Sentence: What Do You Mean by Sentence Structure?
What Do You Mean by Sentence Structure?
Sentence structure is a grammatical component that tells you exactly where and how each component of a sentence should be placed in order to blend and make sense. The Collins Dictionary defines sentence structure as “the grammatical arrangement of words in sentences.” In other words, the sentence structure is what defines the way a sentence will look and sound.
Basic Parts and Components of a Sentence
Before we look into how sentence structure works, we will have to first learn about the basic structure of a sentence and the components that make up a sentence.
Parts of a Sentence
A sentence, in the English language, consists of at least a subject and a predicate. In other words, a sentence should have a subject and a verb.
Subject
The subject can be a noun or a pronoun that does the action.
For example:
- The sun is shining.
- The sky is clear.
- Today is Wednesday.
Predicate
The verb is the action performed by the particular subject in the sentence.
For example:
- I love macaroni and cheese.
- Merin has a pet.
- Anusha can draw.
Components of a Sentence
Like a sentence has two parts, it has five main components that make up the structure of a sentence, and they are,
- Subject
- Verb
- Object
- Complement
- Adjunct
Now, let us look at each of these components in detail.
Subject
A noun that performs the action in a sentence is considered as the subject. It answers the question ‘who’ or in other words, a subject can be identified by asking the question ‘who’. A subject takes the first place in most cases, especially in declarative or assertive sentences.
For example:
- The child kept crying.
- Our school team won the match.
- My son is in the eighth grade.
- Hard work pays.
- No one came to the wedding.
Verb
In every sentence the most important word can be said to be the verb. A verb shows action or activity or work done by the subject. Remember that all verbs including main verbs, helping verbs, stative verbs and action verbs come under this category. Most often, verbs appear immediately after the subject.
For example:
- Neena is writing a letter.
- It was too dark.
- I feel tired.
- My phone is not working.
- Tarun’s dog ran away.
Object
An object is a noun or pronoun that receives the action done by the subject. Objects are of two types and they are,
- Direct Object
- Indirect Object
Direct Object
A noun or pronoun that receives the action directly is the direct object in the sentence. It answers the question ‘what’. Direct objects mostly appear immediately after the verb and are the primary objects in the sentence.
For example:
- Harry bought a new car.
- My mom made a cake.
- I met my friend.
- She knows all the songs.
- We watched a movie.
Indirect Object
An indirect object is a noun or pronoun that is a secondary object. It can be identified by asking the question ‘whom’. When there is an indirect object in a sentence, it is mostly placed after the verb and before the direct object.
For example:
- Vandhana gave Keerthana a cake.
- My mom bought me a new dress.
- I gave him a chocolate.
- They gave us coffee with breakfast.
- He lent his friend a pen.
Complement
The words required to complete the meaning of a sentence can be referred to as the complement of the sentence. A complement can be an adjective, a name, a position or a profession.
For example:
- It grew dark.
- He is a dentist.
- That’s her dog, Bruno.
Complements are further divided into two types based on which component it speaks about. The two types of complement are,
- Subject Complement
- Object Complement
Subject Complement
The complement which expresses the quality or identity or condition of the subject is called Subject Complement.
For example:
- She is a doctor.
- I am Sindhu.
- Nandhu is clever.
- The students are very excited.
- My brother is a teacher.
Object Complement
The complement which expresses the quality or identity or condition of an object is called Object Complement.
For example:
- They made her angry.
- The students elected Sreya the class leader.
- They named their daughter, Thara.
- Marley met her friend, Ryan.
- Nobody found the movie interesting.
Adjunct
An adjunct is a word or a phrase that gives more information about an action, an event, a quality and so on. In short, it can be said that these words can include adverbs and adverb clauses. Adjuncts can be identified by asking questions ‘when’, ‘where’, ‘why’, ‘how’, ‘how often’ and ‘to what extent’. When using adjuncts, keep in mind that adjuncts can be used in the beginning, middle or end of the sentence and that there can be more than one adjunct in a sentence.
Take a look at the following examples to understand how adjuncts can be used.
- Yesterday, we met at the park.
- He is very tired.
- Due to his ill-health, he could not come home for Christmas.
- My father reads the newspaper everyday.
- This workout routine is extremely exhausting.
The Different Types of Sentence Structures in English Grammar
In English grammar, there are a number of sentence structures that you can use to make your speech or writing sound or look a lot more organised, interesting and professional. Some of the commonly used sentence structures are as follows.
- Subject + Verb (SV)
- Subject + Verb + Object (SVO)
- Subject + Verb + Complement (SVC)
- Subject + Verb + Adjunct (SVA)
- Subject + Verb + Object + Complement (SVOC)
- Subject + Verb + Object + Adjunct (SVOA)
- Subject + Verb + Indirect Object + Direct Object (SVIODO)
- Adjunct + Subject + Verb + Complement (ASVC)
- Adjunct + Subject + Verb + Object (ASVO)
- Adjunct + Subject + Verb + Indirect Object + Direct Object (ASVIODO)
- Subject + Verb + Adjunct + Adjunct (SVAA)
- Adjunct + Subject + Verb + Adjunct + Adjunct (ASVAA)
Examples of Sentence Structure
Looking at examples will help you understand how each sentence structure works. So, here are a few examples for you.
