{"id":108,"date":"2017-09-04T06:26:30","date_gmt":"2017-09-04T06:26:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/americanboard.org\/Subjects\/english\/?page_id=108"},"modified":"2017-09-21T15:12:45","modified_gmt":"2017-09-21T15:12:45","slug":"syntax","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/americanboard.org\/Subjects\/english\/syntax\/","title":{"rendered":"Syntax"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"twelve columns\" style=\"margin-top: 10%;\">\n<div class=\"advance\"><a class=\"button button-primary\" href=\"http:\/\/americanboard.org\/Subjects\/english\/spelling\">\u2b05 Previous Lesson<\/a>\u00a0<a class=\"button\" href=\"http:\/\/americanboard.org\/Subjects\/english\/standard-english-language-conventions\">Workshop Index<\/a>\u00a0<a class=\"button button-primary\" href=\"http:\/\/americanboard.org\/Subjects\/english\/esl-errors\">Next Lesson \u27a1<\/a><\/div>\n<p><!-- CONTENT BEGINS HERE --><\/p>\n<h1 id=\"title\">Syntax<\/h1>\n<h4>Objective<\/h4>\n<p>In this lesson, you\u2019ll learn about the syntactic structures that make up sentences.<\/p>\n<h4>Previously Covered:<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>In the previous lesson we discussed the finer points of spelling.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Now that we\u2019ve reviewed the components of a sentence, from parts of speech to spelling to punctuation, we\u2019ll look at the structures that make up a sentence.<\/p>\n<h4>Clauses<\/h4>\n<p>Recall that a <abbr title=\"Clause \u2013 Group of related words \"><strong>clause<\/strong><\/abbr> is a group of related words. We\u2019ll begin our review of syntax with independent and dependent clauses.<\/p>\n<p>An <abbr title=\" Independent clause \u2013 A clause that presents a complete thought and can stand alone as a sentence \"><strong>independent clause<\/strong><\/abbr> is a complete sentence that can stand on its own. Unless it is an imperative sentence, an independent clause has a<abbr title=\" Subject \u2013 The part of a sentence that indicates who or what is doing the action \"><strong> subject<\/strong><\/abbr> (also called the noun) and a <abbr title=\" Predicate \u2013 Contains the verb phrase and objects of a sentence \"><strong>predicate<\/strong><\/abbr> (which contains the verb and related objects).<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>We walked.<\/p>\n<p>The pendulum swung.<\/p>\n<p>Time marched on.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>A <abbr title=\" Dependent clause \u2013 a clause (that is, a unit of text containing a predicate and its subject) that cannot stand on its own but must be paired with an independent clause; clauses become dependent when they are preceded by a subordinating element such as a relative pronoun or subordinating conjunction. In the sentence \"><strong>dependent clause<\/strong><\/abbr> (also called a <abbr title=\" Subordinate clause \u2013 a clause (that is, a unit of text containing a predicate and its subject) that cannot stand on its own but must be paired with an independent clause; clauses become subordinate when they are preceded by a subordinating element such as a relative pronoun or subordinating conjunction. In the sentence \"><strong>subordinate clause)<\/strong><\/abbr> cannot stand on its own. Dependent clauses work with independent clauses to enhance the meaning of the sentence and can act as adjectives, adverbs, or even nouns.<\/p>\n<p>Dependent clauses that act as adjectives are called <abbr title=\" Adjective clause \u2013 Dependent clause that acts as an adjective and begins with a relative pronoun. Also called a relative clause \"><strong>adjective clauses<\/strong><\/abbr> or <abbr title=\" Adjective clause \u2013 Dependent clause that acts as an adjective and begins with a relative pronoun. Also called a relative clause \"><strong>relative clauses.<\/strong><\/abbr> Notice that adjective clauses begin with relative pronouns (that, which, who, whom, whomever, whose) and are<abbr title=\"Appositive \u2013 A word or phrase that serves as an explanatory equivalent to a previously referenced article in a sentence \"><strong> appositives.<\/strong><\/abbr><\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Mark, <strong>who knew the area better than anyone else<\/strong>, was enlisted to help with the search.<\/p>\n<p>The double somersault, <strong>which is the most complicated dive possible on our diving board<\/strong>, became my trademark.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Dependent clauses that act as adverbs are called<abbr title=\" Adverb clause \u2013 Dependent clause that acts as an adverb and begins with a subordinating conjunction \"><strong> adverb clauses<\/strong><\/abbr>. Adverb clauses begin with a <abbr title=\"Subordinating conjunction \u2013 A conjunction that transforms the clause to which it is attached into a subordinate clause: after, although, as, before, if, since, through, until, when, while, et cetera \"><strong>subordinating conjunction<\/strong><\/abbr> (after, although, as, before, if, since, though, until, when, while).<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Cassie knew she was almost home <strong>when she saw the sign for the bookstore.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Dynamite was the primary tool for railroad construction <strong>until \u201cthe machine\u201d was invented<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><strong> Before Don signed the contract<em>, <\/em><\/strong> he always liked to look it over one last time.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Dependent clauses that act as nouns are called <abbr title=\"Noun clause \u2013 Dependent clause that acts as a noun \"><strong>noun clauses<\/strong><\/abbr><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong> Why the disaster happened<\/strong> will never be understood.<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019ve always wanted to know <strong>how roads are constructed<\/strong>.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<h4>Types of Sentences<\/h4>\n<p>Sentences can be categorized by purpose (see Interrogative Sentences in the previous section) or by structure. Here, we\u2019ll review the four types of sentence structures.<\/p>\n<p><abbr title=\" Simple sentence \u2013 A sentence made up of a single independent clause \"><strong>Simple sentences<\/strong><\/abbr> are comprised of a single independent clause.