Ibn Khaldoun University – Tiaret

Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science

Department of Computer Science
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Module : English
Level : Master 1
Semester : 1
Teacher : Mr. LAKMECHE
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UNIT 0 : WRITING

English Word Order

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this unit, the students will be able to:

● reorder words into simple/compound/complex sentences to make sense,

● identify the most powerful place for information in a sentence,
● identify the correct order for adjectives in a sentence according to the OPSHACOMP rule,
● use linking words for:
▪ adding
▪ contrasting
▪ expressing cause and result
▪ expressing purpose
▪ giving examples
▪ sequencing
● identify the structure of a paragraph
● reorder sentences according to paragraph structure,

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Introduction
A sentence is a group of words that are put together to make one complete thought. Word order
refers to the way words are arranged in a sentence. The order of words in English is important to
communicate clearly and correctly your thoughts and ideas. English word order in basic sentences
is strict and not very flexible. This means that the order of words in an English sentence rarely
changes: the subject almost always comes before the predicate. Native English speakers are used to
hearing some English parts of speech in a specific order. If these parts of speech are in a different
order, it can be confusing. Even very small differences in English word order can sound strange to
native English speakers. For example, the sound of a clock in English is tick-tock. Tock-tick sounds
strange to native speakers. Tick-tock sounds correct. The image is in black and white. White and
black sounds strange to native speakers. Black and white sounds correct.

1- SIMPLE SENTENCES

Exercise 1 : Rearrange the sentences below according to the following table :

6, 1 2 3 4 5 6
Time, Subject Verb Object Adverb Place Time
Who ? Who ?
When ? Which ? Action ? Which ? How ? Where ? When ?
What ? What ?

1) I / last year / to America / went.

2) The film / I / enjoyed / yesterday.

3) The news / listened to / I / carefully.

4) Well / the man / the piano / played.

5) Games / played / yesterday / in their room / the children / quietly.

6) Quietly / the door / he / opened.

7) Immediately / left / he.

8) A tree / in the corner of the garden / he / planted.

9) Before lunch / the letter / in his office / quickly / he / read.

10) This morning / a book / I / from the library / borrowed.

11) The soup / spoilt / the cook.

12) We / at home / stay / on Sundays.

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 13) The little boy / an apple / this morning / ate / greedily / in the kitchen.

14) She / beautifully / draws.

15) Music / I / like / very much.

16) A new school / built / they / in our village / last year.

17) The match / at four o‟clock / ended.

18) She / a letter from her brother / last week / received.

Exercise 2: The words in these sentences are not in order, study them carefully and rearrange them
grammatically.

1) letter / He / his / every / to / week / parents / a / writes.

2) you / will / with / tomorrow / walk / to / school / I .

3) year / a / got / birthday / He / this / dog / for / me / my .

4) many / credit / I / things / buy / card / with / my .

5) store / tried / in / to / They / the / some / buy / furniture / department / morning / new / this .

6) to / He / went / beach / the / the / at / weekend .

7) like / I / holiday / on / to / plane / go / by .

8) by / I / to / always / car / work / go .

9) school / I / to / yesterday / went .

10) was / life / It / the / best party / my / of .

11) was / The / because / late / was / teacher / I / angry .

12) was / The / wrong / answer .

13) to / is / book / the easiest / It / read .

14) my / night / last / for / waited / friends / I .

Exercise 3: Rearrange the words into correct questions:

1) many / have / How / bag / your / books / you / got / in / ?

2) you / Smith / see / did / When / ?

3) was / fastest runner / Who / the / ?

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4) do / homework / When / your / did / you / ?

5) school / take / How / to / get / did / you / yesterday / long / it / to / ?

6) Who / best student / is / the / ?

7) is / Which / car / the / fastest / ?

8) like / you / football / do / ?

Adjective Order

Task: Add as much adjectives as possible to the nouns of the following sentence:

The X children played X games quietly in their X room this X morning.

- nice - interesting - large - quiet

- Algerian - electronic - white - beautiful
- little - … - beautiful - sunny
-… -… -…
►What is correct :

- The nice Algerian little children ?

- The nice little Algerian children ?
- The Algerian nice little children ?
- The Algerian little nice children ?
- The little nice Algerian children ?
- The little Algerian nice children ?

►In English, it is common to use more than one adjective before a noun - for example, "He's a silly
young fool," or "she's a smart, energetic woman." When you use more than one adjective, you have
to put them in the right order, according to type.

