English Translation Department

Grammar Basics 2
First Year
Ms. Rana Dakhel

Sentences & Clauses

Sentences
Sentences are the only groups of words that can stand alone to express
complete thoughts. The key idea here is standing alone. Sentences are not
dependent on some previous context or question to fill in grammatically
significant missing pieces. For example, the following is a sentence because
it can stand alone as a grammatically complete unit:
I would like a pizza with pineapple.
Sentences Classified by Purpose
Sentences, in general, are used to make statements. However, there are other
ways to use sentences, for example, to ask questions, to issue commands, or
to make exclamations.
Declarative Sentences. Declarative sentences are used for making
statements. Declarative sentences are always punctuated with periods. Here
are some examples:
This is a declarative sentence.
Declarative sentences can be positive or negative.
Even if they contain dependent clauses, declarative sentences are always
punctuated with a period.
Interrogative Sentences. Interrogative sentences are used for asking
questions. Interrogative sentences must be punctuated with question marks.
Here are some examples:
Do you know what an interrogative sentence is?

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No, what are they?
Imperative Sentences. Imperative sentences are used to issue commands.
Imperative sentences are not defined by their punctuation but by their
grammar. Imperative sentences must have an understood you as the subject.
They may be punctuated with either periods or exclamation points. Here are
some examples:
Go away.
Cut it out!
Stop it.
Exclamatory Sentences. Exclamatory sentences are actually declarative
sentences that are punctuated with exclamation points for emphasis. Here are
some examples:
I can’t believe I ate the whole thing!
This is really an exclamatory sentence!

Clauses
A clause can be either of two types of structures:
1. Independent clause (or main clause), which can stand alone
2. Dependent clause (or subordinate clause), which is a clause that cannot
stand alone and must be attached to or included within an independent
clause.
A sentence must contain at least one independent clause, but, in addition, a
sentence may also contain one or more dependent clauses. Here is an example
of a sentence containing a dependent clause (in italics) modifying the
independent clause:
Louise takes her lunch whenever she has to attend a noon presentation.
The clause whenever she has to attend a noon presentation is an adverb clause
that modifies the verb takes. The independent clause can stand alone as a
complete sentence, but the dependent clause cannot.

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There are three different types of dependent clauses: adverb clauses, adjective
clauses, and noun clauses. Each of the three types of dependent clauses acts
as a single part of speech.
Adverb clauses do what adverbs always do: they modify verbs, adjectives,
and other adverbs.
(Subordinating conjunction) Whenever it rains, our creek runs over.
Adjective clauses modify nouns (and, once in a great while, pronouns).
(Relative pronoun) The creek that runs by our house floods.
Noun clauses play the basic roles that noun phrases play: they act as subjects,
objects, and predicate nominatives.
(That type) The problem is that our creek floods.
(Wh-type) We saw what the flooded creek did.
Adverb Clauses
Adverb clauses must begin with a subordinating conjunction.
Adverb Clauses That Modify Verbs. Adverb clauses that modify verbs are
by far the most common type of adverb clause. This type of adverb clause also
has the largest number of subordinating conjunctions.
Time
After, as, as soon as, before, even after, even before, since (meaning “from
when”), until, when, whenever, while
Place
Everyplace, everywhere, where, wherever
Manner
As, as if, as though
Cause
As, because, inasmuch as, since, so that
Condition
If, on condition that, provided that, unless
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Concession
Although, even though, though
Following are some examples of adverb clauses illustrating the different
categories of subordinating conjunctions (adverb clauses in italics,
subordinating conjunctions in bold):
I had finished my popcorn before the movie even started.
They talked about us as if we were not even there.
For the most part, we do not use a comma before adverb clauses. The three
subordinating conjunctions of concession—although, even though, and
though—are exceptions to this rule. Adverb clauses beginning with these
words are always set off with commas.
Adverb clauses that modify adjectives. Adverb clauses can only modify
predicate adjectives, not adjectives used to modify following nouns. If the
predicate adjective is not in its comparative form (that is, if it is in what is
technically called its base form), then the conjunctive adverb is that. If the
predicate adjective is in its comparative form, then the conjunctive adverb is
than. Here are some examples of both patterns (adverb clauses in italics,
predicate adjectives in bold):
Base-form predicate adjective + (that) + independent clause
We were glad (that) you could come.
I am afraid (that) it might rain this afternoon.
Harvard was certain (that) it could beat Oklahoma in football.
Note: dropping the that is both grammatical and common.
We were glad you could come.
Comparative-form predicate adjective + than + independent clause
It is later than you think it is.
The dinner was more formal than I had expected it to be.
The movie was more frightening than the book was.

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Adverb Clauses That Modify Other Adverbs. Adverb clauses that modify
other adverbs follow exactly the same pattern as adverb clauses that modify
comparative adjectives: the adverb being modified must be in its comparative
form, and the subordinating conjunction is than and cannot be deleted. Here
are some examples:
Comparative-form adverbs + than + independent clause
I answered more sharply than I had meant to.
“Star Trek” ships went faster than any had gone before.
The forest fire spread more rapidly than the crews had anticipated.
Adjective Clauses
Adjective clauses (also called relative clauses) have only a single function: to
modify nouns. In the case of adjective clauses, the flag words are a special
group of pronouns called relative pronouns. The list of relative pronouns is
mercifully short: who, whom, whose, that, which.
Here are examples of all five relative pronouns (adjective clauses in italics,
relative pronouns in bold):
The sportscaster who is on Channel 7 has never picked a winner yet.
She married a man whom she had met at work.
I contacted the person whose car I bumped into.
I finally read the book that you told me about.
Restrictive and Nonrestrictive Adjective (Relative) Clauses. Adjective
clauses come in two flavors: restrictive and nonrestrictive. As the name
restrictive implies, adjectives have the power to restrict or limit the meaning
of the nouns they modify. Here is an example from above of an adjective
clause used restrictively:
The car that I was driving got a flat tire.
A major part of the function of the adjective clause that I was driving is to
identify which car got a flat tire—it was the car that I was driving, as opposed
to the car that somebody else was driving. Adjective clauses that play this
defining or restricting role are called, not surprisingly, restrictive clauses.

