Types of Sentences: Simple, Compound, and Complex

1. Simple Sentences

A simple sentence is the most basic kind of sentence. It has one subject (who or what the sentence is about) and one verb (what the subject does or is). Together, they make a complete thought.

👉 Example: The cat sleeps.

• Subject: The cat
• Verb: sleeps

Other examples:

• She runs.
• John reads books.

Parts of a Simple Sentence

There are five elements or parts that make a simple sentence (also called a clause). We call them sentence elements or sentence components. The five sentence elements are:

1. Subject – who or what the sentence is about. (The boy runs.)
2. Verb – what the subject does. (The boy runs)
3. Object – the thing that receives the action. (The boy kicks the ball.)
4. Complement – something that gives more meaning to the subject or object. (The cake looks tasty.)
5. Adjunct – extra information like time, place, or manner. (She sings in the park.)

Remember!

Not every simple sentence will have all the five elements. Some sentences may have only one element, some have two, some have three, some have four and some may have five elements. Here are some examples:

Forms of Simple Sentences

Subject + Intransitive Verb:

• The dog barks.

Subject + Transitive Verb + Object:

• The boy throws the ball.

Subject + Linking Verb + Complement:

• The sky is blue.

Simple sentences can also be longer with more details:

• The little cat sleeps on a soft rug.

2. Compound Sentences

A compound sentence joins two or more simple sentences (independent clauses) together. Each part can stand alone, but they are joined to show connection.

We join them using:

Coordinating conjunctions (FANBOYS: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so)

👉 Example:

The dog barks, and the cat meows.

• First clause: The dog barks.
• Second clause: The cat meows.
• Conjunction: and

Other examples:

• I wanted to play, but it rained.
• She likes reading, and she likes writing.
• He didn’t enjoy the movie; it was too long.

3. Complex Sentences

A complex sentence has one independent clause (a complete sentence) and one dependent clause (cannot stand alone).

The dependent clause often begins with words like because, when, if, although, since.

👉 Example:

Because it was raining, we stayed home.

• Independent clause: we stayed home
• Dependent clause: Because it was raining

Other examples:

• She went to bed early because she was tired.
• Although he studied hard, he failed the test.
• I will call you when I reach home.

In Short

1. Simple sentence: One subject + one verb (The cat sleeps.)
2. Compound sentence: Two simple sentences joined with and, but, so, or a semicolon. (The dog barked, and the cat ran.)
3. Complex sentence: One complete thought + one incomplete thought joined together. (I stayed home because it was raining.)

Lesson Summery:

• ✅ Simple = one idea.
• ✅ Compound = two equal ideas joined.
• ✅ Complex = one main idea + one extra idea that depends on it.