This document provides information about clauses and sentence structure. It defines clauses as essential parts of a sentence that must contain a subject and verb. There are two types of clauses: independent clauses, which can stand alone as a complete thought, and dependent clauses, which cannot stand alone and must be attached to an independent clause. The document identifies examples of independent and dependent clauses and teaches the reader to distinguish between the two clause types.
1. QQuuoottee ooff tthhee ddaayy:: ““WWhheenn mmyy hheeaarrtt iiss
oovveerrfflloowwiinngg wwiitthh ggrraattiittuuddee,, tthheerree iiss nnoo rroooomm ffoorr
ffeeaarr.. ““ KKaatthhyy KKeennddaallll
Created by Jose J. Gonzalez, Jr.
CCllaauusseess
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2. CCllaauussee ddeeffiinneedd::
A clause is an essential part
of a sentence(group of
words) that must contain a
subject and a verb.
Clauses are the building
blocks of sentences.
Created by Jose J. Gonzalez, Jr.
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3. WWhhaatt ddoo yyoouu nneeeedd ttoo mmaakkee aa
1. Subject
2. Verb
3. Needs to make sense
Created by Jose J. Gonzalez, Jr.
sseenntteennccee??
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4. TTwwoo ttyyppeess ooff ccllaauusseess
Independent clause, IC
Dependent clause, DC
Created by Jose J. Gonzalez, Jr.
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5. A group of words that expresses a complete
thought, a sentence.
Walk!
Fluffy runs.
The sun shines.
Created by Jose J. Gonzalez, Jr.
IICC ddeeffiinneedd::
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6. A word group that does not express a
complete thought. A DC must be
attached to an IC to make it a complete
sentence.
Example: Because the ultimate van has not
been created yet and the Japanese are in the
process of working on the number one van
in the world while the Germans have put
out their van prototype.
Created by Jose J. Gonzalez, Jr.
DDCC ddeeffiinneedd::
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7. BBeeffoorree wwee ssttaarrtt,, sseeee iiff yyoouu ccaann
It was a bright morning.
As he was walking down the corridor.
You will sing a long song
Unless you decide not to come.
Because he was not normal that day.
The cave was full of bats
Since the first of the month.
(You can view the answers on the next slide.)
Created by Jose J. Gonzalez, Jr.
iiddeennttiiffyy tthheessee ccllaauusseess
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8. It was a bright morning.
As he was walking down the corridor.
You will sing a long song.
Unless you decide not to come.
Because he was not normal that day.
The cave was full of bats.
Since the first of the month.
Created by Jose J. Gonzalez, Jr.
YYeellllooww---- IInnddeeppeennddeenntt ccllaauusseess
PPuurrppllee---- ddeeppeennddeenntt ccllaauusseess
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9. He arrived just as the clock struck seven.
I will write when I know of our whereabouts.
As he entered the room, everyone cheered.
They laughed as they saw the movie.
Since you left, we have had beautiful weather.
You should observe because it is important.
If you come home, you can see the present.
Whither thou goest, I will go.
If wishes were horses, we would all take a ride.
From where I stood, I could see all.
I shall attend school until I am at least eighteen years
old
Created by Jose J. Gonzalez, Jr.
IIddeennttiiffyy ccllaauusseess
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10. IInnddeeppeennddeenntt ---- ddeeppeennddeenntt
He arrived just as the clock struck seven.
I will write when I know of our whereabouts.
As he entered the room, everyone cheered.
They laughed as they saw the movie.
Since you left, we have had beautiful weather.
You should observe because it is important.
If you come home, you can see the present.
Whither thou goest, I will go.
If wishes were horses, we would all take a ride.
From where I stood, I could see all.
I shall attend school until I am at least eighteen years
old.
Created by Jose J. Gonzalez, Jr.
STCC 10
11. Before another day passes, you should call Fred.
By the time I arrived at the store, I had forgotten my errand.
While listening to the radio, she did her weekly mending.
Think twice before you answer.
As we drove through the country, we could see the results
of the flood.
The lady who was at the door admitted us when she checked
our identification.
They listened for the sound since it was the key to the
puzzle.
Always look before you leap.
The green house was ready when we arrived with the roses.
Created by Jose J. Gonzalez, Jr.
