Complex sentences are made up of one independent clause and at least one dependent clause.
Compound sentences are made up of two or more independent clauses connected with a comma and a coordinating conjunction or a semicolon (or, less commonly, with a colon or an em dash).
Complex vs compound sentence examples
| Complex sentence |
Compound sentence |
| If it stops raining, I will go to the park. |
It stopped raining, so I went to the park. |
| Kya was sleeping while the teacher was talking. |
The teacher was talking, and Kya was sleeping. |
QuillBot’s Paraphraser can help you use different types of sentences to add variety to your writing.
Read this FAQ: What is the difference between a complex sentence and a compound sentence?
Good transition words and phrases for the first body paragraph in an essay include:
- To begin with
- First
- Initially
- First of all
- Considering x
- On the subject of x
QuillBot’s free paraphrasing tool can help you find options for transition words.
Read this FAQ: What are good transition words for the first body paragraph in an essay?
Some good transition words and phrases for essays include “first (of all),” “initially,” “to begin with,” “for example,” “in particular,” “conversely,” “in summary,” “overall,” and “finally.”
QuillBot’s free paraphrasing tool can help you add variety to the transition words you use in your writing.
Read this FAQ: What are good transition words for essays?
Good transition words and phrases to show contrast include:
- However
- Although
- In contrast
- Conversely
- Whereas
- On the other hand
- While
The transition you choose will depend on the level of formality of your text and your sentence structure.
QuillBot’s Paraphraser can help you vary your word choice.
Read this FAQ: What are good transition words to show contrast?
Good transition words and phrases to start a paragraph depend on the purpose of the paragraph and how it relates to the previous one.
Transition words to start a paragraph
| Function of paragraph |
Transition word examples |
| Introducing a point |
to begin with, first of all, first (or second or third) |
| Building on a previous point |
furthermore, to illustrate, considering x, on the subject of x, similarly, consequently, returning to x |
| Contrasting with a previous point |
however, in contrast, on the other hand |
QuillBot’s free AI paragraph generator makes starting paragraphs easy. Simply give it a prompt, and it will instantly craft a well-structured paragraph. Or, you can input paragraphs you’ve already written an ask the tool to suggest appropriate transitions.
Read this FAQ: What are good transition words to start a paragraph?
Good transition words and phrases for conclusions include:
- To conclude (with)
- Finally
- At last
- As a final point
- In conclusion
- Lastly
- In sum
- Overall
The transition you choose will depend on the level of formality of your text and the argument you have made.
Using QuillBot’s Paraphrasing Tool can help you vary your word choice.
Read this FAQ: What are good transition words for conclusions?
They may be spelled the same, but they don’t have to be. Words that have the same sound and same spelling are homonyms and may also be homophones or homographs.
Read this FAQ: Do words have to be spelled the same to be homophones?
Their shows possession. There shows where something is or that it exists. And they’re is a contraction of they are.
Read this FAQ: What is the difference between the homophones their, there, and they’re?
In a three-word compound adjective, a hyphen is typically used between each word in the sequence (e.g., “a well-thought-out plan”).
When a three-word compound adjective incorporates a compound proper noun, such as “New York,” it is generally unnecessary to use a hyphen between the words that comprise the proper noun (e.g., “New York-style,” “Great Gatsby-themed,” “Franz Kafka-inspired”).
In cases like these, many writers use an en dash instead of a hyphen (e.g., “New York–style”) to emphasize that both words of the compound noun are connected to the other word to form the compound adjective.
The QuillBot Grammar Checker can help ensure you’re using hyphens and compound words correctly.
Read this FAQ: How do you hyphenate a three-word compound adjective?
An example of a prepositional phrase is “in the washing machine.” A prepositional phrase combines a preposition (e.g., “in,” “on,” “with”) with nouns and modifiers. They can act as adjectives, adverbs, and nouns in a sentence.
Here are some other examples of prepositional phrases:
- The party is on Tuesday.
- I can write with a quill.
- The cup of water fell to the ground.
Read this FAQ: What is an example of a prepositional phrase?
