A sentence is a complete thought expressed in words. There are several types of sentences:

A Simple Sentence. This type of sentence has a subject and a verb. It may or may not have an object. If the object of a verb is a noun or a noun equivalent, the verb is transitive because of having an object. For example: The dog chased the cat. If the verb is intransitive, there will be no object, for example: The dog barked.

A Complex Sentence. This type of sentence has one principal clause (main thought) and any number of subordinate (secondary) clauses and phrases. For example: The coat which I bought yesterday at a sale surpassed all my expectations. (Note: The phrase at a sale is a group of words without a predicate [the part of a sentence containing an active verb], while the clause which I bought yesterday is a group of words containing a verb, but unable to stand alone.) In the foregoing sentence the principal clause is: The coat surpassed all my expectations.

A Compound Sentence consists of more than one independent sentence, called first and second (and third if necessary) principal clauses, joined by a conjunction: but, since, while, and, where, because and many others. For example: I bought a coat yesterday and it surpassed all my expectations, but I’ll be a long time paying it off.

A Complex/Compound Sentence has more than one principal clause and any number of subordinate clauses. It can lead to a vast complexity of subordinate clauses and phrases, and is then said to be an embedded sentence.

No longer in fashion, the embedded sentence can be found in earlier writings by great and respected authors. George Johnston in My Brother Jack crafted a sentence of 115 words, and a few others almost as long. Jean Cocteau in his famous play, The Eagle Has Two Heads, tossed off some speeches of similar length and complexity that had actors gasping for breath.

There seems no good reason for hammering out so much talk in one unbroken mouthful, other than to display an impressive control of the sense and direction of the main thought. And that’s where a great number of writers and speakers flounder, by taking their eye off the ball. They start off with a participial phrase or clause, wade in full depth to a great complexity of subordinate clauses, lose touch with the main thought and end up with a ‘fizzer’ — a sentence that fails to make sense.

It is not difficult to craft an embedded sentence, if the subject warrants so much verbosity. Sometimes it suits a writer’s purpose to keep the mood flowing, to get on a roll and hold the reader engrossed, maintaining the build-up of intensity and passion. If this semantic masterstroke occurs just once or twice in a novel, at the appropriate place, it can be awe-inspiring for the reader. But what if it falls over, like this ill-fated attempt by one of our most highly regarded columnists?

As someone who has tried to campaign to make Australians realise the enormous natural resource we have in rural
Australia — and why we need to transform it into a productive asset — Cribb’s speech came as an added inspiration.

Who is the someone and what happened to that someone? The writer became lost in a maze of secondary clauses, and neglected to connect them in logical succession.

Syntax

The foregoing example brings me to the subject of syntax, which may be defined as ‘the systematic arrangement of clauses and phrases to best make meaning clear’. Flawed syntax results in ambiguities and confusion of meaning. Unless all the bits and pieces are arranged in logical order, making the sense of the sentence clear, you may get some unintended, funny results, or no result at all! (Examples of uncontrolled syntax are shown on the 'Different kinds of words' page under the heading Participle.)

If a sentence is unduly long, with a complexity of clauses and phrases, it is vital to have the principal clause or main thought in mind before adding all the decorations. The principal clause is like the trunk of a tree from which subordinates branch out in various directions.

I have drawn attention to the most glaring and frequently committed errors. There are those who will say: ‘Does it really matter?’ or ‘That’s our unique idiom!’, and we’re all aware (for we hear it often enough!) that English is an ever-changing language. One may embrace any or all of those views with a certain impunity.

However, somewhere out there is the great body of beginning writers wondering whether to use he or him, lay or lie, its or it’s; the parents who want to guide their children through high school English studies, and the students themselves, many of whom are planning a career in communications but do not yet know where to place an apostrophe. It is for them I have written, as simply and concisely as my subject allows.

Request a free quote

Please email
greensladecreations@gmail.com
Sorry, but due to scammers and spam, I am unable to share my mobile number any more. If you want to talk, please just put that request into your email and I’ll get back to you when I can.