Clauses and Phrases with Leprechauns Worksheet | Sentence ... - Free Printable

Let’s go sentence by sentence and follow the directions:

Directions:
- Circle the predicate (the verb or action part — what the subject is doing).
- Underline the subject (who or what the sentence is about).
- Double underline all phrases (groups of words that add detail but don’t have a subject + verb together).

We’ll use this example to guide us:
> Example: *Waking up late for school, Mr. Morton raced to the shower.*
> - Predicate: raced → circle it
> - Subject: Mr. Morton → underline it
> - Phrase: Waking up late for school → double underline it

Now let’s solve each sentence one at a time.

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1. In between the old hills of Garfield Park, a tiny green leprechaun dances on March 17th.

- Subject: “a tiny green leprechaun” → who is dancing? The leprechaun.
- Predicate: “dances” → what is the leprechaun doing?
- Phrases:
- “In between the old hills of Garfield Park” → tells where
- “on March 17th” → tells when

✔ So:
- Circle: dances
- Underline: a tiny green leprechaun
- Double underline: In between the old hills of Garfield Park, on March 17th

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2. Wary of travelers, the tiny green leprechaun hides in trees, or under bridges, or in garbage cans.

- Subject: “the tiny green leprechaun”
- Predicate: “hides”
- Phrases:
- “Wary of travelers” → describes the leprechaun
- “in trees”, “under bridges”, “in garbage cans” → tell where he hides

✔ So:
- Circle: hides
- Underline: the tiny green leprechaun
- Double underline: Wary of travelers, in trees, under bridges, in garbage cans

*(Note: “or” connects the phrases — we still double underline each phrase separately.)*

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3. While taking his homework out of his car, Mr. Morton heard a strange laugh coming from the park.

- Subject: “Mr. Morton”
- Predicate: “heard”
- Phrases:
- “While taking his homework out of his car” → tells when/what he was doing
- “coming from the park” → describes the laugh

✔ So:
- Circle: heard
- Underline: Mr. Morton
- Double underline: While taking his homework out of his car, coming from the park

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4. Mr. Morton put his stuff in the car and walked toward the park, feeling a little frightened by the fog.

This has two predicates because there are two actions: “put” and “walked”

- Subject: “Mr. Morton” (does both actions)
- Predicates: “put”, “walked”
- Phrases:
- “in the car” → where he put stuff
- “toward the park” → where he walked
- “feeling a little frightened by the fog” → describes how he felt while walking

✔ So:
- Circle: put, walked
- Underline: Mr. Morton
- Double underline: in the car, toward the park, feeling a little frightened by the fog

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5. A green fog, as thick as a Shamrock Shake, gathered over the baseball field.

- Subject: “A green fog”
- Predicate: “gathered”
- Phrases:
- “as thick as a Shamrock Shake” → describes the fog
- “over the baseball field” → tells where it gathered

✔ So:
- Circle: gathered
- Underline: A green fog
- Double underline: as thick as a Shamrock Shake, over the baseball field

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6. From out of nowhere, the leprechaun appeared to Mr. Morton, giggling and doing an Irish dance.

- Subject: “the leprechaun”
- Predicate: “appeared”
- Phrases:
- “From out of nowhere” → tells where/from where
- “to Mr. Morton” → tells to whom
- “giggling and doing an Irish dance” → describes how he appeared

✔ So:
- Circle: appeared
- Underline: the leprechaun
- Double underline: From out of nowhere, to Mr. Morton, giggling and doing an Irish dance

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7. Having never seen a leprechaun before, Mr. Morton was puzzled.

- Subject: “Mr. Morton”
- Predicate: “was” (linking verb — shows state of being)
- Phrases:
- “Having never seen a leprechaun before” → explains why he was puzzled

✔ So:
- Circle: was
- Underline: Mr. Morton
- Double underline: Having never seen a leprechaun before

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8. Mr. Morton and the leprechaun stared at each other and walked slowly in a circle.

Two subjects? Actually, it’s a compound subject: “Mr. Morton and the leprechaun” — they did both actions together.

Predicates: “stared”, “walked”

Phrases:
- “at each other” → tells who they stared at
- “slowly” → adverb, not a phrase (it’s just one word modifying “walked”)
- “in a circle” → tells how/where they walked

Wait — “slowly” is an adverb, not a phrase. Phrases need more than one word usually, unless it’s a prepositional phrase like “in a circle”.

