Introduction

In brief:    When writing for academic and professional purposes, you will need to use a variety of sentence types. Using variety is important because it will enable you to convey your message with clarity and to maintain the interest of your reader. There are four types of sentences used in formal English writing:

simple,
compound,
complex , and
compound-complex.

To make the task of understanding these four sentence types manageable, we have developed two modules on the topic. The first is titled Sentences: simple and compound. We recommend that you complete that module before progressing to this one.

While the first module introduces the basics of sentence structure, this module takes the topic further and discusses how you can give greater sophistication to your writing. Complex and compound-complex sentences are essential for scientific and technical writing because they enable you to convey the complexity of issues and the depth of your understanding to your readers.

Here are two examples: