Complex sentences

Jessy Rivera Cornejo NAIO4

SIMPLE SENTENCE

A simple sentence, also called an independent clause, contains a subject and a verb, and it expresses a complete thought.

In the following simple sentences, mark the subjects in yellow, and verbs in green.

A. Some students like to study in the mornings. B. Juan and Arturo play football every afternoon. C. Alicia goes to the library and studies every day.

The three examples above are all simple sentences. Note that sentence B contains a compound subject, Sentence C contains a compound verb. Simple sentences, therefore, contain a subject and verb and express a complete thought, but they can also contain a compound subjects or verbs.

COMPOUND SENTENCE

A compound sentence contains two independent clauses joined by a coordinator. The coordinators are as follows: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so. (Helpful hint: The first letter of each of the coordinators spells FANBOYS.) Except for very short sentences, coordinators are always preceded by a comma.

In the following compound sentences, mark the subjects in yellow, verbs in green, and the coordinators and the commas that precede them in red

A. I tried to speak Spanish, and my friend tried to speak English. B. Alejandro played football, so Maria went shopping. C. Alejandro played football, for Maria went shopping.

The above three sentences are compound sentences. Each sentence contains two independent clauses, and they are joined by a coordinator with a comma preceding it. Note how the conscious use of coordinators can change the relationship between the clauses.

Sentences B and C, for example, are identical except for the coordinators. In sentence B, which action occurred first? Obviously, "Alejandro played football" first, and as a consequence, "Maria went shopping. In sentence C, "Maria went shopping" first. In sentence C, "Alejandro played football" because, possibly, he didn't have anything else to do, for or because "Maria went shopping."

How can the use of other coordinators change the relationship between the two clauses? What implications would the use of "yet" or "but" have on the meaning of the sentence?

COMPLEX SENTENCE

A complex sentence has an independent clause joined by one or more dependent clauses. A complex sentence always has a subordinator such as because, since, after, although, or when or a relative pronoun such as that, who, or which.

In the following complex sentences, mark the subjects in yellow, verbs in green, and the subordinators and their commas (when required) in red.

A. When he handed in his homework, he forgot to give the teacher the last page. B. The teacher returned the homework after she noticed the error. C. The students are studying because they have a test tomorrow. D. After they finished studying, Juan and Maria went to the movies. E. Juan and Maria went to the movies after they finished studying.

When a complex sentence begins with a subordinator such as sentences A and D, a comma is required at the end of the dependent clause. When the independent clause begins the sentence with subordinators in the middle as in sentences B, C, and E, no comma is required. If a comma is placed before the subordinators in sentences B, C, and E, it is wrong.

Note that sentences D and E are the same except sentence D begins with the dependent clause which is followed by a comma, and sentence E begins with the independent clause which contains no comma. The comma after the dependent clause in sentence D is required, and experienced listeners of English will often hear a slight pause there. In sentence E, however, there will be no pause when the independent clause begins the sentence

COMPLEX SENTENCES / ADJECTIVE CLAUSES

Finally, sentences containing adjective clauses (or dependent clauses) are also complex because they contain an independent clause and a dependent clause. The subjects, verbs, and subordinators are marked the same as in the previous sentences, and in these sentences, the independent clauses are also underlined.

A. The woman who(m) my mom talked to sells cosmetics. B. The book that Jonathan read is on the shelf. C. The house which AbrahAM Lincoln was born in is still standing. D. The town where I grew up is in the United States.

CONCLUSION

Are sure you now know the differences between simple, compound, and complex sentences? This quiz is just six sentences. The key is to look for the subjects and verbs first. .

Directions: Identify the following sentences as simple, compound, or complex based on your reading of the material about simple, compound, and complex sentences.

1: The teacher walked into the classroom, greeted the students, and took attendance.

Simple Compound Complex

2: Juan played football while Juanita went shopping.

Simple Compound Complex

3: Juan played football, yet Juanita went shopping.

