Clauses

What is a clause?

A clause is a group of words that contains a subject and a verb.

There are 2 kinds of clauses:

1. The independent clause is a complete sentence that makes sense on its own, like this: 
                She eats a big breakfast.
2. The dependent clause is an incomplete sentence that doesn’t make sense on its own, like this:
                When she wakes up each morning.

Dependent clauses cannot be left on their own because they express incomplete thoughts. They have to be joined with an independent clause.

There are 2 basic ways to join clauses:

1. Put the independent clause first, and don’t use a comma, like this:
               She eats a big breakfast when she wakes up each morning.
2. Put the dependent clause first, and use a comma, like this:
              When she wakes up each morning, she eats a big breakfast.

Tip to Remember:

Although both types of clauses have a subject and a verb, dependent clauses can’t stand on their own and must be joined to an independent clause.