Types of Sentences
For the following sentences, identify the sentences as either simple, compound, complex, or compound-complex.
Example: Although I usually set my alarm for six o'clock in the morning, I seldom actually get up on time. Complex sentence
When Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat to a white man on a bus in Montgomery, Alabama, she was not trying to start a revolution.
Parks simply wanted to go home after a hard day's work.
But others who were involved with the NAACP saw in Parks' refusal to move the potential to gain their own civil rights.
The Montgomery bus boycott was quickly organized.
Thousands of African Americans living in Montgomery, including Martin Luther King, Jr., refused to use the city's public transportation; they chose instead to walk, ride bikes, or carpool.
Police would often pull the carpoolers over and arrest them.
King himself was arrested for driving ten miles over the speed limit, and others were jailed for equally minor traffic violations.
The city sued the carpoolers for running an illegal business enterprise, but the protesters would not be deterred.
Finally, after over a year of a near total boycott, African Americans won the right to sit wherever they wanted on Montgomery's buses.
Rosa Parks and her fellow Alabamians had discovered the ground that could be gained through nonviolent protest.
Revise the following long compound sentences to create sentences of varying types. Use coordinating and subordinating conjunctions when necessary.
Example: The Olympic Games provide a chance for athletes from all over the world to gather in peaceful athletic competition, and fans are often impressed with the good sportsmanship exhibited at these games; however, at least one athlete inevitably gets caught using banned substances.
Revised: The Olympic Games provide a chance for athletes from all over the world to gather in peaceful athletic competition. Fans are often impressed with the good sportsmanship exhibited at these games. However, at least one athlete inevitably gets caught using banned substances.
The 1930s was a decade of tremendous growth for labor unions in America, and much of this growth came from the creation of the CIO.
The CIO, Congress of Industrial Organizations, came about when its founders were dissatisfied with the existing AFL, the American Federation of Labor, so they decided to start their own labor union group.
The AFL had focused mainly on organizing highly skilled workers, but the CIO wanted to organize all workers by industry, including the lowest-paid unskilled workers.
By recruiting workers of all skill levels, the CIO was able to organize millions more workers, and these workers could more effectively demand safer working conditions and pay increases.
One of the most effective tools the CIO's members used was the sit-down strike, where workers would simply turn off their machines and sit down, so they were able to stop production until management agreed to meet with them regarding their concerns.
Of course, management did not look kindly upon these halts in production, and they often sent in strikebreakers to force the laborers back to work or to spy on union meetings.
Once the CIO was able to drastically increase its union rolls, however, they began making advances in the appalling working conditions of miners, auto workers, steelworkers, and others, but the advances did not come without cost.
Many protestors were killed or injured while on strike from their various jobs during the 1930s, but by the end of the decade, the members of these labor unions finally had a voice.
Simple Sentence
Identify the subject and the verb of each of the following simple sentences, and underline both.
Example: Fifty percent (Subject) of marriages will end (Verb) in divorce.
Most Americans include meat as a regular part of their diets.
Eating meat, however, can be unhealthy.
Meat consumption affects people's health, the environment, and the welfare of animals.
Meat is a major contributor of fat and cholesterol to Americans' diets.
Salmonella and E Coli are pervasive in the American meat supply.
Seventy percent of the world's grain harvest is used to feed livestock rather than people.
Animal wastes wash into streams and rivers.
Six billion meat, milk, and egg-producing animals are killed in the U.S. annually.
Newer, more efficient mega farms pack thousands of identical pigs into one farm.
The USDA must continuously fight Congress about the meat inspection system.
Appropriately planned vegetarian diets are healthful, nutritionally adequate, and good for the environment.
Compound Sentence
Combine the following independent clauses using either a coordinating conjunction or correlative conjunctions to form compound sentences.
Example: The turkey is in the oven. / The pies are cooling on the shelf.
Revised: The turkey is in the oven, and the pies are cooling on the shelf.
Building a memorial was once so easy.
