1. SV Subject + verb
Jesus wept.
Don’t wait for the snowfall from the dogwood.
The mind stumbles but does not fall.
2. SVDO Subject + verb + direct object
Bring your own bottle.
Larry sang a song off-key.
Perhaps only my reverence will save me.
We burden others with the full weight of our ignorance.
3. SVIODO Subject + verb + indirect object + direct object
We found her a pig.
What I wouldn’t give has given me the blues.
You always give me a hard time.
The world often brings us a quiet dawn.
4. SLVPA Subject + linking verb + predicate adjective
She seems distant these days.
The candidate for office was funny and charming.
The hardpan dust of the sky is criss-crossed and swept clean.
5. SLVPN Subject + linking verb + predicate noun
I am the one you are looking for.
Gomer is my hero.
Your life is now.
Every thought is a prayer of the mind.
Note: Once you have learned these sentence patterns, basically everything else in a sentence is a phrase or a clause.
In my closet I kept a disintegrating book of fairy tales.
A dream is like a river, ever changing as it flows.
I read for a while on the couch.
Since my baby left me, I have found a new place to dwell.
When confusion visits me these days, I tell myself it is the blur of growth.
You can feel bad if it makes you feel better.
My best friend, who often criticizes my hair color, recently got a botched perm at
the local salon.
She’s the one I plan to marry.
The one who has arrived has a long way to go.
What I wouldn’t give has given me the blues.
Whatever this day brings will be enough for me.
I have found a quiet space in my mornings.
The foul ball flew high above the backstop.
To get from here to there, you will need a better map.
She went to the store to purchase needed supplies.
Made from left over plywood and framed with tacked on 1” by 1” strips, the bulletin board at Rainey’s store almost sags with a smorgasbord of advertisements and snapshots.
Hanging out after the concert, we accidently ran into the lead singer.
The bookcase, sagging in the middle, strains to hold up its burden of books.
The cowboy sauntered into the saloon, gun belts flapping at his side.
Spittle dripping from his mouth, the student began to snore in the middle of the lecture.