Mastering Sentence Structure: The Key to Clear and Effective Communication

Communication is the cornerstone of civilization. Without communication, humans cannot exist as a society because there would be widespread chaos and anarchy.

In the 21st century, English has established itself as a global language that is spoken in many countries in an official sense. As such, there are plenty of English language learners who speak English as a second or even third language.

However, because they are not native speakers, they are prone to making errors. Today, we are going to discuss one of the most common pain points of English learners: sentence structure.

A clear sentence structure is key for effective written communication. However, many English learners find it difficult to find the sweet spot when writing. Let’s learn more about them so that you can understand how to write effectively and clearly.

What is Sentence Structure 

So, first things first. Let’s check out what the term sentence structure means. Simply put, sentence structure refers to the way words are arranged in a sentence while fulfilling grammar rules.

The order in which words are arranged can change the way they are read and what they mean. So, it is important to have a good understanding of sentence structures to ensure that you are communicating clearly. 

An English sentence is composed of subjects and predicates. A subject is anything or anyone that the sentence is about. So, in the following sentence:

“The blacksmith hewed the metal to a desirable shape.”

The subject is “the blacksmith.”  

The predicate is anything that provides some information about the subject, such as what action the subject is doing. In the earlier example, the predicate is “hewed,” which is a verb that means molding rock or metal with force.

Types of Sentence Structures

There are various types of sentence structures, and they have their own uses. Let’s check them out.

Simple Sentences

All sentences have a clause. A clause is a statement that contains a subject and a verb. Clauses have two types: independent and dependent. An independent clause is one that has meaning on its own, i.e., expresses a complete thought.

For example, the given sentence has just one independent clause:

“He was a young man.”

This one sentence has a complete meaning that can be understood when you say or write it.

A simple sentence has only one independent clause in it. Simple sentences are often used when you want to be extremely clear and don’t want any ambiguity in your communication.

That said, simple sentences are, for the lack of a better word, simple. They don’t sound powerful, and they are very bland in tone. 

English learners should start with using simple sentences to practice but move on to other types soon after.

Compound Sentences

A compound sentence is a sentence that has at least two independent clauses in it that are joined by a coordination conjugation. 

Coordination conjugations are the following words:

• And
• Nor
• Or
• But
• Yet
• So

An example of a compound sentence is as follows.

“He was a young man, but his eyes betrayed his wisdom.” 

In the given example, there are two independent clauses:

• He was a young man
• His eyes betrayed his wisdom

These clauses are joined by the conjugation “but.” Hence, they form a compound sentence.

Compound sentences are more articulate than simple sentences and have plenty of room to flex your vocabulary and linguistic skills. That said, they can add some complexity and ambiguity to your communication. So, you have to be careful to follow grammar rules and ensure your compound sentences are easy to follow.

Complex Sentences

A complex sentence has two clauses. Unlike a compound sentence, it has one independent clause and one dependent clause.

A dependent clause doesn’t express a complete thought on its own. It is reliant (or dependent) on another clause to express its meaning. Dependent clauses often start with subordinate conjugations like:

• Although
• Because
• Since
• If 
• When

Here is an example of a complex sentence.

“When the sun is out, the weather becomes warm.”

Here, our two clauses are as follows:

• Independent clause:  the weather becomes warm.
• Dependent clause: when the sun is out.

As you can see, the dependent clause “when the sun is out” is meaningless on its own because it is incomplete.

Complex sentences are also quite articulate and allow you to express your thoughts with more nuance. You can use them to guide your readers through your arguments and logic in a more involved way.

That said, they are called complex for a reason. It is possible to make them too complex and lose the thread. So, a balance must be struck when using them to avoid making your communication unclear.

Complex-Compound Sentences

A complex compound sentence has at least two independent clauses and one or more dependent clauses. 

Complex compound sentences are great for clearly expressing complex ideas. You can use them to discuss chains of ideas that relate to each other.

Here’s an example of a complex compound sentence.

“The sun is shining in all its glory, but since it is winter, the air is still chilly.”

Here, we have three clauses. 

• Independent clause:  The sun is shining in all its glory.
• Dependent clause: but since it is winter.
• Independent clause: the air is chilly.

As you can see in the given example, we have discussed three ideas at once in a cohesive manner. We related the sun shining to the weather and air temperature in one sentence.

