Introduction to Sentence Correction - TTP Flashcards
What is the issue with the below sentence?
Many crops have been damaged by the ongoing flooding, and they are raising food prices nationwide
The issue with this sentence is with meaning, the subject of the sentence is crops (‘by the ongoing flooding’) is part of a prepositional phrase. Now notice ‘they’ which refers back to subject crops, now even though the sentence is perfectly fine in the grammatical sense, it conveys that crops are raising the prices which is nonsensical
What is the issue with the below sentence?
The whale shark is the largest shark of all, but they are, to a human, less dangerous than the white shark by eating only small fish, shrimp, and plankton
The correct form of this answer is
Whale sharks are the largest of all sharks but are, to a human, less dangerous than white sharks since whale sharks eat only small fish, shrimp, and plankton
Even though the above does not sound good, it is still the correct answer
Usage of whether and if
Wether is used for the uncertainty that is deciding between alternatives when we make a statement involving uncertainty about two possible alternatives
on other the hand ‘if’ is used only for a statement of conditionality. like if x then y. They are not interchangeable.
E.g. I don’t know whether I will go skiing this weekend(uncertain)
I don’t know if I will go skiing this weekend (this is incorrect as you do not mean conditionality)
Do vs does
Do is plural while does is singular
What is a phrase vs what is a clause?
A phrase is simply a collection of words that cannot stand alone as a sentence because there is no subject-verb relationship. While the clause on the other hand is is a string of words that contains a subject-verb relationship.
The more precise definition of a clause is it contains a finite verb that answers the question ‘when’. That verb must make clear when the action mentioned by the clause occurred - past, present, or future? e.g.
My parents gave me a car for graduation
I will finish my homework tomorrow
What is an independent clause?
An independent clause contains both a subject and a verb, and it can stand alone in the sentence. They contain the main verb which is the ‘finite verb’ that gives the information about when did the action occur
Finite verbs give us the information about when exactly the event occurred
What is a dependent clause?
The clause that cannot constitute sentences on their own is, quite logically called dependent clauses. These clauses fulfill specific functions within sentences and serve to enhance or modify the meaning expressed by an independent clause. There are three types of these
- Subordinate clauses
- Relative clauses
- Noun clauses
What are subordinate clauses?
Clauses that begin with subordinate conjunctions are called subordinate clauses, they can become independent clauses if we remove the subordinate conjunction from them. Few examples are
after, before, until, unless, as well as, if, because, although, though, whenever, just as, rather than
What are different types of sentences
- Simple sentence
- Compound sentence
- Complex sentence
- Compound-Complex sentence
What is a simple sentence?
A simple sentence consists of a single independent clause followed by a period. e.g.
I do; I will; I was at the beach
What is a compound sentence?
A compound sentence is composed of at least two independent clauses and we must connect these independent clauses in specific ways. i.e. either connect with separated by a semicolon or use coordinating conjunction and a comma.
What is the rule of connecting the Independent clause with coordinating conjunction?
When an independent clause is connected by coordinating conjunction a comma must precede the conjunction e.g.
- John went hiking, but Sara went to the beach
- I ran, and I fell
- The walrus and the seal were eating lunch, and they were also taking in some sun
Please note that the comma above is not optional
What is wrong with the below sentences?
- I went to the gym I love to work
- The dog jumped over the fence he has so much energy
- I ran, I fell
- I ran and I fell
With the first two sentences, we should use coordinating conjunction and a comma between two independent clauses. While with the third we should add coordinating conjunction because we cannot club two independent clauses with only a comma.
The issue with the last sentence is that it is missing a comma before ‘and’
What is wrong with the below sentence?
Responding to critics, the committee refused to admit any culpability in the devastation caused by cost overruns and it specifically diverted blame to change in bureaucratic oversight
The sentence contains two independent clauses
- the committee refused to admit any culpability in the devastation caused by cost overruns
- it specifically diverted blame to change in bureaucratic oversight
But notice a comma is missing before ‘and’
What is wrong with the below sentence?
I ran, consequently, I fell
The sentence might seem okay but it is a run-on sentence. We are connecting two independent clauses (“I ran” and “I fell”). We must use a coordinating conjunction FANBOYS preceded by a comma.
I ran, and, consequently, I fell
How can we fill in the below two structures?
- The majority of voters showed their displeasure, yet ___________
- The majority of voters showed their displeasure yet ___________
The first one can be filled with an independent clause because it is separated by a comma before a coordinating conjunction
The second one can’t be filled with an independent clause because it is not separated by a comma, so we have to supply a phrase or dependent clause
- The majority of voters showed their displeasure, yet they still failed to cast dissenting votes
- The majority of voters showed their displeasure yet still failed to cast dissenting votes
Notice the second one does not contain a subject so it is not a clause
Rules for using a semicolon
When a semicolon is used as a substitute for a comma and coordinating conjunction, an independent clause must be found on each side of the semicolon
Rules of using a colon
When we use a colon, whatever comes before a colon must be able to stand alone i.e. we should have an independent clause preceding a colon. The colon may be followed by an independent clause but that’s not necessary and could be followed by anything
What is wrong with the below sentence
- My morning routine included: pushups and sit-ups
- My favourite activity was: tumbleweed chasing
“My morning routine included” is not a complete thought so the sentence is not correct
The second sentence also does not contain a complete thought
What is wrong with the below sentence?
In order to address the issue of violence in the school, the administration used: conflict resolution classes, hall monitors, and counseling
The sentence before the colon is not a complete thought so we cannot use a colon
What are complex sentences
A complex sentence is composed of one independent clause and at least one subordinate clause
Because Lucy loves wine, I brought her a Sula.
