Building Blocks of Language 2 Flashcards
Subject
What or whom a sentence is about
Ex. THE DOG barks.
Sentence
Group of words that contain at least one independent clause and expresses a complete idea.
Predicate
Conveys info about the subject
Ex. The dog BARKS.
Simple Sentences
Have only one verb and contain only one main idea
The dog barks.
Complex sentence
Has one main clause and at least one subordinate clause.
The dog is hungry because he did not eat.
Compound-complex sentences
Consist of more than one main clause and at least one subordinate clause. It is the combination of a compound sentence and a complex sentence
The dog is hungry because he did not eat, but there is food now.
Fragments
Lacks a verb, subject or both. May also be a phrase starting with a subordinate clause
Because it was fun.
The funny dog.
Run-on sentence
Result when two independent clauses are joined without conjunction or punctuation.
Ex. We need structure fragments suck.
Revised: We need structure. Fragments suck.
Comma Splice
Results when two independent clauses are mistakenly joined with a comma instead of being separated into two sentences or joined with a conjunction or semicolon.
Ex. We need structure, fragments suck.
Rev. We need structure; fragments suck.
Verbal
Noun or adjective formed from a verb. Most common types are: participle, gerund, and infinitive
Participle
Verbal that is used as an adjective and often ends in -ing or -ed
The barking dog was hungry.
Gerund
Verbal that ends in -ing and functions as a noun
Knitting is fun.
Infinitive
Verbal consisting of the word “to” pls the base form of a verb that functions as a noun, adjective or adverb
She wanted to learn to fly.
What do effective paragraphs begin with?
A topic sentence that is followed by supporting sentences that lead to a conclusion or closing statement.
