Understanding Sentence Structures

• Effective business communication requires well-developed sentence structure.
• Poor writing skills can hinder career advancement.
• Understanding sentence mechanics is crucial for effective writing.

Sentence Construction as a Puzzle

• Building sentences can be viewed as constructing a puzzle.
• Each puzzle piece represents a sentence component.
• The puzzle pieces are subject, predicate, main clause/independent clause, or dependent clause.
• These pieces combine to form four sentence types: simple, compound, complex, and compound-complex.

Simple Sentence

• Consists of one main clause.
• Contains a simple subject (person, place, thing) and a predicate (verb or verb phrase).
• Can be expanded with pronouns or nouns.
• Example: Julia ran fast down the city street.
  • Subject: Julia
  • Predicate: ran

Compound Sentence

• Composed of two main clauses.
• Both clauses are independent and equally important.
• Example: Julia ran fast down the street, and Nick pedaled his bike.
• Both clauses before and after the comma could stand alone as complete sentences.
• Useful for expressing two independent thoughts or ideas.

Complex Sentence

• Contains one main clause and one subordinate or dependent clause.
• A dependent clause begins with a conjunction or verb and does not form a complete sentence on its own.
• Example: Julia ran fast down the street and avoided many puddles.
  • Independent clause: Julia ran fast down the street
  • Dependent clause: avoided many puddles
• The dependent clause relies on the independent clause to exist as a full sentence.

Compound-Complex Sentence

• Contains two main clauses and at least one dependent clause.
• Example: Julia went to school, but Sammy stayed at home because he had the flu.
  • First main clause: Julia went to school
  • Second main clause: Sammy stayed at home
  • Dependent clause: because he had the flu

Sentence Strategy

• Use a mix of all four sentence structures for fluid and professional business writing.
• Over-reliance on simple sentences can make writing seem stifled and unconnected.
• Overuse of compound-complex sentences can result in complicated, tedious, and run-on sentences.
• Varying sentence style is key to successful business communications.