a tall girl
an extremely tall girl
an extremely tall girl with piercing blue eyes
Adjective phrases
An adjective phrase contains at least one adjective.
a brown bear
a big brown bear
a big scary brown bear
Verb phrases
A verb phrase contains an auxiliary verb and sometimes an adverb.
I am enjoying the summer holiday.
He had been learning to play the piano.
She is always complaining about her teachers.
Adverb phrases
An adverb phrase tells you something about the verb. It can contain an adverb but it does not have to.
Katie tiptoed very quietly across the room.
The man shouted Fire! as loudly as possible.
In the morning, the sky was clear.
Preposition phrases
A preposition phrase contains a preposition and the noun that follows it.
She shut the dogs in the kitchen.
A plastic bag full of money was lying by the side of the road.
At the back of the class, some of the boys were laughing and telling jokes.
Clauses
A clause is a group of words which contain a verb. There are two types of clauses.
Main clauses
A main clause is the heart of a sentence. It would make sense if it stood on its own. Every sentence has a main clause:
Matthew ate a cake which was covered in chocolate.
After looking carefully in both directions, Ali crossed the road.
Subordinate clauses
A subordinate clause is less important than the main clause. It would not make sense if it stood on its own because it is not a full sentence. It gives more information about the main clause:
When he had looked carefully in both directions, Ali crossed the road.
Matthew enjoyed the cake because it was covered in chocolate.
Subordinate clauses often start with when, if, because or that.
Relative clauses
A relative clause is a type of subordinate clause. It begins with a relative pronoun: who, whom, whose, which or that.
Robbie has a cat who likes fish.
David has one brother, whose name is Peter.
Our teacher is off sick today, which is unusual for her.
You can read more about relative pronouns on page 14.
You can also write a relative clause without the relative pronoun that or which:
She has lost the book that I lent her.
She has lost the book I lent her.
That is the car which he has just bought.
That is the car he has just bought.
Sentences
A sentence is a group of words that expresses an idea or describes a situation. A sentence must have:
a capital letter at the beginning of the first word
a full stop, a question mark or an exclamation mark at the end
a verb
Sentence types
A sentence can be one of four things.
Statement
This sentence tells you something. A statement usually starts with the subject of the sentence. It ends with a full stop:
Berlin is the capital of Germany.
I am going home now.
Its raining.
Question
This sentence asks for information. It begins with a questioning word like what, who, which, where, when, how or why. It can also begin with a verb. It ends with a question mark:
What is your name?
Have you seen my keys?
Where is Mount Everest?
Command
This sentence gives orders or instructions. You call the verb used for commands the imperative. You usually put it at the start of the sentence. It can end with a full stop or, if you want to show that something is very important, an exclamation mark:
Give me the paper.
Come over here.
Stop right there!
If you give a polite command, the verb might not be at the start of the sentence:
Please stop talking.
Exclamation
This sentence expresses a strong feeling. It ends with an exclamation mark:
What a laugh!
Youre here at last!
I never want to see you again!
Sentence structure
There are different types of sentences which can be grouped by how the sentence is written.
Simple sentence
A simple sentence contains just one main clause:
Zoya threw the ball.
Today is my birthday.
Compound sentence
A compound sentence contains two or more main clauses joined by a conjunction:
Zoya threw the ball and Marion caught it.
Today is my birthday but my party is tomorrow.
Complex sentence
A complex sentence has a main clause and one or more subordinate clauses:
Zoya threw the ball to Marion, who was standing on the other side of the pitch.
Today is my birthday, although my party isnt until tomorrow, which is a pity.
Parts of the sentence
Sentences contain a number of parts.
Subject
The subject is the person or thing that does the action in a sentence. It is a noun, a noun phrase or a pronoun. It comes before the verb.
Louise fell asleep.
Dogs dont like fireworks.
The red car is parked on the other side of the road.
She threw a cushion across the room.
Verb
A sentence must have a verb or a verb phrase.
The man walks slowly up the hill.
Jessica fainted.
Adam is having a haircut.
People have lived in this place for hundreds of years.
Object
The object is the person or thing that has the action of the verb done to it. It is a noun, a noun phrase or a pronoun. It comes after the verb. Not all sentences have an object.
Kim loves chocolate.
I have lost my new green rucksack.
Are you going to ask him to the prom?
Complement
A complement is a word or phrase that tells you something about the subject of the sentence. It is a noun, a noun phrase, an adjective or an adjective phrase. Not all sentences have a complement. The verbs be, become, feel and seem need a complement.
Laura is an architect.
They became very good friends when they worked together.
The boys felt silly when they had to dress up.
She seems perfectly happy.
Adverbial
An adverbial can be an adverb, an adverb phrase, a preposition clause or a subordinate clause. It tells you something about how the action in the sentence is happening, for example when it is happening, where it is happening, how it is happening, how often it is happening or why it is happening. Not all sentences have adverbials.
Suddenly, it started to rain heavily.
Breathing quietly, Lee crept out of the room.
You probably wont notice it after a while.
Ill make a cup of tea when Ive finished reading this.
An adverbial can go anywhere in a sentence:
I greatly admire your courage.
The door closed with a loud bang.
Honestly, I didnt mean to be rude to you.
When the adverbial is at the start of the sentence it is called a fronted adverbial. These are followed by a comma:
Seriously, are you wearing that?
At the end of the match, the players shook hands.