Sentence Structure

TYPES OF SENTENCES

Mehnaz Zainab, PIEAS

 Sentence structure
2

English sentences consist of clauses which are units

of subject and verb.

They are studying. (only one clause here)

Ahmed has appeared in the final exam but he hasn’t
prepared well. (two clauses)
They made a new discovery in the lab although they
didn’t have advanced equipment and they relied
mainly on their sharp instincts. (three clauses)

Mehnaz Zainab, PIEAS

 Clauses
3

Sentences are combinations of two types of clauses:

Main or independent clause which is complete in its

meaning: ‘They are studying’.

Subordinate or dependent clause which is

incomplete in its meaning: ‘Because they are
studying…’

Mehnaz Zainab, PIEAS

 Sentence Types
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There are mainly three types of sentences:

Simple sentence: which is complete in its meaning.

They are studying.

Complex sentence: which consists of main and

subordinate clauses.
They are studying because they have an exam
tomorrow.

Mehnaz Zainab, PIEAS

 Sentence Types
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Compound sentence: which is a combination of

two or more main clauses.
They are studying and we are listening to music.

Compound-complex sentence is a combination

of Complex and Compound sentences.
They are studying and we are listening to music
although our other friends asked us to go on a picnic.

Mehnaz Zainab, PIEAS

 Conjunctions in sentences
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Two types of conjunctions are used to combine

clauses within sentences.

Subordinate Conjunctions are used to combine

subordinate clauses with main clauses to form
Complex sentences.

Coordinate Conjunctions are used to combine

two or more main clauses to form Compound
sentences.

Mehnaz Zainab, PIEAS

 Common conjunctions
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Here are some common subordinate conjunctions:

after,; although; though; as; because; before; even

though; how; if; even if; in order that; since; that; so
that; unless; until; what; whatever; when; whenever;
where; wherever; whether; which; whichever; while;
who; whose

Mehnaz Zainab, PIEAS

 Common conjunctions
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Here are the coordinate conjunctions which combine

two or more main clauses to form compound
sentences:

And; but; or; nor; for; so; yet

Mehnaz Zainab, PIEAS

 Let’s practice
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Let’s form some sentences with subordinate and

coordinate conjunctions to practice the types of
sentences.

Mehnaz Zainab, PIEAS

 10

THANKYOU

Mehnaz Zainab, PIEAS