Académique Documents
Professionnel Documents
Culture Documents
Semester one
2007- 2008
Sentence constructions
I- Phrases :
A phrase is a group of words which contains neither a subject nor
a verb. (It may, however, contain a verbal form such as an infinitive, a
participle or a gerund).
They are considered as the second level of classification as they tend to
be larger than individual words, but are smaller than sentences.
There are nine generally accepted classifications for phrases.
1- Noun phrases:
They may serve as subjects, direct objects, indirect objects, or objects of
prepositions.
Example: My coach is happy (noun phrase as subject).
2- Verb phrases:
They are composed of the verbs of the sentence and any
modifiers of the verbs, including adverb, prepositional phrases or
objects. Most verb phrases function as predicates of sentences.
Example: Henry made my coach very proud.( Predicate verb phrase)
3- Adjectival phrases:
They are composed of the adjectives that modify a noun and any
adverbs or other elements that modify those adjectives. They always
occur inside noun phrases or as predicate adjectives.
Example: Dad bought a blue and green sweater.
4- Adverbial phrases:
They are composed of the adverbs that modify verbs, adjectives,
or clauses. Adverbial phrases may occur with more than one word. The
extra adverb is called an intensifier.
Example: He scored the goal very quickly.
5- Prepositional phrases:
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They are composed of the preposition and a following noun
phrase. They are used either adjectivally to modify nouns or adverbially
to modify verbs, adjectives, or clauses.
Examples:
- The man in the house rented it. (prepositional phrase, modifies a
noun adjectivally)
- He went in the arena. (prepositional phrase, modifies a verb
adverbially)
- Dad was happy about the goal. (prepositional phrase, modifies
an adjective adverbially)
- On reflection, I believe that she was correct. (prepositional
phrase, modifies a clause adverbially)
6- Gerundive phrases:
They may function in any way in which nouns may function:
subject, object, object of a preposition, or even nouns functioning as
adjectives.
Gerundive phrases may contain gerunds, adjectives, objects, adverbs, or
other main verb elements.
Example: Dad talked about winning the game.
7- Participial phrases:
They begin with a participle. Participles are adjectives formed
from verbs. They come in two tenses: present and past.
Present participle: an ing word like : singing, analyzing, sharpening…
Past participle: usually an ed word like: believed, analyzed, but
sometimes an irregular form like written, sung, lost, wept, frozen….
Example: Racing around the corner, he slipped and fell.
8- Absolute phrases:
They are composed of a subject noun phrase and a participial
phrase. The absolute phrase is formally independent of the main clause.
The subject of the absolute phrase does not have to appear in the main
clause because the absolute phrase has its own subject.
Example: (My chores)( completed for the week), I went on a walk.
9- Infinitive phrases:
They consist of an infinitive (to dance, to fly…) plus an object.
They perform three functions: nouns, adjectives, adverbs.
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Examples:
- My duty as a coach is to teach skills. (as a noun)
- My sister wanted a cat to love. (adjective)
- Bill is eager to work on his skating. (infinitive phrase, functions
adverbially, modifying an adjective)
II-Clauses:
A clause is a group of related words containing at least a subject
and a verb (the baby ate), and frequently it may contain a complement as
well (the baby ate the gold fish)
There are two kinds of clauses: Independent and dependent.
Independent clauses:
An independent clause can stand alone.
Example: I shall haunt you till your dying day.
It may, however, become part of a larger sentence if it is connected to
other clauses and phrases by a semicolon, or by a coordinating
conjunction.
Examples: - I shall haunt you till your dying day; I shall haunt your
friends and relations after that.
-I shall haunt you till your dying day, and I shall haunt your friends and
relations after that.
Dependent clauses:
A dependent clause has a subject and a verb, and looks exactly
like an independent clause except for one small thing: it is introduced by
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either a relative pronoun or a subordinating conjunction, which makes
the clause grammatically ”dependent” on the rest of the sentence.
Example: If you are very sweet to me, I’ll let you see my collection of
cars.
