assignment in a complete sentence

Understanding Assignments

What this handout is about.

The first step in any successful college writing venture is reading the assignment. While this sounds like a simple task, it can be a tough one. This handout will help you unravel your assignment and begin to craft an effective response. Much of the following advice will involve translating typical assignment terms and practices into meaningful clues to the type of writing your instructor expects. See our short video for more tips.

Basic beginnings

Regardless of the assignment, department, or instructor, adopting these two habits will serve you well :

• Read the assignment carefully as soon as you receive it. Do not put this task off—reading the assignment at the beginning will save you time, stress, and problems later. An assignment can look pretty straightforward at first, particularly if the instructor has provided lots of information. That does not mean it will not take time and effort to complete; you may even have to learn a new skill to complete the assignment.
• Ask the instructor about anything you do not understand. Do not hesitate to approach your instructor. Instructors would prefer to set you straight before you hand the paper in. That’s also when you will find their feedback most useful.

Assignment formats

Many assignments follow a basic format. Assignments often begin with an overview of the topic, include a central verb or verbs that describe the task, and offer some additional suggestions, questions, or prompts to get you started.

An Overview of Some Kind

The instructor might set the stage with some general discussion of the subject of the assignment, introduce the topic, or remind you of something pertinent that you have discussed in class. For example:

“Throughout history, gerbils have played a key role in politics,” or “In the last few weeks of class, we have focused on the evening wear of the housefly …”

The Task of the Assignment

Pay attention; this part tells you what to do when you write the paper. Look for the key verb or verbs in the sentence. Words like analyze, summarize, or compare direct you to think about your topic in a certain way. Also pay attention to words such as how, what, when, where, and why; these words guide your attention toward specific information. (See the section in this handout titled “Key Terms” for more information.)

“Analyze the effect that gerbils had on the Russian Revolution”, or “Suggest an interpretation of housefly undergarments that differs from Darwin’s.”

Additional Material to Think about

Here you will find some questions to use as springboards as you begin to think about the topic. Instructors usually include these questions as suggestions rather than requirements. Do not feel compelled to answer every question unless the instructor asks you to do so. Pay attention to the order of the questions. Sometimes they suggest the thinking process your instructor imagines you will need to follow to begin thinking about the topic.

“You may wish to consider the differing views held by Communist gerbils vs. Monarchist gerbils, or Can there be such a thing as ‘the housefly garment industry’ or is it just a home-based craft?”

These are the instructor’s comments about writing expectations:

“Be concise”, “Write effectively”, or “Argue furiously.”

Technical Details

These instructions usually indicate format rules or guidelines.

“Your paper must be typed in Palatino font on gray paper and must not exceed 600 pages. It is due on the anniversary of Mao Tse-tung’s death.”

The assignment’s parts may not appear in exactly this order, and each part may be very long or really short. Nonetheless, being aware of this standard pattern can help you understand what your instructor wants you to do.

Interpreting the assignment

Ask yourself a few basic questions as you read and jot down the answers on the assignment sheet:

Why did your instructor ask you to do this particular task?

Who is your audience.

• What kind of evidence do you need to support your ideas?

What kind of writing style is acceptable?

• What are the absolute rules of the paper?

Try to look at the question from the point of view of the instructor. Recognize that your instructor has a reason for giving you this assignment and for giving it to you at a particular point in the semester. In every assignment, the instructor has a challenge for you. This challenge could be anything from demonstrating an ability to think clearly to demonstrating an ability to use the library. See the assignment not as a vague suggestion of what to do but as an opportunity to show that you can handle the course material as directed. Paper assignments give you more than a topic to discuss—they ask you to do something with the topic. Keep reminding yourself of that. Be careful to avoid the other extreme as well: do not read more into the assignment than what is there.

Of course, your instructor has given you an assignment so that he or she will be able to assess your understanding of the course material and give you an appropriate grade. But there is more to it than that. Your instructor has tried to design a learning experience of some kind. Your instructor wants you to think about something in a particular way for a particular reason. If you read the course description at the beginning of your syllabus, review the assigned readings, and consider the assignment itself, you may begin to see the plan, purpose, or approach to the subject matter that your instructor has created for you. If you still aren’t sure of the assignment’s goals, try asking the instructor. For help with this, see our handout on getting feedback .

Given your instructor’s efforts, it helps to answer the question: What is my purpose in completing this assignment? Is it to gather research from a variety of outside sources and present a coherent picture? Is it to take material I have been learning in class and apply it to a new situation? Is it to prove a point one way or another? Key words from the assignment can help you figure this out. Look for key terms in the form of active verbs that tell you what to do.

Key Terms: Finding Those Active Verbs

Here are some common key words and definitions to help you think about assignment terms:

Information words Ask you to demonstrate what you know about the subject, such as who, what, when, where, how, and why.

• define —give the subject’s meaning (according to someone or something). Sometimes you have to give more than one view on the subject’s meaning
• describe —provide details about the subject by answering question words (such as who, what, when, where, how, and why); you might also give details related to the five senses (what you see, hear, feel, taste, and smell)
• explain —give reasons why or examples of how something happened
• illustrate —give descriptive examples of the subject and show how each is connected with the subject
• summarize —briefly list the important ideas you learned about the subject
• trace —outline how something has changed or developed from an earlier time to its current form
• research —gather material from outside sources about the subject, often with the implication or requirement that you will analyze what you have found

Relation words Ask you to demonstrate how things are connected.

• compare —show how two or more things are similar (and, sometimes, different)
• contrast —show how two or more things are dissimilar
• apply—use details that you’ve been given to demonstrate how an idea, theory, or concept works in a particular situation
• cause —show how one event or series of events made something else happen
• relate —show or describe the connections between things

Interpretation words Ask you to defend ideas of your own about the subject. Do not see these words as requesting opinion alone (unless the assignment specifically says so), but as requiring opinion that is supported by concrete evidence. Remember examples, principles, definitions, or concepts from class or research and use them in your interpretation.

• assess —summarize your opinion of the subject and measure it against something
• prove, justify —give reasons or examples to demonstrate how or why something is the truth
• evaluate, respond —state your opinion of the subject as good, bad, or some combination of the two, with examples and reasons
• support —give reasons or evidence for something you believe (be sure to state clearly what it is that you believe)
• synthesize —put two or more things together that have not been put together in class or in your readings before; do not just summarize one and then the other and say that they are similar or different—you must provide a reason for putting them together that runs all the way through the paper
• analyze —determine how individual parts create or relate to the whole, figure out how something works, what it might mean, or why it is important
• argue —take a side and defend it with evidence against the other side

More Clues to Your Purpose As you read the assignment, think about what the teacher does in class:

• What kinds of textbooks or coursepack did your instructor choose for the course—ones that provide background information, explain theories or perspectives, or argue a point of view?
• In lecture, does your instructor ask your opinion, try to prove her point of view, or use keywords that show up again in the assignment?
• What kinds of assignments are typical in this discipline? Social science classes often expect more research. Humanities classes thrive on interpretation and analysis.
• How do the assignments, readings, and lectures work together in the course? Instructors spend time designing courses, sometimes even arguing with their peers about the most effective course materials. Figuring out the overall design to the course will help you understand what each assignment is meant to achieve.

Now, what about your reader? Most undergraduates think of their audience as the instructor. True, your instructor is a good person to keep in mind as you write. But for the purposes of a good paper, think of your audience as someone like your roommate: smart enough to understand a clear, logical argument, but not someone who already knows exactly what is going on in your particular paper. Remember, even if the instructor knows everything there is to know about your paper topic, he or she still has to read your paper and assess your understanding. In other words, teach the material to your reader.

Aiming a paper at your audience happens in two ways: you make decisions about the tone and the level of information you want to convey.

• Tone means the “voice” of your paper. Should you be chatty, formal, or objective? Usually you will find some happy medium—you do not want to alienate your reader by sounding condescending or superior, but you do not want to, um, like, totally wig on the man, you know? Eschew ostentatious erudition: some students think the way to sound academic is to use big words. Be careful—you can sound ridiculous, especially if you use the wrong big words.
• The level of information you use depends on who you think your audience is. If you imagine your audience as your instructor and she already knows everything you have to say, you may find yourself leaving out key information that can cause your argument to be unconvincing and illogical. But you do not have to explain every single word or issue. If you are telling your roommate what happened on your favorite science fiction TV show last night, you do not say, “First a dark-haired white man of average height, wearing a suit and carrying a flashlight, walked into the room. Then a purple alien with fifteen arms and at least three eyes turned around. Then the man smiled slightly. In the background, you could hear a clock ticking. The room was fairly dark and had at least two windows that I saw.” You also do not say, “This guy found some aliens. The end.” Find some balance of useful details that support your main point.

You’ll find a much more detailed discussion of these concepts in our handout on audience .

The Grim Truth

With a few exceptions (including some lab and ethnography reports), you are probably being asked to make an argument. You must convince your audience. It is easy to forget this aim when you are researching and writing; as you become involved in your subject matter, you may become enmeshed in the details and focus on learning or simply telling the information you have found. You need to do more than just repeat what you have read. Your writing should have a point, and you should be able to say it in a sentence. Sometimes instructors call this sentence a “thesis” or a “claim.”

So, if your instructor tells you to write about some aspect of oral hygiene, you do not want to just list: “First, you brush your teeth with a soft brush and some peanut butter. Then, you floss with unwaxed, bologna-flavored string. Finally, gargle with bourbon.” Instead, you could say, “Of all the oral cleaning methods, sandblasting removes the most plaque. Therefore it should be recommended by the American Dental Association.” Or, “From an aesthetic perspective, moldy teeth can be quite charming. However, their joys are short-lived.”

Convincing the reader of your argument is the goal of academic writing. It doesn’t have to say “argument” anywhere in the assignment for you to need one. Look at the assignment and think about what kind of argument you could make about it instead of just seeing it as a checklist of information you have to present. For help with understanding the role of argument in academic writing, see our handout on argument .

What kind of evidence do you need?

There are many kinds of evidence, and what type of evidence will work for your assignment can depend on several factors–the discipline, the parameters of the assignment, and your instructor’s preference. Should you use statistics? Historical examples? Do you need to conduct your own experiment? Can you rely on personal experience? See our handout on evidence for suggestions on how to use evidence appropriately.

Make sure you are clear about this part of the assignment, because your use of evidence will be crucial in writing a successful paper. You are not just learning how to argue; you are learning how to argue with specific types of materials and ideas. Ask your instructor what counts as acceptable evidence. You can also ask a librarian for help. No matter what kind of evidence you use, be sure to cite it correctly—see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial .

You cannot always tell from the assignment just what sort of writing style your instructor expects. The instructor may be really laid back in class but still expect you to sound formal in writing. Or the instructor may be fairly formal in class and ask you to write a reflection paper where you need to use “I” and speak from your own experience.

Try to avoid false associations of a particular field with a style (“art historians like wacky creativity,” or “political scientists are boring and just give facts”) and look instead to the types of readings you have been given in class. No one expects you to write like Plato—just use the readings as a guide for what is standard or preferable to your instructor. When in doubt, ask your instructor about the level of formality she or he expects.

No matter what field you are writing for or what facts you are including, if you do not write so that your reader can understand your main idea, you have wasted your time. So make clarity your main goal. For specific help with style, see our handout on style .

Technical details about the assignment

The technical information you are given in an assignment always seems like the easy part. This section can actually give you lots of little hints about approaching the task. Find out if elements such as page length and citation format (see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial ) are negotiable. Some professors do not have strong preferences as long as you are consistent and fully answer the assignment. Some professors are very specific and will deduct big points for deviations.

Usually, the page length tells you something important: The instructor thinks the size of the paper is appropriate to the assignment’s parameters. In plain English, your instructor is telling you how many pages it should take for you to answer the question as fully as you are expected to. So if an assignment is two pages long, you cannot pad your paper with examples or reword your main idea several times. Hit your one point early, defend it with the clearest example, and finish quickly. If an assignment is ten pages long, you can be more complex in your main points and examples—and if you can only produce five pages for that assignment, you need to see someone for help—as soon as possible.

Tricks that don’t work

Your instructors are not fooled when you:

• spend more time on the cover page than the essay —graphics, cool binders, and cute titles are no replacement for a well-written paper.
• use huge fonts, wide margins, or extra spacing to pad the page length —these tricks are immediately obvious to the eye. Most instructors use the same word processor you do. They know what’s possible. Such tactics are especially damning when the instructor has a stack of 60 papers to grade and yours is the only one that low-flying airplane pilots could read.
• use a paper from another class that covered “sort of similar” material . Again, the instructor has a particular task for you to fulfill in the assignment that usually relates to course material and lectures. Your other paper may not cover this material, and turning in the same paper for more than one course may constitute an Honor Code violation . Ask the instructor—it can’t hurt.
• get all wacky and “creative” before you answer the question . Showing that you are able to think beyond the boundaries of a simple assignment can be good, but you must do what the assignment calls for first. Again, check with your instructor. A humorous tone can be refreshing for someone grading a stack of papers, but it will not get you a good grade if you have not fulfilled the task.

