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In the previous post, I explained the basic "rules" for chunking up a sentence. To summarize:
- Type each chunk in its own box.
- Don't capitalize the first word of the first chunk unless it's a proper noun (name).
- Don't include punctuation marks that come at the end of a chunk.
- Keep the punctuation parks, commas ( , ) and quotation marks ( " ) when they are inside a chunk.
- Sometimes you might have a one-word chunk because it is part of a reduced clause or part of a compound subject, verb or object.
Now we have to figure out what to do with the leftover words, and more importantly, how to identify them.
Unconnected Words
Unconnected words basically fall into two categories: adverbs and coordinating conjunctions. When you have one of these unconnected words, type them in the second row of blanks.
Simple Adverbs: Adverbs are the single words that answer the questions when, where, why and how. For example:
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| Diagram 8 |
In this sentence, there are two unconnected adverbs, yesterday and late. However, adverbs can also come in the middle of a chunk, usually between the subject and verb or between a helping verb and a main verb. Look at the following example:
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| Diagram 9 |
There are two adverbs in this sentence, usually and early. Since early is at the end of the sentence, it is considered an unconnected word. However, usually is in the middle of a chunk, between the subject Dana and the verb comes. Therefore, it is included in the chunk.
Two Word Adverbs: One of the first decisions I had to make about adverbs was what to do with phrases like at least and of course.
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| Diagram 10 |
As you can see in I decided that these phrases should be considered phrasal adverbs and should be considered unconnected words. Also, online is an adverb because it answers the question where.
Adverb Complements: A complement is a word that follows a linking verb like be, become or seem. Usually complements are adjectives or nouns, but complements can also be adverbs. Consider the following examples:
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| Diagram 11 |
In the first example, here is part of the clause chunk because here comes after the linking verb is and is therefore the complement. On the other hand, in the second example here follows the action verb live. Therefore, it is not connected to the clause chunk and is considered an unconnected word.
Adverbs of Degree: Adverbs of degree are the words like very, really and so that increase (or decrease) the level. Very good is better than just good and less difficult is easier than just difficult. The problem is should so quickly be considered a chunk, even though quickly by itself would be considered an unconnected word? Or should they be considered two separate unconnected words?
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| Diagram 12 |
As you can see from this example, I decided to consider them unconnected words and split them up.
Adverbs Connected by And: As I was making some exercises, I came across another puzzler. What should I do with groups of words like back and forth and quickly and quietly?
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| Diagram 13 |
As you can see from this example, I decided to split them up because they don’t have to be together. Maybe the burglar just entered quickly. Or maybe he entered quickly but noisily. Or quietly and carefully.
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| Diagram 14 |
There are exception to this rule, of course. In the above example, back and forth must be kept together for two reasons. First, the tiger continued pacing. It didn’t walk just once. Secondly, you cannot remove one of the adverbs. Does it make sense to say the tiger walked back? The two words are obviously connected to one another. Other examples are now and then, meaning occasionally, again and again and over and over.
Coordinating Conjunctions: Coordinating Conjunctions are a small group of six simple word that are used to join two ideas together. The simplest ones are and, but and or. Whether they are part of a chunk or unconnected words depends on the information they are connecting.
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| Diagram 15 |
In this example, and is combining two nouns inside one chunk. This is called a compound object. In cases like this, the coordinating conjunction stays inside one larger chunk.
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| Diagram 16 |
In this example, however, and is connecting two separate clauses. The subject of the second clause is understood, but not written. In this case, and is considered and unconnected word. Unfortunately, there is grey area here. In the sentence The children were laughing and screaming in the park, I would keep laughing and screaming together because the actions are happening together and there are no objects after either verb. Hopefully you will be able to tell what I was thinking by the length and number of blanks in the exercises.
So and So that: The conjunction so can be a bit confusing. So, by itself, is a coordinating conjunction. So that is a subordinating conjunction that connects an adverb clause to a sentence. (Click here for diagrams to explain the difference between coordinating and subordinating conjunctions.) Look at the following examples:
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| Diagram 17 |
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| Diagram 18 |
In Diagram 17, so is a coordinating conjunction, so it is an unconnected word. You can tell this because of the comma in front of so. In Diagram 18, so is a subordinating conjunction so it is part of the second clause chunk. You can see that in this case, there is no comma in front of so. What makes this tricky is that that is often not written. If you are not sure, try putting that back in the sentence and see if it makes sense. (I always bring my iPad so that I have something to read.)
For - Conjunction or Preposition: For, as a coordinating conjunction, has the same meaning as because. It is important to not that for as a conjunction is very formal and literary. Therefore, it is not commonly used in everyday English. You will, however, see it frequently in literature.
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| Diagram 19 |
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| Diagram 20 |
In Diagram 19, for is a conjunction and in Diagram 20, for is a preposition. There are two ways to tell. First, when for is a conjunction, there is almost always a comma separating it from the previous chunk. Also, in the chunk that follows for, there is a main verb. When for is a preposition, it obviously cannot have a subject and main verb in the chunk.
Yet - Conjunction or Adverb: This one is a little easier. When yet is a conjunction, just like for, it is preceded by a comma and followed by a full clause with a subject and main verb. As an adverb, yet is almost always found at the end of a clause and is an unconnected word. For examples, look at the following examples.
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| Diagram 21 |
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| Diagram 22 |
As you can see, in either case, yet is an unconnected word.
It is impossible to anticipate every possible situation. The English language is so flexible that I am constantly coming across situations that make me stop and think. However, after finishing a bunch of exercises prior to writing the instructions, I think I have covered most of the big ones. Now you are ready to try it on your own.
And when you are ready for something even more challenging, go on to Split Chunks.
Aloha and Happy Chunking
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