- 1a thing consisting of two or more separate things combined together
- 2 (chemistry) a substance formed by a chemical reaction of two or more elements in fixed amounts relative to each other Common salt is a compound of sodium and chlorine. compare element, mixture Wordfinderchemistryacid, catalyst, chemistry, compound, formula, molecule, pH, react, solution, valency Oxford Collocations Dictionary adjectivechemical, inorganic, organic, … verb + compoundform, make, produce, … compound + verbcontain something, be derived from something, be found in something, … prepositioncompound of See full entry See related entries: Molecules and matter
- 3 (grammar) a noun, an adjective or a verb made of two or more words or parts of words, written as one or more words, or joined by a hyphen. Travel agent, dark-haired and bathroom are all compounds.
- 4an area surrounded by a fence or wall in which a factory or other group of buildings stands a prison compound Oxford Collocations Dictionary adjectivemilitary, palace, prison, … prepositionin a/the compound, inside a/the compound See full entry Word Originnoun senses 1 to 3 late Middle English compoune (verb), from Old French compoun-, present tense stem of compondre, from Latin componere ‘put together’. The final -d was added in the 16th cent. on the pattern of expound and propound. noun sense 4 late 17th cent. (referring to such an area in SE Asia): from Portuguese campon or Dutch kampoeng, from Malay kampong ‘enclosure, hamlet’.Extra examples Dalton believed that the simplest compound of two elements must have one atom of each. Police are investigating a raid on a secure compound. Scientists have produced a new chemical compound. a compound of oxygen and hydrogen compounds derived from rainforest plants life inside the prison compound Angry crowds stormed the presidential palace compound. Proteins and fats are organic compounds. The air smelled like a compound of diesel and petrol fumes.
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