Hypotaxis refers to the way parts of a sentence are arranged when some parts are more important than others. This term comes from Greek, where "hypo-" means "beneath" and "taxis" means "arrangement."

One example of hypotaxis is when one part of a sentence depends on another part in a complex sentence. For instance, a clause might describe or explain another part of the sentence.

Another example is premodification, where one word or phrase modifies a larger group of words. In the phrase "inexpensive composite materials," the word "inexpensive" describes the whole phrase "composite materials," not just "composite" or "materials" alone. This shows a hierarchy, or level of importance, between the parts of the phrase. In contrast, the phrase "Cockroaches love warm, damp, dark places" has modifiers that are at the same level, and a comma separates them. The main difference is that premodification does not use a comma between modifiers.

In John Keats' poem "Ode to a Nightingale," the second stanza includes an example of hypotaxis: "O, for a draught of vintage! That hath been/ Cool'd a long age in the deep-delved earth, / Tasting of Flora and the country green" (1. 11–13). Here, the phrase "draught of vintage" is described by the clauses in the following lines.

In William Blake's poem "The Clod and the Pebble," the lines "So sang a little Clod of Clay,/ Trodden with the cattle's feet" (l. 5–6) demonstrate hypotaxis. The second line modifies the "Clod of Clay" mentioned in the first line.