A statue or two and a flag would usually suffice.
Nowadays, people want more from their memorials.
They want meaning.
They want feeling.
But they all want something different.
When the Vietnam Veterans Memorial was proposed, over 1400 designs were sent in to memorial organizers.
They all agreed on a design by Maya Lin, a Yale architecture student.
Her design called for black granite walls with the names of dead soldiers etched into them.
The walls were to be sunk into the earth so that visitors would have to descend below ground to observe the memorial.
Many veterans hated the design.
They thought it was too simple, too plain, or too dark.
Some people thought the memorial should express the divisive nature of the war.
Some thought it needed a statue or two and a flag.
Once the memorial was built, veterans and families of those who died in Vietnam came to understand the powerful nature of Lin's design.
For many, "the wall" became almost sacred.
Visitors come to the wall to touch the names of those who died.
They read the names aloud sometimes.
The names are what make the wall a true memorial.
Combine the following independent clauses using a conjunctive adverb and/or a semicolon to form compound sentences.
Example: I went to the store for milk and eggs. / I ended up buying a cartful of groceries.
Revised: I went to the store for milk and eggs; however, I ended up buying a cartful of groceries.
The 1936 Olympic Games were to be held in Berlin, Germany.
Adolf Hitler wanted to make a good impression.
Hitler knew there would be thousands of visitors.
He spent tens of millions of dollars preparing his country for the games.
The world's grumblings about Hitler's terror state were soon quieted.
What they found in Berlin instead was a seemingly perfect society.
Perhaps, many thought, Hitler wasn't as bad as they'd feared.
Visitors witnessed the solidarity of German citizens raising their arms in salute to Hitler.
The Germans seemed quite content.
At the track and field events, several contests seemed to be dominated by an African American named Jesse Owens.
Owens won four gold medals.
He also won the disdain of Adolf Hitler.
Hitler had planned to promote his shiny new city, along with his athletes, as proof of Aryan supremacy.
Jesse Owens spoiled that plan.
Jesse Owens' gold medal wins were like a rallying cry for freedom against the Hitler propaganda machine.
His own country still kept him segregated from his white teammates.
Even so, Owens gave the rest of the world pause.
They could not simply embrace Hitler's perfect society.
If Hitler was wrong about Owens' abilities, perhaps he was wrong about some of his other beliefs, too.
Complex Sentence
In the following complex sentences, underline the dependent clauses and circle their subordinating conjunctions.
Example: Although I was only a child, I dreamed of becoming a meteorologist.
When I was a young person growing up in Texas, I always loved running barefoot in the summertime.
I often ran around with bare black feet because the roads were so hot that the tar melted.
Although most of my friends wore their shoes during the summer months, I preferred the feel of the ground to the feel of sweaty shoes.
As the ice cream truck made its way around the corner, playing its lovely melody, children from all over the neighborhood would run out of their houses to greet it.
When the thermometer hovered around one hundred degrees, I would dash through the neighbors' sprinklers.
I would finally put my shoes on when the sun went down.
Although the streets were cooler at night, I was afraid of what my bare feet might discover after dark.
When morning finally came again, and the dew stood so cool and inviting on the blades of crisp brown grass, I went back to bare feet.
In the following complex sentences, underline the dependent clauses and circle their relative pronouns.
Example: The delivery man brought me the pizza that my neighbors had ordered.
In the 1940s, many young families dreamed of beginning new lives when the soldiers returned from war.
A fellow veteran named William Levitt had an idea, which he was sure would succeed, for making those dreams come true.
Following Henry Ford's model of assembly lines, Levitt began building small, affordable houses on individual plots of hundreds of acres of land, which he had purchased rather inexpensively.
After Levitt began building these houses in assembly-line fashion, young families moved to these "suburbs" in droves.
Many families were happy just to have homes of their own, which they had not had when they were living in the cities.
Although the houses were small, they became extremely popular among those who wanted to leave their old lives behind.
