Clause - A group of words that contains a subject and its predicate
Clauses are easy. The word clause comes from the same root as the words claustrophobia, enclosure, and close. The idea is that a clause is a closing: the subject opens the topic, and the predicate closes it; the subject asks, and the predicate answers. A clause is simply a group of words that contains a subject and its predicate, and this one-two structure opens and closes an idea. Every clause has this subject/predicate set at its center.
The complete clause includes not only the subject and the verb, but all of the modifiers and phrases that go with them. A sentence might consist of only one clause, or it might contain several clauses, each with its own subject and predicate.
The complete clause includes not only the subject and the verb, but all of the modifiers and phrases that go with them. A sentence might consist of only one clause, or it might contain several clauses, each with its own subject and predicate.
Writing for Grammar
Chapter 3, Lesson 1
"Kinds of Clauses," pp. 78-80 / Workbook pp. 55-57
I can identify and apply independent and dependent clauses with 80% accuracy.
Independent and Dependent clauses
- I and D - Two Kinds of Clauses:
- Clarence Darrow was an American lawyer.
Because Clarence Darrow was an American lawyer . . .
Writing for Grammar
Chapter 3, Lesson 2
"Adjective and Adverb Clauses," pp. 81-84 / Workbook pp. 58-60
I can identify and apply adjective and adverb clauses with 80% accuracy.
Adjective and adverb clauses
An adjective clause is a dependent clause used as an adjective: a (usually) short dependent clause that follows a noun or pronoun and modifies it. The adjective clause often interrupts the main clause, dividing the subject from the verb. Adjective clauses begin with relative pronouns: who/whom, whoever, whomever, whose, what, and which.
Recognize an adjective clause when you see one. An adjective clause will meet three requirements:
relative pronoun or adverb + subject + verb
relative pronoun as subject + verb
Here are some examples:
Diane felt manipulated by her beagle Santana, whose big, brown eyes pleaded for another cookie.
Whose = relative pronoun; eyes = subject; pleaded = verb.
Chewing with her mouth open is one reason why Fred cannot stand sitting across from his sister Melanie.
Why = relative adverb; Fred = subject; can stand = verb [not, an adverb, is not officially part of the verb].
Growling ferociously, Oreo and Skeeter, Madison's two dogs, competed for the hard boiled egg that bounced
across the kitchen floor.
That = relative pronoun functioning as subject; bounced = verb.
Laughter erupted from Annamarie, who hiccuped for seven hours afterward.
Who = relative pronoun functioning as subject; hiccuped = verb.
Avoid writing a sentence fragment. An adjective clause does not express a complete thought, so it cannot stand alone as a sentence. To avoid writing a fragment, you must connect each adjective clause to a main clause.
An adverb clause is a subordinate clause that modifies a verb, an adjective, or another adverb. Like adverbs, adverb clauses answer several specific questions, such as Where? When? Why? How? and To what extent?
Recognize an adverb clause when you see one. An adverb clause will meet three requirements:
Consider these examples:
Tommy scrubbed the bathroom tile until his arms ached.
Josephine's three cats bolted from the driveway once they saw her car turn the corner.
After her appointment at the orthodontist, Danielle cooked eggs for dinner because she could easily chew an omelet.
SUBORDINATING CONJUNCTIONS
Time
after, as, as long as, as soon as, before, since, until, when, whenever, while
Cause
because
Condition
although, as long as, even if, even though, if, provided that, though, unless, until, whereas
Place
where, wherever
Recognize an adjective clause when you see one. An adjective clause will meet three requirements:
- First, it will contain a subject and verb.
- Next, it will begin with a relative pronoun [who, whom, whose, that, or which] or a relative adverb [when, where, or why].
- Finally, it will function as an adjective, answering the questions What kind? How many? or Which one?
relative pronoun or adverb + subject + verb
relative pronoun as subject + verb
Here are some examples:
Diane felt manipulated by her beagle Santana, whose big, brown eyes pleaded for another cookie.
Whose = relative pronoun; eyes = subject; pleaded = verb.
Chewing with her mouth open is one reason why Fred cannot stand sitting across from his sister Melanie.
Why = relative adverb; Fred = subject; can stand = verb [not, an adverb, is not officially part of the verb].
Growling ferociously, Oreo and Skeeter, Madison's two dogs, competed for the hard boiled egg that bounced
across the kitchen floor.
That = relative pronoun functioning as subject; bounced = verb.
Laughter erupted from Annamarie, who hiccuped for seven hours afterward.
Who = relative pronoun functioning as subject; hiccuped = verb.
Avoid writing a sentence fragment. An adjective clause does not express a complete thought, so it cannot stand alone as a sentence. To avoid writing a fragment, you must connect each adjective clause to a main clause.
