Writing At The Sentence Level

Adding an adjective (61-62)

1. The thief sneaked into the house.
The bold and desperate thief sneaked into the house.

2. The dejected ice-cream seller cycled in the rain.

3. The angry toddler screamed at the frightened maid.

4. The hardworking girls sweated in the sun.

5. Charming Johan smiled at his unexpected date.

6. Frustrated, I ran out of the room.

7. The dark and stormy sky was full of grey clouds.

8. Furious, Mrs Lim clenched her fist.

9. My father patted the adorable dog.

10. Curious, Aloysius watched the exciting tennis match.


Adding an adverbial (63-64)

1. The maid sobbed.
The maid sobbed broken-heartedly.

2. The cat purred contentedly.

3. The wind blew caressingly.

4. Mother screamed hysterically.

5. Hillary waltzed gracefully.

6. The building swayed gently.

7. The flames roared wildly.

8. Mr Chan paused dramatically.

9. The pupils wrote tirelessly.

10. The day dragged on listlessly.


Combining Short and Long Sentences (65)

1. The day was hot. It was humid. The sky was cloudless. It was unbearable.
The day was hot, humid and cloudless and it was unbearable.
The hot, humid and cloudless day was unbearable.

2. The girl chewed gum, drank juice and gnawed on chicken wings.

3. The cat got up, stretched its back, yawned and left the room.

4. Ah Beng was a tall and stout sneaky bully who told lies.

5. She took out her licence, placed it on the dashboard, smiled and winked at the policeman.

Sentence Variety


Use prepositional phrases (66-67)

1. The thieves wore black stockings over their faces.
Over their faces, the thieves wore black stockings.

2. Throughout the housing estate, Mrs Lim looked for her missing poodle.

3. Against the raging storm, the brave girl struggled to get help for her mother.

4. Underneath her coat, she hid the stolen chicken.

5. Without the support of his devoted wife, Mr Muthu was devastated.

6. From a podium way up above the stadium, the policeman waved to the crowd.

7. Instead of turning up at work, Janice went to the park.

8. Upon the freshly-dug soil in the garden, rain fell.

9. With a loud shot,Devi jumped over the hurdle.

10. With a loud “plok”, the stone landed on the bonnet of Mr Tan’s Mercedes.

Use A Participle (68)

1. The tired boys slept through the night.
Tired, thee boys slept through the night.

2. Frightened, the maid hid in the bathroom.

3. Howling, the dogs kept the neighbours awake the whole night.

4. Sadly, the broken swing hung in the garden.

5. Screaming, my sister hung on to my mother’s arm when the nurse arrived.

6. Chattering, the extras at the set got into place slowly.

7. Wide-eyed, the children gazed at the rainbow in silent wonder.

8. Frowning, the salesgirl pointed out the sales items to me.

Use participle phrases (69-70)

1. The clown tipped his hat and blew kisses to the crowd.
Tipping his hat, the clown blew kisses to the crowd.

2. Sniggering gleefully, the teenager threw stones at the terrified kitten.

3. Measuring out the ingredients carefully, Mother put them into a mixing bowl.

4. Walking cautiously across the wet toilet floor, Mrs Siva slipped.

5. Sweating profusely, the sataty seller fanned the flames energetically.

6. The fragile butterfly, fluttering its wings weakly, tried to fly out of the bowl of water.

7. Snapping her fingers angrily, the shopkeeper shouted out several times.

8. Couging loudly, Ronald vomited into the spittoon.


Rewrite sentences (71)

1. The dog barked. The dog attacked the stranger.
The dog barked and attacked the stranger.
Barking, the dog attacked the stranger.

2. The stranger screamed and fell into the drain.
Screaming, the stranger fell into the drain.

3. Mrs Lee gasped and ran towards the dog.
Gasping, Mrs Lee ran towards the dog.

4. Mrs Lee grabbed the dog’s leash and shouted at the dog.
Grabbing the dog’s leash, Mrs Lee shouted at the dog.

5. Julian Lee helped the stranger up and apologised to him.
Helping the stranger up, Julian Lee apologised to him.


Use participle phrases (72)

1. Driven by intense hunger, the children in the ghettos began to wat bits of grss and other vegetation.

2. Amazed by his talent, the talent scouts signed on Talib immediately as their next recording artist.

3. Angered by his son’s behaviour, Mr Lim walked out of the school.

4. Stressed out by her increasing workload, Junita decided to take a long holiday in another country.

5. Looking out of the window, Mrs Salim saw her husband walking slowly home with a big sack on his back.

Use infinitive phrases (73)

1. Mary should avoid spicy food if she wants to win the singing contest.
To win the singing contest, Mary should avoid spicy food.

2. To collect the prize, winners must provide receipts as proof of purchase.

3. To prevent the branches from falling on the cars, the trees must be trimmed.

Use adjective clauses (74)

1. The teachers are extremely hardworking.
The teachers, who teach the PSLE classes, are extremely hardworking.

2. Mrs Lim’s pets, which are fed at the family dining table, are a lucky lot.

3. The sky, which is full of dark clouds, is a threatening sight.


Use appositives and appositive phrases (75-76)
1. The house stood silently at the end of the road.
The house, a large dilapidated mansion, stood silently at the end of the road.

2. The dog, a tiny poodle with a loud voice, barked non-stop throughout the night.

3. The contractor, a conscientious businessman, worked throughout the weekend to finish the job.

4. The dancer, a slim, youthful woman, floated across the stage.

5. John, an aspiring body-builder, lifted the heavy bag effortlessly.