One word for a sentence in english pdf

What is One Word Substitution? Word Substitution simply means using a specific word to replace a wordy phrase or sentence and making it shorter, more concise and clearer to understand. This way, the word becomes identical to the sentence thus providing the same meaning as the wordy sentence. The best way to master this concept is to learn their meanings by putting them in a particular sentence or visualising them through an interesting story. One-word substitution questions frequently occur in many competitive exams such as SBI PO, UPSC, CAPF, CDS, RRB, SSC etc. Read this blog to find 100+ one-word substitutions with examples as well as practice questions and quizzes for competitive exams.

This Blog Includes:
  1. What is One Word Substitution in the English Language?
  2. How to Solve One-Word Substitution?
  3. Why Do We Need One-Word Substitutions?
  4. Categories of One Word Substitution
  5. 100+ One Word Substitutions with Examples
    1. Study-Related One-Word Substitution with Examples
    2. One-Word Substitution For Government/Systems
    3. One Word Substitution For Venue Or Spot
    4. One-Word Substitutes For Profession/Research
    5. Group/Collection-related One Word Substitution
    6. Person/People-related One Word Substitution
    7. Profession-related One Word Substitution
    8. Terms-related One Word Substitution
    9. Killing-related One Word Substitution
  6. Top 40 One-Word Substitutions Asked in Competitive Exams
  7. One-Word Substitution Sample Questions
  8. [BONUS] One Word Substitution Quiz
  9. FAQs

What is One Word Substitution in the English Language?

One-word substitution is the use of one word in place of a wordy phrase in order to make the sentence structure clearer and avoid lengthy sentences. The meaning, with the replacement of the phrase, remains identical while the sentence becomes shorter. 

How to Solve One-Word Substitution?

Before checking on the examples for one word substitutions, let’s see how to solve them. These can be solved by identifying its ‘root word’ or core meaning and then identifying the prefix and suffix. Many words like Anthropology come from the root word anthrōpos which means humans (Here ‘Anthro’ is the prefix and ‘ology’ is the suffix). Hence anthropology means the study of humanity. To gain mastery in understanding root words, you should be familiar with the etymology and linguistics of the words.

Did you know? ‘ology‘ is the most common suffix in science which means “a branch of knowledge“. (Example: Psychology, Biology).

Another common suffix is “cracy” which comes from the Greek word “kratia” which means “rule or government“. (Example: Autocracy, Democracy)

Why Do We Need One-Word Substitutions?

One Word Substitution

One-word substitutions are important as they make communication in the English language much more concise, lucid, and easy. People can remember words and communicate bigger meanings through simple words. For example, saying “She is someone who puts forth an idea which she herself doesn’t believe” is much harder as compared to just saying “She is a Hypocrite”. One-word substitutions make our sentences more precise and reduce complexity. These substitutions also help us to classify words based on the suffixes which makes it easy to categorize them and put similar words together.

Courtesy: English Connection

Categories of One Word Substitution

There are different categories of One Word Substitution:

  • Study-related
  • Terms-related
  • Group/Collection
  • Government/Political Systems-related
  • People/Person
  • Profession/Occupation
  • Science/Research
  • Killing/Death-related
  • Sound/Event/Spots

One-Word-Substitution

100+ One Word Substitutions with Examples

One Word Substitution

Here is the complete list of 100+ One Word Substitutions for competitive exams:

Study-related One Word Substitution Examples
Study of Stars Astronomy I love this book on Astronomy.
The study of statistics is known as Demography The demography of the whole town’s population has been mapped.
The study of ancient writing and scriptures Palaeography These three university professors have been immersed in the research and study of Paleography for over a decade.
The study of rocks and soil Geology My Geology homework is not going to be completed by the final submission date.
The ancient search for a universal panacea, and of the philosopher’s stone. The medieval version of the study of Chemistry Alchemy The magician wanted to learn Alchemy to master some ancient spells.
The study of the evolution of mankind Anthropology Anthropological research helps us trace our civilization.
The study of the Human Mind Psychology I am really interested in studying Psychology and how the mind works.
The practice of writing dictionaries Lexicography She works in the Lexicography department of the publishing house.
The study of plants Botany Her interest in plants motivated her to pursue this course in Botany.
The study of rocks and soils Geology Do I need to study Geology before going rock climbing?
The study of languages Philology How many languages does Philology cover?

One-Word Substitution For Government/Systems

One Word Substitutes Government/System
A state of disorder due to the absence or non-recognition of authority or other controlling systems Anarchy
A form of government in which power is held by the nobility Aristocracy
A system of government by one person with absolute power Autocracy
A self-governing country or region Autonomy
A system of government in which most of the important decisions are taken by state officials rather than by elected representatives Bureaucracy
A system of government by the whole population or all the eligible members of a state, typically through elected representatives Democracy
A state, society, or group governed by old people Gerontocracy
A state or country run by the worst, least qualified, or most unscrupulous citizens Kakistocracy
Government by new or inexperienced hands Neocracy
Government by the populace Ochlocracy
A small group of people having control of a country or organization Oligarchy
Government by the wealthy Plutocracy
Government not connected with religious or spiritual matters Secular
A form of government with a monarch at the head Monarchy
A political system based on the government of men by God Thearchy

One Word Substitution For Venue Or Spot

List of One-Word Substitutions Venue/Spot
A collection of historical documents or records providing information about a place, institution, or group of people Archives
A large cage, building, or enclosure to keep birds  Aviary
A building where animals are butchered Abattoir
A place where bees are kept; a collection of beehives Apiary
A building containing tanks of live fish of different species Aquarium
A place or scene of activity, debate, or conflict Arena
A collection of weapons and military equipment Arsenal
An institution for the care of people who are mentally ill Asylum
A hole or tunnel dug by a small animal, especially a rabbit, as a dwelling Burrow
A collection of items of the same type stored in a hidden or inaccessible place Cache
A public room or building where gambling games are played Casino
A large burial ground, especially one not in a churchyard Cemetery
A room in a public building where outdoor clothes or luggage may be left Cloakroom
A place where a dead person’s body is cremated Crematorium
A Christian community of nuns living together under monastic vows Convent
The nursery where babies and young children are cared for during the working day Creche
A stoppered glass container into which wine or spirit is decanted Decanter
A large bedroom for a number of people in a school or institution Dormitory
The nest of a squirrel, typically in the form of a mass of twigs in a tree Drey
A room or building equipped for gymnastics, games, and another physical exercise Gymnasium
A storehouse for threshed grain Granary
A large building with an extensive floor area, typically for housing aircraft Hangar
A box or cage, typically with a wire mesh front, for keeping rabbits or other small domesticated animals Hutch
A place in a large institution for the care of those who are ill Infirmary
A small shelter for a dog Kennel
A place where wild animals live Lair
A place where coins, medals, or tokens are made Mint
A collection of wild animals kept in captivity for exhibition Menagerie
A building or buildings occupied by a community of monks living under religious vows Monastery
A place where bodies are kept for identification Morgue
A piece of enclosed land planted with fruit trees Orchard
A large natural or artificial lake used as a source of water supply Reservoir
A small kitchen or room at the back of a house used for washing dishes and other dirty household work Scullery
A close-fitting cover for the blade of a knife or sword Sheath
A room or building for sick children in a boarding school Sanatorium
A place where animal hides are tanned Tannery
A large, tall cupboard in which clothes may be hung or stored Wardrobe

One-Word Substitutes For Profession/Research

One Word Substitution Profession/Research
The medieval forerunner of chemistry Alchemy
A person who presents a radio/television programme Anchor
One who studies the evolution of mankind Anthropologist
A person who is trained to travel in a spacecraft Astronaut
The scientific study of the physiology, structure, genetics, ecology, distribution, classification and economic importance of plants Botany
A person who draws or produces maps Cartographer
A person who writes beautiful writing Calligrapher
A person who composes the sequence of steps and moves for a performance of dance Choreographer
A person employed to drive a private or hired car Chauffeur
A person who introduces the performers or contestants in a variety show Compere
A keeper or custodian of a museum or other collection Curator
The branch of biology concerned with cyclical physiological phenomena Chronobiology
A secret or disguised way of writing Cypher
The study of statistics Demography
The use of the fingers and hands to communicate and convey ideas Dactylology
A person who sells and arranges cut flowers Florist
A line of descent traced continuously from an ancestor Genealogy
The therapeutic use of sunlight Heliotherapy
The art or practise of garden cultivation and management Horticulture
One who supervises in the examination hall Invigilator
The theory or philosophy of law Jurisprudence
A person who compiles dictionaries Lexicographer
The scientific study of the structure and diseases of teeth Odontology
One who presents a radio programme Radio Jockey
The art of effective or persuasive speaking or writing Rhetoric
The branch of science concerned with the origin, structure and composition of rocks Petrology
One who studies the elections and trends in voting Psephologist
An artist who makes sculptures. Sculptor
The scientific study of the behaviour, structure, physiology, classification and distribution of animals Zoology
Group/Collection One Word Substitution Examples
A group of sheep Flock I saw a shepherd down the hill with a flock of sheep.
A family of young animals Brood Mr Styles like spending hours bathing the brood of horses in the stable.
A number of people travelling together in a big van or jeep Caravan A caravan of hippies just passed by.
A series of stars Constellation This constellation looks like a burger!
A large group of people Horde A horde of college students was gathered around the voting booth.
A temporary police force Posse Jake went to arrest the criminal with his posse.
A group of cattle or sheep Herd Keep your herd of cows in the backyard.
A number of fish swimming together Shoal I saw a shoal of mackerel on that side of the river.
A group of worshippers Congregation The congregation will happen at St. Mary’s Church at 4pm tomorrow.

Must Read: 50 Common Difficult Idioms with Examples

Person/People One Word Substitution Examples
The one who loves mankind Philanthropist He became a renowned philanthropist after joining Buddhism.
The one who looks at the brighter side of everything Optimist Louis has always been the biggest optimistic person I know.
The one who looks at the negative/dark side of everything.  Pessimist I am always on the edge of becoming a total pessimist.
The one who does not believe in God. Atheist I am neither an Atheist nor a religious person.
The one who eats human flesh Cannibal The police caught these cannibals from the jungle.
Someone who regards the world as their country Cosmopolitan Globalisation will give rise to more cosmopolitans.
The one who loves good food and knows a lot about it Gourmet I could have been a Gourmet if I liked spicy food!
Someone who lives in solitude Recluse I want to become a recluse after I retire.
Someone who speaks more than one language Polyglot I took up Turkish to become a Polyglot.
A person who boasts of one’s achievements Egotist She saw him as a thoughtless egotist.
People who can vote in an election:  Electorate Last year’s electorate comprised of many first-time voters.
A person who loves himself the most Narcissist John is a narcissist and will never love anyone else but himself.
A person who draws maps Cartographer A cartographer can help you find the right way through a complex forest land through his mastery of maps.
A person who abandons his religion Apostate Watching his daughter die of cancer made Steve become an apostate. 
A person was appointed to settle a dispute between two parties Arbitrator In their final judgement, the jury presented that it is necessary for the parties to have an arbitrator to reach mutual consent.
The one who knows everything Omniscient He is such a know-it-all but he is not an omniscient.
The one who is all powerful Omnipotent We often stereotype a superhero as an Omnipotent but it’s important to have some flaws to make them human.
The one who is present everything Omnipresent Technology has become synonymous with omnipresent nowadays.
Someone who is eighty years old. Octogenarian My grandpa is an octogenarian.
The one who settles in another country. Immigrant It isn’t easy being an immigrant in the USA.
Someone who cares about mankind. Humanitarian She is known for her humanitarian efforts.
Person/People One Word Substitution Examples
Someone trained to travel and operate a spacecraft. Astronaut Kalpana Chawla is one of the greatest women astronauts.
The one who makes maps or charts Cartographer We need a cartographer to decode these cryptic maps.
Someone who sells or grows flowers or studies or writes about flowers. Florist Harry is my favorite florist and I like how he gives unique facts about what every flower symbolises.
Someone with a beautiful handwriting Calligrapher I started as a calligrapher and then became a tattoo artist.
The supervising person during an examination Invigilator The invigilator is too lazy to even check the students in the back.
Someone who presents or hosts a radio show Radio Jockey A radio jockey needs to have brilliant communication skills.
Someone who choreographs dances attuning certain sequences of steps and movements along music Choreographer Can you find me a wedding choreographer?
Someone who is the custodian or the keeper of a museum Curator I like being a curator as I get to meet artists from different parts of the world.
A person who doesn’t like humankind devoids himself of human society Misanthrope Grinch wasn’t the mean-spirited misanthrope most of us took him to be.
A person who collects coins as a hobby Numismatist As a Numismatist, I have a huge collection of currencies from almost all the countries around the world.
Someone employed to drive a hired car Chauffeur The chauffeur will come by 4 pm to the venue.
Someone who walks by foot. Pedestrian This side of the road is for Pedestrians.
Someone who is reserved and shy. Introvert I like being an introvert and I am happy with a small social circle.

Also Read: 50 Difficult Phrases with Meanings!

