CLAUSES AND THEIR USES –

JSS3
BY OGBOR I. STEPHEN
INSTRUCTIONAL OBJECTIVES
 At the end of the class, the students should be able
to do the following;
 Define a clause
 State the types of clause there are
 Explain each of the stated type convincingly
 Identify clauses in sentences
DEFINITION OF CLAUSE
 A clause is a grammatical unit in between a
sentence and a phrase
 It is neither a sentence nor a phrase by its nature
and structure although one of its type can be a
sentence.
 Precisely, a clause is a group of words containing a
subject and a finite verb which may not make a
complete sense.
 Remember that a finite verb can change forms to
indicate tense and grammatical concords.
TYPES OF CLAUSE
 There are two basic types of clause which are:
 Main/independent/principal clause
 Subordinate/dependent/ helping clause
 All clauses are gotten from a sentence even though
one of the types can stand as a simple sentence on
its own
 There is no sentence without one or two clauses
constituting it.
MAIN/INDEPENDENT CLAUSE
 This is a clause that has all the attributes of a simple
sentence and can, therefore, be regarded as a sentence
all by itself.
 If one clause is to make a sentence, it has to be the
main clause and the sentence has to be simple in
structure.
EXAMPLES:
1. Olatunde loves his wife.
2. Emeka told his mother.
3. They know each other.
SUBORDINATE/DEPENDENT CLAUSE

 This is a clause that has all the attribute of a simple

sentence but fails to make a complete meaning.
 It may have both subject and predicate and yet not
sensible in totality.
 EXAMPLES
1. Because his wife is very beautiful and dutiful
2. Everything that happened in the school
3. Since the time they were in the university
TYPES OF SUBORDINATE CLAUSE
 There are three types of subordinate clause which
are:
 Noun clause

 Adjectival/relative clause

 Adverbial clause

➢ A noun clause is used as a subject or an object of a

verb in a sentence.
EXAMPLE: what you told the man this morning is very
wrong.
SUBORDINATE CLAUSE TYPE
 Adjective/relative clause is a clause used to modify a
noun in a sentence. The noun can be the subject or the
object of such a sentence.
EXAMPLE:
1. The book which my friend bought for me is very
original.
2. Our teacher who always tickles us is here.
➢ The highlighted parts of the two sentences above are
the adjectival clauses as they modify the subjects of
the sentences. They are also known as imbedded
clauses because they are in the middle of the
sentence.
ADVERBIAL CLAUSE
 This is a clause used to modify the action in the
sentence.
 It provides further information as to place, reason,
manner, frequency, degree and time of the action in
the sentence.
EXAMPLES
1. We met the man where he works.
2. They greeted us when we passed.
3. They like us because we help them often
EVALUATION/ASSIGNMENT
 Name the clauses in the following sentences and tell
why they have the name you call them.
1. The man hates fish because fish irritates him.
2. Aduke always sleeps off when the teacher is
explaining a thing to the class.
3. The young man who wore a red T-shirt last night is the
leader of the gang.
4. That your father owns the school does not give you the
licence to misbehave.
5. What he says does not matter now.
SIGN OFF
 THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR
COOPERATION.