[1056.] A Compound Sentence is one which consists of two or more coordinate simple sentences: as,
tū mē amās, ego tē amō, Pl. Most. 305, thou art in love with me, I’m in love with thee. nox erat et caelō fulgēbat lūna serēnō inter minōra sīdera, H. Epod. 15, 1, ’twas night, and in a cloudless sky, bright rode the moon amid the lesser lights. ā tē petō, mē dēfendās, Fam. 15, 8, I ask it of you, protect me.
[1057.] A compound sentence is usually abridged when the members have parts in common: as,
valēbant precēs et lacrimae, Mil. 34, prayers and tears had weight, compound subject, for valēbant precēs et valēbant lacrimae. rogat ōratque tē, RA. 144, he begs and entreats you, compound predicate, for rogat tē ōratque tē. arma virumque canō, V. 1, 1, arms and the man I sing, compound object, for arma canō virumque canō. diū atque ācriter pugnātum est, 1, 26, 1, there was long and sharp fighting, for diū pugnātum est atque ācriter pugnātum est.
[II. THE COMPLEX SENTENCE.]
[1058.] A Complex Sentence is one which consists of a main and a subordinate sentence: as,
centuriōnēs praemittit (main sentence), quī locum idōneum castrīs dēligant (subordinate sentence), 2, 17, 1, he sends some officers ahead to select a suitable spot for the camp, nunc scio (main sentence), quid sit Amor (subordinate sentence), V. E. 8, 43, now, now I know what Eros is. ā tē petō (main sentence), ut mē dēfendās (subordinate sentence), Fam. 15, 7, I ask it of you that you protect me.
[1059.] Several sentences are often subordinate to one and the same main sentence, and subordinate sentences may in their turn be main sentences to other subordinate sentences.
Thus, in the following sentence b is subordinate to A, and c to Ab: (c.) quālis esset nātūra montis, (b.) quī cōgnōscerent, (A.) mīsit, 1, 21, 1, he sent some people to see what the character of the hill was.