Subscribe to Grammar Underground
The Five Basic Sentence Structures
All writing is built on just five basic sentence structures.
- #AMWRITING
- #SpellCheckCannotSaveYou
- A AAA VS. AN AAA
- A HISTORIC VS AN HISTORIC
- A WHILE VS. AWHILE
- ABBREVIATIONS
- Acronym
- ACRONYM VS ABBREVIATION
- Acronym vs Initialism
- ACTION VERBS
- ACTIVE VERBS
- ACTIVE VOICE
- ACTUALLY
- ADDRESS STYLE
- ADJECTIVES
- ADRENALINE VS ADRENALIN
- ADVERBIAL
- ADVERBS
- ADVERBS VS. ADJECTIVES
- ADVERBS VS. ADVERBIALS
- ADVERSE AND AVERSE
- ADVERSE VS AVERSE
- ADVISOR vs. ADVISER
- AESTHETIC AND ESTHETIC
- AFFECT AND EFFECT
- AFFECT VS EFFECT
- AGGRAVATE AND IRRITATE
- AGGRAVATE VS IRRITATE
- AGREEMENT
- AI
- ALL INTENTS AND PURPOSES
- ALL RIGHT VS ALRIGHT
- ALONG WITH
- ALRIGHT ALL RIGHT
- AMN'T
- AMONG
- AMPERSAND
- AMPERSANDS
- an historic
- AND
- AND AT THE BEGINNING OF A SENTENCE
- AND I VS AND ME
- AND I VS. AND ME
- ANTONYMS
- anxious vs eager
- ANYMORE ANY MORE
- ANYMORE VS ANY MORE
- AP STYLE
- apostrophe
- apostrophe abuse
- APOSTROPHE IN LETTER GRADES
- Apostrophe in Mothers Day
- Apostrophe in Presidents Day
- APOSTROPHE IN SEASON'S GREETINGS
- Apostrophe in Veterans Day
- APOSTROPHE PROTECTION SOCIETY
- APOSTROPHE VS SINGLE QUOTATION MARK
- APOSTROPHES
- apostrophes for form plurals
- APOSTROPHES IN PLURALS
- APPEARANCE SAKE
- APPOSITIVE
- AREN'T I
- AS WELL AS
- ASPECT
- ATONEMENT
- ATTRIBUTIVE NOUN
- ATTRIBUTIVE NOUNS
- AUXILIARY VERB
- AUXILIARY VERBS
- AVOID ADVERBS
- AWAKE
- AWHILE VS. A WHILE
- BAD ADVICE
- BAITED BREATH
- BARBECUE BARBEQUE
- BEACH GOER OR BEACHGOER
- beg the question
- beginning a sentence with and
- beginning a sentence with but
- BEGINNING SENTENCE WITH AND
- BEGINNING SENTENCE WITH CONJUNCTION
- BEGINNING SENTENCE WITH PRONOUN
- ben zimmer
- BENJAMIN DREYER
- BETWEEN
- BETWEEN SENTENCES
- BETWEEN VS AMONG
- BETWEEN YOU AND I
- BETWEEN YOU AND ME
- BIG WORDS
- bimonthly
- biweekly
- BOOK TITLES
- BOOK TITLES IN ITALICS
- BOOK TITLES IN QUOTATION MARKS
- BORED BY OR BORED OF OR BORED WITH
- BOTH
- BRING AND TAKE
- Bristol Punctuation Vigilante
- BRYAN GARNER
- BULLETED LISTS
- BURIED VERB
- CACHE
- CACHET
- CACTUSES OR CACTI
- CAN
- CAN VS MAY
- CANNABUSINESS
- CAPITAL LETTER AFTER A COLON
- capitalization
- CAPITALIZE CITY NAMES
- CAPITALIZE DISHES
- CAPITALIZE JOB TITLES
- CAPITALIZE MENU ITEMS
- CHAISE LONGUE
- CHAISE LONGUE VS CHAISE LOUNGE
- CHAISE LOUNGE VS CHAISE LONGUE
- CHAMPING AT THE BIT
- CHANUKAH
- CHICAGO AP STYLE DIFFERENCES
- CHOMPING AT THE BIT
- CHOOSING SPECIFIC NOUNS AND VERBS
- CITE and SIGHT
- CLARITY
- CLATFART
- CLICHES
- CLITIC
- COLLECTIVE NOUNS
- COLON
- COLON TO INRODUCE QUOTATION
- COLON VS. SEMICOLON
- Colons
- comma
- COMMA AFTER INC
- COMMA AFTER STATE
- COMMA AFTER YEAR
- COMMA BEFORE A TITLE
- COMMA BEFORE TOO
- COMMA IN IS IS
- COMMA SPLICE
- COMMANDS
- COMMAS
- commas around inc.