Critical reading of assignments leads to skills in other types of reading and writing. If you get good at figuring out what the real goals of assignments are, you are going to be better at understanding the goals of all of your classes and fields of study.

You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

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Part Three Editing / Grammar Skills

Unit 7 Sentence Essentials

Learning Objectives

• To distinguish between a phrase and a sentence
• To identify the four basic parts of a sentence: subject, verbs, object, subject complement
• To understand the five basic sentence patterns
• To learn how to expand a basic sentence by adding adjectives, adverbs, phrases, and clauses
• To learn and practice three sentence structure types – simple, compound, and complex – with appropriate punctuation through multiple examples and exercises

From this unit on, you will be focusing on editing / grammar skills to enable to you to express your ideas accurately and effectively in paragraphs and essays.

The following ten parts are about the Early Childhood Laboratory School at Harper College. Identify the structure by choosing one of the choices. After you finish one sentence, you will get instant feedback on your answer before the next sentence. If you make mistakes, you can retry all the questions or see all the answers at the end of the pre-test.

Adapted from https://www.harpercollege.edu/labschool/index.php . Last retrieved on August 1, 2021.

II. Differences Between a Phrase and a Sentence

A phrase is two or more words used together to represent part of an idea but not a complete idea. There is not a “subject + verb” structure in the phrase. The following are examples of some common types of phrases:

• Noun phrases: boys and girls, an excellent school, picture books…
• Verb phrases: play together, read a story, learn shapes and colors…
• Prepositional phrases: in the classroom, on the wall, from home to school…

A sentence may contain different phrases. It has the following features:

• It must have a “subject + verb” structure.
• The first letter of the first word is always capitalized.
• It must end with a period, a question mark, or an exclamation mark.
• It must express a complete idea.

Read the three sentences below. All of them show these features.

• The boys and girls play together in the Early Childhood Laboratory School.
• Are they learning shapes and colors in the classroom?
• What a beautiful painting it is on the wall!

A sentence is usually longer than a phrase but not always. Do not judge by how long it is; instead, look for the “subject + verb” structure.

• Phrase:  after a long nap on a beautiful mat in the corner of the nap room (no “subject + verb” structure)
• Sentence:  He woke up. (“subject + verb” structure)

For explanations and examples with periods, question marks, exclamation marks, commas, semi colons, colons, apostrophes, and quotations marks, please refer to Appendix C Punctuation . ( Open Appendix C here .)

Exercise 1. Identify whether the following are phrases or sentences.  Type in the box “phrase” or “sentence”.  The first one is an example. When you complete the entire exercise, you can click “Check” for feedback. You may retry or see all the answers.

III. Basic Sentence Parts and Sentence Patterns

Four Basic Parts of a Sentence

1. Subject: It shows who/what does the action. It can also show who/what the sentence is about. It usually comes first in the sentence.

• The writing class is important.
• The students work hard in this class.

2. Verb: It usually comes after the subject and shows the action or explains the ideas in a sentence.

• The teacher meets the students in Room D-144 every week.
• The homework assignments seem interesting.

3. Object: It is usually the receiver of the action and is placed after the verb.

• All the students have finished homework on time.
• They have received good grades .

4. Subject complement: It usually follows a linking verb and shows what the subject is about. It can be a noun or an adjective.

• This is a writing class. (noun)
• The students grow confident in writing . (adjective)

For more detailed explanations and examples of types of verbs, please refer to Unit 9 Verb Basics in Academic Writing.   ( Open Unit 9 here .)

Five Basic Sentence Patterns

1. Subject + verb

• The semester has started.
• Professors teach in colleges.

2. Subject + linking verb + subject complement (noun or adjective)

• The weather turns cold as the semester goes on. (adjective)

3. Subject + verb + direct object

• We are taking a writing class.
• I like my classmates.

4. Subject + verb + indirect object + direct object

• The professor gives the students homework assignments.
• The students left the professor a note yesterday.

5. There + a form of “be” verb

• There are twenty students in this class.
• There was a quiz last week.

With these basic patterns, you can expand the sentences by adding descriptive information with adjectives, adverbs, phrases, clauses, etc. The underlined parts are added to make the above sentences more interesting.

• This is an interesting writing class.
• All the students work really hard in this important class in order to improve their writing skills .
• The weekly homework assignments seem very interesting because students write on different topics .
• The students gradually grow more confident in writing as the semester goes on .
• There are twenty young and energetic [1] students from different countries in this writing class.

Exercise 2. Here is more information about the Early Childhood Laboratory School at Harper College. Arrange the words and phrases into sentences. When you complete each sentence, you can click “Check” for feedback. You may retry or see the answer.

Then try to expand the sentences by adding adjectives, adverbs, phrases, or clauses. Capitalize and punctuate where necessary. Underline the added parts. You can do this second part in your notebook.  Compare your expanded sentences with your partner’s.

provides/to many families/a childcare option/The Early Childhood Laboratory School

Sentence:  The Early Childhood Laboratory School provides a childcare option to many families.

Expand the sentence: The Early Childhood Laboratory School at Harper College provides an excellent child care option to many busy families in the community .

IV. Sentence Structure #1: Simple Sentences

A simple sentence has only one “subject + verb” group from the beginning of the sentence (with a capitalized letter) to the end (with a period, a question mark, or an exclamation mark).

• Students take classes.
• Learning is important.
• Maria and Sung have three classes.
• Maria and Sung study and work every day.
• They are taking classes and working part time.
• Ana goes to only one class.
• Ana does not have a job.
• Are Maria, Sung, and Anna busy?
• Ana is not busy.
• Maria and Sung have been working too hard!

All the above sentences have only one “subject + verb” group, so they are all simple sentences.

Read #3 and #8 again. You see a compound subject in each.

Compound subject : two or more subjects share the same verb.

3. Maria and Sung have three classes.

8. Are Maria, Sung, and Anna busy?

Read #5 again. You see a compound verb in it.

Compound verb : the same subject performs two or more actions.

5. They are taking classes and working part time.

Read #4 again. You see a compound subject and a compound verb in each. Here, multiple subjects perform the same multiple actions.

4. Maria and Sung study and work every day.

The above sentences are all simple sentences, with one subject-verb group in each.

Each sentence is also called an independent clause because it explains a complete, independent idea.

You can understand a simple sentence as an unmarried adult like the single person in the image on the right. He lives an independent life.

Exercise 3. Read the following paragraph about Harper College. Separate each complete, simple sentence with a capital letter in the beginning and a period in the end. Identify the subject and the verb in each sentence.  Capitalize the first letter after a period. The first one is an example. (Commas have already been added.)

in September 1967, Harper College formally opened in Palatine, Illinois

With corrections:  In September 1967, Harper College  formally opened  in Palatine, Illinois.

Subject: Harper College

Verb: opened

Some Information about Harper College

     in September 1967, Harper College formally opened in Palatine, Illinois it uses the name William Rainey Harper to honor the pioneer in the community college movement in the United States Dr. William Rainey Harper was the first president of the University of Chicago Harper College is now one of the nation’s premier [2] and largest community colleges every year, it serves more than 35,000 students in Chicago’s northwest suburbs its academic programs have been preparing students for their future study and their careers students can choose to become full time or part time students Harper offers scholarships and financial aids to help students financially. Students should check the college website or call 947-925-6000 for information a registration specialist will provide step-by-step guidance.

Adapted from https://www.harpercollege.edu/about/index.php . Last accessed on August 1, 2021.

V. Sentence structure #2: Compound Sentences

Too many simple sentences will make your writing sound choppy [3] . Therefore, you can combine the ideas to form compound sentences.

• Students take classes, and Anna is no exception. (compound)
• Learning is important, so Maria and Sung are taking three classes. (compound)
• Maria and Sung study every day; besides, they also work part time. (compound)
• Maria and Sung are very busy; however, they feel accomplished [4] . (compound)

A compound sentence has two subject-verb groups and uses words such as “and, so, besides, however” to connect the two parts.

While a simple sentence is like an independent, unmarried person, a compound sentence is similar to a married couple, each independent but connected by love. That connection (love) is called a conjunction .

There are different types of compound sentences. In this course, you are going to learn the two below:

• with one of the coordinating conjunctions FANBOYS
• with an adverbial conjunction

Coordinating Conjunctions: FANBOYS

Compound sentences with FANBOYS should follow the sentence pattern below:

• We have taken three writing classes , for writing is a very important skill.
• We have a writing class , and we like it.
• We do not have a test this week , nor are we going to have one next week.
• I try to be on time for my writing class , but it’s hard to get up in the morning.
• Next semester, I may take another writing class , or I may choose a grammar class.
• One of my classmates has failed most tests , yet he does not care.
• Writing is challenging , so I am studying very hard.

Nor : The conjunction “nor” requires a slightly different word order: the helping verb comes before the subject. “Nor” already indicates negative, so do not add another “no” or “not”.

• I do not like hot dogs, nor do I like hamburgers.
• He is not going to the library after class, nor is he going home.
• I did not have a good winter break last year, nor did I have a fun spring break.

For explanations and practice in helping verbs, please refer to Unit 9 Verb Basics in Academic Writing.  ( Open Unit 9 here. )

Not all the sentences with FANBOYS are compound sentences. They must follow the above format to be called compound sentences.

• We are taking this writing course for three reasons.(simple)
• We are taking this writing course, for writing is important. (compound)
• Last week, we had an editing quiz, a vocabulary quiz, and an oral presentation. (simple)
• Last week, we had two quizzes, and we did well in both. (compound)

Exercise 4. The following paragraph is about differences between a university and a community college. Decide whether each sentence is a simple or a compound sentence. Type “S” in the blank if it is a simple sentence and “C” if it is a compound sentence.  Explain to your partner why you think so. The first sentence is an example.

Adverbial Conjunctions

They are also called transitions, as in the earlier units. This type of compound sentences is more formal.

Compound sentences with adverbial conjunctions should follow the sentence pattern below:

• The teachers give us lots of materials in class ; also, they require us to study in the Language Lab once a week.
• I am taking two courses at Harper College ; in addition, I have a full-time job.
• They have finished all the ESL courses ; as a result, they are registering for English 101.
• They had studied very hard ; therefore, they passed the test with an A.
• He liked to go on a vacation ; however, he was too busy with her classes.
• Many students want to take day classes ; nevertheless, they have a job during the day.
• We have many tests this semester ; for example, we have one editing quiz in the writing class and one unit exam in the reading class every week.

It is common to break one compound sentence into two simple sentences, with the same adverbial conjunction in the beginning of the second simple sentence. This happens more often when the sentences are long. Put a period after the first independent clause and capitalize the first letter of the adverbial conjunction. Everything else remains the same. There is always a comma after the conjunction.

• I am taking 2 courses at Harper College . In addition, I have a full time job.
• They had studied very hard . Therefore, they passed the test with an A.
• He liked to go on a vacation . However, he was too busy with her classes.
• We have many tests this semester . For example, we have one editing quiz in the writing class and one unit exam in the reading class every week.

Exercise 5. Use the given adverbial conjunctions to combine the simple sentences into compound sentences. Then use the same conjunctions to write two simple sentences.

Example :             

Studying a second language is difficult . I t is very useful in finding a job. (however)

Compound sentence:  Studying a second language is difficult; h owever, it is very useful in finding a job.  

Two simple sentences:  Studying a second language is difficult. H owever, it is v ery useful in finding a job. 

• Almost all the jobs require good speaking skills. They need good writing skills. (moreover)
• Many people from other countries have good technical skills. They need time to perfect their communication skills. (however)
• They are highly motivated to learn. They work very hard. (furthermore)
• They try different ways to improve. Some of them take classes. (for instance)
•  They are able to do well at work. Hard work pays off. (therefore)

VI. Sentence Structure #3: Complex Sentences

A complex sentence has at least two subject-verb groups. They are connected with subordinating conjunctions such as “because, as soon as, if”. There are different types of complex sentences. You are focusing on adverbial clauses in this course.

As you recall, a simple sentence is like an unmarried person living an independent life. A compound sentence resembles [5] a couple living together as two independent adults but connected by love.

A complex sentence is like a parent with a baby. Life is certainly more complex with a baby! The parent is independent, representing the independent clause. The baby is dependent on the parent for food, shelter, love, etc., so the baby resembles the dependent clause.

baby : parent = dependent : independent

A baby cannot live by himself or herself. In the same way, a dependent clause cannot exist by itself. It must be connected with an independent clause.

• When I got home , my sister was watching TV.
• Because I wanted to finish my homework , I did not go to bed till 12 am this morning.
• Although English is a difficult language , I am trying my best to learn it.

The same complex sentences can also be written as follows. Notice that there is no comma in the middle of the sentence.

• My sister was watching TV when I got home.
• I didn’t go to bed till 12 am this morning because I wanted to finish my homework.
• I am trying my best to learn English although it is a difficult language.

Exercise 6. The following sentences are about my classmates . Join two simple sentences into a complex one with the subordinating conjunctions given. Use commas where necessary.

Example : 

At 9 am yesterday, Jose was listening to the radio. He was driving to Harper. (while)

Complex:  At 9 am yesterday, Jose was listening to the radio while he was driving to Harper.

