Transcript Introduction to Grammar The Sentence

Introduction to Grammar
The Sentence
•
All sentences must have the following:
1. Subject
2. Predicate
• All sentences must do the following:
1. Form a complete thought
2. Begin with capital letter and end with a
punctuation mark (. ? !)
The Subject
Definition: The subject is who or what the
sentence is about.
Ex. My best friend loves to swim.
He knows a lot about history.
The subject is not just the noun or pronoun!
The Predicate
Definition: Says or asks something about the
subject or tells the subject to do something.
Ex. My mom drove me to the store
August is the warmest month.
The predicate is not just the verb!
Phrases and Clauses
Phrase – Part of a sentence
without a subject and
predicate.
Clause – Part of a sentence
that contains a subject and
predicate.
Ex. After work, I drank a
glass of milk.
Ex. Although I quit my
job, I still have lots of
money.
More Clauses
• Dependent Clause
• Independent Clause
– cannot stand alone as a
sentence
– does not express a
complete thought
– could be a sentence by
itself
– expresses a complete
thought
Ex. When I went to Italy,
I lost my wallet.
Ex. When I went to Italy, I
lost my wallet.
Problems with Sentences
1. Run-on sentences
2. Comma splices
3. Fragments
Run-On Sentences
Definition: A run-on sentence contains two or
more independent clauses with no punctuation or
connector between them.
Ex. I like basketball it is the best sport ever my
best friend Tyler loves it too.
Three Solutions
Run-on sentences can be fixed in three ways
1. A period (.)
2. A semicolon (;) joins independent clauses
3. A comma plus a coordinating conjunction
–
FANBOYS: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so
The Comma Splice
DO NOT USE JUST A COMMA TO FIX A
RUN-ON SENTENCE!!!
This is a comma splice.
Ex. I like basketball, it is the best sport ever.
You can fix this three ways:
I like basketball. It is the best sport ever.
I like basketball; it is the best sport ever.
I like basketball, and it is the best sport ever.
Sentence Fragments
Fragments are posers! They are parts of sentences
pretending to be complete ones.
Examples:
To catch a thief. We must be vigilant at all
times.
I remember one thing about the Bulls. The three
point shot scored by John Paxton.