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The Complex Sentence
The complex sentence
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Another way to add variety to your writing is to use subordination and
modification to create complex sentences. A complex sentence consists
of a simple sentence (also known as an independent clause) plus one or
more dependent clauses.
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Dependent clauses, like independent clauses, contain a subject and
predicate; however, whereas independent clauses can stand alone, dependent clauses are dependent or subordinate to an independent clause
and must be attached to that independent clause to form a complete
sentence. You can track most dependent clauses back to their independent counterparts, as in the set of sentences below.
Independent clause Each letter in our alphabet is a sign.
Independent clause Each letter in our alphabet gives us
information about our language’s history and sound system.
Complex sentence Because each letter in our alphabet is a
Dependent Clause
sign, it gives us information about our language’s history and
sound system.
Independent Clause
Note that the dependent clause above includes the subordinator “because” at the beginning of the clause. A dependent clause usually begins
with a subordinator—also called a subordinating conjunction—or a
relative pronoun. A subordinator or relative pronoun gives information
about the relationship between the independent and dependent clause.
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Sentence Level: Basic Grammar
Common subordinators
Relative pronouns
Cause because, since, as if, why
that
what
whatever
which
whichever
who
whoever
whom
whomever
whose
Concession  although,
even though, certainly,
though
Condition  if, unless, how, rather
than, where, whether
Effect  so that, in order that
Place  where
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Sequence  after, before, while,
until
Dependent clauses
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Time  when, as, until, once
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Dependent clauses can be nominal (used like nouns), adjectival (used
like adjectives), or adverbial (used like adverbs). This means that dependent clauses can be used as subjects, objects, or modifiers. Although
it is sometimes difficult to distinguish which type of dependent clause
is being used, it is a good idea to learn the different clause types because
your choice of punctuation depends on how a clause is being used.
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Noun (or nominal) clauses
Dependent noun clauses can function as subjects, direct objects, subject
complements, objects of prepositions, or appositives. Since these types
of clauses are dependent or subordinate, they are always attached to an
independent clause or a critical part of an independent clause. Noun
clauses usually begin with a relative pronoun or with one of these subordinators: when, where, how, why or whether. There are two types of
noun clauses: nominal relative clauses and appositive clauses.
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1. Nominal relative clauses
Nominal relative clauses take the place of a subject, direct object, or an
object of a preposition. A good way to see whether you are using a nominal relative clause is to see if you can substitute a pronoun (it, she, he) for
the clause in question.
In place of a subject  What sounds a letter makes is complicated. Dependent Clause/
Nominal Relative Clause
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In place of a direct object  For new language learners, it is
sometimes difficult to know which letter represents a particular sound.
Dependent Clause/
Nominal Relative Clause
In place of a subject complement  This alphabet disconnection is why many linguists suggest changing our alphabet.
Dependent Clause/Nominal Relative Clause
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In place of an object of the preposition  Many linguists
theorize about when the alphabet will become more transparent.
Dependent Clause/Nominal Relative Clause
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2. Appositive clauses
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Appositive clauses follow nouns that are general or abstract in nature,
such as a theory, reason, fact, or story. The appositive clause begins with
a “that” and provides more information about the abstract noun.
The alphabet disconnection theory that letters do not clearly
Dependent Clause/
match sounds is widely known by linguists. Appositive Clause
It is important to be able to distinguish these dependent clauses as noun
clauses because neither one of these dependent noun clauses requires
a comma. Putting a comma around these clauses to highlight them or
separate them in some way from the independent clause is a comma
error.
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Sentence Level: Basic Grammar
EXERCISE 1
Directions: Underline the noun clauses in the following sentences, and
then label the types of noun clauses.
Example: This section contradicted my belief that you should use a
comma with all noun clauses. (appositive clause)
1. The assumption that English is the most difficult language to
learn has not been proven.
2. What we know about learning English is only a small piece of
the language puzzle.
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3. Linguists know that many languages are learned in similar
ways.
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4. Some people seem to like the idea that English is difficult for
others to learn.
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Adjective (or adjectival) clauses
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5. However, this so-called reason is why some non-English
speakers give up on learning English.
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Adjective clauses, another type of dependent or subordinate clause,
modify noun phrases, which can be made up of either nouns or pronouns. There are two types of adjective clauses: the comparative clause
and the relative clause.
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1. Comparative clauses
Comparative clauses compare two noun phrases and use the phrase as
XXX as to make the comparison, where XXX is filled in with an adjective. The clause to the left of the as XXX as phrase is the beginning of
the independent clause, and the clause to the right of the as XXX as
phrase is the dependent clause.
