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The declarative sentence is the most common kind of sentence in language, in most situations, and in a way can be considered the default function of a sentence. What this means essentially is that when a language modifies a sentence in order to form a question or give a command, the base form will always be the declarative.
Languages may use both syntax and prosody to distinguish interrogative sentences (which pose questions) from declarative sentences (which state propositions). Syntax refers to grammatical changes, such as changing word order or adding question words; prosody refers to changes in intonation while speaking.
This results in declarative (making a statement), interrogative (asking a question), exclamative (exclaiming), and imperative (giving an order) clauses, each with its distinctive syntactic features. Declarative and interrogative clauses may be independent or dependent, but imperative clauses are only independent.
The form (declarative, interrogative, imperative, or exclamative) and meaning (statement, question, command, or exclamation) of a sentence usually match, but not always. [3] [4] For instance, the interrogative sentence "Can you pass me the salt?" is not intended to express a question but rather to express a command.
These examples illustrate that wh-movement occurs when a constituent is questioned that appears to the right of the finite verb in the corresponding declarative sentence. The main clause remains in V2 word order , with the interrogative fronted to first position while the finite verb stays in second position.
A tag question is a construction in which an interrogative element is added to a declarative or an imperative clause. The resulting speech act comprises an assertion paired with a request for confirmation.
Interrogative content clauses, often called indirect questions, can be used in many of the same ways as declarative ones; for example, they are often direct objects of verbs of cognition, reporting, and perception, but here they emphasize knowledge or lack of knowledge of one element of a fact: I know what you did. I can't guess how he managed it.
Examples like these demonstrate that how a clause functions cannot be known based entirely on a single distinctive syntactic criterion. SV-clauses are usually declarative, but intonation and/or the appearance of a question word can render them interrogative or exclamative.