Clause

What is a clause?

In its simplest form, a clause in grammar is a subject plus a verb. The subject is the entity “doing” the action of the sentence and the verb is the action that subject completes. A clause creates a complete thought (an idea or a statement that can stand alone).

Kind of Clause

1. An independent clause is a clause that can stand alone or simple sentence. There is a subject, verb, and complete thought.

2. A dependent clause is a clause that cannot stand alone; it depends on another clause to make it a complete sentence. And dependent clause can recognize with subordinate conjunction is a word that joins ideas together and shows the relationship between ideas. One of the subordinate conjunctions may already know are 'because,' 'although,' 'where,' and 'after.' Subordinate conjunctions may represent time, cause and effect, and contrast.

3. A relative clause is an adjective clause that describes the noun. It is important to remember that a relative clause is not a complete thought! They are used in sentences to further describe the noun.

4. A noun clause is a dependent clause that acts like a noun. It serves the exact same function as a noun. It can be a subject, object, or complement.

Independent clause definition: 

An independent clause can stand alone in a sentence. It contains a subject and a verb in its smallest form. A clause may also include modifiers and a verb predicate. It is a complete thought and the smallest unit of grammar that is syntactically accurate.

Example of Independent Clauses:

• Subject + verb (predicate). = complete thought (IC)
• I eat bananas. = complete thought (IC)
• Sharon speaks loudly. = complete thought (IC)

In writing, words and modifiers can be rearranged in independent clauses to create interest.

Example of Independent Clauses:

• I eat bananas in the kitchen.
• In the kitchen, I eat.

Dependent clause definition: 

Dependent clauses contain a subject and verb. However, they cannot stand alone as an independent thought. They must be joined with an independent clause to be grammatically correct.

Example of Dependent Clause:

• Every night before I go to bed, I eat bananas.

This example contains the IC, “I eat bananas.” However, a dependent clause now opens the sentence. While the dependent clause contains a subject and a verb (“I go”), the dependent clause itself cannot stand alone a complete thought.

Example of Dependent Clause:

• Every night before I go to bed

 Source: (https://writingexplained.org/grammar-dictionary/clauses )

Kind of Sentences

Simple Sentence

A simple sentence has the most basic elements that make it a sentence: a subject, a verb, and a completed thought.

Examples of simple sentences include the following:

1.     Joe waited for the train.
“Joe” = subject, “waited” = verb

2.     The train was late.
“The train” = subject, “was” = verb

3.     Mary and Samantha took the bus.
“Mary and Samantha” = compound subject, “took” = verb

4.     I looked for Mary and Samantha at the bus station.
“I” = subject, “looked” = verb

5.     Mary and Samantha arrived at the bus station early but waited until noon for the bus.
“Mary and Samantha” = compound subject, “arrived” and “waited” = compound verb

The use of compound subjects, compound verbs, prepositional phrases (such as “at the bus station”), and other elements help lengthen simple sentences, but simple sentences often are short. The use of too many simple sentences can make writing “choppy” and can prevent the writing from flowing smoothly.

A simple sentence can also be referred to as an independent clause. It is referred to as “independent” because, while it might be part of a compound or complex sentence, it can also stand by itself as a complete sentence.

§  Compound Sentence :

A compound sentence refers to a sentence made up of two independent clauses (or complete sentences) connected to one another with a coordinating conjunction. Coordinating conjunctions are easy to remember if you think of the words “FAN BOYS”:

§  For

§  And

§  Nor

§  But

§  Or

§  Yet

§  So

Examples of compound sentences include the following:

1.     Joe waited for the train, but the train was late.

2.     I looked for Mary and Samantha at the bus station, but they arrived at the station before noon and left on the bus before I arrived.

3.     Mary and Samantha arrived at the bus station before noon, and they left on the bus before I arrived.

4.     Mary and Samantha left on the bus before I arrived, so I did not see them at the bus station.

Coordinating conjunctions are useful for connecting sentences, but compound sentences often are overused. While coordinating conjunctions can indicate some type of relationship between the two independent clauses in the sentence, they sometimes do not indicate much of a relationship. The word “and,” for example, only adds one independent clause to another, without indicating how the two parts of a sentence are logically related. Too many compound sentences that use “and” can weaken writing.

Clearer and more specific relationships can be established through the use of complex sentences.

§  Complex Sentence :

A complex sentence is made up of an independent clause and one or more dependent clauses connected to it. A dependent clause is similar to an independent clause, or complete sentence, but it lacks one of the elements that would make it a complete sentence.

Examples of dependent clauses include the following :

§  because Mary and Samantha arrived at the bus station before noon

§  while he waited at the train station

§  after they left on the bus

Dependent clauses such as those above cannot stand alone as a sentence, but they can be added to an independent clause to form a complex sentence.

Dependent clauses begin with subordinating conjunctions. Below are some of the most common subordinating conjunctions:

§  after

§  although

§  as

§  because

§  before

§  even though

§  if

§  since

§  though

§  unless

§  until

§  when

§  whenever

§  whereas

§  wherever

§  while

A complex sentence joins an independent clause with one or more dependent clauses.

The dependent clauses can go first in the sentence, followed by the independent clause, as in the following:

1.     Because Mary and Samantha arrived at the bus station before noon, I did not see them at the station.

2.     While he waited at the train station, Joe realized that the train was late.

3.     After they left on the bus, Mary and Samantha realized that Joe was waiting at the train station.

Conversely, the independent clauses can go first in the sentence, followed by the dependent clause, as in the following :

1.     I did not see them at the station because Mary and Samantha arrived at the bus station before noon.

2.     Joe realized that the train was late while he waited at the train station.

3.     Mary and Samantha realized that Joe was waiting at the train station after they left on the bus.

Complex sentences are often more effective than compound sentences because a complex sentence indicates clearer and more specific relationships between the main parts of the sentence. The word “before,” for instance, tells readers that one thing occurs before another. A word such as “although” conveys a more complex relationship than a word such as “and” conveys.

§  Compound Complex Sentence :

compound complex sentence is made up of more than one sentence joined by a conjunction, and at least one of those sentence is complex. In other words, it is a compound sentence with a dependent, or subordinate clause.

In these examples, the dependent, or subordinate, clause is underlined.

1.     When I grow up, I want to be a ballerina, and my mom is proud of me.

2.     I will get to watch television, but first, I have to clean up the dishes after we finish eating.

3.     We won the game, but my uniform was muddy because it rained the entire time.

4.     After our trip to the beach, school started back, and I was excited to see my friends.

5.     Sarah cried when her cat got sick, but he soon got better.

6.     The sun is shining through the clouds, so I think that we can go swimming.

Source: ( http://www2.ivcc.edu/rambo/eng1001/sentences.htm )