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The Simple Sentence
SYNTAX
is a part of grammar which deals with sentences & combinability of words.
The sentence is a unit of speech whose grammatical structure conforms to the laws of the language & which serves as the chief means of conveying a thought, also it is a means of showing the speaker's attitude to the thought.
The classification of sentences
is based on two principles:
1.According to the purpose of the utterance;
2.According to the structure.
According to the purpose of the utterance 4 kinds of sentences are distinguished:
1. The Declarative Sentence states a fact. In a complex sentence the communicative type depends upon that of the main clause. In a compound sentence coordinate clauses may belong to different communicative types.
eg. Charles Dickens was born in Landport.
They don't want anything from us.
2. The Interrogative Sentence asks a question. There are 4 types of questions: general, special, alternative, disjunctive.
eg. Do you like jazz?
Where do you live?
Do you live in town or in the country?
You speak English, don't you?
3. The Imperative Sentence serves to induce a person to do smth, so it expresses a command, a request, an invitation, a warning, etc.
It may be verbal
eg. Stand up! Let's start. You come first.(the Imperative mood)
There you go & do it! You needn't come so early. (the Indicative mood)
Success attend you! It's time we went home. (the Subjunctive mood)
Will you help? Don't you want a drink? (questions)
It may be verbless
eg. One moment! Silence! Fire! No smoking! Your name?Up the tree!
4. The Exclamatory Sentence expresses some kind of emotion or feeling. It sometimes begins with what & how. Structurally it is variable.
eg. What a lovely day it is! How wonderful! Fire!
According to the structure 2 kinds of sentences are distinguished:
1. The Simple Sentence contains one predication (subject-predicate unit).
eg. Nobody knows anything about it.
2. The Composite Sentencecontains more than one predication. Subject-predicate units that form composite sentences are called clauses. The composite sentence may be of two types: compound & complex. The difference between them lies in the relations between the clauses that constitute them. The relations between the clauses in a compound sentence are based on coordination, in a complex sentence ? on subordination.
eg. You can take a bus or we can walk together. (compound)
You never know what you can do till you try. (complex)
The Simple Sentence
According to the structure simple sentences are two-member & one-member. They are distinguished by the number of principal parts they contain.
1.A two-member sentencehas two principal parts: the subject & the predicate. It may be
| complete | incomplete (elliptical) |
| Both principal parts are present. eg. How did you find them? I like it. | One or both of the principal parts are missing but can be easily understood from the context. They are mostly used in colloquial speech or in dialogues. eg. Seems difficult. Going home soon? - Where are you going? - Home. - What are you doing? - Drinking. |
2.A one-member sentence consists of only one member which is neither the subject nor the predicate. Other members are not missing, for the one member makes the sentence complete. They are generally used in descriptions & emotional speech.
It may be
| nominal | verbal |
| if the main part is expressed by a noun eg.Freedom! Bells ringing out, flowers, kisses, wine. What a nice view! How cold! | if the the main part is expressed by a verbal eg. No! To have his friendship, his admiration, but not at that price. Step aside, please. Why not go there? |
Simple sentences (both one-member & two-member) can be
| unextended | extended |
| They consist of the principal parts only. eg. She is a student. Autumn! | They consist of the principal parts & one or more secondary parts. eg. She is a good student. What a beautiful autumn! |
Date: 2016-06-12; view: 393
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