In Tip 1, I said a sentence is based on What you're talking about and What you're saying about it. Technically, that basic unit is called a clause.
At its simplest, the name doesn't matter: a clause is still a good sentence.
| Good writing offers many advantages. |
But you can also join clauses together, to make more interesting and useful sentences.
You can add another clause before or after your main point.
This uses words like "and" (to put things together), "or" (to show alternatives), "although" (to show conflicting truths), "while" (to contrast), "because" (to show causes), "so" (to show effects), and various others.
| Good writing offers many advantages, although it takes time and practice. |
| Although good writing takes time and practice, it offers many advantages. |
You can add another clause inside your main point.
This uses words like "which", "that", "who", "when" and "where".
| Good writing, which is part of both study and work, offers many advantages. |
Simple sentences (one clause) are good for showing your idea clearly.
Compound sentences and complex sentences (two, three or more clauses) are good for showing logical connections between your ideas.
Always think about which is more important for this part of your work - then use the sentence type that does it best.
In practice, most good academic writing has a mixture of sentence types.
| Good writing offers many advantages. It encourages the reader to take the writer's ideas and interests seriously, which is important to both study and work. It also helps the writer clarify their own ideas. Bad writing, by contrast, can create unnecessary misunderstandings and conflict, doing major harm in business, politics, personal relationships and other areas of life. |
COMMON MISTAKE
Earlier, you saw that you can add another clause onto a sentence using a range of connecting words: "and", "although", "which", etc. Remember these words can only join clauses together - they can't attach to a clause standing on its own.
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X Good writing offers many advantages. Although it takes time and practice. |
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X Good writing offers many advantages. Which are part of study and work. |
COMMON MISTAKE
Also remember that simple sentences and compound/complex sentences each work well in different situations.
Don't just use one sentence type over and over - all simple sentences sounds choppy and uncomfortable (and sometimes childish) (1), while all complex sentences sounds confusing and exhausting (2). It should always depend on the argument you're making.
| (1) |
X Good writing offers many advantages. It encourages the reader to take the writer's ideas and interests seriously. This is important in study and work. It also helps the writer clarify their own ideas. Bad writing, by contrast, can do major harm. It can create unnecessary misunderstandings and conflicts. It affects business, politics, personal relationships and other areas of life. |
| (2) |
X Good writing offers many advantages, such as encouraging the reader to take the writer's ideas and interests seriously, which is an important part of study and work, and it also helps the writer clarify their own ideas. This is in contrast to bad writing, which can create unnecessary misunderstandings and conflicts, and so do major harm in business, politics, personal relationships and other areas of life. |