- COMMAS BETWEEN ADJECTIVES
- commas between coordinate adjectives
- COMMAS INSIDE QUOTATION MARKS
- COMMAS TO SET OFF INFORMATION
- COMMON SPELLING ERRORS
- COMMONLY CONFUSED EXPRESSIONS
- COMMONLY CONFUSED VERBS
- COMMONLY CONFUSED WORDS
- COMPARATIVE
- COMPARATIVES
- comparatives and superlatives
- COMPARE TO VS COMPARE WITH
- COMPARED TO COMPARED WITH
- COMPLETE SENTENCE
- COMPLIMENT AND COMPLEMENT
- COMPLIMENT VS. COMPLEMENT
- COMPOSE AND COMPRISE
- COMPOSE VS COMPRISE
- compound adjectives
- COMPOUND MODIFIER
- compound modifiers
- COMPOUND NOUN
- CONCISE WRITING
- conjunctions
- CONJUNCTIVE LIKE
- CONTINUAL AND CONTINUOUS
- COORDINATE ADJECTIVES
- COORDINATION
- COPULAR VERBS
- copy editin
- COPY EDITING
- CORONAVIRUS SLANG
- COULD CARE LESS VS COULDN'T CARE LESS
- COULD OF and COULD HAVE
- COUPLE IS OR COUPLE ARE
- COUPLE IS VS. COUPLE ARE
- COURTESY TITLES
- COVIDIOT
- CRINGE AS AN ADJECTIVE
- DANGLER
- danglers
- DANGLING MODIFIER
- DANGLING PARTICIPLE
- dash
- DASH VS HYPHEN
- DASH VS SEMICOLON
- DASH VS. COLON
- DASHES
- decimate
- decimate usage
- DECLARATIVE
- DECLARATIVE QUESTION
- DEFINITE ARTICLE
- DEPENDENT CLAUSE VS. SUBORDINATE CLAUSE
- DICTIONARIES
- DIFFERENT FROM VS DIFFERENT THAN
- DIFFERENT SPELLINGS FOR SAME WORD
- DIRECT OBJECTS
- DISINTERESTED UNINTERESTED
- DISJUNCTS CONJUNCTS ADJUNCTS
- DISSATISFIED VS. UNSATISFIED
- DO'S AND DON'TS
- done vs finished
- DOS AND DONTS
- DOUBLE NEGATIVE
- DOUBLE POSSESSIVE
- DOUBLE SPACE AFTER A PERIOD
- DOUBLE SPACING
- DREAMED VS DREAMT
- DUMMY OPERATOR
- EASILY CONFUSED WORDS
- ECONOMY OF WORDS
- EDITING
- EDITING NOTES
- EDITING YOUR OWN WRITING
- EFFECTIVE WRITING
- EFFETE
- EGGCORN
- EITHER
- ellipses
- ELLIPSIS
- EM DASH VS EN DASH
- EM DASHES
- EMAIL E-MAIL
- EMAIL GREETINGS
- EMIGRATE AND IMMIGRATE
- EN DASH
- EN DASH VS EM DASH
- ENGLISH
- enormity
- ENSURE INSURE
- ENSURE VS INSURE
- ERRANT APOSTROPHES
- ETYMOLOGY
- EVACUATE
- EVERY DAY VS. EVERYDAY
- EXCLAMATION POINT
- EXCLAMATION POINTS
- EXCLAMATORY
- EXISTENTIAL THERE
- FALSE RANGES
- FARTHER
- father's day
- faulty parallel
- FAULTY SENTENCE STRUCTURE
- FAZE and PHASE
- FICTION WRITING
- FIRSTLY
- FIVE BASIC SENTENCE STRUCTURES
- FLAT ADVERBS
- FLESH OUT AND FLUSH OUT
- FLOUNDER VS FOUNDER
- FLUSH OUT VS. FLESH OUT
- FOR CONSCIENCE SAKE
- FOR GOODNESS SAKE
- FORGO AND FORGO
- FORGO FOREGO
- FORGONE FOREGONE
- FORM TYPES OF VERBS
- FORTE
- FORWENT FOREWENT
- FOUNDER VS. FLOUNDER
- FRAUGHT VS FRAUGHT WITH
