Opening sentences
Before we get into the nitty-gritty and rather academic science of sentence construction, let’s play around with opening sentences.
Everything you ever write has an opening sentence. Its job is to capture the reader (same as the headline). Without it, the rest of your article is pointless (it won’t be read).
Let’s look at some categorised examples (these are great for email openers too):
- Introduction with Context:
- “When I first met [Person], I was surprised…”
- “For [Person/Group], [Event] didn’t turn out to be [Expected Outcome].”
- “When [Person] makes a [Action], people listen.”
- Description of a Person:
- “[Person], quite possibly the world’s best [Profession], just hit [Milestone].”
- “[Person] was a [Adjective] man… a very [Adjective] man.”
- “Most [Segment – even “folks” or “people” is a segment] don’t know [Person].”
- “Our [Descriptor] [Person], [Name], calls it [Description].”
- Statements about Actions or Events:
- “[Person] sent shockwaves through the crowd when [Action/Event].”
- “Last year, my colleagues and I attended [Event].”
- “One of [Organization]’s top [Profession] realized something was terribly wrong.”
- “A [Descriptor] [Profession] just introduced [Description of Action].”
- Personal Experiences or Reactions:
- “I learned this really cool strategy from [Person] that you can use any time you want…”
- “I got an odd call from a good friend over the weekend.”
- “We recently heard from a nervous [Person/Group]…”
- “A family friend called me last evening after [Event].”
- Statements with Authority or Credibility:
- “One world-renowned [Profession] says THIS is the single most important [Indicator/Factor] of [Outcome].”
- “As a former [Position] at a [Descriptor] firm, [Person]’s life reads like a movie scene:”
- “Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve heard of [Famous Person].”
- Simple Declarative Statements:
- “See this [Person/Object]?”
- “They called him [Adjective]…”
- “[Person] has it all figured out.”
- “I once had an odd [Person].”
- Third-Party Endorsements or Mentions:
- “[Person], a [Descriptor] much like yourself, has perfected [Skill/Art].”
- “My colleague [Name] has been spreading the word about [Opportunity].”
- “They call him the “[Nickname]”…”
- “A friend gave me some advice recently.”
Using these patterns, you can create new sentences such as:
- “When I first met Sarah, her knowledge surprised me.”
- “For many investors, the stock market crash didn’t turn out to be the disaster they feared.”
- “Former astronaut John Glenn believed in exploring the unknown…”
- “The late Steve Jobs was a visionary in the tech industry…”
- “Most folks don’t know Jane Doe.”
- “As a former CEO at a Fortune 500 company, her life reads like a novel:”
- “Albert Einstein was a genius… a true genius.”
- “When Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai speaks, the world listens.”
- “One renowned chef says THIS is the key to a perfect dish.”
- “Michael Jordan, quite possibly the world’s best basketball player, just celebrated his latest achievement.”
- “David Johnson is our kind of leader.”
- “Last month, my team and I attended the tech summit in Silicon Valley.”
- “I learned this effective marketing strategy from Seth Godin that you can use any time you want…”
- “I got an unexpected email from an old friend last night.”
- “We recently heard from a concerned member of our community…”
- “One of SpaceX’s top engineers realized something was amiss.”
- “Jack Bauer sent ripples through the industry when he announced his latest venture…”
- “A family friend reached out to me after the recent elections were announced.”
- “A legendary investor just unveiled a brilliant strategy to follow the market trends.”
- “Our tech expert, John Doe, calls it a revolutionary breakthrough.”
- “Unless you’ve been living in a cave, you’ve heard of Greta Thunberg.”
- “60 years ago, Armstrong did something that still inspires us today.”
- “See this device?”
- “They called her innovative…”
- “My neighbor Emily has it all figured out.”
- “I once had an eccentric mentor.”
- “Alex, a reader much like yourself, has mastered the craft of…”
- “My colleague Robert has been sharing insights about a promising startup.”
- “They call him the “Lion of Loon Street”…”
- “A friend gave me some valuable advice recently.”
