Types of Sentences

Sentences: Simple, Compound, and

Complex

A common weakness in writing is the lack of varied sentences. Becoming aware of

three general types of sentences--simple, compound, and complex--can help you
vary the sentences in your writing.

The most effective writing uses a variety of the sentence types explained below.

1. Simple Sentences

A simple sentence has the most basic elements that make it a sentence: a

subject, a verb, and a completed thought.

The use of compound subjects, compound verbs, prepositional phrases (such as

"at the bus station"), and other elements help lengthen simple sentences, but
simple sentences often are short. The use of too many simple sentences can make
writing "choppy" and can prevent the writing from flowing smoothly.  

A simple sentence can also be referred to as an independent clause. It is referred

to as "independent" because, while it might be part of a compound or complex
sentence, it can also stand by itself as a complete sentence.

2. Compound Sentences

A compound sentence refers to a sentence made up of two independent clauses

(or complete sentences) connected to one another with a coordinating
conjunction. Coordinating conjunctions are easy to remember if you think of the
words "FAN BOYS":

 For And Nor But Or Yet So

Coordinating conjunctions are useful for connecting sentences, but compound

sentences often are overused. While coordinating conjunctions can indicate some
type of relationship between the two independent clauses in the sentence, they
sometimes do not indicate much of a relationship. The word "and," for example,
only adds one independent clause to another, without indicating how the two parts

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of a sentence are logically related. Too many compound sentences that use "and"
can weaken writing.

Clearer and more specific relationships can be established through the use of
complex sentences. 

3. Complex Sentences

A complex sentence is made up of an independent clause and one or

more dependent clauses connected to it. A dependent clause is similar to an
independent clause, or complete sentence, but it lacks one of the elements that
would make it a complete sentence. 

Dependent clauses such as those above cannot stand alone as a sentence, but

they can be added to an independent clause to form a complex sentence.

Dependent clauses begin with subordinating conjunctions. Below are some of

the most common subordinating conjunctions:

 After though
 unless although
 until as
 when because
 whenever before
 whereas even though
 wherever if
 while since

A complex sentence joins an independent clause with one or more dependent

clauses.

The dependent clauses can go first in the sentence, followed by the independent
clause, as in the following:

Conversely, the independent clauses can go first in the sentence, followed by the
dependent clause, as in the following:

Complex sentences are often more effective than compound sentences because a
complex sentence indicates clearer and more specific relationships between the
main parts of the sentence. The word "before," for instance, tells readers that one
thing occurs before another. A word such as "although" conveys a more complex
relationship than a word such as "and" conveys.

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 Beginning Sentences with "And" or "Because"

Should you begin a sentence with "and" or "but" (or one of the other
coordinating conjunctions)?

The short answer is "no." You should avoid beginning a sentence with "and," "or,"
"but," or the other coordinating conjunctions. These words generally are used to
join together parts of a sentence, not to begin a new sentence.

However, such sentences can be used effectively. Because sentences beginning

with these words stand out, they are sometimes used for emphasis. If you use
sentences beginning with one of the coordinating conjunctions, you should use
these sentences sparingly and carefully.

Should you begin a sentence with "because"?

There is nothing wrong with beginning a sentence with "because."

Perhaps some students are told not to begin a sentence with "because" to avoid
sentence fragments (something like "Because Mary and Samantha arrived at the
bus station before noon" is a sentence fragment), but it is perfectly acceptable to
begin a sentence with "because" as long as the sentence is complete (as in
"Because Mary and Samantha arrived at the bus station before noon, I did not see
them at the station.")

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 Run-On Sentences
A run-on sentence results from two or more complete sentences being connected without any
punctuation

A run-on sentence is grammatically faulty sentence in which two or more main or independent

clauses are joined without a word to connect them or a punctuation mark to separate them:
“The fog was thick he could not find his way home.”

Run-on sentences are grammatically incorrect; they read very badly and should be rooted out
from your writing. Unfortunately, computer grammar checkers are not good at identifying
them. Grammar checkers will identify the comma splice (two independent clauses separated by
a comma) but seem quite happy if there is no punctuation between the clauses.

A run-on sentence is really two sentences that should be separated by some kind of
punctuation mark but are not.

There are four main ways to fix a run-on sentence: 

 
1. Separate the two clauses with a period.
e.g. Jim is the fastest runner in the class he wins all of the races. 
Fixed Jim is the fastest runner in the class. He wins all of the races. 

