PHRASES, CLAUSES, AND

SENTENCES
PHRASE
A phrase is a group of words which contains neither a
subject nor a verb. (It may, however, contain a verbal
form such as an infinitive, a participle, or a gerund).
Prepositional Phrase
Prepositional verb can be used as adverbs or
adjectives.
Ex:
In a flash, she realized that the tofu hadbeen
underneath her chair all along.
After midnight, Tina’s mother was on the roof
dancing with a Ukranian bullfighter.
 More example :
1. Last night, I went to Mr. Han’s house.
2. Tomorrow, I will go to Jakarta.
3. The movie is playing on cinema.
4. The children are sleeping under warm blanket.
5. Ladies beside you is my sister.
Infinitive Phrase
Infinitive phrase consist of an infinitive (to dance, to
fly, etc) plus an object. They are usually used as
nouns, but they can also be used as adjectives or as
adverbs.
1. As noun (Subject) : To see him suffer is my dearest
wish.
2. As noun (Object) : Mita longed to eat the last
tamale.
3. As adj : Franklin had brought nothing to give his
mother-in-law.
4. As adv : To satisfy this mysterious craving, she
was willing to try almost anything.
 More example :
1. To deal with stubborn is difficult. (As noun/subject)
2. I dream to be a teacher. (As noun/object)
3. I have no time to hear your story. (As Adj)
4. To pass the test, you must study hard. (As Adv)
5. I need a book to read on vacation. (As Adj)
Participial Phrase
Participial phrase is begin with a participle.
Participles are adjectives formed from verbs. They
come in two tenses : present and past.
1. Present participle : an-ing word (singing, dancing,
etc).
2. Past participle : usually an-ed word (believed,
bellowed, etc). But sometimes an irreguler form
(written, sung, wept, etc).
 Participle can be used as adjectives all by
themselves :
1. Bellowing hyena
2. Flying trapeze
3. Tortured soul
4. Lost love
Participial phrases consist of a participle
plus an object. They are used as
adjectives.
Example:
1. A baby crying in the box is hungry. (present)
2. The girl singing on the stage is Merry. (present)
3. Sam is a frightened boy. (past)
4. The girls believed by many boy is my sister. (past)
5. The song sang by group’s 4 is my love. (past)
Gerund Phrase
Gerund phrase begin with a gerund ( an –ing word
which looks exactly like a present particple, but
which is used as a noun). A gerund can be used in any
way a noun can :
- As subject
- As direct object
- As subjective complement
- As object of preposition
Example:
1. Hunting tigers is Tom’s hobby. (As subject)
2. Father goes fishing on sundays. (As object)
3. His hobby is reading Hemingway novels. (As
Subject complement)
4. The student keep on doing exercises. (As object of
preposition)
5. I am tired of arguing with my boyfriend. (As object
of preposition)
Noun Phrase
A noun phrase is consist of a noun and other related
words (usually modifiers and determiners) whch
modify the noun.
A noun phrase consist of a noun as the head word and
other word (usually modifiers and determiners)
which come after or before the noun.
Example:
1. He is wearing a nice red shirt. (as noun/object)
2. She brought a glass full of water. (as noun/object)
3. The boy with brown hair is laughing. (as
noun/subject)
4. A man on the roof was shouting. (as noun/subject)
Participial phrases consist of a participle plus an
object. They are used as adjectives.
Clause
A clause is a group of words containing at least a
subject and a verb, and frequently it lets its hair down
by containing some kind of a complement as well.
There are two kinds of clauses : Independent and
Dependent.
Independent (Main) Clause
Main clause is a sentence on which a subordinate
clause depends.
Ex : Tom knows when he will return.
Note: the underlined, is a Main Clause and it is
directly followed by a subordinate clause and the
subordinate clause becomes meaningful for it is
supported by a main clausse.
Dependent (Subordinate) Clause
A subordinate clause is a group of word with subject
and predicate but it can not be called a sentence for it
doesn’t make a complete sense.
 Subordinate clauses begin with Subordinate
Conjunction. They are:
What Who Whosever
WhyWhom Whichever
Where Whose That
HowWhether While
After Provided Since
Before Which As
Now that Whoever Because
When
The common construction of subordinate clause is
started by subordinate conjunction+verb+(adjunct).

Subordinate conjunction+ Subject+ Auxiliary verb+

verb+ (Adjunct)
OR
Subordinate conjunction+ Subject+ Verb+ (Adjunct)
 Subordinate clause doesn’t make a complete sense so
it can not stand by itself. It depends on other groups
of word, therefore they are also called “dependent
clause”.
Ex : 1. I will go wherever you will go.
2. I don’t know where she did live.
3. Somebody loves what they do.
4. You are the reason why I am smile.
Sentence
Sentence are made up of clauses. Sentences are
classified into four types:
1. Simple Sentence
2. Compound Sentence
3. Complex Sentence
4. Compound Complex Sentence
Simple Sentence
Simple sentence contain no conjunction. A simple
sentence has a subject (or noun phrase) and a verb (or
verb chain).
Ex:
1. Frank ate his dinner quickly.
2. I love my family very much.
3. She play a great music.
4. The boy made a beautiful girl cry.
5. We work hard to pass the examination.
Compound Sentence
Compound sentence contain two statements that are
connected by a conjunction.
Ex:
1. I wanted to cry, but the tears wouldn’t come.
2. My mother like banana, but my father like apple.
3. I washed my clothes and ironed it on Sunday.
4. My sister watch a movie and I read a novel.
5. You could waste your money or you can save it.
Complex Sentence
To explore and express the possible relationship
between ideas, we can use more ‘sophisticated’
conjunctions-words like if, because, unless, when,
and although- which encapsulate those
interrelationships.
A complex sentence has one Main Clause, and one or
more Subordinating Clauses.
Example:
1. When the dog barked, the baby woke up.
2. If you lazy to study, you will not pass the exam.
3. When I lost, I know that you will found me.
4. Although she has invited me, I decide not going.
5. Because she had time, she visited my new house.
Compund Complex Sentence
Compound – complex sntence contain at least one
dependent clause and more than one independent
clause. The clauses are connected by both
conjunction and subordinators.
Example:
1. John, who briefly visited last month, won the prize,
and he took a short vacation. (DC+IC+IC)
2. Jack forgot his friend’s birthday, so he sent her a
card when he finally remembered. (IC+IC+DC)