• Priti has decided to travel to Aruba during the semester break. She has always been interested in its culture. (because)
• This is Amy’s first year in the U.S. She speaks English fluently. (although)
• Lilly did not wake up early on time yesterday. She missed the first part of the class. (as)
• Yuri started an ESL class. He arrived in this city. (as soon as)
• Max had never used a computer. He liked his first online class. (even though)
• Misako ran into her former classmate. She was looking for her new textbook in the bookstore. (while)
• At the end of last semester, Kang Sun returned to Korea to visit her family . She had saved enough money for a plane ticket. (after)
• The next semester starts two months later. Every student needs to decide what classes to take. (before)

VII. Sentence Variety

Just like a balanced diet that keeps the body healthy, a good piece of writing also uses a variety of sentences including simple, compound, and complex structures. Here are some strategies to help you achieve that.

• Try not to repeat the same conjunctions. It is common to overuse [6] words like “and”, “because”. Try a different expression. For example, you may replace “and” with “in addition” and replace “because” with “since”. Change the sentence structure and punctuation accordingly [7] .
• When you finish writing, count how many simple, compound, and complex sentences you have included. Ideally, the number of each should be comparable [8] . For example, if there are ten simple sentences and only two complex ones, you may combine some of the simple ones to form one or two more complex sentences. On the other hand, too many compound and complex sentences may be hard to read, and you can improve your writing by changing some of them to simple sentences.

Read the following two paragraphs. Count the number of different sentence types in each paragraph. Discuss which paragraph is better and why.

Fast Track Programs

          Harper College has special programs called “Fast Track”. Some students want to finish their study fast. They can choose this option. There are different fast track certificate programs. Each is five to eight weeks long. The certificates include business management, human resources management, web design and interactive media, and others. Each program has a limited number of students, so they can get more personalized [9] interaction with professors. Classes are usually from 6 pm to 10 pm. Students can still work during the day. Besides the certificate programs, there are also fast track degree programs in AAS Degree (Associate in Applied Science) in Business Administration and AAS Degree in Supply Chain Management. Students do not always need to start from the beginning because they can get credit from their previous college or work experience.  The fast track programs are convenient and beneficial for many students. It may not suit everyone. The best way to start is to attend an information meeting.

Adapted from https://www.harpercollege.edu/fasttrack/index.php . Last retrieved on November 4, 2021.

In this above paragraph, there are 12 simple sentences, 1 compound sentence, and 1 complex sentence .

          Harper College has special programs called “Fast Track”. If some students want to finish their study fast, they can choose this option. There are different fast track certificate programs, and each is five to eight weeks long. The certificates include business management, human resources management, web design and interactive media, and others. Each program has limited number of students, so they can get more personalized interaction with professors. Since classes are usually from 6 pm to 10 pm, students can still work during the day. Besides the certificate programs, there are also fast track degree programs in Associate in Applied Science (AAS) Degree in Business Administration and AAS Degree in Supply Chain Management. Students do not always need to start from the beginning because they can get credit from their previous college or work experience.  The fast track programs are convenient and beneficial for many students; however, it may not suit everyone. The best way to start is to attend an information meeting.

In the #2 improved version, there are 4 simple sentences, 3 compound sentence, and 3 complex sentences.  Work with your partner to identify each type of sentences. Discuss why #2 is better.

Exercise 7. Choose a paragraph you have written this semester and try the following:

• Count how many simple, compound, and complex sentences are in it.
• In what ways can you edit some of them so that the whole piece has a better balance of different structures?

VIII. Unit Review Practice

Exercise 8. Read the following paragraph about the student clubs at Harper College. Identify the types of structures of the underlined sentences. In the boxes, type “simple” for a simple sentence, “compound” for a compound sentence, and “complex” for a complex sentence. The first one is an example.  You will get instant feedback on your answers. When you finish the entire exercise, you can retry or see all the answers.

Exercise 9. Read the following paragraph about different ways people learn. Identify the types of structures of the underlined sentences. In the boxes, type “simple” for a simple sentence, “compound” for a compound sentence, and “complex” for a complex sentence. The first one is an example.  You will get instant feedback on your answers. When you finish the entire exercise, you can retry or see all the answers.

Exercise 10. Read the paragraph below about the writer’s learning and working experiences. It has too many simple sentences. Combine the underlined simple sentences into compound or complex sentences with the conjunctions given.

I came to the United States. I had never touched a computer (before).

Before I came to the United States, I had never touched a computer.

Learning and Hoping

        Learning and hoping keep me going. Two years ago, I got a job at a company called TechInnova.  Now I use the computer at work every day. I came to the United States. I had never touched a computer ( before ). It did not take me very long to learn basic computer skills. I had already taken a course in typing ( for ).  I left my country four years ago. I had finished secretarial school ( by the time ).  I was looking for a job here, I took a course in information technology ( while ).  Soon I found the job at TechInnova. I have continued to learn new things since then.  For example, now I am learning web design through the Fast Track program at Harper College.  My company is paying half the tuition for me. I am grateful for that ( and ). The program is very intensive. I am very busy  ( therefore ).  The new skills have boosted my self-confidence and made me feel more hopeful for my future.

Exercise 11. Choose and highlight the most appropriate conjunction for each blank in the paragraph below about learning to play the piano. Look carefully at the punctuation before you decide. The first one is an example. When you complete the entire exercise, you can click “Check” for feedback. You may retry or see all the answers.

Exercise 12. Read the following paragraph about my uncle and me. There are five more mistakes in the use of commas (not including the example). Find them and correct them. The first one is an example.

My Uncle and I

          My uncle has had a very positive influence on me in several ways. He came from Pakistan to the U.S. in the 1990s and has made a life for himself and his extended family. First he (First, he…) sponsored me to come to the U.S. a year ago. He made it possible for me to have a chance for a better life. For instance, I am now living in a much cleaner, and safer environment. Second his accomplishments [10] have reminded me to work hard for my own life and for the life of my family. My uncle had worked as a waiter, a construction worker, and a newspaper delivery man before he enrolled at Harper College with a major in business ten years ago. He is now working as regional manager for a food company. He loves his job. Thanks to my uncle, I started a new life, as soon as I arrived here. I have followed his footsteps and have been working very hard since last year. My dream is to work in a finance field so I have been taking math and English as a Second Language courses to prepare for my major. Meanwhile, I have not abandoned [11] my hobby – swimming. I swim a few times a week in the college swimming pool. My uncle always says, that a good future needs good health. I am thankful to my uncle for the inspirations [12] and opportunities.

Exercise 13. Use the suggested conjunctions to expand the following simple sentences by adding one more clause to make new and meaningful compound or complex sentences. Use proper punctuation in each sentence. Share your sentences with your partner.

Example :       

I love my community college . ( for , as a result, because)

My sentence:  I love my community college, for there are many interesting classes like piano and drawing.

My sentence:  I love my community college ; as a result, I am enjoying my study there.

My sentence:  I love my community college because it is close to my home.

• Many people come to the community college. (since, in addition, because)
• Some young people prefer four-year universities. (so, consequently, although)
• Nothing is perfect in all areas. (however, nor, since)
• It all depends on which option works better for each student. (therefore, and, when)

  NSNT Practice

Go to The NSNT Free Writing Approach and Additional Weekly Prompts for Writing in Appendix A. ( Open Appendix A here. ) Choose two topics that you have not written about. You may start with the NSNT approach. Then revise and edit at least your paragraphs.  Include some compound and complex structures. Pay attention to punctuation. You are encouraged to share your writing with your partner and help each other improve.

Vocabulary Review

The words here have appeared in this unit.  The best way to learn them is to guess the meaning of each word from the context.  Then hover your computer mouse over the number beside each word to check its meaning and part of speech. These words are also listed in the footnote area at the end of each unit.

Here, you can use the flashcards below to review these words.

• A phrase is two or more words used together to form part of meaning but not complete meaning. It does not have a “subject + verb” structure.
• Every sentence must explain a complete idea and have a subject and a verb.
• The most basic sentence parts are subject, verb, object, and subject complement.
• The most basic sentence patterns are
• Subject + verb
• Subject + verb + object
• Subject + linking verb + subject complement (noun or adjective)
• Subject + verb + indirect object + direct object
• There + a form of “be”
• A simple sentence is an independent clause with one subject-verb group.
• A compound sentence has two independent clauses with two subject-verb groups. They are connected by a coordinating conjunction (FANBOYS) or an adverbial conjunction such as “moreover” or “however”.
• A complex sentence has one dependent clause (a subordinating conjunction + subject + verb) and one independent clause (subject + verb).
• It is important to include a variety of sentence types in writing.

Media Attributions

• frame at entrance of Early Childhood Lab School at Harper College © Lin Cui is licensed under a CC0 (Creative Commons Zero) license
• Building D at Harper College © Lin Cui is licensed under a CC0 (Creative Commons Zero) license
• a single person smiling and holding a skateboard © Photo by Monstera from Pexels
• William Rainey Harper statue on Harper Campus © Lin Cui is licensed under a CC0 (Creative Commons Zero) license
• a couple with a heart in between © Photo by Josh Hild from Pexels
• University Center at Harper College © Lin Cui is licensed under a CC0 (Creative Commons Zero) license
• a parent with a baby © Image by Prawny from Pixabay
• Fast Track information session as appeared on Harper College website © Lin Cui is licensed under a CC0 (Creative Commons Zero) license
• International Students Club at Feed My Starving Children © Kathleen Reynolds is licensed under a CC0 (Creative Commons Zero) license
• black and white keys on a piano © Photo by Amir Doreh on Unsplash
• a pen writing in a notebook © Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash
• a page in a dictionary © Pixabay
• energetic: adjective, active, full of energy ↵
• premier: adjective, first in rank, leading ↵
• choppy: adjective, broken, not connected ↵
• accomplished: adjective, successful in doing something ↵
• resemble: verb, is similar to ↵
• overuse: verb, use too many times ↵
• accordingly: adverb, as a result, therefore ↵
• comparable: adjective, similar ↵
• personalized: adjective, customized, according to the needs of each person ↵
• accomplishment: noun, success, achievement ↵
• abandon: verb, give up ↵
• inspiration: noun, good influence, example ↵

In writing context, FANBOYS is an acronym for one of the coordinating conjunctions (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so).

Building Academic Writing Skills Copyright © 2022 by Cui, Lin is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

Want to create or adapt books like this? Learn more about how Pressbooks supports open publishing practices.

73 Sentence Basics

In this chapter, please refer to the following grammar key:

• Subjects are underlined.
• Verbs are in bold.
• LV means linking verb
• HV means helping verb
• V means action verb
• N means noun
• Adj mean adjective
• Adv means adverb
• DO means direct object
• IO means indirect object

Components of a Sentence

Clearly written, complete sentences require key information: a subject, a verb and a complete idea. A sentence needs to make sense on its own. Sometimes, complete sentences are also called independent clauses. A clause is a group of words that may make up a sentence. An independent clause is a group of words that may stand alone as a complete, grammatically correct thought. The following sentences show independent clauses in curly brackets:

All complete sentences have at least one independent clause. You can identify an independent clause by reading it on its own and looking for the subject and the verb.

When you read a sentence, you may first look for the subject, or what the sentence is about. The subject usually appears at the beginning of a sentence as a noun or a pronoun. A noun is a word that identifies a person, place, thing, or idea. A pronoun is a word that replaces a noun. Common pronouns are I , he , she , it , you , they , and we .

In these sentences, the subject is a person: Malik . The pronoun He replaces and refers back to Malik .

In the first sentence, the subject is a place: computer lab . In the second sentence, the pronoun It substitutes for computer lab as the subject.

In the first sentence, the subject is a thing: project . In the second sentence, the pronoun It stands in for the project .

Compound Subjects

A sentence may have more than one person, place, or thing as the subject. These subjects are called compound subjects. Compound subjects are useful when you want to discuss several subjects at once.

Prepositional Phrases

You will often read a sentence that has more than one noun or pronoun in it. You may encounter a group of words that includes a preposition with a noun or a pronoun. Prepositions connect a noun, pronoun, or verb to another word that describes or modifies that noun, pronoun, or verb. Common prepositions include in , on , under , near , by , with , and about . A group of words that begin with a preposition is called a prepositional phrase. A prepositional phrase begins with a preposition and modifies or describes a word. It cannot act as the subject of a sentence. The following phrases inside curly brackets are examples of prepositional phrases.

Read the following sentences. Underline the subjects, and circle the prepositional phrases.

• The gym is open until nine o’clock tonight.
• We went to the store to get some ice.
• The student with the most extra credit will win a homework pass.
• Maya and Tia found an abandoned cat by the side of the road.
• The driver of that pickup truck skidded on the ice.
• Anita won the race with time to spare.
• The people who work for that company were surprised about the merger.
• Working in haste means that you are more likely to make mistakes.
• The soundtrack has over sixty songs in languages from around the world.
• His latest invention does not work, but it has inspired the rest of us.

Once you locate the subject of a sentence, you can move on to the next part of a complete sentence: the verb. A verb is often an action word that shows what the subject is doing. A verb can also link the subject to a describing word. There are three types of verbs that you can use in a sentence: action verbs, linking verbs, or helping verbs.

