compound
Pluralcompounds
Verbcompounds, compounding, compounded
Pluralcompounds
Formscompounds, compounding, compounded
- 1A substance made when two or more chemical elements join together.
Like a cake: once you mix and bake the ingredients, you get something new that you can't easily separate again.
Water is a compound of hydrogen and oxygen.
Many cleaning products contain compounds that can be dangerous.
UsageA compound of two elements. In science, a compound is not the same as a mixture.
Oppositeelement
Note
- 2To make a bad situation even worse.
Like adding more weight to a bag that is already too heavy.
Missing the bus will only compound your problems today.
Lying about it just compounds the trouble you're in.
UsageUse it with something bad: compound a problem, compound a mistake, or compound the damage.
Similarworsen, aggravate, exacerbate, intensify, magnify
Oppositealleviate, ease, mitigate, relieve
Note
- 3
- 4
- 5To grow in value as interest is added to both the money saved and the interest already earned.
Like a snowball rolling downhill, getting bigger and bigger as it goes.
If you leave the money alone, it will compound year after year.
Savings compound faster when interest is added every month.
UsageUsed with words showing how often interest is added: interest compounds daily, monthly or yearly.
Note
- 6To make something by mixing different parts or ingredients together.
Like making soup by adding many things into one pot.
The chemist compounds the cream from oils and water.
They compound the paint by mixing several colors.
UsageYou compound a medicine from its ingredients, or compound one thing with another.
Similarmix, combine, blend, mingle, amalgamate
Oppositeseparate
Note
- 7Something made by mixing or putting together two or more different things.
Like a recipe where you blend several things into one mixture.
The chemist sold a compound for soothing sore throats.
A compound of spurge, cardamom, cinnamon of Mecca, pellitory, ginger, nettle seed is an Arab specific for sexual weakness.
1961, Harry E. Wedeck, Dictionary of AphrodisiacsHere, compound means a mixture made by putting several things together.UsageIn science, a simple blend is a mixture, not a compound.
Similarmixture, blend, preparation, composite, amalgam
Note
- 8A word made by joining two or more smaller words or word parts.
Like joining two LEGO bricks to make one bigger piece.
The word "toothbrush" is a compound made from two smaller words.
English forms many compounds by joining short words together.
Less common meanings
- 9Ellipsis of compound exercise. A workout move that works several muscle groups at the same time.
Squats are a great compound for building total-body strength.
She started every session with a heavy compound.
UsageUsed in weight training. Use compound exercise when speaking to someone who may not know this short form.
Note
- 10To settle a debt or claim by accepting less money than was first asked for.
Like agreeing to take part of the money owed to you instead of fighting for all of it.
The lender agreed to compound the debt for half of what she owed.
They decided to compound the claim rather than go to court.
Similarsettle
Note
- 11To make up or form something by putting parts together.
his pomp and all what state compounds
c. 1605, William Shakespeare, “The Life of Tymon of Athens”Here, compounds means makes up or forms something from parts.Similarcompose, constitute, comprise, form
Note
- 12Using numbers that mix different units, or steps more complicated than the simplest kind.
- 13A steam engine that uses the same steam twice, first in a high-pressure cylinder, then in a low-pressure one.
- 14Describing a musical interval bigger than an octave, made by adding one or more octaves to a basic interval.
- 15To settle a disagreement by both sides agreeing or giving way.
They were at last glad to compound for his bare commitment to the Tower.
Can we date this quote?, Edward [Hyde, 1st] Earl of Clarendon, in The History of the Rebellion and Civil Wars in England - 16A legal deal where someone accused of a crime pays a fine to avoid going to court.
- 17Of a horse in a race, to slow down and lose speed near the end.
Showing meanings only.
Practice
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Origins
It possibly comes from the Malay word "kampong," meaning a group of buildings or a village.
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 2 facts
- The enclosure noun possibly comes from Malay kampong. en.wikipedia.org
- The Malay source word means a group of buildings or a village. en.wiktionary.org
It comes from Latin "componere," from "com-" ("together") plus "ponere" ("to put"), so it means "to put together."
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 2 facts
- Compound ultimately derives from Latin componere, the infinitive of compōnō. en.wiktionary.org
- Componere combines com- (‘together’) and ponere (‘to put’), meaning ‘to put together’. en.wiktionary.org