Syntax simply means “word order.”
The effect word order has on a reader, nevertheless, is far from simple.
Grammar & Semantics
Grammar refers to classes of words and their relations in sentences—nouns, verbs, adjectives, etc. Syntax and grammar share a close relationship since word order depends, in part, on how words relate to each other grammatically.
Semantics, on the other hand, refers to the meaning or content of sentences. Changing syntax, the order of the words, will change the semantics in a sentence to a greater or lesser degree. Close reading for syntax is vital for comprehending meaning.
Syntax into Sentences
Before we dive into how English words are arranged to form sentences, therefore, now might be a good time to review the parts of speech: noun, pronoun, adjective, verb, adverb, conjunction, preposition, article, and—finally!—interjection.
Understanding the role of a single word in itself—i.e. the parts of speech—helps us understand syntax. Understanding how groups of words form clauses and phrases helps us understand sentences.
Ultimately, understanding how clauses and phrases work together helps us understand sentences and sentence patterns (and avoid common sentence errors).
I wish our clever young poets would remember my homely definitions of prose and poetry; that is, prose = words in their best order; —poetry the best words in the best order.
Samuel Coleridge
![Portrait of Samuel Taylor Coleridge by Peter Vandyke, 1795. National Portrait Gallery, London [PD-1996]. Coleridge knew the meaning of syntax.](https://misterdoctorcoachguy.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/SamuelTaylorColeridgeVandyke1795.png)
Also, understanding how syntax works may help us to learn how good writers control sentence length and build tension using periodic versus loose sentences.
Now, read below to learn how syntax and grammar work together—and think like a reader. Or, if you prefer, click to move on to the next literary element, Point of View.
The Parts of Speech
Noun
A noun indicates a person, place, or thing. A proper noun provides the individual name for the person, place, or thing.
nouns: man, spaceship, computer
proper nouns: Dave, USS Discovery One, HAL 9000
Adjective
An adjective describes a noun or pronoun.
doomed man, lost spaceship, malfunctioning computer
Adverb
An adverb describes an adjective, verb, or another adverb (the last being a special kind of adverb known as an intensifier). A majority of adverbs in English, though fewer of the intensifiers, end with “ly.”
inevitably doomed man, tragically lost spaceship, disastrously malfunctioning computer
think deliberately, fly carefully, murder quietly
rather deliberately, very carefully, so quietly
Conjunction
A conjunction joins clauses, phrases, or sentences together.
Coordinating conjunctions join the words together on equal terms. They are the FANBOYS: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so
John and Mary walked to the park.
Subordinating conjunctions subordinate one clause, phrase, or sentence to another one: when, if, because, since, whenever, while, as, once, like, unless, although, before, after, etc. There are many more subordinating conjunctions than the FANBOYS, or cordinating conjunctions.
John walked to the park when Mary left him.
Pronoun
A pronoun stands in for a noun or proper noun.
Note that the possessive form of a pronoun does not use an apostrophe: “its” indicates ownership (“its collar”) while “it’s” indicates a subject and verb (“It’s a collar”).
he, him, his; she, her, hers; they, them, theirs; it, its
Verb
A verb represents an action.
think, fly, murder
Preposition
A preposition qualifies a noun, usually but not always indicating a location in time or space.
after, above, at, before, beneath, beyond, during, despite, downward, except, following, for, from, in, into, inside, like, near, of, off, on, past, through, to, toward, with, within, without
Article
An article is one of only three special adjectives in English—“the,” “a,” or “an”—that indicate either a specific noun (the), or a general category of nouns (a or an).
Whether articles should be a separate part of speech or considered as just another adjective is a matter for debate amongst bored persons.
An inevitably doomed man carefully flies a tragically lost spaceship after the disastrously malfunctioning computer, HAL 9000, murders the crew.
Interjection
An interjection is an exclamation. Wow! The word or phrase interrupts for an emotional effect and is set off by an exclamation point.
The meeting is at 8am? Oh, no! I forgot to set my alarm.
Yikes! Yuck! Ugh! Whoa! Wow! What the heck! … and a whole host of curse words and phrases.
Clauses and Phrases
Sentences, at a basic level, may be divided into clauses and phrases.
