5 steps to write good sentences

Good sentences are a great way to build your writing. They are the building blocks of great paragraphs.

It is quite easy to write good sentences when these 5 steps are diligently kept in mind.

1. Express complete idea.

Mangoes on the tree does not give complete thought, Whereas,

There are ripe mangoes on the tree gives a complete thought.

             Avoid fragmented sentences

Because of the party is an example of fragmented sentence as the thought is incomplete. 

Because needs an effect to make the above phrase into a sentence.

 I was not able to complete my work because of the party.

2. Use correct punctuation marks

Always begin a sentence with capital letter and end with a punctuation mark. The terminal punctuation marks also called as end marks of a sentence can be a period / full stop (.), a question mark (?) or an exclamation mark (!).

 Internal punctuation marks are used within a sentence to convey the message in the sentence better.

 Read Also: Internal Punctuation Marks

3. Include details

Every sentence must have a subject and a verb. 

                     Ram   eats.

                      S   +   V 

A sentence can also have an object.

                     Ram eats oranges.

                       S    + V  +   O

This sentence answers the question “What does Sam eat?” 

But this sentence just states a fact.

To make it a good sentence, add facts like 5 Ws and 1 H  -  Who, What, When, Where, Why and How.

                  Ram eats oranges everyday.

                  Ram eats oranges everyday after breakfast and lunch.

The more facts you add, the more interest it evokes in the reader.

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    4. Create images with words

Compare the following two sentences -

                 The boy was running fast.

                The thin boy in torn clothes and shaggy hair was running fast.

The second sentence immediately brings an image to the readers’ mind.

             The thin boy in torn clothes and shaggy hair was running fast. A                     crowd of well dressed men with two dogs in leash were following him.

These two sentences give us a lot of scope for action filled paragraph.

5. Use only words that are necessary

Avoid redundancy i.e. using more words than necessary. Pleonasm and Tautology are examples of redundancy.

The term for using a word which adds no extra meaning to a sentence is Pleonasm.

A Pleonasm is a redundant phrase or clause. Pleonasm is where more words than necessary are used to convey an idea

Conscientiously practicing these 5 steps will definitely make you write good sentences.

Read more on Redundancy

Read next : how to write great paragraphs

Tags :  writing, redundancy, pleonasm, tautology

 

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