SV
- The stars / are shining.
Subject / Verb
- The birds / are chirping.
Subject / Verb
- It / is raining.
Subject / Verb
SVO
- Children / love / ice creams.
Subject / Verb / Object
- Noah / does not like / bitter gourd.
Subject / Verb / Object
- I / have / a pencil.
Subject / Verb / Object
SVC
- I / am / an Indian.
Subject + Verb + Complement
- Carol / is / a nurse.
Subject + Verb + Complement
- My name / is / Gina.
Subject + Verb + Complement
SVA
- Madhu / reached / early.
Subject / Verb / Adjunct
- All of us / are leaving / for Tokyo.
Subject / Verb / Adjunct
- He / went / upstairs.
Subject / Verb / Adjunct
SVOC
- We / lost / out cat, / Quinny.
Subject / Verb / Object / Complement
- My friends / make / me / happy.
Subject / Verb / Object / Complement
- Everyone / found / the book / controversial.
Subject / Verb / Object / Complement
SVOA
- It / is / my birthday / next month.
Subject / Verb / Object / Adjunct
- Lakshmi / reached / school / after 9 a.m.
Subject / Verb / Object / Adjunct
- My brother / plays / football / everyday.
Subject / Verb / Object / Adjunct
SVIODO
- The Board / offered / me / the job.
Subject / Verb / Indirect Object / Direct Object
- Rohit / gave / Reshmi / his favourite book.
Subject / Verb / Indirect Object / Direct Object
- Neetu / bought / herself / a hat.
Subject / Verb / Indirect Object / Direct Object
ASVC
- Suddenly, / it / grew / dark.
Adjunct / Subject / Verb / Complement
- Normally, / the weather / is / good.
Adjunct / Subject / Verb / Complement
- Occassionally, / my dog / gets / restless.
Adjunct / Subject / Verb / Complement
ASVO
- Last week, / we / celebrated / Holi.
Adjunct / Subject / Verb / Object
- Usually, / we / get / a token.
Adjunct / Subject / Verb / Object
- Every year, / we / visit / the orphanage.
Adjunct / Subject / Verb / Object
ASVIODO
- Today, / the teacher / gave / us / our papers.
Adjunct / Subject / Verb / Indirect Object / Direct Object
- Yesterday, / my mom / bought / me / a bicycle.
Adjunct / Subject / Verb / Indirect Object / Direct Object
- Every time he comes home, / my brother / gets / my mom / her favourite chocolates.
Adjunct / Subject / Verb / Indirect Object / Direct Object
SVAA
- They / go / to work / by bus.
Subject / Verb / Adjunct / Adjunct
- We / meet / every evening / on the way back home.
Subject / Verb / Adjunct / Adjunct
- Jancy / went / to the grocery store / last Saturday.
Subject / Verb / Adjunct / Adjunct
ASVAA
- Normally, / my parents / come / by bus / to Pondicherry.
Adjunct / Subject / Verb / Adjunct / Adjunct
- Last year, / my friends and I / went / to Meghalaya / for a month.
Adjunct / Subject / Verb / Adjunct / Adjunct
- Usually, / Finn’s parents / would come / to the airport / as soon as his flight lands.
Adjunct / Subject / Verb / Adjunct / Adjunct
Check Your Understanding of Sentence Structure
Now that you have gone through a number of examples, apply your knowledge to identify the sentence structure of the following sentences. Make sure you split the sentences according to the sentence structure.
1. My dog is acting weird lately.
2. It is getting too cold here.
3. The sky is blue.
4. Every year, the company updates its registry.
5. Brittany bought me a pair of shoes.
6. Nobody knows the answer.
7. The movie was great.
8. I will come home as soon as I finish work.
9. In September, she will be travelling to New York.
10. My brother’s phone is not working.
Check if you got it right from the answers given below.
1. My dog / is acting / weird / lately.
Subject / Verb / Complement / Adjunct (SVCA)
2. It / is getting / too /cold / here.
Subject / Verb / Adjunct / Complement / Adjunct (SVACA)
3. The sky / is / blue.
Subject / Verb / Complement (SVC)
4. Every year, / the company / updates / its registry.
Adjunct / Subject / Verb / Object (ASVO)
5. Brittany / bought / me / a pair of shoes.
Subject / Verb / Indirect Object / Direct Object (SVIODO)
6. Nobody / knows / the answer.
Subject / Verb / Object (SVO)
7. The movie / was / great.
Subject / Verb / Complement (SVC)
8. I / will come / home / as soon as I finish work.
Subject / Verb / Adjunct / Adjunct (SVAA)
9. In September, / she / will be travelling / to New York.
Adjunct / Subject / Verb / Adjunct (ASVA)
10. My brother’s phone / is not working.
Subject / Verb (SV)