Simple Compound Complex

4: Although Mexico has the better football team, it lost.

Simple Compound Complex

5: The island was filled with many winding trails, a small lake, and dangerous wild pigs.

Simple Compound Complex

6: Naoki passed the test because he studied hard and understood the material.

Simple Compound Complex

Directions: This is a sentence identification quiz. Please indicate whether each of the following sentences is simple, compound, or complex.

1: Helen Keller was born in Tuscumbia, Alabama, in 1880 and died in 1968.

Simple Compound Complex

2: Until she was 19 months of age, her sight and hearing were normal.

Simple Compound Complex

3: At the age of 19 months, a severe illness left her deaf and blind.

Simple Compound Complex

4: When she was seven, she began her education in reading and writing with Anne Sullivan of the Perkins Institute for the Blind.

Simple Compound Complex

5: Through persistence and stubbornness, Anne breaks through Helen's walls of silence and darkness and teaches her to communicate.

Simple Compound Complex

6: Helen Keller learned to read by the Braille system, and she learned to write by using a specially constructed typewriter.

Simple Compound Complex

7: Later, she entered Radcliffe College and graduated with honors in 1904.

Simple Compound Complex

8: Helen Keller's story needed to be told, so in 1962, a beautiful movie was made about her life.

Simple Compound Complex

9: "If there were only joy in the world, we could never learn to be brave and patient." -- Helen Keller

Simple Compound Complex

10: "Life is either a daring adventure, or it is nothing." -- Helen Keller

Simple Compound Complex

Directions: The sentences in this quiz are about The Americanization of Shadrach Cohen by Bruno Lessing. Please indicate whether the sentences are simple, compound, or complex.

1: The Americanization of Shadrach Cohen is a short story about values by Bruno Lessing.

Simple Compound Complex

2: Shadrach Cohen had two sons, Abel and Gottlieb.

Simple Compound Complex

3: When Abel and Gottlieb moved to New York, they opened their own business in their father's name.

Simple Compound Complex

4: The business was successful, so Abel and Gottlieb told their father to join them in New York City.

Simple Compound Complex

5: When Shadrach came, he brought Marta, the family maidservant.

Simple Compound Complex

6: When the ship landed, Shadrach was met by two dapper-looking young men.

Simple Compound Complex

7: Each son wore a flashy tie with a diamond pin.

Simple Compound Complex

8: Shadrach's sons welcomed him to the new land, but they were amazed by his old fashioned appearance.

Simple Compound Complex

9: Shadrach looked like so many new immigrants that Gottlieb and Abel had ridiculed in the past.

Simple Compound Complex

10: Gottlieb and Abel first wanted to take their father to a barbershop to trim his beard to make him look more like an American.

Simple Compound Complex

11: Although Gottlieb and Abel already had a servant, Marta stayed with the family.

Simple Compound Complex

12: At their first meal together, Shadrach saw a wall between him and his sons.

Simple Compound Complex

13: Shadrach was puzzled because he realized that some change had occurred.

Simple Compound Complex

14: When the meal was over, Shadrach donned his praying cap and began to recite grace.

Simple Compound Complex

15: While Abel and Gottlieb thought their father would change after a few months, he didn't.

Simple Compound Complex

16: When Gottlieb told his father about the wedding, Shadrach wanted to meet the bride right away.

Simple Compound Complex

17: Because Gottlieb was ashamed of his father, he did not want to indroduce him to his future bride.

Simple Compound Complex

18: Shadrach was upset and told Gottlieb to go straight to bed.

Simple Compound Complex

19: Shadrach then began running both the house and the business.

Simple Compound Complex

20: Shadrach dismissed two employees and told Abel and Gottlieb to take their places.

Simple Compound Complex

21: After Shadrach imposed new rules on the business, it began to improve.

Simple Compound Complex

22: Other businessmen in the community saw the business grow, and they began to respect and revere Shadrach.

