Phrases, Dependent Clauses, and Independent Clauses

Front

What is a phrase?

Back

A phrase is a group of words that does not contain a subject-verb pair and does not express a complete thought.

Front

What is an independent clause?

Back

An independent clause is a group of words that contains a subject and a verb and expresses a complete thought.

Front

What is a dependent clause?

Back

A dependent clause is a group of words that contains a subject and a verb but does not express a complete thought.

Front

Example of a phrase.

Back

"under the table" is a phrase.

Front

Example of an independent clause.

Back

"The cat slept on the mat" is an independent clause.

Front

Example of a dependent clause.

Back

"because I was tired" is a dependent clause.

Front

Can a dependent clause stand alone as a sentence?

Back

No, a dependent clause cannot stand alone as a sentence.

Front

Can an independent clause stand alone as a sentence?

Back

Yes, an independent clause can stand alone as a complete sentence.

Front

What is the function of a dependent clause in a sentence?

Back

A dependent clause adds additional information to the independent clause but cannot stand alone.

Front

What punctuation is often used with dependent clauses?

Back

A comma is often used before a dependent clause when it starts a sentence.