MILLENNIUM HIGH SCHOOL

ENGLISH GRAMMAR
KINDS OF SENTENCES

Sentences may be classified according to the purpose of the speaker or writer. The
four principal purposes of a sentence are described below.
1. The declarative sentence or a statement is used to make a statement of fact,
wish, intent, or feeling. It gives information about something.
Ex:
I have seen that movie twice.
I wish I could go on the picnic.
Todays weather is very hot.
2. The interrogative sentence or a Question is used to ask for information. It is
followed by a question mark. (?)
Ex:
Do you have a sweater?
Are you having a bad day?
How are you today?
3. The imperative sentence is used to state a command, request, or direction. The
subject is always "You," even though it may not be expressed in the sentence.
Ex:
(You) Be on time for dinner.
(You) Open the window, please.
(You) Shut up.
4. An exclamatory sentence is used to express strong and sudden feelings. It is
followed by an exclamation point. (!)
Ex:
Don't burn yourself out! Keep out!
He screamed, Help!
What a pleasant surprise to see you here!
Structure of sentences:
In English language, the order of the words and their placement in a sentence is of
great importance. This is what we call as structure of sentences. Given below are the
structures of different sentences.
1. Positive statement:
subject + helping verb + main verb + object +

Ex:
The boy +
is + telling
+ a story.
The boy is telling a story.
2. Negative statement:
Subject
+ Helping Verb
+ not + Main Verb +
Object+
Ex:
The boy +
is + not + telling
+ a story.
The boy is not telling a story.
3. Positive Question: Helping Verb + Subject + Main Verb
+ Object + ?
Ex:
Is
+ the boy + telling + a story?
Is the boy telling a story?
4. Negative Question: Helping verb + subject + not + main verb + object+ ?
Ex:
Is
+ the boy + not + telling
+ a story?
Is the boy not telling a story?
Transform the following positive statements into negative statements,
positive and negative questions:
POSITIVE
STATEMENT

NEGATIVE
STATEMENT

POSITIVE
QUESTION

NEGATIVE QUESTION

I have seen that

film.
They
won
the
match.
She works hard.

I have not seen that

film.
They did not win the
match.
She does not work

Have I seen that

film?
Did they win the
match?
Does she work

Have I not seen that

film?
Did they not win the
match?
Does she not work

Fr. Mariya Vara Prasad J. SAC

MILLENNIUM HIGH SCHOOL

hard.

hard?

He is going to
Mumbai.
We were living in
that house.
The dog has caught
the cat.
I am talkative.

Is he going to
Mumbai?
Were we living in
that house?
Has
the
dog
caught the cat?
Am I talkative?

He is not going to
Mumbai.
We were not living in
that house.
The dog has not
caught the cat.
I am not talkative.

ENGLISH GRAMMAR
hard?
Is he not going to
Mumbai?
Were we not living in
that house?
Has the dog not
caught the cat?
Am I not talkative?

To write correct sentences, we need to be thorough with the Helping Verbs.

Helping verbs indicate the tense of the verb (time of action), the person of the subject
(person and number) and the voice (active or passive) of the sentence. The following
is a table of helping verbs that we use in different tenses.
PRESENT TENSE
I am, have, do
3rd person Singular is,
has, does
All plurals are, have, do

PAST TENSE
All singulars was, did,
had
All plurals were, did,
had

FUTURE TENSE
All subjects will/shall

In simple tenses, the verb forms will not have explicit helping verbs; the following are
those:
VERB
BREAK
EXAMPLE
FORM
UP
V1
do + V1
Keep = do + keep
Hear = do + hear
V1 (s/es)
does+ V1 Keeps = does + keep
Hears = does + hear
V2
did + V1
Kept = did + keep
Heard = did + hear
Identify the type of the following sentences:
1. I wish I could go to Colorado this summer. _____
2. Please set the table for lunch. _____
3. The vice-president will visit Egypt next week. _____
4. Don't you ever get tired of watching television? _____
5. We bought our car in April, 1975. _____
6. Didn't I meet you at Rainbow Lake last summer? _____
7. Have you ever roasted a turkey? _____
8. Ouch! I burned my finger! _____
9. Turn left at the second stop sign. _____
10. San Marino is the smallest republic in Europe. _____
11. Initial the top right-hand corner of each sheet of paper. _____
12. Richard Martin's short stories have appeared in many magazines. _____
13. Have you ever read The Red Badge of Courage? _____
14. You can't be serious! _____
15. Meet me at seven o'clock in front of the library. _____
16. Why are you so worried about the exam? _____
17. Don't close your mind to the other side of the question. _____
18. Nancy wants to be a doctor. _____
19. I can't believe it's all over! _____
2

Fr. Mariya Vara Prasad J. SAC

MILLENNIUM HIGH SCHOOL

20. Do you attend concerts
_______________

given

by

the

ENGLISH GRAMMAR
Chicago Symphony Orchestra?

Fr. Mariya Vara Prasad J. SAC