Complex sentence

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A complex sentence is a sentence with an independent clause and at least one dependent clause (subordinating clause). The dependent clause is introduced by either a subordinate conjunction such as although or because, or a relative pronoun such as who or which.

[edit] Contrast

• I ate the meal that you cooked.

I ate the meal is an independent clause and that you cooked is a relative clause. A sentence with a relative clause, a clause that has no function but describes its noun phrase, does not fulfill the dependent clause requirement of a complex sentence. A sentence is complex only when it contains a subordinate clause that fulfills a syntactic function within the sentence. In the first example above, the sub-clause When I saw what you had done is adverbial; it has a temporal meaning. The sub-clause what you had done is embedded in the first sub-clause and functions as direct object for the transitive verb "to see".

• I was scared, but I didn't run away.

Both clauses are independent. Therefore, this is a compound sentence but not a complex sentence.

• The dog that you gave me barked at me and bit my hand.

This is a complex-compound sentence with two independent clauses (The dog that you gave me barked at me and The dog that you gave me bit my hand) and one dependent clause (that you gave me).

[edit] See also

• Simple sentence
• Compound sentence
• Complex-compound sentence

[edit] External links

• The Structure of a Sentence
• Complex Sentences: Subordinate Clauses as Adverb Clauses