Adapted from My Dog Bites the English Teacher, by Marian Anders

Change the time of the sentence by saying yesterday, every day, and tomorrow at the beginning of the sentence. When you change the time of the sentence, the verb will change automatically. Listen for the word or words that change when you change the time. The word is the verb.

Find the verb in this sentence: Steve ate the pizza. Yesterday Steve ATE a pizza. (past) Every day Steve EATS a pizza. (present) Tomorrow Steve WILL EAT a pizza. (future) The verb in the sentence is: ate

When you change the time to find the verb, use all three time words—yesterday, today, and tomorrow; the verb will change with two of them.

When you analyze a sentence, always find the verb first. Then you can find the subject by asking yourself, “Who or what performed the verb?” Example: Janisa baked a peach pie. Tomorrow Janisa WILL BAKE a peach pie. Every day Janisa BAKES a peach pie. The verb is baked. Now, to find the subject, ask yourself, “Who or what baked a peach pie?” The answer, of course, is Janisa. Were you tempted to choose pie as the subject? Ask yourself, “Did the pie bake anything?” No, Janisa baked it, so the subject is Janisa.

The difference between a clause and a phrase The difference between an independent clause and a dependent clause

Phrases, dependent clauses, and independent clauses are the building blocks that we use to make sentences. When you understand the difference between them, you will have the foundation for everything that comes next.

A clause is a group of words that has a subject and a verb. CLAUSE = SUBJECT + VERB A phrase is a group of words that doesn’t have a subject and a verb. PHRASE SUBJECT & VERB

We put clauses and phrases together to make sentences of different lengths. A very short sentence has just one clause. A complicated sentence could have several clauses and several phrases.

To determine whether a group of words is a clause or a phrase, just look for a verb and a subject: The world’s smallest dog is a Chihuahua Remember, look for a verb by changing the time of the sentence: Yesterday The world’s smallest dog WAS a Chihuahua Tomorrow The world’s smallest dog WILL BE a Chihuahua

Now look for a subject. The world’s smallest dog is a Chihuahua Ask yourself, “Who or what is a Chihuahua?” Which word would you choose? Dog. Underline the subject: The world’s smallest dog is a Chihuahua This group of words is a clause because it has a subject and a verb.

Now try this one: Lives in Wisconsin Look for a verb by changing the time: Yesterday LIVED in Wisconsin. Tomorrow WILL LIVE in Wisconsin. Highlight the verb: Lives in Wisconsin

Now look for a subject. “Who or what lives in Wisconsin?” It doesn’t say. This group of words doesn’t have a subject, so it is not a clause; it’s a phrase.

Here’s one more example: Only four inches tall at the shoulders Look for a verb by changing the time: Yesterday Only four inches tall at the shoulders Every day Only four inches tall at the shoulders Tomorrow Only four inches tall at the shoulders Nothing changed. This group of words does not have a verb. It’s a phrase. We don’t need to bother looking for a subject. A clause needs a subject and a verb. If a group of words doesn’t have a verb, it must be a phrase.

Now it’s time to practice finding PHRASES AND CLAUSES!

A preposition links nouns, adjectives, and phrases to other words in a sentence. Essentially, a preposition describes a relationship between other words in a sentence. To find a preposition, try this strategy: A preposition is a word that tells what a cat can do with a chair.

A cat can bein the chair under the chair beside the chair near the chair by the chair with the chair

A cat can jumpover the chair on the chair into the chair off the chair from the chair

A cat can run around the chair to the chair through the legs of the chair Monkey Bar Kitty A cat can be so still that it looks like part of the chair Camo Kitty

The subject or verb of a sentence will almost never be inside a prepositional phrase. So if you have a long sentence, you could first put parentheses around all the prepositional phrases. Then just look at the words left over to find the subject and verb. The cat ran around the chair and jumped into my lap. The cat ran (around the chair) and jumped (into my lap).

The mouse peeked out of his hole, darted across the floor, and disappeared under the couch. The mouse peeked (out of his hole), darted (across the floor), and disappeared (under the couch). The man sat on the grass under a shady tree in Central Park on a beautiful day in mid-July listening to his Ipod. The man sat (on the grass) (under a shady tree) (in Central Park) (on a beautiful day) (in mid-July) listening (to his Ipod). The subject or verb of a sentence will almost never be inside a prepositional phrase. So if you have a long sentence, you could first put parentheses around all the prepositional phrases. Then just look at the words left over to find the subject and verb.

The mouse peeked out of his hole, darted across the floor, and disappeared under the couch. The mouse peeked (out of his hole), darted (across the floor), and disappeared (under the couch). The man sat on the grass under a shady tree in Central Park on a beautiful day in mid-July listening to his Ipod. The man sat (on the grass) (under a shady tree) (in Central Park) (on a beautiful day) (in mid-July) listening (to his Ipod). The subject or verb of a sentence will almost never be inside a prepositional phrase. So if you have a long sentence, you could first put parentheses around all the prepositional phrases. Then just look at the words left over to find the subject and verb.

LET’S PRACTICE IDENTIFYING PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES.