Phrases

A phrase is a group of words that is incomplete in thought and tacks a subject and/or a
predicate. It gives further meaning by either naming, modifying, or explaining a word or
a group of words in a sentence

There are several kinds of phrases.

I. Noun Phrases
A noun phrase has at least one noun that is modified by a determiner and/or
another modifier or modifiers. This may also be found before (as a noun) or after
(as an object or a complement) a verb
E.g. I like to swing the bat hard when I am at the crease. (An object)
Reading novels is a good habit. (A subject)
The probability of happening that match is not much. (A subject)
We are sorry for her departure. (A subject)
II. Verb Phrases
A verb phrase is a verb with another word or words, such as helping verbs, that
indicate E.g. will have gone, can dance, did eat, go up

III. Prepositional Phrases

A prepositional phrase starts with a preposition and always has an object (a noun
or a pronoun) after it. It has two classifications:
A. The prepositional adjective phrase (or adjective phrase) - Adjectives
modify a noun or a pronoun. Prepositional phrases used as adjectives do
exactly the same thing, but as an entire phrase, not merely as one word.
a. The highest score was a B+.
*Highest is an adjective modifying the noun, score.
b. Joe is the student with the highest grade.
*With the highest grade is a prepositional phrase. With is the
preposition; the highest grade is the noun (and its descriptors)
following it. The entire phrase modifies student.
B. The prepositional adverb phrase (adverbial phrase) Adverbs modify a
verb, adjective, or another adverb. They answer the questions Why?,
when?, where?, how?, or to what extent? about the word they modify.
Adverb phrases do exactly the same thing, but as an entire phrase, not
merely as one word.
a. My math test was extremely difficult.
*Extremely is the adverb, explaining to what extent the math test
was difficult. (By the way, difficult is an adjective modifying the noun
“test”.)
b. Megan put the bird in its cage.
*In its cage answers where the bird was put. Put is the verb;
therefore, the whole phrase in its cage is acting as an adverb. (You
can tell the phrase isn’t acting as an adjective because it doesn’t
answer the questions what kind of bird? or which bird?)
IV. Appositive Phrases
V. An appositive is a Noun or Pronoun often accompanied by modifiers that sit
beside another Noun or Pronoun to describe it. An Appositive Phrase is a set of
words containing an Appositive and it follows or precedes the Noun or Pronoun it
identifies or explains.
E.g. My school friend, Brooks always bunked classes.
His colleague, Mr. Robinson likes his tea.
Jeremy, the police officer on duty, wrote the speeding ticket.
VI. Verbal Phrases
A verbal is a verb form which functions either as a noun, an adjective, or an
adverb. It may be a phrase if words are added to it. There are three categories.

A. Participle Phrases
This phrase starts with a present participle or a past participle and functions
as an adjective.
E.g. Walking fast, I keep looking left and right.
Climbing the stairs, she waved at us.
I looked back, starting the engine.

B. Gerund Phrases
These contain a Gerund (or verbs with -ing), its modifier(s) and the other
necessary elements. They function as Nouns just like Gerunds themselves
and that means they can be Subjects and Objects of the sentences.
E.g. Eating plenty of grapes in one sitting is a bad idea.
Doing the dishes gives me cold allergies.
I hate hurrying right before the deadline.

C. Infinitive Phrases
Infinitives (To + base verb), become infinitive phrases when words are added
to them. Infinitive phrases, like infinitives, function as nouns, as adjectives, or
as adverbs.
E.g. We love to cook together.
He likes to solve math problems too much.
Rina walks fast to be there on time.

Clauses
A clause is comprised of a group of words that include a subject and a finite verb. It
contains only one subject and one verb. The subject of a clause can be mentioned or
hidden, but the verb must be apparent and distinguishable.

There are two main kinds of clauses.

I. Independent or Main Clause

A clause is independent when it has a complete meaning on its own. In other
words, an independent or main clause is a simple sentence
E.g. He is a wise man.
 I want to buy a phone, but I don’t have enough money.
(Two independent clauses)
He went to London and visited the Lords.
(Subject of the second clause is ‘he,' so “he visited the Lords” is an
independent clause.)
Alex smiles whenever he sees her.
(One independent clause)

II. Dependent or Subordinate Clause

A clause is dependent when it it leaves an idea or thought unfinished. It is also
called a subordinate clause. These help the independent clauses complete the
sentence. Alone, it cannot form a complete sentence.
E.g. When I was dating Daina, I had an accident.
I know the man who stole the watch.
He bought a car which was too expensive.
I know that he cannot do it.