- FRIEND OF
- FURTHER
- Fused Participle
- GAUNTLET GANTLET
- GENERIC PRONOUN ONE
- GET
- GIFT BOOKS
- GIFT GUIDE
- GOER
- GOOD AND WELL
- GOOD SENTENCES
- GOOD THINGS COME TO HIM WHO WAITS
- GOOD VS WELL
- GOODNESS SAKE
- GOT VS. HAVE
- GOT VS. HAVE GOT
- GRADUATE COLLEGE OR GRADUATE FROM COLLEGE
- GRAMM
- GRAMMAR
- GRAMMAR BOOKS
- GRAMMAR CHECKER
- GRAMMAR MYTH
- grammar peeves
- grammar phobia
- GRAMMAR TERMS
- GRAMMATICAL MOOD
- GRAY VS GREY
- GREAT AND WELL
- GREATLY
- GREETING
- GRMMAR
- GROGNARD
- HANGED VS HUNG
- HANUKKAH
- HARSH WRITING ADVICE
- HAVE GOT
- HAVE GOT VS HAVE
- HE OR HIM
- HEADQUARTER AS A VERB
- HEADQUARTERED
- HEALTH CARE HYPHENATED
- HEALTHCARE VS HEALTH CARE
- HEALTHFUL
- HEALTHY
- HELTER SKELTER
- HERE'S BEFORE A PLURAL
- HERE'S VS HERE ARE
- HISTORIC VS HISTORICAL
- HOI POLLOI
- HOME IN VS HONE IN
- HOMO SAPIEN VS. HOMO SAPIENS
- Homographs
- HOMONYMS
- Homophones
- HOMOPHONES AND HOMOGRAPHS
- HOPEFULLY
- HOW TO CAPITALIZE HEADLINES
- HOW TO PRONOUNCE FORTE
- HOW TO PRONOUNCE KYIV
- HOW TO PUNCTUATE CHRISTMAS CARDS
- HOW TO WRITE
- HOW TO WRITE BOOK TITLES
- how to write holidays
- HOW TO WRITE MOVIE TITLES
- Human writers
- HYPHEN
- HYPHEN WITH MAKER
- HYPHENATING NOUNS
- HYPHENATING PREFIXES AND SUFFIXES
- HYPHENATING SUFFIXES
- HYPHENATING VERBS
- hyphenation
- hyphens
- I FEEL BAD VS I FEEL BADLY
- I FEEL BADLY
- I LAY DOWN OR I LAID DOWN
- I vs Me
- I VS. ME
- I-N-G VERBS
- IAN MCEWAN
- IDIOMS
- if and whether
- IF VS WHETHER
- immigrate emigrate migrate
- IMPERATIVE
- imperatives
- IMPORTANTLY
- IN REGARDS TO
- INCOMPLETE SENTENCES
- INDEFINITE ARTICLES
- INDEFINITE PRONOUNS
- INDEXES INDICES
- INDIRECT OBJECT
- INDIRECT OBJECT PRONOUN
- insure vs ensure
- INTENSIFIER
- INTERROGATIVE
- INTO VS IN TO
- INTRANSITIVE VERBS
- INTRODUCTORY PHRASE
- INTRUSIVE OF
- IRREGARDLESS
- IRREGARDLESS AND REGARDLESS
- IRREGULAR NOUNS
- IS IS
- IS TEAM PLURAL OR SINGULAR
- IS WRONG AN ADVERB
- IT IS I WHO AM VS IT IS I WHO ARE
- IT'S VS ITS
- ITALICS
- ITALICS VS. QUOTATION MARKS
- ITS AND IT'S
- ITS VS IT'S
- JACK SMITH
- JACOB REES-MOGG
- JANUARY 6 INSURRECTION
- JARGON
- JOB TITLES
- john dowd
- John Le Carre
- JOHN MCINTYRE
- JONATHON OWEN
- Journalism Standards
- JUDGEMENT VS JUDGMENT
- KORY STAMPER
- LANGUAGE
- LAY AND LIE
- LAY IN STATE
- LEAD VS. LED
- LESS THAN
- less vs fewer
- LET'S AND LETS
- LET'S EAT GRANDMA
- LET'S VS. LETS
- LEXICOGRAPHY
- LIE IN STATE
- lighted vs lit
- LIGHTED VS. LIT