- “Anna’s husband thought she was crazy…”
- “Our old friend Mark would have appreciated the message you’re about to read.”
- “Have you heard about Jane?”
Most of these example use a first-person point of view. This perspective is evident through the use of pronouns like “I,” “my,” “we,” and “our.” This gets you closer to your readers, enabling the sharing of personal experiences, observations, and opinions, making the content more relatable and engaging. Here are a few examples from that illustrate this:
- Personal Experiences:
- “When I first met James, I was surprised…”
- “I got an odd call from a good friend over the weekend.”
- “Last year, my colleagues and I attended the Laramia conference.”
- Observations and Opinions:
- “Most folks don’t know Charles Masterson.”
- “My neighbor Ginny has it all figured out.”
- “I learned this really cool strategy from Mark Arbuthnot that you can use any time you want…”
- Interactions with Others:
- “We recently heard from a nervous subscriber to my SEO newsletter…”
- “A family friend called me last night after the election result ruined her life.”
- “A friend gave me some advice recently.”
Given this pattern, you can continue to create further new sentences that maintain this first-person perspective. Here are some examples:
- “When I first encountered Masterson, I thought he was insane.”
- “For our team, the project deadline didn’t turn out to be as stressful as we thought.”
- “And that man claimed to have visited every country in the world.”
- “So John has a knack for solving complex problems.”
- “But recently received feedback from a loyal customer who loves our new product.”
- “That colleague shared an interesting article with me yesterday.”
By keeping the first-person point of view, you can create a sense of personal connection and authenticity in your writing.
So on to the boring stuff. But… it doesn’t matter that it’s boring. It’s still vital knowledge every writer needs to understand (even if you forget most of it later). Once read, it can never be unread.
Understanding Sentence Structure
Recognising how sentences are formed helps create stronger and clearer communication. This includes mastering basic sentence patterns, understanding sentence types, and combining sentences using clauses.
We’ll start with the basics (just so you know nothing is missed out).
Basic Sentence Patterns and Elements
Sentences rely on a few key components such as the subject, verb, and object. The subject is the person or thing doing the action. The verb is the action itself, while the object is what receives this action. For example, in “The girl threw the ball”, “the girl” is the subject, “threw” is the verb, and “the ball” is the object. Additional elements can include the predicate, which can expand on the verb’s meaning, and complements that add necessary detail to the sentence.
Basic sentence patterns often include Subject-Verb (SV), Subject-Verb-Object (SVO), and Subject-Verb-Complement (SVC). These patterns help in constructing clear and concise statements.
Types of Sentences According to Structure
Sentences can be categorised into four primary types based on structure: simple, compound, complex, and compound-complex. A simple sentence contains one independent clause, like “He runs daily.” A compound sentence joins two independent clauses, often with a conjunction, such as “She reads stories, and she writes poems.”
A complex sentence consists of an independent clause and one or more dependent clauses, as seen in “Although it’s raining, he is still running.” Compound-complex sentences mix these features, combining multiple independent clauses and at least one dependent clause, like “He runs because he enjoys it, but the rain makes it challenging.”
Sentence Construction and Clauses
Effective sentence construction requires an understanding of how clauses work within a sentence. Independent clauses can stand alone, while dependent clauses need to be connected to an independent clause for clarity. Clauses can also include phrases—groups of words acting as a single unit. Examples include prepositional phrases like “in the garden” and verb phrases like “is going.”
Combining various sentence types and clauses allows for nuanced writing and helps convey complex ideas effectively. Using clauses creatively can link ideas and add depth to writing without losing the reader’s interest. Understanding these elements is key to mastering sentence construction.
Grammar and Syntax Fundamentals
Understanding grammar and syntax is crucial for crafting clear sentences. This involves recognising the different parts of speech and ensuring subject-verb alignment. These elements form the backbone of effective communication.
Parts of Speech and Their Functions
The parts of speech include nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, conjunctions, prepositions, determiners, and pronouns. Each plays a unique role in a sentence.
Nouns represent people, places, or things, while verbs describe actions, states, or occurrences. Adjectives modify nouns, and adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs, offering more detail.
