Looking at related sentences Worksheet Practice Exercises with Answers

Lesson 51: Looking at Related Sentences

One interesting characteristic of language is that sentences can be related, in a consistent way, to other sentences. What do we mean by this? Let's start by looking at some related sentences which we've seen before.

Verb and Particle Pairs

1a. She looked up the answer.
1b. She looked the answer up.
2a. We will just drop off the files.
2b. We will just drop the files off.
3a. The professor pointed out the correct answer.
3b. The professor pointed the correct answer out.

You can see that one member of each pair is related to the other in a systematic way: the verb and its particle (both underlined) can either be next to each other or the particle can be on the other side of the next noun phrase. (See Lesson 11.) The important point here is that we can't change the structure of a sentence in any random way. For example, we can't say *She up looked the answer.

Indirect Object Pairs

4a. Mary gave the information to Robert.
4b. Mary gave Robert the information.
5a. She told the truth to her granddaughter.
5b. She told her granddaughter the truth.
6a. They bought a car for their teenage daughter.
6b. They bought their teenage daughter a car.

Once again, you can see that these indirect object pairs are related to each other in a systematic way. (See Lesson 40.) And again, we can't just randomly change them; for example, we can't say, *Mary Robert the information gave.

Deletion of "That"

7a. I know that you're right.
7b. I know you're right.
8a. You believed that the defendant was innocent.
8b. You believed the defendant was innocent.
9a. The residents of the village feel that the new highway is important.
9b. The residents of the village feel the new highway is important.

Here, while the word that can be deleted (see Lesson 48), we can't delete just anything. For example, we can't say *I that you're right.

Test Yourself 51.1

Change each sentence below into its related "partner," using the examples above as a guide.

Question 1. They brought their concerns to the clergyman.
Answer: They brought the clergyman their concerns.
In simple words: Move the noun phrase that follows "to" to a position right after the verb, and move the first object phrase to the end.

Question 2. I have an idea you'll like this movie.
Answer: I have an idea that you'll like this movie.
In simple words: Add the word "that" after "idea" to show the relationship between the two parts of the sentence more clearly.

Question 3. You should hand your ticket to the flight attendant.
Answer: You should hand the flight attendant your ticket.
In simple words: Swap the positions of the two objects - the one that follows "to" moves right after the verb, and the other one moves to the end.

Question 4. By noon, Jackie had turned in her assignment.
Answer: By noon, Jackie had turned her assignment in.
In simple words: Move the object between the verb and the particle instead of keeping them together.

Question 5. I ordered you your favorite book.
Answer: I ordered your favorite book for you.
In simple words: Change the indirect object word order by inserting "for" before the final object.

Getting Started (Answers)

Question 6. She knows this will disappoint her mother.
Answer: She knows that this will disappoint her mother.
In simple words: Add the word "that" between the main verb and its dependent clause to make the link more explicit.

Question 7. Please put your pens down!
Answer: Please put down your pens!
In simple words: Move the particle right after the verb, placing the noun phrase at the end instead.

Question 8. He promised his friend a good time.
Answer: He promised a good time to his friend.
In simple words: Rearrange the objects by adding "to" before the person and moving the thing promised to an earlier position.

Question 9. The accountant figured that he would spend about three hours with his client.
Answer: The accountant figured he would spend about three hours with his client.
In simple words: Remove the word "that" since it can be left out without changing the meaning.

Question 10. They gave money to their local chapter.
Answer: They gave their local chapter money.
In simple words: Rearrange by moving the noun phrase that follows "to" right after the verb, and putting the first object at the end.

Yes-No Questions and Tag Questions

So far, the related sentence pairs we've looked at have the same meaning. For example, "She looked up the answer" and "She looked the answer up" mean exactly the same thing. But sometimes sentences are related to each other in a consistent way, even though their meanings are not the same. For example, here's a statement:

10a. Amanda is working today.
Can you turn it into a yes-no question (Lesson 45)? The related yes-no question is:
10b. Is Amanda working today?