Terms One Word Substitutions Example
Indefinite period of time Aeon Those days became boring, aeon and too long to pass.
Appreciation of beauty, by a set of principles. Aesthetics I found this website quite appealing especially because of its aesthetics
Spartan snowstorms with uncontrollable winds  Blizzard On our way back to the hotel, we got caught in a blizzard.
An eccentric manner of living Bohemian She felt embarrassed when her friends made fun of her bohemian clothing.
Huge fire for celebration Bonfire The campers spent their night by the bonfire.
Dwarfed varieties of trees and shrubs in pots  Bonsai Her room was filled with bonsai plants.
The remote regions of a country which are far away from the rivers Hinterland Her cottage was situated in a hinterland deprived of any beautiful scenery.
Complex situation or a mix-up Imbroglio The romantic imbroglio happened when he met my landlords assuming they were my parents.
Make someone feel young Rejuvenate This exfoliating scrub can completely rejuvenate your skin.
Not showing enough care and attention Remiss I realised that she was totally remiss in finishing her daily tasks.
A shelter for a Dog Kennel Our new pup spent all his day hiding inside the kennel.
Where wild animals live Lair I found a hidden lair in the forest but was too afraid to go inside it.
A place where coins are made Mint This industrial facility is actually a mint which manufactures coins.
Ordinary and Dull Mundane I am bored with the mundane life of the quarantined days.
Published after someone’s death Posthumous Mr Smith’s posthumous works brought him an immense number of accolades.
The profession of teaching or the approach or style of teaching Pedagogy It was his unique approach to pedagogy that made him every student’s favourite.
The symbols of royalty  Regalia The queen was adorned in full regalia.
A political system solely based on the government of men by God Thearchy The village was ruled by the system of thearchy.
A person promises to tell the truth in court Oath I couldn’t disrespect the oath and thus revealed everything.
Beginning to exist and evolve Nascent Biotechnology bloomed from a nascent sector to a booming industry.
Ethically good behaviour one has Virtue Patience is seen as the virtue of a man.
Humour that describes the weaknesses Satire Ghasiram Kotwal is an incredibly written satire on the political scenario of Maharashtra in the early 20th century.
Changing the direction of one’s path suddenly Veer He veered the car in the other direction as the deer came in the way.
Enjoy something for an extended time Savour Don’t forget to savour this delectable wine!
Someone who is wrongly blamed for things that others have done Scapegoat They used him as a scapegoat to accuse him of the whole conspiracy
Space where animal hides are tanned Tannery The leather for this coat has been skinned in the tannery.
Determined to achieve something Tenacious She was tenacious enough to chase after her dream of becoming a film actor.
The sound of Parrots Screech I woke up to the screeching of birds by the window.
Using a word or name that is inappropriate Misnomer It’s quite a misnomer to call it a victory since he scored the lowest marks in the test. 
A government that has a monarch as the head   Monarchy With a king ruling the country, the Monarchy is different from a democracy.
The sound of Camels Grunt In the vastness of the desert, the only sound you can hear is the constant grunting of camels from far away.
Events manifested by festivities Fiesta Last night’s party was a total fiesta.
The ranting of a person Whine Aakriti is always whining about the weather.
People who are extremely poor Destitute Ajay grew up in a destitute existence.
Absolute freedom to act as one wishes Carte blanche Her mother gave her carte blanche to follow the career path she wants to.
A person who is unsure about God’s existence Agnostic Though he was raised in a conservative Hindu family, he remained agnostic most of his life.
Extreme physical or mental sufferings Agony He fell to the ground in agony.
Japanese form of self-defense with the usage of locks holds Aikido He has mastered Aikido and his next goal is to learn Kung fu.
A soldier who fights for the sake of money Mercenary You are a mercenary and you kill people with any guns!
An accolade or honour bestowed in recognition for an achievement:  Laurel She enjoyed the laurels of her acting achievements.
A person who behaves without moral principles Immoral Lying is completely immoral even if it is done for a good purpose.
Charging a politician with a serious crime Impeach Trump was impeached recently but it didn’t really affect his position as the president. 
Government instructions that limit trade in some way  Embargo With the danger of virus hovering over the whole world, an embargo on international trade was mutually decided upon.
Believer of fate Fatalist I am fatalist for I believe that our destiny has already been written.
Loves being social and enjoys the company of others  Gregarious Gurleen is a gregarious girl and we often call her the social butterfly of our class!
Trees grow without underbrush. Grove This garden is filled with beautiful groves that amazingly complemented the tall trees
An office with high salary but no work  Sinecure After listening to the perks that Seema has at her office, Vishal assumes as if she works at a Sinecure. 
A person who betrays and descents and organisation or country Renegade It is currently flashing in the news that a renegade policeman shot three innocent people. 
One who is much concerned about details and accuracy Fastidious Virat is fastidious about his hair. He makes sure that he visits the salon at regular intervals. 
A place for storage of arms and ammunition Arsenal The officer informed the soldier about his new posting in Arsenal.
One who is expelled from a religious community Excommunicate His misconduct at the previous religious gathering led to his ex-communication. 
A person who eats too much Glutton As soon as the guests left, Riya didn’t miss a chance to call our cousin glutton.
Something which can be copied Immitable As the captain’s approach for the finale was imitable, he is still called a legend.
Killing-related One Word Substitution Examples
When someone kills their own father Patricide Jean was arrested for patricide.
The act of killing a king Regicide The monarchy fell with the regicide.
The killing of a person by another Homicide He went to jail on the charge of homicide.
The killing of one’s child Filicide The police filed a report about filicide that happened in the C block.

Top 40 One-Word Substitutions Asked in Competitive Exams

Credits – wifistudy (Youtube)

One-Word Substitution Sample Questions

Now that you have understood the concept of one-word substitution, let us sample some sample questions so that you develop a strong command over it!

Q1. An individual who is unable to express or interact easily

A) Extrovert
B) Introvert
C) Ambivert
D) None of the Above

Q2. A stream of water moving very fast

A) Current
B) Tide
C) Torrent
D) Storms

Q3. Shikha spends a lot of money on clothes. Her cousins call her a:

A) Frugal
B) Economical
C) Miser
D) Spendthrift

Q4. Asmita works really hard for the upliftment of poor children. She even donates half of her salary to NGOs. She is:

A) Philanthropist
B) Selfish
C) Tightfisted
D) None of the Above

Q5. It is impossible to see through it.

A) Translucent
B) Fragile
C) Opaque
D) Transparent

Q6. Aman is really scared of thunderstorms. He suffers:

A) Acrophobia
B) Ophidiophobia
C) Nephophobia
D) Astraphobia

Q7. She caught the robbers

A) Courageously
B) Frightened
C) Cowardly
D) None of the above

Q8. Lalit has a good knowledge of Music. His father calls him:

A) Incompetent
B) Amateur
C) Maestro
D) Beginner

Q9. After attending a career counseling session, he understood that his ____ was cooking:

A) Niche
B) Supplant
C) Replacement
D) None of the above

Q10. You can’t park your truck here. It is:

A) Lawful
B) Allowed
C) Unauthorized
D) None of the Above

Answers:

  1. B
  2. C
  3. D
  4. A
  5. C
  6. D
  7. A
  8. C
  9. A
  10. C

[BONUS] One Word Substitution Quiz

One Word Substitution Quiz

FAQs

Q1. How to learn one-word substitutes?

Ans. Techniques for One-Word Substitution:
1. Comprehend the whole meaning of a sentence or a group of words.
2. Look for terms that have a comparable meaning to the sentence and use them instead.
3. Discover the replacement words for the statement and keep the word in your memory for later usage.
4. Improving your vocabulary (synonyms and antonyms)

Q2. What is one-word substitution also known as?

Ans. One-word substitutions are also referred to as “Verbatim.” One-word substitution is a technique that substitutes a word for a context without altering the meaning of the original context.

Q3. What is a one-word substitution in English Class 7?

Ans. Single words used to represent a person, an item, a place, etc. instead of a set of words are known as one-word substitutions. Words that sound the same but have diverse meanings are referred to as homophones.

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English is a beautiful language, and one of its many perks is the one-word sentences. One-word sentences — as the name suggests is a sentence with a single word, and which makes total sense.

One word sentences can be used in different forms. It could be in form of a question such as “Why?” It could be in form of a command such as “Stop!” Furthermore, it could be used as a declarative such as “Me.” Also, a one-word sentence could be used to show location, for example, “here.” It could also be used as nominatives e.g. “David.”

Actually, most of the words in English can be turned into one-word sentences. All that matters is the context in which they are used. In a sentence, there is usually a noun, and a verb. In a one-word sentence, the subject and the action of the sentence is implied in the single word, and this is why to understand one-word sentences, one has to understand the context in which the word is being used.

Saying only a little at all times is a skill most people want to learn; knowing when to use one-word sentences can help tremendously. However, you cannot use one-word sentences all the time so as robotic or come off as rude.

Pointing fingerHere are common one-word sentences, and their meanings:

  1. Help: This signifies a call for help.
  2. Hurry: Used to ask someone to do something faster
  3. Begin: Used to signify the beginning of a planned event.

Basically, the 5 Wh-question words — where, when, why, who and what? can also stand as one-word sentences.

one word sentences in English

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By Bizhan Romani

Dr. Bizhan Romani has a PhD in medical virology. When it comes to writing an article about science and research, he is one of our best writers. He is also an expert in blogging about writing styles, proofreading methods, and literature.

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Image by Ozzy Delaney on Flickr.com licensed under CC BY 2.0.

Image by Ozzy Delaney on Flickr.com licensed under CC BY 2.0.

Here I’m going to highlight some of the simplest sentences in English. All of these sentences are only ONE word long! Sit back, relax, and enjoy; these are going to be some of the easiest English sentences you’ve ever learned. (It is about time something in English was easy, right?!)

One-word sentences in English come in a few different forms:
interrogatives or questions (example: Who?)
imperatives or commands (example: Stop!)
declaratives (example: Me.)
locatives (example: Here.)
nominatives (example: Jesse.)

In fact a lot of words in English can be one-word sentences, it all depends on the context.

A complete sentence, even a one-word sentence, needs to have a noun and a verb. In one-word sentences the subject (noun) or the action (verb) of the sentence is implied. That means it is understood in the context of the sentence (or the sentences around it) so that the subject and/or verb do not need to be stated explicitly.

Being brief and saying as much as you can in as few words as possible is something a lot of people want to do. Be careful though, sometimes you can sound robotic or rude if you use too many one-word sentences.

Here is a list of some common one-word sentences. I’m sure you already use some of these.  Along side the one-word sentences I have written out what you could say, with more words, to mean the same thing.

Hi. (Hi there.)
Wait. (Please wait.)
Begin. (You may begin.)
Stop. (You need to stop.)
Hurry. (Hurry up please.)
Catch. (Catch this.)
Here. (Here you go.)
Go! (Get going now!)
Help! (I need help!)
Eat. (Go ahead and eat.)
Yes.  (Yes, that would be great.)
No.  (No, thank you.)
Thank you. (Thank you, I really appreciate it.)
The wh-question words: Who? What? Where? When? Why? How? 
A lot of swear words: Sh*t., F*ck., etc.

Do you have a favorite one-word sentence? Add to this list by posting a comment below! Thank you.

 Word  Wo rd Orde Or derr in English Sentences Phil Williams 2nd Edition Copyright © 2016 Phil Williams  All rights reserved. reserved.

Designed by P. Williams No part of this publication shall be reproduced, transmitted, or sold in whole or in part in any form without the prior  written consent of the author.

Visit www.englishle Visit www.englishlessonsbright ssonsbrighton.co.uk  on.co.uk  for  for more information and regular ESL updates.

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CONTENTS Preface Introduction Sentence Structure Structure 1.1 Introducing Introducing Sentence Structure 1.2 Adding Adding Detail to Sentences 1.3 Exercise Exercise 1: Simple Sentence Sentence Structure 1.4 Sentences Sentences with More Than One Clause Clause 1.5 Exercise Exercise 2: Further Sentence Sentence Structure Questions 2.1 Question Question Structure 2.2 Exercise Exercise 3: Questions Negative sentences sentences 3.1 Negative Negative Sentence Structure Structure 3.2 Neg ative ative Questions Questions 3.3 Exercise Exercise 4: Negative Sentences Verb phrases 4.1 Verb Phrase Phrase Structures 4.2 Tenses Tenses and Standa rd rd Verb Phrases 4.3 Verbs Verbs and Ob jects 4.4 Phra sal sal Verbs Verbs 4.5 Exercise 5: Verbs and Objects 4.6 Transitive and Intransitive Verbs 4.7 Verbs and Locations 4.8 Verbs of State, Conditions and Senses 4.9 Verbs Followed by Other Verbs 4.10 Verbs, Other Words and Clauses as Objects Noun phrases 5.1 Noun Phrase Structure 5.2 Determiners 5.3 Prepositions 3

5.4 Compound Nouns 5.4a Single Word or Simple Compound Nouns 5.4b Compound Nouns with Two or More Words 5.4c Compound Nouns with More than Two Nouns 5.5 Noun Complements 5.6 Embedded Questions 5.7 Exercise 6: Noun Phrases djectives 6.1 Adjective Positions 6.2 Adjectives Before Nouns 6.3 Using More than One Adjective 6.4 Detailed Adjective Word Order 6.5 Listing Adjectives 6.6 Adjectives and Adverbs 6.7 Adjectives After Verbs 6.8 Adjectives After Nouns 6.9 Exercise 7: Adjective Word Order dverbs 7.1 Adverb Position 7.2 General Adverb Positions 7.3 Adverbs of Frequency  7.4 Adverbs of Manner 7.5 Adverbs of Place 7.6 Adverbs of Time 7.7 Connecting Adverbs 7.8 Specific Adverb Rules 7.9 Exercise 8: Adverbs of Frequency  7.10 Exercise 9: Adverbs of Manner 7.11 Exercise 10: Adverbs of Place 7.12 Exercise 11: Adverbs of Time 7.13 Exercise 12: Mixed Adverbs Prepositions

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8.1 Preposition Position 8.2 Prepositions in Questions 8.3 Prepositions in Passive Structures 8.4 Prepositions in Relative Clauses 8.5 Prepositions in Infinitive Structures 8.6 Exercise 13: Mixed Word Order Sentences with Multiple Clauses 9.1 Simple Sentences 9.2 Compound Sentences 9.3 Complex Sentences 9.4 Using Different Sentence Types 9.5 Exercise 14: Multiple Clauses Using Flexible Word Order 10.1 Standard Word Order 10.2 Moving the Time 10.3 Changing the Verb Phrase 10.4 Prepositional Phrases 10.5 Further Sentence Changes 10.6 Exercise 15: Rewriting a Sentence 10.7 Exercise 16: Rewriting sentences fterword

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PREFACE This guide is for English learners of all levels who want a full introduction to word order and sentence structure in English. Starting at a basic level, it gradually introduces more complex sentence structures and components, components, and provides plenty of practice through rearranging words to make sentences. An understanding of English may be necessary before beginning. The basic rules presented here are important as a basis for more complex grammar later. A  strong and flexible use of English is made possible through a solid understanding of the more simple initial rules; in English the rules are often bent and broken, but to do this effectively you must first know the rules.  You can use this book by reading through through different sentence sentence structure structure and word order order rules one at a time, in sequential order, or by using the contents as a reference to find information on specific items. This grammar book is written in English. Translations will be available in the future.

