THE SENTENCE

Grammar is what you say. Grammar is how you put words together to fashion a thought. And thoughts are expressed, either in speech or writing, for the purpose of communicating an idea to a listener or a reader.

So grammar is quite simply the architecture of ideas as expressed in words.

A sentence is a group of words or combination of words which coveys complete sense.

Kinds of Sentences

1. Assertive or declarative sentence —Those which make sentences. Statements are the sentences that state or declare something. They are also called Assertive or Declarative sentences.

Ex: The earth moves around the sun (Affirmative).

I will not go there (Negative).

2. Interrogative sentence - A sentence that asks a question is called Interrogative sentence.

Ex: Why is she late today?

Who has not finished the work?

3. Imperative sentence---A sentence which express commands, request or a desire is called an Imperative sentence.

Ex: Lend me some money, please.

Go to the market at once.

4. Exclamatory sentence---A sentence which express strong or sudden feelings is called an Exclamatory sentence.

Ex: What a beautiful building!

How hot it is!

5. Optative sentence---A sentence which   wish, prayer or blessings is called an Optative sentence.

Ex: May you live long!

He prayed that God might bless me.

Parts of the Sentence

1. Subject

2. Predicate

1. SUBJECT—The  subject is the person, place, thing or idea about whom or  which something is being said.

2. PREDICATE--- Whatever is said about the subject is called  predicate.

Subject  : Kites , We, Lions                                                              

Predicate:  fly,slept, cooked and roar

Note- Here subjects are noun or pronoun and predicates are verb. But they have other parts too.

In a Declerative sentence---The milkman brings milk.
Here “milkman” is the subject and “brings milk” is the predicate.

In an Interrogative sentence---Has anyone seen Harry ?
Here “anyone” is the subject and “Has seen Harry ? ” is the predicate.

In an Imperative sentence---You keep off the grass.
Here “You” is the subject and “Keep off the grass” is the predicate.

In an Exclamation sentence---How brittle this coal seems!
Here “This coal” is the subject and “seems how brittle ! ” is the predicate.

In an Optative sentence---He prayed that God might bless me.
Here “He” is the subject and “prayed that God might bless me” is the predicate.

Analysing a sentence into subject and predicate

Three  points must be kept in mind in the division and analysis of the sentence.

1) The word-order is not necessarily a guide to the division of the sentence. The normal order, first subject and then predicate may be altered for purposes of emphasis.

Ex--  Never home came she.

Here “she” is the subject and “never came home  ” is the predicate.

The subject has been placed not first , but last , in the sentence.

2) It is advisable to reconstruct in our minds sentences in the  form of questions and commands into the normal order of a statement-sentence before deciding on the subject and the predicate .

Ex---What are you doing?                            You are doing what?

Here “you” is the subject and “are doing what ” is the predicate

3) See all words in the sentence are attached to the part, the subject or the predicate , to which they naturally belong. Consider two sentences:

a) The dog curled up before the fire.

Here “The dog” is the subject and “curled up before the fire” is the predicate.

But suppose the sentence reads:

b) The dog exhausted after his long chase, curled up before the fire.

Does “exhausted after his long chase” tell us about dog or does it tell about the curling up ? It describes dog, therefore it belongs to the subject. Does “before the fire” tell us about the dog or the curling up? It says where the do curled , therefore it belongs to the predicate.