There are three different kinds of dependent or subordinates clauses.

A. The Noun Clause

Dependent Clauses acting as Nouns in sentences are called Noun Clauses or
Nominal Clauses. These often start with “how,” “that,” other Wh-words (What,
Who, Where, When, Why, Which, Whose and Whom), if, whether etc. 

The table below shows how noun clauses are used.

Function Examples
subject Whether he agrees or not does not matter.
direct object I don't understand whatever it is on your mind
indirect object Rochelle gave whoever sent her flowers a note.
predicate noun The question is why you left early.
object of the preposition Give the promotion to whoever deserves it
appositive He gave his demand, that he be left alone

B. The Adjective Clause

It is a Dependent Clause that modifies a Noun. Basically, Adjective Clauses
have similar qualities as Adjectives that are of modifying Nouns and hence
the name, Adjective Clause. These are also called Relative Clauses and they
usually sit right after the Nouns they modify. This clause may start with a
relative pronoun (that, which, whom, who, or whose) and comes after the
word it describes.
E.g. I’m looking for the red book that went missing last week.
Finn is asking for the shoes which used to belong to his dad.
You there, who is sitting quietly at the corner, come here and lead
the class out.
 The table below shows how adjective clauses are used As modifiers of
nouns or pronouns, they describe subjects, direct objects, objects of the
preposition, predicate nominatives, etc.

Word Described Examples

Subject The movie which we watched is so funny.
Direct object I found the book that my friend gave me.
Object of the She gave the letter to her friend who is leaving next week.
preposition
Predicate nominative That is my nephew whom I took to the movie house last
Friday.
Gerund Working without taking a break is stressful.
Infinitive To work without taking a break is stressful.

C. The Adverb Clause (also called Adverbial Clause)

These are Dependent Clauses acting as Adverbs. It means that these
clauses have the power to modify Verbs, Adjectives and other Adverbs. This
clause starts with a subordinate conjunction.

The table below shows how adverb clauses are used.

Word Described Examples
Verb I turned on the lights when I heard a loud noise.
Adjective Gabby is still sleepy although she slept for ten hours.
Adverb Sam came early before the sun even rose.
Participle Kiko, working since he was just 16, opened his own business
Infinitive Fixing the plumbing was so difficult to do that I called the
plumber immediately.

The IF Clause
Here are the several uses of the If Clause

1. If the situation has the possibility to be true

E.g. If you are good at this, let others know. If you had been careful, then why
did this happen?

2. "if it were not for which is an expression that signals attribution to a significant
person or thing cg If i were not for Merle, I would not make it here

3. in conditionals
Take note that the tense of the verb used has to be consistent

E.g. If you do this, you will be famous for sure. (present)

If you did this, you would be famous for sure. (past)
If you had done this, you would have been famous. (perfect)

The modals were, had, and should are also used

 E.g. If I were there, they would have known what to do.
If Frannie had declined the invitation, Gigi would not have come too
If it should be possible that you stay here, please do

These modals also create variety in sentence arrangement by canceling the word
"if" and fronting the modals.
E.g. Were I there, they would have known what to do.
Had Frannie declined the invitation, Gigi would not have come too.
Should it be possible that you stay here, please do

Sentences
A sentence is the largest unit of any language. In English, it begins with a capital letter
and ends with a period, or a question mark, or an exclamation mark. It is a group of
words that has a complete and independent thought and has a subject and a predicate.
Also, it is always composed of at least one independent clause

The sentence has two main parts.

I. The Subject
The Subject is the doer of the action or the one being talked about in the
sentence All subjects are either nouns, pronouns, gerunds, infinitives, or clauses
and are placed either before or after the verb
E.g .Jane went home late.
(The subject Jane is the doer of the action went.)
Jane is the smartest student in our class.
(The subject Jane is the one being talked about in the sentence.)

A. Complete Subjects and Simple Subjects

The complete subject is a noun, a pronoun, or a group of words which is the
doer or the one being talked about in the sentence. It may include modifiers.
On the other hand, the simple subject is the important noun, pronoun, or
group of words that cannot be taken out of the complete subject.
E.g. The new teacher taught English to foreigners.

