Effective Sentences
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Transcript Effective Sentences
Effective Sentences Objectives
What a sentence consists of
Word order
-Inverted
-Expletive
Simple, Compound, Complex, and
Compound-complex sentences
Modifiers
Parallelism
Verb Voice
Fragments
Effective Sentences
What does a sentence consist of?
Word Order In Independent
Clauses
Most of your sentences should follow
normal order.
Subject, Verb, subject compliment
( element needed to convey the main
message.)
Two types of Orders
- Inverted
- Expletive
Inverted Order
Used to: emphasize some element that
follows the verb or
Create an artistic effect or
Give subject an unusual emphasis.
Inverted order cont.
Most of your sentences should follow
normal order. It’s easier for readers to
digest.
Be careful when using inverted order.
You don’t want your sentence to sound
unnatural or confuse the reader.
Expletives
Fills a vacancy in a sentence without
contributing to the meaning.
Ex: “There” and “It”
Expletives are often used unnecessarily
Simple, Compound, Complex, and
Compound-Complex Sentences
Simple Sentences: has one subject and
one predicate.
Can also have compound subjects,
compound verbs, direct objects, indirect
objects, and subject compliments.
Most are short and easy to understand.
Compound Sentences Cont.
Other Coordinating conjunctions are:
-For example,
- However,
- In fact,
- likewise,
- meanwhile,
- Instead,
-like,
Compound Sentences
Contains 2 or more independent clauses,
each holding the same (coordinate rank.)
Result is the idea in the first clause receives
the same emphasis as the idea in the second.
Often use coordinating conjunctions.
A writer may use semicolons instead of a
connecting words.
Complex Sentences
Has one independent clause and one or
more dependent clauses.
Gives writer ability to emphasize a
particular idea while still providing
background information.
Compound Complex
Sentences
Has 2 or more independent clauses and
1 or more dependant clauses.
Allows writers to present more intricate
relationships than do other kinds of
sentences.
Positioning of Movable
Modifiers
Can appear on either side of the main
statement or with in it.
3 kinds of Modifiers:
- Modifiers after main statement
- Modifiers before main statement
- Modifiers with in main statement
Modifiers After main
Statement
Mirror conversation in which the
speaker fist makes a statement, and
then adds on further thoughts.
Modifiers Before Main
Statement
These types of sentences delay the
main point until the end.
They slow down the pace and adds
cadence to put more emphasis on the
main point.
Modifiers With In the Main
Statement
Inserting the modifier with in the main
statement breaks up the flow of the
sentence.
Using Parallelism
Presents equivalent ideas in
grammatically equivalent form.
Adds a smoothness and polish to
sentences.
Choosing The Right Verb Voice
Derives from the relationship between a
subject and the action.
2 types of voices:
- Active
- Passive
Choosing the Right Verb Voice
Cont.
Active Voice-Has a subject that does
something plus a verb that shows
action.
Passive Voice- reverses the subjectaction relationship by having the
subject receive, rather than perform,
the action.
Using Fragments
A fragment is a part of a sentence that
is capitalized and punctuated as if it
were a complete sentence.
Although not normally used in formal
prose, they do have their place.
Normally used in dialogue.
Writers can use a whole series of
fragments to get their idea across.