Question

Combine the simple sentences to form a meaningful compound sentence:
Mr. Ghosh was a successful businessman. He was an irresponsible husband.
a) Mr. Ghosh was a successful businessman, but he was an irresponsible husband.
b) Despite being a successful businessman, Mr. Ghosh was an irresponsible husband.
c) Even though Mr. Ghosh was a successful businessman, he was an irresponsible husband.
d) Mr. Ghosh was a successful businessman because he was an irresponsible husband.

Answer 1

Hint: A compound sentence is a sentence with multiple subjects and predicates. They are usually joined using conjunction, which breaks the sentence into different subjects and predicates.

Complete answer:
 A compound sentence is multiple independent clauses joined by a coordinating conjunction, which are specifically used for compound sentences. There are always multiple subjects and predicates in a compound sentence, joined with a conjunction like and, but, etc. In short, two sentences that are joined together are called compound sentences.

For example, the sentences ‘I am a boy.’ and ‘She is a girl.’ are both simple sentences. However, they can be made compound sentences by adding a coordinating conjunction like ‘and’. So, the complex sentence would be ‘I am a boy and she is a girl.’ Now, the sentence contains two subjects, two predicates, and a conjunction.

Now, we are aware of what compound sentences are. Let’s now look at our available options-
a) Mr. Ghosh was a successful businessman, but he was an irresponsible husband. - This sentence is a compound sentence, and it conveys what the original sentence is trying to convey. This is the required answer. So, this is the correct option.
b) Despite being a successful businessman, Mr. Ghosh was an irresponsible husband. - This is not a compound sentence, it is a complex sentence. This is not the required answer. So, this is an incorrect option.
c) Even though Mr. Ghosh was a successful businessman, he was an irresponsible husband. - This is also not a compound sentence, it is a complex sentence. This is not the required answer. So, this is an incorrect option.
d) Mr. Ghosh was a successful businessman because he was an irresponsible husband. - This sentence is a compound sentence, but it does not convey the same meaning as the original sentence. This is not the required answer. So, this is an incorrect option.

Note:
 Compound sentences are very different from complex sentences. Complex sentences contain a subordinate clause or clauses, whereas compound sentences do not. So, make sure that the sentence contains coordinating conjunction.