Sentence Purposes

Sentence Purposes

In terms of function, sentences can be classified four ways:

• Declarative--Makes a statement. Example: John goes to the store.
  A declarative sentence is the most common sentence in writing. Written in the active voice, using parallel structure and consistency in tense, declarative sentences are the hallmark of good expository writing.
   
  
• Interrogative--Asks a question Example: John, are you going to the store?
  We ask each other many questions as part of normal conversation or in class. In expository writing, the use of the interrogative is considered to be a rhetorical question--a question posed by the writer that he or she fully intends on answering. Rhetorical Question Example: Why aren't more people up in arms about Bill Clinton's behavior with Monica Lewinsky? Perhaps because the scandal reveals nothing new about the President. We all heard about Gennifer Flowers and Paula Corbin Jones before the election and many people still voted for him.
  The interrogative sentence or rhetorical question should be used sparingly in your writing and should not be used to propel your essay forward at every point in your organization.
   
  
• Imperative--Gives a command Example: Go to the store!
  The imperative is always considered to be written in the second person point of view, because "you" (the reader of the sentence or the recipient of the message) is understood to be the subject of the sentence. You don't have to write out "You have to go the store" for the person to know what you are saying. The imperative is always considered to be in the active voice.
   
  

• Exclamatory--Expresses strong feeling. Example: I need money!
  While we often talk in exclamatory sentences when speaking to our friends and family, we usually don't write using exclamatory sentences. They are best used for dramatic highlights in your writing, since they can lose their effectiveness when they are overused.