Conjunctions connect words, phrases, or clauses. Prepositions show relationships between nouns or pronouns and other words, often indicating direction or location.
Determiners introduce nouns and highlight specifics, such as ‘a’, ‘an’, ‘the’, and ‘this’. Pronouns replace nouns to avoid repetition, such as ‘he’, ‘she’, ‘it’, and ‘they’.
Subject-Verb Agreement and Verb Tense
In English, subject-verb agreement is essential. The number and person of the subject must match the verb form. Singular subjects take singular verbs, while plural subjects require plural verbs. For instance, “He runs fast” versus “They run fast”.
Verb tense indicates the time of an action. Past, present, and future tenses convey when something happens, ensuring clear timelines. Modifiers such as adverbs often accompany verbs to provide further context, like “yesterday” or “tomorrow”.
Fluent subject-verb agreement and correct use of verb tense enhance clarity and coherence in communication.
Punctuating and Enhancing Sentences
Punctuating sentences correctly can alter their structure and improve readability. It involves using conjunctions, semicolons, and other punctuation marks to connect ideas smoothly and clearly.
Using Conjunctions and Semicolons
Conjunctions are words that link phrases or clauses. Coordinating conjunctions include “for”, “and”, “nor”, “but”, “or”, “yet”, “so” (often remembered by the acronym FANBOYS). They join independent clauses effectively, managing complex thoughts without fragmentation. For instance, “She wanted to play, but it started raining.”
Subordinating conjunctions introduce dependent clauses, such as “although”, “because”, or “while”. A sentence like “While it rained, she stayed inside” uses a subordinating conjunction to indicate relationship and dependency between actions. Semicolons can replace conjunctions to join related independent clauses: “She was tired; she kept working.”
Punctuation for Clarity and Style
Proper punctuation aids in the clear delivery of ideas. Commas separate elements in lists, introduce pauses, and connect independent clauses with coordinating conjunctions. For example, “He bought apples, oranges, and bananas.”
Colons can emphasise information following a complete sentence: “She had one goal: success.” Dashes highlight or add elements, like in “He won the race—his first ever.”
Ellipses suggest pauses or omissions in speech and thought: “I wonder… if it’s true.” Each punctuation mark plays a role in ensuring readability and conveying desired tone. Being attentive to punctuation fosters effective communication.
Advanced Sentence Forms
Advanced sentence structures enhance writing by using different types of sentences. These include complex, compound, and compound-complex sentences that form varied and meaningful expressions. Each type uses a mix of independent and dependent clauses, affecting clarity and style.
Understanding Complex and Compound Sentences
Complex sentences involve one independent clause and at least one dependent clause. The independent clause can stand alone but the dependent clause adds detail or context. For example, “Although the test was hard, she passed with flying colours.” The order of clauses can change to focus on different parts of the sentence.
Compound sentences are made of two or more independent clauses connected by conjunctions like and, but, or or. These sentences help express ideas of equal importance. An example is, “She wanted to stay indoors, but he insisted on going out.” Compound sentences keep ideas connected yet balanced.
Employing Compound-Complex Sentences
Compound-complex sentences blend features of both compound and complex sentences. They have two or more independent clauses and at least one dependent clause. An example: “Though she was tired, she completed the article, and she submitted it on time.”
This type of sentence creates a detailed structure allowing multiple points within the same sentence. They are useful in academic and professional writing for conveying ideas clearly, yet richly. These sentences require careful punctuation to ensure coherence and avoid confusion. Mastery of this complex form enhances the dynamic strength of any text through varied and nuanced sentence construction.
Sentence Variety and Writing Style
Effective writing depends heavily on sentence variety and style to engage readers and clearly express ideas. Using different sentence types and patterns can make writing more dynamic and coherent.
Incorporating Different Sentence Types
Sentence variety means using a mix of declarative, interrogative, imperative, and exclamatory sentences. Declarative sentences are straightforward and convey information or ideas. They’re the most common type, like “The sun rises in the east.”
