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Writing Supplement: English Unlimited – Elementary

Simple, Compound, and Complex Sentences (with because)

Adapted from Essay Essentials with Readings: Fourth Edition and The Bare Essentials Plus: Third Edition (Nelson, 2006)

Part One: Introduction to Subjects and Verbs (to be done before Explore Writing 8 on p.72)

• A clause = a group of words that includes a subject and a verb

• An independent clause = a group of words that includes a subject and a verb, and it communicates a         

                                                complete thought or idea.

• A simple sentence = contains one independent clause and ends with a period.

A sentence is about someone or something. That someone or something is the subject. The word(s) that tell(s) what the subject is or does is the verb.

To find the subject, ask who or what the sentence is about. The subject of a sentence is always a noun (the name of a person, place, thing, or concept) or a pronoun (e.g.  I, you, he, she, it, we or they).

To find the verb, ask what the subject is or is doing. There are two kinds of verbs. Action verbs tell you what the subject is doing. Linking verbs connect a subject to a noun or adjective.

Please remember that a sentence needs punctuation. Use a period (.), an exclamation mark (!), or a question mark (?) at the end of a sentence. Do not use a comma (,) at the end of a sentence!

In each of the following simple sentences, underline the subject with one line and the verb with two lines.

1. I have a Canadian friend.
2. He is studying in Barranquilla this semester.
3. My friend likes telling me about his country.
4. In Canada, many Canadians like donuts.
5. Donuts taste sweet.
6. My favorite donuts are chocolate donuts.
7. Last weekend my Canadian friend ate six Dunkin Donuts in Bogota.
8. Buy me some donuts the next time you are in Bogota.*
9. Eating six donuts every day isn’t a good idea.
10. It makes you sick.

*In an imperative sentence, the subject is an invisible You.

Usually the subject comes first and the verb comes second in a sentence. However, sometimes the subject is after the verb:

• In sentences that begin with Here + a form of to be or with There + a form of to be. For example:

Here are your car keys.

There is a park near my house.

• In some questions*. For example:

 Are we there yet?

Is she the one? 

*In questions that begin with who, whose, what, where, or which, the subject and verb are in the normal position. For example:         Who ate my burrito?

In your notebook, write ten simple sentences about you, your life, your university, or your hometown. In each sentence, underline the subject with one line and the verb with two lines. Use the present simple, present progressive, or past simple. When you are finished, check your sentences with a partner.

Part Two: Compound Sentences using and, but, so, or (to be done before Explore Writing 8 on p.72)

Adapted from Focus on Grammar: An Intermediate Course for Reference and Practice (Addison Wesley Longman, 2000)

You can combine two sentences into one sentence. Use a comma (,) and a coordinating conjunction such as and, but, so, and or. The new sentence has two equal independent clauses with a subject and a verb. It is called a compound sentence. For example:

Taxis are expensive. I prefer to take a bus.

[pic 1]

Taxis are expensive, so I prefer to take a bus.

(independent clause)       (independent clause)---             

Read the following email. Circle the most appropriate coordinating conjunctions.

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