Wit and Humour
Kinds of sentences
Learn the four kinds of sentences and the punctuation each one needs.
Every sentence does one of four jobs, and each has its own name and punctuation:
| Kind | Job | Ends with | From the play |
|---|---|---|---|
| declarative | states information | full stop (.) | There's always something to say. |
| interrogative | asks a question | question mark (?) | What shall I do when they want to go? |
| exclamatory | shows strong feeling | exclamation mark (!) | What beautiful children you have, Mrs Harding! |
| imperative | gives an order or request | full stop (.) | Put that coat away in your bedroom. |
("What beautiful children you have!" is exclamatory, and sadly also Mary's first blunder!)
Trap 1: imperative and exclamatory can both sound strong. Ask what the sentence does: an imperative tells someone to do something; an exclamatory one shows a feeling. "Turn off the music." is imperative. "How beautiful the rainbow is!" is exclamatory.
Trap 2: some sentences start with question words but aren't questions. "What an exciting adventure it was!" starts with what, but shows a feeling, so it's exclamatory with !. "What is the weather forecast today?" really asks, so it gets ?.
Punctuate these yourself:
- the meeting starts at 10.00 a.m. in the conference room (declarative: .)
- how did you solve the problem so quickly (interrogative: ?)
- clean up your room before dinner (imperative: .)
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