ÎÎThat sign is as uninformative as the one I saw at the zoo last
week.
Dependent Clause
ÎÎShe is as tall as the sign is.
Dependent Clause
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2. Relative clauses
Relative clauses, the most common type of
dependent clause, are used to modify or give
more information about the noun phrase to the
clause’s left. These clauses usually begin with
a relative pronoun, such as that, which, who,
whom, or whose.
ÎÎHighway signs that are funny often defeat the purpose of their
warning.
Relative Clause
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ÎÎThe student who is signing for the deaf audience is obviously
Relative Clause
still learning American Sign Language. P
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ÎÎThe highway workers whose job it was to paint the new sign
forgot the paint.
Relative Clause
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Relative pronouns can sometimes be dropped if they can be understood
to be part of the relative clause.
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ÎÎThe signs [that] the highway workers need to paint are the
Relative Clause
ones [that] taggers have covered with graffiti.
Relative Clause
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Relative clauses can be essential or necessary for the full meaning of the
sentence to be understood, or they can be non-essential. An essential
relative clause is described as a restrictive relative clause. Restrictive relative clauses never take commas around the clause.
ÎÎHighway signs that are covered in mud
Restrictive Relative Clause
can cause accidents.
In the sentence above, ALL highway signs do
not cause accidents; only highway signs that
are covered in mud can cause them. Thus, the
relative clause is essential to understand the
meaning of the full sentence.
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ÎÎThe architect who designed the building has a plaque with his
Restrictive Relative Clause
name on it near the front.
Likewise, in the sentence above, it is only the architect who designed the
building who has a plaque, not just any architect. Therefore, this relative
clause is also essential to the sentence.
A relative clause that is not essential to understand the full meaning
of the sentence is described as a non-restrictive relative clause. Nonrestrictive relative clauses always take commas around the clause.
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ÎÎThe signs along Route 66, which are often stolen, classify
Non-Restrictive Relative Clause
it as a national monument.
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In the sentence above, the relative clause is not essential for us to understand the meaning of the main
sentence. In the relative clause, we get extra or nonessential information. With or without the relative
clause, we still understand that the signs along Route
66 label it as a national monument.
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ÎÎThe architect, who wore a seersucker suit to the ceremony, was
Non-Restrictive Relative Clause
awarded a plaque.
Likewise, in the above sentence, the relative clause is not essential.
Whether he wore a seersucker or wool suit is not important; the architect would still have been awarded the plaque either way.
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EXERCISE 2
Directions: Underline the relative clauses in the following sentences.
Example: Language learners who study their new language in school
usually do not speak any better than those who learn their new language through immersion.
1. When living in a language’s culture, you can learn more than
just the vocabulary that is introduced in a textbook.
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2. Many language learners who live outside their native country find themselves learning new vocabulary from another
language quickly.
3. The younger that a language learner is, the more chance she
has of learning a new language.
4. Language textbooks, which are often published by a variety of
publishers, can only get you so far into your new language.
Adverb (or adverbial) clauses
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5. It is a good idea to stay as long as you can in the country of
the language that you are learning.
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Adverbial clauses begin with a subordinator (sometimes called a subordinating conjunction) and usually give information about cause/reason,
concession, condition, effect, place, sequence, and time. The clauses do
this by answering the questions when? where? why? how? how frequently?
and in what manner? Adverbial clauses are always dependent or subordinate to the main or independent clause.
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Common subordinators
Cause because, since, as if, why
Concession  although, even though, certainly, though
Condition  if, unless, how, rather than, where, whether
Effect  so that, in order that
Place  where
Sequence  after, before, while, until
Time  when, as, until, once
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ÎÎBecause she was caught with the freeway sign in her car, she
Adverbial (Dependent) Clause
was arrested for theft.
Notice that the adverbial clause above gives the reason why the woman
was arrested, thus giving information about cause.
Adverbial clauses can function like adverbs, moving to various points in
a sentence. When an adverbial clause is at the beginning of the sentence,
use a comma to separate it off from the main or independent clause.
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ÎÎBecause the highway trooper watched him
Adverbial Clause
closely, the driver followed the detour sign.
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When an adverbial clause appears in the middle of a
sentence, you should also set it off by placing commas
around the adverbial clause.
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ÎÎThe driver, because the highway trooper
Adverbial Clause
watched him closely, followed the detour sign.
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However, when an adverbial clause appears at the end of a sentence, it
usually does not take a comma.
