My students feel no small sense of pride (and relief) when we get to pattern six. That’s because it’s the most advanced pattern yet, combining earlier sentence structures in a new way, and it’s the second to last pattern of all. Better still, pattern six is almost identical to pattern seven, so mastering six is really key. We refer to it as the beginning of the end of our sentence patterns.
Pattern six has four core parts. First comes the familiar subject noun (SN), or who or what the sentence is about. Next comes the verb-transitive (V-t), which is an action verb that sends or transfers its action to something else. The something that receives the action is called the direct object (DO).
Wait. That sounds like pattern two. And so it does—until we add one more core part.
Last of all comes the object complement noun (OCN), which is a word that means the same thing as the direct object.
Now you’re probably scratching your head just like my students do and asking, “Isn’t that like a predicate noun?” Yes, it is! The only difference is that predicate nouns match subject nouns, while object complement nouns match direct objects.
Okay, that’s a lot to take in all at once. Let’s break this down with some visuals for review and comparison.
Notice that pattern six starts off in a linear fashion, moving from the subject noun, to the verb-transitive, to the direct object. Then, it suddenly doubles back with the object complement noun. In a way, pattern six blends the logic of pattern two and pattern four.
Let’s put this in context with an example. Be sure to download the grammar memorization questions as a cross-reference.
SAMPLE LESSON
Here is a simple sentence about Henry’s oldest daughter, Mary, which shows the internal logic of pattern six.
To classify this sentence we would follow a simple script.
Who crowned Mary queen?—England (SN)
What is being said about England?—England crowned (V)
Crowned whom?—Mary (DO)
Since we have a direct object, we can go back to the verb and label it transitive—(V-t)
Crowned Mary what?—queen
Does queen mean the same thing as Mary?—yes (OCN)
With a little practice, my students quickly learn to recognize pattern six sentences. Since they start off so similarly to pattern two, it becomes rather easy to tack on the last part of the question and answer flow to identify the object complement noun.
The only tricky part can be figuring out which word is the direct object and which is the object complement noun. Happily, they just have to remember that the direct object always comes first.
Now for the diagram.
Notice it looks like a combination of pattern two and pattern four. Because of that similarity, my students have a relatively easy time mastering the format.
PRACTICE SENTENCES
Let’s keep working with Queen Mary, next in the line of succession after her brother Edward. Since, as we previously learned, Edward died prematurely without even the chance to marry, he had no heirs and reluctantly passed the crown onto her.
Mary thus became England’s first female monarch to rule alone, marking a fundamental shift in gender politics that would eventually give way to the so-called modern era.
Mary’s story is a sad one. She was born into one of history’s most tumultuous families, separated from her mother at a young age, and denied even a chance to visit her on her death bed. When Mary did become queen, she was constantly in danger of being overthrown. Her marriage was more or less a sham, as Philip made open advances toward Elizabeth and readily supported naming her heir.
Nevertheless, Mary’s personal charisma and political acumen were so lacking that history has little sympathy for her. It has reduced her entire rule to a Protestant witch hunt and, not surprisingly, infamously dubbed her “Bloody Mary.”
What is surprising is that Elizabeth, a Protestant, would persecute and kill even more Catholics during her rule and yet gain the undying love of her people. We’ll start looking at Elizabeth’s long and complex history in the next lesson on pattern seven.
