These two sentences came up in a English Comp class and there was some discussion if the book was correct on whether they were simple, compound, complex, or compound-complex.
- Whatever pizza Lucy orders is a meal in itself.
- You can choose whatever crust you prefer and size you prefer.
I feel that the sentences are unnecessarily contrived; but could someone explain how you should properly parse them and define if the sentences are simple, compound, complex or compound-complex?
A simple sentence has one independent clause.
A compound sentence has more than one independent clause.
A complex sentence has one independent clause with one or more dependent clauses.
A compound-complex sentence has more than one independent clause and at least one dependent clause.
Best Answer
These are simple sentences. They have a single subject and a single predicate.
In the first sentence the noun clause [ Whatever pizza Lucy orders ] is the subject: and [ is a meal in itself ] is the predicate, in this case a complement.
In the second sentence [ You ] is the subject and [ can choose whatever crust you prefer and size you prefer ] is the predicate, containing the verb and the object noun clause [ whatever crust you prefer and size you prefer ].