Relative pronouns:
They include who, whom, which, that, what, whoever,
whatever, and whichever. They relate the material in the clause to an
antecedent that appears elsewhere in the sentence.
Example: In the sentence “the bag of potato chips that I ate, the “that”
introducing the clause relates back to “bag of potato chips”.
Subordinating conjunctions:
They are best classified according to the relationship they express
between clauses:
Time: before, after, when, until, while, as soon as, as long as.
Place: when, whenever.
Purpose: so that, in order that, so.
Cause: because, since.
Condition: if, unless, provided that, except.
Contrast: although, though, even though, despite, in spite of.
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Anastasia, who has started to go bald, was passing out deviled eggs
and cocktail franks to the refugees.(modifies Anastasia, but you do not
need the clause to know which Anastasia)
Sentences:
1- Simple sentences:
They contain one independent clause.
Example: Mary went to the store.
2- Compound sentences:
They are constructed using two independent clauses joined in one of two
ways:
-a comma and coordinating conjunction:
Examples:
-Fred hit the ball well, but he only walked to first base.
- Computer technologies are more sophisticated and today’s technicians
are better trained.
-a semicolon:
Example:
Mary went to the store; she bought some bread.
3- Complex sentences:
They are constructed using an independent sentence and a
dependent or subordinate clause.
Example:
The motion, which the commons narrowly passed, was defeated by the
senate. (adjective clause introduced by a relative pronoun)
4- Compound complex:
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They are constructed using two independent sentences or clauses
and a dependent clause.
Example:
When the jets fly by, the windows rattle noisily and the whole house
shakes.
EXERCISES
Exercise one:
Read the sentences carefully then identify the function of the dependent
clause.
Exercise two:
Choose the appropriate answer and justify your choice.
1- The doctor told Charlie to lose weight and exercise vigorously for
forty- five minutes a day.
a- this sentence has two independent clauses.
b- this sentence has no independent clause.
c- this sentence has one independent clause.
2- The doctor was worried that Charlie was putting on too much
weight.
a- the underlined section is an independent clause.
b- the independent clause is “the doctor was worried”.
c- this sentence has no independent clause.
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3- Charlie has a hard time sticking to diet; he really loves rich, sweet
desserts.
a- this sentence has two independent clauses.
b- this sentence has one independent clause.
c- this sentence has no independent clauses.
-Phrases:
ExerciseThree:
Combine each group of sentences by using participial phrases.
Example: I lost six pounds this month. I swim four times a week.
- Swimming four times a week, I lost six pounds this
month.
1- The professor was frustrated by the puzzle. The puzzle was
spread before him.
2- Alice stumbled across the finish line. She won the race
3- The car careened around the corner. It skidded on two wheels.
4- The nurse gestured forcefully and spoke firmly. She took control.
5- The horse was overloaded with heavy packs. It collapsed. It
whinnied mournfully.
Exercise Four :
Write two sentences for each of the following words, using the word in a
gerund phrase and a participial phrase.
Example: Diving.
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- Diving from the ten meter board is thrilling. ( gerund
phrase).
- Diving beneath the surface, he saw a world of splendid
color. (participial phrase).
Exercise Eight:
Write sentences according to the following directions:
1- Write a simple declarative sentence that states a fact about your
work.
2- Write a compound sentence about a friend using the coordinating
conjunction “or”.
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3- Write an interrogative sentence directed to a politician.
4- Write a declarative compound complex sentence directed to a
parent.
5- Write an imperative sentence that gently directs a child.
Coordination – Subordination
I- Coordination- Subordination:
Coordination and subordination are two strategies for showing the
relationship between ideas in a sentence.
Coordination combines two ideas that are equally important.
Subordination combines two ideas in a way that makes one idea more
important than the other. The less important idea is -dependent on- or
subordinate to- the more important idea.
Both strategies use conjunctions to combine independent clauses into a
single sentence.
II- Coordination:
Coordination joins clauses that are equally important.