An adverb clause is a subordinate clause that modifies a verb, an adjective, or another adverb. Like adverbs, adverb clauses answer several specific questions, such as Where? When? Why? How? and To what extent?
Recognize an adverb clause when you see one. An adverb clause will meet three requirements:
- Like adjective clauses, it will contain a subject and verb.
- It will begin with an introductory word, subordinate conjunction, that keeps the clause from expressing a complete thought.
- Finally, you will notice that the clause answers one of these three adverb questions: How?When? orWhy?
Consider these examples:
Tommy scrubbed the bathroom tile until his arms ached.
- How did Tommy scrub? Until his arms ached, an adverb clause.
Josephine's three cats bolted from the driveway once they saw her car turn the corner.
- When did the cats bolt? Once they saw her car turn the corner, an adverb clause.
After her appointment at the orthodontist, Danielle cooked eggs for dinner because she could easily chew an omelet.
- Why did Danielle cook eggs? Because she could easily chew an omelet, an adverb clause.
SUBORDINATING CONJUNCTIONS
Time
after, as, as long as, as soon as, before, since, until, when, whenever, while
Cause
because
Condition
although, as long as, even if, even though, if, provided that, though, unless, until, whereas
Place
where, wherever
Grammar for Writing
Chapter 3, Lesson 3
"Noun Clauses," pp. 85-87 / Workbook pp. 61-63
Noun clauses
Noun clauses are dependent (or subordinate) clauses that act as nouns. In the following sentence, the noun clause acts as a direct object to the action verb wish: I wish that I liked music.
Like all dependent or subordinate clauses, noun clauses can not be used as sentences themselves; they dependent on an independent clause for meaning.
Like all dependent or subordinate clauses, noun clauses can not be used as sentences themselves; they dependent on an independent clause for meaning.
Grammar for Writing
Chapter 3, Lesson 4
"Sentence Structure," pp. 88-90 / Workbook pp. 64-66
sentence structure
Simple Sentence (Structure: I) A simple sentence is a sentence consisting simply of one independent clause. You can use a simple sentence to isolate an idea for attention.
Compound Sentence (Structure: I + I) A compound sentence is a sentence compounded of two or more independent clauses. You can use a compound sentence to connect two related ideas of equal or nearly equal importance. Punctuate with a semicolon between the two independent clauses or a coordinating conjunction (and, but, or, nor, so, for yet) with a comma before the conjunction.
Complex Sentence (Structure: I + D or D + I) A complex sentence is a sentence that is complex because it consists of an independent clause joined to a dependent or subordinate clause. You can use a complex sentence to show a primary idea that has a lesser idea in support of it. The independent clause will contain the primary idea.
Compound-Complex Sentence (Structure: I + I + D or D + I + I) A compound-complex sentence is a sentence that contains both compound clause structure and complex clause structure. You an use a compound-complex sentence to employ the strategies of compound and complex sentences at once.
- Some people like change.
Compound Sentence (Structure: I + I) A compound sentence is a sentence compounded of two or more independent clauses. You can use a compound sentence to connect two related ideas of equal or nearly equal importance. Punctuate with a semicolon between the two independent clauses or a coordinating conjunction (and, but, or, nor, so, for yet) with a comma before the conjunction.
- Some people like change; others like stability.
- Some people like change, but others like stability.
Complex Sentence (Structure: I + D or D + I) A complex sentence is a sentence that is complex because it consists of an independent clause joined to a dependent or subordinate clause. You can use a complex sentence to show a primary idea that has a lesser idea in support of it. The independent clause will contain the primary idea.
- Although only-children differ, they often share many traits.
- Whoever lives in this house must love the color red.
Compound-Complex Sentence (Structure: I + I + D or D + I + I) A compound-complex sentence is a sentence that contains both compound clause structure and complex clause structure. You an use a compound-complex sentence to employ the strategies of compound and complex sentences at once.
- Researchers have studied couples who have contrasting personalities, and the results have been interesting.
Grammar for Writing
Chapter 3, Lesson 5
"Fragments and Run-Ons," pp. 91-93 / Workbook pp. 67-69
fragments & run-on sentences
A sentence has a subject and a verb and makes a complete thought. Another name for a sentence is an independent clause. Here are a few examples of complete sentences.
Tom laughed.
Because she exercises regularly, she is in good condition.
It has been raining all day.
Be quiet. (The subject "You" is understood.)
He's quiet, and he's very polite. (compound sentence)
A fragment is only a piece of a complete thought that has been punctuated like a sentence. Fragments can be phrases or dependent clauses or any incomplete word group. Study the following examples:
Ann walked all alone. To the store. (prepositional phrase fragment)
Walking to the store. She saw a car accident. (present participial phrase)
Because she exercises regularly. She is in good condition. (dependent/adverb clause fragment)
There are several ways to correct fragments. These are the three most common ways:
To correct a fragment, connect the fragment to a compete sentence.
