Simple

Word Order Creates Sentence Patterns

created by The Writing Center at UNC-Chapel Hill

 

Simple Sentences

What this handout is about

This handout gives an overview of the English simple sentence pattern. Go to the SentencePatterns posting for information on how to understand sentence patterns by identifying subjects, verbs, and clause connectors.  Always analyze your writing style and improve it by using a variety of sentence patterns.

---

Click here for a one page summary of the English sentence patterns discussed on this handout.

---

 

Four Basic Sentence Patterns

Every sentence pattern follows a different way to combine clauses. When you are drafting your own papers or when you’re revising them for sentence variety, try to determine how many of these patterns you use. If you favor one particular pattern, your writing might be kind of boring if every sentence has exactly the same pattern. If you find this is true, try to revise a few sentences using a different pattern.

NOTE: Because nouns can fill so many positions in a sentence, it’s easier to analyze sentence patterns if you find the verbs and find the connectors. The most common connectors are listed below with the sentence patterns that use them.

In the descriptions below, S=Subject and V=Verb, and options for arranging the clauses in each sentence pattern given in parentheses. Connecting words and the associated punctuation are highlighted in brown. Notice how the punctuation changes with each arrangement.

Pattern 1: Simple Sentence

One independent clause (SV.)

Mr. Potato Head eats monkeys.
I refuse.

Stop the bus!

I love dogs.

Try this: Look for sentences in your own text that have only one clause. Mark them with a certain color so they stand out.

To learn more about sentence structure, move on to the next type of sentences structure by clicking here: compound sentences.

---

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.5 License.
You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout (just click print) and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

---

The Writing Center • Campus Box #5137 • SASB North Suite 0127 • UNC-CH • Chapel Hill, NC 27599 • CSSAC Home
phone: (919) 962-7710 • email: writing_center@unc.edu
IF IT'S TIME-SENSITIVE, DON'T EMAIL. CALL US!
© 2010-2014 by The Writing Center at UNC Chapel Hill.
Content of this posting create by UNC-CH Writing Center and it is available at http://writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/sentence-patterns/