Compound Sentences with Coordinating Conjunctions (FANBOYS)
A compound sentence contains two separate subject and verb pairs. You can combine
two simple sentences together with a comma and a coordinating conjunction to make
one compound sentence. Here are some examples:
F – for
I drank some water, for I was thirsty.
She put on a sweater, for it was cold outside.
*for means the exact same thing as because. The only difference is that when you use
for to join two sentences together into one compound sentence, you need to use a
comma before it. When you use because to join to sentences, you don’t use a comma
before it.
A – and
He was tired, and he had a headache.
N – nor She doesn’t drink milk, nor does she eat butter.
I can’t whistle, nor can I sing.
He didn’t study last night, nor did he read his book.
They were not wearing jackets, nor were they carrying umbrellas.
*nor means “also not”. Nor requires unusual grammar. The first sentence will contain a
negative verb. The second sentence will contain what looks like an interrogative
affirmative verb form. An auxiliary verb (do/does/did, is/am/are/was/were), modal verb
(can/could/will/would/may/might/must/should), or be main verb (is/am/are/was/were)
comes after nor and before the subject, and then the main verb comes after the
subject.
B – but Tom studied a lot, but he didn’t pass the test.
O – or
He can buy the book, or he can borrow it from the library.
Y – yet Tom studied a lot, yet he didn’t pass the test.
*yet means the same thing as but.
S – so
Maria was thirsty, so she drank some water.
It was cold outside, so she put on a sweater.
Assignment 22: Part I Sentence Combining-Compound
Name:
Grade: Home Learning / Homework
Period:
Description: See the back of the sheet and the exercises below.
Sentence-Combining Exercise 1
Combine these six pairs of sentences using the coordinating conjunctions listed below.
Use each conjunction only one time.
and, but, or, so, yet, nor
1. Some students stay on the sidewalks. Some students cut across the grass.
2. Students have to park far from their classrooms. They are often late for class.
3. Trash cans have been placed all over campus. Students still throw garbage on
the ground.
4. The administration promised to improve dining hall service. The quality of the
food is actually worse this year.
5. These students do not respect the feelings of others. They don’t seem to respect
themselves.
6. We must stand up for our rights today. We may find ourselves with no rights at all.
Forming Complex Sentence with Subordinating Conjunctions
A complex sentence is formed when an independent clause is connected to a
dependent clause. Such relationship it is said to be complex given one independent
ideas (clause) or entity subordinates a secondary idea (clause) in the sentence. The
relationship between these two clauses is one that requires a subordinating conjunction.
This conjunction expresses a relationship as shown in the chart below. Remember, the
clause that is introduced by the subordinating conjunction is ALWAYS the subordinated
clause or the dependent clause.
Independent Clause: An independent clause is a group of words that contains a subject
and a verb, expresses a complete thought, and can stand alone as a sentence.
Dependent Clause: A dependent clause is a group of words that contains a subject and
a verb, does not express a complete thought, and cannot stand alone as a sentence.
Complex Sentence: A complex sentence is a sentence that contains one independent
clause and at least one dependent clause.
Dependent Clause
Examples:
The students are studying because they have a test tomorrow.
S
V
S
V
C
Independent Clause
Subordinating Conjunction
?
After they finished studying, John and Marry went to the movies.
S
V
S
V
C
?
?
?
?
Assignment 22: Part II Sentence Combining-Complex
Name:
Grade: Home Learning / Homework
Period:
Description: See the back of the sheet and the exercises below.
Sentence-Combining Exercise 2
Combine the following sentences using the subordinating conjunctions listed below.
Again, use each conjunction only one time.
unless, because, even though, if, while, although
1. Some students stay on the sidewalks. Some students cut across the grass.
2. Students have to park far from their classrooms. They are often late for class.
3. Trash cans have been placed all over campus. Students still throw garbage on
the ground.
4. The administration promises to improve dining hall service. The quality of the food
may actually improve this year.
5. These students do not respect the feelings of others. They do seem to respect
themselves.
6. We must stand up for our rights today. We may find ourselves with no rights at all.