Make sentences in English. Writing sentences in English

Scheme 1: Subject + auxiliary or normal verb + object + adverbial

1. The subject is the person or object performing the action. The subject is:

1.1. Noun.

For example: Salt is white. White salt.

A boy is here. The boy is here.

1.2. Personal pronoun (answering the questions who?, what?).

For example: She is a doctor. She is a doctor.

1.3. Formal subject (it, there, one).

For example: One can do it. It can be done.

There are some desks in the classroom. There are several tables in the auditorium.

It is dark. Dark.

2. Predicate. The predicate is a verb in a simple form corresponding to the infinitive of the verb without the particle to.

For example: He lives in Rostov. He lives in Rostov.

To be can be a normal verb in a sentence and play the role of a predicate.

For example: I am a doctor. I am doctor.

In addition, the verb to be can be an auxiliary verb. In this case, it does not play an independent role in the sentence, but carries a constructive load and is not translated.

Eg: Are you reading? You are reading?

If a declarative sentence has a normal verb, there is no present or past auxiliary verb.

3. Addition. Answers the questions of who?, what?, to whom?, to what? The object can be non-prepositional, indirect, direct and prepositional indirect.

For example: I gave her a book. I gave her a book (her is a non-prepositional indirect object, and book is a direct object). The indirect non-prepositional object must come before the direct object.

I gave a book to her. I gave the book to her. (a book is a direct object, to her is a prepositional indirect object). The indirect prepositional object must come after the direct object.

4. Circumstance. There are circumstances of the course of action that answer the question How? – How?, places answering the question Where – Where?, and time answering the question When? - When?

If there is more than one circumstance in a sentence, then the circumstance of the manner of action is indicated first, then the circumstance of place and last the circumstance of time.

Note: adverbs of time and place may appear before the subject.

Scheme 2: Circumstance + subject + predicate + object + circumstance.

For example: Yesterday I watched TV with pleasure at home. I watched TV at home yesterday with pleasure (with pleasure is a circumstance of the manner of action, at home is a circumstance of place, yesterday is a circumstance of time).

Word order is direct if the subject comes before the predicate:

He helps his father every day.

Every day she reads periodicals.

Declarative sentences always have direct word order.

So, in a declarative sentence:

The subject is used before the predicate.

The prepositional definition must appear before the word being defined.

An adverbial clause can only appear in a sentence at the beginning and at the end.

The object comes after the predicate.

II. Interrogative sentence.

Interrogative sentences are general, special, alternative and disjunctive.

General ones are answered “yes” or “no”.

Word order schemes for general questions:

Scheme 3: Auxiliary verb + subject + semantic verb

Does he live in Rostov?

If the predicate is represented by the verbs to be and to have, then the sentence will not have an auxiliary verb.

Was he at home yesterday?

Has she got a dog?

Scheme 4: Modal verb + subject + semantic verb

Must we study English?

Special questions should begin with a question word.

Scheme 5: Question word + auxiliary verb + subject + object + semantic verb + adverbial

Where is he from?

What is her name?

Alternative questions are those that contain the particle or - or:

Diagram 6: General question + or + alternative.

Is he a teacher or a doctor?

A separating question contains an affirmation or negation + a short question.

Scheme 7: declarative sentence + auxiliary verb corresponding (in person and number) to the predicate of the main sentence + not + subject in pronoun form.

He is a doctor, is not he?

III. Negative sentence.

Diagram 8: Subject + auxiliary verb + not + predicate + object + adverbial

He is not a doctor.

Knowing how sentences are constructed in English is a fundamental key to speaking English correctly. Having well understood the principles of constructing different types of English sentences, you will be able to easily operate with different tenses, ask questions correctly, and speak English faster.

Strict word order in an English sentence

The construction of sentences in English requires clarification due to the dissimilarity of the syntax of English and Russian languages. For example, The boy was picking berries all day. can be translated in ten ways:

1. The boy picked berries all day
2. The boy picked berries all day
3. The boy spent the whole day picking berries
4. The boy picked berries all day
5. The boy spent the whole day picking berries
6. The boy picked berries all day
7. The boy picked berries all day
8. The boy picked berries all day
9. The boy picked berries all day
10. The boy picked berries all day

In English this will be only one option, where the word order is strictly defined - the subject is followed by the predicate, then the object and adverbial. On the one hand, it seems that such a limitation is annoying, but practice shows: the less room for maneuver, the less chance of error. In the end, constructing sentences in foreign speech according to a strictly defined scheme turns out to be easier than literally conveying ornate Russian thoughts.

