Reading Long Sentences in Phrases

Break long, complex sentences into meaningful chunks so they make sense.

Long sentences become manageable when you read them in phrases, not single words. A phrase is a group of words that works as one unit of meaning, such as 'across the frozen lake' or 'after the meeting ended. ' Look at this sentence: 'After the meeting ended / the students who had organized the fundraiser / counted the money / in the library. ' Chunked this way, you can see who (the students who organized the fundraiser), did what (counted the money), where (in the library), and when (after the meeting ended).

The core of the sentence is 'the students counted the money'; everything else adds detail. When a sentence feels tangled, find that core first: the main subject and its verb. Then attach the other phrases to it. This works silently and aloud, and it is how fluent readers make long sentences sound natural rather than like a list of words.

• 1Read in meaningful phrases, not word by word
• 2Find the core subject and verb first
• 3Attach the extra phrases to the core: who, what, where, when