Clause
A clause is a word or group of words with a subject and a predicate. It expresses a complete idea. A clause is the basic element necessary to make a sentence, e.g. “We left.” Put a period after a clause, and it will still make sense (as long as it is an independent clause—see more on that below).
Phrase
A phrase is a word or group of words that adds detail to some part of a clause. While they are not necessary to create complete sentences, phrases add detail, sometimes vital detail.
Example of a clause: We left.
Example of a phrase added to the clause: We left for school.
Put a period after the phrase “for school” on its own, and it won’t make sense:
For school. Yikes! That was a sentence fragment.
In the examples above, “for school” is a phrase describing the verb “left.” The main idea is expressed in the clause. The subject, “We,” did something, “left.” When the phrase is added, we learn a detail about part of that main idea. What was the nature of the leaving? It was a leaving “for school.”
Phrases may be added indefinitely to clauses. That is, we may add details to the main idea forever. Here is the same sentence with another type of phrase, an appositional phrase, added to modify the subject, “We:”
Example with an appositional phrase: We, tired of breakfast, left for school.
Appositional phrases are placed after a noun or pronoun, and separated with commas, to modify the noun or pronoun. A remarkable feature of appositional phrases is they can be strung together after a noun or pronoun endlessly, and they will go right on modifying it.
Example with three appositional phrases: We, tired of breakfast, bitter toward life, resigned to the schedule, left for school.
How are “we?” “We” are tired, resigned, and bitter. Go ahead, add more appositional phrases and see what happens to the sentence. The simple sentence “We left” now conveys much more with the addition of phrases. Clauses express a complete idea; phrases modify part of an idea.
Sentences
A single clause standing on its own as a complete sentence is called a simple sentence. All of the examples in the clauses and phrases section above are simple sentences. Clauses, however, can be joined together using conjunctions to make sentences with more than one complete idea in them.
If two clauses are joined by a coordinating conjunction, then the two clauses are independent clauses (IC) and share equal importance in the sentence.
Example of a compound sentence using two independent clauses: We left, and she missed us.
Example of a compound sentence using three independent clauses: We left, and she missed us, but we came home early.
Conjunctions and Commas
Note that a comma is necessary when a coordinating conjunction joins two independent clauses together. The coordinating conjunctions are easy to remember: “For,” “And,” “Nor,” “But,” “Or,” “Yet,” “So.” They form a memorable acronym—FANBOYS.
Compound sentences grow unwieldy fairly quickly, so it is important to be able to vary one’s sentence structure beyond them.
If two clauses are joined by a subordinating conjunction, one clause becomes a dependent clause (DC). A dependent clause begins with a subordinating conjunction and depends upon an independent clause to complete its meaning. The dependent clause is subordinate to that independent clause, like a private taking orders from his superior officer.
Someday the English teachers of the world are going to be made to suffer for what they do to writers.
Shirley Jackson
Here are some common subordinating conjunctions: when, if, because, since, whenever, while, as, once, like, unless, although, before, after. There are many, many more subordinating conjunctions than the FANBOYS.
Example of a dependent clause: When we left, she missed us.
Example with the order of the clauses reversed: She missed us when we left.
Notice how the meaning of the examples above changes subtly with the change in syntax. When a dependent clause comes first in the order, it requires a comma after it. An independent clause coming first needs no comma after it since the main idea has been expressed already.
There are four different types of sentences identifiable by the number and type of clauses in each:
Simple Sentences
A simple sentence has one independent clause. No matter how many phrases are present, it has the simple structure IC.
She loves to play.
She loves to play in the park.
Complex Sentences
A complex sentence has one independent clause and at least one dependent clause (DC).
Example starting with a dependent clause: Although she loves to play, he loves to work.
Example with two dependent clauses: Although she loves to play, he loves to work while the cat sleeps all day.
Compound Sentences
A compound sentence has two or more independent clauses.
She loves to play, and he loves to work.
She loves to play, but he loves to work, and the cat sleeps all day.
