1、1Sentence WritingSentence Writing9.SentenceFundamentals10.WritingCorrectly(I)11.WritingCorrectly(II)12.SentenceUnity13.SentenceConciseness14.SentenceEmphasis15.SentenceVariety16.UsefulPatternsPartTwo29SentenceFundamentalsThesentenceistraditionallydefinedasawordgroupthatexpressesacompleteidea.Itbegin
2、swithacapitalletterandendswithaperiod,questionmark,orexclamationpoint.Asentenceconsistsoftwomainelements:subjectandverb.Whoorwhatthesentencespeaksaboutiscalledthesubject;whatthesentencesaysaboutthesubjectiscalledtheverb.Everysentencehasasubjectandaverb.Often,asentencemaycontainsomemodifiers,suchasat
3、tribute,adverbial,complement,etc.9.1 9.1 Five basic patternsFive basic patternsTherearefivebasicsentencepatternsinEnglish:S-V,S-V-C,S-V-O,S-V-o-O,andS-V-O-C.InS-Vpattern,Visanintransitiveverb,anditusuallyhasanadverbialtoshowtime,place,purpose,reason,manner and degree.The adverbial can be adverb,prep
4、ositional phrase,participlephraseorinfinitivephrase.SoS-VpatternmayevolvetobeS-V-A,whichbelongstoS-V.a.Theeraofglobalizationhasalreadycome.b.Thequalityofmanypeoplesliveshasdeterioratedduetotechnologicalprogress.39SentenceFundamentalsTheS-V-Cpatternismadeupofsubject,verbandsubjectcomplement.Theverbis
5、alinkverb.Thecommonlyusedlinkverbsare:be,remain,look,smell,taste,feel,become,get,grow,goandcome.Thesubjectcomplementcanbeanoun,adjective,participle,prepositionalphrase,oraclause.c.Physicalexerciseisoneoftheeffectivewaystoloseweight.d.Herdreamofbecomingawriterfinallycametrue.S-V-Oreferstothesubject-v
6、erb-objectpattern.Sometimes,anadverbialexistsinthesentence.ItisamongthemostcommonpatternsinEnglish.e.Hischildhoodexperienceexertedagreatandlastinginfluenceonhim.f.Intimesofeconomiccrisis,Americansturntotheirfamiliesforsupport.49SentenceFundamentalsInS-V-o-Opattern,Visatransitiveverb,followedbydouble
7、objects,whichmakethesentencemeaningcomplete.Somecommonlyusedverbsinthiscaseareask,give,send,pass,buy,offer,show,readandlend.g.MumhadreadmenumerousstorieswhenIwasgrowingup.h.Theirkindnessgavethemanadvantageoverotherapplicantsfortheadoptionofalittleboy.S-V-O-Cisalittlemorecomplex.Itis,infact,theS-V-Op
8、atternwithanobjectcomplement.i.Atage48,shesawthesignsofagecreepingup.j.Theuseoftechnologyinclassroomscanhelpstudentsraisetestscores.59SentenceFundamentalsSentencesstrippedtotheirbasicpatternsgiveusonlyaminimumofinformation,buttheyprovidethe skeleton for more fully developed sentences.By using variou
9、s devices,a sentence may be fullydeveloped.Forexample,theS-Vsentence“Bedbugsvanished”mightbeexpandedinto:Bedbugs,acommonhouseholdpestforcenturies,allbutvanishedinthe1940sand50swiththewidespreaduseofDDT.Similarly,theS-V-Osentence“Weboughtanoldhouse”canbedevelopedinto:Weboughtarun-downoldhouse,butinmy
10、mindseyeIcouldseewhatitwouldbelikewhenitwasrestored.69SentenceFundamentals9.2 9.2 Categories of sentencesCategories of sentencesSentencescanbeclassifiedaccordingtodifferentcriteria,grammaticallyorrhetorically.Grammaticalclassificationgroupssentencesbasedontheirstructure,orhowmanyandwhattypesofindepe
11、ndentstatementstheycontain.Rhetoricalclassificationgroupsthembasedonwherethemainideaisinthesentence.Understandingthedifferentwaysofclassificationcanhelpusanalyzeandevaluatethesentencesaswewriteandrevise.9.2.1 Grammatical types of sentencesThesimplesentenceGrammatically,sentencescanbedividedintofourt
12、ypes:thesimplesentence,thecompoundsentence,thecomplexsentence,andthecompound-complexsentence.Asimplesentenceisonewithonlyoneindependentclause(alsoknownasamainclause).Ithasasinglesubject-verbcombination.a.Hehastraveledextensively.b.Thecustomsofmarriagemayvaryfromculturetoculture.79SentenceFundamental
13、sMostsimplesentencesarerathershortandeasytounderstand,butasimplesentenceisnotequaltoashortone.Asentenceisclassifiedassimpleevenwhenithasacompoundsubjectorpredicate(orboth)andincludesmodifyingwordsandphrases.Inthiscase,itmightbelonganddifficult.c.TheMadridtrainbombingskilled191peopleoneofthemostdevas
