compound-complex sentence

[ kom-pound-kom-pleks ]
/ ˈkɒm paʊndˈkɒm plɛks /

noun

a sentence having two or more coordinate independent clauses and one or more dependent clauses, as The lightning flashed (independent clause) and the rain fell (independent clause) as he entered the house (dependent clause).

Origin of compound-complex sentence

First recorded in 1920–25

Cultural definitions for compound-complex sentence

compound-complex sentence

A sentence that contains at least two independent clauses and at least one dependent clause: “Queen Elizabeth I was called a redhead (independent clause), but no one knew her hair color for sure (independent clause) because she always wore a wig (dependent clause).” “Because she always wore a wig” is a dependent clause starting with the subordinating conjunction (see subordination) because. (Compare complex sentence, compound sentence, and simple sentence.)