Which is a correctly punctuated compound sentence?
a) the girl ran across the street and got the mail.
b) the girl ran across the street, and she got the mail.
c) the girl ran across the street because she wanted to get the mail.
d) the girl ran across the street, got the mail, and returned to the house.

♡ Answer ♡

B

♡ Step-by-step explanation ♡

  B is a correctly punctuated compound sentence. A compound sentence is a sentence in which two or more independent clauses, or clauses that can stand on their own as sentences, are conjoined through the means of specific punctuation (such as semicolons and commas) and at least one coordinating conjunction.

 The choices A, C, and D are all incorrect. Allow me to explain why.

  A is incorrect because there are not two independent clauses. The two clauses of this sentence are ‘The girl ran across the street’ and ‘got the mail.’ While the first clause can stand alone, the second one cannot. This means that the clause ‘got the mail’ is a dependent clause. Therefore, A is not the correct answer.

  C is wrong because of the type of conjunction being used in the sentence. This sentence contains a subordinate conjunction: because. However, a compound sentence should have a coordinating conjunction. A complex sentence contains a subordinating conjunction, not a compound sentence. In conclusion, not only is C incorrect, but it is actually a complex sentence instead of a compound one.

  D is not correct because some of the clauses are dependent, not independent. The clauses ‘got the mail’ and ‘returned to the house.’ cannot stand on their own and are therefore dependent. So, answer D is incorrect.

  B, on the other hand, is the correct answer. It contains two clauses: ‘The girl ran across the street’ and ‘she got the mail.’ Both of these clauses are independent and can stand on their own. Furthermore, and is a coordinating conjunction. Coordinating conjunctions are the type of conjunctions used in compound sentences. This is essentially saying that and is a proper conjunction for a compound sentence, and doesn’t disrupt the type of sentence we’re looking for. All of the criteria checks out for B. This means that, so far in the elimination process, B is the only correct answer.

 With this information, we can properly conclude that the answer is B.

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