Sentence building

noun + prepositional phrase to get married soon verb phrase + adverb Indirect Object Direct Object He Note: If the indirect object follows the direct, it is introduced by a preposition

Sentence building

I SIMPLE SENTENCES

My head and neck

The students

Hurt

Studied and worked

His friends

It

The students

We

My father

Her younger sister

The children

Their daughter

The boy

are

is snowing are reading don’t understand owns

wants are playing taught wants

smart (adjective) now (adverb) English (noun) her (pronoun) his own business (noun phrase)

to study abroad (verb phrase)

in the front yard (prepositional phrase) French at this school (noun + prepositional phrase)

to get married soon (verb phrase + adverb)

Indirect Object Direct Object

He

Note: If the indirect object follows the direct, it is introduced by a preposition (to or for)

 EXAMPLE

Use the following sets of words and phrases to write complete sentences

 Their daughter / teach / French / this school / last year

Their daughter taught English at this school last year

He / speak / write / English / equal / well

 He speaks and writes English equally well

B Negative Statements

The Negative of a statement is expressed mainly in two ways:

1 With the Negative of Special Finite

Alice

He

All of us

They

We

is not cannot swim are not working will not be have not arrived

an engineer

across this river

at this moment

doctors

yet

2 With the Negative of Other Verbs

Subject do, does, did + NOT + V(-to) Complement

I

My teacher

Tom

do not know does not enjoy did not like

anybody here classical music coffee

EXAMPLE

Use the following sets of words and phrases to write complete sentences

 I / not / know / if / he / telling / truth

 I do not know if he is telling the truth

 He / not / able / come / because / his health problem

 He was not able to come because of his health problem

C Interrogative Statements (Questions)

When forming a question, we place the auxiliary or the verb be before the subject If there is no auxiliary or be, we must use the correct form of do, does, did After do, does, or did,

the simple form of the verb must be used

1 Yes/No questions

Auxiliary Subject (Main Verb) Complement?

Is

Do

Will

Ho Chi Minh City you the committee believedecide

a major cultural centre? what he tells you?

on the proposal today?

2 Negative Questions

Is

Isn't

Did

Doesn't

he Anna your parents John

not

love

a student?

clever?

the car key? animals?

3 Wh-Questions

a) Who, what, or which in subject questions

Who

What

Who

What

Which

was happened is

the first to come?

last night?

You hat?

b) Whom, what, or which in complement questions

Whom

What

Which Auxiliary Subject Verb Complement?

Whom

c) When, where, how, and why questions

When

Where

Why

How

Auxiliary Subject Verb Complement?

Why

When shoulddon't youI buyend a letter with "Yours sincerely"?some meat for dinner?

4 Indirect Questions

a) Subject Verb Question word Subject Verb Complement

b) Auxiliary Subject Verb Question word Subject Verb Complement?

Do

Do

you you

know know

who

has been invited was

to Claire's dinner party? absent from class yesterday?

 EXAMPLE

Use the following sets of words and phrases to write complete sentences

 you / receive / letter yet?

 Have you received the letter yet?

 you / know / when / they / go / build / new house?

 Do you know when they are going to build a new house?

II COMPOUND SENTENCES

A With Coordinating Conjunctions: and, but, so, for, or, yet, …

Independent clause, + Coordinating Conjunction + Independent Clause

We’re making good progress, but we’ve still got a long way to go

He obviously doesn’t have a plan, or he would have said something

She was often sad, and sometimes she didn’t eat her food

 EXAMPLE

Use the following sets of words and phrases to write complete sentences

 There / be / enough beds / so / I / have / sleep / floor

 There are not enough beds, so I have to sleep on the floor

 We must / begin / plan / now / for / future / may / bring / unexpected changes  We must begin our plan now, for the future may bring about unexpected changes

B With Conjunctive Adverbs: however, nevertheless, moreover, furthermore,

accordingly,

Independent clause; + Conjunctive adverb, + Independent Clause

No formal complaint was made; accordingly, the police took no action

It’s a difficult race; nevertheless, about 1,000 runners participate every year

Many colleges do not have dormitories; however, they provide housing referral service