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 AB  A B O U T T H E A U T H O R  Phil Williams is an English teacher and writer based in Brighton, UK. He has taught in schools and privately, in the UK, the United Arab Emirates, Russia and the Czech Republic, and is qualified with a Trinity Certificate in TESOL, and a Trinity IBET for Business English. He writes for businesses and entertainment, and manages websites including the regularly updated ESL website English Lessons Brighton. Brighton. Phil also runs the writing websites Copywrite Now  and Write  and Write Right Now  Now , which offer more advanced writing tips. He can be contacted via email at [email protected]  if you have any questions or comments regarding regarding this book.

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 AC  A C K N OW OWL LEDGEMENTS This book would not have been possible without my many students who have helped me understand the importance of specific grammar points and the difficulties learners have  with them. In particular particular I must thank my wife Marta for her support and and reading through through this with me, and my readers who gave early feedback, particularly Kate Phillips, MarieClaire Gauthier, Elmer Jadraque, Dmitri Nikolaev and Pedro Rojo. Much of what I know about the English language I have learnt from reading and writing  practice, and through answering the questions of my students. Two grammar books that have also greatly benefited me are Murphy’s English Grammar In Use and Swan’s Practical  English Usage . Both of these books cover a vast range of grammar points, and are worth reading (and owning).

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INTRODUCTION In the English language, word order and sentence structure are important. Changing the order of words, or the structure of a sentence, can affect meaning. However, However, the English language is also flexible, and in many cases the order can be changed. This guide is designed to introduce the basics of word order and sentence structure, and to provide general points on how word order and sentence structure can change. It does this by first introducing simplified components of English sentences, such as Subject-VerbObject rules, and develops these ideas with more detailed analysis of the components, considering nouns, verb phrases, questions, prepositional phrases, adjectives, adverbs and more. fter covering these general rules, consideration is given to more advanced use of English, including rewriting English sentences with different structures, analysing the effects that this can cause. As such, the guide starts simply, and has simple exercises, exercises, and builds to more specific and challenging points. This guide is designed as an introduction, so is not a comprehensive analysis of word order and sentence structure. It should be noted that there are countless examples of unique word order patterns in English. The guide also only provides a simple introduction to verb structures, which are very varied in practice.

How to use this book  This guide offers explanations of form, examples of form and explanations of flexible rules. Many sections are followed by jumbled sentence exercises with answers. You can read the sections individually to learn about different structures of English, or you can read the book  in order, to get an overall understanding of word order and sentence structure. There are regular examples to aid understanding. understanding. The examples used are deliberately deliberately varied and often unconventional, so carefully comparing the examples may help test your understanding understanding of the information offered here. Please note that this guide is written in British English. Although some consideration has been given to the differences between British and American English, it may still contain regionally specific language. Colour coding  This guide is colour-coded to highlight important grammar points, structure and examples. Listed examples are given with bullet points. Italics  show  show examples within the main body of the text, or emphasis and additional information in listed examples. Bold black blac k is used for structure and form, and emphasis in examples. examples. Orange highlights grammar rules and words of importance. Blue words indicate related material in the guide or online.

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SENTENCE STRUCTURE 1.1 Introducing Sentence Structure Sentences in English use a standard general order, that can be simply explained as: (1) Subject (2) Verb (3) Object These general groups of words can be a single word each, or entire phrases. This is especially true for the object object part  part of the sentence structure, structure, which can represent any  complement to complement  to the verb and additional information. information.

The subject is the actor the actor of  the verb. The verb verb is  is the action, the action, event or state or state.. The object object is  is what the verb is done to to.. For sentences with more information, the additional information can be divided into specific parts, including indirect object, object, direct object, object , place/location place/location and  and time time.. These usually follow this order: (1) Subject (2) Verb (3) Indirect Object (4) Direct Object (5) Prepositional Phrase (6) Time

The indirect The indirect object is object is what is affected affected by  by the verb. Prepositional phrases or places places are  are noun phrases usually started by a  preposition. As well as location, they can show different indirect objects or tools used (with prepositions such as with, for , and to). The time time is  is when  when the  the event happens. Not all groups of words are necessary in all sentences. sentences. A basic sentence in English should at least have a subject and verb, though sometimes even a subject is not necessary (such as  with instructions). instructions).

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1.2 Adding Detail to Sentences To add information to subjects and objects we can use adjectives adjectives.. To add information to verbs, we use adverbs adverbs.. These create groups of words that form phrases phrases,, many words referring to one idea (noun, verb, object, location, time, etc.).

 forms the subject .) The tired tire d old man ma n swept the floor. floor. (The whole noun phrase  forms  forms the object .) They ate too much chocolate cake. (The whole noun phrase  forms form forms the verb verb..)  We have been be en watchi wa tching ng films all day. (The whole verb form forms

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1.3 Exercise 1: Simple Sentence Structure Put the scrambled sentences in the correct order. have eaten / I / too much cheese I have eaten too much cheese. 1.

house / we / moved _________________________________________________

2.

look / very tired / you _________________________________________________

3.

rats / rather small / are _________________________________________________

4.

talks / he / too much _________________________________________________

5.

she / to the park / went _________________________________________________

6.

have been reading / I / about pigs _________________________________________________

7.

all the jewels / the gang / has stolen _________________________________________________

8.

really wants / Peter / his best friend’s car _________________________________________________

9.

from our bins / a lot of raccoons / have been stealing  _________________________________________________

10. aren’t going going to work / until they they are paid more more / the angry workmen _________________________________________________

1.3a Answers to Exercise 1 Demonstrated Demonstrated in the simple structure table, the answers are:

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1.4 Sentences with More Than One Clause  When sentences sentences have more than than one clause clause,, a complete grammatical idea, each clause follows the same structure pattern. The final sentence of 1.3 Exercise 1: Simple Sentence Structure has Structure has a more complex verb structure. Its additional information (until they are paid more ) is a time clause, clause, a complete clause with a subject and verb, used to show a time. Although it is part of a larger sentence, and follows an adverb of time (until ), ), the clause uses a standard subject-verb-object order. Entire clauses can make up different components of a sentence in this way. dditional clauses can be used to form compound and complex sentences, using  independent clauses, dependent clauses and relative dependent clauses. These are connected  with different types types of conjunctions and relative pronouns. pronouns. While this may sound complicated, each clause within the sentence will follow similar word order and sentence structure rules. The subject of multiple clauses is covered later in this book, after the fundamental rules of creating each clause (see Sentences with Multiple Clauses).

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1.5 Exercise 2: Further Sentence Structure Put the scrambled sentences in the correct order.  waited / he / by the lamp / for the bus He waited for the bus by the lamp. 1.

sang / about summer / we / songs _________________________________________________

2.

all evening / played / football footbal l / they  _________________________________________________

3.

for hours / were dancing / we / to the music _________________________________________________

4.

never eat / after dark / sweets _________________________________________________

5.

me / too many people / have given / the wrong answers _________________________________________________

6.

with some cheese / the mice / I / fed _________________________________________________

7.

my ticket / gave / I / to the inspector _________________________________________________

8.

was phoning / she / her friends / all night / for fun _________________________________________________

9.

the dirty dishes / Winston / washed / with soap _________________________________________________

10. the carton of milk / leave / by the sink / when you finish finish _________________________________________________

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1.5a Answers to Exercise 2 Demonstrated Demonstrated in the detailed sentence structure table, the answers are:

Note that Sentence 4 starts with the word Never , not a subject or verb. Sometimes modifiers of a verb can begin a sentence, when there is no subject. This follows rules explained in the section on Adverbs on Adverbs.. In Sentence Sent ence 7, the prepositional phrase contains the indirect indirect object (the inspector ). ). When the indirect object and the verb are connected by a preposition such as to, for  and  and with, the indirect object usually comes after after the  the direct object, as an object of a prepositional phrase instead of an indirect object of the verb.

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QUESTIONS 2.1 Question Structure To form questions in the English language, we place the first verb before the subject. subject . The rest of the sentence usually follows standard word order. To form questions we usually add an auxiliary  verb  verb before the subject. This varies depending on tenses and the information asked for. He saw the film. Did he see the film?  We do not need need an auxiliary verb with with the verb to be, which is placed before the subject subject to form a question.  Are you okay?  Was it raining when you left the house? house? If an auxiliary verb is required, it is the first verb and verb and goes before the subject. Other verbs follow the subject. Questions can also be formed with question words, words, which usually come at the very  beginning of the sentence, sentence, before the verb.

Sometimes question question words replace the subject, when the subject is not known. The word order remains the same, without a subject.  What happened in in the garden?  Who is invited? invited?

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2.2 Exercise 3: Questions Put the scrambled sentences in the correct order.  wearing / you / what / to the party / are  What are you wearing wearing to the party? 1.

can / buy / I / where / a new coat / ? _________________________________________________

2.

he / what / did / do / ? _________________________________________________

3.

time / it / to go home / is / ? _________________________________________________

4.

awful / is / what / smell / that / ? _________________________________________________

5.

the President / do / you / how / know / ? _________________________________________________

6.

you know / about this / did / before / ? _________________________________________________

7.

help / my homework / can / she / me / with / ? _________________________________________________

8.

with me / you you / do do / to go / want want / to the park / ? _________________________________________________

9.

been going / to the dance classes / has / every morning / Jenni / ? _________________________________________________

10. come from / that odd stain / did / where / ? _________________________________________________

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2.2a Answers to Exercise 3 Demonstrated Demonstrated in the question structure table, the answers are:

Note that in Sentence Sente nce 4 the question word is the subject. subject.

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NEGATIVE NEGA TIVE SEN TENCES 3.1 Negative Sentence Structure Negative sentences sentences are formed by adding not after the main verb. verb. He was not listening. The rest of the sentence follows standard structure rules. Negative sentences sentences often require an auxiliary verb, such as be , do or have . In these sentences, not comes after the auxiliary verb, verb, but before any other verbs. verbs. I will not go to the party. He does not know the answer. Do not forget your book.

Not should directly follow the verb; no other words should come between a negative verb form. I did not understand the test. (NOT: I did understand not the text. ) Negative forms (verb + not) can be combined to form contractions contractions.. In statements, statements, this does not affect sentence structure or word order, it simply combines the verb with not, to make one word that takes the verb position.  We weren’t weren’ t afraid. This isn’t the pizza I ordered.

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3.2 Negative Questions For negative questions, the first verb is placed before the subject, and not follows the subject.. subject Did you not like the painting?  Are we not no t too old for this movie? However, negative questions are often informal, and therefore mostly use contractions, such as didn’t , haven’t and aren’t . These contractions are one word, taking the place of the verb, so the complete contraction comes at in the verb position.  Aren’t  Aren’ t you happy with the new colour? colour? Didn’t you like the food?

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3.3 Exercise 4: Negative Sentences Put the scrambled sentences in the correct order. like / do / I / cold weather / not I do not like cold weather. 1.

did / see / I / not / the film _________________________________________________

2.

Paul / not / a nice person / is _________________________________________________

3.

not / the truth / is / he / telling  _________________________________________________

4.

on / the restaurant restauran t / we / not / had / decided _________________________________________________

5.

to the bank / aren’t / going / you / ? _________________________________________________

6.

last week / she / perform / not / on stage / did _________________________________________________

7.

that pasta / don’t / why / eat / you / ? _________________________________________________

8.

come back / they / not / next week / will _________________________________________________

9.

curious / about the missing cheese / weren’t / you / ? _________________________________________________

10. the new hospital / not / to to build / will / in time / we / be able _________________________________________________

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3.3a Answers to Exercise 4 Demonstrated Demonstrated in the negative structure table, plus question words/inverted verbs, the answers are:

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VERB PHRASES 4.1 Verb Verb Phrase Str uctures Sentence structure can be affected in many ways depending on the verb. The structure used for verb phrases (sometimes called verb aspects) can depend on time or on specific rules for particular uses. Most verb forms create a verb phrase that fits into the basic structures already presented, even if they include more than one verb, as verb phrases are typically  connected and not interrupted by other words.  We ate at the restaurant.  We have been be en listeni li stening ng to Jazz all night. I am going to be watching the news this evening. I should have known about the new prices. Sentences with more than one clause can appear to have verbs in different places in the sentence. However, if you break sentences down into clauses each clause follows standard  word order rules.  We would have h ave done d one something if we had known kn own sooner.  We would have done something. something. We had known sooner. sooner. In this example, for structure, the difference between the two sentences and a combined sentence is the inclusion of a bridging word, if   . Otherwise both clauses clauses follow the subjectsubje ctverb structure.

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4.2 Tenses Tenses and Stand ard Verb Verb Phr ases There are four main patterns for verb aspects in English: simple simple,, continuous continuous,, perfect perfect and  and perfect continuous tenses. continuous tenses. These form verb phrases in the following structural patterns:

In these structures, the first verb agrees with the subject (i.e. changes to suit the subject) but additional verbs do not. These forms can be used in past, present and future, and altered with questions and negatives. They can also be used with modal verbs, verbs, such as can, could, should, would and might . All of these forms create one verb phrase. phrase. No matter how long or complicated a verb phrase is, it represents the single grammatical unit of a verb in a sentence.  We went home.  We might have h ave been b een going go ing home. However, different verbs and structures may be followed by different patterns in a sentence. For example: some verbs require prepositions prepositions to  to be linked to an object, while others (even  with the same meaning) meaning) do not some verbs require an object, object, and others do not many verbs must be followed by an infinitive infinitive or  or a past participle There is no easy way to know how a verb will fit into these structures without learning  them individually. However, the most common patterns are shown below.

