Spice Up Your Writing with Sentence Variety.

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Spice Up Your Writing with Sentence Variety.
Variety is the Spice of Life!
by Carol Dillon
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Why Sentence Variety?

• If our sentences feel, sound or
• look the same, they may
• Distract readers
• Cause them to lose interest
• Shift their attention from our message to our
  writing style

some options . . .
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Spice up yourwriting . . .vary yoursentences

• Sentence Length
• Sentence Structure

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Definitions Needed

• Sentence
• Subject
• Verb

• Clause
• Independent Clause
• Dependent Clause

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Definitions (cont.)

• A sentence is a group of words that expresses a
  complete thought.
• Francine dances.
• A subject is what the sentence is about.
• Francine dances.
• A verb is a word that expresses an action or
  links the subject to the rest of the sentence.
• Francine is a professional dancer.
• Francine dances in competitions.

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Definitions (cont.)

• Clause a group of words that contains a subject
  and a verb that indicates time.
• An independent clause can stand alone as a
  sentence.
• Francine (subject) dances (verb that indicates
  present time).

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Definitions (cont.)

• A dependent clause cannot stand alone - it
  depends on another clause.
• While Francine dances (dependent), she always
  smiles (independent).
• Notice that the word while makes this clause
  dependent.

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Sentence Length
Spice it up

• Short
• Long

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Spice it upvary length
Use Short Sentences

• Save for important statements
• Use to emphasize critical information
• The people of this small nation stood together
  against tyranny and won.
• Methamphetamine labs pose a threat to every
  person in every community.

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Long SentencesCoordinate Ideas

• Short
• The federal government needed to raise taxes.
  Lawmakers knew that the people would object.
• Revised
• The federal government needed to raise taxes
  lawmakers knew that the people would object.

or...
Spice it upvary length
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Relate Coordinating Ideas Use a Comma with a
Coordinating Conjunction

• The federal government needed to raise taxes,
  but legislators knew that the people would
  object.
• OR
• The federal government needed to raise taxes,
  and legislators knew that the people would
  object.

but and for nor or so yet
Spice it upvary length
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Relate Coordinating Ideas Use a Heavier
Conjunction

• Use words like however, therefore, consequently,
  etc. after a semicolon to show the relationship
  of the two ideas.
• Follow the word showing the relationship with a
  comma. (These conjunctions are always set apart
  from the rest of the sentence with commas.)
• The federal government needed to raise taxes
  however, lawmakers knew that the people would
  object.

Spice it upvary length
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Subordinate LessImportant Ideas

• Add a condition (if, because, although, when,
  etc.) to make one of the ideas dependent on the
  other.

• Short
• Sandy had a headache. She was in no mood to
  watch Desperate Housewives with her roommates.

Revised Because Sandy had a headache, she was
in no mood to watch Desperate Housewives with her
roommates.
Spice it upvary length
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Sentence Structure
Spice it up

• Adverbs
• Prepositional Phrases
• Appositives
• ed Verb Forms
• ing Verb Forms
• Adjectives Clauses

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Start with an Adverb

• Begin the sentence with an adverb.
• (a word that tells how, when, why, etc.)

• We walked slowly over the icy sidewalks to the
  cafeteria.
• Revised Slowly we walked over the icy sidewalks
  to the cafeteria.
• (for emphasis, add a comma after the adverb)
• Slowly, we walked over the icy sidewalks.

Spice it upvary structure
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Start witha Prepositional Phrase

• Chuck could see from his window the frozen pond
  and wondered if he could finally skate on it.
• Revised From his window Chuck could see the
  frozen pond and wondered if he could finally
  skate on it.
• (Note If the prepositional phrase is 4 or more
  words, add a comma after the phrase.)

Spice it upvary structure
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Use an Appositive

• Margaret was an avid reader. She would devour
  two or three books every weekend.
• Revised An avid reader, Margaret would devour
  two or three books every weekend.
• OR
• Margaret, an avid reader, would devour two or
  three books every weekend.

• A noun or noun phrase that identifies something
  or someone

Spice it upvary structure
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Use an ed Verb Form

• Jenny was renowned for her landscape paintings.
  She also had a reputation as a skillful portrait
  artist.
• Revised Renowned for her landscape paintings,
  Jenny also had a reputation as a skillful
  portrait artist.

Spice it upvary structure
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Use an ing Verb Form

• Henry traveled across the country interviewing
  the homeless. He was gathering information for a
  book.
• Revised Gathering information for a new book,
  Henry traveled across the country interviewing
  the homeless.

Spice it upvary structure
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Use Adjective Clausesto Join Ideas

• Settlers often transported all of their
  possessions in covered wagons. They could take
  only the essentials to start a new life.
• Revised Settlers, who could take only the
  essentials to start a new life, often transported
  all of their possessions in covered wagons.

Spice it upvary structure
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Summary

• The content of your paper may be
• fascinating, but if your sentences are the
• same length and/or the same structure,
• readers will likely judge your writing to be
• boring.

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Practice These Techniques

• Try varying the sentences in one of your own
  paragraphs.
• OR
• Vary the sentences in the paragraph that follows.

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Sentence Variety Exercise

• Read the following paragraph, noting the places
  where it could be revised.
• The local community wanted to get involved with
  a recycling program. They knew that the
  alternative was building another landfill. The
  city council met in a special session. They
  decided to get bids for curbside service from two
  local companies and three companies outside the
  city. The bids were all unfortunately about the
  same amount. The council decided to sign a
  10-year contract with one of the local companies.
  The company chosen had been a part of the
  community for almost 20 years. It had a sterling
  reputation for its dependability. The members of
  the community have overwhelmingly supported the
  new program. They are excited about contributing
  to their community and the environment.
• Write your revision of this paragraph below.
• _________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  __________________________________________________
  _____

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A Revised Version

• The local community wanted to get involved with
  a recycling program because the people knew that
  the alternative was building another landfill.
  Meeting in a special session, the city council
  decided to get bids for curbside service from two
  local companies and three companies outside the
  city. Unfortunately, the bids were all about the
  same amount. The company chosen, a part of the
  community for almost 20 years, had a sterling
  reputation for its dependability. Overwhelmingly,
  the members of the community have supported the
  new program and are excited about contributing to
  their community and the environment.

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Side-By-Side They Look Like This

• Needs Revision
• The local community wanted to get involved with a
  recycling program. They knew that the alternative
  was building another landfill. The city council
  met in a special session. They decided to get
  bids for curbside service from two local
  companies and three companies outside the city.
  The bids were all unfortunately about the same
  amount. The council decided to sign a 10-year
  contract with one of the local companies. The
  company chosen had been a part of the community
  for almost 20 years. It had a sterling reputation
  for its dependability. The members of the
  community have overwhelmingly supported the new
  program. They are excited about contributing to
  their community and the environment.

• Revised
• The local community wanted to get involved with a
  recycling program because the people knew that
  the alternative was building another landfill.
  Meeting in a special session, the city council
  decided to get bids for curbside service from two
  local companies and three companies outside the
  city. Unfortunately, the bids were all about the
  same amount. The company chosen, a part of the
  community for almost 20 years, had a sterling
  reputation for its dependability. Overwhelmingly,
  the members of the community have supported the
  new program and are excited about contributing to
  their community and the environment.

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Brought to you by

• The WRITING CENTER
• Arts Sciences Hall, 150
• University of Nebraska at Omaha