What Is a Compound Sentence?

You might vaguely recall learning about compound sentences at some point earlier in your education. There’s also a chance a refresher may help, because review and practice are good for remembering grammatical guidelines.

In this post we’ll revisit what a compound sentence is and how it is formed.

How Do We Create a Compound Sentence?

A compound sentence is one that includes at least two independent clauses—that is, clauses that can stand alone as sentences. You’ll often find that a compound sentence features a word such as “and” or “but” that joins the independent grammatical units.

Let’s look at an example:

It was sunny on Thursday, but it wasn’t that warm.

Notice that if we remove the word “but,” we still have two sentences that can operate separately:

It was sunny on Thursday.

It wasn’t that warm.

You can probably also see the difference in effect between joining the sentences and separating them. In this case, a compound sentence brings the thoughts closer together by establishing an observation and then immediately offsetting it with another observation that contrasts with the first: It was sunny, but, contrary to expectations, it wasn’t that warm.

If we separate the two sentences, we make them more declarative than interpretive as they are in the compound sentence.

How to Recognize a Compound Sentence

Because compound sentences feature separate sets of complete ideas, you will often see them with conjunctions (joining words) that tie them together. They may be separated by either a comma or a semicolon depending on the conjunction used.

It was sunny on Thursday, but it wasn’t that warm. (comma, coordinating conjunction)

It was sunny on Thursday, yet it wasn’t that warm. (comma, coordinating conjunction)

It was sunny on Thursday; however, it wasn’t that warm. (semicolon, coordinating conjunction)

The independent clauses in a compound sentence also can be separated by a semicolon alone.

It was sunny on Thursday; it wasn’t that warm. (semicolon alone)

These are main ways you will recognize compound sentences. Simply remember that compound sentences join at least two independent clauses connected by a coordinating conjunction with a comma or a semicolon or by a semicolon alone.

Pop Quiz

Now that you’ve reviewed compound sentences, let’s see if you can find them on your own. Determine whether each sentence is compound by answering yes or no.

1. I wanted to have pasta for dinner, but the restaurant was closed. [Yes/No]

2. Shirley never leaves early enough for work. [Yes/No]

3. Jamie is going to the conference, and I’m going to manage the office staff. [Yes/No]

4. All of our practice was wasted; the power went out before a big performance. [Yes/No]

5. We should go out for dinner and then have dessert at home. [Yes/No]

 

Pop Quiz Answers

1. I wanted to have pasta for dinner, but the restaurant was closed. Yes

2. Shirley never leaves early enough for work. No

3. Jamie is going to the conference, and I’m going to manage the office staff. Yes

4. All of our practice was wasted; the power went out before a big performance. Yes

5. We should go out for dinner and then have dessert at home. No

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