Unit 9

ENG11: ENGLISH GRAMMAR II

Unit 9: Adverbial Clauses and Phrases

What is an Adverb?

Adverbs are best known as

being words that give us more

information about the

manners of a verb.

For example:
He ran quickly to the gate.

However, they can also be used to
moderate adjectives:
He was extremely brave.

and other adverbs.
He picked it up incredibly carefully.

Adverbs and adverbial phrases provide important details by

answering the following questions:

•How? – They explain the manner in which something happens (e.g.,

"She speaks softly").

•When? – They describe the time of the action (e.g., "He arrived

early").

•Where? – They tell where the action takes place (e.g., "We met at

the park").

•Why? – They explain the reason (e.g., "He left because he was

tired").

•How often? – They indicate the frequency of the

action (e.g., "She visits frequently").

•How much? – They express the degree or intensity

(e.g., "She was extremely happy").

By answering these questions, adverbs and adverbial

phrases enhance the clarity and detail of sentences.

Tony is talking now.

Tony is talking in a minute.

Tony is talking when the next person finishes.

Normal adverb

Adverbial phrase

Adverbial clause

Adverbial Phrases

Adverbial phrases are two or more words that

tell us more about a verb or an adjective.

They appear as a
part of a sentence.

They do not make

sense alone.
They don’t need a verb

While following this strict diet, he became interested in developing a
healthier lifestyle.

The doctor put my father on a strict diet because of his recent heart
attack.

Adverbal Clauses

Although their feathers aren’t waterproof,

subordinating
conjunction

subject

verb

is an adverbal clause (dependent clause)

An adverbal clause is the dependent clause to a main clause. We use them

to connect ideas in a complex sentence

Just like adverbial
phrases, adverbial
clauses begin with

a subordinating

conjunction.

They can’t stand
alone. They need
their main clause.

They need subjects and verbs

juvenile penguins are able to swim.

subject

verb

Main Clause

Subordinating conjunctions

Subordinating conjunctions are words or phrases that connect a dependent
clause to a main/independent clause. These conjunctions could be used to

describe various relationship between the two clauses. It could be to

provide reason, result, purpose, contrast, time order or condition. Below are
some common subordinating conjunctions displayed under the acronym ‘I

SAW A WABUB’ for easier recollection of the conjunctions.

Reasons to Use Adverbial Clauses and Phrases

Before the 1960s, more than half of immigrants

came from Europe.

To indicate

time

Germans came to the U.S. because of economic

problems in Germany.

to give
reasons

Many immigrant come so that they can be reunited

with family members.

to show
purpose

Even though it’s hard to be an immigrant, many

people make that choice.

To show
contrast

If the U.S. didn’t have immigrants, it would be a

less interesting place.

To state
condition

Note use a comma only if the

conjunction is at the beginning of the

sentence.

Adverbial Clauses and Phrases: Reason

Clauses of reason and purpose are dependent clauses that explain why or for

what purpose something happens.

Reason clauses and phrases introduce the cause or explanations for

what is expressed in the main clause.

Because

Because of

Since

More people are moving to small towns because cities
have become more expensive.
Adverbial clause

Subject

Verb

My grandfather didn’t have time to go to school because of his job.

Adverbial phrase

Note that ‘because of’ is always used with phrases, not clauses On the
other hand, ‘because’ is always followed with a clause, not a phrase.

Since my grandparentsweren’twealthy, my father didn’t go to school.

Adverbial clause

Note that ‘since’ and ‘because’ can be used interchangeably when

introducing a reason clause. However, remember that ‘since’ could also mean
‘from that time’ as it was mentioned in the present perfect unit of ENG102.

Multiple Choice

________the students were unfamiliar with the vocabulary, they found the passage difficult to understand

• Because of

• In order to

• To

• Because

Adverbial Clauses and Phrases: Reason

Clauses of reason and purpose are dependent clauses that explain why or for

what purpose something happens.

Purpose clauses and phrases introduce the objective, goal or purpose

of an action or event that is expressed in the main clause.

In order to

So

For

Vietnamese people came (in order) to escape war.

Adverbal phrase

Note that ‘in order to’ and ‘to’ have the same meaning.
They both must be followed with base form of the verb.

The mother and her child have immigrated to the U.S. for a better life.

Adverbal phrase

Note that ‘for’, ‘to’ and ‘in order 'are
normally followed with phrases.

My grandmother visited the states so she can reunite with the whole family.

Adverbal clause

Subject

Verb

Note that it’s common to use modal verbs
(e.g. can) in dependent clause with ‘so that’

Multiple Choice

The teacher simplified the instructions _________the students could complete the task more easily.

• so that

• because of

• because

• for

So: Purpose vs Result?

