Lesson 4 of 8
How to Write an Example Sentence
An example sentence makes the idea in your topic sentence clearer by giving the reader something specific. On reading tests, the example is often a quote from the text.
Key idea: give the reader something specific to picture.
Topic sentence: Making pizza is my favorite pastime.
Example: For example, I make pizza three times a week, usually pepperoni, spinach, and supreme.
The underlined parts are what make it specific.
- It makes your topic sentence clearer. Writing about exercise? Your example might be walking on the treadmill.
- Pick one direction. I could have written about my great-grandfather or different kinds of crust. I picked how often and what kinds. The rest of the paragraph builds from that choice.
- Specific beats general. Numbers, places, times and names help the reader see it.
Watch me explain itThe 3:32 to 3:54 section of my full T.E.D.L. video.
What an example is not
"Cooking at home is cheaper." That repeats the topic in new words.
"I do a lot of stuff with it." The reader can't picture anything.
"My favorite restaurant is a Thai place." Same subject, different idea.
Five examples crammed into one sentence. Pick one and save room for detail.
Sentence frames
- For example, ______.
- One time, ______.
- Every ______, I ______.
- [Author] states, "______." (reading questions)
When your example is a quote
Basic pattern: author's last name + states + comma + quote in quotation marks.
Johnson states, "Teenagers need more sleep than adults."
- According to Johnson, "Teenagers need more sleep than adults."
- As Johnson explains, "Teenagers need more sleep than adults."
- "Teenagers need more sleep than adults," Johnson writes. Quote first: the comma goes inside the quotation marks.
- Johnson argues that teenagers "need more sleep than adults." With "that," no comma.
- The article states, "Teenagers need more sleep than adults." No author? Use "the article," or "In paragraph 4, the author says..."
Other verbs for "states": explains, argues, claims, describes, points out, suggests, writes.
Page or paragraph number: in parentheses after the quote, before the period: (Johnson 12) or (paragraph 4).
Same job, three places
T: Making pizza is my favorite pastime.
For example, I make pizza three times a week, usually pepperoni, spinach, and supreme.
T: In the story, Maria changes from a shy new student into someone who speaks up for her friends.
When the class laughs at Ana, Maria stands up and says, "That's not funny. She's new."
T: I'm writing to ask for Friday afternoon off so I can attend my daughter's graduation.
The ceremony starts at 2:00, so I would need to leave by 1:00.
The reading test example is a quote from the story. The work email example is a specific time. Both make the topic sentence concrete.
Round 1: Specific or vague?
Topic sentence: My grandmother taught me to love gardening. Label each possible example.
She showed me a lot of things in her garden.
Every summer, she let me plant the tomatoes in her backyard and check them every morning.
Gardening with her was really fun and special.
She taught me to push each bean seed one knuckle deep into the soil.
Round 2: Choose the best example
Topic sentence: Learning to cook has saved me a lot of money.
Round 3: Spot the correct quote
Which sentence brings in the quote correctly?
Add your example
Here's your paragraph so far:
Make it specific: a number, a place, a time, something you actually do. Try starting with "For example,"
Check it:
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