Discussion Forum—A Way with Words, a fun radio show and podcast about language

I should think any verb could be a one-word sentence, given the right context. If it wouldn't spoil things, let me add some non-verbs:

> Hi, hello, greetings, salutations; goodbye, bye, farewell

> Sure, surely, certainly, naturally, evidently, unfortunately...ok, any adverb too.

> Congratulations, great, excellent...there oughta be more along this line but I've suddenly gone blank.

I recall learning about this back in grade school, when the nuns were explaining how to "diagram" sentences. I got up to sharpen my pencil, unfortunately right in the middle of whatever the nun was saying, and she looked at me the way only a nun can, and said "Sit!" Ever anxious to turn a disciplinary situation into something else, I quickly sat down, raised my hand, and (precociously) asked "Sister, you always tell us to speak in complete sentences, so how would you diagram what you just said to me?"

Again, I got that "nun glare," but then she realized it was a perfectly legitimate question and one of those "teachable moments." It was then that I learned about implied subjects (You) and implied adverbs (down, now).

Dude, I actually did get my knuckles wrapped with a ruler on several occasions. These days, that kind of corporal punishment would spawn a lawsuit. Back in the 50s, it was the modus operandi. On one occasion, when caught throwing a snowball, I was told to make 100 snowballs bare-handed as punishment. Coulda' gotten frostbite doing that, but I had the foresight to warm my hands as needed about every 10 snowballs. Catholic grade school was like being in a prison camp when you screwed up.