Across the nation, nearly identical "Levittowns" began cropping up after builders saw the business potential.
The suburbs, which had once housed only those who were well-to-do, soon became the ideal place for scores of middle class families.
Compound-Complex Sentence
In the following compound-complex sentences, underline the independent clauses and place brackets around the dependent clauses.
Example: Josie went to Florida for spring break, but [when she arrived], she was homesick.
- Marilyn Monroe, who would have been seventy-eight years old this year, has one of the most recognized faces in the world, and her appeal has not faded in the years since her death.
- Although Monroe was married three times, many people only know about her last two marriages, and she never had any children.
- When Monroe married Joe DiMaggio, they honeymooned in Tokyo; while on the honeymoon, Monroe performed for U.S. troops stationed in Korea.
- DiMaggio did not like the fact that all of the soldiers were fawning over his new bride, and Monroe' s sexpot image often caused problems in their marriage.
- After Monroe and DiMaggio divorced, Monroe moved to New York City, and there she met her future husband, playwright Arthur Miller.
- Although Monroe stayed with Miller longer than she had with DiMaggio, Monroe and Miller were divorced within five years, but Monroe's celebrity was not damaged by the failed marriages.
- Monroe, who was known around the world for her beauty, was more than just a pretty face, for she won a Golden Globe Award for her work in Some Like it Hot.
- When Monroe died in her sleep of an apparent overdose in 1962, the world was shocked and saddened, for she had become a cultural icon in such a short period of time that it seemed impossible that she was really gone.
Change the following compound sentences into compound-complex sentences by adding a dependent clause.
Example: Howard visited New York City, and he went to the top of the Empire State Building.
Revised: Howard visited New York City, and although he was afraid of heights, he went to the top of the Empire State Building.
Time management is difficult for most college students, and the problem only gets worse during finals.
Most students must juggle a full course load of classes and a job; additionally, a large percentage of college students also have children and families.
The breaks between semesters are no easier, since students must use this time for registration.
Some people consider lack of sleep a rite of passage for college students, but many students would like to manage their time more effectively.
Even meticulous planners are not immune to time management snafus, for they must deal with traffic and printer jams, too.
Sometimes twenty-four hours a day just isn't long enough, and sometimes seven days a week isn't long enough, either.
Planning ahead is an effective tool for time management, and writing upcoming tasks on a calendar can also help.
Students should also try to tackle major projects early, because there is no better feeling than having a term paper completed before spring break.
Transitive and Intransitive Verbs
Identify the italicized verbs in the following sentences as transitive, intransitive, or linking.
Example: Jack finished sanding his new croquet rack. Transitive
The Beatles were arguably one of the most influential musical groups of all time.
Their early sound, which combined American rhythm and blues with catchy lyrics and harmony, inspired a horde of imitators.
The Beatles' pop music sound and schoolboy charm attracted legions of screaming fans.
They became so popular that young fans would crowd inside, and outside, venues where the Beatles played in hopes of getting a glimpse of the Fab Four.
Screaming girls swooned at the mere sight of the singers.
The Beatles eventually outgrew their early sound and began creating more experimental songs.
Their changing sound reflected the changes going on in the larger society in the mid- to late 1960s.
In 1970, the Beatles disbanded, but their sound has continued to influence pop and rock music.
Identify the following italicized words and phrases as either direct object (DO), indirect object (IO), subject complement (SC), or object complement (OC).
Example: I accidentally hit him with the ball. DO
- Stephen King is the most prolific writer of horror novels of all time.
- Even those who haven't read King's books are probably familiar with some of the many movies based on his writings, such as Cujo and The Shawshank Redemption.
- King taught high school English for several years before writing his first novel, Carrie.
- Although living in near poverty prior to becoming a published author, Carrie soon made King a household name.
- His subsequent novels, including The Shining and Salem's Lot, gave King wealth to go with his growing popularity.
- King's home state of Maine is often the backdrop for many of his works.
- In a scene he could have written himself, King nearly lost his life in 1999 when he was hit by a van on a deserted stretch of Maine road.
