The boy played soccer with his friends in the park.

Meaning: This means that the young male child engaged in an activity for enjoyment with the people he knows and likes in a public area with grass, trees, and often playground equipment.

Choice of Words: Boy is a young male child. Play means to engage in an activity for enjoyment. Soccer is a game played with a ball between two teams of eleven players. Friend is a person you know and like. Park is a public area with grass, trees, and often playground equipment.

Alternative Expressions

The boy kicked the ball around with his friends in the park.

Meaning: This sentence is similar to the first one, but it gives us a little more detail about how the boy played soccer. We know that he kicked the ball around, which means he was probably running and passing the ball to his friends.

Choice of Words: The boy is the subject of the sentence, and kicked is the verb. The ball is the object of the verb, and around is an adverb that tells us how the boy kicked the ball. With his friends is a prepositional phrase that tells us who the boy played soccer with, and in the park is another prepositional phrase that tells us where the boy played soccer.

The boy had a great time playing soccer with his friends in the park.

Meaning: This sentence tells us that the boy enjoyed playing soccer with his friends in the park. He had a lot of fun running around, kicking the ball, and spending time with his friends.

Choice of Words: The boy is the subject of the sentence, and had is the verb. A great time is the object of the verb, and playing soccer is a prepositional phrase that tells us what the boy had a great time doing. With his friends is another prepositional phrase that tells us who the boy played soccer with, and in the park is another prepositional phrase that tells us where the boy played soccer.

Related Expressions