Clauses

Clauses

Overview | Independent Clauses | Dependent Clauses | Relative Clauses

What is a clause?

A clause is a part of a sentence. There are two main types: independent (main clauses), dependent (subordinate clauses).

Independent Clauses

An independent clause is a complete sentence; it contains a subject and verb and expresses a complete thought in both context and meaning.

For example: The door opened.

Independent clauses can be joined by a coordinating conjunction to form complex or compound sentences.

Co-ordinating Conjunctions
and	but	for
or	nor	so
yet

For example: Take two independent clauses and join them together with the conjunction and: " The door opened." "The man walked in." = The door opened and the man walked in.

Dependent Clauses

A dependent (subordinate) clause is part of a sentence; it contains a subject and verb but does not express a complete thought. They can make sense on their own, but, they are dependent on the rest of the sentence for context and meaning. They are usually joined to an independent clause to form a complex sentence.

Dependent clauses often begin with a a subordinating conjunction or relative pronoun (see below) that makes the clause unable to stand alone.

Subordinating Conjunctions
after	although	as	because
before	even if	even though	if
in order that	once	provided that	rather than
since	so that	than	that
though	unless	until	when
whenever	where	whereas	wherever
whether	while	why

Relative Pronouns
that	which	whichever
who	whoever	whom
whose	whosever	whomever

For example:

The door opened because the man pushed it.