14、tatingterroristattacksevercarriedoutinEurope.d.TheUnitedStateshaslonghadareputationasapioneerintechnology,fromincandescentlights,sewingmachinesandcottonginstotelephones,televisionequipment,computers,airplanesandspaceships.Thesesentences,thoughtheyarelong,aresimplesentences,becausethereexistsjustonei
15、ndependentclause.Itistheappositive(oneofthemostdevastatingterroristattacksevercarriedoutinEurope)in sentence c and the prepositional phrase(from incandescent lights,sewing machines andcottonginstotelephones,televisionequipment,computers,airplanesandspaceships)insentencedthatmakethemcomplicated.89Sen
16、tenceFundamentalsThecompoundsentenceAcompoundsentenceisonewithtwoormoresimplesentenceslinkedtogetherbyacoordinatingconnective(and,but,or,for,so,nor,yet)orthesemi-colon,orthecolonoccasionally.e.Thesicknessusuallylastsfourtosevendays,andmostpeoplerecoverwithouttreatment.f.Theymaytakeourlives,buttheywi
17、llnevertakeourfreedom.g.Parentsshouldntbetoolenientwiththeirchildrenorelsetheywillbespoiled.h.Commercialsdogiveusimportantinformationaboutproducts;however,someofthemaremerelymisleading.Thestructureofacompoundsentencesendscertainmessagestoreaders.First,ittellsreadersthatthesentencecontainstworelative
18、lyimportantideas,eachonedeservingitsownindependentclause.Second,ittellsreadersthatthesetwoideasareapproximatelyequalinimportance,sincetheyarebalancedasapair.Andthird,italertsreaderstotherelationshipbetweenthetwoideas,dependingontheconnector.Forexample,andsuggeststhatthetwoideasarebeingaddedtogether,
19、butindicatesthattheyarebeingcontrasted,andortellsusthattheyarealternatives.Asemicolonsuggestsbalancebetweentwosimilarorsharplycontrastingstatements.99SentenceFundamentalsThecomplesentenceAcomplexsentenceconsistsofonesimplesentence,whichisanindependentormainclause,andatleastonedependentorsubordinatec
20、lause.Subordinatingconjunctions,suchaswhen,after,as,because,if,since,although,etc.,aswellasrelativepronounslikethat,which,who,etc.,canintroducesubordinateclauses.Forexample,i.Althoughmanyconsumersnowbookflightsonline,somestillusetravelagents.Inthissentence,theclausealthoughmanyconsumersnowbookflight
21、sonlineisadependentclause because it is preceded by the word when,which is a subordinating conjunction.Dependentclauses are not complete sentences;they cannot stand alone as a complete sentence.Dependentclausesmustbeattachedtoindependentclausesinordertoformacompletesentence.Inthecomplexsentenceabove
22、,somestillusetravelagentsistheindependentclause.Whatfollowsaremoreexamples:j.Mr.Jobswasperhapsthemostbelovedbillionairetheworldhaseverknown.109SentenceFundamentalsk.It is now commonly accepted that social networks are an essential tool to reach wideaudiences.l.Whendroughtfollowedlastyearsmassiveswar
23、moflocusts,thepeoplewerepushedbeyondthebrink.m.Thischallengedthelong-heldbeliefthattherewasnolifeindeeperpartsofthesea.Acomplexsentenceisusedwhenwewanttoemphasizeoneideaoveranotherinasentence.The emphasized idea is expressed as a complete thought in the independent clause,and the lessimportantideais
24、expressedinthedependentclause.However,eitherclausemaycomefirst.Whenthedependentclausecomesfirst,itisalwaysfollowedbyacomma.Thecompound-complesentenceThe compound-complex sentence is so named because it shares the characteristics of bothcompoundandcomplexsentences.Likethecompoundsentence,thecompound-
25、complexhastwomainclauses.Like the complex sentence,it has at least one subordinate clause.Compound-complexsentencesallowwriterstopresentmoreintricaterelationshipsthandootherkindsofsentences.119SentenceFundamentalsn.ThepowerfailurewasthelargesteverinVirginiashistory,andthegovernorwarnedthatelectricit