- Since recovering from the devastating accident, King is more content to relax at home or write magazine articles and less concerned with writing the next bestseller.
Fragments
Of the following pairs of statements, determine which one is the fragment and which is the complete sentence. Put an "X" next to the complete sentence, and supply the missing subject or verb to correct the fragments.
Example: X a. The cast of "Friends" recently celebrated its series finale.
_b. The cast of "Friends" recent series finale.
1a. "Friends," hailed as one of the best sitcoms ever to be on television.
1b. "Friends" has been hailed as one of the best television sitcoms ever.
2a. Ross, Rachel, Monica, Chandler, Phoebe, and Joey all really do seem to be great friends, even off the set.
2b. Ross, Rachel, Monica, Chandler, Phoebe, and Joey, all really great friends who seem to get along even off the set.
3a. Despite the predicaments these six friends find themselves in, they always support one another.
3b. Despite the predicaments these six friends find themselves in when they need to support one another.
4a. In their various contract disputes, and throughout their negotiation processes, determined to stick together until all six were satisfied with the terms of the new contracts.
4b. In their various contract disputes, the six actors have always stuck together throughout their negotiation processes.
5a. This show of solidarity and the sense of true friendship that they portrayed on the series for ten seasons.
5b. This show of solidarity only reinforces the sense of true friendship that they portrayed on the series.
6a. Lisa Kudrow, who played Phoebe, received the most attention from the critics.
6b. Lisa Kudrow, who played Phoebe, even though she already played a similar role on another sitcom.
7a. Still, "Friends," an ensemble show while simultaneously giving all of the characters some of their own time in the spotlight.
7b. Still, "Friends" remained an ensemble show while simultaneously giving each of the characters some time in the spotlight.
8a. Some critics have said that "Friends" led to the death of the TV sitcom, while some claim it killed the TV family.
8b. Some critics, who have said that "Friends" led to the death of the TV sitcom or that it killed the TV family.
9a. Other critics believe that the show helped to change the quality of television sitcoms, which were forced to compete with the soap opera-like storylines of "Friends."
9b. Other critics, believing that the show helped change the quality of television sitcoms, which were forced to compete with the soap opera-like storylines of "Friends."
10a. Regardless of what the critics believe about the show, the fact that throughout the series' run, while "Friends" was one of the most popular sitcoms in television history.
10b. Regardless of what the critics believe about the show, the fact remains that throughout the series' run, "Friends" was one of the most popular sitcoms in television history.
Pronouns
Identify the type of each of the following italicized pronouns, and write the case on the lines provided.
Example: My sister and I told ourselves not to go into the dark house.
Personal
Reflexive
We all know that eating too much fast food is not good for us, but does anyone really know just how bad it truly is?
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I have personally found myself in fast food restaurants more times than I care to remember.
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This habit is not good for me, I know, but who can help giving in to the temptation every once in a while?
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The recent documentary film Supersize Me illustrates how bad the habit is for us.
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In the film, one man visits a fast food restaurant for every meal that he eats for a month.
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He gained approximately thirty pounds, his cholesterol and blood pressure went up significantly, and he had to cut the experiment short for his own health.
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This doesn't mean you will kill yourself by occasionally eating a fast food hamburger or pizza.
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However, we should all learn the film's lesson and curb our fast food habits if we want to live healthier lives.
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Revise the following sentences so that the pronoun agrees with the antecedent. Some sentences may be correct.
Example: Anyone who has a return should take their items to customer service.
Revised: Anyone who has a return should take his or her item to customer service.
- Cars are the main source of pollution for most states, but nearly everyone needs their car to get around.
- No one wants their vehicle to contribute to the pollution in their state.
- But because of the growing pollution problem, the local government is trying to regulate their county's auto emissions.
- The regulations are determined by the individual county, with each county determining the emission levels they are willing to tolerate from their residents.
- Cars that don't meet their counties' requirements will have to be repaired or replaced.
