Sentences and clauses Flashcards
What is an independent clause?
An independent clause is a clause that can stand alone as a sentence (i.e., it expresses a complete thought).
An independent clause, like all clauses, has a subject and verb.
An independent clause is a group of words that work by themselves as a sentence.
When there are no dependent clauses in the same sentence as an independent clause, the independent clause is a simple sentence. For example:
I like coconut macaroons.
(This is an independent clause and simple sentence.)
When joining independent clauses, a common mistake is to use a comma or no punctuation.
What is a dependent clause?
A dependent clause (or subordinate clause) is one that cannot stand alone as a complete sentence because it does not express a complete thought.
Like all clauses, a dependent clause has a subject and verb.
Examples of Dependent Clauses
Here are some examples of dependent clauses - can you identify them?
The crew could see the whale, which had surfaced only 50m behind them.
Do you know the butcher who went to court on Saturday?
I am not tidying the dishes unless Peter helps.
The excellence of a gift lies in how appropriate it is rather than how valuable it is.
What is a sentence fragment?
A sentence fragment is a clause that falls short of true sentencehood because it is missing one of three critical components:
a subject,
a verb, and
a complete thought.
E,g,
Because of the rain.
To complete it, we need further explanation:
Because of the rain, the party was canceled.
Now the fragment has become a dependent clause attached to a sentence that has a subject (the party) and a verb (was canceled). Our thought is complete.
Looking forward to seeing you.
I’m looking forward to seeing you.
There are many ways to frighten little brothers. For example, by hiding under their beds and waiting for dark.
There are many ways to frighten little brothers; for example, by hiding under their beds and waiting for dark.
There are many ways to frighten little brothers. For example, you could hide under their beds and wait for dark.
What is a relative clause?
Do you have an example?
A relative clause can be used to give additional information about a noun.
They are introduced by a relative pronoun like ‘that’, ‘which’, ‘who’, ‘whose’, ‘where’ and ‘when’. For example:
I won’t stand by the man who smells of slime.
What are co-ordinating conjunctions?
What are the main ones?
What are the rules for using them?
Conjunctions are joining words that link together parts of a sentence. The three main coordinating conjunctions are ‘and’, ‘but’ and ‘or’.
They can be used to join together two clauses in a sentence. However, the clauses need to make sense on their own. For example:
I had a terrible cold. I still went to work.
You can add the coordinating conjunction ‘but’ in between these causes so the sentence reads:
I had a terrible cold but I still went to school.
Remember though, you can often leave out the subject word in the second coordinating clause. For example:
I had a terrible cold but still went to school.
What are the three types of sentence?
There are three types of sentence - simple, compound and complex.
Using complex sentences can make it easier to add layers of information and detail when writing.
Complex sentences have at least one subordinate clause that adds more detail and information to the sentence.
What is a simple sentence?
What are they used for?
What are their disadvantages?
Simple sentences
Simple sentences have just one main verb, for example:
‘He walked quickly back to the house.’
Simple sentences are important for making clear points. They are also useful for creating tension when writing fiction.
However, if you only ever use simple sentences in your writing, the reader might lose interest in what you are saying. Too many simple sentences can make writing seem disjointed.
To hold a reader’s interest, it’s important to use a variety of sentence types.
What is a compound sentence?
How is it constructed?
What is its role in writing?
A compound sentence has more than one verb.
The two, or more, clauses of the sentence still make sense on their own.
Compound sentences often use coordinating conjunctions, such as ‘but’, ‘and’ and ‘so’:
‘George realised he could hear voices, so he walked quickly back to the house.’
Compound sentences are useful for connecting events and ideas in your writing. Only using compound sentences could make your writing sound less sophisticated.
What are complex sentences? How are they constructed?
What is their role?
Complex sentences have at least one subordinate clause that adds more detail and information to the sentence.
Using complex sentences can make it easier to add layers of information and detail when writing.
How are complex sentences constructed?
They have a subordinate clauses
Subordinate clauses are sometimes known as dependent clauses, because they need the main part of the sentence to make sense. They don’t make complete sense on their own:
‘George wanted to stay outside, despite the driving rain and wind.’
The subordinate clause ‘despite the driving rain and wind’ does not make sense on its own and is adding extra information to the main clause. Subordinate clauses can be an effective way to add more detail to your writing.
What subordinate conjunctions usually start a subordinate clause?
A subordinate clause usually begins with a subordinate conjunction, such as:
although because even though despite when This type of conjunction signals to the reader that this part of the sentence is adding additional information to the main part of the sentence.
The subordinate clause can go at the start, in the middle or at the end of the sentence:
‘Even though it was getting dark, Sam wanted to go for a walk.’
‘Sam, even though it was getting dark, wanted to go for a walk.’
‘Sam wanted to go for walk even though it was getting dark.’
A subordinate clause may also be introduced by a relative pronoun - a word like ‘that’, ‘which’, ‘who’ or ‘whose’:
‘Sam, who didn’t like the dark, stayed at home.’
How do these three types of sentence end?
- exclamatory
- interrogative
- declarative
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