Simple vs Compound

Sentences

Outline:

Overview of sentence types

Simple sentence
Compound sentence
Exercise

Note this!

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

Simple Sentence
A simple sentence has the most basic
elements that make it a sentence:
a subject, a verb, and a completed
thought.
A simple sentence has one independent
clause and no dependent clauses:
Examples:
Joe waited for the train.
"Joe" = subject, "waited" = verb
The train was late.
"The train" = subject, "was" = verb

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.

I looked for Mary and Samantha at the

bus station.
"I" = subject, "looked" = verb

Mary and Samantha arrived at the bus

station and left on the bus before I
arrived.
"Mary and Samantha" = compound
subject
"arrived" and "left" = compound verb

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.

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.

Compound Sentences

A compound sentence:
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

Examples of compound sentences include

the following:
Joe waited for the train, but the train was late.

I looked for Mary and Samantha at the bus

station, but they arrived at the station before
noon and left on the bus before I arrived.

Mary and Samantha arrived at the bus station

before noon, and they left on the bus before I
arrived.

Mary and Samantha left on the bus before I

arrived, so I did not see them at the bus
station.

for, nor, yet occur almost

exclusively in writing, so they add a
level of formality:

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.

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.

Activity

Watch the video

Create compound sentences
based on the videos theme.