Sentence Structure

Introduction

Sentence Structure is one of the most important topics in English grammar. It deals with how words are arranged to form meaningful sentences. For competitive examinations such as UPSC, SSC (CGL, CHSL, MTS), RRB (NTPC, Group D), Banking Exams (IBPS, SBI), CAT, XAT, CDS, NDA, State PSCs, and other entrance or government exams, questions related to sentence structure are asked directly and indirectly in almost every English paper.

Topics like Sentence Correction, Error Detection, Fill in the Blanks, Cloze Test, Para Jumbles, Active–Passive Voice, Direct–Indirect Speech, and Reading Comprehension depend heavily on a clear understanding of sentence structure.

What is a Sentence?

A sentence is a group of words arranged in a proper order that makes complete sense.

Examples:

He is reading a book.
The sun rises in the east.

Essential Features of a Sentence

Every correct sentence must have:

A Subject
A Predicate
A finite verb
Complete meaning

Subject and Predicate

Subject

The subject is the person or thing about which something is said.

Examples:

Ram is honest.
The students are preparing for exams.

Predicate

The predicate is the part of the sentence that tells something about the subject.

Examples:

Ram is honest.
The students are preparing for exams.

Types of Sentences (Based on Meaning)

1. Assertive (Declarative) Sentences

These sentences state a fact or opinion.

Examples:

India is a democratic country.
She works very hard.

Used widely in statement-based questions.

2. Interrogative Sentences

These sentences ask questions.

Examples:

Where are you going?
Did he complete the work?

Auxiliary verbs play an important role here.

3. Imperative Sentences

These sentences express commands, requests, advice, or instructions.

Examples:

Open the door.
Please help me.

Subject is usually understood (you).

4. Exclamatory Sentences

These sentences express strong emotions.

Examples:

What a beautiful scene!
How brave the soldier was!

End with an exclamation mark (!).

5. Optative Sentences

These sentences express wishes or prayers.

Examples:

May you succeed in life.
God bless you.

Important for traditional grammar questions.

Types of Sentences (Based on Structure)

1. Simple Sentence

A sentence containing one independent clause.

Examples:

He runs fast.
She is intelligent.

Used in basic error spotting.

2. Compound Sentence

A sentence containing two or more independent clauses, joined by coordinating conjunctions.

Common conjunctions:

and, but, or, yet, so

Examples:

He worked hard, and he succeeded.
She is poor, but honest.

3. Complex Sentence

A sentence containing one independent clause and one or more dependent clauses.

Examples:

I know that he is honest.
She succeeded because she worked hard.

Very important for sentence correction questions.

Clause and Its Types

What is a Clause?

A clause is a group of words containing a subject and a verb.

Types of Clauses

1. Independent Clause

Can stand alone as a sentence.

Example:

He is reading.

2. Dependent (Subordinate) Clause

Cannot stand alone.

Example:

because he was tired

Kinds of Dependent Clauses

(a) Noun Clause

Acts as a noun.

Example:

I know that he is honest.

(b) Adjective Clause

Qualifies a noun.

Example:

The boy who is honest will succeed.

(c) Adverb Clause

Modifies a verb.

Example:

He worked hard so that he could succeed.

Word Order in English Sentences

Basic Word Order

English follows S + V + O structure.

Example:

She (S) eats (V) an apple (O).

Incorrect word order is a common source of errors in exams.

Position of Adverbs

Adverb of frequency: before main verb
- He always helps others.
Adverb of manner: after object
- She sings beautifully.

Agreement in Sentence Structure

Subject–Verb Agreement

The verb must agree with the subject in number and person.

Examples:

He is ready.
They are ready.

Common exam traps:

Along with
As well as
Together with

Parallelism (Parallel Structure)

What is Parallelism?

Parallelism means using the same grammatical form for similar ideas.

Example:

She likes reading, writing, and dancing.

Incorrect:

She likes reading, to write, and dancing.

Very important for CAT and SSC exams.

Modifiers and Their Placement

Modifiers

Words or phrases that describe other words.

Incorrect placement leads to dangling modifiers.

Example:

Walking on the road, a car hit him. ❌

Correct:

Walking on the road, he was hit by a car. ✔

Active and Passive Sentence Structure

Active Voice

Subject performs the action.

Example:

The teacher teaches the students.

Passive Voice

Object receives the action.

Example:

The students are taught by the teacher.

Used frequently in sentence transformation questions.

Direct and Indirect Sentence Structure

Direct Speech

Exact words of the speaker.

Example:

He said, “I am tired.”

Indirect Speech

Reported form.

Example:

He said that he was tired.

Understanding structure helps avoid errors.

Common Errors in Sentence Structure

Fragment sentences
Run-on sentences
Wrong word order
Faulty parallelism
Incorrect clause usage