A dependent clause cannot stand alone, though they often contain both a subject and a verb. Where independent clauses express complete thoughts, dependent clauses do not, and left on their own, ...

We are concluding our discussion on phrases, clauses and sentences today. In the last two classes, we compared the three, underlining how a sentence is usually a combination of clauses and phrases. We ...

An independent clause is basically a complete sentence; it can stand on its own and make sense. An independent clause consists of a subject (e.g. “the dog”) and a verb (e.g. “barked”) creating a ...

Relative clauses are parts of sentences that can be added after nouns to give the reader more information. I have a dog that loves chasing balls. In this sentence, the noun is ‘dog’ and the relative ...

(1) a. Everything I don’t eat is food for the dog. b. All I don’t eat is food for the dog. These sentences appear very similar on the surface, but have very different meanings. (1a) means the speaker ...

To many people, the word “grammar” connotes a bunch of nitpicky rules expressed in scary terms and enforced with cruel glee. Dangling participles, split infinitives, misplaced modifiers and assertions ...

A simple sentence, also known as a main clause, shows one clear idea. It has one subject (what or who) and one verb (a doing word). Scott struggles through the snow. A compound sentence joins two ...

Last week, we started discussing the differences between a phrase, clause and a sentence. We defined a phrase as a group of words without a subject and a predicate, though standing together to form a ...