Interrogative sentences, such as “How can we improve our writing?”, engage the reader directly. They prompt thought and invite further exploration. Imperative sentences give commands or advice, like “Check your facts before writing.” These are crucial when providing instructions or requests.
The use of exclamatory sentences—”What an incredible story!”—adds emotion, though they’re less common in formal writing.
Achieving Coherence through Sentence Patterns
Creating a rhythm in writing by using various sentence patterns is key. Simple sentences convey single ideas quickly, such as “She runs every morning.” Adding compound sentences, like “She runs every morning, yet she hates exercise,” allows for more complexity by linking related thoughts.
Complex sentences add depth by showing relationships between ideas. For example, “Because she runs every morning, she stays fit.” This offers insight into cause and effect. Comparisons and contrasts help clarify points, as seen in “Unlike last year, this season promises rain.”
Sentence patterns, including cause/effect and contrast, help ensure clarity and enhance logical flow, making the text more engaging and coherent.
Common Issues in Sentence Construction
Effective sentence construction forms the backbone of good writing. Key issues to address include avoiding run-on sentences and fragments, ensuring clarity, and understanding the role of sentence elements such as direct and indirect objects.
Avoiding Run-on Sentences and Fragments
Run-on sentences occur when two or more independent clauses are improperly joined without appropriate punctuation or conjunctions. To fix this, use a period, semicolon, or coordinating conjunction.
Fragments are incomplete thoughts that lack a subject or verb. Always check for a complete subject-verb pair in every sentence. Use independent clauses to ensure your sentence stands alone as a complete thought. Introducing dependent clauses with proper conjunctions can provide additional detail without sacrificing clarity.
Ensuring Sentence Clarity
Sentence clarity ensures the reader understands the writer’s intent. This involves using clear, well-defined sentence structures that include subjects, verbs, and complements. Misplaced or dangling modifiers can obscure meaning, so place modifiers close to the words they describe.
Understanding sentence elements, such as direct and indirect objects, can enhance clarity. A transitive verb requires a direct object to complete its meaning, whereas an intransitive verb does not. Linking verbs connect the subject to a complement, further clarifying the subject. Use adjuncts and adverbials to provide additional information without confusing the reader.
Frequently Asked Questions
When writing an article, it’s important to understand the framework of both introductions and the article itself. Effective beginnings, the structuring of sequences, and the key elements for a well-designed article are crucial.
What constitutes the structure of an article’s introduction?
An article’s introduction typically starts with a hook to engage the reader. It provides necessary background information and culminates in a clear statement (or proves the article’s premise). This section outlines the main points that the article will discuss, offering a roadmap for the reader.
Could you outline the structure of a basic article?
A basic article generally consists of three main parts: the introduction, body, and conclusion. The introduction presents the topic. The body explores the main ideas in paragraphs, and the conclusion summarises and restates the article’s big idea, bringing closure.
What are effective strategies for beginning an article?
Starting with a compelling fact, question, or anecdote can effectively capture interest. Providing context helps set the stage for the argument. This approach immediately draws readers into the topic and sparks curiosity about what follows.
How should one go about structuring a sequence?
Organising an article’s sequence involves outlining the introduction, body, and conclusion. Clear and logical structuring ensures that ideas flow well. Supporting evidence and citations strengthen arguments and contribute to clarity and article integrity. Make your article flow in the same way we tend to think about things – from an initial idea, to why that idea matters, to how to manifest it (and in sales copy, finishing with a call to action on what to do next).
Which elements are essential for crafting a well-structured article?
Key elements include a clear premise (not necessarily stated, but at the core of the article’s big idea), cohesive paragraphs, and transitions that link ideas. Supporting evidence must substantiate claims, while analysis and reflection provide depth. Each part should work together to make a convincing argument.
What is the significance of headings and subheadings in an article’s format?
Headings and subheadings organise content, making it more accessible and easier to follow. They act as signposts, guiding the reader through the article’s structure. This clarity enhances comprehension and ensures that the main points are easily identified. It also helps search engines understand the article too (in other words, great for SEO).
Leave a Reply