English grammar explained in plain language simple enough to be understood.
A declarative sentence is a telling sentence. A declarative sentence makes a statement. A declarative sentence always ends with a period (.) . These sentences each make a statement. These are declarative sentences.Today is Monday.The school will be closed next… Read more241. Declarative Sentences
A complex sentence is made up of two clauses: an independent clause and a subordinate clause. An independent clause is the main idea of the sentence and is strong enough to stand alone. The dog can stay in the yard.This… Read more236. Highlight on Writing: Rearranging the Clauses in a Complex Sentence
The word fragment means a piece of something that is broken, such as a fragment of glass from a broken mirror. A sentence fragment is a broken piece of sentence or a part of a sentence. It is important to… Read more231. Subordinate Clause Sentence Fragments
The words whenever and wherever are subordinating conjunctions. If you begin a sentence with whenever or wherever, you are writing a subordinate clause. You must add a comma and an independent clause to make a complete sentence. Incomplete clauses with… Read more223. Complex Sentences Using Whenever and Wherever
A complex sentence has two parts: a subordinate clause and an independent clause.The subordinate clause always begins with a subordinating conjunction. Let’s look at what that means. The word since is a subordinating conjunction. When you begin with the word… Read more218. Complex Sentences Using Since and Because
We know that a simple sentence is a complete thought with one person or thing doing one action.Bob rode his bike.Bob is the subject. The action is rode. Simple sentences always express only one main thought, but that main thought… Read more207. Simple Sentence with a Compound Subject or Verb
An indirect object is one of those grammar pieces that seems confusing, but I can explain it in a simple way. The trick is to see the connection between an indirect object and a prepositional phrase. Here is a sentence… Read more199. Indirect Objects are Always Nouns
Here is a usage mistake that I hear quite frequently:Be sure to let Jeff or I know.Talk to Bob or I if you have any questions. Maybe you’ve heard this too. If you take Bob and Jeff out, these sentences… Read more184. Pronoun with a Compound Object
Section A: Move the adverb closer to the verb in each of these sentences.1. The little girl accepted the gift from me eagerly.2. My brother walked home from school slowly. 3. Mom read the letter from the principal quickly. Section… Read more180. Practice With Troublesome Adverbs
An imperative sentence gives an instruction, an order, or a direct command. This type of sentence begins with a verb. The speaker is talking directly to someone, so there is no subject in the sentence. Look at these examples of… Read more244. Imperative Sentences