MPC English & Study Skills Center

Clauses

English sentences are written with both phrases and clauses.

Phrase

A phrase is a group of words that go together and create a unit of meaning but do not include a subject and verb.

• In the morning
• Last night
• Working late
• Swinging from the trees
• After lunch

Note:  a combination such as “dog curtain” does not make a phrase because it does not create a unit of meaning—that is, it doesn’t make any sense!

Clause

A clause is a group of words that include a subject and a verb.  There are a number of different types of clauses.

The independent/main clause is underlined in the following sentences:

She went to the store.  (one independent clause)
Tamika studied English, but Keiko studied Spanish.  (two independent clauses)
Before I go to the hospital, I need to pack.  (one dependent and one independent clause)
The man who lives next door is an escaped convict!  (one independent clause with a dependent clause imbedded)

Adjective/Relative Clauses

This is a clause that is used as an adjective to describe a noun, so it must follow the noun that it describes.  Essentially, an adjective clause is used to put one sentence inside of another sentences.  TThe relative pronoun can be omitted if it is not serving as subject in the clause.

Note:  not all authorities include “when” and “where,” but they are increasingly used as relative pronouns, so they are included on this list.

It is possible to join ideas in a number of ways.  One way is to just use a series of simple sentences:

My neighbor works at K-Mart. She is from Germany.

Another way is to use a conjunction:

My neighbor works at K-Mart, and she is from Germany.

However, in English it is always better to put descriptions next to the thing described, so the second sentence can go inside of the first.  In this pair of clauses, “neighbor” and “she” refer to the same person.  When a sentence is imbedded in another sentence, the second sentence needs a relative pronoun to replace the word in the second sentence that describes something in the first sentence.  In this case, “she” refers to “neighbor” and needs to be changed to “who.” 

My neighbor, who is from Germany, works at K-mart.

Further examples:

Kenji went to the store.  The store is in the mall.
Kenji went to the store that is in the mall.

The letter arrived late.  The girl sent the letter.
The letter (that) the girl sent arrived late.

Note:  the relative pronoun always goes first even though it may have been in another position in the original sentence.  Thus, it is correct to say “that the girl sent” rather than “the girl sent that.”

There are a couple of important things to remember:

·         Never use “which” to refer to people

·         ALWAYS put the adjective/relative clause right after the word it’s describing or you will end up with a dangling modifier—that is, an adjective clause describing the wrong thing.

Example of a dangling modifier:

I drove by the house last weekend where I used to live.  (In this case, “where I used to live” follows and describes “weekend,” but that doesn’t make any sense.

Correction:

I drove by the house where I used to live last weekend.  (Now, “where I used to live” follows and describe ‘house, “and that makes sense.)

Another example of a dangling modifier:

I found the  car at the police station that had been stolen. (This suggests that the “police station” was stolen.

Correction:

I found the car that had been stolen at the police state.  (Now, the adjective clause “that had been stolen” follows the word it is describing—“car.”

 Restrictive and Non-Restrictive Adjective/Relative Clauses

There are two types of adjective clauses:  restrictive and non-restrictive.

Examples of restrictive clauses:

The man whom I love will marry me.  (This one man, not the others in the world.)
The dog that bit me has rabies.  (This particular dog, not dogs that didn’t bite me.)The town where I live is near the beach. (Not towns I don’t live in.)
The girl who is wearing a red dress is my daughter.  (The other children are wearing different colors, so this is identifying information.)

Examples of non-restrictive clauses:

Mrs. Brown, who is my neighbor, went to Europe. (A proper name is already considered identified, so the adjective/relative clause is interesting but not necessary to identify.)

The teacher, whom I like, is very difficult.  (I like a lot of teachers; this isn’t identifying information.)

My mother, who lives with me, is 94 years old. (I only have one mother, so “my mother” already identifies her.)

That song, which was too loud, was hard to understand. (All of the songs were loud, so this information won’t identify.)

Adverb Clause

This is a clause that uses a subordinating conjunction to show a relationship--time, reason, condition, contrast or surprise--between the dependent (adverb) clause and the independent (main) clause.

An adverb clause always needs another half to be complete:

When I get up in the morning. . . .
Because he is tired . . .
If you work hard . . .

If the adverb clause precedes the main clause, it is followed by a comma:

Before I finish cooking dinner, I need to go to the store.
If you really loved me, you would wash the dishes.
Because it’s so late, Ted is going  to bed.

If the adverb clause follows the main clause, no comma is necessary:

I will make the spaghetti after I get home.
Serena will pass the test if she studies all night.
Martin saw the rainbow as he was driving home.

 British English places a comma before the adverb clause, and sometimes writers insert commas to cause the reader to pause and to emphasize the message of the adverb clause—primarily with because, since, though, and even though. 

I will marry you, because I have no choice! 

Generally, though, commas should not precede adverb clauses.

Noun Clause

The noun clause, like the adjective clause, usually begins with that or a WH word, such as who, whom, which, whoever, whichever, how.  The relative pronoun can be omitted if it is not serving as subject in the clause.

The noun clause is used as a single idea, and it can be used anywhere a simple noun can be used—usually as a subject or direct object, but it can also be the object of a preposition.

What I know is important. (subject)
That she is intelligent remains to be seen. (subject)
I know  (that) I should go home now.  (direct object)
I believe that is the correct answer. (direct object)
Give the book to whoever wants it.  (object of preposition “to”)