Questions tagged [clauses]
Clauses are smallest grammatical unit that can express a complete proposition
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"Non-restrictive appositive" vs. "non-defining relative clause"
Could you please kindly provide some explanation as to why the second option (B) is the only correct answer to the following question? And why is it not the case that both A and B could be correct ...
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Why is there no comma before "and" before this independent clause?
This was at a moment when the magistrate, overcome with tiredness, had
gone down into the garden of his house and, dark, bent beneath
some implacable thought, like Tarquin cutting the heads off ...
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2
votes
2
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On the usage of commas with nonessential clauses near the end of a sentence
How would you punctuate the following?
A decent if long novel.
As is.
A decent, if long, novel.
A decent, if long novel.
I feel uncomfortable leaving the "novel" dangling at the end of the ...
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1
answer
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Lots of questions for a lot of clauses!
I am confused over the use of lots of vs lot of.
I am phrasing a sentence having the following clause :
[Article] [lot-of/lots-of] [noun singular/plural] [verb] ...
As an example :
A lot of ...
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When to add "the" before a noun followed with a clause
E.g.
"Although they work in most cases, they cannot handle cases when a comment or script is broken by the cutting"
Should I put "the" between "handle" and "cases"?
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Conjunction Puzzle: Is this clause dependent or independent?
Third grade teacher here. I plan to teach students to distinguish between simple, compound and complex sentences — but only if I can demonstrate a clear and meaningful difference between the latter ...
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Non-finite clause complementation of complex transitive verbs
This question has been bothering me for a while. It came up when I was reading Chapter 16 of "A Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language."
How to explain the grammatical structure of the ...
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1
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Must a coordinating clause always have a subject?
E.g.,
(1) You are getting yourselves into a very dangerous situation; get out of there at once.
The imperative following the first clause has an implied subject, so would this mean it is a ...
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Use semicolon or period when telling a result of an action?
If you look at these sentences, the second one is result of the first:
Alex shouts and feels pain in his leg, and he rubs the place with hand and looks at the leg. His leg swelled little bit.
So ...
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1
answer
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Why is this that-clause a subordinate?
she was so tired that she couldn’t think. (Oxford)
Oxford says that-clause above is a subordinate clause expressing a result. Semantically ‘she was tired’ seems to be the main clause, but there also ...
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Is it proper to use "that" instead of "at which" to refer to speed?
On a physics assignment, I believe that these sentences are grammatically incorrect, but some other students disagree (especially on the second one).
What is the maximum speed that the mass can be ...
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Comparing two juxtaposed elements by way of clause inversion?
What is this sort of sentence/style/literary device called? I'm sure it has a name.
There is no love without forgiveness, and there is no forgiveness
without love.
It appears that a point is ...
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1
answer
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"Absent additional configuration" [closed]
I have come across the following sentence but it doesn't quite sound right.
Absent additional configuration, permits will be distributed at a fixed rate.
Is the first part of the sentence correct?
...
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answer
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"Had decided to call" vs."had decided that we should call"
I have a question regarding using "had decided". I'm not sure if I can use either an infinitive form of a verb or a modal verb:
We had decided to call each other when we are in danger.
We had ...
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3
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Is a comma needed to offset a title?
If I were to try and describe a book called "Book", is this sentence grammatically correct?
The book Book by Joe Bob is set in...
I was told that this sentence is incorrect, that commas must ...
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2
answers
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Use of "what" vs "that"
The following sentence was on one of the tests:
What would you like to do that others have told you is impossible.
Students have asked why that could not be replaced with what. I.e.,
What ...
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1
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the function of small clause
She went back to her homeland, her mind free of hate. (English Syntax
and Argumentation, Bas Aarts)
Aarts says the highlighted part is a small clause that has the role of adjunct. By the remarks of ...
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Can all transitive verbs take to-infinitive clauses?
Yet it would be your duty to bear it, if you could not avoid it: it
is weak and silly to say you cannot bear what it is your fate to be
required to bear. — Jane Eyre
It seems ‘your fate to be ...
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vote
3
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Comma after a long introductory phrase
Please help me with commas in the following sentence:
As an example of the successful use of such a model [,] one can mention SymPy computer algebra system [,] which uses Python as a main user ...
5
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Clauses, and comma before “nor”
Does this sentence have two independent clauses?
I do not like biology nor do I like chemistry.
To me the last clause seems dependent, but I find sources that tell me to place a comma before nor,...
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Can a "because clause" be a subject clause? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Sentence Construction: “Just Because … Does Not Mean”
Consider the following sentence:
Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean that they're not after you.
The sentence sounds ...
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Is the clause "chances are" grammatically correct?
You've most certainly heard this:
Chances are, he overslept this morning.
I realize the comma is a splice, but it's there only to emphasize the pause that usually accompanies it. When written out,...
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Is there bad grammar in Cinemark's "No Texting" warning?
The sentence in question is "Do not be the person we ask to leave the auditorium, because we will." It sounds very wrong to me, but I can't put my finger on the exact problem. Nobody on the Internet ...
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Can a subordinate clause split subject and verb in the main clause?
E.g. are these correct?
Following the rules, even if it's difficult, is essential.
Following the rules, although it's difficult, is essential.
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What meaning "Chip on their shoulder" takes here?
The context is below.
Bansal is the famous coaching center to clear Engineering Entrance test. Bansal students had a chip on their shoulder, even though they weren't technically even in a college
...
