English Grammar Guide

Sentence Transformation Rules — With Examples & Practice

A complete guide to English sentence transformation for SSC, HSC, BCS, bank, and university admission aspirants. Learn the rules of Assertive ↔ Interrogative, Affirmative ↔ Negative, Active ↔ Passive, Direct ↔ Indirect, and Simple ↔ Complex ↔ Compound — then test yourself on Quiz Shikho's free English quizzes.

What is sentence transformation?

Sentence transformation means changing the form of a sentence without changing its meaning. It tests your grasp of grammar structures and is a staple in every major English exam in Bangladesh.

1. Assertive ↔ Interrogative

If the assertive is affirmative, the interrogative becomes negative (and vice versa).
Use the appropriate auxiliary (do/does/did) when no auxiliary exists.
End with a question mark.

From: He is honest.

To: Isn't he honest?

From: I know him.

To: Don't I know him?

From: Nobody can deny this.

To: Who can deny this?

2. Affirmative ↔ Negative

Replace the verb with its opposite + 'not'.
Use 'no' / 'none' / 'never' to flip meaning while keeping sense intact.
'Only' becomes 'none but / nothing but / not more than'.

From: He is honest.

To: He is not dishonest.

From: Only Allah can help us.

To: None but Allah can help us.

From: He is too weak to walk.

To: He is so weak that he cannot walk.

3. Active ↔ Passive Voice

Object of active becomes subject of passive.
Use the correct form of 'be' + past participle (V3).
Subject of active goes after 'by' (often omitted if unknown).

From: She writes a letter.

To: A letter is written by her.

From: They are building a house.

To: A house is being built by them.

From: Someone has stolen my pen.

To: My pen has been stolen.

4. Direct ↔ Indirect Speech

Remove quotation marks and use the appropriate reporting verb (said / told / asked).
Shift tense one step back if the reporting verb is in the past.
Change pronouns and time/place words (now → then, today → that day, here → there).

From: He said, "I am happy."

To: He said that he was happy.

From: She said to me, "Are you coming?"

To: She asked me if I was coming.

From: Father said, "Don't waste time."

To: Father told us not to waste time.

5. Simple ↔ Complex ↔ Compound

Simple → Complex: turn a phrase into a subordinate clause (because, although, when, if).
Simple → Compound: split into two independent clauses joined by and / but / so.
Complex → Compound: replace the subordinate clause with a coordinating conjunction.

From: In spite of his poverty, he is happy.

To: Though he is poor, he is happy. (Complex)

From: Though he is poor, he is happy.

To: He is poor but he is happy. (Compound)

From: He is too weak to walk.

To: He is so weak that he cannot walk. (Complex)

6. Degrees of Comparison

Positive ↔ Comparative ↔ Superlative express the same idea three ways.
Use 'as … as' for positive, '-er / more … than' for comparative, 'the -est / the most' for superlative.
Watch out for 'no other', 'one of the', and 'very few' patterns.

From: Dhaka is the largest city in Bangladesh.

To: Dhaka is larger than any other city in Bangladesh.

From: Dhaka is larger than any other city in Bangladesh.

To: No other city in Bangladesh is as large as Dhaka.

From: Iron is the most useful of all metals.

To: No other metal is as useful as iron.

Practice on Quiz Shikho

Apply these rules with free English grammar quizzes. Track your score, climb the leaderboard, and turn rote rules into real fluency.

Start free English quiz Browse categories

Quick FAQ

Which exams test sentence transformation?

SSC and HSC English 2nd paper, BCS preliminary and written, bank recruitment exams, and most university admission tests.

How do I get faster at transformation?

Memorise the structural patterns above, then drill them daily with timed MCQs — Quiz Shikho's English quizzes are built for exactly this.

Is sentence transformation hard?

Not once you recognise the patterns. Each transformation follows a fixed grammar recipe — practice trains pattern recognition.