A complex sentence is a sentence consisting of an independent clause and a subordinating clause. Or, to put it more simply, complex sentences involve more than just a straightforward noun + verb. Complex sentences include extra phrases added to a base sentence, but which cannot stand alone as a sentence. For example:
Published 4:00 am, Thursday, January 9, 1997. 1997-01-09 04:00:00 PDT Yosemite National Park -- Yosemite Valley is slowly drying out after what park rangers are calling the worst flood here in recorded history, leaving behind hundreds of upturned tent-cabins and acres of wrecked camping sites.
1 Nation Wildfire near Los Angeles forces hundreds to evacuate. 2  News Harvey evacuees flock to unlikely places. 3  Nation Now Harvey has devastated Texas. 4  News Russian consulate gets the fireplace going, in a heat wave, after orders to close. 5  News Striking satellite images reveal before, after Harvey flooding.