26、ymightnotberestoredforaweek.o.Whenitcomestosearchengines,peopleoverwhelminglypreferGoogle,butincreasingcompetitionfromanumberofrivalscouldeventuallythreatenthecompanystopspot.9.2.2 Rhetorical types of sentencesRhetorically,sentencescanbedividedintotwotypes:theloosesentenceandtheperiodicsentence.Thel
27、oosesentenceAloosesentenceisasentencestructureinwhichamainclauseisfollowedbyoneormorecoordinateor subordinate phrases or clauses.It makes its major point at the beginning and then includes additionalstructuresthatdevelopormodifythepoint.Orsimplyput,itisasentencethatmaybebroughttoagrammaticalclosebef
28、oretheendisreached.a.TherearenowarecordnumberofpoorpeopleinAmerica,andthepovertyratehasjumpedto15.1percent.129SentenceFundamentalsb.Venus rotates very slowlywiththeresultthatits cycle of rotation reaches as long as 243 daysoftheEarth.c.Compressingthebachelorsdegreeintothreeyearscouldbehealthyforboth
29、collegesandstudents,advocatessay.TheperodicsentenceA periodic sentence,unlike the loose sentence,delays its main idea until the end by presentingmodifiersorsubordinateideasfirst,thusholdingthereadersinterestuntiltheveryend.d.Afterthesuccessoftheirfirstalbum,thebandbecameahouseholdname.e.Beingoutofwo
30、rkandhavingtwoyoungchildren,thecouplefounditimpossibletomakeendsmeet.f.Theevidenceismountingthatphysicalactivityisevenmorebeneficialthanpreviouslythought.Loosesentencesareofmorecommonoccurrence.Theyarelessdramaticthanperiodicsentences,whichareoftenemployedtoachievevarietyortoemphasizeapoint.Theabili
31、tytomasterbothwillofferusstylisticoptionsthatwillstrengthenthewriting.139SentenceFundamentals1.Expand the basic sentences below by using modifiers,coordination or subordination.(1)Alicekeptwaving.(2)Smokingisharmful.(3)ShemovedtoParis.(4)Thesalesincreased.(5)Sarahlooksforcoupons.2.Identify each of t
32、he following sentences as simple,compound,complex,or compound-complex.(1)Thereislittledisputethatphysicalactivityisgoodforkids.(2)NamibiahasoneofthehighestHIVprevalenceratesintheworld,withanestimated15%oftheadultpopulationaffected.(3)Providingaffordablemedicareforcitizensisoneofthemostcomplexproblem
33、sfacingmoderngovernments.(4)Duetothegrimeconomicclimateatmostuniversities,hesays,avoidingnewtechnologyisalsoasoundwaytosavemoney.ExerciseExercise9 9149SentenceFundamentals3.Read the following sentences and tell whether they are loose or periodic.(1)Hereadallkinksofbooks,ancientandmodern,Chineseandfo
34、reign.(2)Carsaregreatforgettingpeopletobuildings,butanuisanceonceyouarrive.(3)NootherregionintheUScomparestoNewEnglandwhenitcomestoseasons.(4)AccordingtothelatestsurveyfromtheNationalCenterforHealthStatistics,nearly35percentofAmericanshaveditchedtheirlandlinesforacellphone.(5)Attheheadwastheteacher,
35、stillyoung,followedbyherpupilswithaflagintheirhandseach.(6)WhenMrs.Blackintroducedmetoherhusband,hegavemearatherindifferenthandtoshake.(7)PublicschoolsinPhiladelphiaandpartsofNewJerseycuttheirschooldaysshortinresponsetorisingtemperatures.(8)Livinginanareawithconstantbackgroundnoise,suchastraffic,rai
36、seschildrensbloodpressureandstresslevels.(9)Eventhoughtheburnswereinflictedthreemonthsago,shewasclearlystillinconsiderablepain.(10)Unattractivepeopletendtohaveatoughtimegettinghired,inpartbecausetheygenerallydontnetworkefficiently.1510 WritingCorrectly(I)Theuseoflanguageisalwaysessentialforanytypeof
37、writing.Thelanguageshouldbecorrect,andifpossible,effectiveaswell.Thissoundsquiteeasy,butstudiesshowthatitistheverystumblingblockformanyEFLlearnerstowardsuccessfulwriting.Therefore,asweworktoimproveourwriting,itisimportanttounderstandsomebasicrulesofEnglishgrammarandhowtheserulesmightbewronglyusedinw
38、ritingessays.10.1 10.1 Subject-verb agreementSubject-verb agreementAs is known,the predicate verb of a sentence has to agree with the subject in person andnumber.As for verbs,we must select appropriate number,tense,mood and voice to agree with itssubjects.Forexample,withathird-personsingularsubject,
