Clauses Flashcards
What are clauses all about?
lexical verbs
Every clause contains .. ?
one lexical verb
What is a clause?
a syntactic unit above phrase
level and below sentence level
What is a sentence?
the largest unit in syntax
What does a sentence consist of?
One or more clauses, always consists of a subject and a predicate that contains a finite verb
What do clauses and sentences have in common?
They are syntactic units.
What’s the difference between clauses and sentences?
Sentences can always stand alone, clauses cannot.
There are four types of sentences, what are they?
- Simple sentence
- Compound sentence
- Complex sentence
- Compound-complex sentence
What is a simple sentence?
1 main clause (1 lexical verbs)
e.g. Thomas wrote an essay.
What is a compound sentence?
2+ main clauses
Thomas wrote an essay and I was cooking dinner.
connected with a coordinator
What is a complex sentence?
1 main clause & 1+ subordinate clause(s)
Thomas wrote an essay, while I was cooking dinner.
“connected” with a subordinator, hierarchy
What is a compound-complex sentence?
2 main clauses & 1+ subordinate clause(s)
I was cooking dinner and Maria was working on her novel, while Thomas wrote an essay.
What are the two types of subordinate clauses?
- Non-finite (not marked for tense)
- Finite (marked for tense)
What is a non-finite subordinate clause?
- Infinitive
- -ed clause (past participle)
- -ing clause
What is a finite subordinate clause?
- Noun clause
- Adverbial clause
- Relative clause
- Comparative clause
What is a misrelated (‘dangling’) non-finite clause?
The implied subject of the non-finite clause should be the same as the subject of the main clause to avoid ambiguity.
While walking across the street, the bus hit her.
vs.
Walking down Main Street, I admired the
beautiful trees.
What are catenative verbs?
verbs that elicit “verb chains”, they can be followed by another verb within the same clause
e.g. I really want [to help [make the yearbook]].
What verbs only take the to-infinitive clause after them?
decide, ask, happen, afford, hope, manage, want
What verbs only take the -ing clause after them?
consider, finish, admit, enjoy, avoid, practise
Some verbs can go with both clause types, why?
- Little/no difference in meaning
- Difference in meaning
interchangeable
What are the two types of meaning difference that allow the to-infitive or -ing clause after the verb?
- Referring to the past (ing) vs. Referring to the future (infinitive)
- Fact (ing) vs. general assumption/idea (infinitive)
What are the two options of sensory perception verbs?
- not necessarily finished (ing) vs. completed action (infinitive)
- repeated action (ing) vs. singular action (infinitive)
e.g. see, hear, feel, listen to, look at, notice, observe, watch, sense
What are verbless clauses?
missing out the verb
e.g. If in doubt consult your solicitor.
What are the steps of identifying a subordinate clause?
- Identify the lexical verb in the main clause
- Identify the subordinate clause(s) and mark the verb in it
- Identify whether the subordinate clause is finite or non-finite
- Identify the syntactic function of the subordinate clause
What does finite mean?
marked for tense/person
noun clause, adverbial clause, relative clause, comparative clause
What does non-finite mean?
unmarked
infinitive, -ing form, -ed
What are the 3,5 types of finite subordinate clauses?
- Noun clause
- Adverbial clause
- Relative clause
- Comparative clause
What are the two types of Noun Clauses?
- that-clause
- wh-clause
What could be a that-clause?
- Direct Object
- Subject
- Subject Complement
- Complement in AdjP/NP
I realized that I had to tell the truth.
That you are here is great.
Her opinion is that we need to fight climate change.
I am [happy that you are here].
What could be a wh-clause?
- Direct Object
- Subject
- Subject Complement
Clause types / mood of wh-clauses:
declarative, interrogative (open & closed), exclamative, mandative subjunctive
I don’t know how he will react.
When we will meet is still unclear.
The question is whether we’ll arrive on time.
What are the characteristics of adverbial clauses?
- provide additional info
- contain a finite verb
- are always introduced by a subordinator
Six types: time, place, reason, purpose, condition, concession
What are the six types of adverbial clauses?
- time (=when sth. happens)
- place (=where sth. happens)
- reason (why sth. happens/explanation)
- purpose (=the purpose for which sth. happens)
- condition (=under what condition/in what circumstances sth. will happen/be true)
- concession (=highlights an action that took place in spite of an obsticle/hindrance)
Concession subordinators: Even though, while, Although, whereas, even if
What is an if-clause?
condition for the occurrence of another event/precondition
also: antecedent
conditional clauses
What does the main clause in Conditional Clauses express?
the consequence
also: consequent
What types of Conditionals are there?
- Real Conditionals (Predictive, Factual)
- Unreal Conditionals (Hypothetical, Counterfactual)
was for real condit., were for unreal;
would only for politeness in if
factual = generally true
predictive = likely
hypothetical = unlikely
counterfactual = impossible
Finite verbs of if-clause and main clause are usually marked for specific tenses, name them.
- Factual: present/past + present/past
- Predictive: present + present modal
- Hypothetical: past + past modal
- Counterfactual: past perfect + past perfect modal
When people smoke cigarettes, their health suffers.
If you set your mind to a goal, you will eventually achieve it.
If I inherited a billion dollars, I would travel to the moon.
If you had told me you needed a ride, I would have left earlier
What is at the beginning of a comparative clause?
as or than
function as subordinators
Jim is as strong as we had expected. & He is stronger than we had expected.
But: “He is stronger than his brother.”
→ [than his brother] is a post-head modifier of the AdjP
→ [than his brother] does not contain a finite verb, i.e. can’t be a clause
What is a relative clause?
- part of a NP
- functions as a post-head dependent
- usually introduced by relative pronouns (which, who, whom, that, whose)
What are the three main relative pronouns that introduce a relative clause and what do they refer to?
- which vs. who -> animals/objects/places vs. people
- whom -> object of a sentence
- that -> informal, only in restrictive relative clauses
What’s the difference between a restrictive relative clause & a non-restrictive relative clause?
- Restrictive Relative Clause is necessary information, modifier of NP
- Non-restrictive Relative Clause is additional information, so peripheral dependent of NP
The man who is wearing a yellow hat is her husband. -> multiple men, necessary info
The man, who is wearing a yellow hat, is her husband. -> only one man, additional info
What are the three subtypes of restrictive relative clauses?
- Zero relative clause (doesn’t have a relative pronoun)
- Reduced relative clause (no relative element)
- Nominal relative clause (replaces a pronoun)
This is the man (that) I met.
‘The man writing the report is my friend’ instead of ‘The man who is writing the report..’
I know who is replacing you.
What is a sentential relative clause?
- non-restrictive
- relative clause that relates to the whole sentence
She’s very shy, which I think is a great pity.
James answered my email, which was surprising.
What is a comparative clause?
modifier of an adverb or adjective
e.g. He performed worse than you did. - modifier of adverb worse
