Teaching English Sounds

Simple Sentences

Review Page

Identify the subject and the predicate in these different types of simple

sentences. Circle the noun (or compound nouns) in the subject and

underline the verb (or compound verbs) in the predicate.

1. Will you go to the store with me to buy some groceries?

2. According to the nutrition magazine, watermelon and tomatoes

    contain major amounts of vitamins and are good for you.

3. Because of the wind and the rain, the trees danced back and

    forth, threw up their leafy arms, and sang to the sky above.

4. Don’t forget to take your vitamins in the morning with a full glass

    of water.

5. The tennis ball was served across the net, hit back and forth

    several times, and then dropped in the mud puddle at the 

    back of the court.

6. Have you brushed your teeth, combed your hair, and eaten your

    breakfast yet?

7. Marianne laughed heartily, crossed her eyes like a crazy 

    person, and stuck her tongue out at me.

8. Place the pens, pencils, erasers, and pads of paper in the top

    drawer of your desk.

9. His favourite rock group had a new CD for sale at the record

    store on Main Street.

10. Didn’t she love to eat pizza, ice cream, and brownies as a little

      girl?

Answer Key

REVIEW

(subject / verb)

1. you / will go

2. watermelon and tomatoes / contain and are

3. trees / danced, threw, and sang

4. you (understood) / do forget

5. ball / was served, hit, and dropped

6. you / brushed, combed, and eaten

7. Marianne / laughed, crossed, and stuck

8. you (understood) / place

9. group / had

10. she / did love

Simple Sentences

Simple sentences are independent clauses.

They contain a subject and a predicate.

(Part 6)

Rule 7: Simple sentences can have both a compound subject and a              compound predicate.      e.g: The mashed avocado, minced garlic, olive oil, balsamic vinegar,             mayonnaise, and lemon-flavoured pepper should be blended                thoroughly, whipped briefly for a light consistency, and served with               warm tortillas.            (compound subject and compound predicate)

Exercise F. Identify the subject and the predicate in these simple

sentences. Circle the noun parts of the compound subject and 

underline the verb parts of the compound predicate.

1. A belted kingfisher, a robin, and a red cardinal sat on the tree branch

    for a few seconds and then flew away.

2. Did the math teacher and the history teacher look in the lunchroom and

    check in the auditorium for the missing books?

3. At the last minute, the melted marshmallows and the chocolate should be

    placed on the graham cracker, held briefly over the campfire, and eaten

    immediately.

4. Bright yellow daisies, purple coneflowers, orange and red milkweed, and

    blue forget-me-nots grew rapidly, bloomed beautifully, and reseeded

    themselves everywhere in her gravelled garden path.

5. Will Mary, George, Jean, and Frances come forward, face the audience,

    and say a few words?

6. Every so often, wild turkeys, deer, and owls can be seen or heard in the

    forest preserve over by the lake.

7. The boy’s varied interests, his unusual talents, and his wonderful ability to

    concentrate helped him succeed in his studies and made him a fascinating

    person to talk to as well.

8. Sugar and flour mix together well and give substance to the cookie dough.

9. Have the three winners of the contest and their spouses taken the

    vacation, bought the car, or asked for the cash instead?

10. The overpowering heat, the smothering humidity, and the lack of breeze

      made me very uncomfortable and forced me to stay inside the house all

      day.

 

Answer Key

Exercise F

(subject / verb)

1. kingfisher, robin, cardinal / sat and flew

2. math teacher and history teacher / look and check

3. marshmallows and chocolate / should be placed, held, and eaten

4. daisies, coneflowers, milkweed, and forget-me-nots / grew, bloomed,

   and reseeded

5. Mary, George, Jean and Frances / come, face, and say

6. turkeys, deer, and owls / can be seen and heard

7. interests, talents, and ability / helped and made

8. sugar and flour / mix and give

9. winners and spouses / have taken, bought, or asked

10. heat, humidity, lack / made and forced

Simple Sentences

Simple sentences are independent clauses.

