1 2.
Building Clause
A
clause is a collection of
grammatically-related words including a predicate and a subject (though
sometimes the subject is implied). A collection of grammatically-related words
without a subject or without a predicate is called a phrase.
Clauses
are the building blocks of sentences: every sentence consists of one or more
clauses. This chapter will help you to recognise and (more importantly) to use
different types of clauses in your own writing.
A.
Recognising Clauses
Consider
these examples:
clause
cows eat grass
This
example is a clause, because it contains the subject "cows" and the
predicate "eat grass."
phrase
cows eating grass
What about
"cows eating grass"? This noun phrase could be a subject, but it has
no predicate attached to it: the adjective phrase "eating grass" show
which cows the writer is referring to, but there is nothing here to show
why the writer is mentioning cows in the first place.
clause
cows eating grass are visible from
the highway
This is a
complete clause again. The subject "cows eating grass" and the
predicate "are visible from the highway" make up a complete thought.
clause
Run!
This
single-word command is also a clause, even though it does seem to have a
subject. With a direct command, it is not necessary to include the subject,
since it is obviously the person or people you are talking to: in other words,
the clause really reads "[You] run!". You should not usually use
direct commands in your essays, except in quotations.
B.
Using Clauses as Nouns, Adjectives, and Adverbs
If a
clause can stand alone as a sentence, it is an independent
clause, as in the following example:
Independent
the Prime Minister is in Ottawa
Some
clauses, however, cannot stand alone as sentences: in this case, they are dependent clauses or subordinate clauses. Consider the same clause
with the subordinating conjunction "because" added to the beginning:
Dependent
when the Prime Minister is in Ottawa
In this
case, the clause could not be a sentence by itself, since the conjunction
"because" suggests that the clause is providing an explanation for
something else. Since this dependent clause answers the question
"when," just like an adverb, it is called a dependent adverb clause (or simply an adverb
clause, since adverb clauses are always dependent clauses). Note how the clause
can replace the adverb "tomorrow" in the following examples:
adverb
The committee will meet tomorrow.
adverb clause
The committee will meet when the Prime Minister is in Ottawa.
Dependent clauses
can stand not only for adverbs, but also for nouns and for adjectives.
1)
Noun Clauses
A
noun clause
is an entire clause which takes the place of a noun in another clause or
phrase. Like a noun, a noun clause acts as the subject or object of a verb or
the object of a preposition, answering the questions "who(m)?" or
"what?". Consider the following examples:
noun
I know Latin.
noun clause
I know that
Latin is no longer spoken as a native language.
In the
first example, the noun "Latin" acts as the direct object of the verb
"know." In the second example, the entire clause "that Latin
..." is the direct object.
In fact,
many noun clauses are indirect questions:
noun
Their destination
is unknown.
noun clause
Where they are going is unknown.
The
question "Where are they going?," with a slight change in word order,
becomes a noun clause when used as part of a larger unit -- like the noun
"destination," the clause is the subject of the verb "is."
Here are
some more examples of noun clauses:
about what
you bought at the mall
This noun
clause is the object of the preposition "about," and answers the
question "about what?"
Whoever broke the vase will have to pay for it.
This noun
clause is the subject of the verb "will have to pay," and answers the
question "who will have to pay?"
The Toronto fans hope that the Blue Jays will win again.
This noun
clause is the object of the verb "hope," and answers the question
"what do the fans hope?"
2)
Adjective Clauses
An
adjective clause is a dependent
clause which takes the place of an adjective in another clause or phrase. Like
an adjective, an adjective clause modifies a noun or pronoun, answering
questions like "which?" or "what kind of?" Consider the
following examples:
Adjective
the red
coat
Adjective clause
the coat which
I bought yesterday
Like the
word "red" in the first example, the dependent clause "which I
bought yesterday" in the second example modifies the noun
"coat." Note that an adjective clause usually comes after what
it modifies, while an adjective usually comes before.
In formal
writing, an adjective clause begins with the relative pronouns
"who(m)," "that," or "which." In informal writing
or speech, you may leave out the relative pronoun when it is not the subject of
the adjective clause, but you should usually include the relative pronoun in
formal, academic writing:
informal
The books people read were mainly
religious.
formal
The books that people read were mainly religious.
informal
Some firefighters never meet the people
they save.
formal
Some firefighters never meet the
people whom they save.
Here are
some more examples of adjective clauses:
the meat which
they ate was tainted
This
clause modifies the noun "meat" and answers the question "which
meat?".
about the movie which made him cry
This
clause modifies the noun "movie" and answers the question "which
movie?".
they are searching for the one who borrowed the book
The clause
modifies the pronoun "one" and answers the question "which
one?".
Did I tell you about the author whom I met?
The clause
modifies the noun "author" and answers the question "which
author?".
3)
Adverb Clauses
An adverb clause is a dependent clause which
takes the place of an adverb in another clause or phrase. An adverb clause
answers questions such as "when?", "where?",
"why?", "with what goal/result?", and "under what
conditions?".
Note how
an adverb clause can replace an adverb in the following example:
adverb
The premier gave a speech here.
adverb clause
The premier gave a speech where the workers were striking.
Usually, a
subordinating conjunction like "because," "when(ever),"
"where(ever)," "since," "after," and "so
that," will introduce an adverb clause. Note that a dependent adverb
clause can never stand alone as a complete sentence:
independent clause
they left the locker room
dependent adverb
clause
after they left the locker room
The first
example can easily stand alone as a sentence, but the second cannot -- the
reader will ask what happened "after they left the locker
room". Here are some more examples of adverb clauses expressing the
relationships of cause, effect, space, time, and condition:
cause
Hamlet wanted to kill his uncle because the uncle had murdered Hamlet's father.
The adverb
clause answers the question "why?".
effect
Hamlet wanted to kill his uncle so that his father's murder would be avenged.
The adverb
clause answers the question "with what goal/result?".
time
After Hamlet's uncle
Claudius married Hamlet's mother, Hamlet wanted to kill him.
The adverb
clause answers the question "when?". Note the change in word order --
an adverb clause can often appear either before or after the main part of the
sentence.
place
Where the whole Danish
court was assembled,
Hamlet ordered a play in an attempt to prove his uncle's guilt.
The adverb
clause answers the question "where?".
condition
If the British
co-operate, the
Europeans may achieve monetary union.
The adverb
clause answers the question "under what conditions?"
Source : http://arts.uottawa.ca/writingcentre/en/hypergrammar/building-phrases