 EXAMPLE

Use the following sets of words and phrases to write complete

sentences

 It / difficult race / nevertheless / about 1,000 / runner / participate / every year



 There / be / growing opposition / capital punishment / moreover / there / be / now / evidence / many executed prisoners / innocent



C With Semicolons

Independent clause; Independent clause

Bob dominated Dave; Ken dominated me

The American way of life apparently does not foster happiness; half of all the American marriages end in divorce

 EXAMPLE

Use the following sets of words and phrases to write complete sentences

 Some people / keep dogs / pets / others / have / cats



 My older brother / study / law / my younger brother / study / medicine



III COMPLEX SENTENCES

A Adjective Clauses

1.

With WHO, WHOM, WHICH, THAT, WHOSE

SUBJECT PRONOUNS

who, which, that

The student is from China He sits next to me

- The student who sits next to me is from China

- The student that sits next to me is from China

OBJECT PRONOUNS

who(m), which, that

I liked the woman I met her at the party last night

- I liked the woman who(m) I met at the party last night

- I liked the woman that I met at the party last night

- I liked the woman ∅ I met at the party last night

OBJECT OF A PREPOSITION

who(m), that, ∅

The man was very kind I talked to him yesterday

- The man to who(m) I talked yesterday is very kind

- The man who(m) I talked to yesterday is very kind

- The man that I talked to yesterday is very kind

- The man ∅ I talked to yesterday is very kind

POSSESSIVE

Whose

I know the boy His bicycle was stolen

- I know the boy whose bicycle was stolen

I have a chair One leg of which is broken

- I have a chair whose one leg is broken

 EXAMPLE

Use the following sets of words and phrases to write complete sentences

 I want / speak / person / deals with / my account



 Dr Doran / secretary / resign / two weeks ago / have / had / do all / own typing 

2 With WHERE, WHEN

where = in which The building is very old He lives there.

The building in which he lives is very old.

The building where he lives is very old

when = on which / at which

I’ll never forget the day I met you then. I’ll never forget the day when I met you.

I’ll never forget on which I met you.

 EXAMPLE

Use the following sets of words and phrases to write complete sentences

 I / work / full-time / days / I / not / have classes



 beach / be / place / I / like most / be / summer



B Noun clauses

NOUN CLAUSE + VERB + COMPLEMENT

That he will succeed is certain

What I need is a good long holiday

He said (that) he was glad of your success

Experts agree that women learn languages more easily than men (do)

3) SUBJECT + VERB + ADJECTIVE + NOUN CLAUSE

I was sure that I had left my keys on the counter

It is necessary that all citizens comply with the new restrictions

 EXAMPLE

Use the following sets of words and phrases to write complete sentences

 What / annoy / me / way / he / boast / what / he / done



 Louis / be / only person / understand / how / system work



 It / true / car / cost / a lot / but it / good investment



III COMPLEX SENTENCES

C Adverb Clauses

1 Adverb Clause of Time

as soon as, just as, since, whenever + CLAUSE

My children had gone to bed when I came home

I won’t believe you until I’ve seen it for myself

2 Adverb Clause of Place

We go fishing where we can find a lake

He slept wherever he could find a hotel

3 Adverb Clause of Condition

Type I: FIRST CONDITIONAL

If + Subject + Simple Present tense…+

will can may + [Verb in simple form]

If I have money, I will buy a new car

If I see him at the meeting, I’ll give him your message

Note:

unless = if not

It you don't come now, I am going to leave without you

= Unless you come now, I’m going to leave without you

Type II: SECOND CONDITIONAL

If + Subject + Simple Past tense…+ would could

might + [Verb in simple form]

If we caught the early train, we’d get there by lunch

If I were to win the lottery, I’d buy another house

Type III: THIRD CONDITIONAL

If + Subject + Past Perfect tense +

would could might have + [Verb in past participle]

If we had known that you were there, we would have written you a letter

If she had worked harder, she would have passed the exams

4 Adverb Clause of Manner

He acts as if he were very sad

The house was in such a mess - it looked as though a bomb had dropped on it

5 Adverb Clause of Comparison

CLAUSE +

as….as, -er….than,

The climate is not as bad as it would be.

Is the world a safer place than it was a year ago?

