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A Concise Guide to English Grammar

Phillip Haisley

Section 7.8 Homework: Introduction to Sentence Diagramming

Subsection 7.8.1 Part 1: Subject and Predicate Identification

Instructions.

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For each sentence, identify the complete subject NP and the complete predicate VP. Then identify the head of each.
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Example (completed).

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Sentence: The exhausted marathon runner from Kenya finally collapsed at the finish line.
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  • Subject NP: The exhausted marathon runner from Kenya
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  • Head of subject NP: runner
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  • Predicate VP: finally collapsed at the finish line
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  • Head of predicate VP: collapsed
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Exercises.

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Exercise 1. The curious students from the advanced chemistry class carefully examined the unusual compound.
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Exercise 2. My extremely talented older sister from Portland won the national competition.
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Exercise 3. Several angry protesters outside the courthouse demanded immediate action.
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Subsection 7.8.2 Part 2: Heads and Modifiers

Instructions.

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For each phrase, identify the head and list all modifiers. Classify each modifier by type (determiner, adjective, adverb, prepositional phrase, etc.).
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Example (completed).

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Phrase: the very tall young basketball player from Chicago
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  • Head: player
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  • Modifiers:
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    • the — determiner
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    • very tall — adjective phrase (containing adverb “very” + adjective “tall”)
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    • young — adjective
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    • basketball — noun (functioning adjectivally)
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    • from Chicago — prepositional phrase
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Exercises.

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Exercise 4. my grandmother’s beautiful antique wooden jewelry box
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Exercise 5. extremely carefully
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Exercise 6. quite proud of her remarkable achievement
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Subsection 7.8.3 Part 3: Completing Sentence Tables

Instructions.

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Each table below is partially completed. Fill in the missing rows. Remember to work from the bottom up: identify POS first, then Phrases, then Roles. For now, use only two roles: Subject and Predicate.
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Example (completed).

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Sentence: She arrived.
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Role Subject Predicate
Phrase NP VP
Word She arrived
POS PRON V
Bracket notation: [S [NP [PRON She]] [VP [V arrived]]]
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Syntax tree for "She arrived" showing NP (She) and VP (arrived)

Exercises.

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Exercise 7. Complete the Phrase and Role rows for: Thunder rumbled.
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Role _____ _____
Phrase _____ _____
Word Thunder rumbled
POS N V
Exercise 8. Complete the POS, Phrase, and Role rows for: The old man sat quietly.
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Role _____ _____
Phrase _____ _____ _____
Word The old man sat quietly
POS _____ _____ _____ _____ _____
Exercise 9. Complete the Phrase and POS rows for: The cat chased the mouse.
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Role Subject Predicate
Phrase _____ _____ _____
Word The cat chased the mouse
POS _____ _____ _____ _____ _____
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Subsection 7.8.4 Part 4: Completing Diagrams and Tables

Instructions.

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For each sentence below, (a) draw a tree diagram showing its hierarchical structure and (b) complete a sentence labeling table. Label all nodes using ALL CAPS labels (S, NP, VP, DET, N, V, ADJ, ADV, PREP, etc.). You may draw tree diagrams by hand and photograph them, use a digital tool, or describe the structure in bracket notation.
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Example (completed).

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Sentence: The cat slept.
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Multi-level labeling table for "The cat slept"
Bracket notation: [S [NP [DET The] [N cat]] [VP [V slept]]]
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Role Subject Predicate
Phrase NP VP
Word The cat slept
POS DET N V
Syntax tree for "The cat slept" showing NP (DET The, N cat) and VP (V slept)

Exercises.

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Exercise 10. The dog barked loudly.
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Role
Phrase
Word The dog barked loudly
POS
Exercise 11. The talented student from Ohio won the award.
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Role
Phrase
Word The talented student from Ohio won the award
POS
Exercise 12. She carefully read the interesting book.
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Role
Phrase
Word She carefully read the interesting book
POS
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Subsection 7.8.5 Part 5: Structural Ambiguity Analysis

Instructions.

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The sentences below are structurally ambiguous—they can be understood in more than one way because of how their parts can be grouped. For each sentence, create tree diagrams to show the different possible structures and explain why the ambiguity arises.
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Exercises.

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Exercise 13. The comedian Groucho Marx once joked: I shot an elephant in my pajamas. How he got in my pajamas, I will never know.
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a) Focusing on the first sentence, describe its two possible meanings:
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b) Draw a tree diagram for each reading of the first sentence. Pay close attention to where the PP “in my pajamas” attaches—does it attach to the VP or to the NP “an elephant”?
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c) In a paragraph, explain why this sentence is funny. What structural ambiguity makes the joke work? Which reading does the audience expect, and which reading does Groucho intend?
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Exercise 14. Read the following sentence carefully: The horse raced past the barn fell.
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This is called a garden-path sentence—a sentence that leads the reader down one structural path before revealing that a different structure was intended. (Hint: try reading it as “The horse that was raced past the barn fell.”)
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a) Describe the initial reading that most people attempt when they first encounter this sentence. Why does it seem to "break" at the word “fell”?
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b) Now describe the correct reading of the sentence. What role does “raced past the barn” play in the sentence?
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c) Draw two tree diagrams (or write bracket notation) for this sentence:
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  • Diagram 1 — The garden-path (incorrect) reading, where “raced” is parsed as the main verb: _____
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  • Diagram 2 — The correct reading, where “raced past the barn” is a VP modifying “horse” and “fell” is the main verb in the predicate: _____
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d) In a paragraph, explain why garden-path sentences cause confusion. What does this tell us about how our brains process sentence structure in real time?
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