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4.3 Verbs Verbs and Ob jects Verbs and objects usually go together and should not be separated by additional information such as location, manner or time. I like the cheese from the market. ( NOT I like from the market the cheese.)  We enjoyed enjoye d the party part y a lot. (NOT We enjoyed a lot the party .) .) He checked his watch at noon. noon. (NOT He checked at noon his watch.) s shown in the first chapter, the indirect object usually comes before the direct object, unless it is connected to the verb by a preposition. I gave Charles my watch. I gave my watch to Charles. (NOT I gave my watch Charles.) Some verbs must be connected to the following object with a preposition, whilst others must be connected without a preposition. This depends on the verb. For example:

NOT  The doctor operated the patient.) The doctor operated on the patient. (NOT The She discussed the problem. ( NOT She discussed about the problem.) This is a complicated area, as regional variations in language, phrasal verbs and specific expressions can appear to bend these rules. For example, to talk is typically connected to an object with a preposition, but in colloquial expressions might not be.

 with a preposition.) Let’s talk about your future. (Connecting  talk   talk  with meaning talk about money.) Let’s talk turkey. ( An expression meaning  verb such as to believe, on the other hand, is typically connected without a preposition, but is can be used in the phrasal verb to believe in (with the slightly different meaning to have confidence in ). She believed the priest. ( She believed what the priest said.) She believed in the priest. ( She had confidence in the priest .) .) This depends on individual verbs, and even two verbs with the same meaning can sometimes be connected in different ways for different uses. I want a bagel. (desiring an object, followed by a noun) I want to eat a bagel. (desiring to do an action, followed by an infinitive)

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4.4 Phra sal Verbs Verbs Many verbs can be combined with particles particles,, usually formed from either an adverb or a  preposition, to form phrasal verbs. verbs. These multi-word verbs form a single meaning, acting  as one verb as a grammatical unit, and should not to be mistaken for the meaning, and grammatical use, of their individual words. For example, turn up as a phrasal verb (where up is a verb particle) can mean arrive , while turn + up (where up is an adverb) can mean to turn something upwards. I turned up late for the party. (arrived ) I turned up my trousers. (adjusted the material upwards ) s they are formed from more than one word, phrasal verbs often interact with objects in different ways to regular verbs. Phrasal verbs and verbs connected to sentences with prepositions and adverbs often use similar word order. For example: I turned off the television. (off    as a particle of turn off   ) I fell off my chair. (off    as a preposition showing where ) However, phrasal verb particles move with different rules to prepositions or adverbs. I  turned the television off. is possible, but I fell my chair off is not. While a preposition preposition should follow a verb, a phrasal verb particle can have two positions, either before or after the object: Bill turned on the light. Bill turned the light on. Phrasal verbs without an object should usually be kept together, with the particle directly  following the verb. Try to keep up. Try to keep up with the rest of the class. (NOT Try to keep with the rest of the  class up.)  When a phrasal verb has an object, the particle particle can usually go go either before befor e or after aft er the object. She gave back the expensive gift. OR  She  She gave the expensive gift back.  When the object is a pronoun, pronoun, however, the particle MUST go after the object. object . She gave it back. (NOT She gave back it. )  We looked looke d it up. (NOT We looked up it.) Generally, if the object contains more than one word, word, the particle comes before the object.. This is more a matter of style object style,, to be clear. The boy kept up his high marks. ( NOT The boy kept his high marks up.) If the verb and object are followed by a prepositional phrase, it is also best to put the particle before the object, object, so you do not stack prepositions. Again, this is not a strict grammar rule, but it make sentences clearer. 28

She picked up her pen in the classroom. (NOT She picked her pen up in the  classroom.) Some phrasal verbs have more than one additional word, usually an adverb particle and a  preposition, for example, to get on with (to get along , to continue  or  or to dedicate time to). These multi-word phrasal verbs should not be separated, even with pronouns. Rupert got on with the report. Rupert Rupert got on with it.  We will look out o ut for fo r your sister in Chicago.  We will look out o ut for fo r her in Chicago.

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4.5 Exercise 5: Verbs and Objects Put the scrambled sentences in the correct order. on / my coat / I / put / this morning  I put on my coat this morning. OR  I  I put my coat on this morning. 1.

give / to Anna / I / the flowers / will _________________________________________________

2.

the test / yesterday / took / we _________________________________________________

3.

some ice-cream / want / from the shop / I _________________________________________________

4.

for dinner / had / chicken soup / they  _________________________________________________

5.

me / the salt / please / pass _________________________________________________

6.

running / up / will / in the Spring / take / she _________________________________________________

7.

it / in the dictionary / I / look / need / to / up _________________________________________________

8.

up / after dinner / the garage / they / cleaned _________________________________________________

9.

on / with / it / he / got _________________________________________________

10. in France / picked / Rudolph Rudolph / some bad habits habits / up _________________________________________________ 4.5a Answers to Exercise 5 Demonstrated Demonstrated in the verb structure table (with particles shown as part of the verb), the answers are:

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In Sentence 5,  please can come at the beginning or end of the sentence. In Sentence 7, the object it comes in the middle of the phrasal verb because it is a pronoun. In Sentences 6, 8 and 10 the particle could go after the object (e.g. cleaned the garage up ). It sounds simpler before the object when the object contains more than one word. In Sentence Sente nce 9 the object can NOT go before the particle because because the phrasal verb verb is formed formed of three words, get, on and with.

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4.6 Transit Transit ive and Intransi tive Verbs Verbs Transitive verbs are verbs are ones which require an object and object and do not work without an object. Transitive verbs are usually followed directly by a noun or pronoun (or pronoun (or a noun phrase).  We took drinks to the party. (NOT We took to the party.) They shocked the audience. (NOT They shocked.) Intransitive verbs do not require an object object,, and can complete a sentence without an object. If they are connected to an object, they require a preposition. I sat. I sat on a chair. (NOT I sat a chair.) Some verbs can be either transitive or intransitive; these usually do not require a preposition to connect them to an object. I studied. I studied English. She ate. She ate two pies.

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4.7 Verbs and Locations Verbs are usually connected to locations by a preposition. They walked to the seafront. (NOT They walked the seafront.) To highlight why prepositions are used, it could make the difference between signalling a  location and signalling an object. She walked the dog. (She took the dog for a walk.) She walked to the dog. ( She walked to the location where the dog was. ) However, sometimes sometimes locations are used as direct objects, usually when the verb is something applied to the location. Bridget climbs mountains. (NOT Bridget climbs on mountains.) In the above example, climbing mountains  is  is the activity of using climbing to overcome mountains, while climbing on mountains would be the activity of climbing in the location t he mountain.). of a mountain (for example Bridget climbed the cliff on the  location can also be demonstrated by an adverb of place instead of a prepositional phrase. These are words like upwards, past, by and out . These can follow a verb on their own to show a direction, not requiring a preposition. The dog jumped up. Freddie went upstairs.

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4.8 Verbs Verbs of State, Conditions and Senses Some verbs are followed by adjectives, adjectives , or other complements complements,, which describe the subject. These are not connected as prepositional phrases. These are usually verbs that demonstrate a state state,, condition condition or  or sense sense of  of the subject, such as to be , to feel  and  and to seem. My mother is kind. This apple smells rotten. For more information on adjectives following verbs, see 6.7 Adjectives After Verbs. Verbs .

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4.9 Verbs Verbs Followed by Other Verbs Verbs are often followed by other verbs, such as infinitive and bare infinitive forms and participles. This happens in question and negative forms. A forms. A second seco nd verb ve rb can ca n also als o behave beh ave like a direct object of object of the first verb. This structure often describes an attitude to an action. Mary loves swimming. Grammatically, as in the above example, using a verb participle as a noun fits into regular sentence structure in the same way as using objects. Verbs can also be combined with nouns and other words to form compound complements. complements. For sentence structure this is still treated as an object, even if the word order appears to be a verb followed by another verb.

direct object phrase  phrase ) I like eating donuts. (eating donuts is a direct She adores adores playing the piano. pian o. Depending on the verb, a number of different structures may be possible for such phrases. For example, to seem or to appear  are  are followed by infinitive forms when describing actions. Infinitive forms can, in turn, be followed by objects and other additional information using  the basic sentence structure, structure, even forming a whole clause that acts as an object of the original verb. They seem nice. They seem to know a lot of words. It appears to have stopped raining. Exactly which structure follows a specific verb must be learnt individually in many cases. Some verbs must be followed by an infinitive or bare infinitive form, others require an – ing form, f orm, with or without a preposition, and others may require a complete complete clause.  Would you mind mind helping with the sofa? (NOT mind to help ) The car seems to have a broken window. (NOT seems to having ) There are also verbs which can use more than one of these structures, sometimes sometimes changing  the meaning. He wanted help. (wanted to receive help ) He wanted to help. (wanted to offer help) Verbs followed by a verb structure can also be joined by other objects. Indirect objects can be placed in the sentence using regular word order rules (for example before the verb structure, acting as a direct object). I want to help the children. (verb structure with a direct object ) I want the children to help me. ( verb structure with an indirect object before it )

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4.10 Verbs, Verbs, Ot her Words Words and Claus es as Obje cts For sentence structure and word order purposes, it is important to note how particular  words, including different verb structures, structures, components components and clauses, clauses, agree with the initial verb. Structures for specific tenses, question and negative forms fit into sentences in set formats as previously shown. If a structure following a verb is the object of that verb, however complex that structure is, it should be treated as an object. Consider the following example: Fred forgot to write to his mother about the holidays when he got home. The entire phrase to write to his mother about the holidays  is  is the object of the verb  forgot . As an object, that phrase must follow the verb, fitting into standard sentence structure. The sentence structure is the same with the object replaced by a simpler object or pronoun. Fred forgot about it when he got home. The clause when he got home , however, is a time clause. As a time it can be moved in the same way as adverbials of time (see 7.6 Adverbs of Time). Now consider:  We have been been waiting to go home for many hours. Here, have  is  is followed by three verbs, been, waiting  and  and to go. Been waiting  is  is part of the main verb structure, forming a present perfect continuous tense, while to go forms part of  the object. To rearrange or change been waiting  would  would affect the main verb, while rearranging or changing to go home  would  would affect the object.  We have wanted to go home for many hours. (changing the meaning of the  action)  We have been been waiting for a car for many hours. hours. (changing the object of the action)

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NOUN PHRASES 5.1 Noun Phrase Structure Subjects and objects in sentences can be formed with individual nouns or pronouns or groups of words that form a noun phrase. phrase. Noun phrases fit into sentences using structure rules for subjects and objects, though they may include many different types of words  which follow particular word order order rules. The most common words we add to noun phrases are determiners determiners,, prepositions prepositions and  and adjectives.. Determiners and prepositions are discussed below, while adjectives (describing  adjectives  words) use more complex word order, order, discussed separately in Adjective in Adjectivess. Nouns can also be combined with many different words to form compound nouns and nouns and noun phrases can include additional following information in the form of noun complements. complements. Noun phrases are typically formed using this word order: (1)Determiner (2) Adjective (3) Describing noun (4) Noun (5) Noun complement

More detailed explanations are given below.

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5.2 Determiners Determiners can describe describe the quantity of a noun, or show if the noun is known or unknown. For example, the articles articles,, a/an and the  tell  tell us if it is a specific noun, noun, while some , any  and  and many  tell  tell us how much/many . I would like a bag of crisps. (one of many)  Ask the driver to stop. (a specific driver) There were many dogs. (a large number of dogs) Determiners always come at the beginning of a noun phrase, phrase, before all describing words or additional nouns. the big brown envelope a small frightened child many smelly wet sponges sponges some cat food

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5.3 Prepositio Prepositions ns Prepositions describe the relationships between nouns, nouns, usually to show location, purpose or direction. They can be seen as linking words, and therefore always come before nouns / noun phrases. phrases. (There is a clue in their name — pre means before .)  We talked in the cafe . On the last day  of  of the week, I had fish for my dinner . Prepositions should come before all describing words and determiners. Do not mistake prepositions for particles particles,, which are part of a phrasal verb and have their own word order rules. Note that while particles tend to follow verbs, prepositions do not simply follow verbs; their position depends on the noun phrase.

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5.4 Compound Nouns Nouns combined with other words to create one idea are called compound nouns. These are treated as a single noun phrase unit, so the entire group of words take the position of a  regular noun (for instance as a subject or object). Any modifiers (including determiners determiners and additional adjectives) adjectives) come before or after the whole compound noun.

5.4a Single Word or Simple Compound Nouns Compound nouns formed by joining an adjective to the end of a noun are often combined into one word, for example words using suffixes such as -ful  (a  (a form of the word full ) or  when using a noun that represent quantities, quantities, such as load . bagful (a quantity that fills a bag ) truckload (a quantity that fills a truck ) Nouns that are combined with a verb, often to describe an activity or event or an object used for a particular activity, also often form one word: haircut sunset skateboard  With prepositions and prepositional phrases, phrases, which usually describe a noun noun with a  particular relationship, a single word or a hyphenated word may be formed: sister-in-law  downtown  With all these examples, the word order is very simple simple as they are compound compound nouns in the the form of a single word, while hyphenated phrases should never be separated.

5.4b Comp ound Nouns with Two Two or More Words Words Compound nouns are also formed with nouns nouns,, adjectives adjectives,, prepositions prepositions and  and verbs verbs coming   coming  before a noun. noun. These are still treated as one idea, taking the place in the sentence of a noun (for example as a subject or object), but there are rules deciding the word order within a  compound noun. Earlier words, words, whether a noun, adjective, verb or preposition, normally describe the final noun.. noun cat food (a kind of food, for cats ) car door (a type of door, belonging to a car ) swimming pool (a type of pool, for swimming ) full moon (a type of moon, when it is full ) Compound nouns must follow a particular word order to make sense – a door car , for example, would mean a car made of doors, which would be strange. In some cases, the 40

 words can be reversed reversed for a logical, but but different, meaning: meaning: horse race (a type of race, with horses ) race horse (a type of horse, for races ) s the second word in these compound nouns represents the main idea, it can be useful to think of the preceding words as additional (describing) information, like adjectives. When using a noun to describe another noun, the first noun can be put into an object form (connected with a verb) to make its meaning clear: football shirt – a shirt worn for football finance book – a book used for finances London taxi – a taxi from London  white board – a board that is white  With compound nouns, because the earlier noun provides noun provides a description, not a quantity, it is always in singular form. form.  wedding ring / wedding rings rings ny determiners determiners come  come before the entire compound noun, noun , but are based on the final noun, not any other nouns in the phrase. For example, sun usually has the article the, but as the first word of a compound noun the article is decided by the final noun. Do you have some sun cream? (some cream) Pass me the sun cream. ( the specific cream) Note that not all nouns can form compound nouns by nouns by simply putting one word in front of another. Sometimes nouns must be linked with prepositions.