So phrases:
- “at each other”
- “in a circle”

✔ So:
- Circle: stared, walked
- Underline: Mr. Morton and the leprechaun
- Double underline: at each other, in a circle

*(“slowly” is not double underlined — it’s an adverb, not a phrase.)*

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9. Having always wanted gold teeth, Mr. Morton tried to catch the leprechaun.

- Subject: “Mr. Morton”
- Predicate: “tried”
- Phrases:
- “Having always wanted gold teeth” → explains why he tried
- “to catch the leprechaun” → infinitive phrase telling what he tried to do

✔ So:
- Circle: tried
- Underline: Mr. Morton
- Double underline: Having always wanted gold teeth, to catch the leprechaun

---

10. The leprechaun, used to being chased, disappeared and then reappeared in a tree.

Subject: “The leprechaun”

Predicates: “disappeared”, “reappeared”

Phrases:
- “used to being chased” → describes the leprechaun
- “in a tree” → tells where he reappeared

✔ So:
- Circle: disappeared, reappeared
- Underline: The leprechaun
- Double underline: used to being chased, in a tree

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11. Shaking the tree violently, Morton imagined having a big gold helmet, with gold horns on the side.

Subject: “Morton”

Predicate: “imagined”

Phrases:
- “Shaking the tree violently” → tells what he was doing while imagining
- “having a big gold helmet” → what he imagined
- “with gold horns on the side” → describes the helmet

✔ So:
- Circle: imagined
- Underline: Morton
- Double underline: Shaking the tree violently, having a big gold helmet, with gold horns on the side

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12. Gold coins rained down to the earth like tears from the heavens.

Subject: “Gold coins”

Predicate: “rained”

Phrases:
- “down to the earth” → tells where
- “like tears from the heavens” → simile, describes how they rained

✔ So:
- Circle: rained
- Underline: Gold coins
- Double underline: down to the earth, like tears from the heavens

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13. Mr. Morton, the most dangerous leprechaun hunter in the North, celebrated by grabbing coins.

Subject: “Mr. Morton”

Predicate: “celebrated”

Phrases:
- “the most dangerous leprechaun hunter in the North” → appositive phrase describing Mr. Morton
- “by grabbing coins” → tells how he celebrated

✔ So:
- Circle: celebrated
- Underline: Mr. Morton
- Double underline: the most dangerous leprechaun hunter in the North, by grabbing coins

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14. Filling up his pockets with gold coins, Mr. Morton laughed and laughed.

Subject: “Mr. Morton”

Predicate: “laughed” (twice — but it’s the same verb repeated)

Phrases:
- “Filling up his pockets with gold coins” → tells what he was doing while laughing

✔ So:
- Circle: laughed (you can circle it once even though it’s repeated — it’s the same predicate)
- Underline: Mr. Morton
- Double underline: Filling up his pockets with gold coins

*(Some teachers might say circle “laughed” twice — but since it’s the same verb, circling once is fine. If your teacher wants every instance, circle both. But typically, we identify the main verb once. Let’s go with circling “laughed” once.)*

Actually — looking back at #4, we circled both “put” and “walked” because they were different verbs. Here, “laughed and laughed” is repetition of the same verb. So circle “laughed” once.

But to be safe — if you’re unsure, check with your teacher. For now, we’ll circle it once.

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15. The leprechaun, having magically summoned a rainbow bridge, went back to his home in Ireland.

Subject: “The leprechaun”

Predicate: “went”

Phrases:
- “having magically summoned a rainbow bridge” → describes what the leprechaun did before going
- “back to his home in Ireland” → tells where he went

✔ So:
- Circle: went
- Underline: The leprechaun
- Double underline: having magically summoned a rainbow bridge, back to his home in Ireland

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16. Mr. Morton brought all of the gold coins to his neighbor, a renowned pawnbroker.

Subject: “Mr. Morton”

Predicate: “brought”

Phrases:
- “all of the gold coins” → object, but not a phrase we double underline? Wait — “all of the gold coins” is a noun phrase, but in this context, it’s the direct object. We only double underline phrases that are NOT part of the core subject/predicate structure — like modifiers, descriptions, etc.

Actually, let’s clarify: In grammar exercises like this, “phrases” usually mean prepositional phrases, participial phrases, infinitive phrases, etc. — things that add extra info.

