Tuesday, February 5, 2008

How to write varied sentences

In my post on how to write grade A essays, I mentioned that it should contain varied sentences. Well, I would like to show you how a sentence can be written in various ways yet maintaining the same meaning in this post.

Example 1 : Suddenly, he saw a snake by chance and tried to beat it with a stick.

The above sentences can be rewritten in a few ways, such as:

a) All of a sudden, he spotted a snake and attempted to strike it with a club.

b) All at once, he chanced to see a snake and hit it with a stick.

c) Suddenly, a snake came into sight and he beat it with a club.

Example 2: His comic act made us laugh incessantly.

We can rewrite the sentence above in these ways:

a) His funny act had us in stitches.

b) We could not help laughing when we saw his comic act.

c) We broke into laughter which could not be stopped when we saw his funny act.

Example 3: We went straight to the canteen the moment the bell rang.

The following sentences can be used in place of the above sentence:

a) We made a beeline for the canteen when we heard the bell.

b) The bell prompted us to dash to the canteen.

c) We bolted to the canteen as soon as the bell rang.

Example 4: I bumped into my old friend the other day.

Sentences similar in meaning to the above are as follows:

a) I met an old pal by chance a few days ago.

b) I came across an old friend of mine the other day.

c) I chanced to meet my old friend a few days ago.

Example 5: I will certainly consider your suggestion.

These are the sentences that can be written to replace the above:

a) I will surely give your suggestion a thought.

b) I will definitely mull over your proposal.

c) I will surely give your proposal due consideration

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