Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Clauses Parts of A Sentence
Clauses Parts of A Sentence
• What is a Clause?
• Independent Clauses
• Dependent Clauses
• Combining Clauses Using Subordinating Conjunctions
• Combining Clauses Using Relative Clauses
• Combining Clauses Using Coordinating Conjunctions
What is a Clause?
A clause is a group of related words that has both a subject and a verb.
Hal
S
wants
V
to go to France.
Furthermore, they are Independent Clauses (IC) because each one also
expresses a complete thought.
An Independent Clause (IC) can stand on its own because it has a subject and a
verb, and it expresses a complete thought.
Clauses are very interesting. Sue works in her garden each day.
However, not all clauses are independent because not all clauses express a
complete thought.
Dependent Clauses
Remember, a clause is a group of related words with both a subject and a verb.
These are clauses because they each have a subject and verb. However, they do
not express complete thoughts. To be a part of a complete sentence, they must
depend on an Independent Clause by being joined to it.
For these three dependent clauses to be part of a complete sentence,
we must join them to an independent clause.
Now the dependent clauses are part of complete sentences. In the third
sentence, the dependent clause separates the subject and verb of the
independent clause.
There are two types of Dependent Clauses.
While we can identify dependent clauses in three categories: adverb clauses, adjective
clauses, and noun clauses based on the function each clause has in the sentence, for our
purposes, we are going to identify them as
Read this IC aloud: Bob goes fishing every Friday. Did you hear it express a complete
thought?
What happens because Bob goes fishing? We don’ t know because the thought is not
complete.
What happens when Bob goes We don’t know because the thought is not
fishing? complete.
We can join these two independent clauses by adding a subordinate conjunction to one of
them.
Because Michael has played football since he was six, he has been offered football
scholarships at several colleges.
DC, IC
When the independent clause comes in front of the subordinate clause, there is NO comma.
IC DC
It is essential that you recognize subordinate conjunctions when you see them, so memorize
the list at the end of this presentation.
Relative clauses
The other type of dependent clause that we are going to look at is the relative clause.
The relative clause, “who lives in California,” modifies “Tammy” and gives
us more information about her.
Relative clauses usually begin with relative pronouns. These are the
relative pronouns:
William Shakespeare, who was named the writer of the millennium, wrote more
than 35 plays.
Mel has good ideas that are usually made into great action plans.
If you said, “which is Tom’s favorite sport,” “who was named the writer of the
millennium,” and “that are usually made into great action plans,” then you
were correct.
Essential and Non-essential Relative Clauses
The relative clause, “who miss four classes,” modifies the noun,
“students.” It is essential because it is only these students who will lose
the points.
It’s time for another comma rule: Notice that because the clause is essential, it is
NOT surrounded by commas. A non-essential clause is, however, surrounded by
commas. Think of them as “hooks” that can lift this non-essential clause out of the
sentence.
Now let’s look at some non-essential clauses.
This relative clause can also be “lifted” out of the sentence with those
comma “hooks” because the information is not essential.
Notice that all of the non-essential clauses are surrounded by
commas.
Two independent clauses can be joined by changing one of the
independent clauses into a relative clause.
We can join these two independent clauses by changing one of them into a relative clause.
Let’s join these two independent clauses by making one of them a relative clause.
Monet, who was the father of Impressionism, painted the effects of light.
Joining Two Independent Clauses Using the
Coordinating Conjunctions
The coordinating conjunctions are for, and, nor, but, or, yet, and so.
A good trick to help you memorize them is the acronym fan boys. It spells the first letter
of each of the coordinating conjunctions.
We will bring a cake and a pie. The coordinating conjunction, and, joins two nouns.
Will you wash or wax the car? The coordinating conjunction, or, joins two verbs.
Let’s go to the movie or to the park. The coordinating conjunction, or, joins two
prepositional phrases.
Coordination and Compound Sentences
Now let’s join the two sentences (independent clauses) using a coordinating
conjunction.
Prague is an ancient European city, so it has many architectural treasures.
For introduces a cause: We can’t go sailing, for Jack sank the boat.
So introduces an effect: Jack sank the boat, so we can’t go sailing.
But indicates contrast: Jack enjoys sailing, but Tom enjoys fishing.
Yet emphasizes contrast: Sue wants to be a ballerina, yet she can’t balance on her toes.
Or indicates choice: Dad and I can go to a movie, or we can all go to the park.
Nor is used when both Mark will not go to chic flicks. He will not go to
sentences are negative. documentaries. This becomes: Mark will not go to chic
flicks, nor will he go to documentaries.
And indicates addition: Derek brought the food, and we brought the drinks.
Notice that there is a comma after each first sentence but before the conjunction.
Comma Rule
When two independent clauses are joined by a coordinating conjunction,
the conjunction needs its punctuation partner, the comma.
We will let IC stand for independent clause and cc stand for coordinating conjunction and
create an “equation” that you can use to remember this comma rule:
IC, cc IC
Neither the comma nor the conjunction on its own is strong enough to hold the two
clauses together.
Using just the comma (which would be a comma splice) or just the conjunction (which
would be a run on) to join the two separate sentences together would be like trying to
use toothpaste in place of mortar to build a brick wall.
The wall will fall down and you will have an oozy
Caution: When you use a coordinating
conjunction, you don’t always use the comma.
The comma is used with a coordinating conjunction for two reasons:
Let’s change that last sentence to: Mark brought the food and the drinks.
Notice that we don’t need the comma anymore. This is because we are
no longer joining two complete sentences. While “Mark brought the food
,”is a complete sentence, “the drinks,” is not a complete sentence.
TIP: When you see a sentence with a coordinating conjunction (and the
conjunction is not joining a series of items of three or more) use the
coordinating conjunction (cc) as a dividing line to see if you need a
comma.
Wiley Coyote chases the Road Runner, but he never catches him.
S V S V
If what is in front of the coordinating conjunction is a complete sentence and what is behind the
coordinating conjunction is also a complete sentence I need a comma.
Wiley Coyote chases the Road Runner but never catches him.
S V V
While what is in front of the conjunction (but) is a complete sentence, what is behind it
is just a verb phrase, so we cannot use the comma partner.
Those are clauses and conjunctions.
You should now be able to identify
them. This should be enough to get
you started on combining clauses,
using conjunctions and identifying
run-ons and fragments.
As As Where Although
If After Wherever As (if)
As if As soon as As though
Because Before Even if
Since Once Provided (that)
Whereas Until Than
Unless When Though
That Whenever
So that While