- LIKE
- LIKE AND AS
- LIKE AND SUCH AS
- LINKING VERBS
- LITERALLY
- LOAN VS LEND
- LOG IN VS LOGIN
- LONG SENTENCES
- LOWERCASE AFTER A COLON
- LY ADVERBS
- MAIN CLAUSE
- MAIN CLAUSES
- MAJORITY
- MAKING
- MAMA VS MOMMA
- MANAFORT
- MANIKIN MANNEQUIN
- MANNER ADVERBS
- MARY NORRIS
- MASS NOUNS VS COUNT NOUNS
- MAY VS. MIGHT
- ME VS I
- MEDIUMS
- MERRIAM
- METACONCEPTS
- MIKE PENCE
- MIKE POMPEO
- MISCHIEVOUS VS. MISCHIEVIOUS
- MISLEADING CONNECTIVES
- MODAL AUXILIARIES
- MODAL AUXILIARY
- MODALITY
- modifying phrases
- MOOD
- MORE CLEAR VS CLEARER
- MORE THAN
- MOST COMMON APOSTROPHE ERRORS
- MOST COMMON GRAMMAR ERRORS
- Most common grammar mistakes
- mother's day
- MOVIE TITLES
- MUST
- MYRIAD VS A MYRIAD OF
- MYRIAD VS. MYRIAD OF
- MYSELF
- MYSELF VS. ME
- NAMES
- NATIONAL GRAMMAR DAY
- NEEDLESS WORDS
- Neil Gaiman
- NEITHER
- NEOLOGISMS
- NEVER MIND / NEVERMIND
- NEW WORDS
- NEW YEAR'S
- NEXT
- NEXT VS. THIS
- no problem
- NOMINALIZATION
- NOMINALIZATIONS
- NONBINARY THEY
- NONCE WORD
- NONE IS VS NONE ARE
- NONPLUSSED
- NONRESTRICTIVE CLAUSES
- NOUNS AS ADJECTIVES
- NOUNS ENDING IN S
- object complement
- OBJECT PRONOUN
- OBJECT PRONOUNS
- OBJECT VS SUBJECT PRONOUNS
- OBJECTS AND SUBJECTS
- obscenity
- OCTOPUSES OR OCTOPI
- OED
- OK OKAY
- OLDER OF TWO VS OLDEST OF TWO
- OLIVER TWIST
- OMIT NEEDLESS WORDS
- ONE
- ONE SPACE
- ONE SPACE AFTER A PERIOD
- ONE SPACE OR TWO BETWEEN SENTENCES
- ONLY
- ONTO VS ON TO
- OR
- OVER
- OVER AND UNDER
- oxford comma
- OXFORD ENGLISH DICTIONARY
- PALATE VS PALETTE
- PALETTE PALATE PALLET
- PALETTE VS. PALLET
- PALM OFF VS PAWN OFF
- PALM OFF VS. PAWN OFF
- PARALLEL STRUCTURE
- PARENTHESES
- PARTICIPIAL PHRASES
- PARTICIPLE VS. PARTICLE
- PARTS OF SPEECH
- PASSIVE VOICE
- past participles
- past tense
- PAST TENSE OF LAY
- PAST TENSE OF LIGHT
- PAST TENSE OF SLAY
- period before a quotation mark
- PERIODS IN INITIALS
- PERIODS IN PHD
- PERIODS INSIDE QUOTATION MARKS
- PERSONAL PRONOUNS
- PERUSE
- PETER SOKOLOWSKI
- PHRASAL VERBS
- PIQUE
- PIRATE TALK
- PLACEMENT OF OBJECT
- placement of only
- PLACEMENT OF PREPOSITION
- plead pled
- PLURAL
- PLURAL NAMES
- PLURAL OF ATTORNEYS GENERAL
- PLURAL OF MEDIA
- PLURAL POSSESSIVE
- PLURAL POSSESSIVES
- PLURAL POSSESSIVES OF PROPER NOUNS
- PLURAL VERB
- PLURAL VERB WITH AS WELL AS
- PLURAL VERBS
- PLURALS
- PLURALS OF LATIN WORDS
- PLURALS OF LETTERS
- PLURALS OF MOVIE TITLES
- POSSESSIVE
- Possessive with Gerund
- possessives
