Transformation of

Sentences
Simple Sentence
A simple sentence, also called an independent clause, contains a subject and a
verb and it expresses a complete thought. In the following simple sentences,
subjects are in bold and verbs are in italics.
1. Some students like to study in the mornings.
2. Juan and Arturo play football every afternoon.
3. Alicia goes to the library and studies every day.
The three examples above are all simple sentences. Note that sentence 2
contains a compound subject. Simple sentences,therefore,contain a subject and
verb and express a complete thought, but they can also contain compound
subjects or verbs.
Compound Sentence
A compound sentence contains two independent clauses joined by a coordinator.
The coordinators are as follows : for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so. (Helpful hint : The
first letter of each of the coordinators spells Fanboys.) Except for very short
sentences, coordinators are always preceded by a comma. In the following
compound sentences, subjects are in bold, verbs are in italics and the
coordinators and the commas that precede them are in bold.
1. I tried to speak Spanish, and my friend tried to speak English.
2.Alejandro played football, so Maria went shopping.
3. Alejandro played football, for Maria went shopping.
RULES OF TRANSFORMATION FROM SIMPLE TO
COMPOUND
● Transform the sentence without bringing any change in the overall meaning of the sentence.
● Simple sentences can consist of a phrase (most probably a participle phrase) and a clause. When
converting such a sentence, you can transform the participle phrase into a clause followed by a
conjunction and the main clause. This will allow you to have two main clauses connected by a
coordinating conjunction or a conjunctive adverb. The only thing you will have to take into account
when making such a transformation is to conjugate the verb according to the verb in the main
clause.
Example 1:Raising his glass, he proposed a toast.
He raised his glass, and he proposed a toast.
○ Example 2:
■ Despite being handicapped, Varun is active.
Varun is handicapped, but he is active.
RULES OF TRANSFORMATION FROM SIMPLE TO
COMPOUND
● When converting simple sentences with infinitive phrases into compound sentences,
you will have to transform the infinitive phrase into a clause and combine it with the
main clause in the sentence with a coordinating conjunction.
● Example 1:
○ Joana has to work all night to complete the pending documents.
○ Joana has to complete the pending documents, so she has to work all night.
● Example 2:
○ He should drink eight glasses of water to stay hydrated.
○ He should drink eight glasses of water, or he would be dehydrated. (or)
○ He should drink eight glasses of water, or he would not stay hydrated.
RULES OF TRANSFORMATION FROM SIMPLE TO
COMPOUND
● The conversion rules for simple sentences with adverbial phrases also are the same
as those with infinitive phrases. You will just have to convert the adverbial phrase into
a clause and then combine the rest of the sentence with a suitable coordinating
conjunction.
● Example 1:
○ The President congratulated Ramkumar for his valuable contribution to the field of
medicine.
○ Ramkumar made a valuable contribution to the field of medicine, so the President
congratulated him.
● Example 2:
○ The little boy jumped in excitement on seeing his favourite cartoon characters.
○ The little boy saw his favourite cartoon characters, so he jumped in excitement.
Compound Sentence ( Contd.)
The above three sentences are compound sentences. Each sentence contains two
independent clauses and they are joined by a coordinator with a comma preceding it.
Note how the conscious use of coordinators can change the meaning of the sentences.

Sentences 2 and 3, for example, are identical except for the coordinators.

In sentence 2, which action occurred first ? Obviously, “Alejandro played football” first
and as a consequence, “Maria went shopping.”

In sentence 3, “Maria went shopping” first. Here, “Alejandro played football” because,
possibly, he didn’t have anything else to do, for or because “Maria went shopping.”
Complex Sentence

A complex sentence has an independent clause joined

by one or more dependent clauses. A complex sentence
always has a subordinator such as because,since,after,
although, or when (and many others)or a relative
pronoun such as that, who, or which.
RULES OF TRANSFORMATION FROM SIMPLE TO
COMPLEX

● Just like converting simple sentences to compound sentences,

converting into complex sentences also requires you to convert
the phrase into a clause by adding a subject and conjugating the
verb according to the tense of the main clause.
● The only difference here is that the phrase has to be converted
into a dependent clause accompanied by a subordinating
conjunction
RULES OF TRANSFORMATION FROM SIMPLE TO
COMPLEX
● Example 1:

Despite being rich, Claire is not happy.

Although Clare is rich, she is not happy.

● Example 2:

Besides being a doctor, she is an artist too.

Not only is she a doctor but also an artist.

RULES OF TRANSFORMATION FROM SIMPLE TO
COMPLEX

● Example 3:

George is too weak to walk any further.

George is so weak that he cannot walk any further.

● Example 4:

Due to his illness, Vinod did not go to work.

Vinod did not go to work because he was ill.