Analyze the sentence. select an object of a preposition, direct object, and indirect object. note that all three may not be present in the sentence. rita and i wrote john a letter of support.

Object of a preposition: support, direct object: letter, indirect object: John.

Explanation: a word governing, and usually preceding, a noun or pronoun and expressing a relation to another word or element in the clause, in the given sentence, the preposition is "of" and its object is "support." A direct object a noun phrase denoting a person or thing that is the recipient of the action of a transitive verb, in the given sentence it is "letter." An indirect object is a noun phrase referring to someone or something that is affected by the action of a transitive verb, in the given sentence is "John."

definition was not one of the four methods

sentences vary by structure as well as by function. there are compound, complex, and compound-complex sentences.

simple sentence

i like to read.

a simple sentence has one independent clause.

compound sentence

i like to read, and i also like to write.

a compound sentence includes more than one independent clause, connected by a coordinating conjunction (and, but, for, nor, or, so, or yet).

complex sentence

i prefer to read books that are bestsellers.

a complex sentence includes one independent clause and one or more dependent clauses. (a dependent clause is one that cannot stand alone.) types of dependent clauses include relative clauses (i kicked the boy who pinched me), adverb clauses (i am going home now because i have a curfew), and noun clauses (i don't know what to do next).

compound-complex sentence

although i prefer to read current bestsellers, i do like to read old agatha christie mysteries, and i also like some 20th-century science fiction.

compound-complex sentences take a bunch of clauses (multiple independent clauses, and one or more dependent clauses) and toss them together like a salad. although these sentences take practice to write in a grammatically correct fashion, they can hold a tremendous amount of meaning, and are common in academic writing.