- POSSESSIVES OF LAST NAMES
- POSSESSIVES OF MOVIE TITLES
- POSSESSIVES OF PROPER NAMES
- PREDICATE NOMINATIVE
- prefixes
- PREPOSI
- PREPOSITIONS
- PRESCRIPTIVISM
- PREVENTATIVE
- PREVENTIVE
- PREVENTIVE VS PREVENTATIVE
- PRINCIPAL AND PRINCIPLE
- PRINCIPLE and PRINCIPAL
- profanity
- PRONONCIATION
- PRONOUN ANTECEDENT AGREEMENT
- PRONOUNS
- PRONOUNS IN SHARED POSSESSIVES
- PRONOUNS INDEFINITE PRONOUNS
- pronunciation of often
- proofreading
- PUNCTUATION
- PUT A COMMA BEFORE TOO
- QUASI COORDINATOR
- QUASI POSSESSIVES
- QUESTION MARK
- QUOTATION ATTRIBUTION
- quotation marks
- QUOTATIONS
- raise the question
- RANG RUNG
- RANGES
- READER FRIENDLY LANGUAGE
- REDUPLICATIVE COPULA
- REFLEXIVE PRONOUNS
- REFLEXIVES
- REIGN VS REIN
- REIN vs REIGN
- RELATIVE PRONOUN ANTECEDENT AGREEMENT
- RELATIVE PRONOUNS
- RESTRICTIVE CLAUSES
- ROB AND BURGLARIZE
- ROCK N ROLL
- RUN-ON SENTENCES
- RUTH BADER GINSBURG
- SAYS VS. SAID
- SCARE QUOTES
- SECONDLY
- SEMICOLON
- SEMICOLON ABUSE
- SEMICOLONS
- semimonthly
- semiweekly
- SENTENCE ADVERBS
- sentence diagramming
- SENTENCE ENDING PREPOSITION
- SENTENCE ENDING PREPOSITIONS
- SENTENCE FRAGMENT
- SENTENCE FRAGMENTS
- SENTENCE STRUCTURE
- SENTENCE STRUCTURES
- SENTENCE WRITING
- SENTENCES
- serial comma
- SHARED POSSESSIVE
- SHARED POSSESSIVES
- SHORT SENTENCES
- SHOULD
- SIMPLE COMPOUND AND COMPLEX SENTENCES
- SINCE VS BECAUSE
- SINCE VS. BECAUSE
- SINGLE QUOTATION MARK
- SINGULAR AUSPICE
- SINGULAR VERB
- SINGULAR VERB WITH EVERY
- SINGULAR VS PLURAL
- SITE
- SKUNKED TERMS
- SLAVA UKRAINI
- SLEIGHT VS SLIGHT
- SLOW VS. SLOWLY
- SMIZE
- SNEAK PEAK VS SNEAK PEEK
- SNEAK VS. SNUCK VS. SNEAKED
- SO
- SO AT THE BEGINNING OF A SENTENCE
- SO CRINGE
- SO HELP ME GOD
- SOMEONE
- SPACE AROUND DASHES
- spaces around ellipses
- SPACES BEFORE AN ELLIPSIS
- SPACING BETWEEN SENTENCES
- SPEECH TAGS
- spell check fail
- SPELL-CHECKER
- SPELLING
- SPIT AND IMAGE
- SPITTING IMAGE
- split infinitive
- SQUINTING MODIFIER
- STARTING A SENTENCE WITH AND
- STEPHEN CALK
- STREAMLINING SENTENCES
- STYLE
- STYLE GUIDES
- SUBJECT PRONOUNS
- SUBJECT VERB AGREEMENT
- SUBJECT-COMPLEMENT AGREEMENT
- SUBJECT-OBJECT AGREEMENT
- SUBJUNCTIVE
- SUBORDINATE CLAUSES
- SUBORDINATING CONJUNCTIONS
- suffixes
- SUPERLATIVES AND COMPARATIVES
- SWAM VS. SWUM
- SYNONYMS
- TENSE SHIFTS
- terminal punctuation
- THAN I VS THAN ME
- THANKSGIVING DAY
- THAT AND WHICH
- THAT VS. WHICH
- THAT VS. WHO
- THE JOY OF SYNTAX
- The Possessive of Jr.