The outline of a typical affirmative English sentence looks like this:

Exception for circumstance

There is one exception to the rule “subject, predicate, and then everything else” - this is a circumstance. In English it can appear in sentences in four different positions:

Before the subject - adverbial tense

Last night she left for Beijing - Last night she left for Beijing.

Between subject and predicate - adverbial frequency of action

Marcus rarely eats spinach - Marcus rarely eats spinach.

Between the auxiliary and main verb of the predicate - adverbs of image or time of action (adverbs)

Grant has never been to Penza - Grant has never been to Penza.

And according to the traditional scheme - after the addition, at the end of the sentence.

Flora broke the agreement at once - Flora immediately broke the agreement.

Construction of negative sentences in English

The word order in negative sentences in English differs from affirmative ones only by the particle NOT. The composition of the predicate in a negative sentence has the form "auxiliary verb + NOT + main verb".

Belinda did not show her impatience - Belinda did not show her impatience.

Construction of interrogative sentences in English

General issues

General questions (requiring a yes or no answer) in English always begin with an auxiliary verb. After it, the word order of the affirmative sentence is preserved.

Did the pupils stand still? - Did the students stand calmly?

Special questions

Special questions are clarifying in nature and begin with special “question words.” After such a word in a special question we put an auxiliary verb, and then again return to the affirmative word order.

Why did the pupils stand still? - Why did the students stand calmly?

Stylistic inversion in English.

The order of words in a sentence in English can change when a special stylistic device is used - inversion (reverse word order). Basically it is an artistic technique that serves to emotionally highlight some expression or thought.

And came empty days full of misery and despair. - And empty days came, full of suffering and despair.

Training and control.

Despite the fact that there is nothing complicated in the scheme of an English sentence, it is not so easy to introduce this very scheme into the Russian consciousness. We are used to being free with words. After all, thanks to endings, the order of words in a Russian sentence is not important.

When we learn to speak English, we automatically put English words in place of Russian ones, often completely distorting the meaning of what we want to say.

To develop automaticity in the correct order of words in a sentence in English, you need to build a thought over and over again according to the desired pattern. It is difficult to do this on your own. The lessons of the Lim-English training site are designed in such a way that the Russian and English versions of the sentences in them are almost word for word the same. By completing tasks on the site, you will not only understand how a sentence is constructed in English, but will also imperceptibly bring the skill of correct English speech to automatism. By the way, you can also find a rather rare phenomenon of stylistic inversion in Lim-English in beautiful English fairy tales.

In the lesson below we will look at a very important grammatical topic - the construction of declarative sentences in English. The construction of a declarative sentence in Russian is very different from English. Therefore, be careful and pay enough attention to this topic.

First, answer the question - what is a declarative sentence? A declarative sentence is a sentence that expresses the idea of ​​the presence or absence of some actual or alleged phenomenon. Accordingly, they can be affirmative or negative. They are usually pronounced with a falling intonation.

The Russian language is characterized by free word order, i.e. we can rearrange words in a sentence and its meaning will remain the same. This is due to the fact that the Russian language has a developed system of case endings.

For example:

• The bear killed the hare.
• The hare was killed by a bear.

As you can see, the meaning of the sentence has not changed much. Only the semantic emphasis depends on which member of the sentence comes first. That is, what we want to emphasize comes first. The word "bear" is in the nominative case and is the subject of the sentence wherever it appears. The word "hare" is in the accusative case and is a direct object wherever it appears.

Now let's do the same with the English sentence:

• The bear killed the rabbit.
• The rabbit killed the bear.

Rearranging the words in an English sentence radically changed its meaning. Now the second sentence is translated as “The hare killed the bear.” And all because in the English language there are practically no case endings and the function of a word is determined by its place in the sentence. In English, the subject always comes before the verb. And the word after the verb will serve as a direct object. Therefore, in the second English version it turned out that the word “rabbit” became the subject.

Remember the rule:

The word order in an English declarative sentence is direct (i.e., the subject first, and then the predicate) and strictly fixed!

