Simple Sentence

What is a Simple Sentence?

A Simple Sentence is a sentence that contain only one independent clause and no dependent clauses. An independent clause can stand on its own and it is called a simple sentence.

Examples:

• The dog bit him.
• The baby sleeps.
• The teacher is in the classroom.
• I play on the ground.

There is only one independent clause and no other clause in each of the above sentences, so they are simple sentences.

Prerequisites to comprehend this article

For grasping the contents of this article, it’s essential that you have sufficient knowledge of the following grammatical terms:

• Sentences
  • Sentence Structure
• Subject
  • Simple subject
  • Complete subject
  • Compound subject
• Predicate
  • Simple predicate
  • Complete predicate
  • Compound predicate
• Object
  • Direct object
  • Indirect object
  • Object to preposition

• Verb
  • Finite verb
  • Nonfinite verb

Simple Sentence Structure

Every sentence that we write has got a particular structure. These sentences are classified based on the clauses used in them. Simple sentence is one of the four sentence structures. Of all the four types of sentence structures, simple sentence is the easiest to understand. They form the basis around which you can construct complex sentences, compound sentences and compound-complex sentences. Hence, it is important to understand the basic concepts of writing simple sentences. So, let us learn more about simple sentences.

Parts of a simple sentence

The most basic part of a sentence are the subject and predicate. So, a simple sentence will always contain a subject and a predicate, although sometimes, the subject may be implied (E.g., Imperative sentence). The other parts of a simple sentence are objects (direct object, indirect object, and object of preposition), modifiers and complement. A simple sentence can have compound subjects and compound predicates (or both) too.

The parts of a simple sentence are given below:

• Complement

Object

What is an object?

An object is a part of a sentence and is a noun or a pronoun that is controlled by a verb. It gives meaning to the subject’s action on the verb.

Example:

• Jack threw a ball.

In the above sentence,

Jack = subject, threw = verb and ball = object

There are three types of objects:

1. Direct object

What is a direct object?

The direct object of a verb is the direct receiver of the action of the verb. In a simple sentence direct objects can be nouns, pronouns, or phrases. It follows a transitive verb. A direct object can be identified by asking “who” or “what” to the verb. While writing a sentence with direct object, we must keep the direct object and the verb together.

Examples:

• He played the drum.
• The boy bought a book.
• The children climbed the hill and flied the kites.

In the above sentences, the highlighted words are the direct objects.

2. Indirect object

What is an indirect object?

An indirect object is a part of a sentence that receives the action or the direct object. We can identify an indirect object by asking the question of to whom, for whom, or for what.

Example:

• Jill gave her brother a present.

In the above sentence, the indirect object is her brother as he receives the action of the direct object, “present”.

Here we ask the question,” to whom she gave?” Then we get the answer,” her brother”

• I passed the dish to my mother.

In the above sentence, the indirect object is my mother as she receives the action of the direct object, “dish”.

Here we ask the question,” to whom I passed?” Then we get the answer,” my mother”.

3. Object of a preposition.

What Is the Object of a Preposition?

The Object of a Preposition is a part of a sentence; and is controlled by a preposition. The object of a preposition is a noun, or a pronoun usually written to the right of the preposition. The object of a preposition usually has modifiers preceding or following it.

Example:

• Behind every successful man, there is a woman.

In the above sentence, man is the object of the preposition, behind. The words,” every” and “successful” are modifiers.

• The coffee in this cup is for you.

In the above sentence, cup is the object of the preposition, “in”. The word, “this ” is a modifier.” You” are the object of the preposition, “for”.

Modifiers

What is a modifier?

A modifier is a word, phrase, or clause* that modifies other words in a sentence. A modifier is either an adjective or an adverb. The adjectives modify nouns and adverbs modify the verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs.

• I saw a big elephant yesterday.

In the above sentence’, ‘a’ is an article which modifies the word ‘elephant’ and the word ‘big’ is the direct adjective of the word ‘elephant’. So, both the words ‘a’ and ‘big’ are adjectives which modify the noun ‘elephant.’ The word ‘yesterday’ shows the time of the action of t the verb ‘saw’. So, it is an adverb which modifies the verb.

So ‘a’, ‘big’, and ‘yesterday’ are modifiers.

• Rose, Jill’s sister, is highly intelligent.

In the above sentence the phrase ‘Jill’s sister’ modifies the noun ‘Rose’. In this phrase, ‘Jill’s’ modifies the noun ‘sister’, but the whole phrase itself becomes an adjective when it modifies the noun ‘Rose’. There is another adjective ‘intelligent’ which is modified by the adverb ‘very’.

Here, ‘Jill’s sister’, ‘very’, and ‘intelligent’ are modifiers.

Complement

In grammar a Complement is a word, phrase, or* clause that is required to complete the meaning of a given expression.

Example:

• The grass is green.

In this sentence, “The grass” is the subject, “is” is the linking verb, and “green” is the complement. It completes the idea. Without it, we would not understand what the sentence is trying to say.

• The baby seemed calm.

In this sentence, “The baby ” is the subject, “seemed ” is the linking verb, and “calm” is the complement. It completes the idea. Without it, the sentence is incomplete.

(*In this article, clause is not considered as we are dealing with simple sentence and an extra clause will not come in a simple sentence)

Some more Examples of simple sentences

Here are a few examples of simple sentences to explain this concept further for you:

• Jack and Jill went up the hill. (compound subject)
• Jack sang, danced, and played in his uncle’s house. (compound predicate)
• Mary and her sisters play and sleep together. (compound subject and predicate)
• Necessity is the mother of invention. (the mother of invention is subject complement)

Why use simple sentences?

Since simple sentences have only one independent clause, they are extremely easy to understand, and they help us to put forward our point very clearly. New learners of the English language prefer to write and communicate in simple sentences as they are easy to understand.

However, it is a misconception that simple sentences can be used only to express simple or plain ideas of everyday lives. It can also be used to express deep philosophical thoughts and more complicated ideas. The only point that you must take care while constructing a simple sentence is to ensure that you use only one independent clause.