CLAUSES

A Clause is a group of words that has a Subject and Predicate of its own; for example :

I am your friend and shall help you.

This sentence is a combination of two sentences, joined by and : (1) I am your friend. (2) (I) shall help you. The word 'I' is the common Subject for both clauses; only their Predicates are different. Thus, these are clauses.

A Clause may have an independent Subject too; for example :

When he called me, I was still in bed.

In this example, 'he' and 'I' function as two independent Subjects for their respective clauses.

Did You Know? : A Predicate should contain a Finite (Main) Verb to qualify as a Clause.

There are three types of Clauses :

1. Principal Clauses

2. Coordinate Clauses

3. Subordinate Clauses

11. Principal Clauses : A Principal Clause is the chief clause in a sentence and is not dependent on any other clause for its meaning.

22. Coordinate Clauses : A Coordinate Clause is an independent clause in a sentence and can express its meaning fully.

For example :

I met a doctor who had a stethoscope round his neck.

There are two clauses in this sentence : 1. I met a doctor, 2. who had a stethoscope round his neck.

Both these clauses have their independent meanings, only they are joined by and. You can see that both these clauses have independent meanings, Subjects and Predicates. The first clause is the Principal Clause, and the second clause is the Coordinate Clause. Since both of these have independent meanings, we can also say that both these are Coordinate Clauses.

Some more examples :

I went to the teacher and submitted the application.

Clean the room which you have made dirty.

There was a lion in the forest which had a large mane.

The monkey entered the room, opened the fridge, took out a banana and sat on the sofa to eat it.

Did You Know? : Coordinate Clauses are joined by Coordinating Conjunctions; for example : and, but, or, nor, for, yet, still, so, both...and, as well as, not only...but also etc.

33. Subordinate Clauses : A Subordinate Clause is a clause in a sentence which is dependent upon any other clause for its meaning; for example :

I reached home before the rain started.

This sentence has two clauses : 1. I reached home, 2. before the rain started.

The first clause has an independent meaning and is not dependent on the other clause for its meaning, so it is the Principal Clause. However, the second clause cannot stand as an independent sentence, so we can say that it has no sense of its own, or that its meaning is dependent upon the other clause for its full meaning. So it is a Subordinate Clause.

Some more examples :

We reached the station after the train had already departed.

Because we were late, we were not admitted into the school.

You can call on me when you have time.

I don’t know how he did it.

Did You Know? : A Subordinate Clauses is joined to the Principal Clause by a Subordinating Conjunction; for example : as, after, before, because, if, when, where, although, though, lest, how, that, till, until, unless, than, since, yet etc.