Coordination uses a comma plus one of the seven coordinating
conjunctions to join independent clauses.
Coordinating
conjunctions
for
and
nor
but
or
yet
so
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Conjunction Relationship Example
Excessive coordination:
Faulty coordination gives equal emphasis to unequal or unrelated
clauses.
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Example: Alice Adams has published four novels, and she lives in San
Francisco.(no connection is apparent between living in San Francisco
and publishing four novels). Depending on the writer’s purpose, one of
the ideas should be subordinated.
To avoid faulty coordination, we put part of the sentence in a dependent
clause , modifying phrase, or appositive phrase.
Example:
-Alice Adams, who lives in San Francisco, has published four
novels (dependent clause).
-Alice Adams, from San Francisco, has published four novels
(modifying phrase).
-Alice Adams, a San Francisco writer, has published four
novels. (appositive phrase).
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III- Subordination:
Subordination joins clauses that are unequal in importance.
Subordination uses conjunctions to make one clause dependent on
another. The dependent clause is subordinate to the independent clause.
Independent clause
Dependent clause
The list of subordinating conjunctions is long, but here are some of the
more common ones:
Examples:
After the final touchdown, the fans stormed out onto the field.
The fans stormed out onto the field after the final touchdown.
(depending on the order of clauses in the sentence, you can or not use a
comma)
Faulty/Excessive subordination:
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The lonesome trapper, who was a retired railroad man who lived in a
small cabin , enjoyed the rare occasions when a group of hikers
wandered by his place, which is inaccessible for most of the year.
To correct excessive subordination, break the sentence into two or more
sentences or change some of the dependent clauses to modifying phrases
or appositives.
- The lonesome trapper, a retired railroad man, lived in a
small cabin. Because his place was inaccessible for most
of the year, he enjoyed the rare occasions when a group of
hikers wandered by.
This paragraph contains a lot of information, but its style is horrible! The
sentences are choppy, and the relationships between ideas are not
explained.
Now study the revision below. The sentences in the paragraph have been
combined using coordination and subordination to make the sentences
flow more smoothly and to show relationships between ideas.
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Exercises
Exercise one:
Read the following sentences and decide whether the clauses have been
joined using coordination or subordination.
1- Although George. H. BUSH made a lot of money in the oil
industry, his greatest success was being elected to the United
States presidency.
2- Effective web pages use high contrast between text and
background so that readers can easily distinguish the words on
the page.
3- Heart transplants are performed by teams of highly trained
specialists, but the high risk procedure is not always effective.
Exercise two:
Read the sentences below and decide which of the 4 sentences uses
coordination to combine clauses into a single sentence.
1- The Welsh terrier is native to Wales and was bred specifically to
hunt foxes.
2- The Welsh Springer, a much larger dog, is also a hunter.
3- The Welsh is smaller than the terrier, and its name means “dwarf
dog”.
4- These dogs are favourites with farmers and hunters because of
the dogs’ ability to withstand extreme temperatures.
Exercise three:
Read the sentences below and decide which of the four sentences uses
subordination to combine clauses into a single clause.
1- The play Cyrano de Bergerac was written by Edmond Rostand, a
19th century French writer.
2- Cyrano, the play’s hero, has an uncommonly large nose.
3- Cyrano loves Roxanne, but Roxanne loves Christian, a more
handsome man.
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4- Cyrano speaks for Christian since Christian lacks the gift of
poetry.
Exercise four:
Read the sentences below and decide which sentence is correctly
punctuated.
1- Albert Einstein was a United States citizen when he died but he
was born German.
2- In 1900, he became a citizen of Switzerland where he studied
math and science.
3- When he joined the faculty at the university of Berlin he resumed
his German citizenship.
Exercise five:
Revise the following sentences by using coordination to combine them
into a single sentence. Be sure to punctuate correctly.
-Henry VIII ruled England for nearly forty years.
-He declared himself the supreme head of the English church.