How to Practice Good Sentence Structure

Nowadays, most writing is done digitally. However, it is a good idea to start writing manually using a pen and paper. Buy some English worksheets that let you practice writing different sentence structures. 

You can buy different levels of sheets ranging from basic to advanced and practice in order. Once you are done with the basic and intermediate exercises, switch to typing and working digitally.

To use your workbooks digitally, you can use a simple tool like an Image-to-text converter to digitize the workbook. The way this works is that you take pictures of the worksheet and then upload it to the image-to-text converter which will then automatically extract the text in the right format.

Then, you can attempt your workbooks digitally and practice your typing as well.

Importance of Sentence Structure

A good sentence structure is mandatory for clear communication. It helps readers follow your content. As a writer, a good grasp of sentence structure helps you pen down your thoughts in a better way. 

Some of the other advantages of a good sentence structure are given below.

Rhythm and Variety

By switching between simple, complex, and compound sentences, you can add a layer of rhythm and variety to your content. 

If you only stick to one type of sentence structure, then your content becomes bland and unpalatable. 

As a rule of thumb, use simple sentences when you want absolute clarity and want to leave no room for confusion. ALl other ideas should be discussed in compound, complex, or compound-complex sentence structures.

Persuasion and Impact

When writing, you want to make your point come across as persuasive and impactful so that the reader has something to take away. When you don’t have a good grasp of sentence structures, your writing lacks a persuasive punch.

So, practice writing with different sentence structures to improve your writing’s impact. 

Clarity and Flow

The clarity of ideas and how you flow from one idea to another is largely dependent on how you use sentence structures. If you use a lot of simple sentences, then your flow will be choppy and disconnected.

That’s why you need to use compound and complex sentences to improve your flow and ensure that readers can see the link between multiple ideas.

Common Mistakes To Avoid When Writing Sentences

Here are some of the common mistakes English learners make when writing. These mistakes make their sentence structure and the clarity of their writing completely kaput. So, avoid making these mistakes at all costs.

1. Run-On Sentences

In the pursuit of writing a persuasive and impactful complex sentence, new writers often fall into the trap of run-on sentences. 

A run-on sentence is basically really long and has more clauses than necessary. It also lacks a lot of the punctuation needed to separate the clauses.

An example of a run-on sentence would be as follows.

“The sun is shining in all its glory but since it is winter the air is still chilly.”

This is the same example we used to showcase what a complex compound sentence is. However, in this example, you will notice that there are no commas. So, the entire sentence is just one grammatically incorrect clause.

This kind of sentence is hard to read and harder to understand. So, learn about proper punctuation and avoid run-on sentences.

2. Comma Splices

A comma splice is a grammatical error where a large sentence has multiple clauses that are separated by incorrect commas instead of semicolons, periods, or conjugation verbs.

As a result, the sentence is really hard to understand. Here’s an example of a sentence that has a comma splice error.

“I was hungry, I made a sandwich.”

In this sentence, the comma is unnecessary. The two clauses are independent and can exist without relying on each other. We can fix it by adding either a conjugation verb or a period like so.

“I was hungry, so I made a sandwich.”

“I was hungry. I made a sandwich.”

Commas almost always need a conjugation word to accompany them. Just memorize this little rule, and you will be fine most of the time.

3. Fragmented Sentences

A fragmented sentence (or sentence fragment) is an incomplete sentence that lacks a subject, a verb, or a complete thought. It cannot stand alone and often leaves the reader hanging. It is a common mistake that new English learners make.

Here’s an example of a fragmented sentence.

“Went to the store to buy some snacks.”

This sentence is missing the subject, which in this case can be “I,” “We,” or “They.” By adding the subject, we can make the sentence complete and meaningful, as shown below.

“We went to the store to buy some snacks.”

So, the sentence is now complete and makes perfect sense. 

Conclusion

So, there you have it, the details on sentence structures. We learned about three types of sentence structures those being simple, compound, and complex as well as another type called complex-compound. 

We learned what their properties are and what kind of situations are best for using each sentence structure. However, in the end, it all comes down to personal preference and your unique tone. 

The important thing is that you should know how to use each type of sentence structure in a grammatically correct way. If you can nail that part perfectly, the rest will follow naturally.