6 Adverb Clause of Reason

I couldn’t phone you because I hadn’t got your number

You should talk to Karen since she’s the one responsible for authorizing payments

7 Adverb Clause of Result

CLAUSE + so + adj (adv.) + that

such (a/an) + noun + that + CLAUSE

New textbooks are so expensive that many students buy used ones

He speaks to me in such a way that I always feel he is insulting me

8 Adverb Clause of Purpose

CLAUSE + so that, in order that + CLAUSE

We planned for a long time so that we had a good trip

Regular checks are required in order that safety standards are maintained

9 Adverb Clause of Concession

CLAUSE + though, although,

He bought the tickets although the price was high

Even though I have a master’s degree in business administration, I can’t fill out my tax form

 EXAMPLE

Use the following sets of words and phrases to write complete sentences

 If I / see/ you / yesterday / I / take you / to / cinema



 I / not / a child / but / sometimes / you / talk / me / as if / I / a child



 The examination / be / easy / than / we / expect



 We have / such / hard homework / I always / need / help



IV SEQUENCES OF TENSES

A Main verb in the Simple Present

If the main clause is then the dependent clause can be

Simple Present

(1) Present Progressive (2) will, can, or may + verb (3) Simple Past

(4) Present Perfect

(1) I see that Harriet is writing her composition.

Do you know who is riding the bicycle?

(2) He says that he will look for a job next week.

I know that she is going to win that prize.

Mary says that she can play the piano.

(3) I hope he arrived safely.

They think he was here last night.

(4) He tells us that he has been to the mountains before.

We know that you have spoken with Mike about the party.

B Main verb in the simple past

If the main clause is then the dependent clause can be

Simple Past

(1) Past Progressive or Simple Past (2) would, could, or might + verb (3) Past Perfect

(1) I gave the package to my sister when she visited us last week.

Mike visited the Prado Art Museum while he was studying in Madrid (2) He said that he would look for a job next week.

Mary said that she could play piano.

(3) I hoped he had arrived safely.

They thought he had been here last night.

 EXAMPLE

Use the following sets of words and phrases to write complete sentences

 Astronomers / predict / sun / die / about ten billion / year



 Though we / have / very difficult examination / last night, / I / do / very well



V GERUNDS AND INFINITIVES

1 Verbs that are always followed by the infinitive

I decided to write a research essay

I work hard and I think I deserve to be well paid

Peter wished he’d never promised to help them

2 Verbs that are always followed by the gerund

suggest

She enjoys running for competition

Where possible, we have avoided using technical terms

I appreciated hearing from them

I can't help worrying about it

3 Verbs + preposition followed by the gerund

I object to paying so much for milk

His wife finally persuaded him to give up smoking

4 Adjectives + preposition followed by the gerund

I was afraid of losing my way

5 Adjectives followed by the infinitive

She’s upstairs getting ready to go out

I’m not prepared to listen to excuses

6 Verb + Noun/Pronoun followed by the infinitive

require

I taught him to swim.

They did not permit us to enter the area during the investigation

They tried to convince him to buy a cheaper car

My uncle is going to teach me to drive this summer

7 Gerund or Infinitive

Here are verbs that can take either a gerund or infinitive However, some of them can be followed by either a gerund or an infinitive with a difference in meaning

He began shouting abuse at them

Suddenly the rain began to fall



 PREFER

I prefer walking to riding (In general) Let's take a bus No, I prefer to walk (On a particular occasion )



 LIKE

I like eating apples (In general) I'd like to eat an apple now (At the moment)





STOP

He stopped talking (He didn't talk any more.)

He stopped to talk (He stopped doing something in order to talk.)





REMEMBER

Remember to come tomorrow (Future action)

I remember hearing this song before (Past event)



 FORGET

He forgot to write a letter to me (He didn't remember.)

I shall never forget seeing the zoo for the first time.

(Forget: no longer have the memory of)



 TRY

He'll try to meet us at 4 o'clock (try: make an attempt) Try cleaning it with petrol (try: make an experiment of)

 EXAMPLE

Use the following sets of words and phrases to write complete sentences

 Mary / learn / swim / when / she / very young 

 I / really / looking forward to / work / with / you 