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Nonrestrictive adjective clauses, conversely, do not have this defining
function. Nonrestrictive adjective clauses give information that can be
interesting or even highly significant, but the information does not serve to
define which noun it is that we are talking about. Here is an example of a
sentence containing a nonrestrictive adjective clause (in italics):
My Uncle Harry, who is an absolute loony, always overstays his welcome.
Now, my Uncle Harry would still be my Uncle Harry even if he were not an
absolute loony. In other words, the information in the adjective clause
(interesting as it is) does not serve to tell us which Uncle Harry we are talking
about. I only have one Uncle Harry. The fact that he is an absolute loony does
not serve to distinguish one Uncle Harry from another. Therefore, the
adjective clause is nonrestrictive.
Noun Clauses
Noun clauses are the most complicated and sophisticated of the three types of
clauses. A noun clause is a dependent clause used as a noun phrase. Noun
clauses can play the basic noun phrase roles of subject, object of verbs, object
of prepositions, and predicate nominative, for example (noun clauses in
italics):
(Subject) What he does for a living is a big mystery.
(Object of verb) I know that you are right.
(Object of preposition) We were aware of what we needed to do.
(Predicate nominative) That is what we wanted.
There are two different types of noun clauses: that type noun clauses and wh-
type noun clauses. Here are examples of that type noun clauses playing all
four noun phrase roles:
Whether or not it rains will determine our destination. (subject)
We wondered if we should go to the party. (object of verb)
We could not decide about whether we should leave. (object of preposition)
The plan is that we can reconvene after dinner. (predicate nominative)

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Noun clauses beginning with if are easily confused with adverb clauses, which
can also begin with if. Here are a pair of examples of the two different kinds
of clauses, both beginning with if (clauses in italics, flag words in bold):
Noun clause: I don’t know if I can come.
Adverb clause: I will meet you there if I can come.
Wh- Type Noun Clauses. Here are the most common wh- words classified
by their parts of speech. Notice that many of the wh- words can be
compounded with -ever:
Nouns: what, whatever, who, whoever, whom, whomever
Adjectives: whose, which, whichever
Adverbs: when, whenever, where, wherever, why, how, however
Whatever you decide is fine with us. (Whatever is the object of the verb
decide.)
I know where we can get a good pizza. (Where is an adverb of place
modifying the verb get.)
We were aware of which choices were open to us. (Which is an adjective
modifying the noun choices, the subject of the verb were open.)
The situation is what we expected it would be. (What is the predicate
nominative complement of the verb be.)
Using conjunctive adverbs to join independent clauses
Conjunctive adverbs are words used to show how the ideas in the second of
two closely related sentences relate to the meaning of the ideas in the first
sentence. Conjunctive adverbs can be roughly sorted into three groups
depending on how the second sentence is related to the first sentence:
1. The ideas in the second sentence expand or elaborate on the ideas in the
first sentence (It is called the “In Addition” group of conjunctive adverbs).
2. The ideas in the second sentence spell out the results or consequences of
the first sentence (It is called the “As a Consequence” group of conjunctive
adverbs).

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3. The ideas in the second sentence are somewhat contrary to what you might
expect to follow from the first sentence (It is called the “On the Other Hand”
group of conjunctive adverbs).
Here are examples of the common conjunctive adverbs arranged by meaning:
In addition: again, also, besides, further, furthermore, moreover, similarly
As a consequence: accordingly, consequently, hence, then, therefore
On the other hand: however, nevertheless, nonetheless, otherwise, still
Here are some examples:
John was in an accident; furthermore, it was his third car crash this year.
John was in an accident; consequently, he will miss work for several years.
John was in an accident. However, he wasn’t injured.
The first thing to notice in these examples is the punctuation. The first of each
of the two independent clauses in the examples is punctuated with either a
semicolon (;) or a period. It is not correct to use a comma to join two
independent clauses without a coordinating conjunction. The presence of the
conjunctive adverb changes nothing. Conjunctive adverbs are not
conjunctions. They are adverbs, and adverbs by themselves have no power to
join independent clauses with a comma. Just using a comma (with or without
a conjunctive adverb) to join independent clauses is a common punctuation
error called a comma splice. Also notice that conjunctive adverbs are always
followed by commas.
Sentences classified according to structure
If a sentence consists of a single independent clause with no dependent
clauses, it is called a simple sentence. If a sentence contains two or more
independent clauses but no dependent clauses, it is called a compound
sentence. If a sentence contains a single independent clause and one or more
dependent clauses, it is called a complex sentence. If a sentence contains two
or more independent clauses and at least one dependent clause, it is called a
compound-complex sentence.
Joe waited for the train. (simple sentence)
Joe waited for the train, but the train was late. (Compound sentence)
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Joe waited for the train because he didn’t fill his car up with petrol. (complex
sentence)
Joe waited for the train, but the train was late because the train timetable had
been modified. (compound-complex sentence)