Writing and speaking fluent Spanish means moving beyond short, choppy sentences. Sentence combining is the skill of merging two or more simple sentences into a single complex or compound sentence. This page teaches you the main strategies, with before-and-after examples so you can see each technique in action.
Strategy 1: Coordination
The simplest way to combine sentences is coordination — joining them with a coordinating conjunction (y, pero, o, sino, ni). Both halves keep their independence.
Before:
María estudia. Pedro trabaja.
María studies. Pedro works.
After:
María estudia y Pedro trabaja.
María studies and Pedro works.
When the subject is the same, you can share it and drop the second mention:
For the full treatment of coordinating conjunctions, see Coordination.
Strategy 2: Subordination With Que
When one idea depends on or relates to another, use subordination — making one clause a dependent part of the other using que.
Before:
Juan viene mañana. Yo lo creo.
Juan is coming tomorrow. I believe it.
After:
Creo que Juan viene mañana.
I believe Juan is coming tomorrow.
The second sentence becomes a noun clause functioning as the object of creo. This is the most common type of subordination in Spanish. See Noun Clauses for details.
Strategy 3: Relative Clauses
When one sentence describes or identifies a noun mentioned in the other, use a relative clause with que, quien, donde, or cuyo.
Before:
Compré un libro. El libro habla sobre historia.
I bought a book. The book talks about history.
After:
Compré un libro que habla sobre historia.
I bought a book that talks about history.
The relative clause que habla sobre historia replaces the second sentence entirely and attaches to un libro as a modifier.
Strategy 4: Adverbial Clauses
When one sentence provides the time, reason, purpose, or condition for the other, use an adverbial conjunction to attach it.
Time
Before:
Terminé de trabajar. Fui al gimnasio.
I finished working. I went to the gym.
After:
Cuando terminé de trabajar, fui al gimnasio.
When I finished working, I went to the gym.
Reason
Before:
After:
No pudimos ir porque no había boletos.
We couldn't go because there were no tickets.
Purpose
Before:
Te mando el archivo. Vos lo revisás.
I'm sending you the file. You review it.
After:
Te mando el archivo para que lo revises.
I'm sending you the file so that you review it.
Notice the subjunctive revises — purpose clauses with para que always require it. For the full range of adverbial clauses, see Adverbial Clauses.
Strategy 5: Al + Infinitive
The construction al + infinitive compresses a temporal clause into a short, elegant phrase meaning upon doing something or when doing something.
Before:
Llegué a casa. Me di cuenta del problema.
I arrived home. I realized the problem.
After:
Al llegar a casa, me di cuenta del problema.
Upon arriving home, I realized the problem.
This works only when both actions share the same subject (or the subjects are clear from context). It's one of the most characteristic patterns of good Spanish writing.
Strategy 6: Sin + Infinitive
Sin + infinitive replaces a negative adverbial clause when the subject is the same.
Before:
Se fue. No dijo nada.
He left. He didn't say anything.
After:
Strategy 7: Con + Infinitive / Gerund
Con + infinitive expresses a condition or means, and the gerund can express simultaneous action or manner.
Salió corriendo.
He left running.
Pasó la tarde leyendo.
She spent the afternoon reading.
The gerund attaches an action happening simultaneously with the main verb.
Strategy 8: Participial Phrases
A past participle can function as an adjective-like modifier, replacing a relative clause.
Before:
Tengo una tarea. La tarea fue asignada ayer.
I have an assignment. The assignment was assigned yesterday.
After:
Tengo una tarea asignada ayer.
I have an assignment assigned yesterday.
The participle asignada modifies tarea directly, eliminating the need for a second sentence or a relative clause.
Putting It All Together
Here's a sequence of short sentences transformed into a single, flowing sentence using multiple strategies.
Before:
Juan llegó. Estaba lloviendo. Él no tenía paraguas. Se mojó.
Juan arrived. It was raining. He didn't have an umbrella. He got wet.
After:
Cuando Juan llegó, estaba lloviendo y, como no tenía paraguas, se mojó.
When Juan arrived, it was raining and, since he didn't have an umbrella, he got wet.
This combined version uses a temporal clause (cuando), coordination (y), and a causal clause (como) — three strategies in one sentence.
Where to Go Next
For the specific conjunctions and structures used in each type of combination, see Coordination, Adverbial Clauses, and Noun Clauses. For how combined sentences link into paragraphs and longer texts, continue to Building Coherent Text.
Related Topics
- CoordinationA2 — Learn how Spanish joins independent clauses and phrases with coordinating conjunctions like y/e, o/u, pero, sino, and ni.
- Subordinate Clauses OverviewB1 — Learn how Spanish combines a main clause with dependent clauses using que and other connectors, and when to choose indicative or subjunctive.
- Adverbial ClausesB1 — Learn how Spanish adverbial clauses express cause, time, purpose, concession, condition, and result — and when to use indicative vs. subjunctive in each.
- Noun ClausesB1 — Understand how Spanish uses full clauses as subjects, objects, and complements of nouns and adjectives — with the key role of que and mood choice.
- Building Coherent TextB2 — Learn the grammar of connected text in Spanish — cohesion devices, discourse connectors, anaphora, paragraph structure, and how sentences link into coherent paragraphs.