Action Verbs

A verb that connects the subject to an action is called an action verb. An action verb answers the question what is the subject doing ? In the following sentences, the action verbs are in bold.

The dog barked at the jogger.

He gave a short speech before we ate.

Barked and gave are action verbs.

Linking Verbs

A verb can often connect the subject of the sentence to a describing word. This type of verb is called a linking verb because it links the subject to a describing word. In the following sentences, the linking verbs are in bold.

The coat was old and dirty.

The clock seemed broken.

Was and seemed are linking verbs.

If you have trouble telling the difference between action verbs and linking verbs, remember that an action verb shows that the subject is doing something, whereas a linking verb simply connects the subject to another word that describes or modifies the subject. A few verbs can be used as either action verbs or linking verbs.

Action verb: The boy looked for his glove.

Linking verb: The boy looked tired.

Although both sentences use the same verb looked , the two sentences have completely different meanings. In the first sentence, the verb describes the boy’s action. In the second sentence, the verb describes the boy’s appearance.

Helping Verbs

A third type of verb you may use as you write is a helping verb . Helping verbs are verbs that are used with the main verb to describe a mood or tense. Helping verbs are usually a form of be , do , or have . The word can is also used as a helping verb.

Is is the helping verb. Known is the main verb.

Does is the helping verb. Speak up is the main verb.

Have is the helping verb. Seen is the main verb.

Can is the helping verb. Tell is the main verb.

Whenever you write or edit sentences, keep the subject and verb in mind. As you write, ask yourself these questions to keep yourself on track:

• Subject: Who or what is the sentence about?
• Verb: Which word shows an action or links the subject to a description?

Copy each sentence onto your own sheet of paper and circle the verb(s). Name the type of verb(s) used in the sentence in the space provided (LV, HV, or V).

• The cat sounds ready to come back inside. ________
• We have not eaten dinner yet. ________
• It took four people to move the broken-down car. ________
• The book was filled with notes from class. ________
• We walked from room to room, inspecting for damages. ________
• Harold was expecting a package in the mail. ________
• The clothes still felt damp even though they had been through the dryer twice. ________
• The teacher who runs the studio is often praised for his restoration work on old masterpieces. ________

Sentence Structure, Including Fragments and Run-ons

Now that you know what makes a complete sentence—a subject and a verb—you can use other parts of speech to build on this basic structure. Good writers use a variety of sentence structures to make their work more interesting. This section covers different sentence structures that you can use to make longer, more complex sentences.

Sentence Patterns

Six basic subject-verb patterns can enhance your writing. A sample sentence is provided for each pattern. As you read each sentence, take note of where each part of the sentence falls. Notice that some sentence patterns use action verbs and others use linking verbs.

Subject – Verb

Subject – linking verb – noun, subject – linking verb – adjective, subject – verb – adverb, subject – verb – direct object.

When you write a sentence with a direct object (DO), make sure that the DO receives the action of the verb.

Subject – Verb – Indirect Object – Direct Object

In this sentence structure, an indirect object explains to whom or to what the action is being done. The indirect object is a noun or pronoun, and it comes before the direct object in a sentence.

My coworker is the subject. Gave is the verb. Me is the indirect object. Reports is the direct object.

• Use what you have learned so far to bring variety in your writing. Write six sentences that practice each basic sentence pattern. When you have finished, label each part of the sentence (S, V, LV, N, Adj, Adv, DO, IO).
• Find an article in a newspaper, a magazine, or online that interests you. Bring it to class or post it online. Then, looking at a classmate’s article, identify one example of each part of a sentence (S, V, LV, N, Adj, Adv, DO, IO). Please share or post your results.

The sentences you have encountered so far have been independent clauses. As you look more closely at your past writing assignments, you may notice that some of your sentences are not complete. A sentence that is missing a subject or a verb is called a fragment. A fragment may include a description or may express part of an idea, but it does not express a complete thought.

Fragment: Children helping in the kitchen.

Complete sentence: Children helping in the kitchen often make a mess .

You can easily fix a fragment by adding the missing subject or verb. In the example, the sentence was missing a verb. Adding often make a mess creates an subject-verb-noun sentence structure.

See whether you can identify what is missing in the following fragments.

Fragment: Told her about the broken vase.

Complete sentence: I told her about the broken vase.

Fragment: The store down on Main Street.

Complete sentence: The store down on Main Street sells music.

Common Sentence Errors

Fragments often occur because of some common error, such as starting a sentence with a preposition, a dependent word, an infinitive or a gerund . If you use the six basic sentence patterns when you write, you should be able to avoid these errors and thus avoid writing fragments.

When you see a preposition, check to see that it is part of a sentence containing a subject and a verb. If it is not connected to a complete sentence, it is a fragment, and you will need to fix this type of fragment by combining it with another sentence. You can add the prepositional phrase to the end of the sentence. If you add it to the beginning of the other sentence, insert a comma after the prepositional phrase.

Incorrect: After walking over two miles. John remembered his wallet.

Correct: After walking over two miles, John remembered his wallet.

Correct: John remembered his wallet after walking over two miles.

Incorrect: The dog growled at the vacuum cleaner. When it was switched on.

Correct: When the vacuum cleaner was switched on, the dog growled.

Correct: The dog growled at the vacuum cleaner when it was switched on.

Clauses that start with a dependent word —such as since , because , without , or unless —are similar to prepositional phrases. Like prepositional phrases, these clauses can be fragments if they are not connected to an independent clause containing a subject and a verb. To fix the problem, you can add such a fragment to the beginning or end of a sentence. If the fragment is added at the beginning of a sentence, add a comma.

Incorrect: Because we lost power. The entire family overslept.

Correct: Because we lost power, the entire family overslept.

Correct: The entire family overslept because we lost power.

Incorrect: He has been seeing a physical therapist. Since his accident.

Correct: Since his accident, he has been seeing a physical therapist.

Correct: He has been seeing a physical therapist since his accident.

When you encounter a word ending in -ing in a sentence, identify whether or not this word is used as a verb in the sentence. You may also look for a helping verb. If the word is not used as a verb or if no helping verb is used with the -ing verb form, the verb is being used as a noun. An -ing verb form used as a noun is called a gerund.

Verb: I was working on homework until midnight.

Noun: Working until midnight makes me tired the next morning.

Once you know whether the -ing word is acting as a noun or a verb, look at the rest of the sentence. Does the entire sentence make sense on its own? If not, what you are looking at is a fragment. You will need to either add the parts of speech that are missing or combine the fragment with a nearby sentence.

Incorrect: Taking deep breaths. Saul prepared for his presentation.

Correct: Taking deep breaths, Saul prepared for his presentation.

Correct: Saul prepared for his presentation. He was taking deep breaths.

Incorrect: Congratulating the entire team. Sarah raised her glass to toast their success.

Correct: She was congratulating the entire team. Sarah raised her glass to toast their success.

Correct: Congratulating the entire team , Sarah raised her glass to toast their success.

Another error in sentence construction is a fragment that begins with an infinitive. An infinitive is a verb paired with the word to ; for example, to run , to write , or to reach . Although infinitives are verbs, they can be used as nouns, adjectives, or adverbs. You can correct a fragment that begins with an infinitive by either combining it with another sentence or adding the parts of speech that are missing.

Incorrect: We needed to make three hundred more paper cranes. To reach the one thousand mark.

Correct: We needed to make three hundred more paper cranes to reach the one thousand mark.

Correct: We needed to make three hundred more paper cranes. We wanted to reach the one thousand mark.

Copy the following sentences and identify the fragments. Then combine the fragment with the independent clause to create a complete sentence.

• Working without taking a break. We try to get as much work done as we can in an hour.
• I needed to bring work home. In order to meet the deadline.
• Unless the ground thaws before spring break. We won’t be planting any tulips this year.
• Turning the lights off after they were done in the kitchen. Kris tries to conserve energy whenever possible.
• You’ll find what you need if you look. On the shelf next to the potted plant.
• To find the perfect apartment. Deidre scoured the classifieds each day.

Run-on Sentences

Just as short, incomplete sentences can be problematic, lengthy sentences can be problematic too. Sentences with two or more independent clauses that have been incorrectly combined are known as run-on sentences . A run-on sentence may be either a fused sentence or a comma splice.

Fused sentence: A family of foxes lived under our shed young foxes played all over the yard.

Comma splice: We looked outside, the kids were hopping on the trampoline.

When two complete sentences are combined into one without any punctuation, the result is a fused sentence . When two complete sentences are joined by a comma, the result is a comma splice . Both errors can easily be fixed.

Punctuation

One way to correct run-on sentences is to correct the punctuation. For example, adding a period will correct the run-on by creating two separate sentences.

Run-on: There were no seats left, we had to stand in the back.

Correct: There were no seats left. We had to stand in the back.

Using a semicolon between the two complete sentences will also correct the error. A semicolon allows you to keep the two closely related ideas together in one sentence. When you punctuate with a semicolon, make sure that both parts of the sentence are independent clauses.

Run-on: The accident closed both lanes of traffic we waited an hour for the wreckage to be cleared.

Complete sentence: The accident closed both lanes of traffic ; we waited an hour for the wreckage to be cleared.

When you use a semicolon to separate two independent clauses, you may wish to add a transition word to show the connection between the two thoughts. After the semicolon, add the transition word and follow it with a comma.

Run-on: The project was put on hold we didn’t have time to slow down, so we kept working.

Complete sentence: The project was put on hold ; however, we didn’t have time to slow down, so we kept working.

Coordinating Conjunctions

You can also fix run-on sentences by adding a comma and a coordinating conjunction. A coordinating conjunction acts as a link between two independent clauses. Common coordinating conjunctions are for , and , nor , but , or , yet , and so .

These are the seven coordinating conjunctions that you can use: for , and , nor , but , or , yet , and so . Use these words appropriately when you want to link the two independent clauses. The acronym FANBOYS will help you remember this group of coordinating conjunctions.

Run-on: The new printer was installed, no one knew how to use it.

Complete sentence: The new printer was installed , but no one knew how to use it.

Dependent Words

Adding dependent words is another way to link independent clauses. Like the coordinating conjunctions, dependent words show a relationship between two independent clauses.

Run-on: We took the elevator, the others still got there before us.

Complete sentence: Although we took the elevator, the others got there before us.

Run-on: Cobwebs covered the furniture, the room hadn’t been used in years.

Complete sentence: Cobwebs covered the furniture because the room hadn’t been used in years.

Image Descriptions

A decision tree for editing sentence fragments that are missing a subject or a verb:

• If yes, go to #2.
• If no, the sentence is a fragment. Add a subject to make it a complete sentence. Then go to #2.
• If yes, the sentence is a complete sentence.
• If no, the sentence is a fragment. Add a verb to make it a complete sentence.

[Return to image]

A decision tree for editing fragments that begin with a preposition:

• Can you find a preposition or prepositional phrase?
• If yes, go to #3.
• If no, go to #4.
• The phrase is a fragment. Combine the prepositional phrase with another sentence. Add the prepositional phrase to the end of the combined sentence or add the prepositional phrase to the beginning of the combined sentence and add a comma after the prepositional phrase.

A decision tree for editing fragments that begin with a gerund:

• Does the phrase contain a word that ends in -ing?
• If yes, the -ing word is a verb. Go to
• If no, the -ing word is a gerund, a noun.
• The phrase is a fragment. Correct by adding the missing part of speech or correct by combining with a nearby sentence.

Text Attributions

• This chapter was adapted from “ Sentence Writing ” in W riting for Success by a publisher who has requested that they and the original author not receive attribution (and republished by University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing), which is licensed under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 Licence . Adapted by Allison Kilgannon.

Media Attributions

• Editing Fragments by The Saylor Foundation is licensed under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 Licence .
• Editing Fragments that Begin with a Preposition by The Saylor Foundation is licensed under a  CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 Licence .
• Editing Fragments That Begin with Gerunds by The Saylor Foundation is licensed under a  CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 Licence .

Sentence Basics Copyright © 2021 by Allison Kilgannon is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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• Conjunctions
• Prepositions

ASSIGNMENT in a Sentence Examples: 21 Ways to Use Assignment

Are you struggling to understand the concept of an assignment? An assignment is a task or piece of work that has been assigned to someone as part of their job or studies. It requires them to complete a specific set of actions or deliverables within a defined timeframe.

In an academic setting, assignments often involve research, analysis, and the presentation of findings in various formats. Understanding the requirements of an assignment is crucial for students to produce high-quality work and meet the expectations of their instructors.

Table of Contents

7 Examples Of Assignment Used In a Sentence For Kids

• Please complete your assignment by coloring the picture.
• Your assignment is to count how many animals you see.
• Draw a circle around the smallest object in this assignment .
• Can you find the letter “A” in your assignment ?
• Remember to write your name on the top of your assignment .
• Let’s work on this assignment together, okay?
• Practice tracing the numbers in your assignment .