Rules for constructing narrative sentences

Scheme of word order in an English sentence

Following the rules of this scheme, when constructing sentences in English, the grammatical basis is first put, i.e., subject and predicate. The complements follow immediately after the predicate. The indirect object answers the question “to whom?”, the direct object answers the question “what?”, and the prepositional object answers “for what?” How?".

As for circumstances, the circumstances of place and time can be either at the end of the sentence, or in the zero place before the subject. Review the following table:

According to the rules, the definition can appear with any member of the sentence that is expressed by a noun. It does not have a permanent place in the sentence and also does not change the general obligatory pattern for a declarative sentence. For example:

If necessary, each member of a sentence expressed by a noun can have two definitions: left (located to the left of the word to which it refers) and right definition or attributive phrases (located to the right of the word to which it refers).

Direct word order:

Inversion in a declarative sentence

Inversion in English is a change in word order in relation to the subject and predicate. That is, the placement of the predicate (or part of it) in front of the subject is called inversion.

In declarative sentences, inversion is observed:

1. If the predicate is expressed by the phrase there is/ are (there was/ were, there’ll be, there has been, there can be, etc.).
Examples:

• There is a big lake near our house - There is a big lake near our house (there is - predicate, a lake - subject)
• There was nothing on the table when I returned - There was nothing on the table when I returned

2. In short sentences expressing confirmation or denial with the words so or neither - “So (Neither) do (have, am, can) I”, which are translated by the expression “And I too.” In such replica sentences, the auxiliary verb do is placed before the subject (if in the predicate of the previous sentence the main verb was in the Present Simple or Past Simple) or the verbs will, be, have and other auxiliary and modal verbs (if they were contained in the predicate of the previous sentence).

• She knows Spanish very well. − So does her brother. (She knows Spanish very well. - Her brother too.)
• I like the ice-cream very much. − So do I. (I love ice cream. - Me too.)
• They came too late. − So did we. (They arrived too late. - So did we.)
• I haven’t eaten this ace-cream yet. − Neither have I. (I haven’t eaten this ice cream yet. — Me neither.)
• She can't go home now. − Neither саn I. (She can’t go home now. — Neither can I.)

3. If the sentence begins with the adverbs here - here, there - over there, now, then, and the subject is expressed by a noun.

• Here are the pencils you’d been looking for − Here are the pencils you were looking for
• Here is an example - Here is an example

If the subject is expressed by a personal pronoun, direct word order is used in the sentence.

• Nehe you are − Here you go
• Here it is − Here it is

4. With the verbs had, were, should in a non-union conditional clause.

• Should you meet him in town, ask him to ring me up - If you meet him in the city, ask him to call me

5. In words introducing direct speech, when these words come after direct speech and the subject is expressed by a noun.

• “Who can read the text?” — asked the teacher — “Who can read the text?” - asked the teacher

If the subject in words introducing direct speech is expressed by a personal pronoun, inversion is not used.

• “Who can read the text?” — he asked — “Who can read the text?” - he asked

By remembering the rules for constructing narrative sentences in English, you will be able to correctly express your thoughts. The main thing is to remember what direct word order looks like in English, i.e. learn the scheme. Good luck in learning English! ( 5 Votes: 4,20 out of 5)

Sentences in English can have a completely different word order than in Russian. At the same time, during translation it is worth adhering to certain rules, for example, if in Russian we see first the main part of the sentence, and then the subject, then in English it may be different. Let's look at different English sentences with translation to clearly see how to translate sentences from one language to another.

• Grandmother has come! => Grandma has arrived!
• Daddy has arrived! => Dad has arrived!
• My friends have come too late => My friends came too late.
• You are having very good time => You are having a great time.

Take a close look at these offers. You will notice that they consist of a different number of words. The first two are not common, the second two are common.

Non-extended ones are those in which only the main (main) members of the sentence are present, namely the predicate and subject. As for the common ones, there are also other (minor) members. They are circumstances, definitions, additions, etc.

Examples of translation of simple sentences (common and uncommon):

• Mother says. => Mom says.
• Children are playing. => Children are playing.
• Grandfather has done. => Grandfather did it.
• Mary is her best friend. => Mary is her best friend.
• The girl is enjoying the sunshine. => The girl enjoys the sunlight (warmth).
• The boy is smiling to her. => The boy smiles at her.

