Part 1: Sentence and Clause Structure
Independent and Dependent Clauses
Definition
An independent clause can stand alone as a complete sentence in formal writing. A dependent (or, subordinate) clause adds meaning to the main clause such as a time (when…), condition (if…), reason (because…), concession (although…), restriction (people who…), or additional information (which means…). A dependent clause without an independent clause or an incomplete main clause are called fragments and are considered errors in most academic and formal writing (e.g. *“Because it is raining”). [In linguistics, an asterisk (*) indicates that something is grammatically unacceptable.]
Discovery
Please read this short text, adapted from My Diary from Here to There by Amada Irma Pérez, and complete the activity below. Which of the clauses could you use as complete sentences? Which would be considered fragments?
I should be asleep already, but I just can’t sleep. If I don’t write this all down, I’ll burst! Tonight after my brothers and I all climbed into bed, I heard Mamá and Papá whispering. They were talking about moving to Los Angeles in the United States. But why?
Form
Dependent clauses can be recognized in two ways:
- They may start with a word that reflects the meaning or function of the clause such as a subordinating conjunction (e.g., because, while, when, if, unless) or a relative pronoun (who, which, that). These words are sometimes called connectors (in the WIDA framework) or subordinators (a subordinate clause is another term for a dependent clause).
- Nonfinite clauses are always dependent because they can’t stand alone as complete sentences in formal contexts, e.g. to kill a mockingbird, walking to school). A nonfinite clause doesn’t have a subject-verb pair, just a verb in its infinitive, present participle (-ing), or past participle (-ed/-en) form (e.g. to live in hope, walking to school, built on promises).
Careful!
Imperative clauses (commands) are considered independent clauses even though they do not have an overt subject in English (e.g., Come here! Let T represent time). The subject is understood to be you or sometimes we (e.g., Let’s go!).
Function
The independent clause contains the main idea of the sentence. Dependent clauses support the main idea through a number of functions, based on the choice of connector. Writers can control their meaning by ensuring that the biggest idea in the sentence is in the independent clause: it’s the leading actor, with the other clauses playing supporting roles.
Exercises
What’s next?
Simple, Compound, and Complex Sentences