39、theverbmusthavethe-ssuffixending.Thatis,theverbagreeswithitssubjectbyhavingtheappropriateending.ThusNoiseaffectspeopleshearingisgrammatical,butNoiseaffectpeopleshearingisnotgrammaticalasasentence.Collectivenounslikefamilyandpolicemaybeeithersingularorplural,dependingonitsmeaninginthesentence.Iffamil
40、y,police,etc.areconsideredasawhole,asingularverbisused.Iftheyareconsideredtobetheirindividualmembers,apluralverbisused.1610 WritingCorrectly(I)a.Thepolicearelookingfortheescapedprisoner.b.TherewasalargeaudiencelastnightwhowitnessedtheroyalweddingonTV.Somewords,likenewsandnamesofbranchesoflearning,ar
41、euncountable,andthereforearealwayssingular.Thesubjectnumberrequiresasingularverb,whileanumberofisaphrase,meaning“many”.c.Thenewshasarousedmuchconcernamongthepublic.d.Statisticsisaprincipalcourseatthebusinessschool.e.ThenumberofdeathsinfiresinWalescontinuestofall.f.Alargenumberoflocalenterprisesarefa
42、cingseriousfinancialcrises.Wordsaftertogetherwith,inadditionto,aswellas,besides,etc.,donotaffectthenumberofthesubject,becausetheyareobjectsofprepositions.Sothesingularverbisneeded.1710 WritingCorrectly(I)g.Thebeach,togetherwithanotherthreenearby,wascloseduntilfurthernotice.h.Besidescoal,themostprize
43、drawmaterialinthisareaisthepintobean.Asubjectclausegenerallytakesasingularverb,butawhat-clausewhichclearlyreferstomanythingscantakeapluralverb.i.Whethercreditcardsshouldbeintroducedtostudentshasbecomeahotdebate.j.Whatshehasboughtaremapsofvariouscountries.1810 WritingCorrectly(I)10.2 10.2 Tense and v
44、oiceTense and voiceTensetellswhentheactionoftheverbtakesplace.Wheneverwemakeasentence,weshouldbeawarewhenthethingmentionedinthesentencehappensandusethecorrecttensetoreportit.Thefollowingaresomecommonmistakesabouttensefromstudentswriting:a.Nowmoreandmoreparentssenttheirchildrentostudyabroad.b.Duringt
45、hevisit,Ihaveseenalotofmagnificentbuildings.c.Therearemanypeopleinworldhistorywhohaveachievedgreatsuccess,butledapoorlife.d.IleftShenzhen,acityinwhichIhavebeenworkingfor2years.Inthefirstsentencenowclearlyindicatesapresenttimeadverbial,sothepresenttense(send)shouldbeused.Whenwetalkaboutsomethingthath
46、appenedinthepast,evenafewminutesago,weshouldusethesimplepasttense.Whenwetalkaboutsomethingthathappenedinthepastbutitsresultremainsatpresent,we should use the present perfect.So the second and third sentences should use saw and achieved,respectively.Inthelastsentence,thepastperfect(hadworked)isneeded
47、.1910 WritingCorrectly(I)Voicereferstothequalityofaverbthatindicateswhetheritssubjectacts(activevoice)orisactedupon(passivevoice).Forexample,ThephotographercapturedanextraordinarybattleamongbuffalosinYellowstone.AnextraordinarybattleamongbuffaloswascapturedinYellowstonebythephotographer.Traditionalg
48、rammarcallstheverbinthelattersentencepassiveorpassivevoice,becausethesubjectofthesentencemaybethoughtaspassivelyundergoingtheactionoftheverb.Suchsentencesdeemphasizetheimportanceoftheperformeroftheaction.VoiceinEnglishisacomparativelyeasytopic,buttherearestillmistakesfromstudents.Lookatthefaultysent
49、encesbelow:e.Onedaymyparentswenttoseeafriend,soIleftathomealone.f.Someonesuggestedthatwecookthedinnerbyourselves,anditwasagreedatonce.g.Atypicalfamilynowadaysisconsistedofthreeorfourmembers.2010 WritingCorrectly(I)Insentencee,althoughIleftiscorrectgrammatically,itdoesnotmakeanysense.WhatisneededisIw
50、aslefttomean“Iwasleftathomebymyparents”or“myparentsleftmeathome”.Insentencef,thewordagreeisanintransitiveverb,soitcannotbeusedinthepassiveform.SentencefshouldreadSomeonesuggestedthatwecookthedinnerbyourselves,andweagreedatonce.Sentencegisactuallyabouttheusageof“consistof”.Thephraseisalwaysinactivevo
