Decide whether each group of words is an independent clause, a dependent clause, or not a clause. the smell of the muffins in the oven because I lost my gloves she served the volleyball over the net Which is a correctly formed compound sentence? Daniel was very excited to watch his favorite team play. But they lost. Daniel was very excited to watch his favorite team play but they lost. Daniel was very excited to watch his favorite team play, but they lost. Daniel was very excited to watch his favorite team play; but they lost.

Answer and Explanation:

Since there are two different questions, let's answer each one of them at a time.

1. Decide whether each group of words is an independent clause, a dependent clause, or not a clause.

A clause is a group of words that contains a subject and a predicate. A clause MUST contain a verb.

A independent clause is able to express a full thought on its own, making sense even if standing alone.

A dependent clause does not express a full thought on its own. It needs the main clause of the sentence to make sense.

With that in mind, we can easily decide about the groups of words below:

- The smell of the muffins in the oven --> NOT A CLAUSE

- Because I lost my gloves --> DEPENDENT CLAUSE. We need a main clause for it to make sense.

- She served the volleyball over the net. --> INDEPENDENT CLAUSE.

2. Which is a correctly formed compound sentence?

A compound sentence is formed by joining two independent clauses connected by a coordinating conjunction - for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so. The right way to punctuate a compound sentence is by placing a comma before the conjunction. Therefore, the correct option is:

Daniel was very excited to watch his favorite team play, but they lost.