How to Write Simple, Complex, and Compound Sentences Like a Pro

1. Simple sentences are made up of a subject, a verb, and a direct object.
2. The subject is the noun or pronoun that is doing the action of the verb.
3. The verb is the main verb of the sentence.
4. The direct object is the noun or pronoun that is receiving the action of the verb.
5. The indirect object is the noun or pronoun that is being helped or assisted by the subject.

Read the following sentence:

(i) She muttered in reply and we looked at Jeevan for a quick interpretation.

(ii) These are two complete sentences underlying the above sentence.
(a) She muttered in reply.
(b) We looked at Jeevan for quick interpretation.
These two sentences are put together by using the co-ordinating conjunction ‘and’.

Such sentences which are joined by co-ordinating conjunctions (and/ but/
either…or; neither…nor) are called compound sentences.

Sentence ‘a’ and ‘b’ are Simple Sentences.
Each of them has only one subject and one predicate.

Sentence ‘a’ and ‘b’ can be written in another way.

As she muttered in reply, we looked at Jeevan for a quick interpretation.

This sentence begins with a subordinating conjunction ‘As’. This is a complex sentence.
Two simple sentences joined by subordinate conjunctions are called complex sentences.

The subordinate conjunction need not always be in the beginning of the sentence.

Find out some more simple, complex and
compound sentences from the textbook of your class.

Compound Sentences

1. I stood in the middle of the lush green field of moong (green gram) and looked around me.
2. The ground was damp and
   the leaves were shining with dew.
3. I made a quick trip to Surat and bought around 10 kilograms of moong.
4. I was on diet for some days but today I am going to eat my heart’s content.
5. He had come to collect logs but retreated due to the Leopard’s movement.

Prepare a list of subordinating conjunctions.