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Welcome $playername.
So that's the name you go with when given a choice?
I see.
$playername, let's start with our example sentence. Here it is:
''"She kissed him yesterday."''
Okay. What is the //action// in the sentence?
<ul>
<li>[[She]]</li>
<li>[[kissed]]</li>
<li>[[him]]</li>
<li>[[yesterday]]</li>
</ul>
Sorry, "She" is not an action.
$playername, close your eyes and think of the word "she". What do you see?
[[I see...->a person]]
<b>$playername, you got it.</b>
Another word for the 'action' is 'verb'. Oh, did you already know that?
Let's see. Which word below is a verb?
<ul>
<li>[[you]]</li>
<li>[[ran]]</li>
<li>[[them]]</li>
</ul>
Sorry, "him" is not an action.
$playername, close your eyes and think of the word "him". What do you see?
[[I see...->a person 2]]Sorry, "yesterday" is not an action.
"Yesterday" is a time word. It tells us //when// something happened. Yesterday is just the time itself, there is no movement in the word.
[[Try again->A simple sentence]]
Sorry, "You" is not an action.
$playername, close your eyes and think of the word "you". What do you see?
[[I see...->a person you]]Looks like you got it. Actions are verbs and verbs are actions (we'll get into the nitty gritty exceptions later).
Remember this sentence?
<ul>
<li>"She kissed him yesterday."</li>
</ul>
Of course you do, it wasn't that long ago.
//Who// kissed him? I forgot.
<ul>
<li>[[she]]</li>
<li>[[himself]]</li>
<li>[[nobody]]</li>
</ul>
Sorry, "them" is not an action.
$playername, close your eyes and think of the word "them". What do you see?
[[I see...->a person them]]This might be true that he kissed himself, but not in this sentence.
$playername, let's be true to ourselves.
Which means we should be true to the sentence.
[[Try again->ran]]Well, that's sad. Nobody kissed him?
How lonely, try again with a less lonely answer.
[[Try again->ran]]
And this time $playername, don't project.
Oh, yeah. That's right.
"she" is the person who performed the action.
Sometimes it's not a person. Heh.
Can you think of a sentence where the subject is not a person?
[[Is your guess like mine?->dog kiss]]
Listen carefully $playername.
For now, everything that is //not// the action and is //not// the subject can be called 'complements'. This is because they 'complement' the action or the subject.
"him" tells us //who// she kissed. "yesterday" tells us //when// she kissed. They tell us more about the action 'kissed'. In other words, they complement 'kissed'.
[[Do you want to learn a bit more about 'complements'?]]
Or
[[Do you want to continue on with the lesson?]]
I know what you're thinking about. Just do it.
Easy.
A basic English sentences goes like this,
<ul>
<li>Subject + Verb + Complements</li>
</ul>
Or, in non-technical language
<ul>
<li>The thing that performs the action + the action + everything else. </li>
</ul>
Big whoop, you might be thinking. [[What does it matter?]]
$playername, incorrect.
Many sentences can be made without an adverb.
For instance,
<ul><li>The woman lifted the boxes. </li></ul>
There is no adverb in that sentence. Trust me, I know.
T[[ry again->Do you want to continue on with the lesson?]]$playername, incorrect.
Many sentences can be made without an adverb or an adjective.
For instance,
<ul><li>The woman lifted the boxes. </li></ul>
[[Try again->Do you want to continue on with the lesson?]]Good call. It doesn't hurt to learn. Right?
"She kissed him yesterday."
Complements give us more information about the subject or about the verb. In other words, they answer questions we might have about the subject or the verb. For instance,
<ul>
<li>When did she perform the action (kiss)?</li>
<li>Who did she kiss?</li>
</ul>
[["Yesterday" tells us when the action happened & "him" tells us the thing that received the kiss.->both yesterday and him]]
So, what ''three things'' create a simple English sentence?
<ul>
<li>[[subject, verb, complements]]</li>
<li>[[subject, noun, adverb]]</li>
<li>[[noun, adverb, adjective]]</li>
</ul>$playername, it matters a lot. Check this out.
<ul>
<li>"She kissed him yesterday."</li>
<li>"Yesterday, she kissed him."</li>
</ul>
Do you see the similiarites between the two sentences above?
