Chunky Language Exercises ;; Part 2 - Unconnected Words >>
I believe that this is the foundation of understanding grammar and will absolutely help you improve quickly. You will see connections in sentences better. You will learn to guess parts of speech (which is essential for learning new vocabulary). You will improve SAT or TOEFL scores, especially on the grammar and writing sections. And you will ultimately become a better reader, writer and speaker of English.
I have created a number of exercises to practice chunking up sentences. This is an explanation of how to do these exercises. It may be difficult at first, but with patience and practice, you will soon figure this process out.
The Basics
There are two basic kinds of chunks, clauses (which have a subject, verb and often object or complement), and phrases (the most common of which are prepositional phrases).
Let’s start with a simple sentence.
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| Diagram 1 |
Simply rewrite the sentences in the boxes. Each chunk goes in its own box.
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| Diagram 2 |
This particular sentence has two chunks. The first is a clause and the second is a prepositional phrase. Easy, right?
Unfortunately, due to the limitations of the exercises I have created, there are a few rules that must be followed. A simple capitalization or punctuation error will make the entire chunk "wrong" according to the computer.
What to do with Capitalization and Punctuation Marks
Capitalization: The first word of the first chunk should NOT be capitalized unless it is a
proper noun and would always be capitalized.
End Marks: You don’t need to copy end marks, like periods ( . ) or question marks ( ? )
Commas: If the comma is dividing two chunks – comes at the end of one chunk – do NOT copy it.
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| Diagram 3 |
However, if the comma is used to connect a list of words INSIDE one chunk, you must copy the commas as well.
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| Diagram 4 |
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| Diagram 5 |
There are several things to notice in the above diagrams. First, in Diagram 4, on is not capitalized in the first chunk and there is no comma after Tuesday. Second, in Diagram 5, the commas in the middle of the chunk, after history and math are still there. Also, the word today is not included in any chunk, which will be explained later and, finally, the sentence is just one big chunk.
One Word Chunks
Although the general rule is that a chunk must have at least TWO words, there are often times when a chunk will have only one word.
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| Diagram 6 |
In Diagram 6, sitting is one chunk by itself because it is part of a reduced adjective clause. The full chunk is who is sitting, but the rules of reduction say that you don’t have to say or write who is, but they are still understood. Other single-word chunks include compound nouns and verbs.
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| Diagram 7 |
In this case, the main clause has a compound verb. Jumped is the second main verb and is connected to the subject I. However, it is not necessary to repeat the same words when speaking or writing.
You may notice that, like today in Diagram 5, the conjunction and is not in any chunk. This is another example of an unconnected word and will be explained in the next section.
Chunky Language Exercises ;; Part 2 - Unconnected Words >>
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