- THE REASON IS BECAUSE
- THE REASON WHY
- THE REASON WHY VS. THE REASON THAT
- THE TEAM IS VS THE TEAM ARE
- THE WIRE
- THERE ARE
- THERE IS
- THERE'S
- THERE'S VS. THEIRS
- THESE ONES
- THEY'RE AND THEIR
- THIS IS HER
- THIS IS SHE
- THRU THROUGH
- THRU VS THROUGH
- TILL TIL UNTIL
- TITLED VS ENTITLED
- TITLES
- TITLES IN ITALICS
- TITLES IN QUOTATION MARKS
- TO BOLDLY GO
- TOO BIG A DEAL
- TOO BIG OF A
- TOO BIG OF A DEAL
- TOWARD VS. TOWARDS
- TRANSITIVE
- TRANSITIVE VERBS
- TRANSITIVE VS. INTRANSITIVE VERBS
- TRUMP SPELLING
- TRUMP TWEET
- TRY AND
- TRY TO
- TWO SPACE
- TYPOS
- UNCLEAR ANTECEDENTS
- UNDERLIE PAST TENSE
- UNDERWAY / UNDER WAY
- UNNECESSARY ADVERBS
- UPSIDE DOWN SUBORDINATION
- USAGE
- VAGUE WORDS
- VARIANT SPELLINGS
- VERB AGREEMENT
- VERB ASPECT
- VERB CONJUGATION
- VERB TENSE
- VERB TENSES
- VERBS
- veterans day
- VIS-A-VIS
- vocabulary
- WAS VS WERE
- WAVER VS. WAIVER
- WEBSTER'S NEW WORLD
- WEIRDEST LANGUAGES
- WELLBEING
- WERE VS WAS
- What Does Hoi Pollio Mean
- WHAT'S AN APPOSITIVE
- When to Capitalize After a Colon
- WHEN TO HYPHENATE PREFIXES
- WHILE VS ALTHOUGH
- WHILE VS THOUGH
- WHO AND WHOM
- WHO KNOWS
- who vs whom
- WHOA WOAH WHOAH
- whom
- whomever
- WHOMEVER VS. WHOEVER
- WHOSE AND WHO'S
- WHOSE VS WHO'S
- WHOSE VS. WHO'S
- WITH VS. OF
- WOKE VS WAKED
- WORD CHOICE
- WORD USAGE
- WORDINESS
- WORSE COMES TO WORST VS WORST COMES TO WORST
- WRITING
- WRITING BOOKS
- WRITING CRAFT
- WRITING FOR CLARITY
- WRITING SKILLS
- WRITING STYLE
- WRITING TIPS
- WRONG VS WRONGLY
- WRONG VS. WRONGLY
- XMAS
- ZEGUMA
- ZERO RELATIVE PRONOUN
search
podcast
Ad Podcast to your site
A Pearson product. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved. Legal Notice | Privacy Policy | Permissions