Important points:

1. Don‟t overuse adjectives. While having two adjectives before a noun sounds natural, more
than three would have the opposite effect.
2. Purpose adjectives go just before the noun: riding boots (boots for riding), sleeping bags
(bags for sleeping).
3. Numbers go before adjectives: three huge houses.
4. It has to have sense, ie “a narrow boy” would be incorrect.

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Order :
" OPSHACOMP " rule

OP = Opinion SH = Shape / Size A = Age C = Colour O = Origin M = Material P = Purpose

Example:

Determiner or Opinion Shape/Size Age Colour Origin Material Purpose / or Noun Noun
article used as an adjective
A beautiful small old red American leather rugby ball

1) Determiners : this, that, these, those, my, mine, your, yours, him, his, her, hers, they, their, Sam's ...
Articles: a, an, the
2) Opinion adjective: polite, fun, cute, difficult, hard-working, silly, beautiful, horrible, ugly, nice, handsome, ...
3) Size, including adjectives, comparatives and superlatives:
▪ Height: tall, short, high, low; taller, tallest, ...
▪ Width: wide, narrow, thin, slim; wider, widest, large, ...
▪ Length: long, short; longer, longest
▪ Volume: fat, huge; fatter, fattest, tiny, enormous, little, big, ...
4) Shape: square, round, flat, rectangular, circular, oval, triangular, 5-sided, hexagonal, irregular, …
5) Age: new, young, adolescent, teenage, middle-aged, old, ancient
6) Colour: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, white, grey, black, black and white, light blue,
dark red, pale blue, reddish brown, off-white, bright green, warm yellow
7) Origin / Nationality: Hong Kong, Chinese, English, American, Canadian, Japanese, Greek, lunar, eastern, ...
8) Religion: Buddhist, Taoist, Christian, Moslem, pagan, atheist
9) Material: wood, plastic, metal, ceramic, paper, silk, wooden, metallic, cotton, leather, ...
10) Purpose / Noun used as an adjective: campus activities, sleeping bag, roasting tin, office desk, ...
11) The noun that the adjectives are describing.

Exercise 1: Order the adjectives according to the table:

] OP = Opinion SH = Shape / Size A = Age C = Colour O = Origin M = Material P = Purpose[

1) A beautiful table (wooden, round) ► …………………………………………………………

2) An unusual ring (gold) ► ……………………………………………………………………
3) An old house (beautiful) ► ……………………………………………………………………
4) An American film (old) ► ……………………………………………………………………
5) A big cat (fat, black) ► ………………………………………………………………………
6) A little village (old, lovely) ► . .………………………………………………………………
7) An old painting (interesting, French) ► …………………………………………………………
8) Look at that spider! (black, ugly) ► ……………………………………………………………
9) Cary is a girl (lively, little) ► …………………………………………………………………
10) They live in a house (stone, spacious) ► ………………………………………………………
11) I have a shirt (cotton, white) ► …………………………………………………………………
12) She has a bag (black, plastic, small) ► …………………………………………………………
13) Lucy has a table (large, wooden) ► ……………………………………………………………
14) My sister has (long, black, straight) hair

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Exercise 2: Order the adjectives according to the table:

1) sandy / beach / golden / a / long ► ……………………………………………………………

2) story / with / a / ending / an / exciting ► ………………………………………………………
3) jewellery / pieces / expensive / of / some ► ……………………………………………………
4) beautiful / car / sports / red / a ► ………………………………………………………………
5) a / only / car / with / wheels / strange / three ► …………………………………………………
6) a / old / spot / on / its / back / dog / with / an / white ► ………………………………………
7) a / pair / of / dirty / old / blue / jeans ► …………………………………………………………
8) a / hat / red / beautiful ► ………………………………………………………………………
9) tall / a / soldier ► ………………………………………………………………………………
10) black / a / big / cat ► ……………………………………………………………………………
11) blue / car / with / silver / wheels / It / is / a / big ► ……………………………………………
12) photograph / black and white / oval / a / family / historic . ► …………………………………

2- COMPOUND AND COMPLEX SENTENCES

and
but
Simple Sentence + so + Simple Sentence
or
etc...

Linking Words
Adding

And He spoke English and French.

Also I have a good eyesight, and also a good colour vision.
Too He loves his sisters, and his brothers too.
as well He speaks English and French as well.
Besides Besides French, he speaks English.

