Chapter 1 Sentences
Sentence types
Declarative To inform John is leaving
Subject-whole verb
Interrogative To get information Is John leaving?
Part of verb-subject-rest of verb
Imperative To get someone to do something Leave!
verb
exclamatory To express one’s attitude about How sad that John is leaving
something
How … or what …
Sentence constituents
Roles Function Abbreviation
First participant Subject S
Process Predicator P
Something about the first Subject attribute SA
participant
A second participant Direct object DO
Something about the second Object attribute OA
participant
A third participant Indirect object IO
Benefactive object BO
The setting Adverbial A
Difference predicator and predicate
- Predicator is a constituent of a clause structure; a verb or verb phrase
- Predicate is everything that is left aside from the subject and predicator
,Sentence patterns
1. The running pattern (intransitive verbs)
- With a verb that only expresses one involving main participant
S-P-(A)
“John is running (fast)”
2. The being pattern (copula verbs)
- The subject attribute expresses information about the subject only
S-P-SA-(A)
“John is sick at home”
Copula verbs:
Appear, grow, seem, look, be, make, smell, sound, become, prove, taste, feel, remain, turn
3. The doing/seeing pattern (monotransitive verbs)
- Verb that expresses an action or experience involving two participants
- One who does the acting and one who is acted upon or perceived
S-P-DO-(A)
“John kicked the ball in the garden”
4. The giving/buying pattern (ditransitive verbs)
- An event involving at least three participants
- A person that gives something, the thing that is given (DO), and the receiver (IO/BO)
- Difference indirect object and benefactive object
→ IO has the thing given in hand, physically, directly after the transfer
“John gave Peter the ball”
→ BO does not have something given directly
“John bought Peter the ball”
S-P-IO-DO
“She is buying them presents.”
5. The making/considering pattern (complex-transitive verbs)
- A very limited number of verbs
S-P-DO-OA-(A)
“They considered him a fool.“
, Same verb, different patterns
being
S-P-SA
She makes a good boss
doing/seeing
S-P-DO
Harry made a cake
giving/buying
S-P-IO-DO
He made her a painting
making/considering
S-P-DO-OA
She made Harry the class clown