Take note of the complete subject and simple subject of the sample sentence on
the previous page.
Complete Subject: The new teacher
Simple Subject: teacher
Here is another example.
E.g. What you told me is interesting
Complete Subject: What you told me
Simple Subject: What you told me

B. Compound Subjects
A compound subject is composed of two or more subjects that have the same
verb. The subjects are joined by the coordinating conjunction and or or
 E.g. Ann and her young daughter left the house early
Complete Compound Subject: Ann and her young daughter
Simple Compound Subject: Ann, daughter

C. Other Kinds of Subjects

1. Dummy subject - the subject with no concrete reference
E.g. It is raining hard outside!
It is dark inside the room.
2. Hidden subject - the subject before the verb in imperative sentences
E.g. (You) Keep up the good work!
(You) Please, pass the salt.

II. The Predicate

The Predicate is the information about the subject. It is composed of a group of
words that states what the subject does or is
E.g. Jane went home late
(The predicate went home late is what the subject Jane did.)
Jane is the smartest student in our class.
(The predicate is the smartest student in our class is what the subject
Jane is)

A. Complete Predicates and Simple Predicates

The complete predicate is the verb or verb phrase, as well as any
modifiers and/or complements that tell what the complete subject does
or is. On the other hand, the simple predicate is the important verb or
verb phrase in the sentence. It cannot be taken out of the complete
predicate
E.g. The new teacher taught English to foreigners
Complete Predicate: taught English to foreigners
Simple Predicate: taught
Here is another example.
E.g. My teacher gave us a quiz on grammar and reading
comprehension.
Complete Predicate: gave us a quiz on grammar and
reading comprehension
Simple Predicate: gave

I. Types of Sentences according to function/purpose.

Functionally, sentences are of mainly four types:
A. Declarative sentence:
An assertive sentence (declarative sentence) simply expresses an
opinion/feeling, or makes a statement, or describes things. In other words,
it declares something. This type of sentence ends with a period.
E.g. I want to be a good cricketer. (a statement)
I am very happy today. (a feeling)
 B. Imperative sentence
We use an imperative sentence to make a request or to give a command.
Imperative sentences usually end with a period , but under certain
circumstances, it can end with an exclamation mark (!).
E.g. Please sit down.
I need you to sit down now!

C. Interrogative sentence:
An interrogative sentence asks a question. Interrogative sentences must
end with a note of interrogation (i.e., question mark)
E.g. When are you going to submit your assignment?
Do you know him?

D. Exclamatory sentence.
An exclamatory sentence expresses overflow of emotions. These
emotions can be of happiness, wonder, sorrow, anger, etc.
E.g. What a day it was!
I cannot believe he would do that!

II. Types of Sentences according to structure.

Structurally, sentences are of four types:
A. Simple sentence
A simple sentence must have a single clause (a single verb) which is
independent, and it cannot take another clause.
E.g. I always wanted to become a writer. (One clause – one verb)

B. Compound sentence
A compound sentence must have more than one independent clause with
no dependent clauses. Some specific conjunctions, punctuation, or both
are used to join together these clauses.
E.g. I always wanted to become a writer, and she wanted to become a
doctor. (Two independent clauses – two verbs)

C. Complex sentence
A complex sentence also has more than one clause but of one them must
be an independent clause and the other/others must be (a) dependent
clause(es). There are also some particular connectors for the clauses of a
complex sentence to be connected.
E.g. I know that you always wanted to be a writer. (Here, a dependent
clause is followed by a connector and an independent clause. The
other way around is also possible.)

D. Compound-complex sentence
 A compound-complex sentence (or complex–compound sentence) is a
mixture of the features of compound and complex sentences in one
sentence. So, it must contain at least two independent clauses and at
least one dependent clause.
E.g. I know that you always wanted to become a writer, but I always
wanted to become a doctor. (Here, one dependent clause is
followed by a complex connector and two independent clauses with
a compound conjunction between them.)
Verbal
Swimming is my favorite hobby (gerund)
My favorite hobby is swimming (predicate noun/subject complement)
I love swimming (direct object)
To swim is my favorite hobby
My Favorite hobby is to swim
i love to swim

Spiderman is the movie to watch

Erwin went to the house of rex to borrow books

Erwin went to the house of rex to borrow books
Subject verb Prepositional Prepositional
adverb phrase adverb phrase

To + noun=prepositional phrase
To + base form of the verb= infinitive