Sentence Analysis, part 5
How to determine sentence constituents?
First we should mention that we distinguish between four types of sentences: declarative, interrogative, imperative and exclamative. In this book, we only deal with analysing declarative sentences (though fundaments of sentence analyses are the same in all types of sentences). As a simple definition of declarative sentences, we can say that declarative sentences convey information.
Now, how do we distinguish sentence constituents? As mentioned above, declarative sentences convey information. A simple way to determine the constituents of a declarative sentence is to try to find out how many pieces of information the sentence conveys. Those pieces of information will then be the sentence constituents. In other words, when you want to analyse a sentence, a simple way is to think of the sentence as a piece of news that you give to a friend, and then notice how many pieces of information you give to your friend by that sentence. This information could for example be about who/what, did what, to whom, where, when, for how long, why, how, in which way, how often, under which circumstances etc.
Look at this sentence:
The teachers will go on a vacation next month.
Imagine that you uttered this sentence to your friend. How many pieces of information are you giving to your friend by this sentence?
Clearly, you are talking about these pieces of information:
who: the teachers, do what: will go, where: on a vacation, when: next month.
Therefore, your sentence consists of these constituents:
The teachers | will go | on a vacation | next month.
It is actually as simple as that to determine the constituents of any given sentence. A good tip is thought to always first find the verb of the sentence. Then, continue with finding the pieces of information given in the sentence.