They contain a subject and a predicate.

(Part 5)

Rule 5: Simple sentences can have a compound subject.    e.g: Simon and Garfunkel recorded an album that year. (compound             subject)           America’s best known novelists, journalists, and editors attended a           conference in New York last week. (compound subject)           Yellow-throated warblers, red-breasted robins, and flightless rails             Were pictured in her new bird identification guide.            (compound subject; nouns separated by modifiers)

Exercise D. Identify the subject and predicate in these simple sentences.

Circle the nouns in the subject and underline the simple predicate.

1. You and I know the names of these kinds of flowers.

2. Frisky squirrels, tiny, jewel-like hummingbirds, white-tailed deer, quick little

    wild bunnies, and small black voles were hiding in the garden.

3. Barbara Kingsolver and Amy Tan are two of my sister’s favourite novelists.

4. Every six weeks or so, her next-door neighbours, younger cousins, and

    grade school classmates came over to her house for a little tea party.

5. Are the violinists and the cellists ready to begin playing the nocturne yet?

6. The daily newspapers, television news, and other media were not given

    enough information about the emergency.

7. Even in the middle of the summer, Jan and her dog liked to stay outdoors

    all afternoon long.

8. Could you and your mother please meet with me after school next

    Wednesday?

9. Three eggs, two cups of milk, a package of cheese, and chopped ham

    went into the bowl to make a quiche.

10. Are tomatoes, potatoes, onions, and garlic your favourite foods?

 

Answer Key

Exercise D

(subject / verb)

1. you and I / know

2. squirrels, hummingbirds, deer, bunnies, and voles / were hiding

3. Barbara Kingsolver and Amy Tan / are

4. neighbours, cousins, and classmates / came

5. violinists and cellists / are

6. newspapers, news, and media / were given

7. Jan and dog / liked

8. you and mother / meet

9. eggs, cups, and package / went

10. tomatoes, potatoes, onions, and garlic / are

Simple Sentences

Simple sentences are independent clauses.

They contain a subject and a predicate.

(Part 5)

Rule 6: Simple sentences can have a compound predicate.                    e.g: Marianne sang, danced, and played the violin with equal                  competence, passion, and enthusiasm. (compound                  predicate)              Her last semester in school, the brilliant student received top                marks on all her final exams, graduated with honors, and was                         interviewed for a junior faculty position at the university.             (compound predicate; verbs separated by modifiers)

Exercise E. Identify the subject and predicate in these simple sentences.

Circle the simple subject and underline the compound simple predicate .

1. The telephone on the principal’s desk rang and rang and then suddenly

    stopped ringing.

2. Who is coming to the party and bringing the ice cream?

3. Several of the trees at the arboretum had leafed out already and were

    looking very full and beautiful.

4. The man in the brown raincoat slipped quietly around the corner and hid in

    a dark doorway.

5. Wash and dry your hair first thing in the morning.

6. Will you sing me a song, show me a few dance steps, and then tell me a

    story?

7. The girls hurried home with their packages under their arms, rushed up

    the steps into the family room, and dropped all the boxes on the floor in

   front of their mother.

8. He didn’t eat anything for supper or drink anything at all that evening.

9. Will the three of you please come over here, sit down on this bench, and

fill out these forms?

10. Last week she walked in the park for several hours in the morning, had a

      healthy and delicious lunch with her friend in the middle of the afternoon,

      and then slept like a log all night long.

Answer Key

Exercise E

(subject / verb)

1. telephone / rang, rang, and stopped

2. who / is coming and bringing

3. several / had leafed and were looking

4. man / slipped and hid

5. you (understood) / wash and dry

6. you / will sing, show, and tell

7. girls / hurried, rushed, and dropped

8. he / did eat or drink

9. three / will come, sit, and fill

10. she / walked, had, and slept

Modal Auxiliaries