Well, stop. It's their differences that matter.
The first sentence starts with the subject, but does the second?
[[yes]]
[[no]]
[[I don't know]]"Yesterday, she kissed him."
If "kissed" is the action, does "Yesterday" perform that action?
No. $playername. No.
The subject is always linked to the action, so "Yesterday" can not be the subject in this case.
[[Try again->What does it matter?]]Oh, good. You've been paying attention.
Let's look at our new sentence again.
<ul>
<li>"Yesterday, she kissed him."</li>
</ul>
So, we have learned one important thing already.
Well, two. If we count that we learned that we learned one important thing.
Don't think about it too much, okay? Let's just go to the what we learned.
<ul>
<li>When an English sentence doesn't begin with the subject, we generally use a comma.</li>
</ul>
See how there's a comma in the sentence above? Didn't you notice the differences?
I didn't. Remind me again, where does the comma go?
<ul>
<li>[[before the verb]]</li>
<li>[[before the subject]]</li>
<li>[[where I pause when reading the sentence]]</li>
</ul>If "kissed" is the action, does "Yesterday" perform that action?
[[Yes.->paying attention]]
[[No.->What does it matter?]]
"Yesterday, she kissed him."
Is "she" the verb? (the verb is the action).
No, so the comma does not go before the verb. Otherwise, it would look like this
<ul><li>Yesterday she, kissed him. </li></ul>
That is incorrect. Don't ever do that.
Ever.
[[Try again.->no]]You got it. And now I got it.
Why do you think it goes there?
"Yesterday, she kissed him."
We put the comma before the subject.
Why do we do this?
[[I'll let you in on a little secret.->whycommabefore]]
No. This is a common misunderstanding that leads to excessive comma use.
We can try it with our original sentence.
<ul><li>"She kissed him yesterday."</li></ul>
I could pause between "him" and "yesterday" if I wanted emphasize the time. Try saying it aloud with that pause.
Say it.
[[Say it aloud->aloud]]
$playername, can you follow directions? Here's some directions below. Follow them please.
<ul>
<li>//First//, decide whether the sentence needs a comma or not. </li>
<li>Then, decide where to put the comma. </li>
</ul>
''Sentence 1''
<ul>
<li>"For twenty years she has worked in the Netherlands." </li>
<ul><li><li>//Does the sentence need a comma?//</li></li>
<li><li>//If it does need a comma, where do we put it?//</li></li></ul>
</ul>
''Sentence 2''
<ul>
<li>"She has worked in the Netherlands for twenty years." </li>
<ul><li><li>//Does the sentence need a comma?//</li></li>
<li><li>//If it does need a comma, where do we put it?//</li></li></ul>
</ul>
[[Are you confident in your answers?->Answers]]
I hope so. //Original Sentence 1//
<ul>
<li>For twenty years she has worked in the Netherlands. </li>
</ul>
//Original Sentence 2//
<ul>
<li>She has worked in the Netherlands for twenty years. </li>
</ul>
Answers:
<ul>
<li>"For twenty years, she has worked in the Netherlands." </li>
<ul><li><li>//Yes, there should be a comma. //</li></li>
<li><li>//The comma goes before the subject 'she'.//</li></li></ul>
<li>"She has worked in the Netherlands for twenty years." </li>
<ul><li><li>//No, there should not be a comma. //</li></li></ul>
</ul>
How did you do?
Even though the two sentences above contain the same exact wording, the word order is different and that is why we use a comma.
[[Would you like to try out some more difficult practice?->More practice?]]
[[Or would you like to->Recap the lesson]]
Ah. Life is full of challenges and you want to give yourself more.
Okay.
''Which of the following sentences need a comma? Where?''
<ul>
<li>At the start of the movie the children ran away from home. </li>
<li>Previously we learned about rats. </li>
<li>The children ran away from home at the start of the movie. </li>
<li>We learned about rats previously. </li>
<li>Furthermore the lack of evidence proves my client is innocent. </li>
</ul>
[[Are you confident in your answers?->Answers for the sentences above]]
I'll be waiting.
$playername, you are a master of English simple sentences now.
Bravo.
Bravo.
Let's recap what we learned.