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"It is only me that is" or "It is only I that am"
It is only me that is confused.
or
It is only I that am confused.
The first one sounds more natural to me while the second one appears to me as grammatically correct. Which one is correct?
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Is this an independent clause?
From Nate Silver's "The signal and the noise:"
The amount of information was increasing much more rapidly than our understanding of what to do with it, or our ability to differentiate the useful ...
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2
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What kind of phrase/clause is "as far as I know"? [closed]
I would like to know what kind of phrase/clause "as far as I know" is, and why.
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Does inserting a comma change what is modified?
My question pertains to the usage of comma after a list of clauses of the form
"X, Y, and Z (,) to/in order to <do something>"
Example:
Apply Equation 1, use Lemma 2, and exploit Theorem 3(,...
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"while at the same time" + -ing form?
In following sentence, I'm not sure if I have to use the -ing form or the infinitive.
I wanted to get rid of X, while at the same time not assuming/ assume
that...
The -ing form sounds better, ...
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vote
1
answer
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Is this an attributive clause or an adverbial clause? [closed]
The radial-velocity method used Dr Dumusque and his colleagues will
reveal the presence of a planet and its mass.
This sentence is from an article at economist.com, and it's the first sentence of ...
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answer
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Which are the main and subordinate clauses in this sentence?
Which are the main and subordinate clauses in the following sentence?
Individual components do not directly depend on other components,
which means that they can be more easily developed in ...
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1
answer
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Mixed tense sentence + When clause
Is it legal to write something like this:
When I'm trying to post a form system alerts me with a warning message.
I've seen people use this kind of writing.
EDIT
I don't know why (perhaps that'...
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Is a single-word sentence like "No" an independent clause? And semicolons [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Comma or semicolon after “No” when responding to a question
It started because of this:
"No; I found the behavior off-putting."
I believe "no", as an answer, can ...
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2
answers
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Is a comma in this sentence required? [closed]
In the sentence below, is the comma optional or should it (not) be there? I can hear it there when this is spoken, but I am not convinced it needs to be there in written form.
In order to pass [...]...
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Position of verb for object clause
Is the general word order of this sentence correct?
We investigate how strong the effect of X on Y is.
Or, as an alternative,
We investigate how strong the effect of X is on Y.
In a preprint ...
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votes
3
answers
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Separating Clauses in Garden-path Sentences
While Nancy was dressing the baby played in the garden.
I'm not sure where the first clause ends! After baby or after dressing?
Please, suggest some way I can improve that sentence.
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What type of clause is this?
Can anyone say what type of clause this is — noun, adjective or adverbial?
I am glad that you have passed the test.
Some people say that it is a noun clause. But I am not sure.
What is the ...
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answers
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Multiple 'as' (subordinate conjunction) in the same sentence [closed]
Performance is poor as losses have increased and are projected to remain negative going forward as the company works through problem assets and realizes related expense.
Is this sentence correct? If ...
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4
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Ambiguity of "We discourage X from doing Y by using Z" [closed]
Given the sentence,
We discourage people from committing crimes by using law enforcement, religion and education.
I see two possible interpretations:
[We discourage people by using law ...
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answer
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"Seeing the rain come on, we took shelter" — complex or simple sentence?
Seeing the rain come on, we took shelter.
This sentence looks like a complex sentence with a main and an independent clause. But the book says it is a simple sentence. Which is correct?
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Comma in "more than $6 billion to settle a long-running lawsuit, in a pact that also permits"
Visa Inc., MasterCard Inc. and some large banks agreed to pay scores of retailers—from giant Publix Supermarkets Inc. to an interior-design store in Minnesota—more than $6 billion to settle a long-...
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Is it grammatical to introduce a result clause using “then”?
Is it grammatical to introduce a result clause by using then as in these examples:
Don’t be lazy – then you will fail.
Don’t kill him – then you will regret it.
If so, then is the then in these ...
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Position of prepositions in questions and clauses
I would like to know if there is any rule to know where prepositions should be placed in questions or clauses.
For example, I have heard many sentences and some of them put the preposition in the ...
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3
answers
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Noun or non-finite subordinate clause?
Consider the following sentence:
The government wants to encourage understanding of science.
Now, "to encourage understanding of science" is a non-finite subordinate clause functioning as an ...
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3
answers
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How to punctuate an example indicated by "say"
I'm wondering how commas should be placed around the word "say" and the following clause in a sentence like this:
If you have, say, a bucket, that you would like to fill with water, then ......
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"Come + X" construct
I've come across the "come + X" construct in a passage of a New York Times article. Here it is (emphasis added):
Politicians like to keep the fiscal levers in their hands come
election time
What ...
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How to combine "a book about X" with "people are interested in how X works"? [closed]
I would like to know how to correctly combine the sentence 1. with the sentence 2.
People are interested in how these algorithms work.
I am writing a book about algorithms... [here I need to ...
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Comma after To at the beginning of a sentence
I am just writing my master thesis and I am unsure whether to place a comma in sentences starting with "To".
Here are some examples:
To be able to improve the performance[,] it is important to ...
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attributive clauses puzzle me a lot sometimes
Are the following two sentences interchangeable?
"I keep her photo on my desk, which means I do not forget her.
versus
"I keep her photo on my desk, meaning I do not forget her.
If not, ...
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