- Because repairing or replacing a car is an enormous expense for most people, most counties have a grace period for its residents whose cars don't meet the regulations.
- If their vehicle fails inspection, the owner is expected to make the necessary repairs and get the vehicle reinspected, and they may apply for a one-year waiver if it fails again.
- The owner of the failed vehicle is usually eligible for the grace period so that they may have a reasonable amount of time to repair or replace the car.
In most cases, the car may not be sold within the county where it originally failed emissions inspection.
By toughening their laws regarding auto emissions, the state will hopefully be able to reduce the pollution rate and allow their citizens to breathe clean air.
Verb Tenses
Identify the tense of the all of the verb forms in the following sentences, and write your answers in the space provided.
Example: I went to school yesterday. Past tense
- Most of us never want to find ourselves in a situation where we must
save someone else's life. - But if we are, knowing how to perform CPR is often one crucial skill that
can mean the difference between life and death. - Local chapters of the Red Cross offer CPR certification courses to the
general public so that individuals can learn this valuable skill. - Many former graduates of the course were glad they took the course when
they were called upon to perform CPR. - Although it is important for everyone to take the CPR course, there are
some helpful hints you can use in the event of an emergency. - First, if you see an unconscious person lying on the ground, you should
gently shake the person and ask if he or she is okay. - If the person does not respond, you should ask someone to call 911.
- It is not enough to simply state, "Someone call 911," because people will
often stand around waiting for someone else to call. - Point to a specific person and state, for example, "Lady in the blue shirt, go
call 911. This person is unconscious." - If no one else is around, then you must make the call yourself.
- Once the call to 911 has been made, the ambulance will arrive shortly.
- Check to see if the person is breathing.
- If he or she is not breathing, then administering CPR at this time is critical.
- You cannot always be sure that someone else present knows CPR; therefore, it is important that you know how to perform these techniques.
- Either way, stay with the unconscious person until help arrives.
Dangling Modifiers
Revise the following sentences to correct any dangling modifiers by clearly identifying the "something" that is being modified. If no revisions are necessary, mark "correct" next to the sentence.
Example: To run a marathon, many months of training are necessary.
Revised: To run a marathon, you must train for many months.
Cesar Chavez became a well-known organizer of Mexican farm workers when, after moving to California during the Great Depression, organization was needed to ensure fair working conditions.
Having moved to California to find what work they could, farm work, especially picking grapes, was usually the only work available.
To work on these farms, many long hours away from home were required, and most workers including Chavez lived in deplorable shacks or even in their vehicles.
Seeing the conditions that he and the other grape pickers endured, an appeal was made to the farm owners for better pay and housing.
Knowing that they could find hundreds of other desperate workers, the appeal for better conditions was denied.
Having met with little success among the farm owners, speeches were made to the laborers themselves to stand up for their rights.
Fearing they would lose their jobs if they protested working conditions, Chavez's speeches made little difference at first.
Seeing that more help was needed in order to affect change, Chavez went to work for a local community service group that informed migrant workers of their rights.
Having officially begun "La Causa," or, "The Cause," conditions finally started taking place at farms and vineyards in California.
After going on strike, many arrests were made, and some workers were beaten up by "strikebreakers" during their protests.
Knowing that the farm workers would have support nationally, boycotts of grapes and lettuce at supermarkets across the country were encouraged.
Having marched and gone on strikes for decades to further their own cause, the United Farm Workers of America count Cesar Chavez among the most dedicated and successful leaders to work on their behalf.
Faulty Predication
Read the following sentences and underline each subject and verb. Decide whether the subject is capable of performing the action of the verb. Additionally, use copyediting to correct any other errors. Finally, revise the sentences in the space provided to eliminate faulty predication.
Example: The boat tossed me out as we saled over 5 foot waves in the choppy waters.
Revised: I fell out of the boat as we sailed over five-foot waves in the choppy waters.
