Transcript Introduction to Grammar

Introduction to Grammar
Having Fun in 2008!
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.
Last summer, he went to France.
The subject is not just the noun or pronoun!
The Predicate
Definition: States what the subject is doing or
makes a statement about the subject.
Ex. My mom drives to work.
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 a lot of
money.
More Clauses
• Dependent Clause
Cannot stand alone as a
sentence
– Does not express a
complete thought
Ex. When I went to Italy,
I lost my wallet.
• Independent Clause
Could be a sentence by
itself
– Complete thought
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.
How many independent clauses do we see?
Three Solutions
Run-on sentences can be fixed in three ways
1. A period (.)
2. A semicolon (;) – used to separate independent
clauses
3. A comma plus a coordinating conjunction
FANBOYS – for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so.
The Comma Splice
DO NOT USE A COMMA TO FIX A RUN-ON
SENTENCE!!! We call this a comma splice.
Ex. I like basketball, it is the best sport ever.
Good example: I like basketball; it is the best
sport ever.
Sentence Fragments
Fragments are posers! They are parts of sentences
pretending to be complete ones.
Ex. To catch a thief. We must be vigilant at all
times.
I remember one thing from my childhood. A
yellow Lamborghini driven by Lance Briggs.
More Fragments
• Watch out for sentences that start out with “ing”
words!
• Ex. Flying through the air. Jumping with all my might.
• These are dependent clauses. They are not sentences.
• Good Example: Flying through the air, the pilot
performed ten loops.