“all of the gold coins” — “of the gold coins” is a prepositional phrase modifying “all”. But “all of the gold coins” as a whole is the direct object.

Similarly, “to his neighbor” is a prepositional phrase.

“a renowned pawnbroker” is an appositive phrase describing “neighbor”.

So phrases to double underline:
- “to his neighbor”
- “a renowned pawnbroker”

What about “all of the gold coins”? It’s the direct object — not really a modifier phrase. Usually, we don’t double underline direct objects unless specified.

Looking back at examples — in #1, “on March 17th” is double underlined — that’s a prepositional phrase.

In #3, “coming from the park” — participial phrase.

So for #16:

Phrases:
- “to his neighbor” → prepositional
- “a renowned pawnbroker” → appositive

“all of the gold coins” — “of the gold coins” is a prepositional phrase inside the direct object. Should we double underline it?

Hmm. Let’s think: In many worksheets, they want you to double underline any group of words that isn’t the main subject or predicate — including prepositional phrases within objects.

But to keep it simple and consistent with earlier sentences, let’s double underline only the clear modifier phrases.

Actually, look at #12: “down to the earth” — that’s a prepositional phrase, double underlined.

In #16, “to his neighbor” is similar.

“a renowned pawnbroker” is also a phrase.

“all of the gold coins” — “of the gold coins” is a prepositional phrase, so maybe double underline “of the gold coins”?

But that feels messy. Let me check standard practice.

Upon second thought — in most middle school grammar sheets, they consider “phrases” as non-core elements: introductory phrases, descriptive phrases, prepositional phrases that modify, etc.

For consistency, let’s double underline:

- “to his neighbor”
- “a renowned pawnbroker”

And leave “all of the gold coins” as part of the predicate structure (direct object).

But wait — in #1, “In between the old hills of Garfield Park” — that’s a long prepositional phrase, double underlined.

In #16, “all of the gold coins” contains “of the gold coins” — which is a prepositional phrase. Should we double underline that too?

I think yes — because “of the gold coins” is a prepositional phrase modifying “all”.

Similarly, in #13, “in the North” is part of the appositive phrase, and we double underlined the whole thing.

To avoid confusion, let’s double underline all prepositional phrases and descriptive phrases.

So for #16:

Phrases:
- “of the gold coins” → prepositional
- “to his neighbor” → prepositional
- “a renowned pawnbroker” → appositive

But “all of the gold coins” — if we double underline “of the gold coins”, that’s fine.

Alternatively, some teachers might expect the entire direct object phrase to be considered, but I think sticking to prepositional and appositive phrases is safer.

Let’s go with:

Double underline: of the gold coins, to his neighbor, a renowned pawnbroker

But “of the gold coins” is embedded in “all of the gold coins” — so perhaps double underline “of the gold coins” only.

Yes.

✔ So:
- Circle: brought
- Underline: Mr. Morton
- Double underline: of the gold coins, to his neighbor, a renowned pawnbroker

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17. Squinting through his magnifying glass, the pawnbroker examined the gold coins closely.

Subject: “the pawnbroker”

Predicate: “examined”

Phrases:
- “Squinting through his magnifying glass” → participial phrase
- “through his magnifying glass” is part of it — but the whole thing is one phrase
- “closely” is an adverb — not a phrase

So only one phrase to double underline: “Squinting through his magnifying glass”

✔ So:
- Circle: examined
- Underline: the pawnbroker
- Double underline: Squinting through his magnifying glass

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18. He picked one gold coin out of the pile and handed it to Mr. Morton, moving very slowly.

Subject: “He”

Predicates: “picked”, “handed”

Phrases:
- “out of the pile” → prepositional
- “to Mr. Morton” → prepositional
- “moving very slowly” → participial phrase

✔ So:
- Circle: picked, handed
- Underline: He
- Double underline: out of the pile, to Mr. Morton, moving very slowly

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19. Peeling back layers of gold foil, the pawnbroker showed him the delicious piece of chocolate inside.

Subject: “the pawnbroker”

Predicate: “showed”

Phrases:
- “Peeling back layers of gold foil” → participial phrase
- “of gold foil” → prepositional (inside the first phrase)
- “inside” → could be considered a preposition, but here it’s an adverb meaning “within” — probably not a phrase

So double underline: “Peeling back layers of gold foil” — and within it, “of gold foil” is a prepositional phrase, but since it’s part of the larger participial phrase, we might just double underline the whole thing.

