Basic Sentence Structure: Top 15 Key Points

Understanding the basic sentence structure is crucial for mastering English grammar. This guide covers the top 15 key points, each with examples to illustrate the concepts clearly.

No.	Key Point	Explanation	Examples
1	Subject	The person, place, thing, or idea that is doing or being something.	"The cat (subject) sleeps." "John (subject) reads a book." "Happiness (subject) is important."
2	Predicate	Tells something about the subject; includes the verb and what follows.	"The cat sleeps (predicate)." "John reads (predicate) a book." "Happiness is (predicate) important."
3	Direct Object	The noun or pronoun that receives the action of the verb.	"She writes (verb) a letter (direct object)." "He eats (verb) an apple (direct object)." "They watch (verb) the movie (direct object)."
4	Indirect Object	The noun or pronoun for whom the action is done.	"She gives him (indirect object) a gift." "He told me (indirect object) a story." "They offered us (indirect object) seats."
5	Subject Complement	The adjective, noun, or pronoun that follows a linking verb.	"He is (linking verb) a teacher (subject complement)." "The flowers smell (linking verb) nice (subject complement)."
6	Linking Verbs	Connect the subject to a subject complement.	"She is (linking verb) happy." "The sky becomes (linking verb) dark." "They seem (linking verb) excited."
7	Transitive Verbs	Verbs that require one or more objects.	"She loves (transitive verb) her dog." "I read (transitive verb) the book." "They play (transitive verb) soccer."
8	Intransitive Verbs	Verbs that do not require an object.	"He sleeps (intransitive verb)." "Birds sing (intransitive verb)." "The sun rises (intransitive verb)."
9	Auxiliary Verbs	Help the main verb express tense, mood, or voice.	"She is (auxiliary verb) running." "We have (auxiliary verb) seen it." "They will (auxiliary verb) go."
10	Phrases	Groups of words without a subject-verb component, acting as a single part of speech.	"In the morning (prepositional phrase)." "Running quickly (participial phrase)." "Extremely tired (adjective phrase)."
11	Clauses	Groups of words with a subject and verb.	"When it rains (dependent clause), I stay home (independent clause)."
12	Independent Clauses	Can stand alone as a sentence.	"I walk (independent clause)." "The sun shines (independent clause)."
13	Dependent Clauses	Cannot stand alone as a sentence.	"Because it is raining (dependent clause)." "If you go there (dependent clause)."
14	Compound Sentences	Two or more independent clauses joined by a conjunction or punctuation.	"I went home (independent clause), and I slept (independent clause)."
15	Complex Sentences	Contain an independent clause and one or more dependent clauses.	"Although it was late (dependent clause), he decided to go out (independent clause)."