Sentence Structure

Business English at Work© 2003 Glencoe/McGraw-Hill

Debbie LahavBusiness English

Ruppin Academic Center Adapted from: Business English at Work

Business English at Work

Sentence Development

A sentence consists of words correctly arranged to form a complete statement or idea.

A Sentence

PP 3-2

A sentence

begins with a capital letter.ends with an ending mark of punctuation.



Do the words make sense?Do the words indicate a complete thought?Does the group of words begin with a capital letter?Does the group of words end with a period, question mark, or exclamation point?

Ask these questions to determine whether words are a sentence.

PP 3-3



Express statements (declarative sentences).End with a period.

We offer a 30-day return policy.

Four Purposes of Sentences

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Ask questions (interrogative sentences).End with a question mark if direct questions.Are the new brochures available yet?End with a period if indirect questions.

He asked whether I planned to revise the newsrelease.



Give commands and requests (imperative sentences). End with a period.

Direct CommandPlace your order within two days to receive a discount.

Courteous RequestWill you please call me by the end of the week.

Four Purposes of Sentences

PP 3-4a

Express emotions (exclamatory sentences). End with an exclamation point. Always satisfy your customers!

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Subject

Sentences Have Two Parts

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PredicateVerb (action or “to be” form)Tells what the subject is doing or what the subject is

Often a noun or pronounIndicates who is speaking, who is spoken to, or who or what is spoken about



The subject is the main word or words of the subject.

The Subject

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Users can schedule unlimited sales calls with contact management software.Hudson Communications and Cellular Depot share an office building in the Redwood Business Park.



The predicate is the part of the sentence with the verb(s) or verb phrase.

Predicate

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We have advertised our sale in the local newspaper. Other companies have visited our call center and ordered similar telephone headsets..



Normal Order

Sentence Order

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The subject appears first and the predicate follows.

Jerry responded.Your company’s competitors hired several young salespeople.I received the sales totals.We wish you success.The training video is free.



Inverted Order

Sentence Order

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The predicate or part of the predicate is before the subject.

There are many compliments about our customer service.Here is the latest inventory report.Should we offer discounts to attract customers?How much will a customer satisfaction survey cost?On the Website are the details about our shipping policies.

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A clause is a sequence of words with both a subject and a predicate.

Clause

PP 3-18a

Independent clause: Is a complete sentence and can stand alone.

We send a confirmation e-mail for each online order.

Dependent clause: Is not a complete sentence and cannot stand alone. It must be joined to an independent clause to make sense.

When you call our customer service department, ??????



When a dependent clause introduces an independent clause, place a comma at the end of the dependent clause.

Clause

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If the office furniture was damaged in moving, our standard guarantee still applies.Because we have 24-hour customer service, we have three customer service shifts.

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Simple sentencesCompound sentencesComplex sentences

Sentence Formations

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A simple sentence is one independent clause in a subject-verb pattern.

Simple Sentence

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We cancelled the order last week.Rachel and I purchased a subscription to Advertising Age.Our customers shop online and refer others to our Website.The human relations specialist and my manager recommended less phone work and offered me another position.



A compound sentence is two independent clauses – sentences – that are connected.

Compound Sentence

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Many of our customers are self-employed, and they purchase items for themselves.Limited quantities of this product are available, but we will ship your order next week.



A complex sentence consists of an independent clause and a dependent clause.

Complex Sentence

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When a product is listed as out of stock, your order will be filled as soon as possible.If your order cannot be shipped within 30 days, we will cancel the order.Because I arrived late for the sale, I could not find the items that I wanted.



A sentence fragment consists of words, phrases, or dependent clauses that cannot stand alone and may contain subjects and predicates.

Sentence Fragment

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The multiple gift certificates.Ordered by phone last week.



A run-on sentence is a complete sentence with period or comma faults or too many ideas.

Run-On Sentence

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I want to order online credit card thefts worry me.Your serial number is provided with your product documentation you can also find the serial number by opening the software and clicking on the Help menu.

Sentence Structure

Business

Transcript of Sentence Structure