I have a question to which I don't know the answer =)
"In the months since he had seen her, Cheryl had phoned him repeatedly but he had never returned the calls."
Is this a complex clause: In the months since he had seen her, | Cheryl had phoned him repeatedly but he never returned the calls. In which case "it the months since he had seen her" would be a subordinate clause, and the matrix clause would have a deeper structure: Cheryl had phoned him repeatedly | but | he never returned the calls.
Or is it a compound clause: In the months since he had seen her, Cheryl had phoned him repeatedly | but | he never returned the calls. I which case the first compound clause would have a deeper complex structure: "In the months since he had seen her | Cheryl had phoned him repeatedly.
I hope you understood everything... I know it's a little confusing =)
I would say that it's a complex clause but my professor says it's compound. So if sb would please explain... Thank you =)
Top answer
" main clause My Oxford Companion to the English Language gives these deifinitions Complex sentence - contains a main clause and at least one subordinate clause. Compound sentence - contains two or more main clauses. Compound-complex sentence - a compound sentence that contains one or more subordinate clauses.
— Clive
Free · every Monday
Get the Weekly English Kit 📬
New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.