What does "compound" mean?
An enclosure within which workers, prisoners, or soldiers are confined.
Compound
/ˈkɒmpaʊnd/ adj, noun, verb
adj, noun, verb ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: An enclosure within which workers, prisoners, or soldiers are confined.
- Grammar: compound is listed as adj, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: chemical compound, accommodate, accumulative, acid.
- Useful contrasts: elemental features, elementary, mixture-type concept.
- Usage evidence: The pain from the compound fracture was almost intolerable.
How to use "compound"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "compound" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "compound" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "compound" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "compound" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "compound" is acting as adj, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "chemical compound" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "compound", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 An enclosure within which workers, prisoners, or soldiers are confined.
- 2 Anything made by combining several things.
- 3 an enclosure of residences and other building (especially in the Orient) wordnet
- 4 An enclosure for secure storage.
"A total of 75 cycle spaces are being installed at three Greater Anglia stations - [...]. And a secure compound for bicycles is being built at Cambridge North."
- 5 A substance formed by chemical bonding of two or more elements in definite proportions by weight.
Show 11 more definitions
- 6 a whole formed by a union of two or more elements or parts wordnet
- 7 A group of buildings situated close together, e.g. for a school or block of offices.
"Shepard: What kind of proof do you have that the major is dangerous? Transmission: Three days ago, we sent two Alliance representatives to meet with him at his compound. They have disappeared. We believe Kyle and his followers killed them. Transmission: That compound is a cult, Shepard. They call him 'Father Kyle' now. He's set himself up as some kind of religious leader."
- 8 A substance made from any combination of ingredients. dated
"A compound of spurge, cardamom, cinnamon of Mecca, pellitory, ginger, nettle seed is an Arab specific for sexual weakness."
- 9 a word (as anthropology, kilocycle, builder) consisting of any of various combinations of words, combining forms, or affixes. wordnet
- 10 A group of buildings where members of the same extended family live together. Philippines, broadly
- 11 A legal procedure whereby a criminal or delinquent avoids prosecution in a court in exchange for his payment to the authorities of a financial penalty or fine.
- 12 (chemistry) a substance formed by chemical union of two or more elements or ingredients in definite proportion by weight wordnet
- 13 A lexeme that consists of more than one stem.
"Compositionally there is no great distinction between cell wall and cell surface, both are relatively transparent compounds, but both parts of the cell are of high significance in Biology due to their central role in cell functioning."
- 14 A lexeme that consists of more than one stem or affix, e.g. "bookshop", "high school" or "non-standard".
"In the majority of the compounds of non- the hyphen is usually retained; but it is commonly omitted in the case of a few, such as nonconformist, nonentity, nonsense, in which the etymology has been to some extent lost sight of."
- 15 A compound locomotive, a steam locomotive with both high-pressure and low-pressure cylinders.
"From a dead stand, with regulator full open and the lever at about 50 per cent we got up to about 60 m.p.h. by the top of the bank. The big compound was making plenty of noise - but what musical and wonderful noise!"
- 16 Ellipsis of compound exercise. abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis
Verb
- 1 To form (a resulting mixture) by combining different elements, ingredients, or parts; to mingle with something else. transitive
"to compound a medicine"
- 2 put or add together wordnet
- 3 To settle by agreeing on less than the claim, or on different terms than those stipulated. transitive
"to compound a debt"
- 4 make more intense, stronger, or more marked wordnet
- 5 To settle amicably; to adjust by agreement. transitive
"I pray, my lords, let me compound this strife."
Show 8 more definitions
- 6 combine so as to form a whole; mix wordnet
- 7 To come to terms of agreement; to settle by a compromise. intransitive
"to compound with someone / for something"
- 8 create by mixing or combining wordnet
- 9 To compose; to constitute. obsolete, transitive
"his pomp and all what state compounds"
- 10 calculate principal and interest wordnet
- 11 To increase in value with interest, where the interest is earned on both the principal sum and prior earned interest. intransitive
- 12 To worsen a situation. transitive
"[…] This latest example of nationalistic self-interest compounded anger across the EU over Trump’s travel ban, imposed last month without consultation or scientific justification."
- 13 Of a horse: to fail to maintain speed. intransitive
"At the hill, the Warrior must have been at least ten lengths in front of Wild Dayrell; but he compounded about 200 yards on the T. Y. C. side of the Red House."
Adjective
- 1 Composed of elements; not simple. not-comparable
"a compound word"
- 2 Dealing with numbers of various denominations of quantity, or with processes more complex than the simple process. not-comparable
"compound addition"
- 3 An octave higher than originally (i.e. a compound major second is equivalent to a major ninth). not-comparable
Adjective
- 1 composed of more than one part wordnet
- 2 composed of many distinct individuals united to form a whole or colony wordnet
- 3 consisting of two or more substances or ingredients or elements or parts wordnet
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"The pain from the compound fracture was almost intolerable."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "compound"?
Common synonyms include: chemical compound, accommodate, accumulative, acid, acidity, acronym.
How do you use "compound" in a sentence?
The pain from the compound fracture was almost intolerable.
How do you pronounce "compound"?
Pronounced /ˈkɒmpaʊnd/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
Possibly from Malay kampong, kampung (“group of buildings, village”), via Dutch or Portuguese, altered under the influence of Etymology 2. Doublet of kampung.
Etymology 2
From Middle English compounen, from Middle French componre, compondre (“to put together”), from Latin componō, from Latin com- (“together”) + ponō (“to put”).