"Ann walked all alone. To the store." can be corrected like this: "Ann walked all alone to the store."
"Walking to the store. She saw a car accident." can be corrected like this: "Walking to the store, she saw a car accident."
To correct a fragment, remove words to make the fragment a complete sentence.
"Because she exercises regularly. She is in excellent condition." can be corrected like this:
"She exercises regularly. She is in excellent condition."
To correct a fragment, add words to make the fragment a complete sentence.
"Because she exercises regularly. She is in excellent condition." can be corrected like this:
"She feels great because she exercises regularly. She is in excellent condition."
A run-on occurs when two sentences are run together without the proper punctuation and/or connecting
words. One type of run-on, the fused sentence, occurs when two sentences are written together without any
punctuation at all. Another type, the comma splice, occurs when a comma is used between two sentences
without any connecting word (such as "and, but, or, nor, for, so, yet"). Study these examples:
Joe was happy about the raise he felt like celebrating. (fused sentence)
Joe was happy about the raise, he felt like celebrating. (comma splice)
There are several ways to correct the run-ons above. These are the most common ways:
A run-on may be corrected by putting a period between the sentences.
Joe was happy about the raise. He felt like celebrating.
A run-on may be corrected by connecting two related sentences with a comma followed by a coordinating conjunction: and, but,
or, nor, for, so, yet.
Joe was happy about the raise, so he felt like celebrating.
A run-on may be corrected by connecting two related sentences with a semicolon only.
Joe was happy about the raise; he felt like celebrating.
A run-on may be corrected by connecting two related sentences with a semicolon and a transition word or phrase, such as:
however, therefore, thus, then, as a result, consequently, nevertheless, also, on the other hand, for instance, in contrast, etc.
Joe was happy about the raise; consequently, he felt like celebrating.
A run-on may be corrected by adding a dependent clause signal word to create a complex sentence. Common signal words
include the following: because, if, although, when, who, which, etc.
Because Joe was happy about the raise, he felt like celebrating.
Joe, who was happy about the raise, felt like celebrating.
Tom laughed.
Because she exercises regularly, she is in good condition.
It has been raining all day.
Be quiet. (The subject "You" is understood.)
He's quiet, and he's very polite. (compound sentence)
A fragment is only a piece of a complete thought that has been punctuated like a sentence. Fragments can be phrases or dependent clauses or any incomplete word group. Study the following examples:
Ann walked all alone. To the store. (prepositional phrase fragment)
Walking to the store. She saw a car accident. (present participial phrase)
Because she exercises regularly. She is in good condition. (dependent/adverb clause fragment)
There are several ways to correct fragments. These are the three most common ways:
To correct a fragment, connect the fragment to a compete sentence.
"Ann walked all alone. To the store." can be corrected like this: "Ann walked all alone to the store."
"Walking to the store. She saw a car accident." can be corrected like this: "Walking to the store, she saw a car accident."
To correct a fragment, remove words to make the fragment a complete sentence.
"Because she exercises regularly. She is in excellent condition." can be corrected like this:
"She exercises regularly. She is in excellent condition."
To correct a fragment, add words to make the fragment a complete sentence.
"Because she exercises regularly. She is in excellent condition." can be corrected like this:
"She feels great because she exercises regularly. She is in excellent condition."
A run-on occurs when two sentences are run together without the proper punctuation and/or connecting
words. One type of run-on, the fused sentence, occurs when two sentences are written together without any
punctuation at all. Another type, the comma splice, occurs when a comma is used between two sentences
without any connecting word (such as "and, but, or, nor, for, so, yet"). Study these examples:
Joe was happy about the raise he felt like celebrating. (fused sentence)
Joe was happy about the raise, he felt like celebrating. (comma splice)
There are several ways to correct the run-ons above. These are the most common ways:
A run-on may be corrected by putting a period between the sentences.
Joe was happy about the raise. He felt like celebrating.
A run-on may be corrected by connecting two related sentences with a comma followed by a coordinating conjunction: and, but,
or, nor, for, so, yet.
Joe was happy about the raise, so he felt like celebrating.
A run-on may be corrected by connecting two related sentences with a semicolon only.
Joe was happy about the raise; he felt like celebrating.
A run-on may be corrected by connecting two related sentences with a semicolon and a transition word or phrase, such as:
however, therefore, thus, then, as a result, consequently, nevertheless, also, on the other hand, for instance, in contrast, etc.
Joe was happy about the raise; consequently, he felt like celebrating.
A run-on may be corrected by adding a dependent clause signal word to create a complex sentence. Common signal words
include the following: because, if, although, when, who, which, etc.
Because Joe was happy about the raise, he felt like celebrating.
Joe, who was happy about the raise, felt like celebrating.