 2. Separate the clauses with a semi-colon.

e.g. I have owned four different guitars my first guitar was a Gibson Explorer.
Fixed I have owned four different guitars; my first guitar was a Gibson Explorer.

3. Use a comma with a coordinating conjunction

e.g Our parents did not like the loud music we could not stop dancing.
Fixed Our parents did not like the loud music, but we could not stop dancing.

4. Use a subordinating conjunction

(e.g. Stephanie worked all week she still partied on Fridays.
Fixed Although Stephanie worked all week, she still partied on Fridays.

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 Comma Splices

One common type of a run on sentence is a comma splice. A comma splice occurs when two
independent clauses are joined with just a comma while others consider it as a punctuation
error.

 How do you identify a run on sentence and a comma splice?

A run-on sentence doesn't separate any of its independent clauses with any punctuations or
conjunctions that it needs, and a comma splice incorrectly separates two independent clauses
with a comma, instead of a comma-and-coordinating-conjunction.

 How do you know a comma splice?

When two independent sentences are joined incorrectly with a comma to avoid a run on
sentence. In the norm we use commas when writing a series of items, pairing them up with
their friend a conjunction
But what you need to know that commas can’t support two independent clauses on their own.

 How do you fix comma splice?

 Add a period to separate the two independent clauses: replace the comma with
a period.
 Add a conjunction: (fanboys).
 Add a semicolon. Semicolons are best used when the two clauses are closely
related in meaning or build off one another.

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 Sentence Fragment

Sentence fragments are groups of words that look like sentences, but aren't. To be a sentence,
groups of words need to have at least one independent clause. An independent clause is any
group of words that contain both a subject and a verb and can stand on its own. For example, 'I
like cheeseburgers' is an independent clause.

Sentence fragments never have independent clauses, but instead are dependent clauses or
phrases. Fragments can masquerade as real sentences because they begin with a capital letter
and end with a period. If you read them more closely, you'll see that fragments don't form a
complete thought. A sentence fragment is a little like having only half of the pieces to a puzzle.
Without all the pieces, you won't have the whole picture.

Fragment Phrases

Phrases are groups of words that are missing a subject or verb, or both. Phrases can also
masquerade as sentences, like dependent clauses can.

You can fix sentence fragments in two ways:

1. connecting the fragment to a nearby independent clause (complete sentence).

2. revising the sentence itself by adding the missing element (a subject or verb or
both).

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 Punctuations

Sentence Endings

 The period (.) is placed at the end of statements thought to be complete and after many
abbreviations.

 Question mark (?) to indicate a direct question when placed at the end of a sentence.

 The exclamation point (!) is used when a person wants to express a sudden outcry or
add emphasis.

Comma, Semicolon and Colon

The comma, semicolon and colon are often misused because they all can indicate a pause in a
series.

 The comma is used to show a separation of ideas or elements within the structure of a
sentence. Additionally, it is used in numbers, dates and letter writing after the
salutation and closing.

 The semicolon (;) is used to connect independent clauses. It shows a closer relationship
between the clauses than a period would show.

 A colon (:) has three main uses. The first is after a word introducing a quotation, an
explanation, an example, or a series.

Dash and the Hyphen

Two other common punctuation marks are the dash and hyphen. These marks are often
confused with each other due to their appearance but they are very different.

 A dash is used to separate words into statements.

 A hyphen is used to join two or more words together into a compound term and is not
separated by spaces. For example, part-time, back-to-back, well-known.

Brackets, Braces and Parentheses

Brackets, braces and parentheses are symbols used to contain words that are a further
explanation or are considered a group.

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  Brackets are the squared off notations ([]) used for technical explanations or to clarify
meaning. If you remove the information in the brackets, the sentence will still make
sense.

 Braces ({}) are used to contain two or more lines of text or listed items to show that they
are considered as a unit. They are not commonplace in most writing, but can be seen in
computer programming to show what should be contained within the same lines. They
can also be used in mathematical expressions. For example, 2{1+[23-3]}=x.

 Parentheses ( () ) are curved notations used to contain further thoughts or qualifying

remarks. However, parentheses can be replaced by commas without changing the
meaning in most cases.

Apostrophe, Quotation Marks and Ellipsis

The final three punctuation forms in English grammar are the apostrophe, quotation marks and
ellipsis. Unlike previously mentioned grammatical marks, they are not related to one another in
any form.

