English

Practical English Grammar


what good writers do


Good writers utilize effective sentence starters to interest their readers. You can do the same.
By using different starters, you use variety, a trait of strong writing.
Here are seven ways to start your sentences.

1 Gerund or gerund phrase

Learning was crucial for the new student. (gerund)
Finishing his art project on time brought Andy great relief.
(gerund phrase)

2 Participle or participial phrase

Smiling, Mom welcomed her guests into our house. (participle)
Jumping from the side of the pool, the young boy was enjoying himself.
(participial phrase)

3 Infinitive or infinitive phrase

To laugh is good for your health. (infinitive)
To win the trophy was the boater’s goal. (infinitive phrase)

4 Prepositional phrase

In the evening, Shirley and her friends play bridge. (prepositional phrase)
After an hour the cat felt better. (prepositional phrase)
5 Adverb

Slowly, the children exited the school bus. (adverb)
Intelligently, these scientists debated the heated topic. (adverb)

6 Adverb clause

Because the weather will be good for surfing, we plan on hitting the beach
tomorrow. (adverb clause)
Although the doctor will not be in this evening, her assistant can see you.
(adverb clause)

7 Adjective

Awed, the circus attendees watched the trapeze artist in action. (adjective)
Bright and curious, the scholarship students performed their experiments.
(two adjectives)

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Notes


Practical English Grammar - Notes
1. compound subjects part two
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2. Quotation Marks Part Three
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3. Italics Hyphens and Brackets
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4. complete and simple subjects
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5. Sound a like words Part Four
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6. Commas Part Two
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7. the adjective clause
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8. what good writers do
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9. The Apostrophe
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10. the indirect object
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11. Periods Question Marks and Exclamation Marks
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12. subject and verb agreement
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13. the object of the preposition
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14. Confusing usage words part five
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15. Commas Part Four
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16. First Capitalization List
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17. The coordinating conjunction
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18. Confusing usage words part three
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19. Quotation Marks Part One
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20. Quotation Marks Part Two
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21. compound subjects part one
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22. Confusing usage words part one
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23. Confusing usage words part three
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24. complex sentences
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25. Transitive and intransitive verbs
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26. subject verb agreement situations
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27. pronouns and their antecedents
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28. introducing phrases
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29. the prepositional phrase
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30. the participle and participial phrase
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31. agreement involving prepositional phrases
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32. the verb phrase
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33. types of nouns
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34. Regular Comparison of Adjectives and Adverbs
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35. Commas Part One
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36. agreement between indefinite pronouns and their antecedents
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37. the correlative conjunction
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38. the subordinating conjunction
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39. complete and simple predicates
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40. compound subject and compound predicate
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41. personal pronouns
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42. The nominative case
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43. the infinitive and infinitive phrase
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44. Confusing usage words part eight
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45. Parentheses Ellipsis Marks and Dashes
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46. The verb be
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47. regular verb tenses
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48. types of sentences by purpose
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49. subject complements predicate nominatives and predicate adjectives
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50. the noun adjective pronoun question
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