Table of Contents Recognizing clauses in English Created:10 Sep 2024 23:58:28 , in elementary Clause are extremely important in English, so it is worth knowing how to recognize if a group of words is one of them, or not. Here is how to do it. A ruleA clause has a full verb in it, and it follows a standard pattern. As opposed to auxiliary (helping) verbs, which assist the main verb in forming tenses, voices, or moods, a full verb in English is a verb that carries the main meaning or action in a sentence. The standard patterns Common standard patterns clauses follow are: subject + verb subject + verb + object subject + verb + complement subject + verb + object + complement subject + verb + indirect object + direct object Example clauses Below are five examples of clauses based on the patterns. Tom snores. Jane tried a cake. He is a physician. Frank appointed Andy a manager. Tina showed friends the town centre. A Difference between clauses and sentences It is worth noting that clauses are not the same as sentences. While a clause can express a complete thought (independent clause), or an incomplete thought (dependent clause), a sentence expresses complete meaning and may consist of one or more clauses. This post was updated on 11 Sep 2024 10:27:42 Tags: clause , sentence