14 Sentences with Assignment Examples

• The professor’s surprise assignment caught many students off guard.
• Completing the group assignment required effective communication and collaboration.
• I spent all night working on my assignment due tomorrow.
• The guidelines for the assignment were clearly outlined in the syllabus.
• I need to visit the library to conduct research for my assignment .
• The deadline for the assignment has been extended by a week.
• My assignment score was negatively impacted by late submission.
• The professor announced a pop assignment to test our understanding of the topic.
• I received positive feedback from the professor on my assignment .
• The assignment requires a minimum of 1000 words and proper citations.
• Submitting a plagiarized assignment will result in severe consequences.
• The assignment is a key component of our overall grade in the course.
• I struggled to grasp the concept, which made completing the assignment challenging.
• Working on the assignment together with classmates helped clarify confusing concepts.

How To Use Assignment in Sentences?

Assignment is a task or piece of work that someone is given to do. It can also refer to the allocation of a particular task or job to someone. To use the word assignment in a sentence, simply place it in the context of giving or receiving a task. For example, “The teacher handed out the math assignment to the students” or “I have a new assignment at work that I need to complete by Friday.”

When using assignment in a sentence, it is important to ensure that it fits naturally within the sentence structure. Make sure the context in which you use the word is appropriate and clear for the reader to understand.

You can also use assignment in a broader sense, such as “The assignment of duties within the team was well-organized.” In this case, assignment refers to the distribution of tasks among team members.

Remember that assignment can be used in various contexts, not just limited to academic settings. It can be applied to work projects, volunteer tasks, or even household chores. By understanding the versatility of the word assignment , you can effectively communicate tasks and responsibilities in different situations.

In conclusion, the examples of sentences with the keyword “assignment” demonstrate its role in conveying the idea of a task or duty that needs to be completed. Whether referring to a school assignment, work task, or project, the keyword is versatile in indicating a specific job that requires attention and effort. These sentences show how assignments can vary in complexity and nature, from academic exercises to professional responsibilities.

By examining the usage of the keyword “assignment” in different contexts, it is clear that assignments play a crucial role in education, work, and daily life. They serve as a way to allocate tasks, assess knowledge or skills, and facilitate learning and growth. Understanding the significance of assignments can help individuals prioritize and manage their responsibilities effectively, leading to successful completion of tasks and achievements of goals.

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Writing Assignments

Kate Derrington; Cristy Bartlett; and Sarah Irvine

Introduction

Assignments are a common method of assessment at university and require careful planning and good quality research. Developing critical thinking and writing skills are also necessary to demonstrate your ability to understand and apply information about your topic.  It is not uncommon to be unsure about the processes of writing assignments at university.

• You may be returning to study after a break
• You may have come from an exam based assessment system and never written an assignment before
• Maybe you have written assignments but would like to improve your processes and strategies

This chapter has a collection of resources that will provide you with the skills and strategies to understand assignment requirements and effectively plan, research, write and edit your assignments.  It begins with an explanation of how to analyse an assignment task and start putting your ideas together.  It continues by breaking down the components of academic writing and exploring the elements you will need to master in your written assignments. This is followed by a discussion of paraphrasing and synthesis, and how you can use these strategies to create a strong, written argument. The chapter concludes with useful checklists for editing and proofreading to help you get the best possible mark for your work.

Task Analysis and Deconstructing an Assignment

It is important that before you begin researching and writing your assignments you spend sufficient time understanding all the requirements. This will help make your research process more efficient and effective. Check your subject information such as task sheets, criteria sheets and any additional information that may be in your subject portal online. Seek clarification from your lecturer or tutor if you are still unsure about how to begin your assignments.

The task sheet typically provides key information about an assessment including the assignment question. It can be helpful to scan this document for topic, task and limiting words to ensure that you fully understand the concepts you are required to research, how to approach the assignment, and the scope of the task you have been set. These words can typically be found in your assignment question and are outlined in more detail in the two tables below (see Table 19.1 and Table 19.2 ).

Table 19.1 Parts of an Assignment Question

Make sure you have a clear understanding of what the task word requires you to address.

Table 19.2 Task words

The criteria sheet , also known as the marking sheet or rubric, is another important document to look at before you begin your assignment. The criteria sheet outlines how your assignment will be marked and should be used as a checklist to make sure you have included all the information required.

The task or criteria sheet will also include the:

• Word limit (or word count)
• Referencing style and research expectations
• Formatting requirements

Task analysis and criteria sheets are also discussed in the chapter Managing Assessments for a more detailed discussion on task analysis, criteria sheets, and marking rubrics.

Preparing your ideas

Brainstorm or concept map:  List possible ideas to address each part of the assignment task based on what you already know about the topic from lectures and weekly readings.

Finding appropriate information: Learn how to find scholarly information for your assignments which is

See the chapter Working With Information for a more detailed explanation .

What is academic writing?

Academic writing tone and style.

Many of the assessment pieces you prepare will require an academic writing style.  This is sometimes called ‘academic tone’ or ‘academic voice’.  This section will help you to identify what is required when you are writing academically (see Table 19.3 ). The best way to understand what academic writing looks like, is to read broadly in your discipline area.  Look at how your course readings, or scholarly sources, are written. This will help you identify the language of your discipline field, as well as how other writers structure their work.

Table 19.3 Comparison of academic and non-academic writing

Thesis statements.

Essays are a common form of assessment that you will likely encounter during your university studies. You should apply an academic tone and style when writing an essay, just as you would in in your other assessment pieces. One of the most important steps in writing an essay is constructing your thesis statement.  A thesis statement tells the reader the purpose, argument or direction you will take to answer your assignment question. A thesis statement may not be relevant for some questions, if you are unsure check with your lecturer. The thesis statement:

• Directly  relates to the task .  Your thesis statement may even contain some of the key words or synonyms from the task description.
• Does more than restate the question.
• Is specific and uses precise language.
• Let’s your reader know your position or the main argument that you will support with evidence throughout your assignment.
• The subject is the key content area you will be covering.
• The contention is the position you are taking in relation to the chosen content.

Your thesis statement helps you to structure your essay.  It plays a part in each key section: introduction, body and conclusion.

Planning your assignment structure

When planning and drafting assignments, it is important to consider the structure of your writing. Academic writing should have clear and logical structure and incorporate academic research to support your ideas.  It can be hard to get started and at first you may feel nervous about the size of the task, this is normal. If you break your assignment into smaller pieces, it will seem more manageable as you can approach the task in sections. Refer to your brainstorm or plan. These ideas should guide your research and will also inform what you write in your draft. It is sometimes easier to draft your assignment using the 2-3-1 approach, that is, write the body paragraphs first followed by the conclusion and finally the introduction.

Writing introductions and conclusions

Clear and purposeful introductions and conclusions in assignments are fundamental to effective academic writing. Your introduction should tell the reader what is going to be covered and how you intend to approach this. Your conclusion should summarise your argument or discussion and signal to the reader that you have come to a conclusion with a final statement.  These tips below are based on the requirements usually needed for an essay assignment, however, they can be applied to other assignment types.

Writing introductions

Most writing at university will require a strong and logically structured introduction. An effective introduction should provide some background or context for your assignment, clearly state your thesis and include the key points you will cover in the body of the essay in order to prove your thesis.

Usually, your introduction is approximately 10% of your total assignment word count. It is much easier to write your introduction once you have drafted your body paragraphs and conclusion, as you know what your assignment is going to be about. An effective introduction needs to inform your reader by establishing what the paper is about and provide four basic things:

• A brief background or overview of your assignment topic
• A thesis statement (see section above)
• An outline of your essay structure
• An indication of any parameters or scope that will/ will not be covered, e.g. From an Australian perspective.

The below example demonstrates the four different elements of an introductory paragraph.

1) Information technology is having significant effects on the communication of individuals and organisations in different professions. 2) This essay will discuss the impact of information technology on the communication of health professionals.   3)  First, the provision of information technology for the educational needs of nurses will be discussed.  4)  This will be followed by an explanation of the significant effects that information technology can have on the role of general practitioner in the area of public health.  5)  Considerations will then be made regarding the lack of knowledge about the potential of computers among hospital administrators and nursing executives.  6)   The final section will explore how information technology assists health professionals in the delivery of services in rural areas .  7)  It will be argued that information technology has significant potential to improve health care and medical education, but health professionals are reluctant to use it.

1 Brief background/ overview | 2 Indicates the scope of what will be covered |   3-6 Outline of the main ideas (structure) | 7 The thesis statement

Note : The examples in this document are taken from the University of Canberra and used under a CC-BY-SA-3.0 licence.

Writing conclusions

You should aim to end your assignments with a strong conclusion. Your conclusion should restate your thesis and summarise the key points you have used to prove this thesis. Finish with a key point as a final impactful statement.  Similar to your introduction, your conclusion should be approximately 10% of the total assignment word length. If your assessment task asks you to make recommendations, you may need to allocate more words to the conclusion or add a separate recommendations section before the conclusion. Use the checklist below to check your conclusion is doing the right job.

Conclusion checklist 

• Have you referred to the assignment question and restated your argument (or thesis statement), as outlined in the introduction?
• Have you pulled together all the threads of your essay into a logical ending and given it a sense of unity?
• Have you presented implications or recommendations in your conclusion? (if required by your task).
• Have you added to the overall quality and impact of your essay? This is your final statement about this topic; thus, a key take-away point can make a great impact on the reader.
• Remember, do not add any new material or direct quotes in your conclusion.

This below example demonstrates the different elements of a concluding paragraph.

1) It is evident, therefore, that not only do employees need to be trained for working in the Australian multicultural workplace, but managers also need to be trained.  2)  Managers must ensure that effective in-house training programs are provided for migrant workers, so that they become more familiar with the English language, Australian communication norms and the Australian work culture.  3)  In addition, Australian native English speakers need to be made aware of the differing cultural values of their workmates; particularly the different forms of non-verbal communication used by other cultures.  4)  Furthermore, all employees must be provided with clear and detailed guidelines about company expectations.  5)  Above all, in order to minimise communication problems and to maintain an atmosphere of tolerance, understanding and cooperation in the multicultural workplace, managers need to have an effective knowledge about their employees. This will help employers understand how their employee’s social conditioning affects their beliefs about work. It will develop their communication skills to develop confidence and self-esteem among diverse work groups. 6) The culturally diverse Australian workplace may never be completely free of communication problems, however,   further studies to identify potential problems and solutions, as well as better training in cross cultural communication for managers and employees,   should result in a much more understanding and cooperative environment. 

1  Reference to thesis statement – In this essay the writer has taken the position that training is required for both employees and employers . | 2-5 Structure overview – Here the writer pulls together the main ideas in the essay. | 6  Final summary statement that is based on the evidence.

Note: The examples in this document are taken from the University of Canberra and used under a CC-BY-SA-3.0 licence.

Writing paragraphs

Paragraph writing is a key skill that enables you to incorporate your academic research into your written work.  Each paragraph should have its own clearly identified topic sentence or main idea which relates to the argument or point (thesis) you are developing.  This idea should then be explained by additional sentences which you have paraphrased from good quality sources and referenced according to the recommended guidelines of your subject (see the chapter Working with Information ). Paragraphs are characterised by increasing specificity; that is, they move from the general to the specific, increasingly refining the reader’s understanding. A common structure for paragraphs in academic writing is as follows.

Topic Sentence 

This is the main idea of the paragraph and should relate to the overall issue or purpose of your assignment is addressing. Often it will be expressed as an assertion or claim which supports the overall argument or purpose of your writing.

Explanation/ Elaboration

The main idea must have its meaning explained and elaborated upon. Think critically, do not just describe the idea.

These explanations must include evidence to support your main idea. This information should be paraphrased and referenced according to the appropriate referencing style of your course.

Concluding sentence (critical thinking)

This should explain why the topic of the paragraph is relevant to the assignment question and link to the following paragraph.

Use the checklist below to check your paragraphs are clear and well formed.

Paragraph checklist

• Does your paragraph have a clear main idea?
• Is everything in the paragraph related to this main idea?
• Is the main idea adequately developed and explained?
• Do your sentences run together smoothly?
• Have you included evidence to support your ideas?
• Have you concluded the paragraph by connecting it to your overall topic?

Writing sentences

Make sure all the sentences in your paragraphs make sense. Each sentence must contain a verb to be a complete sentence. Avoid sentence fragments . These are incomplete sentences or ideas that are unfinished and create confusion for your reader. Avoid also run on sentences . This happens when you join two ideas or clauses without using the appropriate punctuation. This also confuses your meaning (See the chapter English Language Foundations for examples and further explanation).

Use transitions (linking words and phrases) to connect your ideas between paragraphs and make your writing flow. The order that you structure the ideas in your assignment should reflect the structure you have outlined in your introduction. Refer to transition words table in the chapter English Language Foundations.

Paraphrasing and Synthesising

Paraphrasing and synthesising are powerful tools that you can use to support the main idea of a paragraph. It is likely that you will regularly use these skills at university to incorporate evidence into explanatory sentences and strengthen your essay. It is important to paraphrase and synthesise because:

• Paraphrasing is regarded more highly at university than direct quoting.
• Paraphrasing can also help you better understand the material.
• Paraphrasing and synthesising demonstrate you have understood what you have read through your ability to summarise and combine arguments from the literature using your own words.

What is paraphrasing?