 An apostrophe (') is used to indicate the omission of a letter or letters from a word, the
possessive case, or the plurals of lowercase letters.Examples of the apostrophe in use
include:

 Quotations marks (" ") are a pair of punctuation marks used primarily to mark the
beginning and end of a passage attributed to another and repeated word for word. They
are also used to indicate meanings and to indicate the unusual or dubious status of a
word.

 Single quotation marks (' ') are used most frequently for quotes within quotes.

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 Articles

There are lots of rules about the use of articles. Here we’ll concentrate on 3 golden rules. Most
mistakes with articles are made through breaking one of these rules.

1. When we say what people’s jobs are, we use a/an

 She’s an architect.
 He’s a doctor.
 My grandfather was a teacher.

2. Singular, countable nouns always have an article – a/an or the – or another determiner (my,
your, this, that etc.)
Remember that we use the indefinite article - a/an - when we talk about something that is not
definite.

 I saw a good film yesterday. The listener doesn’t know which film.
 There’s a man at the door. We don’t know who the man is.
 Do you want a drink? It’s not a particular drink.

… and we use the definite article - the – when we talk about something more certain.

 I’m going to take the dog for a walk. The dog is a pet – it’s not just any dog.
 Have you seen the car key? Speaker and listener know which car. It’s not just any car.
 They live in the house opposite ours. There’s only one house opposite. It’s not any house.

3. When we talk about things in general we usually use a plural noun or an uncountable
noun with no article.

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 Birds eat worms. NOT The birds eat the worms.
 Water flows downhill.
 Kangaroos live in Australia.

BUT We went to the zoo and saw the kangaroos. These are particular kangaroos – not
kangaroos in general.

Prepositions

Prepositions – Time

English Usage Example

  on days of the week  on Monday

  in months / seasons  in August / in winter

 time of day  in the morning
 year  in 2006
 after a certain period of time  in an hour
(when?)

  at for night  at night

 for weekend  at the weekend
 a certain point of time (when?) at half past nine

  since from a certain point of time  since 1980

(past till now)

  for over a certain period of time  for 2 years

(past till now)

  ago a certain time in the past  2 years ago

  before earlier than a certain point of  before 2004

time

  to telling the time  ten to six (5:50)

  past telling the time  ten past six (6:10)

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 English Usage Example

  to marking the beginning and end from Monday to/till Friday

until of a period of time

  till in the sense of how long  He is on holiday until Friday.

something is going to last

  by in the sense of at the latest  I will be back by 6 o’clock.

 up to a certain time  By 11 o'clock, I had read five
pages.

Prepositions – Place (Position and Direction)

English Usage Example

 i room, building, street, town,  in the kitchen, in London

n country  in the book
 book, paper etc.  in the car, in a taxi
 car, taxi  in the picture, in the world
 picture, world

 a meaning next to, by an object  at the door, at the station

t  for table  at the table
 for events  at a concert, at the party
 place where you are to do  at the cinema, at school, at
something typical (watch a film, work
study, work)

 
o attached  the picture on the wall
n  for a place with a river  London lies on the Thames.
 being on a surface  on the table
 for a certain side (left, right)  on the left
 for a floor in a house  on the first floor
 for public transport  on the bus, on a plane
 for television, radio  on TV, on the radio

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 English Usage Example

 
b left or right of somebody or  Jane is standing by / next to /
y, next something beside the car.
to,
beside

 
u on the ground, lower than (or the bag is under the table
nder covered by) something else

 
b lower than something else but the fish are below the surface
elow above ground

 
o covered by something else  put a jacket over your shirt
ver  meaning more than  over 16 years of age
 getting to the other side (also  walk over the bridge
across)  climb over the wall
 overcoming an obstacle

 a higher than something else,  a path above the lake

bove but not directly over it

 a getting to the other side (also  walk across the bridge

cross over)  swim across the lake
 getting to the other side

 t something with limits on top,  drive through the tunnel

hrough bottom and the sides

 t movement to person or  go to the cinema

o building  go to London / Ireland
 movement to a place or  go to bed
country
 for bed

 i enter a room / a building  go into the kitchen / the house

nto

 t movement in the direction of  go 5 steps towards the house

owards something (but not directly to it)

 
o movement to the top of  jump onto the table
nto something

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 English Usage Example

 f in the sense of where from  a flower from the garden

rom

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