NOT  a longing sense ) a sense of longing (NOT a

5.4c Comp ound Nouns wi th More than Two Two Nouns Sometimes compound compound nouns have more than one additional word before the noun, which can form more complex compound nouns, similar to placing multiple adjectives in front of  a noun. Additional information describes the noun (or compound noun) it comes directly  before. The main noun will always be the final word in a phrase, so adding words at the end of these structures will change the noun: sea creature analysis (a type of analysis ) sea creature analysis centre (a specific location) sea creature analysis centre report (a specific piece of writing ) If the final noun stays in the same position, additional words before the noun will noun will change the description of the same noun: creature analysis sea creature analysis sea creature egg analysis Mediterranean Sea creature egg analysis 41

In this example, these are all types of analysis .

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5.5 Noun Complements Noun phrases can be further modified, as part of a noun phrase unit, by noun complements.. Complements add additional information to the noun, sometimes necessary  complements necessary  to complete the meaning of a noun. Noun complements are normally used with abstract nouns (nouns nouns  (nouns which represent an idea rather than a thing, like thought ). ). The complement, or additional information, explains what that idea relates to, and usually comes after the noun.. noun For example: I like the thought of sleeping kittens . In this case, thought is an abstract noun complemented complemented by the phrase of sleeping kittens . Combined, the noun and complement make one complete grammatical idea: a specific thought (of sleeping kittens ). ). Often, an abstract noun does not make sense without a complement. This works in a  similar way to verbs which require an object; unless we know what the noun relates to, it does not work on its own. Examples include nouns such as idea , thought , reason, criticism, belief    and need . Noun complements can come in the form of prepositional phrases, full clauses or infinitives. The Mayor’s criticism of his rival was unfounded. ( prepositional phrase ) She did did not like like the the idea idea that they were going to have to walk home in the th e  full clause ) rain. ( full The dog did not feel the need to bark. (infinitive ) Different nouns can be followed by different complements. complements. Some nouns take complements more flexibly than others. For example: There is no reason to cry.  What was the reason reason for the t he train tr ain delay d elay?? I gave two reasons why I hated him. s different nouns can require different complements, complements, they must be learned individually. Noun complements always follow the noun they add information to. to. They fit into a  sentence as part of the noun’s grammatical unit, for example as a subject or object, even if  the complement is a full clause. Barry explained his idea that the water filter was being tampered with to his boss. His idea that the water filter was being tampered with angered Barry’s boss. Barry’s boss listened tiredly to his idea that the water filter was being tampered  with. Usually, the noun and its complement should not be separated. Though the noun phrase can be moved, it should stay together in the same order.  You may sometimes sometimes split a noun noun from its complement complement by presenting presenting it as parenthetical parenthetical 43

information (such as an independent independent clause). Barry explained his idea, which he had been thinking about for months , that the  water filter was being being tampered with. with. This can reduce clarity as it divides the noun from important information. It can also seem clumsy if the noun complement is followed by additional information (the example above  would sound very very long if we kept the final information to his boss ). ). In general, try to keep nouns and their complements together. together .

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5.6 Embedded Questions Sentence objects can be represented by entire clauses, such as when a noun object is demonstrated by an embedded question. Embedded  (or included or indirect Embedded (or or indirect)) questions questions are  are noun clauses used when we ask for information indirectly  or  or when we report questions. questions. These are used to represent a single idea, though they require a complete cause. This is common in passive English or softer questions (Do you know…), for reported speech (She told me where… ) or to discuss a  question without directly asking it ( I don’t know why…). Embedded questions are always formed using a statement clause. clause. This means they use regular word order, with subject + verb, not a question form (verb + subject). The embedded embedded question is usually the object of a verb. I know what his name is. In this example, the embedded question what his name is  is  is the object of know . For embedded questions using question words ( words (when, what, where, why, whose, which, how ), ), the noun clause should begin with the question word. word. They did not find out why he had lied. She saw how he looked at her. Do you know when the taxi will arrive? If the question asks for a yes/no response, response, the noun clause usually begins with if  or or whether . Do you know if the taxi is coming?  While questions questions are often formed with an auxiliary verb, such such as to do, embedded questions do not require auxiliaries auxiliaries in  in this way.  What do you want? BUT He asked what I wanted. lthough they may require a question word or other connection, noun clauses that form embedded embedded questions should follow ordinary word order, and fit into sentences in the same  way as other noun components. components. This means means they can be moved moved in the same same way. I wanted to know why she had left. (object of verb)  Why she sh e had left was a question that was bothering me. me. (subject) On the paper, he had written suggestions about why she had left. (part of    prepositional phrase)

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5.7 Exercise 6: Noun Phrases Put the scrambled sentences in the correct order. green / my coat / I / wore / this morning  I wore my green coat this morning. 1.

more / food / need / we / cat _________________________________________________

2.

the test / yesterday / took / we _________________________________________________

3.

must / the / rewrite / paragraph / unclear / you _________________________________________________

4.

people / at / there / game / football / were were / thousand thousand / ten ten / the _________________________________________________

5.

old / an / met / they / in / barn _________________________________________________

6.

swimming / family / the / went / children’s children’ s / to / they / centre _________________________________________________

7.

he / why / her / explained / ring / missing / was / wedding  _________________________________________________

8.

important / research / plant / is / life _________________________________________________

9.

reason / the the / what what / long / delay delay / for for / train / is / the the / ? _________________________________________________

10. asked / cheese / if / blue / have / I / you / any  _________________________________________________ 5.7a Answers to Exercise 6 The answers are shown as complete sentences, with a breakdown of the noun phrases in the table below. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.

We need more cat food. Did you close the car door? You must rewrite the unclear paragraph. There were ten thousand people at the football game. They met in the old barn. The family went to the children’s swimming centre. He explained why her wedding ring was missing. Plant life research is important. 46

9. What is the reason for the train delay? 10. I asked if you have any blue cheese.

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 AD  A DJECTIVES 6.1 Adjective Positions djectives describe nouns, nouns, and usually come before a noun. noun. They can also come after a  noun, pronoun or verb when using certain verbs.

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6.2 Adjectives Before Nouns djectives are placed directly before a noun noun to  to add detail to the noun. noun. They usually add additional information to a sentence: when adjectives are removed from the sentence, the sentence should still make sense. In a noun phrase, with additional words (such as determiners and adverbs), the adjective should be directly before the noun. He had some strangely straight bananas. It is possible to place many adjectives after a noun when describing the subject with the verb to be (or another link verb) or with a dependent clause. The blue car is my favourite. The car which is blue is my favourite.  We had a loud friend. friend.  We had a friend who who was loud. Some adjectives, particularly ones which add emphasis, always come before the noun, noun, such as whole , sheer , mere or entire .

NOT  They ate the cheese which was whole.) They ate the whole cheese. (NOT They This is common for adjectives which have an entirely emphatic use (i.e. add no additional meaning), such as curse words, which should always come before the noun.

NOT  It was a nightmare that was bloody , which It was a bloody nightmare. (NOT It  would have a different, different, descriptive meaning.) Older and more poetic use of the English language may place an adjective after a noun as a  point of style, which should generally be avoided for clarity. They met upon an evening dark.

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6.3 Using More than One Adjective  When you have more more than one adjective, adjective, there are loose loose rules to put them them in the correct  word order.  Adjective  Adjec tive Rule 1: General Gen eral adjectiv adje ctives es before bef ore speci s pecific fic adject a djectives ives The dark medieval castle. (NOT The medieval dark castle. ) Specific adjectives describe describe the word closest to them. In the example above, the incorrect form (medieval dark castle ) modifies the darkness  as  as medieval , not the castle. Avoid this confusion by putting general general adjectives  adjectives before specific adjectives. adjectives . a big Cheshire cat the bright pink flower  Adjective  Adjec tive Rule 2: 2 : Opinio Opi nion n adjectiv adje ctives es before bef ore descr d escripti iptive ve adjecti adj ectives ves  A beautiful golden golden vase. (NOT A golden beautiful vase. ) s with general and specific adjectives, fact-based (descriptive) (descriptive) adjectives should be closer to  golden beautiful ) the word they describe. In the example above, the incorrect sentence ( golden modifies beauty  as  as golden, not the vase. Avoid this confusion by putting opinion before description.. description a lovely green car this proud bronze statue

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6.4 Detailed Adjective Word Order The above two rules should help decide most adjective order. However, adjective word order can also be placed into more specific groups, which are usually placed in this order: (1) Size (2) Shape (3) Colour (4) Origin (5) Material (6) Use

This is not a firm rule, and there are many exceptions – so it is better to stick to the two general rules above than learn this more complicated structure.

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6.5 Listing Adjectives  When you list more than two adjectives adjectives before a noun, noun, they can be presented as a list, list , separated by commas. You do not always need a conjunction (and ) when the adjectives are before the noun, but you do need and  when  when the list comes after the noun.  We have a small, small, square, beige car. Our car is small, square and beige. If you use and an d for a list of adjectives, the adjective word order can be changed to put emphasis on the final adjective (particularly adjective (particularly useful to show opinion). They entered a disgusting, dreary, dark sewer. They entered a dark, dreary and disgusting sewer. sewer.

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6.6 Adjectives and Adverbs djectives are sometimes modified by adverbs – adverbs  – when this happens, the adverb comes before the adjective. adjective. It was a creepily dark corridor.  With more than one adjective, the adverb should come come directly before the adjective it modifies.. modifies He was an oddly quiet and humble man.  We got on the old, old, badly painted bus. bus.

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6.7 Adjec tives Aft er Verbs Verbs Sometimes adjectives come after after a  a verb when the verb verb in  in the sentence describes describes or  or changes the subject. This is most common after state verbs like verbs like to be  and  and to seem, or after process verbs like to become  and  and to get . These adjectives complete the sentence (like an object for a  transitive verb) and cannot be left out. He is tall. It seemed strange that they left early. They made Jim angry. This text became complicated.  When a verb has an object and the adjective adjective describes describes its state, state, the adjective adjective may come after after the object. Let’s get dinner ready. I’ll paint the fence green.

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6.8 Adjectives After Nouns There are some specific adjectives that can be used after nouns without nouns  without using link verbs or dependent clauses. These still still describe the noun, but are used in a similar way to a  relative clause. Investigate all the routes possible. This example has the same meaning as Investigate all the routes that are possible. A number of adjectives ending in –able  or  or –ible can be used this way. Note that these adjectives can come before or after the noun, noun, as a matter of choice. Give me all the hamburgers available. Give me all the available hamburgers. Note that some adverbs can be used in a similar way, particularly when showing location: Go to the toilet outside. Let’s meet in the park downtown. Sometimes placing an adjective after a noun will have a different meaning, however. For example, proper  and  and present have different meanings depending on their position.

 genuine/real ) This is a proper diamond. ( genuine/real  Only after a lot of searching did they discover discover the treasure proper. (the main or  central part of it ) He addressed the present committee. ( the current committee ) He addressed the committee present. (the committee there at the time ) To describe how much, adjectives of measurement should come after a noun  – if they  come before the noun, such adjectives describe the type of measurement instead (usually for emphasis).

measuring distance ) The river was four miles long. ( measuring distance   We walked for four four long lon g miles. (the miles felt long/difficult ) measuring height ) The building was twenty storeys high. ( measuring height   We climbed climbed twenty high storeys. (each story felt high/difficult ) Some adjectives can only  come  come after the noun, pronoun or verb. These usually relate to conditions, and often begin with a-, such as asleep, awake , and alive . They all celebrated, celebrated, the donkey was alive! aliv e! (NOT They all celebrated the alive  donkey.) The adjectives well and ill are also usually used after a verb, with alternatives being used in an earlier position. He felt well again. BUT The healthy man had recovered. Some nouns are always always followed  followed by adjectives (when an adjective is needed). These are usually words formed with any-, every- and some- prefixes or –thing  or  or –one  suffixes.  suffixes. This group includes everything , something , someone , somebody , nothing , everywhere , anywhere  and  and anybody . 55

 We are travelling somewhere hot hot this summer. summer. I didn’t do anything wrong!

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6.9 Exercise 7: Adjective Word Order Put the scrambled sentences in the correct order. an / is / new / exercise / this / exciting  This is an exciting new exercise. 1.

a / dog / I / cute / want / new  _________________________________________________

2.

noon / was / Mark / awake / before / not _________________________________________________

3.

dogs / wild / there / in / many / are / this town _________________________________________________

4.

impressive / the / door / old / has / an / bank  _________________________________________________

5.

favourite favouri te / my / this / 19th Century / painting paintin g / landscape / is _________________________________________________

6.

the / was / boring / long / and / play  _________________________________________________

7.

wooden / Carl / in / it / big / put / the / cupboard _________________________________________________

8.

listen / do / idiotic / not / that / to / man / loud _________________________________________________

9.

Elizabethan Elizabetha n / like / round / pearls / the / I _________________________________________________

10. country / simply simply / their their / too big big / grotesque / house house / was _________________________________________________

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6.9a Answer s to Exercise 7 These answers stick to the general/specific, opinion/description and listing rules given in the chapter above: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

I want a cute new dog. Mark was not awake before noon. There are many wild dogs in this town. The bank has an impressive old door. This 19th Century landscape painting is my my favourite. favouri te. The play was long and boring. Carl put it in the the big wooden cupboard. cupboard. Do not listen to that idiotic loud man. I like the round round Elizabethan Elizabethan pearls. pearls. Their grotesque grotesque country house was was simply too big. big.

lternatives are possible, such as: The play was boring and long.