Exercise six:
Revise the following sentences by using subordination to combine them
into a single sentence. Be sure to punctuate correctly.
- Henry VIII had six wives.
- He had only one male heir.
Exercise seven:
Choose the best method –coordination or subordination- to combine the
following pairs of sentences into single sentences. Be sure to punctuate
correctly.
-Americans are highly susceptible to peer pressure.
-We spend millions of dollars each year on cosmetic surgery.
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Exercise eight:
The sentences in the following paragraph are choppy, and the
relationship between ideas is unclear. Revise the paragraph by using
coordination and subordination to combine sentences.
Exercise nine:
Use the following conjunctions to write sentences of your own.
And, but, or, so, then, yet, not only… but also, either…or, neither…nor,
whether.
Exercise ten:
Revise the following sentences to correct faulty or excessive
coordination.
1- Eugene O’Neill was an American playwright, and he won a
Nobel Prize for literature in 1936.
2- O’Neill had an unhappy childhood, and he told the story of his
childhood in a play entitled A Long Day’s Journey into Night,
and he said it was “written in tears and blood”.
3- O’Neill’s daughter Oona married Charlie Chaplin, but she
married against her father’s will.
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4- One of O’Neill’s plays, The Iceman Cometh, is full of symbols
and hidden clues about its meaning, and it has probably been
written about more than any other American play.
5- Louis Shaeffer wrote a biography of O’Neill, and he spent
sixteen years researching and writing it, and his book won a
Pulitzer Prize.
Exercise eleven:
Revise the following sentences to achieve unity by way of effective
subordination.
1- Jean Henri Dunant was a citizen of Switzerland, and he felt
sorry for wounded Austrian soldiers in the Napoleonic wars;
therefore, he started an organization, and it was later named the
Red Cross.
2- Yesterday I was daydreaming, so I did not hear the Physics
assignments, but anyway I passed the test today.
3- First he selected a lancet and sterilized it , and then he gave his
patient anesthetic and lanced the infected part.
4- Father Latour was a friend’s horse, and he saw two horses, and
he induced the owner to part with them
5- I graduated from high school, and then I worked in a bank, and
so I earned enough money to go to college.
6- The president of the bank walked in his office promptly at nine,
anfd just then he saw the morning paper, and the headlines
startled him.
7- We had just reached the bend in the road, for we were on our way
home, and we saw a truckload of laborers crowded off the
highway by an oncoming bus.
8- The Spanish started the custom in America of branding cattle,
and the Mexicans kept it going, and Americans still brand cattle
to show ownership.
9- Daniel Fahrenheit made a thermometer, and he used mercury in
it; however, René Réaumur devised one too, but he used alcohol
instead of mercury.
10- A wife wears a ring on the third finger of the left hand, for a vein
runs from it to the heart, according to an old tale; therefore, the
ring symbolizes the giving of the heart with the hand.
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Exercise twelve:
Revise the following sentences as necessary to eliminate awkward or
illogical subordination.
1- Louise has had great success but which has not gone to her head.
2- Although David slept soundly, the deafening noise continued.
3- Mr. Dunbar is a good lawyer and who nearly always wins his
cases.
4- As soon as wa ate the turkey, Thanksgiving arrived.
5- My father is an electrician and whom his customers depend on.
6- Even though I will not cut the ragweed, I have hay fever.
7- Bruce found a lost hound and which needs a home.
Exercise thirteen:
Revise the following passage to achieve proper subordination.
I was walking down the street when I found a purse containing
fifty dollars . It was just noon. Thousands of people were on the streets. I
could not find the owner. I went into the neighboring stores, and I
inquired of the shopkeepers whether anyone had lost the money, and I
approached the policeman with the same question. No one could say
who had lost the money, and so I thought I was the rightful owner,
having found the purse myself. But my father did not approve my
keeping the purse . He asked me to advertise it. He said I might use the
daily paper. Next day I ran an advertisement in the paper, and now a
week has passed and I have had no answers, and so I think the money is
really mine.
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