Sentence Terminology * Flashcards
Main Clause
• Can form a complete sentence on its
own
• must contain a verb
e.g. today is Friday
You ate the last biscuitCoordinate Clause
A main clause in a compound or compound-complex sentence.
e.g. I like eating cake and you enjoy them too
Stranded Coordinate Clause
A coordinate clause without another main clause.
e.g. And a dessert to finish
Subordinate Clause
• Doesn’t make sense on its own
• Needs a main clause
• Must contain a verb
e.g. Although it was late
Concessive Subordinate Clause
Concede something (admit, give up something)
e.g. even though I couldn’t afford it
Although I don’t agree with herConditional Subordinate Clause
Provide a condition
e.g. if you don’t
Unless it’s an emergency
Subordinate Clause of Reason
Provide a reason
e.g. because the train was late
Since you didn’t reply
Temporal Subordinate Clause
Relate to time
e.g. when it’s 12 o’clock
After the break
Relative Subordinate Clause
• Add additional information
• Start with a relative pronoun
e.g. who won the big cash prize
who had been off sick for some time
which happened last weekTo-Infinitive Clauses
Begin with to
e.g. to get good marks
to get a good seat
Foreground Clause
Subordinate clauses that start a sentence
e.g. when you get back
to get the best experience
Embedded Clause
Subordinate clauses in the middle of the sentence
e.g. the girls, who had worked really hard, decided to go away
Simple Sentences
• Has one clause
• Must contain a verb
e.g. Charlie ate the sandwich
Compound Sentence
Two or more clauses with conjunctions
e.g. Charlie ate the sandwich but not
the apple
Complex Sentence
• Two or more clauses
• One subordinate clause
• Linked with conjunctions
e.g. Charlie ate the sandwich, when he had finished
the appleCompound-complex Sentence
At least one subordinate clause and number of coordinate clauses
e.g. I stopped the car because the man
was just lying there on the road and
asked if he was okay
Minor Sentence
Phrase is subordinate clause being used as a complete sentence
e.g. back home now
great cake, that
Declarative
Statement that give information
e.g. he shut the window
Interrogative
A question
e.g. are you comuns back by train?
Imperative
A command
e.g. give me the cake
Tag Question
Add question at the end
e.g. shut the door, will you?
Exclamatory
Contains exclamation at the end
e.g. get in line!
you were amazing!
Last-branching Sentences
Lengthy information before the subject
e.g. disorientated, dazed, discombobulated and peering though the narrow gap anxiously, Charlie wondered whether it was safe
Periodic Sentences
Complex sentences where sentence starts with sub clause, main clause at the end.
e.g. while sitting down for a test, Charlie at the
sandwich
Triad
Pattern of three words/phrases
e.g. I came, I saw, I conquered
Syntactic Parallelism
When a writer/speaker repeats a sentence structure
e.g. if we build it, they will come, if they
come, we will succeed
Active Voice
e.g. Sarah broke the window
Passive Voice
e.g. the window was broken by Sarah
Syndetic listing
Listing with and
e.g. food and water and books and pens
Asyndetic Listing
Listing with commas
food, water, books, pens
Parenthesis
Asides in brackets or hyphens
e.g. Kate - from Worcester - won first
prize / the dog (who was very
naughty anyway) had eaten the dinner