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 ADV  A DVE ERBS 7.1 Adverb Position dverbs normally modify verbs, verbs , and fit into sentences in different ways depending on the type of adverb. They can also modify adjectives, other adverbs, and other word types. The position of adverbs can be flexible, particularly when modifying verbs. This chapter will cover how adverbs of frequency , manner manner,, place place and  and time time are  are used differently. dverb position in a sentence can be filled be adverbials adverbials or  or adverb phrases. phrases. These may be multi-word phrases. Adverb phrases, like compound nouns and verb phrases, generally fit the position of an adverb and should not be separated or changed when the adverb phrase position is moved.

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7.2 General Adverb Positions Positions dverbs can be found in three positions in a clause: front front (at  (at the start of a clause), middle (directly before the verb or after the verb and object) or end end (at  (at the end of a clause). Nervously, Tim took the test today. ( front ) Tim nervously took the test today. OR  Tim  Tim took the test nervously today. (middle ) Tim test the test today nervously. ( end ) dverb position is often flexible depending on use and the type of adverb, but in general the front position is position is used to add emphasis. emphasis. In middle position, adverbs can come before or after a verb, but should not come between a  verb and object. He eagerly ran. OR He ran eagerly. She eagerly ate the cake. ( NOT She ate eagerly the cake .) .) dverbs can come before or after verbs but usually come before other words they modify  (e.g. adjectives, other adverbs). He slowly walked. / He walked slowly . (modifying the verb walk ) It was an oddly cold apartment. (modifying the adjective cold ) In the middle position, with auxiliary verbs or modal verbs, adverbs usually follow the auxiliary verb.  We have never been to Greece. dverb position can have regional variations; in American English adverbs can come before auxiliary verbs and more commonly before verbs. Multiple adverbs are usually listed in a particular word order: (1) Frequency (2) Manner (3) Place (4) Time

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7.3 Adverbs of Frequ Frequency  ency  dverbs of frequency describe how often something often something is done, such as never , always , often, sometimes , rarely , and occasionally . These usually come before the main verb, verb, but after auxiliary verbs and verbs and after the verb to verb to be. I often eat sandwiches. (before main verb) They never go to the park. (before main verb) She does not always phone us. (after auxiliary phrase) (after to be)  We are rarely rarel y late for school. (after dverbs of frequency can be placed at the start of a clause clause,, to add emphasis. emphasis. They are rarely placed at the end of a clause.

Sometimes , we read aloud.

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7.4 Adverbs of Manner dverbs of manner describe how something is done, such done, such as quickly, carefully, quietly, and angrily. These mostly come after the verb: verb: directly after the verb (if there is no additional information), after the objects of the verb (if there are objects) or at the end of the clause. Please drive slowly. (after verb)  We learned the the lesson quickly. quickl y. (after verb and object) He read the exam on the table quietly. (at the end of the clause) How flexible adverbs of manner are can depend on how complex the sentence is. The adverb should follow the verb or direct object, but can come before or after prepositional phrases.. phrases The man walked through the room quietly. OR  The  The man walked quietly  through the room. The man walked the dog quietly quietl y through the room. OR  The  The man walked the dog through the room quietly. Even in final position, adverbs of manner still come before time. time. He does not drive his car quickly at night dverbs of manner can also come before the main verb. verb . This order does not impact the sentence meaning. I quickly ran home.  We carefully caref ully studied the book. Be careful, however, as many adverbs of manner should only  be  be placed in the later position,, especially when they show quality  or position  or evaluation evaluation (such  (such as well  and  and badly ). ). In these cases, they should only come after the verb and object (and never between the verb and object). She sang the song well.  When we use auxiliary verbs, verbs, adverbs of manner always come in the later position (after position (after the first verb or at the end of the clause). She has been learning quickly . They have gradually  changed.  changed. dverbs of manner that demonstrate opinions opinions or  or show comments, comments, usually come in the the front position. front  position. Fortunately, I had locked all the doors. Hopefully we will win the race.

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7.5 Adverbs of Place dverbs of place describe location, answering wher answering wheree, for example here, there, behind, and above . These come after the verb phrase phrase (including  (including any auxiliary verbs), but before additional information (such information  (such as time). He was there. I stayed behind after class. I had gone outside early. This makes them similar to prepositional phrases; in the above example, behind could be replaced by a prepositional phrase describing a specific location. I stayed in the classroom after class.

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7.6 Adverbs of Time Time Times for actions (answering when (answering when)) may be shown with adverbs such as earlier  and  and later , or noun phrases, such as yesterday, on Tuesday, and every week . These are placed in the end position, position, as with general sentence order for time. I take lessons on Tuesdays. Times can be placed at the start of a sentence or phrase to add emphasis. On Tuesday, I am going to France.

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7.7 Connecting Adverbs Connecting adverbs link a clause to another clause, or idea, that came before. These always come in the front position of a clause. She liked the car, altho ugh it was very expensive. These adverbs can start a sentence if it has a connection to a previous sentence or idea  (including connections that show a contrast or a sequence). They brought the plates. plates. However, How ever, they forgot the napkins.  We removed all the furniture. Then we noticed the stain on the carpet.

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7.8 Speci fic Adverb Rules Many adverbs have specific rules, which must be learned individually. individually. This section covers some of the most common examples. Still usually comes before the verb (but verb (but after to be). He still uses his old pen. He was still waiting for a tip. lready usually comes before the verb (but verb (but after to be). b e). It can come at the end of a clause, to add emphasis.  We already alrea dy read this.  We read this already.  Yet usually comes at the end of a clause when clause  when demonstrating demonstrating present time. time. I haven’t learnt everything yet. Note, yet  has  has many other uses which have different positions, and it can also be used as a  conjunction similar to though. Really can come at the end of a clause clause to  to show doubt doubt or  or hesitation. When it comes before the verb it verb it shows emphasis (certainty). (certainty). I am not sure about the answer, really. (doubt) I really am sure about the answer. (certainty) lways, never, ever, seldom and rarely are not used in front position, except for in imperative clauses (those that show instructions). I always take this route. ( NOT Always I take this route. )  Always  Alwa ys check your answers. There are some of the most common rules and patterns for adverbs; there are many more specific rules relating to individual adverbs.

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7.9 Exercise 8: Adverbs of Frequency  Put the scrambled sentences in the correct order. night / they / frequently / all / party  They frequently party all night. 1.

London / visit / we / often _________________________________________________

2.

ever / you / been / have / France / to / ? _________________________________________________

3.

plays / the weekend / at / always / Jim / golf  _________________________________________________

4.

in / sometimes / it / Brighton / snows _________________________________________________

5.

rarely / will / fish / eat / she _________________________________________________

6.

7am / gets / before / Paul / seldom / up _________________________________________________

7.

bad / weather / is / the / February / always / in _________________________________________________

8.

TV / ever / hardly / you / watch _________________________________________________

9.

books / these / I / understand / usually / everything in _________________________________________________

10. anymore / he / listens / radio / never / to / the _________________________________________________

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7.9a Answers to Exercise 8 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

We often visit London. Have you ever been to France? Jim always plays golf at the weekend. It sometimes snows in Brighton. She will rarely eat fish. Paul seldom gets up before 7am. The weather weather is always bad bad in February. You hardly ever watch TV. I usually understand everything in these books. He never listens to the radio anymore.

In some of these examples, there is room for flexibility to put emphasis on the adverb. Sometimes it snows in Brighton. However, the answers given are the most common or likely forms.

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7.10 Exercise 9: Adverbs of Manner Put the scrambled sentences in the correct order. patiently / for / we / waited / bus / the  We waited patiently patiently for the bus. 1.

work / they / slowly  _________________________________________________

2.

beautifully beautifull y / performed / she _________________________________________________

3.

very / he / loudly / shouted _________________________________________________

4.

through / quietly / crept / the jungle / we _________________________________________________

5.

quickly / cat / the / moved _________________________________________________

6.

hurt / arm / badly / her / she _________________________________________________

7.

in / the group / noisily / gathered / the courtyard _________________________________________________

8.

English / well / speaks / incredibly / Gemma  _________________________________________________

9.

drives / madly / father / my  _________________________________________________

10. to go / I / to Hong Kong / want / really  _________________________________________________

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7.10a Answers to Exercise 9 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

They work slowly. She performed beautifully. beautifull y. He shouted very loudly. We crept through the jungle quietly. The cat moved quickly. She hurt her arm badly. The group gathered noisily in the courtyard. courtyar d. Gemma speaks English incredibly well. My father drives madly. I really want to go to Hong Hong Kong.

These are the most correct answers following the rules in the chapter. It would also be acceptable to place the adverbs before the verbs in sentences 2 (She beautifully performed.), 4 (We quietly crept…), and 7 (The group noisily gathered in the courtyard.) dverbs become more flexible if the sentences is longer, longer , for instance if there were more prepositional phrases or additional clauses. The cat quickly moved. sounds strange on its own but The cat quickly moved through the house. sounds fine. The meaning of 10 puts emphasis on the desire. If the sentence was I want to go to Hong  Kong really. it would show doubt. Sentence 7 could also have noisily  in  in end position.

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7.11 Exercise 10: Adverbs of Place Put the scrambled sentences in the correct order. going / am / upstairs / I I am going upstairs. 1.

is / there / bank / the / over _________________________________________________

2.

playing / were / outside / we _________________________________________________

3.

today / not / he / been / has / here _________________________________________________

4.

inside / go / let’s _________________________________________________

5.

waiting / the / upstairs / men / are _________________________________________________

6.

everywhere / been / for / pen / looking / I / have / this _________________________________________________

7.

downstairs downstair s / stored / is / the / wine _________________________________________________

8.

will / back home / it / we / discuss _________________________________________________

9.

circus / there / nearby / is / a  _________________________________________________

10. can / favourite chocolate chocolate / I / find / anywhere / not / my  _________________________________________________

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7.11a Answers to Exercise 10 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

The bank is over there. We were playing outside. He has not been here today. Let’s go inside. The men are waiting upstairs. I have been looking looking for this this pen everywhere. The wine is stored downstairs. downstair s. We will discuss it back home. Is there a circus nearby? I can not find find my favourite favourite chocolate anywhere. anywhere.

Sometimes the position of adverbs of place can be flexible, to put an emphasis on the location – but these answers are the most correct following the general rules. Alternatives forms can be used here for 2 (We were outside playing. ) and 6 (I have been looking everywhere  or this pen.).

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7.12 Exercise 11: Adverbs of Time Time Put the scrambled sentences in the correct order. been / lately / cold / has / very / it It has been very cold lately. 1.

soon / home / go / I’ll _________________________________________________

2.

help / needs / at once / he _________________________________________________

3.

very pretty / back then / was / she _________________________________________________

4.

is / now / he / where / ? _________________________________________________

5.

went / home / afterwards / a drink / had / they / and _________________________________________________

6.

today / learn / will / what / we / ? _________________________________________________

7.

to report / as soon as possible / need / you / the crime _________________________________________________

8.

hasn’t / the stray dog / recently / been / seen _________________________________________________

9.

at the weekend / do / you / what / did / ? _________________________________________________

10. coming / a new TV show / soon / is / there / _________________________________________________

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7.12a Answers to Exercise 11 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

I’ll go home soon. He needs help at once. She was very pretty back then. Where is he now? They had a drink and went home afterwards. What will we learn today? You need to report the crime as soon as possible. The stray dog hasn’t been seen recently. What did you do at the weekend? There is a new TV show show coming soon. soon.

Note that time can come in front position for emphasis in many sentences sentences but not all. In these examples, examples, sentences 1, 3, 4, 4 , 6, 8 and 9 can all take the time in the front position. Sentences 2, 5 and 7 are less flexible and would sound strange with the times in the front position.

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7.13 Exercise 12: Mixed Adverbs Put the scrambled sentences in the correct order. up the road / we / quickly / ran  We ran up the road quickly. quickly. OR We quickly ran up the the road. 1.

my grandmother / last month / visited / I _________________________________________________

2.

hear / bats / very well / can _________________________________________________

3.

standing / we / saw / there / her _________________________________________________

4.

fluently / spoke / the man / English _________________________________________________

5.

that man / before / never / I / seen / have _________________________________________________

6.

downstairs downstair s / your / is / dinner _________________________________________________

7.

enjoys / always / my mother / Yoga  _________________________________________________

8.

wrong / rarely / the weather / about / is / she _________________________________________________

9.

the mountains / they / visit / in winter / never _________________________________________________

10. patiently / was / the building collapsed / when / waiting / I _________________________________________________

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7.13a Answers to Exercise 12 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

I visited my grandmother last month. Bats can hear very well. We saw her standing there. The man spoke English fluently. I have never seen that man before. Your dinner is downstairs. My mother always enjoys Yoga. She is rarely wrong wrong about the weather. weather. They never visit the mountains in winter. I was waiting patiently patiently when the building building collapsed. collapsed.

These answers are the most correct forms. Only two sentences could be arranged differently: with 1, the time could be placed at the start of the sentences for emphasis (Last  month, I visited my grandmother.). With 10 the adverb could come before the verb (I was  atiently waiting…).  With 10, the time clause could also come before the main clause, for emphasis (When the  building collapsed, I was waiting patiently. pat iently.)

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PREPOSITIONS 8.1 Preposition Position Like adverbs, prepositions can be used flexibly with a large number of specific and individual rules. Usually, however they are used to connect objects, objects, and therefore come after a noun, adjective or verb phrase and phrase and directly before a noun phrase or pronoun pronoun.. There was a spider behind her back. It was cold at the top of the hill. They met in the old barn. s a general rule, the preposition should come directly before its complement. complement . This means the preposition is essentially part of its noun phrase, and can be moved as part of a noun phrase.  We had coffee on the beach. bea ch. OR On the beach, we had coffee. There was mud in my eyes. In my eyes I found mud. The young squirrel buried her nuts under a pile of leaves last autumn. I looked under the pile pil e of leaves. Under the t he pile of leaves l eaves there were nuts. nuts. s the preposition shows a connection, if you replace the rest of a noun phrase with a  pronoun you still need the preposition: Under the pile of leaves. becomes  Under  Under it. Prepositions do not always move with their complement, however, and can be found at the end of a clause. This is more typical in informal language. There are four main situations  where this happens, happens, with question words, words, passive structures, structures, relative clauses, clauses, and infinitives.. infinitives This is the book I was looking for. I don’t know what that film was about.  Who would you like like to talk to? The rules for these situations are described below.

