compound sentence

American  

noun

• compound sentences
  plural

1. a sentence containing two or more coordinate independent clauses, usually joined by one or more conjunctions, but no dependent clause, as The lightning flashed (independent clause) and (conjunction) the rain fell (independent clause).

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compound sentence British  

noun

1. a sentence containing at least two coordinate clauses

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compound sentence Cultural  

1. A sentence that contains at least two independent clauses, often joined by conjunctions: “Dr. Watson explained his theory, and Sherlock Holmes listened quietly.” (Compare complex sentence, compound-complex sentence, and simple sentence.)

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• compound sentences
  plural

Etymology

Origin of compound sentence

First recorded in 1765–75

Compare meaning

How does compound-sentence compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• compound sentence vs. complex sentence
• simple sentence vs. compound sentence

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

compound sentence

A comma is ordinarily used between the clauses of a compound sentence that are connected by a simple conjunction, but a semicolon may be used between clauses connected by conjunctive adverbs.

From Punctuation A Primer of Information about the Marks of Punctuation and their Use Both Grammatically and Typographically by Frederick W. (Frederick William) Hamilton

Certainly the last two sentences could be united into a compound sentence, nor would it be straining the structure to put all three sentences into one.

From English: Composition and Literature by W. F. (William Franklin) Webster

Rule 3.—The comma is used before the coördinate conjunction in a compound sentence.

From Business English A Practice Book by Rose Buhlig

"I submitted, for it was in vain to resist;" in this example, for is a conjunction, because it connects the two members of a compound sentence.

From English Grammar in Familiar Lectures by Samuel Kirkham

Use the semicolon to separate the clauses of a compound sentence that are long or that are not joined by conjunctions.

From Practical Grammar and Composition by Thomas Wood