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In the
first tip about sentence inversion, we looked at the most
common type of sentence, one in which the subject and verb
are simply in reverse order. We’ll be looking at those in
more detail, along with other ways to vary word order in a
sentence.
Sentence
variations or inversions enhance the effect your writing
will have on a reader. Used sparingly in formal
writing, these techniques will allow you as writer to
add emphasis to whatever information you want to stand out
to the reader. Now, let’s look at some of the different
types of inversion.
Subject-Verb Reversal
Across the
living room dashed my tabby, followed seconds
later by my German shepherd.
By
rearranging the sentence, placing the subject before the
verb, we can see that nothing has been changed but the order
of the words. The effect of placing the subject after the
verb helps lead up to it as an important part of the
sentence. In other words, the inversion builds suspense as
it leads up to the sentence’s conclusion. It heightens the
intensity of the resolution to come, and we can sigh in
relief when we finally know who or what did the action.
All the information before the subject leads up to this
“doer.”
My tabby
dashed across the living room, followed seconds later
by my German shepherd.
S/V-Direct Object Reversal
Flattery,
I can’t handle; force, I can understand.
In this
sentence, the subject and verb are still intact, and the
direct object of the verb in each independent clause has
been placed at the beginning, removing it from its usual
object position. This reversal places more emphasis on
the object itself, holding it in suspension at the
clause’s start. In this arrangement, notice that the comma
following the object slows the reader down and intensifies
the emphasis on the word that comes before the comma, but it can also
be omitted depending on the writer’s preference.
I can’t
handle flattery; I can understand force.
Adverb +
Split-Verb Order
Never
before have I witnessed such an atrocious
display of rivalry at this school.
Very
deliberately did he sign that document
with full knowledge of who would read it.
This
ordering uses an adverbial before the verb and, most often,
results in a split verb phrase. What the adverb does is
to heighten the intensity of the information following it by
itself receiving the peak of stress. The wording sounds
both more dramatic and more formal than the regular sentence
construction. In the sentences below, the verb phrases or
verb-adverb combinations are still split up to prevent
awkward wording.
I have
never before witnessed such an atrocious
display of rivalry at this school.
He did
sign that document very deliberately with full
knowledge of who would read it. |