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8.2 Prepositions in Questions Questions formed with question words, words, where the question word replaces the object of the preposition,, often have the preposition at the end of the clause. preposition clause.

mark et is the object object of to) They went went to the market. (the market market , but to stays at the end of the   Where did they go to? (where replaces the market, clause ) To give some more examples:  Who are you talking talking about? abou t?  When are you staying staying until? until ? How much did you buy that for? This also happens with indirect questions. I don’t know where we are going to. It was unclear who they were talking about. Questions can also be formed with only a question word and preposition, when the verb is understood. In this case, the preposition normally comes after the question word, but can often be reversed:  Where to? / To where? where?  What with? / With what? How much for? / For how much? In formal language, prepositions are often placed before the question word. For whom was this dinner made?  About which opera are you talking? This is less common and can sound quite unnatural. With some question forms (such as what…for  and  and where…to) it is especially uncommon.

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8.3 Prepositions in Pa Passive ssive Structures In passive structures, structures, the preposition stays with the verb. verb . He stayed in the hotel. The hotel was stayed in. They fell on the mat. The mat was fallen on. If you create a passive structure from an active structure and keep the original subject (as an object), it will follow the preposition. My father walked on the hill. The hill was walked on by my father. Even in formal language, prepositions stay with verbs, even in passive structures. The lady was spoken about in hushed tones. (NOT The lady about which was  spoken…)

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8.4 Prepositions in Relative Clauses Prepositions normally go at the end of a relative clause. clause. That’s the girl I danced with. I found the book I was looking for. In formal use, the preposition can come earlier, before a relative pronoun. That’s the girl with whom I danced. I found the book for which I was looking. s with formal questions, this use is less common.

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8.5 Prepositions in Infinitive Structures  When infinitives are used as complements, complements , for example following stative verbs (to be), they may be followed by a preposition preposition.. She was not prepared to swim on. The king is a delightful man to talk with. Placing the preposition before an infinitive structure is very formal. The king is a delightful man with whom to talk.

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8.6 Exerci se 13: Mixed Word Order Put the scrambled sentences in the correct order.  wearing / the / dance dance / this weekend weekend / final / what / you / are / to / ?  What are you wearing wearing to the final dance this this weekend? weekend? 1.

to the park / going / next Saturday / are / we _________________________________________________

2.

yesterday / were / too many / rabbits / in the field / there _________________________________________________

3.

some more / in my tea / I / can / have / milk / ? _________________________________________________

4.

ivory / gave / small / necklace / he / her / a  _________________________________________________

5.

frequently / in / big / the / town hall / she / dances _________________________________________________

6.

last night / many / you / strange / things / said _________________________________________________

7.

to / talking / are / who / you / ? _________________________________________________

8.

silly / are / why / you / questions / these / me / asking / ? _________________________________________________

9.

with / not / he / happy / was / unfinished / design / the _________________________________________________

10. again / this this guide / now now / read / thoroughly  thoroughly  _________________________________________________

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8.6a Answers to Exercise 13 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

We are going to the park next Saturday. There were too many rabbits in the field yesterday. Can I have some more milk in my tea? He gave her a small ivory necklace. She frequently frequently dances dances in the big town hall. You said many strange things last night. Who are you talking to? Why are you asking me these silly questions? He was not happy with the unfinished unfinishe d design. Read this guide again again thoroughly now.

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SENTENCES WITH MUL MULTIPLE TIPLE CL AUSES  clause in English is a complete grammatical idea, but sentences may be formed of more than one clause. These clauses can be independent independent,, completing an idea on their own, or dependent,, needing another clause to be complete. dependent The man bought a new car. (independent ) because the new car was bought (dependent ) Using clauses of varying types creates three main sentence types in English: Simple sentences Compound sentences Complex sentences The way clauses interact in these different sentence types can lead to different overall structures and further considerations for word order.

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9.1 Simple Sentences Simple sentences are formed with an independent clause that is a grammatically complete action, event or idea . A simple sentence should have a complete noun and verb relationship with relationship  with any necessary additional information. The student read her book.  We were playing playing in the park. It is cold outside.  William and Julie Julie have eaten all our our cake. These are all simple sentences as they contain one complete clause. Note that just because the sentence structure is simple it does not mean the tenses, subjects or additional information are simple. The components of the sentences can contain phrases with multiple words, such as prepositional phrases (in the park ), ), compound nouns (William and  ulie ) and different verb aspects (were playing  or  or have eaten). Simple sentences can therefore become very long, as the phrases become longer – but unless additional verbs are introduced they are still simple sentences. sentences. The tired old man had been waiting quietly for the bus to his appointment in town for many hours.

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9.2 Compound Sentences Compound sentences contain more than one independent clause, clause, connected as a single grammatical unit. unit. I ate my lunch and I went to school. This example is two clauses joined by a conjunction. Without the conjunction, they could form two separate simple sentences ( I ate my lunch. / I went to school. ). Compound sentences use clauses joined by co-ordinating conjunctions such conjunctions such as and, but, or, yet, so, nor, and or . They combine two independent independent clauses, and can represent a  relationship between the clauses of a compound sentence, but do not make the clauses dependent on each other. The separate ideas of a compound sentence can exist independently independently if you remove the conjunction: The dog fetched the ball and he brought it back. The dog fetched the ball. He brought it back.  When you list more than one independent independent clause, clause, for instance in a sequence sequence of events, events, it is not necessary to connect each one with a conjunction. In such an example, you can separate independent independent clauses with commas, leading to multiple clauses without multiple subjects. I walked into town, I met with my friends and I bought a new computer.  When the subject subject is the same same in different independent independent clauses clauses (as with the above example), it does not necessarily need to be repeated. I walked into town, met with my friends and bought a new computer. The independent clauses in compound sentences are often ordered according to time, when showing a listed sequence of actions. I went to the shop, and I bought a bag of fruit, then I came home. Compound sentences sentences may also be ordered to show cause and effect. She studied all night, so she was late for the exam. She studied all night, but she was late for the exam. Here, the first sentence shows she was late because she studied hard (using so), while the second sentence shows she was late in spite of    studying hard (using but , suggesting a  contrast). In both of these examples, however, the sequence of time is still important in deciding the order of the clauses (she was late after studying all night). However, if the order of events is not important, and we are not showing cause and effect, then the order of the independent clauses within a compound sentence can be flexible. On our holiday, we sunbathed on the beach, we went to many restaurants and  we swam in the sea. sea. On our holiday, we swam in the sea, we sunbathed on the beach and we went to many restaurants.

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9.3 Complex Sentences Complex sentences are structures where an independent clause is joined to one or more dependent clauses. clauses . Dependent clauses are created by subordinati subordinating ng conjunctions (including because, when, since, if, after, and although) or relative or relative pronouns (including pronouns (including that , who and which), which create a dependent connection between between the clauses. Dependent clauses lack information that would make them a complete idea, for example:  when I watched that that movie because the class were being so noisy   who was waiting to cross cross the road Combined with an independent clause, these can form full sentences: sentences: I cried when I watched that movie. The teacher groaned because the class were being so noisy. He helped the man who was waiting to cross the road. There is no comma separating the clauses when the independent clause comes first. In fact, dependent clauses can be seen to take the place of a sentence component. For example when I watched the movie fits into the sentence as a time, and like a time it could also come at the beginning of the sentence to emphasise it.  When I watched that movie, I cried. cried. Generally, a dependent clause connected by a subordinating conjunction can be placed first for emphasis, tension or merely to explain things in a logical order. Since the park was closed down, the children have had nowhere to play.  Although she liked the movie, movie, she was frustrated frustrated by the journey journey home.  When placed at the the beginning of a sentence, dependent dependent clauses clauses should be separated separated by a  comma. Because of the bad weather, we decided to stay at home.  After the game game was over, the players players were very tired. tired. Dependent clauses linked with a relative pronoun such as who, that or which are called relative clauses, clauses, which usually take the place of a noun phrase. For example, the entire clause the man who was waiting to cross the road could be replaced by another noun phrase, or moved in the same way as a noun phrase: I helped the man who was waiting to cross the road. I helped the woman. The man who was waiting to cross the road was helped by me. Usually, the word order of each clause should not change when it is in a different position. There is no set order for clauses in complex sentences, offering a lot of room for flexibility, as long as you pay attention to the sentence component a dependent clause represents.

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9.4 Using Dif ferent Se ntence Types Types  When you can identify identify clauses and the way they are connected in simple, simple, compound and complex sentences, sentences, you can build longer and complicated texts that combine different simple, compound and complex sentence structures. The individual building blocks can be combined, or broken down. For example, two clauses joined as a compound sentence can form an independent or dependent clause in a complex sentence: Because the council refused to pay for the building’s repairs, and winter was closing in, the weather was bad and the roof was leaking. On the other hand, the components of a complex sentence could be broken down to make a series of simple sentences: The council refused to pay for the building’s repairs. Winter was closing in. The  weather was bad. The The roof was leaking. Simple building blocks can therefore lead to complex ideas. Complex ideas made simple can control pacing. As long as you are aware of the simple building blocks, picking out subjects and verbs, and understand their relationships, you can form increasingly elegant, and varied, ideas.

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9.5 Exercise 14: Multiple Clauses Rewrite the following sentences as simple, compound or complex, as indicated. When the same sentence type is asked for, change the order. The club closed. The friends went home. (compound) The club closed, so the friends went home. 1.

They lost the game. They received a penalty. (complex ) _________________________________________________

2.

We had steak for dinner. Then we watched TV. (compound ) _________________________________________________

3.

The woman was lost. She asked for directions. (compound ) _________________________________________________

4.

We were tired because it had been a long day. (simple ) _________________________________________________

5.

The airport was closed because of the snow. (complex ) _________________________________________________

6.

I have seen him before. The man with the hat. (complex ) _________________________________________________

7.

Sammy has a new bike. She rides it in the countryside. countrysi de. (complex ) _________________________________________________

8.

Because the bath flooded, our house is very wet. (complex ) _________________________________________________

9.

The teacher grew upset as the students were not listening. (simple ) _________________________________________________

10. When I get get home, home, I will have have a cup of tea. (compound ) _________________________________________________

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9.5a Answers to Exercise 14 The following are suggested answers, there is room for flexibility with the choice of  conjunctions. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

They lost the game because they received a penalty. We had steak for dinner and then watched TV. (repeating we is optional ) The woman was lost so she asked for directions. direction s. We were tired. It had been a long day. Because of the snow, the airport was closed. closed. I have seen that man with the hat before. Sammy has a new bike, bike, which she rides in the countryside. Our house is very wet because the bath flooded. The teacher grew upset. The students were not listening. I will go home home and I will have a cup cup of tea.

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USING FLEXIBLE WORD ORDER  lthough English is based on important grammatical rules, when you have a good understanding understanding of the fundamentals of word order English sentences can become very  flexible. Longer sentences sentences may be arranged in a large number of ways, and many of the rules can be bent. This is useful if you want to add variety  or  or emphasis emphasis to  to your writing, or to simply restate things differently. This chapter will revisit some of the rules given throughout this book and demonstrate how they can be used flexibly.

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10.1 Stan dard Word Word Order This example sentence has many components using standard word order: The men delivered the sandwiches to everyone at the shop before lunchtime. This can be broken down using our original word order chart.

s it is presented here, this is correct word order, though we already know that some components can be moved for different emphasis, and changes can be made within the components.

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10.2 Moving t he Time Time Moving the time is a common variation in sentence structure. Times at the start add emphasis, emphasis , framing the sentence rather than providing a time as additional information. Before lunchtime, the men delivered the sandwiches to everyone at the shop. It is also possible to place the time after the subject or object, between commas. This adds emphasis to the time in a particular place in the sentence, where it might be surprising (and as such should be used rarely). The men delivered the sandwiches, before lunchtime, to everyone at the shop. In this case the time draws special attention to when the delivery was made, as opposed to  who it was for. Placing the the time after the subject subject (The men, before lunchtime, delivered… )  would add even even more emphasis, emphasis, and sound quite unnatural – but that’s precisely the point, as a matter of style.

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10.3 Changing the Verb Phrase There are a number of ways to change a verb phrase to change a sentence. For example, the verb can be replaced with a different form, with a similar meaning. The men made a delivery of sandwiches to everyone at the shop before lunchtime. The opportunities to do this will depend on the sentence. In some cases it will not be possible, in others (such as when writing a future simple sentence) there may be many  options. Note that many verbs with similar meanings may fit into sentences with different structures. I delivered the parcel. I handed over the parcel. I gave the parcel to them. If the subject is not important, or it is necessary to make text seem more neutral or less direct, it is also possible to use the passive tense. This reverses the position of the object and adds a to be + past pa st participle par ticiple structure structure:: The sandwiches were deliver del ivered ed to everyone at the shop before lunchtime. In this case the result becomes more important than who or what did the action.

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10.4 Prepositional Phrases Prepositional phrases can offer a lot of opportunities for changes, depending on the sentence. As we have seen, prepositions have a number of specific rules to fit into sentences, so exactly how you can change them will depend on the sentence. In the example sentence we have two prepositional phrases that add additional information other than time: to everyone and at the shop. The preposition to, in this case, serves as a  direction (where the delivery was directed) and a purpose (who the sandwiches were for). The prepositional phrase at the shop gives us a location which can either define the place that the sandwiches were delivered to or define the preceding object – everyone (the people at the shop). It is important to identify the objects of the prepositional phrases in this way  before it is possible to change the sentence. In its simplest form, you may find other prepositions to clarify the connection. The men delivered delivered the sandwiches for everyo ev eryone ne at the shop before lunchtime. The men delivered delivered the sandwiches to everyone ever yone in the shop before lunchtime. lunchtime. Knowing that the sandwiches were for someone, though, we have other options than simply  swapping prepositions.

