs to form a chain or series. Examples of
catenative verbs include ask, keep, promise, help, want, and seem.

In speech-act theory, a Performative verb is a verb that explicitly conveys the kind of speech act being
performedsuch as promise, invite, apologize, predict, vow, request, warn, insist, and forbid.

In speech-act theory, a mental-state verb is a verb with a meaning related to understanding,

discovering, planning, or deciding. Mental-state verbs refer to cognitive states that are generally
unavailable for outside evaluation.

A prepositional verb (Phrasal Verb) is an idiomatic expression that combines a verb and a preposition
to make a new verb with a distinct meaning. Some examples of prepositional verbs in English are care
for, long for, apply for, approve of, add to, resort to, result in, count on, and deal with.

An iterative is a verb or verb form indicating that an action is (or was) repeated. Also called
frequentative, habitual verb, iterative activity, and iterative aspect. In English grammar, several verbs
ending in -er (chatter, patter, stutter) and -le (babble, cackle, rattle) suggest repeated or habitual
action.

In English grammar, a reporting verb is a verb (such as say, tell, believe, reply, respond, ask) used to
indicate that discourse is being quoted or paraphrased. Also called a communication verb or
specifying verb.

In English grammar, the subjunctive is the mood of a verb expressing wishes, stipulating demands, or
making statements contrary to fact. The "present" subjunctive is the bare form of a verb (that is, a verb
with no ending). It does not show agreement with its subject. (Example: "I strongly recommend that he
retire.")
Performative utterances do not report anything that can be regarded as true
or false. If a person makes an utterance of this sort, we can say that he or she
is doing something rather than merely saying something. That is, the uttering
of the sentence is an action. In these sentences, the action is named by the
verb, which is called performative verb.

With reference to the given information, which of the following sentences does
not contain a performative verb? (abt 2016)

A) I promise to be there.
B) I warn you not to come any closer.
C) I suggest that you leave.
D) I order you to be quiet.
E) I see you can write well
Basic Sentence Structure
Simple Sentence
- Subject + Verb (S+V)
The simple sentence is composed of a single independent clause. It is consists of one or more
subjects or one or more verbs.
example:
a. The bird built a nest made of twigs and leaves for its young. (1S, 1V)
b. The actress cried and laughed at the same time. (1S, 2V)
C. Pam and Tony were given awards by the school principal. (2S, 1V)
Simple Sentence

- For a sentence to be classified as a simple sentence, it must have at least one subject and one
verb.
- It must have a complete thought.
- It is an independent clause.
Compound Sentence

- Independent Clause + Independent Clause (I+I)

- It has two or more independent clauses joined by a coordinating conjunction.
- Two or more simple sentences, when put together, can make up a compound sentence.
Compound Sentence
example:
a. She dictated, and I typed. (I+I)
[the coordinating conjunction and joins the two independent clauses]

b. The meal was expensive, but it was spoiled, so I threw it.

[the coordinating conjunction but and so join the three independent clauses.]

* For a sentence to be classified as a compound sentence it must have at least two independent clauses combined by a
coordinating conjunction.
Compound Sentence

Coordinating Conj Subordinating Conj

*FANBOYS after as though since until
for or although because so that when
and yet as before that where
nor so as if even though though whenever
but
as long as if till wherever

as soon as in order that unless while

Complex Sentence
- Independent Clause + Dependent Clause (I+D)
- It contains one independent clause (I) and one or more dependent clauses (D) joined by a
subordinating conjunction.
Example #1
[complex] He went abroad because he wanted to earn money.
[independent] He went abroad
[dependent] because he wanted to earn money.
Complex Sentence
Example #2
[complex] The school which was built ten years ago was already
renovated when I saw it.
[independent] The school was already renovated
[dependent] which was built the years ago
[dependent] when I saw it
Compound Complex Sentences
- Independent Clause + Independent Clause + Dependent Clause (I+I+D)
- This contains two or more independent clauses and one or more dependent clauses.
Example #1
[compound complex] We can talk about anything, and we will go
anywhere just as long as we are together.
[independent] We can talk about anything
[independent] we will go anywhere
[dependent] just as long as we are together.
Compound Complex Sentences
Example #2
[compound complex] When afternoon comes, most employees chat in
the Internet and write e-mail, but others prefer
to eat their snack.
[dependent] When afternoon comes
[independent] most employees chat in the Internet and write e-mail.
[independent] others prefer to eat their snacks.
Compound Complex Sentences
Example #3
[compound complex] The school, which was built ten years ago, was
vey popular, yet I saw it torn down.
[independent] The school was very popular
[dependent] which was built ten years ago
[independent] I saw it torn down.
Compound Complex Sentences
Example #4
[compound complex] I danced while he sang, but they won because
also played the piano.
[independent] The school was very popular
[dependent] which was built ten years ago
[independent] I saw it torn down.
* Compound complex sentences must contain at least two independent clauses and one dependent
clause.