Glossary: multi-clause sentence

A label used in the National Curriculum to refer to sentences that contain two or more clauses. This includes both complex sentences, where one clause is subordinate to another, as signalled by a subordinating conjunction (e.g. I came home [because it was raining]), and compound sentences, where clauses are 'chained' using a coordinating conjunction (e.g. [I came home] and [my sister went out]).

As the distinction between complex and compound sentences is relatively advanced, the National Curriculum recommends that the term ‘multi-clause sentence’ be used up to KS2.