Simple Compound Complex

23: While the sons were working for Shadrach, they were earning bread by the sweat of their brow.

Simple Compound Complex

24: After Shadrach earned their respect, Gottlieb wanted to bring Miriam, his bride to be, to meet his father.

Simple Compound Complex

25: Joy beamed in Shadrach's eyes when Gottlieb invited Miriam to meet his father.

Simple Compound Complex

26: When Miriam saw Shadrach, he looked like a patriarch from the Pentateuch.

Simple Compound Complex

27: Miriam seized Shadrach's hands and asked him to bless her.

Simple Compound Complex

28: Shadrach, along with Abel, Gottlieb, and Miriam prayed to give thanks after the meal.

Simple Compound Complex

Simple Sentence -> Complex Sentence

Combing simple sentences to make complex sentences is an important exercise to help you advance in your writing abilities. This writing exercise focuses on taking simple sentences and transforming them into complex sentences which are then combined into a paragraph.

Simple Sentence -> Complex Sentence

Example: Tom is a boy. He is eight years old. He goes to school in Philadelphia. Complex Sentence: -> Tom is an eight-year old boy who goes to school in Philadelphia.

Here are some simple rules to remember when combining simple sentences into complex sentences: Don't repeat words Change words if necessary Add words to connect ideas

Combine the following sentences into complex sentences

His name is Peter. He's a famous professional athlete. He's a baseball player. He has a large house in Miami. The house is beautiful.

He often travels around the US. He plays away games in different cities in the US. He travels by airplane. He usually sleeps on the plane. He stays up late after games.

He is an excellent pitcher. Fans love his abilities. Coaches love his abilities. Every week he plays a home game. The game is played in Glover Stadium. The game is usually sold out.

Glover Stadium is old. Glover Stadium doesn't have enough seats for all the fans. The fans wait in line to buy tickets. The fans often pay more than $60 dollars for a ticket. The fans are unhappy about the ticket prices. The fans love Peter.

Complex Sentence - Possible Paragraph 1

Peter is a famous baseball player. He lives in a beautiful house in Miami. He often flies around the United States to play away games. Both fans and coaches love his excellent pitching abilities. Every week he plays home games in Glover Stadium which is usually sold out. Glover Stadium is an old stadium without enough seats for all the fans. Fans wait in line to buy the tickets which often cost more than $60. Even though the fans are unhappy about ticket prices, they love Peter.

Complex Sentence - Possible Paragraph 2

Peter is a famous baseball player who lives in a beautiful house in Miami. He often flies to different cities around the United States to play away games. His excellent pitching is loved by both fans and coaches. Old Glover Stadium doesn't have enough seats for the fans who want to come to home games. Even though they are unhappy about ticket prices, the wait in line and pay more than $60 to see Peter play.

Complex Sentence Structure Song Lyrics

1)And wouldn't it be nice to live together In the kind of world _______ we belong (The Beach Boys "Wouldn't It Be Nice?")

Which That Where to

2)And so I cry sometimes ______ I'm lying in bed (4 Non-Blondes "What's Going On?")

Where When How what

3)You got to do _____ you should. (U2 "One")

That Which What how

4)(We're) caught in a trap, I can't walk out _______ I love you too much, baby (Elvis Presley "Suspicious Minds")

Because Why That Therefore

5)I know that you can love me ______ there's no one left to blame (Guns 'N Roses "November Rain")

While When What That

6)I just want you to know ____ I am. (Goo-Goo Dolls Iris")

Who Whom That when

7)I swear _____ I really wanna know. (Sublime "Santeria")

That What How who

8)Feeling good was easy, Lord ______ he sang the blues (Janis Joplin "Me and Bobby McGee")

What When That How

9)Hes plain ugly to me, and I wonder ___ hes ever had a day of fun in his whole life (Sheryl Crow "All I Wanna Do")

Which That What if

10)There's a lady ____ sure All that glitters is gold (Led Zeppelin "Stairway to Heaven")

Whose Whom Who who's