Is 'why there are two low tides and two high tides each day' a declarative or procedural statement?

Answer 1

The declarative statement would be: "There are two low tides and two high tides each day." This is a simple declaration of a fact. The interrogative, or question form would be: "Are there two low tides and two high tides each day?" Asking, in the simplest terms, 'does it happen' without regard for the mechanisms involved. "Why are there two..." presumes the truth of the declarative sentence and inquires about the mechanisms behind the events. "Why there are two low tides and two high tides each day" again presumes the truth of the declarative sentence. This doesn't ask a question, however. It is not even a complete sentence. It is a statement that what follows is an explanation; what follows will be the answer to the question "Why are there two...". So you could say that the statement in the Question above is 'procedural'. When sentences are in this form, you can help clarify the function of the sentence by putting in front of it [This is]. "This is why there are two low tides and two high tides each day." Then the material that follows gives the details.

Sometimes people learning English as a second language have difficulty forming verbs the way they are formed in English. "Why there are two low tides ..." is then intended to be the question form, "Why are there two..." This is virtually always the case when sentences in this form are submitted here as questions.

Statements in this form "Why there are two low tides and two high tides each day" could be the name of an essay that explains what is happening, but again it is not a complete sentence as it stands.