Grammar Boot Camp

Sentence Variety:

Sentence Types and Patterns

Adapted from http://www.delmar.edu/engl/wrtctr

Your Mission:

To Study Sentence Types To Study Sentence Patterns To Write with Varied Syntax

Phrases/ Clauses

Phrase: Group of related words, missing a subject and/or verb

Clause: Group of words containing both a subject and a verb Independent Clause: Stands Alone Dependent Clause: Does NOT Stand Alone

Also known as Subordinate Clause Usually has a subordinating conjunction

Common Subordinating Conjunctions

Before After

When Although While Because If That Since

B

A

W

A

W

B

I

T

S

Relative pronouns

A relative pronoun "relates" a dependent clause to the rest of the sentence. It functions as a “subject.”

A relative pronoun is found only in sentences with more than one clause. A sentence starting w/ a relative pronoun cannot stand alone.

In modern English there are five relative pronouns: that, which, who, whom, and whose.

Relative Pronoun Examples

He who laughs last laughs best. The dog that ate my homework was really

mean. He started the Daily Show, which was the first

news show of its kind.

Phrase/ Clause Practice

Identify the following as phrases, dependent clauses, or independent clauses.

1. In the middle of the room.

2. When the girl ate breakfast.

3. She loves puppies.

4. Because he ate play-dough.

5. He threw up.

P

DCIC

DCIC

Overview

Patterns of independent and dependent clauses create 4 types of sentences

Four Sentence Types: 1. Simple Sentence (1 IC)

2. Compound Sentence (2 ICs)

3. Complex Sentence (1 IC, 1 DC)

4. Compound/Complex Sentence (2 ICs, 1 DC)

Simple Sentence

Pattern: IC.

Don’t get confused by phrases. A simple sentence can have many phrases.

Don’t get confused by conjunctions. If they aren’t adding two full independent clauses together, you still have a simple sentence.

Examples

Examples:

1. The brown dog is named Charlie.

2. The brown dog with the red collar always barks loudly.

3. Charlie barked and growled loudly. 4. The tall, good-looking boy with the curly

blond hair laughed uproariously at his best friend’s suggestion.

Compound Sentences (2 ICs)

Three Types of

Compound

Sentences

A:

Joined with

FANBOYS

B:

Joined with ;

C:

Joined with ; and

Conjunctive adverb

Compound Sentence : a

Pattern:IC , for IC.and

nor

but Coordinating Conjunctions

or

yet

so

Example: Charlie barks at nothing, and my mom goes crazy.

FANBOYS!

Compound Sentence: A

More examples…

1. My mom didn’t want Charlie, but my sister convinced her.

2. My sister is in Chicago, so my mom is left to take care of him by herself.

3. My mom claims she can’t wait to get rid of him, but she secretly loves him.

Compound Sentence : B

Pattern: IC; IC.

Example: I went to the store; I bought some milk.

Compound Sentence : c

Pattern:IC ; therefore , IC.however

moreover Conjunctive Adverbs

furthermore

Example: I would love to have a cat; however, I know I don’t have time to take care of it.

Easy Identification…

Look for the FANBOYS! Where does the comma

go?

Complex Sentences (DC + IC)

2 Types of Complex

Sentences

A:

DC, IC

B:

IC DC

Complex Sentence : a

Pattern:DC, IC.

Example: When my cat Blacky died,

I was very upset.

Complex Sentence : b

Pattern:IC DC.

Example: I like cats better than dogs because they are more independent.

Easy Identification…

Look for the BA WAWBITS!

Where does the comma go?

Compound-Complex Sentences

3 Types of

Compound-Complex

Sentences

A:

IC, IC DC

B:

IC DC, IC

C:

DC, IC, IC

Compound/Complex Sentence : aPattern:IC , for IC DC.

and

nor

but Coordinating Conjunctions

or

yet

so

Example: We decided that the movie was too violent, but our children, who like to watch scary movies, thought that we were wrong.

Compound/Complex Sentence : b

Pattern:IC DC , for IC.and

nor

but Coordinating Conjunctions or

yet

so

Example: Here is the money that I owe you, and I am happy to be free of debt.

Compound/Complex Sentence : c

Pattern:DC, IC , for IC.and

nor

but Coordinating Conjunctions or

yet

so

Example: Although I like to go camping, I haven't had the time to go lately, and I haven't found anyone to go with.

Easy Identification…

Look for BOTH a FANBOYS and a BA WAWBITS!

Now It’s Your Turn:

Identify the sentence type (simple, compound, complex, compound/complex) for each item below:

1. I was scared when my cat ran away.2. Charlie can be very difficult, but I still love

him because he is so cute.3. Charlie got away from his leash one day, but

he didn’t even try to run away.4. I am happy that my mom has to take care of

him.

Answer key:

1. Complex2. Compound-Complex3. Compound4. Complex

How well do you understand?

Congratulations!

You are now a master of the four grammatical sentence types!