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ÎÎThe driver followed the detour sign because the highway
Adverbial Clause
trooper watched him closely.
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EXERCISE 3
Directions: Underline the adverbial clauses in the following sentences,
and circle the subordinator.
Example: You usually do not need a travel guide when you travel in
your own neighborhood.
1. When you travel to a foreign country, it is a good idea to bring
a travel guide.
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2. Although travel guides can be helpful, they cannot get you out
of complicated situations.
3. If you do find yourself with a serious problem in a foreign
country, you should check if there is an embassy located near
you.
4. Finding an embassy is a good idea, so that you feel more
secure when dealing with the problem.
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Common sentence errors with the complex
sentence
1. Check for fragments
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5. While embassy employees can usually help you with serious
problems, they cannot provide a translator for you for everyday use.
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Dependent clauses do not express a complete thought, and they need
to be attached to an independent clause to be grammatically complete.
Because dependent clauses are clauses, they contain a subject and a full
verb, a fact that sometimes leads a writer to use a dependent clause as
a complete sentence. When dependent clauses are presented as a full
sentence, they are fragments.
Fragment Because the highway trooper watched him closely.
Dependent Clause
OK The driver took the detour because the highway trooper
watched him closely.
Dependent Clause
Fragment When she saw the tornado.
Dependent Clause
OK When she saw the tornado, she took it as a sign to take
cover.
Dependent Clause
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Sentence Level: Basic Grammar
EXERCISE 4
Directions: Identify six fragments in the following paragraph, and
change them into grammatically correct sentences.
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Our office was chosen to design the latest advertising campaign. For
an internationally known sporting goods company. They’ve specifically requested a series of promotional billboards. Which will be
displayed along highways in major cities. Because of the company’s
high profile. Our focus and dedication to the project is of the utmost importance, and we’ve also been told to keep the details of the
project a secret. This advertising campaign will bring a significant
amount of revenue to our relatively small company, so my boss has
told me. That he will be creating a new administrative position. Will
be filled by an internal promotion. The promotion, however, will
be contingent upon the success of this latest campaign. With this
information, the office is dedicated to not only satisfying our client,
but also excelling in this project. To ensure our boss promotes one
of the many qualified, hard-working employees in the office.
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Source= http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/7292252.stm
2. Check for unnecessary commas
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A noun clause can replace a subject, direct object, subject complement,
or object of a preposition. When using a noun clause to replace these
items, avoid placing an unnecessary comma between the noun clause
and the rest of the sentence.
Extra comma What I like about Saturdays, is seeing all the
Dependent Noun Clause
yard sale signs in my neighborhood.
OK What I like about Saturdays is seeing all the yard sale Dependent Noun Clause
signs in my neighborhood.
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3. Check for restrictive or non-restrictive punctuation
Be sure to use the correct punctuation for relative clauses. When they
provide essential information, they are restrictive and should not have
commas. When relative clauses provide non-essential or extra information, they are non-restrictive and should always be separated from the
rest of the sentence with commas.
Extra commas The protester, who had the derogatory sign,
was removed from the lecture. Restrictive Relative Clause
OK The protester who had the derogatory sign was removed
from the lecture.
Restrictive Relative Clause
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In the above example, the relative clause gives necessary information—
the reason the protester was removed from the lecture. Therefore, the
relative clause is restrictive and does not take commas.
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Missing commas M. Night Shyamalan who directed Sixth
Non-Restrictive
Sense and Signs has not won an Academy Award.
Relative Clause
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OK M. Night Shyamalan, who directed Sixth Sense and
Non-Restrictive Relative Clause
Signs, has not won an Academy Award.
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In the example above, the information that Shyamalan directed the
movies Sixth Sense and Signs is not essential to the main point that he
has not won an Academy Award. Thus, the relative clause is non-restrictive and needs to have commas surrounding it.
4. Check for adverbial clause punctuation
When including an adverbial clause in your writing, be sure to use the
appropriate punctuation. If the clause appears at the beginning of the
sentence, use a comma between it and the independent clause. If the adverbial clause appears in the middle of the sentence, surround the clause
with commas. And, finally, if the adverbial clause appears at the end of
the sentence, do not separate the dependent adverbial clause and the
independent clause.
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Missing comma As I left the movie I saw a sign advertising
Dependent Clause
next week’s feature.
OKAs I left the movie, I saw a sign advertising next week’s
Dependent Clause
feature.
Extra comma I saw a sign advertising next week’s feature, as I
left the movie.
Dependent Clause
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OK I saw a sign advertising next week’s feature as I left the
movie.
Dependent
Clause
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