Clauses

Date: 14th July, 2019

Sentences are of three types: Simple sentence, compound sentence and complex sentence.

 The difference between a compound sentence and complex sentence is that a compound
sentence has two independent clauses and a complex sentence has one independent clause and
one dependent clause.
 A sentence is a group of words that has a subject and a predicate. A subject, centered on a
noun, is what the sentence is about. A predicate, centered on a verb, tells what happens to the
subject. It tells what the subject does or is.
Ex: The dog jumped over the fence.
In this sentence, the bold part is the subject, and the second part is the predicate.
 Sentences are made up of clauses, or groups of words. An independent clause, like the one
above, can exist independently and makes complete sense on its own.
 A subordinate or dependent clause, on the other hand, requires an independent clause. The
bold portion of this sentence is a subordinate clause.
Ex: Because it was chasing a rabbit, the dog jumped over the fence.
 Let’s look at that bold portion without the independent clause holding it up.
 Because it was chasing a rabbit. This is not a sentence by itself. It needs the rest of the sentence
to be a complete thought. That makes our rabbit sentence a complex sentence.
 A compound sentence, on the other hand, is made up of two independent clauses.
 Compound sentences are usually combined with a coordinating conjunction such as for, and,
nor, but, or, yet, and so.
Ex: It was chasing a rabbit, and the dog jumped over the fence.
 In this sentence, both clauses are independent clauses. This means that each clause (It was
chasing a rabbit) and (the dog jumped over the fence) are both complete sentences themselves.
Combined together they become a compound sentence.

 a clause is a group of words which have their own subject, predicate, finite verb and may or may
not be independently meaningful. Further, clauses are of two types- principal or independent
clause and subordinate or dependent clause.

Classification of Clauses
Independent or Principal Clause
 An independent clause is a group of words that consists of subject, predicate, finite verb and can
make complete sense by themselves. So how does it differ from a sentence? Exactly, it doesn’t.
 An independent clause is as good as a sentence. Note that, independent clauses cannot be used
as nouns, adverbs or adjectives simply because they are complete sentences by themselves.
Ex: It is dark.
You should go.
He is intelligent but he is selfish.
I want to come but I have some work to do.
 The group of words in bold make complete sense independently and hence are examples of
independent clauses.
Dependent or Subordinate Clause
 As the name suggests, dependent clauses need an independent clause to complete its meaning.
 Again, a dependent clause also consists of a subject, predicate and a finite verb but it is not
meaningful all by itself.
 A key point to remember is that dependent clauses, just like phrases, can be used as a noun,
adverb or adjective. Let’s discuss these individually.
Noun Clause
 A dependent clause that functions like a noun in the sentence and generally acts as the subject
or verb of the object is known as a noun clause.
Ex:
I think that you will like it.
 Here the noun clause- that you will like it, acts as an object of the verb think.
Ex: Where she went is not known to anyone.
 Here the noun clause- where she went, acts as a subject of the verb- is not known.
Adjective Clause
 An adjective clause is a dependent clause that acts as an adjective and hence qualifies a noun or
pronoun in a sentence.
Ex:
I used the notebook that had a red coloured cover.
 Here the adjective clause- that had a red coloured cover, tells about the noun i.e. the notebook.
Ex:
The hat which was made of jute was my favourite.
 Here the adjective clause- which was made of jute, speaks about the noun i.e. the hat.
Adverb Clause
 An adverb clause is a dependent clause that does the job of an adverb i.e. modifies a verb, an
adjective or another adverb in a sentence. Of course, adverbial clauses can be further classified
according to the various kinds of adverbs.
Ex:
Wait here till I come back.
 Here – till I come back, is an adverbial clause of time.
Ex:
I shall be late as I have a meeting.
 Here – as I have a meeting, is an adverbial clause of reason.

Note: Keep in mind as a rule of thumb that a lot of times dependent clauses start with a
conjunction. This is not always true but can be of great help for identification of dependent
clauses in a sentence.
1. Provide a fitting subordinator to fill the gaps in these sentences.
a. I'm going to the bank _______ I need some money.
b. I made lunch _________ I got home.
c. ________ it's raining, she's going for a walk in the park.
d. ________ she finishes her homework soon, she will fail the class.
e. He decided to trust Tim ______ he was an honest man.
f. _______ we went to school, she decided to investigate the situation.
g. Tejaswi bought a new jacket __________ he had received one as a gift last week.
h. Sahoo sir claims that there will be trouble _____ he doesn't complete the job.
i. Deepali will have finished the report ____ the time you receive the letter.
2. Do as directed:
a. Combine using who/that.
(i) A man has been given death sentence. He had assassinated a minister.
(ii) Anti-thief car alarms are a headache. They start ringing just with a touch.
b. Complete the following passage by filling the blanks with which, who, whom, whose or
that.
Delhi, __________ is called the heart of India, is considered to be an amazing tourist spot.
The city has many monuments, some amazing shopping complexes and a few botanical
gardens. It is also famous for some luxury hotels __________ are known for their hospitality.
The Delhi Palace, __________ is situated on the right bank of the Yamuna river, is one such
hotel. Mr Mehta, __________ built this hotel forty years back, attributes its success to his
staff __________ is highly dedicated and efficient and to his son, __________ is an epitome
of professionalism. His son, __________ reputation for being an excellent manager is
widespread, looks after the hotel arrangements himself now. The guests __________ he
treats like his family members, speak volumes of his hospitality. Amit Ghosh, __________
once stayed in this hotel, calls it the next best place to home. The river __________ flows by
the hotel carries in itself numerous flowers __________ fragnance floats in the air the whole
day.
c. Rewrite the following clues and complete the sentences using the words given in the
brackets.
(i) We/can/reach on time/is uncertain (whether)
(ii) Owns/this house/must be rich (whoever)
(iii) I/surprised/to hear/their team had won the tournament/was
d. Identify the main clause and the subordinate clause.
(i) He will surely help me because he is my friend.
(ii) I would not buy it even if it were for free.
(iii) He visited the house while I was away.
(iv) Sumit makes friends wherever he goes.
e. Complete the following sentences by adding suitable subordinate clauses.
(i) It was dark
(ii) I will take the message
(iii) __________________________________________, I gave the letter to his mother.
(iv) She walked into the room quietly
(v) Think _____________________________________speak.