Contrasting
But He is small, but he is very strong.
However Beauty, however, said nothing to the beast.
Although Although this comforted him, it did not stop him from weeping.
Despite The ogre got tired, despite his magic boots.
In spite of In spite of his magic boots, the ogre got tired.
Of the contrary She did not beat him; on the contrary, she thanked him.

Expressing cause and result

because It doesn‟t matter, because father doesn‟t smoke.
Because of Do the players wear such clothes because of the cold?
so He was hungry, so he sat and started to eat.
So … that It was so cold that he could not feel his fingers.
As As it is the first time, I‟ll forgive you.
Therefore You have an exam, therefore you must work hard.
This / that is why I was sleeping, this is why I didn‟t hear the bell.
Consequently I was sleeping, consequently I didn‟t hear the bell.
For this reason I was sleeping, for this reason I didn‟t hear the bell.

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Expressing purpose

In order to In order to learn a language, the best way is to live in the country where it is spoken.
So that Complete sentence (a) so that it means the same as (b).

Sequencing

And He put his clothes and left.

First First of all, I want you to listen carefully.
Then Read the examples, then do the same.
Next Where will the next Olympic games be held?
Before Read the question carefully before you answer them.
After After you answer the questions, read your paper again.
Later A few hours later, the man arrived home tired and sad.
While I broke my leg while I was skiing.
Soon The holiday will soon be here.
Immediately Come here immediately!
As soon as As soon as Thumbkin heard the ogre snoring, he woke up his brothers.
At / in the end In the end, his teacher asked him to stay in class.
At last At last, the beast opened his eyes.

Exercise 1: Complete the sentences with the words in brackets. Place time expressions at the
end of the sentences.

1) She is in great form because (every week / goes / she / to the gym) .
2) I think (likes / Susan / you) .
3) I can't talk to you because (time / do not have / I / now) .
4) We are glad that (at home / did not leave / we / our umbrella .
5) I will miss him when (to Chicago / moves / he) .
6) They don't know where (have left / the key / they) .
7) Ring me if (have / you / a problem) .
8) I'd like to know why (her holiday / does not spend / she / in France .
9) They told him that (wanted to play / they / tennis) .
10) He was reading the paper while (she / in the garden / was working) .

Exercise 2 : Join these sentences with the link word in brackets:

1) I bought my ticket. I packed my suitcase yesterday. (and)

2) I wanted to go to Canada. I had no money. (but)
3) Mary visited Paris. She spent ten days there. (and)
4) The man wanted to pay for his ticket. He went to the travel agent. (so)
5) Tom had 3 weeks vacation. He went to Europe. (so)
6) Jennifer had 3 weeks vacation. She stayed at home. (but)
7) Rachael went to Montreal. She visited Quebec City. (and)
8) The flight attendant served us food. She gave us newspapers. (and)
9) They got married. They had to learn to manage their own home. (after)
10) Some say that dogs are friendlier than cats. Cats can also be extremely loving. (however)
11) I simply cannot get out of bed. I am too tired. (because)
12) He went crazy. His wife burnt his breakfast. (when)
13) I won't invite my classmates to a party. I know them well. (until)
14) The first quiz was easy. This one is extremely difficult. (whereas)
15) He failed. He won't give up his ideals. (even though)
16) He was very sick. He went to work. ( although)

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Exercise 3 : Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow according to the
table.

Last week, I went to the theatre. I had a very good seat. The play was very interesting.
I did not enjoy it. A young man and a young woman were sitting behind me. They
were talking loudly. I got very angry. I could not hear the actors. I turned round. I
looked at the man and the woman angrily. They did not pay attention. In the end, I
could not bear it. I turned round again. „ I can‟t hear a word !‟ I said angrily. „ It‟s none
of your business, ‟ the young man said rudely. „ This is a private conversation ! ‟

1) Where did the writer go last week? 2) Did he enjoy the play or not? 3) Who was sitting behind
him? 4) Were they talking loudly, or were they talking quietly? 5) Could the writer hear the
actors or not? 6) Did he turn round or not? 7) What did he say? 8) What did the young man
reply?

6, 1 2 3 4 5 6
Time, Subject Verb Object Adverb Place Time
Who ? Who ?
When ? Which ? Action ? Which ? How ? Where ? When ?
What ? What ?

Exercise 4: Underline the joining words (conjunctions) in the following passage:

Do the English Speak English?

