Grammar for ielts writing a handbook by David S. Wills Contents

simple sentence
, but the second is a 
sentence 
fragment
. Any single clause beginning with a 
subordinator
is a fragment. This 
is a big mistake, and you should try to avoid it in your IELTS writing. 
Subordinate clause 
is another way of saying 
dependent clause
. Subor-
dinate means that a clause is less important than the main clause. 
Grammar for IELTS Writing

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33
Look at these two 
simple sentences
: 
„
I was tired. I went to the shop. 
Now look at this 
compound sentence
:
„
I was tired but I went to the shop.
In each case, the sentences have equal meaning. They are equally important. 
In a complex sentence, however, one clause is more important and one is less 
important. 
„
Although I was tired, I went to the shop.
Now the reader knows which part of the sentence is the main idea – “I went 
to the shop.” 
Compound-Complex Sentences
As the name suggests, this type of sentence is a mix of compound and complex 
sentences. It must have at least two independent clauses, and one dependent 
clause, meaning it has at least three clauses. We use the same conjunctions (sub-
ordinators or FANBOYS) to join the different parts; however, the clauses could go 
in any order.
„
The dog barked loudly, and she ran all around the room as her owner tried
 
to relax with his newspaper. 
„
The scouts did not think they’d make it to the destination because it was
 
so far away, and they were exhausted from the long journey. 
Note the conjunctions above. They are used just the same as in complex or 
compound sentences.
Sentence Types

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34
Review
There are four types of sentence in English:
Simple
„
We play football.
Compound
„
We play football, and they play rugby.
Complex
„
We play football when we’re not busy at school.
Compound-complex
„
We play football if it’s sunny, and sometimes we play tennis.