Grammar and Writing Study Guide for the CLT

Grammar: Sentence Structure

Effective communication through writing requires the use of clear, complete, and varied sentences. Sentence structure refers to the way in which sentence parts are arranged and how sentences are built. Clear word order, specific word choice, and appropriate punctuation aid in creating sentence structure that allows writers to more effectively deliver their message.

Complete Sentences

To be complete, a sentence must have a subject, verb, and express a complete thought. Just because a group of words ends with a period does not make it a complete sentence. The subject of a sentence may sometimes be implied rather than explicitly stated, but there should be some sense of who or what the sentence is about.

Complete sentences express a complete thought; those that don’t are considered sentence fragments or incomplete sentences. A sentence fragment cannot stand alone as a complete sentence because it is missing one of the three vital pieces: it does not have a subject (implied or explicit), a verb, or express a complete thought. Incomplete sentences are difficult to read because important information is missing.

If there are too many ideas or independent clauses joined together without proper punctuation, it is considered a run-on sentence, and the writer should consider where to break it up to create multiple sentences. Run-on sentences are confusing to read because there are too many ideas taking place in quick succession and the reader may have a hard time distinguishing between them.

Clauses

A clause is a group or unit of words that contains a subject and a verb. Clauses may be independent, in which case they can stand as their own as a complete sentence, or dependent, in which case they don’t express a complete thought and therefore cannot stand as their own complete sentence but must be joined to an independent clause to make meaning.

Independent

Independent clauses are clauses that contain all of the requirements of a complete sentence: a subject, verb, and expression of a complete thought. Clauses may be long or short, but it’s not the length of the clause that determines whether it’s independent or not—it’s whether it contains a subject, verb, and expresses a complete thought.

It is sunny today.

Do you know when the flight is scheduled to arrive?

The judge sentenced the defendant to 30 days in jail.

Bob sat.

Dependent (Subordinate)

Dependent clauses, as the name implies, are dependent upon other clauses to be considered complete sentences. They may contain a subject and a verb, but they cannot stand on their own as complete sentences and must be joined with an independent clause to create a complete sentence. Here are a few examples:

Before jumping in

When they approached the abandoned car

As he walked

Sentence Types

There are several different types of sentences and the mixed use of all of them leads to more engaging, varied writing. Think back to early board books you might have read as a young child. The sentences were all short and simple. That kind of sentence structure is appropriate for young readers, but as language skills grow, readers want to engage with more complex sentences. That’s why using a variety of the following sentence types is important in writing.

Simple

Simple sentences are the most basic type of sentence. They include just one independent clause—at least one subject, at least one verb, and expression of a complete thought. Because of their simplicity, simple sentences are a clear way to communicate specific information. They can also be used to add emphasis and get the audience’s attention.

The dogs barked.

I apologize.

Ian and John jogged.

While simple sentences are often short, as seen in the examples above, they may be longer than expected if they include multiple modifiers. Here’s an example:

My elderly grandmother gifted me a hideous, hand-knit hat complete with lopsided floppy ear flaps on each side.

Complex

A complex sentence is a step up from a simple sentence as it joins an independent clause with a dependent clause. Since dependent clauses rely on a connection with an independent clause, this is the way to include them in your writing. Complex sentences contain one independent clause and one or more subordinate clauses, which can be located anywhere within the sentence.

Since it was raining, we postponed the start of the race.

Mom ordered pizza delivery for dinner because our oven is broken.

After Xavier ate his third helping of pie, he began to feel ill.

Where was the dog when the burglars broke into the house?

Compound

Compound sentences join together two or more independent clauses. They are good for uniting related ideas when using simple sentences back to back would make the writing sound choppy. However, the trick to writing compound sentences is to remember that a comma alone is not strong enough to join two independent clauses without the help of a coordinating conjunction. Alternatively, a semicolon can be used to join two independent clauses to create a compound sentence. An example of each is below.

The train was late, but we still got to work on time.

Chef Tristan’s new appetizer received rave reviews; however, its popularity caused it to sell out quickly.

Compound-Complex

Compound-complex sentences are a blend of compound and complex sentences. These sentences are composed of two or more independent clauses and one or more dependent clauses. These are the longest type of sentence because they are made up of so many different clauses, so it’s important to pay attention to their punctuation and use commas correctly, such as in these examples:

Raul forgot to leave the door unlocked, so Marta had to ring the doorbell when she arrived at 3 a.m., which woke up everyone in the house.

Since it’s going to be a long flight, I suggest you pack some snacks and make sure your laptop is fully charged.

Connecting Clauses

Connecting clauses allow a writer to create varied sentence lengths to help keep the reader engaged with the text. Varied sentence lengths keep writing from sounding boring and monotonous. Not all clauses can be joined the same way, however.

To join two independent clauses, a comma and a coordinating conjunction must be used. Coordinating conjunctions can be remembered using the FANBOYS acronym: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so.

We played games at the party, but I lost.

It was starting to rain, so I grabbed an umbrella.

Independent clauses may also be connected by using a semicolon. Semicolons indicate a strong connection between the ideas presented in the two clauses.

Nate was exhausted after staying up last night to write his final paper; he decided to go to bed early tonight.

Amal is allergic to wheat; she avoids all baked goods.

To connect a dependent clause with an independent clause, a comma and/or a subordinating conjunction is used.

If the dependent clause starts the sentence, set it off with a comma.

Since it was a nice day, we decided to have a picnic in the park.

When you leave, please make sure the door is locked.

If the dependent clause comes after the independent clause, no comma is used either before or after the subordinating conjunction.

Tom took out the trash before his mom asked him to.

Let’s talk after the swim meet.

If the dependent clause begins with a relative pronoun (who, whom, which, that, whose, whomever, whoever) and contains critical information that identifies the noun and pronoun that precede it, no commas are used. If the dependent clause starts with a relative pronoun and just provides additional information, it may be separated by commas.

People who buy classic cars must be able to afford them.

Elena’s boyfriend, who is a successful banker, owns four classic cars.

Word Order

Effective sentence structure also happens as a result of clear and logical word order. Word order refers to the organization or sequence of the words in a sentence. If you’ve ever read a sentence and something didn’t quite sound right, it may have been because the words were presented in an awkward or unclear way. In most sentences, the subject comes first, then the verb, and then the object, but as sentences become more complex and writers play with the language structure of their sentences, that order may change.

Generally speaking, our brains like it when related words and ideas are close together in a sentence. So if you add adjectives to a sentence, it is important to put them near the noun they are modifying or describing. In English, adjectives usually come before the noun being described.

Mary’s blue sweater is in the closet.

Jovanni’s large, red SUV is blocking part of the driveway.

When using multiple adjectives to describe a noun, the order those adjectives come in matters, too. Although most people couldn’t necessarily identify this order, our brains and our ears identify something as “off” in a sentence if adjectives aren’t presented as: determiner, opinion, size, age, shape, color, origin, material, type, and purpose. Though you aren’t likely to include sentences with all those different types of adjectives, those you do include should be sequenced in that order. Consider the next two sentences—which one “sounds” better as you read it?

Marco ordered a spicy, large, delicious, four-topping pizza.

Marco ordered a large, spicy, four-topping, delicious pizza.

The second sentence should seem more “smooth” as you read it because the adjectives follow the general order our brains prefer.

Like adjectives, adverbs want to be located as close as possible to the word they modify. Because adverbs are flexible and can be used to modify verbs, adjectives, or even other adverbs, their placement is especially important to avoid confusion. When an adverb is misplaced, it can change the meaning of a sentence entirely. Consider the different meanings of these two sentences:

Only Pierre was asked to represent the company. (Only Pierre was selected, no one else.)

Pierre was only asked to represent the company. (Pierre may have overstepped his role as he was only asked to do one thing.)

Prepositions usually come before the noun they’re modifying. Since prepositions indicate the relationship between two words or phrases in a sentence, it’s important to put them in the right spot.

The book is on the shelf.

The milk is in the refrigerator.

Our field trip to the zoo has been cancelled.

The mailman is at the door.

It’s also important to put direct and indirect objects in the correct place in a sentence so it’s clear who or what is doing or receiving the action of the sentence. Usually, sentences are structured as subject + verb + indirect object + direct object.

Jamil caught the ball Paco hit.

Mary slipped him a note.

In constructing sentences, make sure that there are no double negatives like those in the following two examples:

He does not have no one to look after him.

She hasn’t never been on a train.

Rearranging Sentence Parts

Sometimes it is necessary to rearrange sentence parts to increase the clarity or to help produce a variety of sentence styles within a text to make the writing more interesting. Looking for misplaced modifiers, incorrect or missing punctuation, and dependent clauses trying to stand as their own sentences will help clarify writing. Moving sentence parts around can create emphasis, adjust the focus, and create interesting variety within a text. Rearranging sentence parts can help communicate ideas more clearly to the reader.