Lesson video

Hello and welcome to this grammar unit all about simple, compound, and adverbial complex sentences.

This lesson is called Four types of simple sentence.

And by the end of today's lesson, you will have written four types of simple sentence with the correct punctuation.

The key words that are going to help us get there are here.

My turn, your turn: main clause, statement, question, command, exclamation.

Great job.

Let's take a look at some of those definitions.

A main clause is a group of words that contains a verb and makes complete sense.

A statement is a type of simple sentence that expresses a fact or an opinion and most often ends with a full stop.

A question is a type of simple sentence that asks the reader for an answer and ends with a question mark.

A command is a type of simple sentence that tells someone to do something and can end with an exclamation mark.

An exclamation is a type of simple sentence that expresses strong emotion or surprise.

Our lesson outline today looks like this.

First, we'll look at statements and commands.

Then we'll look at questions and exclamations.

So let's get started on statements and commands.

Let's listen to some sentences.

Horses breathe through their noses.

Did you know that horses can sleep standing up? What a huge horse that is! Listen to the horse's hooves.

All of these sentences make complete sense.

And as you process that, I'd like to introduce you to someone very important.

This is Main Clause.

Main is a superstar.

Main is strong.

Main stands up tall like this with hands on hips, a strong posture, a loud voice.

And Main is very confident.

That's because Main represents a main clause.

And a main clause makes complete sense all by itself.

A main clause is a group of words that contains a verb.

And a main clause has superpowers in English because one main clause can form one simple sentence all by itself.

Main doesn't need anything else to help make sense.

Main makes sense all by itself.

So let's come back to our sentences about the horse.

Check again.

Do they all make complete sense? Horses breathe through their noses.

Did you know that horses can sleep standing up? What a huge horse that is! Listen to the horse's hooves.

Yes, all four of these sentences make complete sense.

Now, remember the other thing about main.

Main makes complete sense, and main is a group of words that contains a verb.

Let's check.

Did these sentences include a verb? Horses breathe through their noses.

The verb is breathe.

That's something that horses or you and I can do.

It's a doing verb.

Did you know that horses can sleep standing up? The main verb in this sentence is sleep.

That's something the horse can do or that you or I could do too.

What a huge horse that is! Hmm, this is a trickier one.

The verb is is.

This is a being verb.

We're going to come back to being verbs later on in the lesson.

Listen to the horse's hooves.

Listen is something the horse or you or I can do.

It's a doing verb.

So all of these sentences make complete sense and they all include a verb.

And so all of these sentences are main clauses.

They all include a verb.

They all make complete sense.

When a sentence is formed of one main clause, it is called a simple sentence.

Different simple sentences are so useful for us because they make our writing interesting and purposeful.

Let's check your understanding so far.

A simple sentence has two clauses.

Is that true or false? You're right.

It's false.

And let's check why.

A simple sentence is a sentence about one idea that makes complete sense.

And remember, a simple sentence is made of one main clause.

So let's move on to statements.

A statement is a simple sentence that expresses a fact or an opinion.

Let's take a look at some examples.

We saw a quivering, bright dragonfly above the water.

This is a statement of fact.

It's something that happened that can be proved to be true.

The insect was beautiful.

This is a statement of opinion.

It's something I believe.

A statement most often ends with a full stop.

And you can see the full stops here in both my examples.

If the fact or opinion expresses strong emotion, the statement can end with an exclamation mark like this.

It is raining very hard outside! This is a statement of fact that is expressing strong emotion, and so it works to end it with an exclamation mark.

I love this film so much! This is a statement of opinion that also expresses strong emotion.

Hmm, I wonder if you love a book or a film so much that you could write a statement of opinion with an exclamation mark.

So let's check.

A statement: A, ends with a question mark.

B, is a type of simple sentence.

C, always ends with a full stop.

D, expresses a fact or an opinion.

Which of these are correct for a statement? That's right.

A statement is a type of simple sentence, and a statement expresses a fact or an opinion.

It doesn't end with a question mark and it doesn't always end with a full stop, because it can end with an exclamation mark if we're expressing strong emotion.

Great job.

Let's move on to commands.

A command is a simple sentence that tells someone to do something.

Commands are very bossy.

Let's take a look at some examples.

Open your rucksack! Take a photograph! These are still types of simple sentence because they are still formed of one main clause.

And remember, a main clause is a group of words that contains a verb and makes complete sense.

But they are commands because they tell someone to do something.

And a command always starts with an imperative verb.

This is a special type of verb that always goes at the beginning of a command.

Let's say that word again.

Imperative.

And the full term: imperative verb.

Great job.

Here are my two imperative verbs in my examples.

Open.

Take.

They start my command and they are very bossy verbs.

A command often ends with an exclamation mark like in my two examples.

But if the command does not express strong emotion, it can end with a full stop.

All the other same rules apply, that it must be a full main clause and start with an imperative verb and tell someone to do something.

But it can end with a full stop like this: Go to sleep now.

This is a command that expresses calm emotion.

It still starts with an imperative verb, go, but it ends with a full stop.

Here's another one: Place your pencil on the line.

It still starts with an an imperative verb, but because it expresses calm emotion, it ends with a full stop.

Let's check.

A command: A, is a type of compound sentence.

B, starts with an imperative verb.

C, always ends with an exclamation mark.

Or D, asks someone for an answer.

Which of these are correct about a command? You are right.

A command starts with an imperative verb.

It is not a type of compound sentence.

It's a type of simple sentence.

It doesn't always end with an exclamation mark because it can end with a full stop if it's expressing calm emotion.

And it doesn't ask someone for an answer: that's a question.

So time for some practise.

Remember everything we discussed about statements.

They can express a fact or an opinion.

One statement is made of one main clause.

I would like you to write one statement about this picture.

