Impersonal sentences. Compound and complex sentences

– Hello, our dear friends!

– Welcome to our grammar lesson!

– We are happy to see you.

– Today we are going to start our lesson with the following four sentences…

The soup was so delicious!

The soup was so delicious and the salad was delicious too!

The soup was so delicious, because Jason is a wonderful cook!

It was a wonderful dinner!

– Guys, can you name the type of each of these sentences according to their structure?

– If you can’t do that, we can help you with that!

The first sentence is “a simple sentence”.

The second is “a compound sentence”.

The third is “a complex sentence”.

And the last one is “an impersonal sentence”.

What’s the difference between these 4 types of sentences?

If you don’t know the answer to this question, don’t worry, because we will explain everything to you in a few minutes!

So, today in the lesson we will:

● revise the definition of the term “a sentence”;

● talk about simple, compound, complex and impersonal sentences;

And

● put the knowledge into practice.

A sentence is a set of grammatically arranged words that expresses an independent statement, question, request, command, exclamation, etc. Most sentences contain a subject as well as a predicate.

According to their structure, sentences are divided into 3 main types:

Simple sentences

For example:

Some students like to study in the morning.

Compound sentences

For instance:

Grace opened the door, and she looked outside.

Complex sentences

For example:

He went to see a doctor because he was sick.

(Now let’s talk about each one of these types in detail.)

Let’s start with simple sentences.

A simple sentence contains a subject and a verb and expresses a complete thought. It has only one independent clause and does not contain subordinate clauses.

For instance:

My parents watch TV every morning.

The children play table tennis every Monday.

Kimberly bought a new dress yesterday.

Sometimes simple sentences have compound structures. There are 3 main types of compound structures. And they are…

A compound subject

A compound verb

A compound direct object

A compound subject has two or more simple subjects that are often connected with a coordinating conjunction.

For instance:

Kate and Mike took a taxi to the airport.

(“Kate” and “Mike” are two separate nouns. When they are connected together using “and”, they create a compound subject.)

A compound verb is formed by combining two or more verbs using a coordinating conjunction.

For example:

Leslie goes to the library and studies every day.

(“Goes” and “studies” are two separate verbs that make a compound verb with the help of the conjunction “and”.)

A compound direct object contains two or more nouns or pronouns that receive the action of the same verb.

For instance:

Jackson bought a jacket and a scarf yesterday.

(“Jacket” and “scarf” are both direct objects that receive the action of the verb “bought”.)

The following type of sentences is:

Compound sentences

A compound sentence is a combination of two or more independent clauses joined together by a coordinating conjunction, a conjunctive adverb or a semicolon. An independent clause is a group of words that contains a subject and a verb and expresses a complete thought. 

Look at the examples:

I’m good at swimming, but I don’t like it.

You must do your homework; otherwise, you might get a bad mark.

Patrick will drive to work today; Charles will take the bus.

(As you can see, each one of these sentences has two independent clauses. The coordinating conjunction “but”, the conjunctive adverb “otherwise” and the semicolon join these clauses together.)

Pay attention! You should always use a semicolon before the conjunctive adverb when separating two independent clauses.

There are 7 coordinating conjunctions in the English language, which we can use to join independent clauses. They can be remembered using the acronym “FANBOYS”. F, A, N, B, O, Y, S. And the conjunctions are:

For     And     Nor     But     Or     Yet     So

Pay attention! We should use a comma before a coordinating conjunction.

Look at the examples:

I don’t eat peanut butter, for I’m allergic to nuts.

She didn’t speak to anyone, and nobody spoke to her.

He didn’t take a bath, nor did he change his clothes.

Jason bought a pencil, but he forgot to buy a pen.

We can go to the cinema, or we can stay at home.

Eric studied very hard, yet he didn’t pass the test.

My daughter is very smart, so everybody likes her.

The third type of sentences is:

Complex sentences

A complex sentence contains at least one independent clause and at least one dependent (or subordinate) clause. A subordinate clause is a group of words that contains a subject and a verb but doesn’t express a complete thought. The subordinate clause usually starts with a subordinating conjunction or a relative pronoun.

We can use such subordinating conjunctions as:

After, although, because, if, since, that, unless, while, etc.

And we can use such relative pronouns as:

That, which, who, whose, where, whom, when, why, etc.

For instance:

After I left him a message, he phoned me immediately.

(This clause is an independent clause because it has one subject, one verb and expresses a complete thought. This clause is a subordinate clause because even though it has a subject and a verb, it doesn’t express a complete thought. These clauses are joined together by the subordinating conjunction “after”.)

She picked up the hairbrush that she had left on the bed.

(This is an independent clause and this is a subordinate clause. They are linked together by the relative pronoun “that”.)

If a subordinate clause has a subordinating conjunction and is located at the beginning of the sentence, a comma should be used to separate it from the independent clause.

Compare the following sentences:

I took my umbrella because it was raining.

Because it was raining, I took my umbrella.

(In the first sentence the independent clause goes before the subordinate clause, that’s why we don’t need to use a comma to separate the clauses. In the second sentence the subordinate clause goes before the independent clause, that’s why we need to use a comma.)

We’ve talked about 3 main types of sentences according to their structure. Now…

Put the sentences below into three columns!

Let’s check the right answers!

The simple sentences are:

Max and Harry read and enjoy novels and newspapers.

Everybody loves Frankie and Jasmine.

My father didn’t go to work in the morning.

The compound sentences are:

She bought a mango, for she was hungry.

Tom plays tennis well, yet his favourite sport is football.

Mike likes dogs, but his wife doesn’t like dogs.

The complex sentences are:

When the cake is brown, remove it from the oven.

Although he was sick, he still went to work.

While she was walking, Harley was running.

Now let’s talk about such type of sentences as:

Impersonal sentences

An impersonal sentence is a type of sentences that begins with the word “it” or “there” and does not refer to a particular person or thing.

For instance:

It was interesting to read this article.

It is doubtful that we will travel to Spain.

It’s a pity that Mark doesn’t want to do it.

Now let’s answer the question:

When do we use impersonal sentences?

1. We use them to describe the state of the weather.

For example:

It’s snowing frequently in winter.

2. Impersonal sentences can also be used to indicate time and distance.

For instance:

It’s 11 o’clock now.

Or

It is far away from here.

3. They are used to indicate the amount of time it takes to complete an action. Here we use the construction “It takes... to...”.

For example:

It takes me about an hour to do my morning exercises.

4. Impersonal sentences can also be used with passive verbs.

For instance:

It is believed that English is easy to study.

5. They are used to say that something exists in a particular place.

For example:

There is a delicious cake in the fridge.

Guys, we’ve talked about impersonal sentences. Now…

Translate the following sentences into English!

1. Мне требуется полчаса, чтобы добраться до университета.

2. Летом часто идёт дождь.

3. Ожидается, что он приедет скоро.

4. От нашего дома до реки один километр.

5. Завтра не будет дождя.

6. Мне требуется час, чтобы сделать мои уроки.

7. Говорят, что дети боятся призраков.

Let’s check the right answers!

1. It takes me half an hour to get to the university.

2. It often rains in summer.

3. It is expected that he will arrive soon.

4. It is one kilometre from our house to the river.

5. It won’t be raining tomorrow.

6. It takes me an hour to do my homework.

7. It is said that children are afraid of ghosts.

– Well done, boys and girls!

– Now you know more about simple, compound, complex and impersonal sentences.

– That’s all for today. See you soon.