Sentence Patterns

Imperatives, Vocatives & Coordinating Conjunctions

Imperatives hide their subject; vocatives stand apart; conjunctions join equals. Each of these special situations has its own diagramming convention.

Imperative Sentences

Most imperatives have an unexpressed subject you. In a diagram, this is shown by an x (or by the word you in parentheses) in the subject position.

“Listen!”

Step 11 — imperative; subject is unexpressed you

Vocatives (Direct Address)

A vocative is a noun used to address someone directly. It is grammatically independent of the rest of the sentence — it is diagrammed on a separate horizontal line above the sentence, with no connecting line to the baseline.

“Children, we must hurry.”

Step 12 — vocative 'Children' on its own line above

Children is the vocative (the noun used for address), not the subject. The personal pronoun we is the subject; must hurry is the modal + verb phrase.

Contractions

When a personal-pronoun subject and a verb are contracted, they are broken apart in the diagram. The pronoun goes in the subject slot; the contracted verb part (e.g., 're) goes in the verb slot.

“We're leaving.”

Step 13 — contraction split: We | 're leaving

“They aren't leaving.”

Step 14 — contraction with 'not'; aren't → are + n't in verb slot

Compound Subjects & Compound Verbs

When two or more subjects (or verbs) are joined by a coordinating conjunction, each subject (or verb) gets its own parallel horizontal line. The conjunction is written on a broken vertical line connecting the two parallel lines.

“Jack and Jill are falling.”

Step 15 — compound subject with coordinating conjunction 'and'

“Did they win or lose?”

Step 16 — compound verb with shared subject; 'Did' shown as auxiliary

Compound Sentences

A compound sentence has two or more independent clauses joined by a coordinating conjunction. Diagram the first clause above the second; connect the two via a broken step-down line carrying the conjunction.

“We are working, but you are playing.”

Step 17 — compound sentence; two independent clauses joined by 'but'