There are five ways that sentences are classified:
10 according to basic pattern
4 according to structure (may be only 3)
4 according to use
3 according to style (may be 4)
7 according to variety
- Subject - Being Verb - Adverb
- Subject - Being Verb - Adjective (Predicate Adjective)
- Subject - Being Verb - Noun (Predicate Nominative)
- Subject - Linking Verb - Adjective (Predicate Adjective)
- Subject - Linking Verb - Noun (Predicate Nominative)
- Subject - Action Verb (Intransitive)
- Subject - Action Verb - Direct Object (Transitive)
- Subject - Action Verb - Indirect Object - Direct Object (to or for, what)
- Subject - Action Verb - Direct Object - Adjective (Object Complement)
- Subject - Action Verb - Direct Object - Noun (Object Appositive)
A briefer version uses only 7 sentence patterns:
- S+V / (subject-intransitive verb)
- S+V+SP / (subject-linking verb-adverb)
- S+V+A / (subject-linking verb-adjective)
- S+V+DO / (subject-transitive verb-direct object
- S+V+IO+DO / (subject-transitive verb-indirect object-direct object)
- S+V+O+A / (subject-transitive verb-direct object-adverb)
- S+V+DO+OP / subject-transitive verb-direct object-object complement
- SIMPLE
- COMPOUND
- COMPLEX
- *COMPOUND-COMPLEX
- DECLARATIVE
- INTERROGATIVE
- IMPERATIVE
- EXCLAMATORY
- Loose sentence - the main point is stated, with following clauses
- Periodic sentence - the main point is in a preceding dependent clause
- Balanced sentence - two parts of the sentence compared in the same form
(sometimes) 4. Cumulative sentence - main point presaged by description