Understanding Sentence Structures: Simple, Compound, Complex, and Compound-Complex

1. They are: Simple Sentence Compound Sentence Complex Sentence Compound-Complex sentence Let's take them one at a time. Follow these directions: Get your literary notebook and set up a Type 1. Write down your homework in your assignment book.

2. Type 2: Which sentence includes a dependent clause and which includes a prepositional phrase? Explain how you know. • Before dinner, we wash our hands. • Before we eat dinner, we wash our hands.

3. Type 2: • Some subordinating conjunctions (especially those expressing time) can also act as prepositions. • As prepositions, they introduce a prepositional phrase without a subject and verb: • Before dinner, we wash our hands. • (prepositional phrase with no subject and verb) • As conjunctions, they introduce a dependent clausecontaining a subject and verb: • Beforeweeat dinner, we wash our hands. • (dependent clause with subject weand verb eat)

4. Type 1: • Some words can be used as either prepositions or as subordinating conjunctions: • Example: • After the election, we celebrated. • After we won the election, we celebrated. • Which is which? How do you know?

5. NOTE: • Some words can be used as either prepositionsor as subordinating conjunctions: • After the election, we celebrated. • Prepositionsbegin prepositional phrases which do not contain a subject and/or a predicate. • Afterwe won the election, we celebrated. • Subordinating conjunctions begin dependent clauses which contain a subject and a predicate.

6. Today’s Grammar Lesson: • First, the bad news. . . • There are billions of sentences out there that we might have to understand. • Next, the good news. . . • All sentences fall into just four structures: • Simple Sentence • Compound Sentence • Complex Sentence • Compound-ComplexSentence • Because you know clauses, you can form all four sentence structures.

7. Simple Sentence • A sentence with one independent clause. • Note what the definition does not say. It doesn't say that a simple sentence is short or easy to understand. It doesn't say anything about phrases. A simple sentence can have forty-seven phrases, but only one independent clause.

8. Simple Sentence • Let's look at an example: • I love simple sentences. • That's easy enough. It is obviously one independent clause. • Look at this: • I love to read simple sentences upongetting up and before going to bed. • Amazingly, it's still a simple sentence. I am piling on phrases, but the sentence still contains only one independent clause.

9. A Compound Sentence… • contains two or moreindependent clausesjoined by a coordinating conjunction(FANBOYS). • Example: • I love conjunctive adverbs, butmy students love video games. • The independent clauses are in green. This sentence contains nodependent clauses. • Don’t forget the comma!

10. Sometimes a compound sentence… • contains two independent clausesjoined with a semicolon. • Example: I love conjunctive adverbs; my students love video games. • uses a conjunctive adverbto link two independent clauses: • Example: I can name several conjunctive adverbs; consequently, my friends are impressed.

11. Conjunctive Adverbs • also • anyway • besides • consequently • finally • furthermore • however • incidentally • indeed • instead • likewise • meanwhile • moreover • nevertheless • next • nonetheless • otherwise • still • then • therefore • thus

12. Proper Punctuation: How do you punctuate acompound sentence that uses a conjunctive adverb? • We should leave early otherwise we will miss the start of the movie. • CORRECT: We should leave early;otherwise, we will miss the start of the movie.

13. A Complex Sentence… • contains one independent clause and one or more dependent clause. • Example: Because life is complex, we need complex sentences. • The independent clause is in green. • The dependent clause is in italicized pink. • Example: Because people know that I am an English teacher, they make allowances for how I dress andwhat I say. • The independent clause is in green. • This sentence contains four dependent clauses indicated by pink italics. • Two of the dependent clauses are inside of and part of the independent clause. Don't be alarmed. That happens all the time.

14. A Compound – Complex sentence.. • Contains two or more independent clausesand one or more dependent clauses. • Example: • Because I am an English teacher, some people expect me to speak perfectly, and other people expect me to write perfectly. • The dependent clause is in italicizedpink, and the independent clauses are in green. • Example: • Some people tell me that my grading is too tough, andothers tell me that my assignments are boring. • The independent clauses are in green. • The dependent clauses are italicizedpink. • Note that the dependent clauses occur withinthe independent clauses. It often happens.

15. Label Sentence Structure: S = simple CD = compound CX = complex CC = compound-complex • Americans eat more bananas than they eat any other fruit. • Jimmy Kimmel and Jimmy Fallon host late-night talk shows. • Even though the sun is a star, it knows how to change back to the sun in the daytime. • I planned to drive to work, but I couldn't until the mechanic repaired my car. • My twelve-month-old son toasts and butters his bagel. • Mushrooms grow in damp places, so they look like tiny umbrellas. • Many dead animals of the past changed to oil while others preferred to be gas. • Parallel lines never meet until you bend one of them. • The largest mammals are found in the sea; there's nowhere else to put them. • When the heat comes, the lakes dry up, and farmers know the crops will fail.

16. Label Sentence Structure: • CX Americans eat more bananas than they eat any other fruit. • S Jimmy Kimmel and Jimmy Fallon host late-night talk shows. • CX Even though the sun is a star, it knows how to change back to the sun in the daytime. • CC I planned to drive to work, butI couldn't until the mechanic repaired my car. • S My twelve-month-old son toasts and butters his bagel. • CD Mushrooms grow in damp places, sothey look like tiny umbrellas. • CX Many dead animals of the past changed to oil while others preferred to be gas. • CX Parallel lines never meet until you bend one of them. • CD The largest mammals are found in the sea; there's nowhere else to put them. • CC When the heat comes, the lakes dry up, andfarmers know the crops will fail.