1.1 Simple Sentence or Phrase
Look at each example and decide: sentence or phrase.
PHRASE
A set of two or more words that seem to go together but don’t have a subject and verb is called a PHRASE. Phrases are not complete ideas on their own. Therefore, they can be inside a sentence, but cannot stand alone as a sentence. There are different types of phrases.
For example:
-
- The smart student [NOUN PHRASE]
- The smart student will pass the exam. = sentence
-
- was walking briskly [VERB PHRASE]
- My friend was walking briskly. = sentence
-
- on the table [PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE]
- I put the books on the table. = sentence
-
- Walking the dog [GERUND PHRASE]
- Walking the dog is my daily routine. = sentence
- to enjoy the fresh air [INFINITIVE PHRASE]
- They went to the park to enjoy the fresh air. = sentence
-
- very slowly [ADVERB PHRASE]
- They walked very slowly to the store. = sentence
-
- very expensive [ADJECTIVE PHRASE]
- She wore very expensive shoes. = sentence
SENTENCE
Definition of a sentence
A sentence is a group of words that expresses a complete idea. In English, a simple sentence must contain at least a subject and verb. A sentence starts with a capital letter and has a full stop, a question mark or an exclamation mark at the end.
For example:
| sentence | ||
|---|---|---|
| subject | predicate | |
| verb | object | |
| Peter | reads | a book. |
Look at this longer example:
| sentence | ||
|---|---|---|
| subject | predicate | |
| verb | ||
| Peter and Mary | speak | English when they are working. |
In English, most sentences follow this word order:
SVO (Subject + Verb + Object)
Keeping this order helps your message sound clear and natural.
Note! There is one exception to this – when someone gives a command (the imperative):
- Listen!
- Come in!
Do the next quiz to check if you can identify which set of words makes a complete sentence and which is a phrase.