//An English sentence contains three parts://
<ul>
<li>subject, verb, complements. </li>
</ul>
//We use a comma when a sentence does not start with the subject.//
<ul>
<li>The comma is added before the subject. </li>
<li>We add the comma to tell the reader that the usual order of an <English sentence has been changed and to help communicate clearly <li>
</ul>
Next time we'll try compound and complex sentences.
Good luck. I guess I misjudged you. Alright then.
''Unjumble the sentences to form their original order. Pay attention to punctuation (e.g. commas!).''
Here's an example:
<ul>
<li>"/ ate / the man / Last night, / a really big sandwich./"</li>
</ul>
->
<ul>
<li>//Last night, the man ate a really big sandwich. //</li>
</ul>
Get it?
''Your turn. ''
<ul>
<li>/ ran / Thomas / yesterday. / </li>
<li>/ in her red sports car. / the really beautiful woman / drove away / Two weeks ago, / </li>
<li>/ Hawkeye / Before the latest Avengers movie, / was not a popular superhero /</li>
<li>/ in the next twenty years. / We / self-driving cars / will have / </li>
</ul>
Take your time. [[The answers will wait for you->Unjumbled answers here]]
//Jumbled sentences://
<ul>
<li>/ ran / Thomas / yesterday. / </li>
<li>/ in her red sports car. / the really beautiful woman / drove away / Two weeks ago, / </li>
<li>/ Hawkeye / Before the latest Avengers movie, / was not a popular superhero /</li>
<li>/ in the next twenty years. / We / self-driving cars / will have / </li>
</ul>
//Unjumbled sentences://
<ul>
<li>Thomas ran yesterday. </li>
<li>Two weeks ago, the really beautiful woman drove away in her red sports car. </li>
<li>Before the latest Avengers movie, Hawkeye was not a popular superhero.</li>
<li>We will have self-driving cars in the next twenty years. </li>
</ul>
Let me see how you did.
Oh.
Okay.
[[Let's just continue->Recap the lesson]]
Good call. We should make sure the idea is clear before we continue.
"She kissed him yesterday."
She is the subject in the sentence above since 'she' performed the action (kissed). We know that.
What are the subjects of the sentences below?
<ul>
<li>The dog ran in circles. </li>
<li>The notebook flew across the room. </li>
<li>Her nose twitched at the sight of the owl. </li>
</ul>
Choose wisely.
<ul>
<li>[[ran, flew, twitched]]</li>
<li>[[circles, the room, owl]]</li>
<li>[[the dog, the notebook, her nose]]</li>
</ul>
Sorry, these are all actions. All verbs.
Subjects are not actions. Close your eyes. What do you see when you think of 'ran'? 'flew'? 'twitched'?
[[Try again->more subjects]]While circles, the room, and owl can be subjects of sentences, they are not the subjects in these sentences.
The dog ran in circles.
<ul><li>What did the action?</li></ul>
The notebook flew across the room.
<ul><li>What did the action?</li></ul>
Her nose twitched at the sight of the owl.
<ul><li>What did the action?</li></ul>
[[The dog ran...The notebook flew...Her nose twitched...->circles the room are not]]
//Now we both know you got it.//
The dog, the notebook, and her nose are the things that performed the actions.
<ul>
<li>//The dog// 'ran' in circles.</li>
<li>//The notebook// 'flew' across the room.</li>
<li>//Her nose// 'twitched' at the sight of the owl.</li>
</ul>
Okay, so let's return to our original sentence. The one way back from the beginning. Our favorite sentence, ever.
"She kissed him yesterday."
Here's a stumper: If 'she' is the subject and 'kissed' is the action, then [[what are 'him' and 'yesterday']]?
''Which of the following sentences need a comma? Where?''
<ul>
<li>At the start of the movie',' the children ran away from home. </li>
<li><li>//Yes, before the subject 'the children'.//</li></li>
<li>Previously',' we learned about rats. </li>
<ul><li><li>//Yes, before the subject 'we'.//</li></li></ul>
<li>The children ran away from home at the start of the movie. </li>
<ul><li><li>//No comma. //</li></li></ul>
<li>We learned about rats previously. </li>
<ul><li><li>//No comma.//</li></li></ul>
<li>Furthermore',' the lack of evidence proves my client is innocent. </li>
<ul><li><li>//Yes, before the subject 'the lack of evidence'.//</li></li></ul>
</ul>
[[I have some more challenges for you. If you're brave enough.->Want to try sentence jumbles?]]
