Simple vs. Compound Sentences Worksheet for English learners.

Let me work through each sentence to determine if it's simple (s) or compound (c).

A simple sentence has one independent clause - it expresses one complete thought.
A compound sentence has two or more independent clauses joined by a coordinating conjunction (like "and," "but," "so") or a semicolon.

Let me analyze each sentence:

1. "Mary was sick, but Peter was okay."
- "Mary was sick" = independent clause
- "Peter was okay" = independent clause
- Joined by "but"
- This is compound (c)

2. "Jack plays soccer on Saturdays."
- One subject (Jack), one verb (plays)
- One complete thought
- This is simple (s)

3. "Her dad was an angry man."
- One subject (dad), one verb (was)
- One complete thought
- This is simple (s)

4. "He ran to the ocean, and played in the water."
- Wait, let me check this carefully. "He ran to the ocean" is an independent clause.
- "played in the water" - does this have its own subject? No, it shares the subject "He"
- So this is actually just one clause with two verbs: "ran" and "played"
- This is simple (s) - it's one subject doing two things

5. "Sally's new dog was naughty."
- One subject (dog), one verb (was)
- One complete thought
- This is simple (s)

6. "Sam had a pink car, and Jan had a red car."
- "Sam had a pink car" = independent clause
- "Jan had a red car" = independent clause
- Joined by "and"
- This is compound (c)

7. "The music was so loud."
- One subject (music), one verb (was)
- One complete thought
- This is simple (s)

8. "He was tired, so he went to bed."
- "He was tired" = independent clause
- "he went to bed" = independent clause
- Joined by "so"
- This is compound (c)

9. "Paul's mother told him to be quiet."
- One subject (mother), one verb (told)
- One complete thought
- This is simple (s)

10. "The house was on fire."
- One subject (house), one verb (was)
- One complete thought
- This is simple (s)

Final Answer:
1. c
2. s
3. s
4. s
5. s
6. c
7. s
8. c
9. s
10. s