For  in  in particular can be replaced with possessives, possessives, or possessive pronouns, pronouns, instead of  prepositional phrases: The men delivered everyone’s sandwiches to the shop before lunchtime. The men delivered everyone their sandwiches at the shop before lunchtime. In this example, introducing an indirect object sounds a little strange after deliver , so it could also lead to a different choice of verb: The men gave everyone their sandwiches at the shop before lunchtime. Making changes to one component of a sentence can affect others, however. In the original sentence it is clear that everyone is at the shop. When for everyone  is  is moved away from at the  shop, though, the link between them becomes less clear. The men delivered everyone their  sandwiches at the shop could be taken to mean the shop was the location of the delivery, but not where everyone is based or belongs. To put it into context, it could fit this scenario: Because the café was closed for repairs, the men delivered everyone’s sandwiches at the shop. Sometimes, Sometimes, dividing phrases like this will not really cause problems. In other cases, it can cause confusion and change meanings, meanings, so it is important to be aware of when you need to combine related information for clarity. Consider this change: The men delivered the sandwiches to everyone outside the shop. The men delivered everyone their sandwiches outside the shop. In the first example, the group everyone  can  can be defined by all the people in that location. In the second example, the group ( everyone ) is not necessarily defined, defined, because outside the shop is separated from everyone and could therefore simply be where they received the 95

sandwiches. Understanding Understanding such relationships between different sentence components is crucial to changing sentence structure. structure. Moving the location requires the same considerations. It can be moved more freely if it is not defining another object.  At the shop, the men men delivered the sandwiches sandwiches to everyone before before lunchtime. This now frames the sentence. But if that information is required to define the group of  people (Who is everyone? All the people at the shop ), separating the phrases like this removes that meaning – everyone  is  is no longer defined by the location. Keeping that information together when we move it can therefore frame the sentence in a different way: For everyone at the shop, the men delivered the sandwiches before lunchtime. This gives the action a grand sense of purpose. In this case it sounds like the men made the delivery at that time as a special consideration for this specific group of people (everyone at  the shop, as opposed to everyone at the library ). ). These are just some of the ways it is possible to move prepositional phrases around, in some cases adjusting meaning and in others simply adding variety. With different prepositional phrases, there will be many more options to consider.

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10.5 Further Sentence Changes Paying attention to sentence components and word order can be used to create two very  different sentences with effectively the same meaning: The men delivered the sandwiches to everyone at the shop before lunchtime. Before lunchtime, everyone at the shop’s sandwiches were delivered by the men. Sentence structure and word order can become ever more complicated when introducing  additional information to the sentence, for example in the noun phrases, in the form of  extra details or even additional clauses. The hired men delivered the fresh sandwiches sandwiches to all the people at the shop before lunchtime. The men, who were always on time, delivered the sandwiches to everyone at the shop before lunchtime. dditional information can create countless ways for a sentence to be built, and the flexibility of a sentence eventually becomes a case of understanding the patterns of an everincreasing range of vocabulary. Thinking about sentences as components, however, and being able to analyse the relationship between different words, is a strong starting point in developing understanding understanding and use of word order and sentence structure. Further development development will require a lot of patience and practice, involving reading and exploring more rules and practical use of English, and expanding your vocabulary.

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10.6 Exercise 15: Rewriting a Sentence Change the following sentences using the method indicated. 1.

I gave my friend a present. (replace the object with another word ) _________________________________________________

2.

I gave my friend a present. (make the indirect object a prepositional phrase ) _________________________________________________

3.

I gave my friend a present. (add information to the indirect object ) _________________________________________________

4.

I gave my friend a present. (replace the object with a pronoun) _________________________________________________

5.

I gave my friend a present. (replace the verb ) _________________________________________________

6.

I gave my friend a present. (change from active to passive ) _________________________________________________

7.

I gave my friend a present on her birthday. (change the time position) _________________________________________________

8.

I gave my friend a present on her birthday. (change the preposition) _________________________________________________

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10.6a Answers to Exercise 15 Below are suggested ways to rewrite the sentence; there are many possibilities. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.

I gave my friend a gift. I gave a gift to my friend. I gave my good friend Wendy a present. I gave it to my friend. I handed my friend a present. My friend received a present from me. On her birthday, I gave my friend a present. I gave my friend a present for her birthday. birthday.

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10.7 Exercise 16: Rewriting sentences Rewrite the following sentences by changing the indicated component. 1.

The man was furious. (adjective ) _________________________________________________

2.

The council would not collect the rubbish. (verb) _________________________________________________

3.

 preposition) We watched a film on birds. ( preposition _________________________________________________

4.

The bus was late because of the bad traffic. traffic . (clause order ) _________________________________________________

5.

The gate was opened by a guard. (active tense ) _________________________________________________

6.

When she got home, the door was unlocked (time clause position) _________________________________________________

7.

She cooked a pie, some potatoes and green vegetables. (reorder list ) _________________________________________________

8.

The game was cancelled because it rained. (replace the dependent clause with a noun

 phrase ) _________________________________________________

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10.7a Answers to Exercise 16 There are many options to change these sentences, sentences, below are some suggested suggested answers. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.

The man was angry. The council council refused to collect the rubbish. rubbish. We watched a film about birds. Because of the bad traffic, the bus was late. A guard opened the gate. The door was unlocked when she got home. She cooked green vegetables, a pie and some potatoes. The game was cancelled because of the rain.

If you are unsure about your answers, please get in touch with me at  www.englishlessonsbrighton  www.englishle ssonsbrighton.co.uk  .co.uk !

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 AF  A F T E RWO RWOR RD s this guide shows, word order and sentence structure in the English language have many  rules with varying degrees of flexibility. If you learn the rules in this book, your sentence structure will be generally correct, though there are many exceptions to consider. There are many different ways that you can further develop your knowledge of word order and sentence structure, including studying how different verb forms work, studying  individual preposition usage and nuances, learning about idiomatic phrases and looking at more complicated sentence structures structures and specific clause rules. Fortunately, there are countless resources available for the English learner; I particularly recommend owning a  guide like Swann’s Practical English Usage for a quick reference to the many specifics of the English language. From myself, I have produced a comprehensive study of the English Tenses, The English Tenses Practical Grammar Guide , and I regularly update my website at with new articles about English. I welcome questions, and am always looking to produce more answers.

Continue learning online at English Lessons Brighton:  www.englishlessonsbrighton.co  www.englishles sonsbrighton.co.uk  .uk 

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It might sound a little outlandish, but you can form sentences with only one word. That’s right; you can write one word and then place a period (or exclamation mark) to close it. This article will explore some examples to help you understand them.

Can One Word Be A Sentence?

Of course, it’s possible to come across one word as a sentence. Here are some of the types that we will mention in this article:

  • Interrogatives
  • Imperatives
  • Declaratives
  • Locatives
  • Nominatives
  • Adjectives
  • Adverbs
  • Accusatives
  • Exclamations

one word sentences examples

A one-word sentence is known simply as a sentence word. The above types are all the broader words we can use to describe specific types of sentence words. Each one offers a different way for us to use a one-word sentence when they apply.

Interrogatives

Interrogatives are the most common form of sentence words. We use them mainly as questions because they cover the most common words in English like “who,” “what,” and “where.” These words are all simple one-word sentences in the form of direct questions.

Here are some of the best interrogatives you can use:

  • Who?
  • What?
  • Where?
  • How?
  • When?
  • Why?

As you can see, each one is followed by a question mark. This shows that all interrogatives work best when we are directing them as a question toward someone.

It’s also common for the answer to be a sentence word, but it depends on the context. Most of the answers you can give to interrogative sentence words will apply to one of the other sections coming up in the article.

Imperatives

Imperatives are commanding words. We can use verbs to command someone to do something in the imperative case. It’s common for imperative sentences to have only one word because it shows the emphasis and need of someone to follow whatever command you are giving.

Since all imperatives are commands in the form of verbs, these examples should help you to understand them:

  • Stop.
  • Don’t.
  • Leave.
  • Go.
  • Run.
  • Walk.
  • Work.
  • Return.

Each of these verb forms allows us to give someone a command. The period after each one really emphasizes the need for someone to listen to what we have to say.

It can be easy for some people to ignore commands, which is why the imperative form exists. We can use these sentence words with a stern tone to show that we are only interested in someone listening to us (it’s usually for their own good).

Declaratives

Declaratives allow us to declare ourselves or someone else as an answer. We can use declaratives like “me” when we want to show that we are happy to declare ourselves or our actions in some way. Again, this mostly works when we are replying to specific questions.

There aren’t many good declaratives, but they’re still used. Here are some examples:

  • Me.
  • Aye.

It’s difficult to come up with many more legitimate declaratives. Some people might argue that “she” or “he” would work, but it’s not common for English speakers to use either of those pronouns as a sentence word.

That’s why “me” is the most appropriate declarative because it’s reasonable to expect someone to declare themselves as a candidate for something.

“Aye” also works because it’s a proclamation that we agree with something.

Locatives

Locatives are a more specific branch of sentence words we can use. They are word forms that always refer to locations. For example, we might say something like “here” or “there” when we are trying to show where something is happening. That’s how locatives work.

Locatives relate to locations, which these examples will make clear:

  • Here.
  • There.
  • Everywhere.
  • Nowhere.
  • Home.
  • Near.
  • Far.
  • Wherever.
  • Somewhere.

As long as a position or place is mentioned in the sentence word, locatives work well. They work when replying to certain questions, so you might benefit from checking out the following examples:

  • Where do you live?
  • Here.
  • Where were they last?
  • There.

As you can see, we use them to reply to questions about someone or something’s location.

Nominatives

Nominatives are ways for us to nominate someone else. We can offer names, people, and things in the nominative case. It’s most common to see someone’s name as the nominative form when we are presenting a sentence word answer to a question.

Nominatives can cover anyone’s name, so we’ll include some examples to help you:

  • Jane.
  • John.
  • Sarah.
  • Stuart.
  • Smith.
  • Daniel.
  • Craig.
  • Lewis.
  • Martin.

There are plenty of questions that could lead us to use a nominative form. For example, if someone asked us who completed a specific job, we could provide the name if we know the person that did it.

Technically, we can also provide names of items or objects rather than just people. It mostly refers to things that you can nominate or pick out as a culprit for something, which is why it works well in many different cases.

Adjectives

Adjectives are a common form in the English language. We use them as descriptive words, but it’s also common to see them as sentence words. However, it mostly only applies to informal situations when you want to use adjectives in this manner.

Here are a couple of examples to help you out:

  • Pretty.
  • Cute.
  • Nice.
  • Kind.
  • Happy.
  • Friendly.
  • Incredible.
  • Amazing.
  • Brilliant.
  • Gorgeous.
  • Ugly.
  • Grim.

While it’s easy to easy adjectives in the sentence word form, you might not be entirely sure how to use them correctly. Remember, it’s mostly an informal construct because you would be expected to use more words formally.

You might find it useful to also see a question and answer formation to see how this works:

  • What do you think of this artwork?
  • Gorgeous.
  • How do you find her?
  • Pretty.

As you can see, each of the adjective answers allows us to modify a specific noun listed in the question. For example, the first question asked about “artwork,” which we can modify with the responsive adjective “gorgeous.”

The second example used the noun “her,” and the descriptive word was “pretty.”

Adverbs

Adverbs are similar to adjectives. However, they usually include an “-ly” ending after the adjective and modify verbs. We can use adverbs to modify the verb that might have been presented in the previous question. If the question has no verb, an adverb cannot work.

These examples will help you make more sense of what adverbs can do:

  • Calmly.
  • Softly.
  • Easily.
  • Quickly.
  • Gently.
  • Nicely.
  • Happily.
  • Confidently.
  • Rapidly.
  • Cautiously.
  • Barely.

You might also benefit from the following question and answer examples to help you figure it out:

  • Would you take a look at this for me?
  • Happily.
  • How should I speak when giving the address?
  • Confidently.

As you can see, we can only use adverb answers when someone has provided a verb for us to modify. In the first example, we are modifying the verb “look” with “happily” to show that we’re happy to take a look at what they’ve done.

The second example modifies the verb “speak” with “confidently” to show that we have a specific desire to listen to someone speak with a confident tone.

Accusatives

Accusatives are exactly what the name would suggest they are. We can use them to accuse someone specifically. The most common way for us to do this as a sentence word is by using object pronouns to point the finger toward someone you might have done something wrong.

If you don’t know what we mean, these examples will clear things up:

  • Him.
  • Her.
  • Them.
  • That.
  • It.
  • You.
  • Me.
  • Us.

Accusatives work well when someone has asked us for a culprit. If we know that someone has done something wrong (or even if we know that someone will be helpful to answer a question), we can use this form.

Here are some examples that should help you:

  • Do you know who did it?
  • Him.
  • Who is the smartest person here?
  • Her.

It doesn’t always have to refer to bad things. Sometimes, we can use the accusative form just to pick someone out from a crowd. It’s a quick way for us to respond to a question with a pronoun rather than an explanation.

Exclamations

Exclamations are another really common form of sentence words. A simple “yes” or “no” can apply when we are using exclamations. They are called exclamations because they allow someone to exclaim their answer to a question without more explanation.

Here are a couple of examples that will help you to figure it out:

  • Yes.
  • No.
  • Maybe.
  • Oh.

There are plenty of other exclamations in English, and some people will treat them more as interjections. For example, you might be familiar with ones like “huh” or “err.”

However, we didn’t want to include these ones because they’re not technically words that you can use in English. It’s always best to stick with ones that actually have definitions, which is why we thought it was reasonable to only include a handful.

Now you have all the necessary information to help you start using sentence words yourself. Exclamations tend to be one of the most common ways to do this without even thinking about it, so get to work!

martin lassen dam grammarhow

Martin holds a Master’s degree in Finance and International Business. He has six years of experience in professional communication with clients, executives, and colleagues. Furthermore, he has teaching experience from Aarhus University. Martin has been featured as an expert in communication and teaching on Forbes and Shopify. Read more about Martin here.

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