Oh. Not brave enough?
[[Skip the jumbles and Recap the lesson->Recap the lesson]]Ah, good call. I was going to suggest you learn a bit more about complements, anyway.
I'm glad we both know our limitations.
Like mine is to stay with this one sentence.
"She kissed him yesterday."
Let's use the same sentence above to see other examples of words that 'complement'.
What if I added the word that told us //how// she kissed him?
Let me think of a word to add. [[Can you help me?->complements]]
'She' is a person, but there's no movement in the word. No action. Just the person.
Okay?
[[Try again->A simple sentence]]'him' is a person, but there's no movement in the word. No action. Just the person.
Okay?
[[Try again->A simple sentence]]You. 'You' is a person, but there's no movement in the word. No action. Just the person.
Okay?
[[Try again->kissed]]Them. 'Them' is a group of people or things, but there's no movement in the word. No action. Just the group.
[[Try again->kissed]]"''The dog'' kissed him yesterday."
Was that your sentence, too?
Oh. Well. In any case.
''The thing'' that performs the action is called the 'subject'.
So, the subject is the thing that performs the action.
To recap what we've seen so far,
<ul>
<li>"She" = //subject//</li>
<li>"the dog" = //subject//</li>
<li>"kissed" = //action//</li>
</ul>
Okay.
[[Want more practice with subjects?->more subjects]]
If you feel overconfident in your abilities, then I have another question for you. [[Are you ready?->him and yesterday]]
Oh. You sure you don't want extra practice?
Okay then.
Here goes.
If 'she' is the subject, and 'kissed' is the verb, then [[what are 'him' and 'yesterday']]?
"She kissed ''him yesterday''.
You know the answer, smarty?
Circles, the room, or the owl are //NOT// the things that did the action, so they are not the subjects of these sentences.
I want to make sure we are on the same page, okay?
[[Try again->more subjects]]Both "yesterday" and "him" tell us more about the action "kiss", so they complement "kiss", they are complements.
Okay, maybe you've heard enough with that sentence. [[Want another sentence?->Want more examples of complements?]]
Are you done with complements? Already? If you think so, answer the question below:
What three things create a simple English sentence?
<ul>
<li>[[subject, verb, complements]]</li>
<li>[[subject, noun, adverb]]</li>
<li>[[noun, adverb, adjective]]</li>
</ul>
You can probably do it. $playername, are you paying attention? Taking good notes?
The subject is always linked to the action, so "Yesterday" can not be the subject in this case.
[[Try again->What does it matter?]]Did you remember to pause between "him" and "yesterday"?
<ul><li>"She kissed him yesterday."</li></ul>
Even if we paused, we do not add a comma.
We could say the other sentence without a pause even though there's a comma.
"Yesterday, she kissed him."
Try saying it aloud without a pause.
[[Did you say it?->aloud2]]
Seems okay to me.
Therefore, putting commas where you find yourself breathing (pauses) is a bad habit that leads to unclear written communication and poor grammar.
Repeat after me:
[[I promise I won't put commas when I feel like breathing->no]]We put the comma //before// the subject to let the reader know that the usual ordering (subject, verb, complements) has been changed.
This also lets the reader clearly see where the subject is in the sentence, which then helps the reader clearly understand who performed the action. It's all about clear communication.
Why else do we write if not to communicate?
[[Do you get it?->Let's try some practice]]"She //quickly// kissed him yesterday."
Ah, that helps.
'quickly' is not the subject and it is not the action. Instead, it tells us more about the action, so it is a complement.
It answers the question, //how// did she kiss him? (quickly)
What is a complement word in the sentence below?
<ul>
<li>"She passionately kissed him yesterday."</li>
</ul>
Oh, I'm sorry. I guess you got this.
[[Please, continue on. After you->Do you want to continue on with the lesson?]]Welcome to my lesson about simple English sentences.
To make this a more memorable experience for you, please tell me your name.
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