Paraphrasing is changing the writing of another author into your words while retaining the original meaning. You must acknowledge the original author as the source of the information in your citation. Follow the steps in this table to help you build your skills in paraphrasing (see Table 19.4 ).

Table 19.4 Paraphrasing techniques

Example of paraphrasing.

Please note that these examples and in text citations are for instructional purposes only.

Original text

Health care professionals   assist people often when they are at their most  vulnerable . To provide the best care and understand their needs, workers must demonstrate good communication skills .  They must develop patient trust and provide empathy   to effectively work with patients who are experiencing a variety of situations including those who may be suffering from trauma or violence, physical or mental illness or substance abuse (French & Saunders, 2018).

Poor quality paraphrase example

This is a poor example of paraphrasing. Some synonyms have been used and the order of a few words changed within the sentences however the colours of the sentences indicate that the paragraph follows the same structure as the original text.

Health care sector workers are often responsible for vulnerable  patients.   To understand patients and deliver good service , they need to be excellent communicators .  They must establish patient rapport and show empathy if they are to successfully care for patients from a variety of backgrounds  and with different medical, psychological and social needs (French & Saunders, 2018).

A good quality paraphrase example

This example demonstrates a better quality paraphrase. The author has demonstrated more understanding of the overall concept in the text by using the keywords as the basis to reconstruct the paragraph. Note how the blocks of colour have been broken up to see how much the structure has changed from the original text.

Empathetic   communication is a vital skill for health care workers.   Professionals in these fields   are often responsible for patients with complex medical, psychological and social needs. Empathetic   communication assists in building rapport and gaining the necessary trust   to assist these vulnerable patients  by providing appropriate supportive care (French & Saunders, 2018).

The good quality paraphrase example demonstrates understanding of the overall concept in the text by using key words as the basis to reconstruct the paragraph.  Note how the blocks of colour have been broken up, which indicates how much the structure has changed from the original text.

What is synthesising?

Synthesising means to bring together more than one source of information to strengthen your argument. Once you have learnt how to paraphrase the ideas of one source at a time, you can consider adding additional sources to support your argument. Synthesis demonstrates your understanding and ability to show connections between multiple pieces of evidence to support your ideas and is a more advanced academic thinking and writing skill.

Follow the steps in this table to improve your synthesis techniques (see Table 19.5 ).

Table 19.5 Synthesising techniques

Example of synthesis

There is a relationship between academic procrastination and mental health outcomes.  Procrastination has been found to have a negative effect on students’ well-being (Balkis, & Duru, 2016). Yerdelen, McCaffrey, and Klassens’ (2016) research results suggested that there was a positive association between procrastination and anxiety. This was corroborated by Custer’s (2018) findings which indicated that students with higher levels of procrastination also reported greater levels of the anxiety. Therefore, it could be argued that procrastination is an ineffective learning strategy that leads to increased levels of distress.

Topic sentence | Statements using paraphrased evidence | Critical thinking (student voice) | Concluding statement – linking to topic sentence

This example demonstrates a simple synthesis. The author has developed a paragraph with one central theme and included explanatory sentences complete with in-text citations from multiple sources. Note how the blocks of colour have been used to illustrate the paragraph structure and synthesis (i.e., statements using paraphrased evidence from several sources). A more complex synthesis may include more than one citation per sentence.

Creating an argument

What does this mean.

Throughout your university studies, you may be asked to ‘argue’ a particular point or position in your writing. You may already be familiar with the idea of an argument, which in general terms means to have a disagreement with someone. Similarly, in academic writing, if you are asked to create an argument, this means you are asked to have a position on a particular topic, and then justify your position using evidence.

What skills do you need to create an argument?

In order to create a good and effective argument, you need to be able to:

• Read critically to find evidence
• Plan your argument
• Think and write critically throughout your paper to enhance your argument

For tips on how to read and write critically, refer to the chapter Thinking for more information. A formula for developing a strong argument is presented below.

A formula for a good argument

What does an argument look like?

As can be seen from the figure above, including evidence is a key element of a good argument. While this may seem like a straightforward task, it can be difficult to think of wording to express your argument. The table below provides examples of how you can illustrate your argument in academic writing (see Table 19.6 ).

Table 19.6 Argument

Editing and proofreading (reviewing).

Once you have finished writing your first draft it is recommended that you spend time revising your work.  Proofreading and editing are two different stages of the revision process.

• Editing considers the overall focus or bigger picture of the assignment
• Proofreading considers the finer details

As can be seen in the figure above there are four main areas that you should review during the editing phase of the revision process. The main things to consider when editing include content, structure, style, and sources. It is important to check that all the content relates to the assignment task, the structure is appropriate for the purposes of the assignment, the writing is academic in style, and that sources have been adequately acknowledged. Use the checklist below when editing your work.

Editing checklist

• Have I answered the question accurately?
• Do I have enough credible, scholarly supporting evidence?
• Is my writing tone objective and formal enough or have I used emotive and informal language?
• Have I written in the third person not the first person?
• Do I have appropriate in-text citations for all my information?
• Have I included the full details for all my in-text citations in my reference list?

There are also several key things to look out for during the proofreading phase of the revision process. In this stage it is important to check your work for word choice, grammar and spelling, punctuation and referencing errors. It can be easy to mis-type words like ‘from’ and ‘form’ or mix up words like ‘trail’ and ‘trial’ when writing about research, apply American rather than Australian spelling, include unnecessary commas or incorrectly format your references list. The checklist below is a useful guide that you can use when proofreading your work.

Proofreading checklist

• Is my spelling and grammar accurate?
•  Are they complete?
• Do they all make sense?
• Do they only contain only one idea?
• Do the different elements (subject, verb, nouns, pronouns) within my sentences agree?
• Are my sentences too long and complicated?
• Do they contain only one idea per sentence?
• Is my writing concise? Take out words that do not add meaning to your sentences.
• Have I used appropriate discipline specific language but avoided words I don’t know or understand that could possibly be out of context?
• Have I avoided discriminatory language and colloquial expressions (slang)?
• Is my referencing formatted correctly according to my assignment guidelines? (for more information on referencing refer to the Managing Assessment feedback section).

This chapter has examined the experience of writing assignments.  It began by focusing on how to read and break down an assignment question, then highlighted the key components of essays. Next, it examined some techniques for paraphrasing and summarising, and how to build an argument. It concluded with a discussion on planning and structuring your assignment and giving it that essential polish with editing and proof-reading. Combining these skills and practising them, can greatly improve your success with this very common form of assessment.

• Academic writing requires clear and logical structure, critical thinking and the use of credible scholarly sources.
• A thesis statement is important as it tells the reader the position or argument you have adopted in your assignment. Not all assignments will require a thesis statement.
• Spending time analysing your task and planning your structure before you start to write your assignment is time well spent.
• Information you use in your assignment should come from credible scholarly sources such as textbooks and peer reviewed journals. This information needs to be paraphrased and referenced appropriately.
• Paraphrasing means putting something into your own words and synthesising means to bring together several ideas from sources.
• Creating an argument is a four step process and can be applied to all types of academic writing.
• Editing and proofreading are two separate processes.

Academic Skills Centre. (2013). Writing an introduction and conclusion . University of Canberra, accessed 13 August, 2013, http://www.canberra.edu.au/studyskills/writing/conclusions

Balkis, M., & Duru, E. (2016). Procrastination, self-regulation failure, academic life satisfaction, and affective well-being: underregulation or misregulation form. European Journal of Psychology of Education, 31 (3), 439-459.

Custer, N. (2018). Test anxiety and academic procrastination among prelicensure nursing students. Nursing education perspectives, 39 (3), 162-163.

Yerdelen, S., McCaffrey, A., & Klassen, R. M. (2016). Longitudinal examination of procrastination and anxiety, and their relation to self-efficacy for self-regulated learning: Latent growth curve modeling. Educational Sciences: Theory & Practice, 16 (1).

Writing Assignments Copyright © 2021 by Kate Derrington; Cristy Bartlett; and Sarah Irvine is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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Sentence Structure: A Complete Guide (With Examples & Tasks)

This article is part of the ultimate guide to language for teachers and students. Click the buttons below to view these.

  A TEACHER’S GUIDE TO SENTENCE STRUCTURE

This article aims to inform teachers and students about writing great sentences for all text types and genres. I would also recommend reading our complete guide to writing a great paragraph here. Both articles will find great advice, teaching ideas, and resources.

WHAT IS SENTENCE STRUCTURE?

When we talk about ‘sentence structure’, we are discussing the various elements of a sentence and how these elements are organized on the page to convey the desired effect of the author.

Writing well in terms of sentence structure requires our students to become familiar with various elements of grammar and the various types of sentences that exist in English.

In this article, we will explore these areas and discuss various ideas and activities you can use in the classroom to help your students on the road to mastering these different sentence structures. This will help make their writing more precise and interesting in the process.

TYPES OF SENTENCE STRUCTURE

In English, students need to get their heads around four types of sentences. They are:

Mastering these four types of sentences will enable students to articulate themselves effectively and with personality and style.

Achieving this necessarily takes plenty of practice, but the process begins with ensuring that each student has a firm grasp on how each type of sentence structure works.

But, before we examine these different types of structures, we must ensure our students understand the difference between independent and dependent clauses. Understanding clauses and how they work will make it much easier for students to grasp the following types of sentences.

A COMPLETE UNIT ON TEACHING SENTENCE STRUCTURE

This complete  SENTENCE STRUCTURE UNIT  is designed to take students from zero to hero over  FIVE STRATEGIC LESSONS  to improve  SENTENCE WRITING SKILLS  through  PROVEN TEACHING STRATEGIES covering:

SENTENCE CLAUSES

Teaching sentence clauses requires a deep understanding of the topic and an ability to explain it in an engaging and easy way for students to understand. In this article, we’ll discuss the basics of sentence clauses and provide some tips for teaching them to students.

What are Sentence Clauses?

A sentence clause is a group of words that contains a subject and a verb. It can be a complete sentence on its own or a part of a larger sentence. There are two types of sentence clauses: independent and dependent.

Independent Clauses

Put simply; clauses are parts of a sentence containing a verb. An independent clause can stand by itself as a complete sentence. It expresses a complete thought or idea and includes a subject and a verb  – more on this shortly!

Here’s an example of an independent clause in a sentence:

“I went to the store.”

In this sentence, “I went to the store” is an independent clause because it can stand alone as a complete sentence and expresses a complete thought. It has a subject (“I”) and a verb (“went”), and it can be punctuated with a period.

Dependent Clauses / Subordinate Clauses

Dependent clauses, on the other hand, are not complete sentences and cannot stand by themselves. They do not express a complete idea. To become complete, they must be attached to an independent clause. Dependent clauses are also known as subordinate clauses .

An excellent way to illustrate the difference between the two is by providing an example that contains both.

For example:

Even though I am tired, I am going to work tonight.

The non-underlined portion of the sentence doesn’t work as a sentence on its own, so it is a dependent clause. The underlined portion of the sentence could operate as a sentence in its own right, and it is, therefore, an independent clause. 

Now we’ve got clauses out of the way, we’re ready to look at each type of sentence in turn.

Teaching sentence clauses to students is essential because it helps them understand sentence structure. Understanding the structure of sentences is essential for effective writing and communication. It also helps students to identify and correct common errors in their writing, such as sentence fragments and run-on sentences.

Simple Sentences

Simple sentences are, unsurprisingly, the easiest type of sentence for students to grasp and construct for themselves. Often these types of sentences will be the first sentences that children write by themselves, following the well-known Subject – Verb – Object or SVO pattern.

The subject of the sentence will be the noun that begins the sentence. This may be a person, place, or thing, but most importantly, it is the doer of the action in the sentence.

The action itself will be encapsulated by the verb, which is the action word that describes what the doer does.

The object of the sentence follows the verb and describes that which receives the action.

This is again best illustrated by an example. Take a look at the simple sentence below:

Tom ate many cookies.

In this easy example, the doer of the action is Tom , the action is ate , and the receiver of the action is the many cookies .

Subject = Tom

Object = many cookies

After some practice, students will become adept at recognizing SVO sentences and forming their own. It’s also important to point out that simple sentences don’t necessarily have to be short.

This research reveals that an active lifestyle can have a great impact for the good on the life expectancy of the average person.

Despite this sentence looking more sophisticated (and longer!), this is still a simple sentence as it follows the SVO structure:

Subject = research

Verb = reveals

Object = that an active lifestyle can have a great impact for the good on the life expectancy of the average person.

Though basic in construction, it is essential to note that a simple sentence is often the perfect structure for dealing with complex ideas. Simple sentences can effectively provide clarity and efficiency of expression, breaking down complex concepts into manageable chunks.

MORE SIMPLE SENTENCE EXAMPLES

• She ran to the store.
• The sun is shining.
• He likes to read books.
• The cat is sleeping.
• I am happy.

Simple Sentence Reinforcement Activity

To ensure your students grasp the simple sentence structure, have them read a photocopied text pitched at a language level suited to their age and ability.

On the first run-through, have students identify and highlight simple sentences in the text. Then, students should use various colors of pens to pick out and underline the subject, the verb, and the object in each sentence.