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Dogs howled.<\/p>\n<p>The panda bear clapped wildly.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><abbr title=\"Compound sentence \u2013 A sentence made up of two independent clauses \"><strong>Compound sentences<\/strong><\/abbr> consist of two independent clauses.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Audiences cheered and children shouted.<\/p>\n<p>The cat left for a week and the dog rejoiced.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><abbr title=\"Complex sentence \u2013 A sentence made up of one independent clause and one or more dependent clauses \"><strong>Complex sentences<\/strong><\/abbr> are made up of one independent clause and one or more dependent clauses.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Because of our trip to Milan, we had to postpone the reunion.<\/p>\n<p>Only our forks know how much we ate for dinner.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><abbr title=\"Compound-complex sentence \u2013 A sentence made up of two or more independent clauses and one or more dependent clauses \"><strong>Compound-complex sentences<\/strong><\/abbr> are made up of two or more independent clauses and one or more dependent clause.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>If we\u2019d known she was in Massachusetts, we could have visited her and she could have driven back with us.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<h4>Logical Sequence<\/h4>\n<p>You may have noticed that certain words dictate the structure and logic of a sentence.<\/p>\n<p>Because introduces a specific cause using a dependent clause. The effect is usually in an independent clause in the same sentence. Note that because is often used in complex sentences.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong> Because<\/strong> the world is round, we have seasons.<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019m saving my pennies <strong>because<\/strong> I want to go to Maui next year.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>If-then also helps describe a cause-and-effect relationship. However, if-then is used to describe a conditional relationship that has not occurred yet. Notice that the if-then construction and other correlatives are used in compound sentences.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>If I save enough money, then I\u2019ll go to Maui for a month.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Including connects an independent clause with a dependent clause. The dependent clause contains an item or items that fit into the category described in the independent clause. Note the complex sentence structure.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>We traveled to all of the Hawaiian Islands, <strong>including<\/strong> Kauai and Oahu.<\/p>\n<p>Mollie loved the beach, <strong>including<\/strong> the sand and the sound of the waves on the shore.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>But and and are conjunctions that can connect two independent clauses (forming a compound sentence) or an independent clause and a dependent clause (forming a complex sentence). But precedes a clause that contradicts or further defines a previous clause. And precedes a clause that continues the thought of a previous clause.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>We always wanted to go to Maui, <strong>but<\/strong> we never intended to stay forever.<\/p>\n<p>Chasing rainbows doesn\u2019t get you anywhere, <strong>and<\/strong> nowhere is a nice place to be.<\/p>\n<p><em> Only<\/em> can act as an adjective or adverb to indicate \u201cthis one and no other.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I gave her my <strong>only<\/strong> map of downtown Paris.<\/p>\n<p>Her teammates <strong>only<\/strong> wanted to win.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<h4>Review of New Vocabulary and Concepts<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Independent clauses are complete sentences. Dependent clauses cannot stand alone.<\/li>\n<li>When categorized by purpose, sentences can be one of four types: declarative, imperative, interrogative, or exclamatory.<\/li>\n<li>When categorized by structure, sentences can be one of four types: simple, compound, complex, or compound-complex.<\/li>\n<li>Pay attention to words that dictate the logical sequence of a sentence.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><!-- CONTENT ENDS HERE --><\/p>\n<div class=\"advance\"><a class=\"button button-primary\" href=\"http:\/\/americanboard.org\/Subjects\/english\/spelling\">\u2b05 Previous Lesson<\/a>\u00a0<a class=\"button\" href=\"http:\/\/americanboard.org\/Subjects\/english\/standard-english-language-conventions\">Workshop Index<\/a>\u00a0<a class=\"button button-primary\" href=\"http:\/\/americanboard.org\/Subjects\/english\/esl-errors\">Next Lesson \u27a1<\/a><\/div>\n<p><a class=\"backtotop\" href=\"#title\">Back to Top<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u2b05 Previous Lesson\u00a0Workshop Index\u00a0Next Lesson \u27a1 Syntax Objective In this lesson, you\u2019ll learn about the syntactic structures that make up sentences. Previously Covered: In the previous lesson we discussed the finer points of spelling. Now that we\u2019ve reviewed the components of a sentence, from parts of speech to spelling to punctuation, we\u2019ll look at the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-108","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/americanboard.org\/Subjects\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/108","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/americanboard.org\/Subjects\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/americanboard.org\/Subjects\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/americanboard.org\/Subjects\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/americanboard.org\/Subjects\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=108"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/americanboard.org\/Subjects\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/108\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":473,"href":"https:\/\/americanboard.org\/Subjects\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/108\/revisions\/473"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/americanboard.org\/Subjects\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=108"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}