Remember, if you are expressing a statement of fact or opinion with strong emotion, then you can end your statement with an exclamation mark.

But most often they end with a full stop.

Remember to describe what you can see in the picture and stretch your vocabulary as far as you can.

Off you go.

Now, I'd like you to check your sentence.

Is your statement one main clause? What is the verb in your sentence? Does your statement end with a full stop or an exclamation mark? And does your statement express a fact or an opinion? Read your sentence back.

Check it and edit if you need to.

Great job.

Here are some example sentences I wrote for you.

A green luminous beetle silently scoured the leaf.

Ooh, I love that word "luminous." That means bright light.

That first statement is a statement of fact.

It's something that is true, that can be proved.

Here's my second example.

I like the shiny insect's yellow back.

That's a statement of opinion.

It's something I believe and I think.

Two front legs balance the beetle on the plant.

That's a statement of fact.

It can be proved to be true.

Great job, everyone.

Now, I'd like you to remember everything that we discussed about commands, and practise writing one about this picture.

Look carefully at the picture.

What bossy imperative verb will you start your command about? What are you going to tell someone to do in this picture? What is your full main clause going to say? Think of your sentence first.

You can say it out loud if it helps you, and then write it down.

Off you go.

Great job, everyone.

Now, I'd like you to check your sentence.

Is it one main clause? What is the verb in your command? Have you started your command with an imperative verb? And what does your command tell someone to do? Read it back.

Check it and edit if you need to.

Great job, everyone.

And here are some example command sentences I wrote for you.

Walk through the forest to find more creatures! I used the imperative verb "walk." Spot the noisy birds high up in the trees! I used the imperative verb "spot." Follow the path closely towards the grey owl's nests.

I used the imperative verb "follow," but you'll see in that third example I used a full stop because my command in that third example was expressing calm emotion.

Great job, everyone.

Now it's time to move on to the second part of our lesson.

Questions and exclamations.

These are the two more types of simple sentence.

We've already looked at statements and commands, our first two types of simple sentence.

And now we are looking at our final two types of simple sentence.

And remember, each type of simple sentence is formed of one main clause.

A question is a simple sentence that asks the reader for an answer, like these: How was the walk? What happened on the trip? A question always starts with a question word and ends with a question mark.

There are my question words: how and what.

They start my questions.

And there are my question marks.

They end my questions.

The verb in a question is often a being verb.

We're going to come back to being verbs in a moment.

But first, let's check.

A question tells someone to do something.

Do you think that's true or false? You're right, it's false.

And let's check why.

A question asks someone to do something.

A question does not start with an imperative verb.

It is not a command.

Great job.

So let's come back to being verbs.

Being verbs come from the verb "to be." They can be in the present, past, or future tense.

In this first example, my being verb is "was" in the past tense.

What was the lesson about? In my second example, the being verb is "is." How is your brother? This being verb is in the present tense.

There are six being verbs in English: am, are, is, was, were, will be.

Great job.

So often in a question the verb is a being verb.

Let's check.

Which of these are being verbs? A, were.

B, where.

C, will be.

D, are.

Which are being verbs? Were, will be, and are are three of our six being verbs in English.

Great job.

Let's move on then to our final type of simple sentence.

An exclamation is a simple sentence that expresses strong emotion or surprise, like this: How exciting it was! What an adventurous day we had! An exclamation always starts with "what" or "how." And this is tricky because questions can also start with "what" or "how." So we have to remember some other rules about exclamations.

Here you can see "how" and "what" starting my two example exclamations: How exciting it was! What an adventurous day we had! The verb in an exclamation is often a being verb or a having verb.

In my first example, I have the being verb "was," and in my second example I have the having verb "had." Let's check.

True or false? An exclamation starts with "which" or "have." That's right.

It's false.

And we know it's false because "what" or "how" starts an exclamation.

Great job.

Now it's time to practise what we have learnt.

I would like you to write one question about this picture.

I would like you to look carefully at the picture and think what question word are you going to use? What are you going to ask to your reader? And how can you stretch your language to be as ambitious as possible? Write your question now.

Next, I'd like you to check your sentence.

Is it one main clause? What is the verb in your question? Have you started with a question word? And what could the answer to your question be? I'd like you to read it back, check it, and edit if you need to.

Great job.

Here are some example sentences: Who used to live in this ancient, stone building? My question word was "who." And I remembered my question mark.

Have you ever seen a dilapidated wall before? My question word was "have," and my question mark marks the end of my question.

And finally: Where are the ancient building's doors? My question word is "where," and I've remembered my question mark.

Next, and for your final task this lesson, you need to write one exclamation about this picture.

Now, remember, an exclamation starts with "what" or "how." It must include a verb.

And often, the verb in an exclamation is a being or a having verb.

Off you go.

Next, I'd like you to check your sentence.

Is your sentence one main clause? What is the verb that you have used? Does your exclamation start with "what" or "how"? And does your exclamation end with an exclamation mark? Read your sentence back.

Check it and edit if you need to.

Great job, everyone.

And here are some example exclamations for you.

What a striking butterfly this is! I've started with "what." I've remembered my verb "is." That's a being verb.

And I've got an exclamation mark at the end.

How lovely the butterfly's crimson wings are! I started with "how." I have the being verb "are." And I've ended with an exclamation mark.

What long antennae the insect has! I've started with "what." I have a having verb "has." And I've ended with an exclamation mark.

Great job, everyone.

We have come to the end of our lesson all about four types of simple sentence.

And here's what we have learnt.

All simple sentences start with a capital letter, make complete sense, and contain a verb.

A simple sentence is formed of one main clause.

Statements, commands, questions, and exclamations are all types of simple sentence.

And finally, different simple sentences are useful to make our writing interesting and purposeful.

Great job, everyone.