Rules & Examples: Sentence Formation | Preparation Tips for SSB Interview - CDS PDF Download

Introduction

Definition:A sentence is a collection of words that begins with a capital letter and concludes with a full stop (.), question mark (?), or exclamation mark (!). A sentence includes or suggests a subject and a predicate.

Sentence Components

• Clauses: These are the building blocks of sentences. A simple sentence has one clause, while compound and complex sentences have multiple clauses.
• Subjects and Objects: The subject usually performs the action, while the object receives the action. The object typically comes after the verb.

Examples

• Basic Sentence: "The boy climbed a tree."
• With Adjective: "The young boy climbed a tall tree."
• With Adverb: "The young boy quickly climbed a tall tree."

Importance of Details

Adding details makes sentences more interesting and informative. You can include adjectives, adverbs, and other elements to enrich your sentences.

What Makes a Complete Sentence?

• A sentence is like a skeleton made of words. Just as bones form different parts of the body, words are put together in various ways to create sentences.
• However, merely arranging words in the correct order doesn't guarantee a meaningful sentence.

Types of Sentences

1. Simple Sentences. Contain one clause.

2. Compound Sentences. Have two or more clauses.

3. Complex Sentences. Also have two or more clauses.

1. Simple Sentences

• A simple sentence consists of one subject and one predicate. It conveys a single idea, thought, or question and contains only one verb, making up just one independent (main) clause.
• Independent clauses can function as standalone sentences. They include a subject and a verb and communicate a complete idea.
  For instance: "Jill reads."
  Examples:
•  "The brown dog with the red collar always barks loudly."
• "I want to see the movie but my friend wants to see the play and my sister wants to see the circus."

2. Compound Sentences

A compound sentence consists of two or more simple sentences joined together using a conjunction like and, or, but. It contains more than one independent clause linked by a coordinating conjunction.

Example:“ The sun was setting in the west and the moon was just rising. ”

• Each clause in a compound sentence can function independently as a sentence.
• For instance: “ The sun was setting in the west. The moon was just rising. ”
• Every clause contains a subject and a verb, making it a complete thought.
• A coordinating conjunction is placed in the middle of the sentence to join the clauses together.
• The most common coordinating conjunctions are and, or, and but.

Examples:

• I walked to the shops, but my husband drove.
• I might watch the film, or I might visit my friends.
• My friend enjoyed the film, but she didn't like the actor.

3. Complex Sentences

A complex sentence consists of an independent clause and at least one dependent clause. The independent clause contains the main idea and can stand alone as a sentence, while the dependent clause adds additional information and cannot stand alone.

Example: My mother likes dogs that don't bark.

• In this sentence, "My mother likes dogs" is the independent clause, and "that don't bark" is the dependent clause providing more information about the dogs.
• Dependent clauses can serve different functions, such as nominal (acting as a noun), adverbial (providing information about time, place, manner, etc.), or adjectival (providing more information about a noun).

For instance:

• Nominal: "I wonder what he is doing ." (The dependent clause acts as the object of the verb "wonder.")
• Adverbial: "She left before I arrived ." (The dependent clause provides information about when she left.)
• Adjectival: "The book that I borrowed is interesting." (The dependent clause provides more information about the book.)

Understanding Sentence Structure

1. The Role of Verbs

Verbs are the core of a sentence, and the rest of the sentence, excluding the subject, relies heavily on the verb. It's crucial to understand the verb patterns, which are the specific forms used after each verb. For instance, the verb "to tell" is followed by an indirect object, an infinitive with "to," and sometimes an object for the verb that replaces "do."

(i) Linking Verbs

• Some verbs indicate a state of being and are known as be verbs or linking verbs. These include words like am, is, are, was, were, be, been, being, became, seem, and appear. Verbs related to the senses, such as taste, feel, look, hear, and smell, can also function as linking verbs. For example, in the sentence "Beer and wine are my favorite drinks," the verb "are" is a linking verb.
• There are a limited number of verb patterns, and verbs can describe either the action or the state of the subject.
• Action: "I play football twice a week."
• State: "I've got a car."

