Ever feel like you’re not getting anywhere with your
writing???
The Sentence
• Once a writer knows the difference between
the sentence types (simple, compound,
complex, compound complex), it is possible
to write with sentence variety. Sentence
variety helps make your writing more
interesting.
• It also helps you understand commas and
cut down on comma usage problems.
Terms you will need to know
• Subject
• Verb
• Clause (group of words with a subject
and a verb)
Independent-strong, stands alone
Dependent-subordinate-weak, needs support
Simple sentence
A simple sentence has one independent
clause and no dependent clauses:

The student yawned.
Although a simple sentence cannot
have a dependent clause, it can have
modifiers:
•The tall student sitting in the back in
my algebra class yawned loudly.
The basic sentence is ‘The student
yawned’. The other words are
modifiers - they are descriptive words.
• A simple sentence contains only one
independent clause, but it can have
more than one subject or verb:
• TWO SUBJECTS: The student and his
friend yawned.
• TWO VERBS : The student yawned
and fell asleep.
Compound sentence
A compound sentence has two or more
independent clauses that are usually joined
by a coordinating conjunction:
•
The experiment was deemed successful, yet our results were
unsatisfactory.
•
The students were unhappy with their professor, for he often wasted
their time in class.
•
Henry got a new job, so he has to move.
•
I have a lot of homework, but I am not going to have time to study
tonight.
Coordinating Conjunctions
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
FANBOYS =
for
and
nor
but
or
yet
so
CAUTION!
• Do NOT use a comma every time you use
the words and, or, but, nor, for, so, yet.
Use a comma only when the coordinating
conjunction joins two independent clauses.
• The necklace was beautiful but expensive.
(no comma needed before but because it
is not an independent clause)
Notice the difference between a simple sentence
with a compound verb and a compound sentence
with two clauses:
SIMPLE
My house guests returned from a
long day of shopping and went
straight to bed.
COMPOUND My house guests returned home
from a long day of shopping, and
we decided to stay at home
instead of going out.
What is the difference?
Compound sentence without
coordinating conjunctions
Yet, while most compound sentences are
formed with a coordinating conjunctions,
often good writers decide to eliminate the
conjunction and simply add a semicolon:
• The ambitious student initiated the
research; the teacher was pleased by her
efforts.
• The students were unhappy with their
professor; he often wasted their time in
class.
Compound sentence without
coordinating conjunctions
When a transition leads a clause, it is usually
followed by a comma. If the transition lands
in the middle of a compound sentence, use
the semicolon, and then follow the transition
with a comma:
• The experiment was deemed successful;
unfortunately, our results were unsatisfactory.
• The students were unhappy with their
professor; undeniably, he often wasted their
time in class.
Complex sentence
A complex sentence has an independent
clause with one or more dependent
clauses (independent clauses are in italics).
Note that introductory dependent clauses
must be followed by commas:
• Since we got to the concert late, we had to
make our way to our seats in the dark.
• We left class early so that we could attend
a special lecture.
Subordinating Conjunctions
• Abbie saw a wuwu.
(Refer to list of subordinating conjunctions)
Complex sentences should be
punctuated in one of two ways:
 INDEPENDENT CLAUSE dependent clause (no
comma)
We left class early so that we could attend a
special lecture.
Dependent clause, INDEPENDENT CLAUSE (comma)
So that we could attend a special lecture, we
left class early.
Compound Complex
Sentence
A compound complex sentence has TWO or
more Independent clauses and ONE or more
dependent clauses
• Mark and John will grill the burgers, and
you can make the potato salad before the
football game starts.
• Sarah went to the store; she bought orange
juice and chicken soup because her mom
was sick.
Test Yourself – Simple, Compound,
Complex, or Compound-Complex?
1. The teacher walked into the classroom, greeted the students, and took
attendance.
2. Juan played football while Jane went shopping.
3. Juan played football, yet Jim went shopping.
4. Although Mexico has a better team, they lost the tournament, and their
more aggressive style did not pay off.
5. The island was filled with many trails winding through the thick
underbrush, a small lake, and dangerous wild animals.
6. Naoki passed the test because he studied hard, but Stacy did not
understand the material.
Long, rambling sentences
Writing that has too many strings of
independent clauses joined by coordinating
conjunctions can be tiresome and
frustrating for the reader.
These long rambling sentences leave the
reader out of breath and wondering which
information is important.
Long rambling sentences are also perceived
as informal because they duplicate
spoken language
Look at this paragraph with many independent
clauses joined with coordinating conjunctions:
I went home, but my roommate wasn't there,
so I started to cook dinner, but my roommate
came in and saw me trying to cook his favorite
recipe, but I didn't really know how to make it
well, and he got really angry, so I stopped
cooking, and he made dinner for us, and then
everything was all right.
The independent clauses are underlined, and the
coordinating conjunctions are in bold:
I went home, but my roommate wasn't there,
so I started to cook dinner, but my roommate
came in and saw me trying to cook his favorite
recipe, but I didn't really know how to make it
well, and he got really angry, so I stopped
cooking, and he made dinner for us, and then
everything was all right.
This is better! Notice how it makes use of a variety
of sentence structures.
When I went home, my roommate wasn't
there, so I started to cook dinner. Then, my
roommate came in and saw me trying to cook
his favorite recipe even though I didn't know
how to make it well. I stopped cooking
because he got really angry. In the end, he
made dinner for us, and everything was all
right.
Sometimes you can improve things by
just adding a few interesting phrases!
“I thought of this poem while I was
watching my dog play.”
Not a TERRIBLE sentence, really, but not
a very interesting one, either.
Sometimes you can improve things by
just adding a few interesting phrases!
“I thought of this poem while I was watching
my dog play.”
By creating an introductory participial phrase,
we improve things dramatically:
“Watching my dog play, I thought of a great
idea for a poem.”
Sometimes you can improve things by
just adding a few interesting phrases!
“I wrote this poem after I finished a
challenging basketball game.”
By creating an introductory participial phrase,
we improve things dramatically:
“Finishing a challenging basketball game, I
paused to write this poem.”
Sometimes you can improve things by
just adding a few interesting phrases!
“My mom wrote this poem for me. It’s about
childhood.”
What would you do to improve this?
Sometimes you can improve things by
just adding a few interesting phrases!
“My friend, Sabrina, wrote this poem for me.
She told me that her cat inspired her to write
it.”
What would you do to improve this?