No native speaker of English would make the yes-no question something like, *Working Amanda today is. That's because there's a systematic relationship between statements and yes-no questions, even though they don't have the same meaning.

Try another one:

11a. That boy has eaten an enormous breakfast.
The related yes-no question is:
11b. Has that boy eaten an enormous breakfast?

More Examples of Yes-No Questions

12a. Hank was laughing.
12b. Was Hank laughing?
13a. That artist had chosen to represent animals in his drawings.
13b. Had that artist chosen to represent animals in his drawings?
14a. You can see the old hotel near the railroad station.
14b. Can you see the old hotel near the railroad station?

Tag Questions

Another example of related sentences can be seen when we look at statements and tag questions (Lesson 45).

For example, here's a statement:

15a. Molly should do that.
Can you turn it into a tag question (Lesson 45)? The related tag question is:
15b. Molly should do that, shouldn't she?

No native speaker of English would respond with the tag question, *Mary should do that, can't they? That's because, again, there's a systematic relationship between statements and tag questions, even though they don't have the same meaning.

Try another one:

16a. The students are waiting to have lunch.
The related tag question is:
16b. The students are waiting to have lunch, aren't they?

More Examples of Tag Questions

17a. He had mailed the letter yesterday.
17b. He had mailed the letter yesterday, hadn't he?
18a. Mr. Peters was wearing a hat with a wide brim.
18b. Mr. Peters was wearing a hat with a wide brim, wasn't he?
19a. Rebecca will wait for her.
19b. Rebecca will wait for her, won't she?

See Lesson 53 for further discussion of yes-no questions and tag questions.

So far, we've been looking at sentence types that we've already come across in other lessons. However, there are many more sentences in English that are related. In the next two lessons, we'll take a closer look at two sets of related sentences that we have not discussed before.

Answer Keys: Test Yourself 51.1

Question 1. They brought their concerns to the clergyman.
Answer: They brought the clergyman their concerns.
In simple words: Rearrange the two objects by putting the person first and moving the object to the end.

Question 2. I have an idea you'll like this movie.
Answer: I have an idea that you'll like this movie.
In simple words: Insert the word "that" after "idea" to make the sentence connection clearer.

Question 3. You should hand your ticket to the flight attendant.
Answer: You should hand the flight attendant your ticket.
In simple words: Swap the order of the objects - the one with "to" comes after the verb, and the other goes at the end.

Question 4. By noon, Jackie had turned in her assignment.
Answer: By noon, Jackie had turned her assignment in.
In simple words: Move the object between the verb and the particle, separating them.

Question 5. I ordered you your favorite book.
Answer: I ordered your favorite book for you.
In simple words: Rearrange by adding "for" and repositioning the words to show the relationship differently.

Answer Keys: Test Yourself 52.1

Question 1. The landscaper was hired by her neighbor.
Answer: passive
In simple words: This sentence uses the passive voice because the subject receives the action rather than performing it.

Question 2. Tim chose the pastries.
Answer: active
In simple words: This sentence uses the active voice because the subject (Tim) performs the action directly.

Question 3. Christine had driven about thirty or forty miles that day.
Answer: active
In simple words: This sentence uses the active voice because the subject (Christine) is doing the action herself.

Question 4. Little Suzie's picture was taken by her grandmother.
Answer: passive
In simple words: This sentence uses the passive voice because the subject has an action done to it by someone else.

Question 5. We are cooking something for lunch.
Answer: active
In simple words: This sentence uses the active voice because the subject (we) is actively performing the action.

Answer Keys: Test Yourself 52.2

Question 1. Amazing results
Answer: This phrase functions as a noun phrase or noun adjunct describing results that are striking and noteworthy.
In simple words: "Amazing results" means results that surprise us because they are very good or unexpected.