Compound-Complex Sentences
A compound-complex sentence is a compound sentence and a complex sentence combined. Note the two independent clauses in the example below separated by a dependent clause (in italics) between them. A transitional phrase, “even so,” introduces the final independent clause:
Example: He loves to play whenever she goes to work; even so, the cat sleeps all day.
Sentence Patterns Using Clauses
Incredibly, once one understands clauses, almost all sentences in the English language may be formed correctly using just four basic patterns.
Simple Sentence pattern (one independent clause):
IC.
They float.
Compound sentence patterns (more than one independent clause):
IC, conjunction IC.
IC; IC.
IC, conjunction IC; IC.
They float, and we swim.
They float; we swim.
They float, and we swim; the shark watches.
Complex sentence patterns (one independent clause with at least one dependent clause):
DC, IC.
IC DC.
DC, IC DC.
Whenever they float, we swim.
We swim whenever they float.
Whenever they float, we swim although the shark is watching.
Again, notice how a comma is necessary if the dependent clause (DC) comes before the independent clause (IC). There is a slight pause necessary for comprehension with this syntax. We do not need the comma if the main idea comes first.
The first thing I do in the morning is brush my teeth and sharpen my tongue.
Dorothy Parker
Furthermore, notice how a semi-colon can join two independent clauses. The semi-colon thus replaces the usual combination of comma and coordinating conjunction; more importantly, it suggests a closer connection between the independent clauses. As with every choice regarding syntax, structure affects how a sentence conveys meaning.
Finally, do not be confused by compound subjects or compound predicates. Both of the following examples are still simple sentences (although coordinating conjunctions are present). Here, the conjunctions merely link two subjects or two predicates:
Example of a compound subject: Wendy and John go to school.
Example of compound predicate: Wendy goes to school and goes to soccer.
Common Sentence Errors
Avoid common errors in sentences by studying how clauses and phrases work together.
As a child I assumed that when I reached adulthood, I would have grown-up thoughts.
David Sedaris
Sentence Fragments
Sentence fragments occur when a phrase or dependent clause attempts to stand on its own as a complete sentence. Remember, only an independent clause expresses a complete thought.
When she goes to school.
Run-on Sentences
Run-on sentences either lack the appropriate punctuation, or they string unrelated clauses and phrases together, or both.
When she goes to school John goes to soccer I am always happy to talk to her mother of course.
Comma Splices
Comma splices attempt to join two independent clauses together using only a comma with no coordinating conjunction.
Nice try, be different.
Spoken language, accompanied as it is by tacit communication including facial expressions and gestures, often breaks the rules of written language, including the use of fragments and run-ons. Written dialogue, usually set off by quotation marks, may appropriately include fragments and run-ons in simulating the spoken word. This is especially true of writing after the realism inaugurated by Dickens and Twain. For example, consider the following exchange from Toni Morrison’s novel Song of Solomon:
“What you want over there?” he asked.
“Work.”
“You don’t want to work over there,” he said.
Of course, an error is something unintentional. An intentional error might be art. Consider how great authors bend the rules of grammar and syntax to their will, and create art when you write. Challenge the rules. But use discretion.
Periodic versus Loose Sentences
Speaking of art, an author may use clauses and phrases to adjust sentence length. Length of sentences has an impact on the rhythm of one’s prose since longer sentences demand more of the reader’s endurance, and complicated sentence structures, such as the compound or compound-complex sentence, can tax one’s ability to follow the ideas. Good writers understand this well. Brevity pleases.
The tension in a longer or shorter sentence also depends on whether the sentence is loose or periodic.
Periodic Sentences
When a writer places the most important element of a sentence at the end, near the period, she is composing a periodic sentence. Because of the delay in completing the meaning, because of the vital element of an idea finding itself pushed closer to the period, the periodic sentence builds tension.
Around the bend, tires squealing, came my mother’s car.
Loose Sentences
Loose sentences put the most important element right up front, where the reader sees it right away, and subsequent phrases or clauses may be written afterward, with less tension, in a more relaxed or “loose” fashion.
My mother’s car, tires squealing, came around the bend.
Each of the two examples above uses the same nine words. Note how the change of syntax—word order—changes meaning. Close reading for syntax not only helps us appreciate well-written literature, but it may help us become better writers ourselves.
