英语的复合句一般分为三大类型：名词性从句、形容词性从句和副词性从句。

　　(一)名词性从句

　　在整个复合句中起名词作用，充当主语、宾语、表语和同位语等的各种从句，统称为名词性从句。名词性从句主要有以下几种：

　　1. that引导的从句e.g. It is reported that one third of Guangzhou citizens plan to buy a private car. (据报道，三分之一的广州市民打算购买私家车。)

　　2. whether/if引导的从句e.g. Whether motorcycles should be banned in Guangzhou has become an issue of controversy.(广州是否禁摩托车成了有争议的话题。)

　　3. how/why/when/where引导的从句e.g. This essay aims to explore why so many white collar workers suffer from insomnia. (本文将探讨为什么这么多白领失眠的原因。)

　　4. who/whom/whose/what/which引导的从句e.g. Who should be responsible for the environmental degradation is still unknown.(谁对环境恶化负责还不清楚。)

　　(二)形容词性从句

　　具有形容词功能，在复合句中做定语的从句被称之为形容词性从句或定语从句。被修饰的名词、词组或代词被称为先行词。形容词性从句分为两种类型：

　　(1)由关系代词who, whom, whose, that, which, as引导的从句。例如: People who are strongly against human cloning claim that it is immoral and unethical. (强烈反对克隆人的人们认为这样做不道德和不合伦理)

　　(2)由关系副词when, where, why引导的从句。例如: I would like to analyze the reasons why a growing number of teenagers are addicted to gambling.(我将分析为什么越来越多的青少年沉迷于赌博的原因。)

　　(三)副词性从句

　　副词性从句也称为状语从句，主要用来修饰主句或者主句的谓语。大致分为九大类，分别表示时间、地点、原因、目的、结果、条件、让步、比较和方式。

　　(1)时间状语从句e.g. When everyone is fully aware of the severity of fresh water scarcity and takes effective measures, I am convinced that we will tackle this problem constructively.(当每个人充分意识到淡水短缺的严重性，并采取有效措施，我相信我们一定能妥善解决好这个问题。)

　　(2)地点状语从句e.g. Where there is smoke, there is fire.(无风不起浪)(3)原因状语从句e.g. Pets should be forbidden because they may spread diseases and damage the cityscape.(应该禁止饲养宠物，因为它们可能会传播疾病和有损市容。)

　　(4)目的状语从句e.g. Old people should be encouraged to live in a nursing house so that they can enjoy professional care and first-rate facilities. (应当鼓励老人到敬老院居住，这样他们可以享受到专业的照料和一流的设施。)

　　(5)结果状语从句e.g. Some government officials fail to recognize the potential hazards of improper waste disposal, so that the environment in some cities is deteriorating.(一些政府官员未能认识到垃圾处理不当带来的潜在危害，因此一些城市的环境不断恶化。)