This activity helps ensure a clear understanding of how this structure works and helps to internalize it. This will reap rich rewards for students when they come to the next stage, and it’s time for them to write their own sentences using this basic pattern.

After students have mastered combining subjects, verbs, and objects into both long and short sentences, they will be ready to move on to the other three types of sentences, the next of which is the compound sentence .

EXAMPLES OF SIMPLE, COMPLEX AND COMPOUND SENTENCES

Compound sentence s.

While simple sentences consist of one clause with a subject and a verb, compound sentences combine at least two independent clauses that are joined together with a coordinating conjunction .

There’s a helpful acronym to help students remember these coordinating conjunctions; FANBOYS .

Some conjunctions will be more frequently used than others, with the most commonly used being and , but , or , and so .

Whichever of the conjunctions the student chooses, it will connect the two halves of the compound sentence – each of which could stand alone as a complete sentence.

Compound sentences are an essential way of bringing variety and rhythm to a piece of writing. The decision to join two sentences together into one longer compound sentence is made because there is a strong relationship between the two. Still, it is important to remind students that they need not necessarily be joined as they can remain as separate sentences.

The decision to join or not is often a stylistic one.

For example, the two simple sentences:

1. She ran to the school.

2. The school was closed.

It can be easily joined together with a coordinating conjunction that reveals an essential relationship between the two:

She ran to the school, but the school was closed.

As a bonus, while working on compound sentences, a convenient opportunity arises to introduce the correct usage of the semicolon. Often, where two clauses are joined with a conjunction, that conjunction can be replaced with a semicolon when the two parts of the sentence are related, for example:

She ran to the school; the school was closed.

While you may not wish to muddy the waters by introducing the semicolon while dealing with compound sentences, more advanced students may benefit from making the link here.

MORE COMPOUND SENTENCE EXAMPLES

• I want to go to the beach this weekend, but I also need to finish my homework.
• She loves to sing and dance, so she decided to audition for the school musical.
• I enjoy reading books, and my brother prefers to watch movies.
• The dog barked at the mailman, and the mailman quickly walked away.
• He ate his breakfast, and then he went for a run in the park.

Reinforcement Activity:

A good way for students to practice forming compound sentences is to provide them with copies of simple books from early on in a reading scheme. Books for emergent readers are often written in simple sentences that form repetitive patterns that help children internalize various language patterns.

Challenge your students to rewrite some of these texts using compound sentences where appropriate. This will provide valuable practice in spotting such opportunities in their writing and experience in selecting the appropriate conjunction.

COMPLEX SENTENCES

There are various ways to construct complex sentences, but essentially any complex sentence will contain at least one independent and one dependent clause. However, these clauses are not joined by coordinating conjunctions. Instead, subordinating conjunctions are used.

Here are some examples of subordinating conjunctions:

●     after

●     although

●     as

●     as long as

●     because

●     before

●     even if

●     if

●     in order to

●     in case

●     once

●     that

●     though

●     until

●     when

●     whenever

●     wherever

●     while

Subordinating conjunctions join dependent and independent clauses together. They provide a transition between the two ideas in the sentence. This transition will involve a time, place, or a cause and effect relationship. The more important idea is contained in the sentence’s main clause, while the less important idea is introduced by the subordinating conjunction.

Although Catherine ran to school , she didn’t get there in time.

We can see that the first part of this complex sentence (in bold ) is a dependent clause that cannot stand alone. This fragment begins with the subordinating conjunction ‘although’ which joins it to, and expresses the relationship with, the independent clause which follows.

When complex sentences are organized this way (with the dependent clause first), you’ll note the comma separates the dependent clause from the independent clause. If the structure is reorganized to place the independent clause first, with the dependent clause following, then there is no need for this comma.

You will not do well if you refuse to study.

Complex sentences can be great tools for students to not only bring variety to their writing but to explore complex ideas, set up comparisons and contrasts, and convey cause and effect.

MORE COMPLEX SENTENCE EXAMPLES

• Despite feeling exhausted from a long day at work, she still managed to summon the energy to cook a delicious dinner for her family.
• In order to fully appreciate the beauty of the artwork, one must take the time to examine it closely and consider the artist’s intentions.
• The new student, who had just moved to the city from a small town, felt overwhelmed by the size and complexity of her new school.
• Although he had studied diligently for weeks, he was still nervous about the upcoming exam, knowing that his entire future depended on his performance.
• As the sun began to set, the birds flew back to their nests, signalling the end of another day and the beginning of a peaceful evening.

Reinforcement Activity

A helpful way to practice writing complex sentences is to provide students with a subordinating conjunction and dependent clause and challenge them to provide a suitable independent clause to finish out the sentence.

After returning home for work,…

Although it was late,…

You may also flip this and provide the independent clause first before challenging them to come up with a suitable dependent clause and subordinating conjunction to finish out the sentence.

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COMPOUND-COMPLEX SENTENCES

Compound-complex sentences are, not surprisingly, the most difficult for students to write well. If, however, your students have put the work in to gain a firm grasp of the preceding three sentence types, then they should manage these competently with a bit of practice.

Before teaching compound-complex sentences, it’ll be worth asking your students if they can make an educated guess at a definition of this type of sentence based on its title alone.

The more astute among your students may well be able to work out that a compound-complex sentence refers to joining a compound sentence with a complex one. More accurately, a compound-complex sentence combines at least two independent clauses and one dependent clause.

Since the school was closed, Sarah ran home and her mum made her some breakfast.

We can see here the sentence begins with a dependent clause followed by a compound sentence. We can also see a complex sentence nestled there if we look at the bracketed content in the version below.

( Since the school was closed, Sarah ran home ) and her mum made her some breakfast.

This is a fairly straightforward example of complex sentences, but they can come in lots of guises, containing lots more information while still conforming to the compound-complex structure.

Because most visitors to the city regularly miss out on the great bargains available here, local companies endeavor to attract tourists to their businesses and help them understand how to access the best deals the capital has to offer.

A lot is going on in this sentence, but it follows the same structure as the previous one on closer examination. That is, it opens with a dependent clause (that starts with subordinating conjunction) and is then followed by a compound sentence.

With practice, your students will soon be able to quickly identify these more sophisticated types of sentences and produce their own examples.

Compound-complex sentences can bring variety to a piece of writing and help articulate complex things. However, it is essential to encourage students to pay particular attention to the placement of commas in these sentences to ensure readers do not get confused. Encourage students to proofread all their writing, especially when writing longer, more structurally sophisticated sentences such as these.

MORE COMPOUND-COMPLEX SENTENCE EXAMPLES

• Despite the fact that he was exhausted from his long day at work, he went to the gym and completed a gruelling hour-long workout, but he still managed to make it home in time for dinner with his family.
• The orchestra played beautifully, filling the concert hall with their harmonious melodies, yet the soloist stole the show with her hauntingly beautiful rendition of the final movement.
• Although the road was treacherous and steep, the hiker persevered through the difficult terrain, and after several hours, she reached the summit and was rewarded with a breathtaking view of the valley below.
• The chef prepared a mouth-watering feast, consisting of a savory roast beef, a colorful array of fresh vegetables, and a decadent chocolate cake for dessert, yet the dinner party was still overshadowed by the heated political debate.
• After a long and tiring day, the student sat down to study for her final exam, but she couldn’t concentrate because her mind was consumed with worries about her future, so she decided to take a break and go for a run to clear her head.

Regenerate response

You could begin reinforcing student understanding of compound-complex sentences by providing them with a handout featuring several examples of this type of sentence.

Working in pairs or small groups, have the students identify and mark the independent clauses (more than 1) and dependent clauses (at least 1) in each sentence. When students can do this confidently, they can then begin to attempt to compose their own sentences.

Another good activity that works well as a summary of sentence structure work is to provide the students with a collection of jumbled sentences of each of the four types.

Challenge the students to sort the sentences into each of the four types. In a plenary, compare each group’s findings and examine those sentences where the groups disagreed on their categorization.

In teaching sentence structure, it is essential to emphasize to our students that though the terminology may seem quite daunting at first, they will quickly come to understand how each structure works and recognize them when they come across them in a text.

Much of this is often done by feel, especially for native English speakers. Just as someone may be a competent cyclist and struggle to explain the process verbally, grammar can sometimes feel like a barrier to doing.

Be sure to make lots of time for students to bridge the gap between the theoretical and the practical by offering opportunities to engage in activities that allow students to get creative in producing their own sentences.

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WHAT IS A SENTENCE FRAGMENT?

A sentence fragment is a collection of words that looks similar to a sentence but actually isn’t a complete sentence. Sentence fragments usually lack a subject or verb or don’t express a complete thought. Whilst a fragmented sentence can be punctuated to appear similar to a complete sentence; it is no substitute for a sentence.

Sentence fragment features:

These are the distinguishing features of a sentence fragment:

• Example: Jumped further than a Kangaroo. (Who jumped?)
• Example: My favorite math teacher.  (What did the teacher do or say?)
• Example: For better or worse.  (What is better or worse? What is it modifying?)
• Example: When my mother married my father.  (What happened when “my mother married my father?”)
• Example: Such as, my brother was practising martial arts.  (It is unclear; did something happen when my brother was practising martial arts?)

The methods for correcting a sentence fragment are varied, but essentially it will boil down to three options. Either attach it to a nearby sentence, revise and add the missing elements or rewrite the entire passage or fragment until they are operating in sync with each other.

Let’s explore some of these methods to fix a fragmented sentence. Firstly, one must identify the subject and verb to ensure that the fragment contains the necessary components of a complete sentence. For instance, in the sentence “Running down the street, I saw a dog,” the subject (“I”) and verb (“saw”) are present, making it a complete sentence.

Furthermore, it is important to check for a complete thought within the sentence fragment. In other words, the fragment should express a complete idea; if it doesn’t, it should be revised accordingly. An example of a sentence fragment with a complete thought is “Running down the street, I saw a dog chasing a cat.”

Lastly, combining sentence fragments with independent clauses can help create complete sentences. For instance, “Running down the street, I saw a dog. It was chasing a cat” can be combined into one sentence: “Running down the street, I saw a dog chasing a cat.” This not only creates a complete sentence but also enhances the overall coherence and readability of the text.

In summary, sentence fragments can hinder effective communication and must be avoided in writing. To fix a sentence fragment, one must identify the subject and verb, ensure a complete thought is expressed, and consider combining it with an independent clause. By doing so, writers can create clear, concise, and meaningful sentences that easily convey their intended message.

TOP TIPS FOR TEACHING SENTENCE STRUCTURE

• Start with the basics: Begin by teaching students about the different parts of a sentence, such as subject, verb, and object. Use examples and visual aids to help them understand the function of each part.
• Use varied sentence structures: Show students examples of different sentence structures, such as simple, compound, and complex sentences. Please encourage them to use varied sentence structures in their writing.
• Practice with sentence combining: Give students several short, simple sentences and ask them to combine them into a longer sentence using conjunctions or other connecting words. This exercise will help them understand how to construct complex sentences.
• Use real-life examples: Incorporate examples from everyday life to help students understand how sentence structure affects meaning. For example, “I saw the man with the telescope” and “I saw the man, with the telescope” have different meanings due to the placement of the comma.
• Provide feedback: Give students feedback on their writing, focusing on the structure of their sentences. Encourage them to revise and improve their writing by experimenting with different sentence structures. Please provide specific examples of how they can improve their sentence structure.

SENTENCE STRUCTURE VIDEO TUTORIALS

OTHER GREAT ARTICLES RELATED TO SENTENCE STRUCTURE

Glossary of literary terms

The Writing Process

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Teaching Proofreading and Editing Skills

How to write a perfect 5 Paragraph Essay

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8.2 Outlining

Learning objectives.

• Identify the steps in constructing an outline.
• Construct a topic outline and a sentence outline.

Your prewriting activities and readings have helped you gather information for your assignment. The more you sort through the pieces of information you found, the more you will begin to see the connections between them. Patterns and gaps may begin to stand out. But only when you start to organize your ideas will you be able to translate your raw insights into a form that will communicate meaning to your audience.

Longer papers require more reading and planning than shorter papers do. Most writers discover that the more they know about a topic, the more they can write about it with intelligence and interest.

Organizing Ideas

When you write, you need to organize your ideas in an order that makes sense. The writing you complete in all your courses exposes how analytically and critically your mind works. In some courses, the only direct contact you may have with your instructor is through the assignments you write for the course. You can make a good impression by spending time ordering your ideas.

Order refers to your choice of what to present first, second, third, and so on in your writing. The order you pick closely relates to your purpose for writing that particular assignment. For example, when telling a story, it may be important to first describe the background for the action. Or you may need to first describe a 3-D movie projector or a television studio to help readers visualize the setting and scene. You may want to group your support effectively to convince readers that your point of view on an issue is well reasoned and worthy of belief.

In longer pieces of writing, you may organize different parts in different ways so that your purpose stands out clearly and all parts of the paper work together to consistently develop your main point.

