LITMIR.BIZ

      If you can digest all this you can put it at the back of your mind but you will find it a helpful guide in sentence construction. It will help you to know, for instance, that in a long sentence such as James, my close friend and the grandson of the French artist Bernard Agate, is moving to New York, that the portion in bold is the subject and is moving to New York is the predicate, while in James is moving next month to the place he’s always wanted to be – New York, the single word James is the subject and the rest is the predicate.

      The predicate can be a bit of a puzzle, mainly because it can consist of just a single verb or a number of elements that describe, modify or supply extra information. We make sense of this by recognising a direct and indirect object. In the sentence –

       James is moving to New York.

      – James is the subject and the rest is the predicate. The direct object of the predicate is New York. It isn’t actually doing anything, but is having something done to it. If, however, the sentence expands a little –

       James told me he was moving to New York.

      – we now have not only a direct object (New York) but an indirect object – me.

       Simple, Compound and Complex Sentences

      Apart from the subject/predicate concept of sentences, there is another way of classifying these constructions. Single-word expressions such as ‘Hey!’, signs, catchphrases, greetings and so on, are called irregular, fragmentary or minor sentences. Sentences that are constructed to express a complete, independent thought are called regular sentences, and these are divided into simple, compound and complex sentences. These are worth exploring because in writing and speaking we use them all the time. Knowing about them should help us use them to better advantage.

      A simple sentence consists of a single main clause:

       We went to Bournemouth last week.

       The storm brought down all the power lines.

      A compound sentence consists of two or more main clauses, indicated in bold:

       The storm brought down all the power lines and caused havoc throughout Montreal.

       Sam finally agreed to buy the car but still had doubts about the steering.

      Both simple and compound sentences have one thing in common: neither have subordinate clauses (you’ll find more on clauses on page 58). When you add one or more subordinate clauses to the sentence mix, you create a complex sentence. In these examples the main clauses are in bold and the subordinate clauses are in parenthesis:

      The spacecraft (that caused the emergency) was considered obsolete.

      She bolted through the door (which slammed behind her).

      My grandfather has now retired, but the family business (that he started in 1928) is still going strong.

      The last example, consisting of two main clauses and a subordinate clause, is really a compound-complex sentence, one of the most common sentence constructions.

      From these examples you’ll see that unlike simple sentences, compound and complex sentences express two or more thoughts. Let’s take two simple sentences:

       The money was spent on urban regeneration. The money provided hundreds of families with excellent houses.

      Most of us, seeing this pair of sentences, would find it difficult to resist the urge to combine them:

       The money was spent on urban regeneration and it provided hundreds of families with excellent houses.

      Compound and complex sentences link connected thoughts in an economical way. Indeed, a third thought could safely be added:

       The money was spent on urban regeneration and provided hundreds of families with excellent houses, but it did not take funds away from existing public housing schemes.

      Beyond this you have to be careful, or risk confusing or overloading the reader. By the way, did you notice the two words used to link the three thoughts or sentences into one? They are and and but, conjunctions that are commonly used to build compound and complex sentences. (See discussion under Grammatical Glue, page 138.)

       Types of Regular Sentences

      Earlier, we defined four uses for sentences. Each of these calls for a different type of sentence, and it’s worth knowing what they are:

       A DECLARATIVE SENTENCE makes a statement:

       A rose bush grew in the garden.

       Ben has just thrown a ball through the window.

       Is that a rose bush in the garden?

       Did Ben just throw a ball through the window?

       Look at that rose bush in the garden.

       See if Ben’s thrown a ball through the window.

       I wouldn’t dream of touching that rose bush!

       I’ll scream if Ben’s thrown a ball through the window!

      Another aspect of a sentence is that it can express thoughts or actions positively or negatively:

       I like eating in restaurants is a positive sentence.

       I don’t like eating in restaurants is a negative sentence.

      The difference may seem obvious in these two examples but a sentence can damage itself with the inclusion – sometimes unconsciously – of double negatives and near or quasi-negatives:

       I don’t know nothing. (non-standard double negative)

       It was a not unusual sight to see the heron flying away. (acceptable double negative)

       I hardly saw nobody at the sale. (negative and quasi-negative)

       There’s no question that Robert will pay the debt. (negative, but the no question is intended to positively

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