I arrived in London at last. The railway station was big, black and dark. I did not
know the way to my hotel, so I asked a porter. I not only spoke English very
carefully, but very clearly as well. The porter, however, could not understand me. I
repeated my question several times and at last he understood. He answered me, but he
spoke neither slowly nor clearly. „ I am a foreigner, ‟ I said. Then he spoke slowly,
but I could not understand him. My teacher never spoke English like that ! The porter
and I looked at each other and smiled. Then he said something and I understood it. „
You‟ll soon learn English ! ‟ he said. I wonder. In England. Each man speaks a
different language. The English understand each other, but I don‟t understand them !
Do they speak English ?
Source : Practice and Progress, pp. 71-72.

Exercise 5: Join these pairs of sentences using the prompts in brackets.

1) I knocked at the door. He did not open it. ► ( but )

2) He went on holiday. I went on holiday. ► ( both .. and )
3) He must be mad. He must be very wise. ► ( either .. or )
4) My sister went shopping. I went shopping. ► ( both .. and )
5) We got very tired. We got very hungry. ► ( not only .., but .. as well )
6) It was three o‟clock. We could not get lunch. We had a cup of tea. ► ( and ..so )

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3- Paragraph Structure

TIPS

There are generally five types of sentences in well-written paragraphs. Each type of sentence has a
different function.

A- There are sentences which focus on the general/main idea of the paragraph as a whole. This type
of sentence is called the topic sentence.

B- There are sentences which give details to support/develop the general idea made in the topic
sentence. These sentences are called supporting sentences.

C- There are sentences that provide a smooth transition from one idea to another. They are called
transitional sentences.

D- There are sentences which support the new idea.

E- Finally, there are sentences which logically conclude the ideas discussed in the paragraph. They
are called concluding sentences.

PRACTICE

Task 1 : Divide the sentences of the following text according to the structure in the above tips.

For a long time, noise has been known to cause sleeplessness and
irritability. Now other studies are linking it to a wide range of mental and
physical disturbances. In Los Angeles, researchers have found that people
living near airports have a higher rate of mental illness than people living
eight kilometres away. In industry, a link has been established between
high noise levels and the high number of cardiovascular disease and stress-
related problems. The effect of noise on people is borne out by experiments
on rats, which show that those exposed to certain high frequency sounds
had up to 20 times the normal amount of adrenalin in their blood. In the
opinion of many hearing specialists, time is running out. If urban noise
continues to increase at the present rate, in 20 years our cities will be twice
as loud as they are now. The number of mental diseases will be multiplied
by two or three and that of physical illness by three or four. This health
alert against the dangers of noise pollution is seriously taken by the
American public authorities.

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A- Topic sentence (the general idea):

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

B- Supporting sentences of the topic sentence :

1- ………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

2- ………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

3- ………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

C- Transitional sentence (vew idea) :

1- ………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

2- ………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

D- Supporting sentence for the new idea:

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

E- Concluding sentence:

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

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Task 2 : Re-order the following sentences into a coherent newspaper article about
desertification.

Follow this process :

Topic sentence Supporting sentences Transitional sentence Supporting

sentences for the new idea Conclusion.

a- Throughout the world, deserts are created because pastures near arid lands are heavily grazed and
trampled.

b- Around towns, adjacent forest belts are denuded by people in their search for firewood.

c- More productive plants are introduced into semi-arid lands. As a result, indigenous plants
necessary for the maintenance of the soil are nudged out.

d- Many people think that desertification is caused only by a change in climate, but the truth is that
deserts are provoked by human actions.

e- Because of the intensive production of cash crops like cotton and groundnuts, soil nutrients are
dissipated and the topsoil is eroded by wind and water.

f- A long time ago. history was make in the deserts.

g- Today, about 140 million people are threatened by the spread of the desert caused through the
interaction of climatic fluctuations and man's abuse of his environment.

h- Desertification must be stopped now, otherwise deserts will be transformed into a curse for man
soon.

i- These civilizations were built in deserts because people knew how to live in harmony with nature.

j- At least two great civilizations were established there.

A) Order:

Order 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Sentence

B) Text Structure:

1) Topic Sentence (The general idea): ► (.....)

2) Supporting Sentences: ► (.....) + (.....)
3) Transitional Sentence (new idea): ► (.....)
4) Supporting Sentence for the new idea: ► (.....) + (.....) + (.....) + (.....) + (.....)
5) Concluding Sentence: ► (.....)

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