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Clauses - (Independent／Main - Dependent／Subordinate - Compound／Complex Sentences - Restrictive／Non-Restrictive) Clauses

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Clause - Types

Description

Independent/Main Clause
  • a clause that can stand alone
  • usually preceded with a coordinating conjunction (e.g. and, or, but)
  • [The officer blew the whistle] and [the car stopped]

Dependent/Subordinate Clause
  • a clause that can not stand alone
  • usually preceded with a subordinating conjunction (e.g. that, when, because, etc)
  • The car stopped when [the officer blew the whistle]

Sentence - Types

Description

Compound Sentence
  • a sentence containing two or more independent clauses
  • for example:
    • Mary cooks, sews, and sings(this is a simple sentence with the compound predicate)
    • [Mary cooks and sews], and [she sings](this is a compound sentence with the two clauses)
  • sometimes transitional words are used instead of conjunctions
  • for example:
    • [The road was unpaved]; nevertheless, [we drove in the rain]
    • [We can not get materials]; consequently, [we can not finish the job]

Complex Sentence
  • a sentence that consists of one independent clause and one or more dependent clauses
  • for examples see Dependent Clause - Types below

Dependent Clause - Types

Description

Restrictive Clauses
  • identifies the word it modifies
  • are necessary to the meaning of the sentence
  • for example:
    • I spoke to the woman [who was giving the demonstration]
    • I dislike driving in a town [where there are no stop signals]

Non-Restrictive Clauses
  • identifies the word it modifies
  • are not necessary to the meaning of the sentence
  • for example:
    • Dr. Miller, [who lived next door], moved to Chicago
    • Father, [who was working in the garden], missed the broadcast

Adjective Clauses
  • function in the same way as the adjectives
  • are introduced usually by relative pronouns
  • can be either restrictive or non-restrictive
  • for example:
    • John brought the books [that you ordered]# restrictive
    • Men [who are thinkers] look for facts# non-restrictive

Adverbial Clauses
  • function in the same way as the adverbs
  • are usually introduced by subordinate conjunctions
  • for example:
    • We listened to the radio [because we wanted to hear the news]
    • She will find the telegram on her desk [when she returns]

Noun Clauses
  • are not used as modifiers; they perform the functions that a noun performs
  • subject noun clause - functions as the entire subject of the sentence, for example:
    • [What the chairman proposed] was not practical
    • [That their house is for sale] is a well-known fact
  • object noun clause - functions as the object
    • I hope [that you will be promoted]
    • Tell the manager [why you are leaving]
  • predicate noun clause - functions as the entire predicate
    • The rumor was [that he had left the city]
    • This is [that we agreed to do]
  • object-predicate noun clause - functions as objects of a preposition
    • Give the message to [whoever is in the office]
    • We did not agree about [what the doctor ordered]
  • appositives noun clause - functions as appositives (appositives are words placed near other words to explain them)
    • Mike, [our janitor], is very accommodating
    • We called Dr. Hughes, [a famous scientist]
    • [My brother] Andrew is in London
    • The rumor [that John would be elected] spread rapidly
    • The fact [that the contract was signed] was important