Putting Sentences Together: Rules and Examples to Help You Build Longer Sentences

The ability to putting sentences together effectively is a vital skill in both spoken and written communication. Whether in academic writing, professional contexts, or creative expression, sentences form the basic units of meaning. By learning the rules for combining sentences, writers can develop more sophisticated, nuanced, and engaging texts. However, longer sentences must be carefully managed to maintain clarity and coherence. This article discusses the principles of sentence combination, provides examples, and highlights strategies that enable learners to construct longer, well-structured sentences.

What is a Sentence?

A sentence is traditionally defined as a group of words that expresses a complete thought, typically containing a subject and a predicate (Quirk et al., 1985). Sentences can be categorised into four main types:

1. Simple sentences – containing one independent clause: “The child is reading.”
2. Compound sentences – two independent clauses joined by a conjunction: “The child is reading, and the teacher is writing.”
3. Complex sentences – one independent clause with at least one dependent clause: “The child is reading because the teacher assigned homework.”
4. Compound-complex sentences – a mix of compound and complex structures: “The child is reading, and the teacher is writing while the classroom is quiet.”

Understanding these categories provides the foundation for building longer sentences.

Why Combine Sentences?

There are several reasons why combining sentences is important:

• Clarity and precision – Longer sentences allow writers to add detail, qualifications, and nuances (Strunk & White, 2000).
• Variety and rhythm – A mix of short and long sentences creates engaging writing and prevents monotony (Carter & McCarthy, 2006).
• Logical connections – Sentence combination demonstrates the relationships between ideas, such as cause and effect, contrast, or condition (Halliday, 2004).
• Academic expectations – In higher education, extended sentences often reflect critical thinking and argument development (Swales & Feak, 2012).

However, it is essential to avoid run-on sentences and maintain balance, as excessive length may obscure meaning.

Rules for Putting Sentences Together

1.0 Use Coordinating Conjunctions

Coordinating conjunctions connect two independent clauses of equal importance. The seven main coordinating conjunctions are for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so (FANBOYS) (Azar & Hagen, 2009).

Example:

• Short: “The sun set. The sky turned orange.”
• Longer: “The sun set, and the sky turned orange.”

This method works best when ideas are closely related.

2.0 Use Subordinating Conjunctions

Subordinating conjunctions introduce dependent clauses, showing a relationship such as cause, condition, or time. Common subordinators include because, although, since, if, when.

Example:

• Short: “She revised. She passed her exam.”
• Longer: “She passed her exam because she revised.”

This adds depth by showing how one idea depends on the other.

3.0 Use Relative Clauses

Relative pronouns such as who, which, that, whose, where allow additional information to be embedded into a sentence (Biber et al., 1999).

Example:

• Short: “I met a teacher. The teacher inspired me.”
• Longer: “I met a teacher who inspired me.”

Relative clauses reduce repetition and integrate details smoothly.

4.0 Use Participial Phrases

Participial phrases can extend sentences by adding descriptive elements.

Example:

• Short: “The boy ran to school. He was carrying a heavy bag.”
• Longer: “The boy, carrying a heavy bag, ran to school.”

This creates more compact, flowing sentences.

5.0 Use Appositives

An appositive renames or explains a noun within a sentence.

Example:

• Short: “London is the capital. It is a busy city.”
• Longer: “London, the capital of the United Kingdom, is a busy city.”

Appositives provide additional information without creating a new sentence.

6.0 Use Conjunctive Adverbs

Words such as however, therefore, moreover, consequently can link ideas across clauses or sentences.

Example:

• Short: “The evidence was clear. The jury remained unconvinced.”
• Longer: “The evidence was clear; however, the jury remained unconvinced.”

This form is common in formal and academic writing.

Examples of Sentence Combination in Context

Academic Writing

• Original: “The study included 200 participants. They were selected randomly. They represented different age groups.”
• Combined: “The study included 200 participants, who were selected randomly and represented different age groups.”

Professional Writing

• Original: “The report is finished. It will be submitted tomorrow.”
• Combined: “The report, which is now finished, will be submitted tomorrow.”

Creative Writing

• Original: “The rain fell. It hit the window. It sounded like music.”
• Combined: “The rain fell against the window, sounding like music.”

Pedagogical Perspectives

Research in applied linguistics shows that sentence-combining exercises improve writing fluency and syntactic maturity (Strong, 1986; Saddler & Graham, 2005). Sentence combining encourages learners to experiment with multiple structures, enhancing both accuracy and creativity.

For example, a classroom activity might involve students taking three simple sentences—“The cat slept. The cat was on the sofa. The sofa was near the fire.”—and producing: “The cat slept on the sofa, which was near the fire.”

Such exercises support scaffolding in writing development (Vygotsky, 1978).

Common Pitfalls and How to Avoid Them

While longer sentences are valuable, writers should be cautious of:

• Run-on sentences – joining clauses without appropriate punctuation:

1. • Incorrect: “She likes reading she dislikes writing.”
   • Correct: “She likes reading, but she dislikes writing.”

• Overloading with details – making sentences too dense:

1. • Problematic: “The teacher, who was very experienced and had taught for many years and was respected by students, gave a lecture.”
   • Improved: “The experienced teacher, respected by students, gave a lecture.”

• Loss of clarity – using complex structures unnecessarily. Effective writing balances long and short sentences for readability.

Learning to put sentences together is an essential step towards achieving more effective, varied, and engaging writing. Techniques such as using conjunctions, relative clauses, participial phrases, appositives, and conjunctive adverbs allow writers to build longer sentences while maintaining clarity. Sentence-combining exercises, supported by research in education and linguistics, have proven effective in developing writing maturity. Ultimately, the goal is not to write the longest possible sentence, but to use sentence length and structure strategically to convey meaning clearly and persuasively.

References

Azar, B. & Hagen, S. (2009). Understanding and Using English Grammar. 4^th ed. Pearson Longman, New York.

Biber, D., Johansson, S., Leech, G., Conrad, S. & Finegan, E. (1999). Longman Grammar of Spoken and Written English. Pearson, London.

Carter, R. & McCarthy, M. (2006). Cambridge Grammar of English. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.

Halliday, M.A.K. (2004). An Introduction to Functional Grammar. 3^rd ed. Arnold, London.

Quirk, R., Greenbaum, S., Leech, G. & Svartvik, J. (1985). A Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language. Longman, London.

Saddler, B. & Graham, S. (2005). The Effects of Sentence Combining Instruction on the Writing of Fourth-Grade Students. Journal of Educational Psychology, 97(1), pp.43–54.

Strunk, W. & White, E.B. (2000). The Elements of Style. 4^th ed. Longman, New York.

Strong, W. (1986). Creative Approaches to Sentence Combining. National Council of Teachers of English, Urbana.

Swales, J. & Feak, C. (2012). Academic Writing for Graduate Students: Essential Tasks and Skills. 3rd ed. University of Michigan Press, Ann Arbor.

Vygotsky, L.S. (1978). Mind in Society: The Development of Higher Psychological Processes. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA.