What is the purpose of sentence combination in writing?

Sentence combination enhances clarity and sophistication by merging related ideas into complex sentences. This technique is crucial for effective communication and is frequently assessed in SAT writing.

How do you combine two independent clauses using a conjunction?

Use a coordinating conjunction (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so) preceded by a comma. For example: 'I wanted to go for a walk. It started to rain.' becomes 'I wanted to go for a walk, but it started to rain.' This structure connects ideas smoothly.

What is a key strategy for avoiding wordiness when combining sentences?

Aim for brevity by removing redundant phrases. For instance, instead of saying 'The reason why she was late was because of traffic,' you can say 'She was late because of traffic.' This keeps sentences clear and concise.

Combine the sentences: 'The movie was thrilling. It kept the audience on the edge of their seats.' using a trailing phrase.

The combined sentence is: 'The movie was thrilling, keeping the audience on the edge of their seats.' This method effectively links the ideas with improved flow.

Hint: Think about how the second sentence describes the first.

How can you combine the sentences 'She studied hard for the exam. She wanted to achieve a high score.' by turning one into a dependent clause?

The combined sentence is: 'Because she wanted to achieve a high score, she studied hard for the exam.' This emphasizes her motivation as the reason for her studying.

Hint: Consider how the second sentence explains why she studied.

Combine these sentences: 'The cat slept on the windowsill. The sun warmed its fur.' using a preposition.

The combined sentence is: 'The cat slept on the windowsill in the sun, warming its fur.' This structure connects the two ideas through a prepositional phrase.

Hint: Focus on how the two actions relate to each other.

How can you combine 'The students were excited. They had just learned about a new project.' using a relative clause?

The combined sentence is: 'The students, who had just learned about a new project, were excited.' This adds detail about the students while maintaining the main idea.

Hint: Think about how the relative clause adds information.

Combine the sentences: 'She loves to paint. She enjoys drawing as well.' by linking two verbs with 'and'.

The combined sentence is: 'She loves to paint and enjoys drawing as well.' This connects both activities smoothly.

Hint: Identify the main actions in both sentences.