In English, almost each and every sentence has at least one clause in it. A clause expresses a complete thought and meaning; and it has a subject and a predicate. As, subject is the one who performs the action (which is the verb), this is the reason that a clause can express a complete thought and idea.
For example,
- The students are still reading the novel.
In the above example, you can see that ‘the students’ is the subject and this subject is doing the action (verb), which is ‘reading’.
As I said above that a clause expresses a complete idea or a thought but you can find out such clauses as well that do not consist of a complete thought. Let me tell you two basic types of a clause.
An Independent Clause
An independent clause is such a clause that has a subject and a verb and that expresses a complete thought and idea. It means that if we separate out this clause from a sentence, it can give a complete meaning. So, we can say that an independent clause can stand alone.
For example,
- Though he was taking much interest in it, John refused to buy the play station.
In the above example, the clause ‘John refused to buy the play station’ is an independent clause because it can give a complete thought without any grammatical error.
More examples of an Independent Clause
1. She will complete her project after a few days.
2. If you are working on it, let me give a break time.
In example (1), the independent clause is ‘she will complete her project’ whereas, in example (2), ‘let me give a break time’ is an independent clause that is giving a complete thought.
A Dependent Clause
Unlike an independent clause, a dependent clause is such a clause that does not stand alone. Though, it might have a subject and a verb but still it cannot express a complete thought or an idea. If we separate out this particular clause from a sentence, it cannot provide a grammatically correct meaning.
For example,
• Though he was taking much interest in it, John refused to buy the play station.
In the above example, the clause ‘though he was taking much interest in it…’ is a dependent clause. It does not give a complete thought. No matter, this clause has a subject ‘he’ and a verb ‘taking’, it still cannot be considered a grammatically correct independent clause.
A dependent clause must be connected with an independent clause to give a complete idea. For instance, in the above example, the dependent clause ‘though he was taking much interest in it…’ should be connected to another clause (an independent clause) to provide a complete meaning to the readers. Without the independent clause ‘John refused to buy the play station’, nobody would be able to know ‘who’ was taking much interest in ‘what’?
Other Examples of a Dependent Clause
1. She will complete her project after a few days.
2. If you are working on it, let me give a break time.
In example (1), the dependent clause is ‘after a few days’ whereas, in example (2), ‘if you are working on it’ is a dependent clause that is not giving a complete thought.
Other Types of Clauses
All the following types are related to dependent clauses that cannot stand alone to express a complete thought.
1. A Noun Clause > contains a subject and a verb + acts as a noun. For example, ‘She remembers what you ordered last night.’ (The red colored clause is a noun clause.)
2. An Adjective Clause > It begins with when, where, why, who, whom, that, or which + contains a subject and a verb + acts as an adjective. For example, ‘My friend, who always wears black, will be joining us very soon.’ (The red colored clause is an adjective clause.)
Click here to find out more information about an adjective clause.
3. An Adverbial Clause > contains a subject and a verb + acts as an adverb. For example, ‘I will try to reach at the airport as soon as possible.’ (The red colored clause is an adverbial clause.)
Difference Between Phrases and Clauses
A clause is a group of words that contains both a subject and a verb, and it can express a complete or incomplete thought. In contrast, a phrase is a group of words that does not contain both a subject and a verb, and it cannot stand alone as a complete sentence.
- Clause: “He walked to the store.” (subject: he, verb: walked)
- Phrase: “Walking to the store” (no subject performing the action)
Phrases add extra detail, while clauses can form the foundation of complete sentences.
What Did You Learn?
A clause, in a sentence, contains a subject and a verb. The clause that expresses a complete thought or an idea is known as an independent clause. On the other hand, the clause that cannot express a complete thought or an idea is known as a dependent clause.
[…] it does not mean that a conditional sentence always start with a dependant clause that begins with ‘if’. Take a look at the examples […]