IIddeennttiiffyy ccllaauusseess::
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12. IInnddeeppeennddeenntt ---- ddeeppeennddeenntt
Before another day passes, you should call Fred.
By the time I arrived at the store, I had forgotten my errand.
While listening to the radio, she did her weekly mending.
Think twice before you answer.
As we drove through the country, we could see the results
of the flood.
The lady who was at the door admitted us when she checked
our identification.
They listened for the sound since it was the key to the
puzzle.
Always look before you leap.
The green house was ready when we arrived with the roses.
Created by Jose J. Gonzalez, Jr.
STCC 12
13. When I see the sky, I feel like flying.
In the army I learned many tricks since we had so much free
time.
There is only one slice of pizza left because Alfredo ate the rest.
As I was walking, I saw a black snake.
Don’t wash the clothing before I get home.
After the winter storm, we all felt like seeing the sun.
Although she is very tall, she is still extremely graceful.
Even though we work all day, we still have a good time at
night.
You should study hard because you never know how difficult
the test will be.
While I was watching television, the cat jumped through the
open window.
Created by Jose J. Gonzalez, Jr.
Assignment:IIddeennttiiffyy iinnddeeppeennddeenntt
aanndd ddeeppeennddeenntt ccllaauussee
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14. Many people think that only math is
progressive in learning. In other
words, if you don’t know how to
multiply how can you divide? We all
know this is true. But the study of
English is also progressive. Because if
you can’t identify a clause, how can
you tell a sentence from a fragment?
It is all related and you must master
each step, or you will be left
confused or lost later.
Created by Jose J. Gonzalez, Jr.
OOnnee llaasstt nnoottee::
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15. CCoonnjjuunnccttiivvee
A CONJUNCTION is a word that
connects or joins together words,
phrases, clauses, or sentences.
fanboys: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so
Created by Jose J. Gonzalez, Jr.
STCC 15
16. Subordinating Conjunctions:
A subordinating conjunction is a word that
introduces an adverb clause. Here are some
subordinating conjunctions:
after, although, as, before, because, but that,
if, in order that, lest, no matter, how, since,
supposing, when, wherever, till, unless,
while, who, whether, whereas, what, even
though, than, unless, until,
Created by Jose J. Gonzalez, Jr.
STCC 16
Editor's Notes
If you master the concept of clauses, you will be able to write different types of sentences and will also be able to correct your own sentences easily. In the end, to be a good writer you must learn to be your own personal English teacher.
Most people know that you need a subject and verb to make a sentence, but forget that a word group must make sense to be considered a sentence. For example, consider this clause: When I was going to Padre Island. This clause does have a subject, I, and a verb, was going; however, does it make sense? –NO!
Thus, it is not a sentence.
These two clauses are the building blocks of sentences. To make a variety of interesting sentences you need to use different combinations of clauses.
Some students may think that “Walk!” is not a sentence, but it is. It is a command and the subject, you, is implied, but not stated. If you will notice, you can make a sentence with very few words, and you will later see that most sentences can be broken down to two or three words. The rest of the words are either dependent clauses of phrases which are not essential to make a word group a sentence. For example: I ran to the grocery store , and when I was finally there, I realized that I had no money. The root to this sentence is I ran. We will look at this more closely later.
Dependent clauses seem like sentence, but are not sentences. For example: Because we had a great time. This word group has a subject and a verb, but does not make sense. However, in the middle of a paragraph this dependent clause (this fragment) can be easily missed. But when revising your paper, you will notice that it should be attached to a sentence before of after it.
Hint: You may have noticed that dependent clauses tend to leave you hanging as if a question has not been answered. Example: When we were going to town.
Hopefully, you did well. If not, don’t feel bad there is more practice ahead.
Give it another try! However, this assignment is a bit more difficult in that none of these word groups are only dependent clauses. They are all a combination of independent and dependent clauses. For example: As I was walking, I saw a plane. The italic part is the dependent clause and the underlined part is the independent clause. Together they form a complex sentence. This will be covered in our next lesson. So go through the sentences and see if you can identify the sentences accordingly. The answers will be on the next slide.
How did you do?
Did you do better? I am sure you did!
E-mail this assignment. To make it easier on yourself color code the assignment; make the dependent clause red and independent clauses green.
Good luck!
Tip:
Next time you read a newspaper or magazine article, try to pick out the independent and dependent clauses. This is good practice.