To be precise, let’s double underline the entire participial phrase: “Peeling back layers of gold foil”

And “inside” — if it’s meant as “inside the chocolate”, it might be implied, but as written, “inside” is likely an adverb.

So only one phrase to double underline.

✔ So:
- Circle: showed
- Underline: the pawnbroker
- Double underline: Peeling back layers of gold foil

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20. Though disappointed about not getting gold teeth, Mr. Morton was happy to have so much candy.

Subject: “Mr. Morton”

Predicate: “was”

Phrases:
- “Though disappointed about not getting gold teeth” → concessive phrase
- “about not getting gold teeth” → prepositional phrase inside
- “to have so much candy” → infinitive phrase

So double underline:
- “Though disappointed about not getting gold teeth” — but actually, “disappointed about not getting gold teeth” is the key part; “though” is a conjunction.

Typically, we’d double underline the entire introductory phrase: “Though disappointed about not getting gold teeth”

And “to have so much candy” — infinitive phrase

Also, “about not getting gold teeth” — prepositional phrase

But again, to avoid overcomplicating, let’s double underline the main descriptive phrases.

Standard approach: double underline “Though disappointed about not getting gold teeth” as one phrase, and “to have so much candy” as another.

“about not getting gold teeth” is part of the first phrase.

✔ So:
- Circle: was
- Underline: Mr. Morton
- Double underline: Though disappointed about not getting gold teeth, to have so much candy

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Now, compiling all answers clearly for the student.

Final Answer:

Here is the completed worksheet with instructions followed for each sentence:

1.
- Circle: dances
- Underline: a tiny green leprechaun
- Double underline: In between the old hills of Garfield Park, on March 17th

2.
- Circle: hides
- Underline: the tiny green leprechaun
- Double underline: Wary of travelers, in trees, under bridges, in garbage cans

3.
- Circle: heard
- Underline: Mr. Morton
- Double underline: While taking his homework out of his car, coming from the park

4.
- Circle: put, walked
- Underline: Mr. Morton
- Double underline: in the car, toward the park, feeling a little frightened by the fog

5.
- Circle: gathered
- Underline: A green fog
- Double underline: as thick as a Shamrock Shake, over the baseball field

6.
- Circle: appeared
- Underline: the leprechaun
- Double underline: From out of nowhere, to Mr. Morton, giggling and doing an Irish dance

7.
- Circle: was
- Underline: Mr. Morton
- Double underline: Having never seen a leprechaun before

8.
- Circle: stared, walked
- Underline: Mr. Morton and the leprechaun
- Double underline: at each other, in a circle

9.
- Circle: tried
- Underline: Mr. Morton
- Double underline: Having always wanted gold teeth, to catch the leprechaun

10.
- Circle: disappeared, reappeared
- Underline: The leprechaun
- Double underline: used to being chased, in a tree

11.
- Circle: imagined
- Underline: Morton
- Double underline: Shaking the tree violently, having a big gold helmet, with gold horns on the side

12.
- Circle: rained
- Underline: Gold coins
- Double underline: down to the earth, like tears from the heavens

13.
- Circle: celebrated
- Underline: Mr. Morton
- Double underline: the most dangerous leprechaun hunter in the North, by grabbing coins

14.
- Circle: laughed
- Underline: Mr. Morton
- Double underline: Filling up his pockets with gold coins

15.
- Circle: went
- Underline: The leprechaun
- Double underline: having magically summoned a rainbow bridge, back to his home in Ireland

16.
- Circle: brought
- Underline: Mr. Morton
- Double underline: of the gold coins, to his neighbor, a renowned pawnbroker

17.
- Circle: examined
- Underline: the pawnbroker
- Double underline: Squinting through his magnifying glass

18.
- Circle: picked, handed
- Underline: He
- Double underline: out of the pile, to Mr. Morton, moving very slowly

19.
- Circle: showed
- Underline: the pawnbroker
- Double underline: Peeling back layers of gold foil

20.
- Circle: was
- Underline: Mr. Morton
- Double underline: Though disappointed about not getting gold teeth, to have so much candy

Remember:
- Circle = predicate (verb/action)
- Underline = subject (who/what the sentence is about)
- Double underline = phrases (extra descriptive groups of words)

You’ve got this!