- Last night's P.B.S. documentary about the Inca's reminded me of my 1st trip
to Mexico in nineteen eighty-six. - I was 16-years-old, and my church had decided to send our 75-member
youth group on a Mission Trip to Monterrey, Mexico. - One of the 10 parishes near Monterrey needed a new sanctuary for it's
small church and housing for it's pastor, for the old ones were falling apart. - So our youth group drove for 2 days in the hot July sun, from the 4th
through the 6th, until we finally arrived in Monterrey. - Monterrey's small church group, about a hundred members, provided us
with room and bored while we worked with them to build the new church. - Five of us spoke Spanish, and only 3 of them spoke English, so
communication among the two groups was quite difficult. - But our jobs mean putting aside our language differences and working
together as 1 too build the much needed church. - For one wk., our hammers flew, and it soon seemed that language barriers
no no longer mattered to this particular group of construction workers. - After six days, we had completed our mission, and we gathered in the
new sanctuary to say our goodbyes. - For some of us, our 20 gallons of tears at parting after such a long,
rewarding week said good-bye for us; it was a week we wouldn't forget.
Pronoun Cases
Read the following sentences and correct any pronouns that are in the wrong case.
Example: My friend and me went to the store.
Revised: My friend and I went to the store.
In 1996, when chess champion Garry Kasparov was 32, him and the smartest computer at the time, Deep Blue, began their man-versus-machine chess match.
That's when people began to worry that us humans might not be as smart as we thought.
While mankind worried about the ultimate intelligence match between the computer and he, Kasparov simply made his moves.
But Kasparov couldn't look into the eyes of this opponent and gauge his reaction; even though himself was sweating, Deep Blue was not.
The match went on for six games, while everyone in the audience held their breath.
Would man ultimately win this modern contest to prove who was more intelligent, us or a machine?
Our very image of ourself as analytical creatures was at stake.
Kasparov finally emerged the victor, winning four games to Deep Blue's two, but he and the computer were not through.
The following year, the two chess players met again, this time with a new and improved Deep Blue, who Kasparov had grown concerned about.
With a tied match, and with the computer on the verge of victory, Kasparov stood and left the match unfinished and mankind on their own.
Restrictive and Nonrestrictive Clauses
Determine whether the italicized phrases in the sentences below are restrictive or nonrestrictive clauses. Then select the appropriate word from within the parentheses, and insert commas where necessary.
Example: Will the person that/who stole my book please return it to me promptly?
Restrictive; that
Robert Ballard that/who grew up reading of undersea adventures in Jules Verne's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea had always had a dream that/which he, too, could have undersea adventures.
After Ballard earned a degree in marine geology, he moved to Boston and joined the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution that/which was an organization for ocean exploration.
In 1973, Ballard had an idea that/which many found ridiculous: he wanted to find the wreck of the Titanic, the ship that/which, though hailed as "unsinkable," famously sank in 1912.
At the time, the only equipment that/which was available for such a project was a drilling rig that/which would normally be used for exploring the ocean floor for sample analysis.
After Ballard received the backing that/which he needed for the project from Woods Hole, he began to prepare for his expedition that/which he believed would take as long as two weeks.
Ballard set out in search of the Titanic in 1977, but his journey was cut short when the long pipe that/which was used as a probe broke off and sank to the ocean floor.
Afterwards, Woods Hole that/which had previously backed Ballard's ambitious plans withdrew its support, and Ballard had to put his plans on hold.
By 1985, newer technology that/which could make undersea exploration more feasible had been developed, and Ballard again convinced Woods Hole that/which was itself backed by the U.S. Navy and others to give him another chance.
Using what amounted to a video camera at the end of a two and a half-mile cable, Ballard continued his search for the ship that/which had been lost so long ago.
After encountering several technical problems, Ballard and the group of scientists that/who had accompanied him on his journey finally saw what looked like a ship's boiler on their video monitors.
The search for the long lost "unsinkable" ship was over, but for the man that/who had always dreamed of deep sea exploration, the journey had just begun.
