The basic word order in English is Subject-Verb-Object. The subject comes first, the verb comes second, and the object or complement comes third. Modifiers and extra information usually come after the object or at the end of the sentence. This order forms the core of statements in English.

Rule
The subject comes before the verb.
The verb comes before the object.
Modifiers of time and place usually come at the end.

English questions often use auxiliary verbs to create inversion. In yes-no questions, the auxiliary or modal moves before the subject. In wh- questions, the question word comes first, followed by the auxiliary, then the subject and the main verb. Subject questions do not invert because the question word is the subject.

Rule
In yes-no questions, the auxiliary comes before the subject.
In wh- questions, the question word comes first.
Subject questions keep Subject-Verb order.

Negation in English uses do, does, or did with not to form negative sentences. The auxiliary carries the negation and comes before the main verb. In negatives with be and modals, not follows the auxiliary or the verb be. The basic order remains, with the subject before the auxiliary and the rest of the sentence after the main verb.

Rule
In negatives with do, not follows do and do comes before the main verb.
In negatives with be, not follows be.
In negatives with modals, not follows the modal.

Adverbs can appear in several positions, but English prefers certain placements for clarity. Many adverbs of frequency come before the main verb and after be. Adverbs of manner usually come after the object or at the end. Adverbs of time and place often come at the end of the sentence.

Rule
Adverbs of frequency usually come before the main verb.
Adverbs of frequency usually come after be.
Adverbs of manner usually come after the object.
Adverbs of time usually come at the end.

Compound sentences join two clauses with a coordinator such as and, but, or so. Each clause keeps Subject-Verb-Object order. The coordinator connects the clauses without changing their internal order. Punctuation or connectors do not invert the subject and verb in standard compound sentences.

Rule
Each clause keeps Subject-Verb-Object order.
Coordinators connect clauses without inversion.
Punctuation does not change basic order in compounds.

Inversion moves the verb or auxiliary before the subject in specific contexts. Common contexts include questions, sentences starting with negative expressions, and conditionals without if. In these cases, inversion signals a special structure, but most statements do not use inversion.

Rule
Questions use inversion with auxiliaries.
Negative openings can trigger inversion.
If-less conditionals can use inversion.