CLAUSES AND PHRASES
Clause and Phrase are the most important elements of
English grammar. Clause and phrase cover everything a sentence.
Clauses are the center of sentences and phrases
strengthen the sentences to become meaningful. If the clauses are the pillars
of a building, the phrases are the bricks.
A phrase usually is always present within a clause,
but a phrase cannot have a clause in it.
The basic difference between a clause and a phrase is
that a clause must have a finite verb and a phrase must not. Therefore a phrase is a group of words which has no
finite verb in it and acts to complete the sentence for making it meaningful.
CLAUSES
A clause is a group of words that contains both a
subject and a predicate/verb
A clause is a part of the sentence or an independent sentence,
which contains a verb in it.
Examples:
I
graduated last year. (One clause sentence)
When I came here, I saw him. (Two clause
sentence)
When I came here, I saw him, and he greeted
me. (Three clause sentence)
TYPES OF CLAUSES:
1.
MAIN
CLAUSE:
a main clause is
also known as independent clause is the part of every sentence, especially
compound and complex sentences.
A compound
sentence is formed of two or more clauses which are linked together using
conjunctions.
Two or more independent clauses can be joined by using
coordinating conjunctions ( and, but, for, nor, or, so, and yet) or by using
semicolons.
The most important thing to remember is that an
independent clause can stand alone as a complete sentence.
Example:
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.)
2.
SUBORDINATE
CLAUSE:
Subordinate
clause, also called the dependent clause, could be independent clauses or main
clause but they start with words like after, even, though etc. Main clause
along with the subordinate clause make the complex sentence.
Example:
After we had
dinner(Main clause), we went home(subordinate clause).
There are two different types of Subordinate Clauses:
1.
CONDITIONAL
CLAUSE:
the clause which usually begins with if and unless.
Example: I’ll be home by tomorrow, if the
plane is on time.
2.
RELATIVE
CLAUSE:
a clause which is
connected to the main clause with the words like with, that, whom, where, when
and who etc.
Example: I saw her first in London where I lived in
the eighties.
Based on the function they perform in the sentence,
clauses can be categorized as:
• NOUN CLAUSE
It is a group of words which contains a Subject and
Predicate of its own, and does the work of a noun.
Example:
"I like what I see" as a way of saying
"I like cakes".
• ADJECTIVE
CLAUSE
Its usually comes after the noun it qualifies and is
made up of several words which, like all clauses, will include a subject and a
verb.It answers the adjective questions 'What kind? How many? or Which
one?"
Example:
"The umbrella which has a broken handle is mine.
“
You can identify a relative clause or an adjective
clause by looking for three main components:
1.It will contain a subject and a verb.
2.It will begin with a relative pronoun or relative
adverb. These would include 'who,' 'whom,' 'whose,' 'that,' and 'which' for a
pronoun and 'when,' 'where,' or 'why' for an adverb. Looking for these signal
words can help you identify this type of clause!
3.The relative clause will function as an adjective,
answering questions about the noun, such as: 'Which one?' 'What kind?' 'How
many?'
There are two ways to write a relative clause. First,
you would have a relative pronoun, subject, and then verb.
For example, 'when we go to the movies.' 'When' is the
relative pronoun, 'we' is the subject, and 'go' is the verb.
Second, you would have a relative pronoun as a subject
followed by the verb.
For example, 'who walked out of the store.' In this
example, 'who' is our subject and 'walked' is the verb. Or for another example,
'that swarmed u
• ADVERB
CLAUSE
Its a group of words which contains a Subject and
Predicate of its own, and does the work of an adverb. It answers the adverb
questions How? When? Where? Or Why? To what extent or what condition something
is happening
Example:
"You may sit wherever you like."
PHRASES
A phrase is a small group of words that forms a
meaningful unit within a clause.
TYPES OF PHRASES:
1 NOUN PHRASE:
A noun phrase is usually assembled centering a single
noun and works as a subject, an object or a complement.
Examples:
I like
to swing the bat hard when I am at the crease. (An object)
Reading
novels is a good habit. (A subject)
2 VERB PHRASE:
Every sentence will generally contain a verb. But
sometimes the action being described requires a more nuanced multi-words verb
phrase. The phrase consists of the main verb/verbs and then auxiliary verbs,
i.e. helping verbs.
Examples:
The teacher
is writing the answer
They have
been playing since the last two hours
3 ADJECTIVE PHRASE:
An adjective phrase is comprised of an adjective and
works as a single adjective in the sentence.
Examples:
Alex is a
well-behaved man.
He is a man of friendly nature.
4 ADVERBIAL PHRASE
An adverbial phrase modifies the verb or the adjective
and works as an adverb in the sentence.
Examples:
The
horse runs at a good speed.
I ran as fast as possible.
5 PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE:
A prepositional phrase always begins with a
preposition and connects nouns.
Note: Prepositional phrases include all other types of
phrases.
Examples:
He
sacrificed his life for the sake of his country.
In the end, we all have to pay the price.
By working aimlessly, you will not get
success.
6 CONJUNCTIONAL PHRASE:
A conjunctional phrase works as a conjunction in the
sentence.
Examples:
As soon as
you got in, he went out.
We have to work hard so that we can win the
next match.
7 INTERJECTIONAL PHRASE:
Interjections that have more than one words are called
the interjectional phrases.
Examples:
What a
pleasure! I won the first prize.
Oh please! Don’t say that again.
8 INFINITIVE PHRASE:
A phrase that includes an infinitive along with a
simple verb is an infinitive phrase. There may also be modifiers attached to
the object in the phrase, It contains a verb, so it plays the role of
expressing an action in the sentence. Infinitive phrases can act as a noun,
adjective or adverb in a complete sentence.
Examples:
Alex likes
to read comics (functions as a noun here)
To attend the morning lecture, I set my
alarm for 6 am. (noun form)
9 PARTICIPLE PHRASES:
A participle phrase will begin with a participle,
which can be a present participle (ending with -ing) or a past participle
(ending with -ed). There may be a few modifiers and associated words included
in the phrase. One thing to remember is that a participle phrase always takes
the form of an adjective in a sentence.
EG: We got a call from my aunt today telling us the
good news.
The house
was severely damaged by the flood.
10 GERUND PHRASES:
Now a gerund is a word that invariably ends with
“-ing”, without exception. So a gerund phrase is a phrase that contains an
‘ing” word, with some modifiers in some cases. But participle phrases also have
a similar pattern (-ing words), so how do you tell the difference between the
two?
Well while participle phrases function as adjectives,
Gerund Phrases exclusively function as nouns. Let us Eg: She is currently
writing her memoir.
Waking up
before sunrise had become his habit.
11 ABSOLUTE PHRASE
An absolute phrase will contain a noun or a pronoun
with a participle. Again it may also contain additional associative words and
modifiers. An absolute participle will modify a whole clause, or even a whole
sentence, not only one word. However, it does not constitute a complete
sentence or a clause. Generally, an absolute phrase is separated by commas.
EG: He looked towards the beggar, his face expressing
pity
We were
glued to the match, our eyes always following the ball.