Some verbs can represent both actions and states, depending on the context. For example, the verb "work" can indicate an action or a state:

• Action: "David's working in the bank."
• State: "David works in a bank."

(ii) Finding the Verb

To analyze a sentence, start by identifying the verb, which names and asserts the action or state. For example, in the sentence "Working at the computer all day made David's head ache," the main verb is "made," not "working." Verbs are used to identify activities or states, such as eat, sleep, run, jump, study, think, digest, shout, and walk.

(iii) Types of Verb

Transitive and Intransitive Verbs

• Verbs that have an object are called transitive verbs, such as eat, drive, and give. For example, in the sentence "David gave her a present," gave is a transitive verb.
• Verbs that do not have an object are called intransitive verbs. Some verbs can only be intransitive, such as disagree, and they cannot be used in the passive voice. For example, in the sentence "David disagreed," disagreed is an intransitive verb.
• Some verbs can be either transitive or intransitive, such as sing. For example, in the sentence "Xavier Nadu sings," sings is intransitive, but in the sentence "Xavier Nadu sings pop songs," sings is transitive.

2. The Subject of the Sentence

The subject is the person or thing that the sentence is about. It is often, but not always, the first part of the sentence. The subject is usually a noun phrase, which consists of a noun and any words that modify it, such as adjectives. The subject is followed by a verb.

How to Find the Subject

To locate the subject of a sentence, first identify the verb. Then, ask a "wh" question about the verb to find out who or what is performing the action. For example:

• In the sentence "David works hard," the question "Who works hard?" reveals that "David" is the subject.
• In the sentence "Beer and wine are my favourite drinks," the question "What are my favourite drinks?" shows that "Beer and wine" are the subjects.

The subject of a sentence answers the questions "who" or "what."

3. The Predicate

The predicate is the part of the sentence that tells us what the subject does or did. It always includes the verb and the words that come after the verb.

• For example, in the sentence "Michael Schumaker drove the race car," "Michael Schumaker" is the subject, and "drove the race car" is the predicate.

4. The Object

The object is a noun or pronoun that receives the action of the verb. Some verbs have an object, which is always a noun or pronoun. The object is the person or thing affected by the action described in the verb.

• Objects come in two types: direct and indirect.
• The direct object refers to a person or thing affected by the action of the verb. For example, in the sentence "He opened the door," the door is the direct object because it is the thing being affected by the verb to open.
• The indirect object refers to a person or thing who receives the direct object. For example, in the sentence "I gave him the book," him is the indirect object because he is the beneficiary of the action.

5. Adverbials

• An adverbial or adverbial phrase is a word or expression in a sentence that functions like an adverb by providing information about how the action in the verb was performed.
• Adverbials can indicate frequency, manner, or the number of times an action has occurred. For example, in the sentence "I sometimes have trouble with adverbs," the adverbial "sometimes" indicates frequency. In the sentence "He spoke very quietly," the adverbial "very quietly" indicates manner. In the sentence "I've read that book three times," the adverbial "three times" indicates the number of times the action has happened.
• Some verbs require specific adverbials, such as "to go [somewhere]" and "to put [something] [somewhere]." This information can also help determine the order of adverbials in a sentence. A sentence can contain an indefinite number of adverbials, but it is best to keep them to a minimum.

6. Complement

• A complement is used with verbs like be, seem, look, etc. Complements provide additional information about the subject or, in certain structures, about the object.
• There are different definitions of 'complement,' ranging from the broad (anything in the predicate except the verb, including the direct object and adverbs) to the more restrictive definition used here.
• A complement is the part of the sentence that offers more information about the subject (a subject complement) or the object (an object complement) of the sentence.

The type of complement used depends on the verb in the sentence. 

(i) Subject Complements

Subject complements typically follow certain verbs.

• He is Spanish.
• She became an engineer.
• That man looks like John.

(ii) Object Complements

Object complements come after the direct object of the verb.

• They painted the house red.
• She called him an idiot.
• I saw her standing there.

The complement often consists of an adjective or noun phrase but can also be a participle phrase, as in the last example. It is sometimes unclear whether a phrase is a complement or an adverbial.