what makes a compound sentence

A compound sentence is a sentence that contains at least two independent clauses joined together in one of a few specific ways.

Quick Scoop

Core idea

• Each part must be a complete sentence on its own (it has a subject, a verb, and expresses a complete thought).

• These complete sentences (independent clauses) are joined in one sentence.
• The joining is usually done by:
  • A comma + coordinating conjunction (FANBOYS: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so).

* Or a semicolon, sometimes with a linking word or phrase (however, therefore, meanwhile, etc.).

Simple example

• “I finished my homework, and I watched TV.”
  • Clause 1: “I finished my homework.” (complete sentence)

* Clause 2: “I watched TV.” (complete sentence)

* Joined with comma + “and” → compound sentence.

What does NOT count

• If one part cannot stand alone (it depends on another clause), it’s not compound; that’s more like a complex sentence.

• If two sentences are just pushed together with no conjunction or proper punctuation, that’s a run-on, not a proper compound sentence.

A quick test: If you can split the sentence into two separate, correct sentences and they were originally joined with FANBOYS or a semicolon, you’re almost certainly looking at a compound sentence.

TL;DR:
A compound sentence is made by joining two or more complete sentences (independent clauses) using a comma and FANBOYS or a semicolon.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.