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Sentence Variety

Sentences are the flow and rhythm of your paper and remain flexible with infinite combinations. You can play around with subjects and verbs, conjunctions, and independent and dependent clauses. Take advantage of all sentence types. They all have different purposes.

Important Definitions

• Independent clauses:

a complete thought that can stand on its own

made up of at least one subject and at least one verb

• Dependent clauses:

an incomplete thought that cannot stand on its own

made up of at least one subject and at least one verb

• Coordinating conjunctions:

a word placed between words, phrases, clauses, or sentences of equal rank (e.g., and, but, so)

Subordinating conjunctions:

a word or phrase that introduces a subordinate clause (e.g., although, after, because)

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Examples and Tips

Sentence Type	Examples	Tips
Simple one independent clause	The dog ran. He jumped onto his horse and immediately fell off. The tornado and the storm were near our sister's barn.	There can be more than one subject and more than one verb. The verbs can either be a main action verb (run, jump, swim, etc.) or an auxiliary/linking verb (be, do, have, seems, will, etc.)
Compound two or more independent clauses combined with a coordinating conjunction or semicolon	He rode the train, and I drove my car. The mongoose caught the snake, but the hawk attempted to take it. My boat had sprung a leak, yet it did not sink.	To help choose a coordinating conjunction, remember FANBOYS (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so).
Complex an independent clause with a dependent clause	Although the tree fell, no one heard it. Guillermo ate a chocolate bar after he finished dinner. Even though Reggie seemed happy, Kenzie knew he was upset.	If a dependent clause and its subordinating conjunction come before the independent clause, you must separate them with a comma. (This tip is an example.)
Compound-Complex an independent clause with a dependent clause combined with another independent clause	I made a pumpkin pie though I had no sugar, so the pie probably tastes terrible. The sound of rustling trees is so nice, but, once I go home, I will be stressed again.	It is important to take advantage of all sentence types. None of them are “better” than the other. They all have different purposes. Use a combination of all four to make papers stronger.