Question

All of the following sentences are compound EXCEPT

A) People boil or steam rice, and the water is absorbed during cooking.
B) Some people prefer their rice with soy sauce, but others like it better plain.
C) Rice is the most widely-consumed staple food, especially in Asia and the West Indies.
D) Rice is normally grown as an annual plant; however, it can survive as a perennial in tropical areas.
Please explain how to identify a compound sentence as well. Thanks!

Answer 1

All of the following sentences are compound EXCEPT:

C. Rice is the most widely-consumed staple food, especially in Asia and the West Indies.

A compound sentence has at least two independent clauses that have related ideas. The independent clauses can be joined by a coordinating conjunction (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so) or by a semicolon, as you can see in the compound sentence examples below.

In either case, each half of the sentence must be able to stand on its own as a complete sentence. That means each half needs a subject and a verb. Checking if the different 'parts' of a sentence can be considered by themselves as a complete, autonomous sentence is the way to identify a compound sentence.

In this particular sentence, you only have one independent clause (only one complete sentence): "Rice is the most widely-consumed staple food". The remaining part of the sentence, "especially in Asia and the West Indies", is not a complete sentence as it doesn´t have a subject nor a verb; it depends on the "Rice is the most widely-consumed staple food".