Features of translation when there is no subject

If we talk about simple sentences, then it is important to remember that they are divided into several types. You need to know the categories in order to translate sentences correctly. For example, in personal sentences that denote an expressed person or thing, the subject may be absent, but this does not mean that it does not need to be translated:

• My mother will come in a minute. => My mother will come in a minute (subject present).
• She looks at the window. Stands up. Sits down. Again stands up. She doesn't know what to do. => She looks out the window. Rises. Sits down. He gets up again. She doesn't know what to do.

From the example it is clear that the word she is not present in all sentences, but, nevertheless, it is implied there. There is no need to use the word “she” in every sentence. She gets up. She sits down. She gets up again. It is not right. It is enough to translate she once, and then it is clear from the meaning that the word should be in the sentence.

Features of translation from one and they

When we talk about indefinite-personal sentences, then the subject expresses something indefinite (an object or a person). To convey this (undefined) something in English, we use one And they:

• One can study English only if he wants to. => A person can learn English only if he wants (you cannot force a person to do something).
• One can bake a cake only if he knows how to do it. => A person can bake a cake only if he knows how to do it.
• One can become a policeman only if he is a brave one. => Only those who are brave can become a policeman.
• They say, the summer will be hot. => They say the summer will be hot.
• They say, the meeting will be very interesting. => They say that the meeting will be very interesting.

The examples clearly show that when translating into Russian we omit some words that are present in English. For example, they. Yes, we are writing They say, and not just say, but translate without they: They say, not they say. A similar situation with the word One. In our examples One translated as man and policeman, but the translation is not limited to these words. It all depends on the context.

Features of the translation of impersonal sentences

An interesting situation with translation lies in impersonal sentences. The peculiarity of such proposals is that they do not have an active person. How to translate them into Russian? No subject.

Here are some examples:

• It is snowing. => It's snowing.
• It is sunshining. => The sun is shining.
• It is cold. => It's cold.
• It becomes dark very early. => It gets dark very early.

In English impersonal sentences it is used it, which is not translated in Russian. We omit this part of the sentence.

More sentences with translation into Russian:

• It seems that you have seen this man before. => It seems like you've seen this person before.
• It is known that these guys are very talented. => They know these guys are very talented.
• It becomes deeper and deeper step by step. => Step by step it gets deeper and deeper.

Note! English sentences cannot be translated word for word. They need to be translated comprehensively. For example, in the last sentence we first translate step by step, and then It becomes deeper and deeper, although in the sentence it’s the other way around. You can, of course, translate It gets deeper step by step, but Step by step it gets deeper sounds better.

Features of translating complex sentences

Such sentences necessarily have coordinating conjunctions. neither .. .nor, as well as, not only … but also, but, etc. Such sentences, consisting of two or three parts, are also separated by commas. This is easier for both perception and translation.

On a note! Simple sentences in complex sentences must be pronounced with a falling intonation.

• A cold wind was blowing and a snowstorm began. => A cold wind blew and a snowstorm began.

In this sentence the coordinating subject is and, but the sentence is a compound one, not a simple one. The fact is that both sentences (simple, part of a complex) have a predicate and a subject. If we took, for example, It was cool and windy, then it is clear that this is a simple sentence, because It was also applies to cool, and to windy.

But in the proposal A cold wind was blowing and a snowstorm began we see two separate full-fledged sentences - 1) A cold wind was blowing, and 2) a snowstorm began.

Here are some more examples:

• The metal is made up of irregularly shaped grains, and these tiny grains are the bundling blocks of the metal. => Metal consists of grains of irregular shape, and these tiny grains are the building mass of the metal.
• I wanted to buy a baby Chihuahua, so I started to save my money. => I wanted to buy a Chihuahua puppy, And so I started saving money.
• His dog has won many prizes, but she doesn't know many tricks. => His dog has won many awards, But she doesn't know a lot of tricks.
• I will be glad to help you; I love to cook. => I will be happy to help you; I like to cook.

Note! Complex sentences can be translated without conjunctions. A good example is the last sentence.

In addition to complex sentences, there are also complex sentences, and they, in turn, also have their own subtypes. This is a different topic. We will look at it in our other articles.

Let's sum it up

When we study English sentences with translation from Russian into English, it is better to start training with simple ones, and then take on complex ones. If you learn to correctly translate easy sentences, you will learn to competently cope with complex ones. In the latter case, you will need to learn coordinating conjunctions, which are links between sentences. Do exercises regularly and improve your skills. Good luck!