LET English Practice Exam 2025 – Complete Preparation Guide

A complex sentence is characterized by having one independent clause and at least one dependent clause. The independent clause can stand alone as a complete thought, while the dependent clause, which often begins with a subordinating conjunction (like because, although, or since), cannot stand alone and provides additional information to the independent clause.

For example, in the sentence "Although it was raining, we went for a walk," "we went for a walk" is the independent clause that conveys a complete thought, and "Although it was raining" is the dependent clause that adds context but cannot stand alone. This structure allows complex sentences to convey more nuanced ideas and to show relationships between different parts of a statement.

Other sentence types differ in structure: a compound sentence contains two or more independent clauses joined by a coordinating conjunction, while a simple sentence consists of a single independent clause with no dependent clauses. A compound-complex sentence, on the other hand, includes at least two independent clauses and one or more dependent clauses, making it more complex than a simple or even a complex sentence.