Methods of Organizing Writing

The three common methods of organizing writing are chronological order , spatial order , and order of importance . You will learn more about these in Chapter 9 “Writing Essays: From Start to Finish” ; however, you need to keep these methods of organization in mind as you plan how to arrange the information you have gathered in an outline. An outline is a written plan that serves as a skeleton for the paragraphs you write. Later, when you draft paragraphs in the next stage of the writing process, you will add support to create “flesh” and “muscle” for your assignment.

When you write, your goal is not only to complete an assignment but also to write for a specific purpose—perhaps to inform, to explain, to persuade, or for a combination of these purposes. Your purpose for writing should always be in the back of your mind, because it will help you decide which pieces of information belong together and how you will order them. In other words, choose the order that will most effectively fit your purpose and support your main point.

Table 8.1 “Order versus Purpose” shows the connection between order and purpose.

Table 8.1 Order versus Purpose

Writing a Thesis Statement

One legitimate question readers always ask about a piece of writing is “What is the big idea?” (You may even ask this question when you are the reader, critically reading an assignment or another document.) Every nonfiction writing task—from the short essay to the ten-page term paper to the lengthy senior thesis—needs a big idea, or a controlling idea, as the spine for the work. The controlling idea is the main idea that you want to present and develop.

For a longer piece of writing, the main idea should be broader than the main idea for a shorter piece of writing. Be sure to frame a main idea that is appropriate for the length of the assignment. Ask yourself, “How many pages will it take for me to explain and explore this main idea in detail?” Be reasonable with your estimate. Then expand or trim it to fit the required length.

The big idea, or controlling idea, you want to present in an essay is expressed in a thesis statement . A thesis statement is often one sentence long, and it states your point of view. The thesis statement is not the topic of the piece of writing but rather what you have to say about that topic and what is important to tell readers.

Table 8.2 “Topics and Thesis Statements” compares topics and thesis statements.

Table 8.2 Topics and Thesis Statements

The first thesis statement you write will be a preliminary thesis statement, or a working thesis statement . You will need it when you begin to outline your assignment as a way to organize it. As you continue to develop the arrangement, you can limit your working thesis statement if it is too broad or expand it if it proves too narrow for what you want to say.

Using the topic you selected in Section 8.1 “Apply Prewriting Models” , develop a working thesis statement that states your controlling idea for the piece of writing you are doing. On a sheet of paper, write your working thesis statement.

You will make several attempts before you devise a working thesis statement that you think is effective. Each draft of the thesis statement will bring you closer to the wording that expresses your meaning exactly.

Writing an Outline

For an essay question on a test or a brief oral presentation in class, all you may need to prepare is a short, informal outline in which you jot down key ideas in the order you will present them. This kind of outline reminds you to stay focused in a stressful situation and to include all the good ideas that help you explain or prove your point.

For a longer assignment, like an essay or a research paper, many college instructors require students to submit a formal outline before writing a major paper as a way to be sure you are on the right track and are working in an organized manner. A formal outline is a detailed guide that shows how all your supporting ideas relate to each other. It helps you distinguish between ideas that are of equal importance and ones that are of lesser importance. You build your paper based on the framework created by the outline.

Instructors may also require you to submit an outline with your final draft to check the direction of the assignment and the logic of your final draft. If you are required to submit an outline with the final draft of a paper, remember to revise the outline to reflect any changes you made while writing the paper.

There are two types of formal outlines: the topic outline and the sentence outline. You format both types of formal outlines in the same way.

• Place your introduction and thesis statement at the beginning, under roman numeral I.
• Use roman numerals (II, III, IV, V, etc.) to identify main points that develop the thesis statement.
• Use capital letters (A, B, C, D, etc.) to divide your main points into parts.
• Use arabic numerals (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, etc.) if you need to subdivide any As, Bs, or Cs into smaller parts.
• End with the final roman numeral expressing your idea for your conclusion.

Here is what the skeleton of a traditional formal outline looks like. The indention helps clarify how the ideas are related.

Introduction

Thesis statement

Main point 1 → becomes the topic sentence of body paragraph 1

Main point 2 → becomes the topic sentence of body paragraph 2

Main point 3 → becomes the topic sentence of body paragraph 3

In an outline, any supporting detail can be developed with subpoints. For simplicity, the model shows them only under the first main point.

Formal outlines are often quite rigid in their organization. As many instructors will specify, you cannot subdivide one point if it is only one part. For example, for every roman numeral I, there must be a For every A, there must be a B. For every arabic numeral 1, there must be a 2. See for yourself on the sample outlines that follow.

Constructing Topic Outlines

A topic outline is the same as a sentence outline except you use words or phrases instead of complete sentences. Words and phrases keep the outline short and easier to comprehend. All the headings, however, must be written in parallel structure. (For more information on parallel structure, see Chapter 7 “Refining Your Writing: How Do I Improve My Writing Technique?” .)

Here is the topic outline that Mariah constructed for the essay she is developing. Her purpose is to inform, and her audience is a general audience of her fellow college students. Notice how Mariah begins with her thesis statement. She then arranges her main points and supporting details in outline form using short phrases in parallel grammatical structure.

Writing an Effective Topic Outline

This checklist can help you write an effective topic outline for your assignment. It will also help you discover where you may need to do additional reading or prewriting.

• Do I have a controlling idea that guides the development of the entire piece of writing?
• Do I have three or more main points that I want to make in this piece of writing? Does each main point connect to my controlling idea?
• Is my outline in the best order—chronological order, spatial order, or order of importance—for me to present my main points? Will this order help me get my main point across?
• Do I have supporting details that will help me inform, explain, or prove my main points?
• Do I need to add more support? If so, where?
• Do I need to make any adjustments in my working thesis statement before I consider it the final version?

Writing at Work

Word processing programs generally have an automatic numbering feature that can be used to prepare outlines. This feature automatically sets indents and lets you use the tab key to arrange information just as you would in an outline. Although in business this style might be acceptable, in college your instructor might have different requirements. Teach yourself how to customize the levels of outline numbering in your word-processing program to fit your instructor’s preferences.

Using the working thesis statement you wrote in Note 8.32 “Exercise 1” and the reading you did in Section 8.1 “Apply Prewriting Models” , construct a topic outline for your essay. Be sure to observe correct outline form, including correct indentions and the use of Roman and arabic numerals and capital letters.

Collaboration

Please share with a classmate and compare your outline. Point out areas of interest from their outline and what you would like to learn more about.

Constructing Sentence Outlines

A sentence outline is the same as a topic outline except you use complete sentences instead of words or phrases. Complete sentences create clarity and can advance you one step closer to a draft in the writing process.

Here is the sentence outline that Mariah constructed for the essay she is developing.

The information compiled under each roman numeral will become a paragraph in your final paper. In the previous example, the outline follows the standard five-paragraph essay arrangement, but longer essays will require more paragraphs and thus more roman numerals. If you think that a paragraph might become too long or stringy, add an additional paragraph to your outline, renumbering the main points appropriately.

PowerPoint presentations, used both in schools and in the workplace, are organized in a way very similar to formal outlines. PowerPoint presentations often contain information in the form of talking points that the presenter develops with more details and examples than are contained on the PowerPoint slide.

Expand the topic outline you prepared in Note 8.41 “Exercise 2” to make it a sentence outline. In this outline, be sure to include multiple supporting points for your main topic even if your topic outline does not contain them. Be sure to observe correct outline form, including correct indentions and the use of Roman and arabic numerals and capital letters.

Key Takeaways

• Writers must put their ideas in order so the assignment makes sense. The most common orders are chronological order, spatial order, and order of importance.
• After gathering and evaluating the information you found for your essay, the next step is to write a working, or preliminary, thesis statement.
• The working thesis statement expresses the main idea that you want to develop in the entire piece of writing. It can be modified as you continue the writing process.
• Effective writers prepare a formal outline to organize their main ideas and supporting details in the order they will be presented.
• A topic outline uses words and phrases to express the ideas.
• A sentence outline uses complete sentences to express the ideas.
• The writer’s thesis statement begins the outline, and the outline ends with suggestions for the concluding paragraph.

Writing for Success Copyright © 2015 by University of Minnesota is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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Sentences Worksheets

Writing proper sentences.

These grammar worksheets help students write proper sentences , beginning with simple sentences and extending through compound and complex sentences in various tenses.

Kindergarten sentences worksheets

• Tracing sentences
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• Trace and write sentences
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Grade 1 sentences worksheets

• Making sentences (cut & paste, word cards, word banks)
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• Unscramble the jumbled sentences
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• Changing types of sentences
• Combining sentences with "and"
• Using conjunctions (and, so, but, or)

Grade 2 sentences worksheets

• Rewrite fragments as full sentences
• Write full sentences with 2 nouns and a verb
• Simple or compound sentence?
• Combine simple sentences to form a compound sentence
• Rewrite a compound sentence as 2 simple sentences
• Expand simple sentences to complex sentences
• Scrambled sentences
• Sentence starters
• Writing practice
• Restating the question
• Writing 4 types of sentences

Grade 3 sentences worksheets

• Fragments vs full sentences
• Simple, compound and complex sentences
• Declarative sentences
• Imperative sentences
• Interrogative sentences
• Exclamatory sentences
• Transition words
• Editing sentences

Grade 4 sentences worksheets

• Sentence fragments
• Run-on sentences
• Fixing sentences
• Subjects, predicates and sentences
• Simple and complete subjects
• Compound subjects and predicates
• Introductory clauses
• Double negatives
• Combining sentences
• Direct objects
• Subject - verb agreement
• Classifying 4 types of sentences
• Adding details
• Writing precise sentences

Grade 5 Sentences Worksheets

• Fragments, run-ons and full sentences
• Comma splices
• Subjects and predicates (simple, complete)
• Writing simple, compound and complex sentences
• Direct and indirect objects
• Adding details to sentences
• Starting sentences
• Shortening sentences
• Writing varied sentences
• Writing paragraphs

Sample sentences Worksheet

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Grammar: Run-On Sentences and Sentence Fragments

Run-on sentences.

A run-on sentence occurs when two or more independent clauses (also known as complete sentences) are connected improperly.

Example : I love to write papers I would write one every day if I had the time .

There are two complete sentences in the above example:

Sentence 1 : I love to write papers .   Sentence 2 : I would write one every day if I had the time .

One common type of run-on sentence is a comma splice . A comma splice occurs when two independent clauses are joined with just a comma.

Example of a comma splice: Participants could leave the study at any time , they needed to indicate their preference .

Sentence 1 : Participants could leave the study at any time .   Sentence 2 : They needed to indicate their preference .

Some comma splices occur when a writer attempts to use a transitional expression in the middle of a sentence.

Example of a comma splice: The results of the study were inconclusive , therefore more research needs to be done on the topic .

Sentence 1 : The results of the study were inconclusive   Transitional expression (conjunctive adverb): therefore   Sentence 2: More research needs to be done on the topic

To fix this type of comma splice, use a semicolon before the transitional expression and add a comma after it. See more examples of this on the semicolon page.

Revision: The results of the study were inconclusive ; therefore , more research needs to be done on the topic .

You can correct a run-on sentence by connecting or separating its parts correctly. There are several easy ways to connect independent clauses.

Correcting Run-On Sentences

A run-on sentence can be fixed by connecting its parts correctly. There are several ways to connect independent clauses.

Revision example : I love to write papers . I would write one every day if I had the time .

Revision example : I love to write papers ; I would write one every day if I had the time .

Revision example : I love to write papers , and I would write one every day if I had the time .

Example : Because I love to write papers , I would write one every day if I had the time .

However you decide to revise for run-on sentences, remember that maintaining sentence variety helps to keep the writing clear and interesting for your readers.

Sentence Fragments

A sentence fragment is a string of words that does not form a complete sentence; there is a   necessary component of a complete sentence missing. This missing component may be a subject (usually a noun) or a predicate (verb or verb phrase) and/or when the sentence does not express a complete idea.

Here is an example of a fragment with a missing subject.

Example of a fragment : Shows no improvement in any of the vital signs.

The sentence above is a fragment since there is no subject ( Who shows no improvement?). Fragments can be corrected by identifying the missing element and including it.

Revision : The patient shows no improvement in any of the vital signs.

Here is an example of a fragment with a missing predicate, or action:

Example of a fragment : The doctors, who were using peer-reviewed research articles that contributed to the body of knowledge in their fields, which was obstetrics.

Notice here that although the sentence is quite long, it still contains no action (What are the doctors doing ?). Once identified, the sentence can be corrected easily.

Revision: The doctors, who were using peer-reviewed research articles that contributed to the body of knowledge in their field, improved their knowledge of obstetrics.

Run-On Sentences and Sentence Fragments Video Playlist

Note that these videos were created while APA 6 was the style guide edition in use. There may be some examples of writing that have not been updated to APA 7 guidelines.

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Knowledge Check: Run-On Sentences and Sentence Fragments

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Sentence completion worksheets terms of use, read theory sentence completion worksheets.

• Sentence Completion 1
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Low-Beginning Level Sentence Completion Worksheets

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High-Beginning Level Sentence Completion Worksheets

• Answers for this series are included at the end of each worksheet.

Low-Intermediate Level Sentence Completion Worksheets

High intermediate level sentence completion worksheets, low-advanced (sat) level sentence completion worksheets, high advanced (gre) level sentence completion worksheets.

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