It is important to note that the subordinate clause plays a specific modifying role in the sentence. The natural place for an adverb to appear is somewhere after the verb but if placed correctly it can appear anywhere in the sentence
On the third pitch, I hit a home run
I, on the third pitch, hit a home run
on the third pitch here is an adverb prepositional phrase and notice how it can be placed anywhere in the sentence
Usage of commas with a subordinate clause
When a sentence begins with a subordinate clause we have to separate it with a comma from an independent clause but if a subordinate clause is in between a sentence then the comma is optional
Because I love the ocean, I spent the summer in Goa (the comma is mandatory)
I spent the summer in Goa because I love the ocean (the comma is optional)
I spent the summer in Goa , because I love the ocean (the comma is optional)
What is a compound-complex sentence?
A compound-complex sentence is a sentence with at least one subordinate clause and two independent clause
(SC) (IC) (IC)
While you are at the beach, I ran a few errands, and I bought groceries for dinner
One rule here is whenever subordinating conjunction immediately follows coordinating conjunction, there must be at least three clauses in the sentence
I wanted to go scuba diving, but because I was tired from our long run, I read a book instead
What is wrong with the below sentence?
I wanted to go scuba diving, but because I was tired from our long run
The sentence uses coordinate and subordinate conjunction together but is missing the third clause leading to an incomplete thought
What is wrong with the below sentence?
Voter registration has surged in the months leading up to the election, with previously underrepresented demographics such as younger voters achieving record number, yet even if this trend translates to increased turnout at the polls
The sentence is properly punctuated but is missing the third clause, we have used coordinating/subordinate conjunctions together, so we should have a third clause that would complete the thought
What are relative clauses
Relative clauses are a type of dependent clause that begins with a relative pronoun: that, which, who, whose, whom, when, and where.
Given it is a type of dependent clause it cannot stand alone in the sentence
What are the differences between the below two sentences?
The baboon had an angry look about it
The baboon that grasped its baby had an angry look about it
The second sentence gives us more information about the baboon and also notice that it contains a relative clause “that grasped its baby”. Now we know that each clause must have a subject and a verb, the clause “that grasped its baby” contains the verb as grasped and the subject is that
What are the subjects and verb in relative clauses present in below sentences?
- My boat, which has an electric motor, is faster than most boat with gasoline engines
- The man who solved the problem is smiling happily
- The star whose supply of hydrogen is running out will soon collapse
- Which has an electric motor (Subject - which, verb - has)
- Who solved the problem (Subject - Who, verb - solved)
- whose supply of hydrogen (Subject - Whose, verb - supply)
Notice in each of the above sentence the subject is the relative pronoun itself
When the relative clause is itself the subject in the sentence it cannot be dropped from the sentence but when it is, it can be dropped
What is the difference b/w the below two sentences?
- The baboon Irving was feeding had an angry look about it
- The baboon that Irving was feeding had an angry look about it
Both are fine, we can drop the relative clause from the sentence because it is not the subject
What is wrong with the below sentence?
Max Planck, who is considered one of the most important figures in modern physics.
The sentence contains a relative clause “who is considered one of the most important figures” now we know the relative clause is a dependent clause and it cannot stand alone in the sentence we now don’t have any independent clause in the sentence which is necessary to make a complete thought. So if we drop ‘who’ from the sentence it will become correct.
Relative clause, when added to the sentence, might make the sentence as fragments that do not contain any independent clause
What is wrong with the below sentence?
Found in the latest model, the autopilot feature performs almost all of the tasks that a driver would need to perform and that uses forward radar and eight cameras, in addition to 360-degree sonar, which detects obstacles in an eight-meter radius around the car
The sentence is a long noun as notice it does not contain any independent clause and it only contains a noun followed by a long relative clause
What are noun clauses?
A noun clause is a clause that plays a role of a noun, e.g. of noun clauses are: that, which, how, whom,where, whatever, what, and why
Marty feels that spiritual development has no limits
That holiday leave had been cancelled depressed the entire company
Does the below sentence contain a noun phrase or a noun clause?
That healing approach was developed centuries ago
The noun clause ends when we hit a verb, in this case, was, so we are left with ‘That healing approach’. Now this for sure does not contain a verb so it cannot be a clause, what we have here is simply a noun phrase
What is wrong with the below sentence?
A woman was the principal player of a wind instrument in a major American orchestra was unprecedented in 1941, when Helen Kotas became the principal in the Chicago symphony orchestra
The second ‘was’ that appears in this version has no subject. The sentence starts with a single noun. “A woman,” which is the subject of “was” in “ A woman was the principal player”. We don’t have any subject of “ was unprecedented in 1941”. We need a noun clause to precede “was unprecedented “ in order for the sentence to be grammatical
E.g. - “That a woman was the principal player of a wind instrument in a major American orchestra was” would fix the sentence
We already know that a noun clause can act as a subject but one more function which they can perform is acting as the object of the subject. A direct object is a noun or pronoun receiving the action which the subject performs
E.g.
I knew why the deer was eating my flowers
I felt that it was time to go swimming
Which one of the following is a correct sentence below?
I knew that dinner would be served soon
I knew dinner would be served soon
Both versions of the sentence are correct, notice that in the noun clause that words such as “that” is not the subject of the clause so it is optional, we can drop it from the sentence without harming anyting
How to distinguish between a relative clause and a noun clause?
A relative clause must follow the noun that the clause is modifying. A clause that is not followed by a noun cannot be a relative clause e.g.
Eddie sat there and wondered which came first, the chicken or the egg.
In the above sentence “which came first” is not preceded by a noun, so it cannot be a relative clause rather it follows the verb wondered and is the direct object of it, so it must be a noun clause