When expressing purpose with adverbial clauses, we use ‘so that’ or ‘so’, as
they both can be used interchangeably. However, ‘so’ is also used to express

result; therefore, it’s important to know the difference between the two.

Purpose: so (that)
Result: so

Both ‘so that’ or ‘so’ can be used.

We must not use a comma before ‘so’

Immigrants go through dangerous
boats trips so (that) they could
have better lives somewhere safe.

The dependent clause expresses

the Purpose of the situation
expressed in the main clause.

The immigrants’ boat trip
was very dangerous, so some
of the immigrants sadly
didn’t survive the trip.

We use ‘so’ without ‘that’ when

expressing result.

We must use a comma before ‘so’

The dependent clause describes
the result or effect of the cause

expressed in the main clause

In other words, immigrants risk
their lives to achieve their goal

of living a better life.

In other words, some

immigrants lost their lives as a

result of the dangerous trip.

Multiple Choice

Ahmed didn't prepare for the presentation, _____he struggled to answer the audience's questions.

• to

• so that

• so

• for

Adverbial Clauses & Phrases: Time

When indicating time or describing the time order of events, adverbial clauses
and phrases can also be used by using conjunctions such as whenever, when,

while, as, until, since, for and during..

Adverbial clauses & Phrases that describe actions happening at the same time.

The electricity went out while we were watching TV, so we missed the final scene.

The electricity went out as we were watching TV, so we missed the final scene.

Note that ‘while’ and ‘as’ normally need to be followed with a continuous verb.

When the electricity went out, we were watching TV, so we missed the final scene.

During movie night, the electricity in all the neighborhood went out.

Note that although ‘during’ has the same meaning as ‘at the same time’, it is only
used with phrases, not clauses. We normally use it with phrases that express time or
events (their time in Ethiopia, their flight, their summer break, etc)

Multiple Choice

________ they were watching a movie, the power went out.

• Because

• While

• During

• Because of

Adverbial Clauses & Phrases: Time

Adverbial clauses & Phrases that describe the time order of actions

When the flight landed, the passengers pulled their carry-ons out of the top cabin.

After the flight landed, the passengers pulled their carry-ons out of the top cabin.

The passengers slept soundly until their flight landed.

‘when’ could also be used to mean ‘after’ It all depends on the context.

‘until’ is used to express ‘up to that time’ or to describe that an action
continued and stopped with the beginning of another action or event

Whenever I am on a long flight, I sleep throughout the whole flight.

‘whenever’ is used to express ‘any time or every time’ or to describe habits and
routines. ‘when’ can also be used here considering they have the same meaning.

Note that ‘until’ and ‘after’ are also used with phrases (e.g. until 1995, after the party)

Adverbial Clauses & Phrases: Time

Adverbial clauses & Phrases that describe the duration of events or actions

The family has been eating dinner together since

their son moved back home.

Main Clause = Present Perfect

The family has known about their son’s health
problems since last year.

Since clause = the simple past.

Use a specific time after ‘since’.

‘since’ or ‘ever since’ are used to introduce adverbial clauses or
phrases to express an action that started from that specific time

in the past and continues to the present.

since noon.
ever since Wednesday.
since April.
ever since 2010.
since yesterday.

Main Clause = Present Perfect Progressive

Note that as you learned in ENG102, we always use the present perfect in the

main clause with ‘since’ considering that the perfect tense describes actions that

started in the past and continues in the present. We also always use the past

tense in the since clause.

Since Phrase: Specific time.

Adverbial Clauses & Phrases: Time

Adverbial clauses & Phrases that describe the duration of events or actions

‘for’ is used to introduce an adverbial phrase that express the
duration of an action or event. These events could be in the

past, or it could be actions that are still taking place.

‘for’ is always followed with an amount of time.

My brother has been swimming in the
swimming team for five years.

When I was a child, I swam in the
swimming team for three years.

for fifty minutes.
for five hours.
forten days.
for about six weeks.
for almost two months.
for many years.
for a long time.

Adverbial Clauses & Phrases: Time

Note that sometimes the subject in the main clause and adverbial time clause is

the same. In such cases, you have the option to shorten the clause by using a

continuous verb (-ing) after the subordinating conjunction.

The Lost Boys went to Ethiopia after they left Sudan.

Main clause

Adverbial clause

subject

subject

The Lost Boys went to Ethiopia after leaving Sudan.

Main clause
Adverbial phrase

They refers to the lost boys

Because the subject ‘the lost boys’ and ‘they’ are the same
above, we can shorten the sentence into the following:

While they were living in a refugee camp, the Lost Boys learned some English.

Adverbial clause

While living in a refuge camp, the Lost Boys learned some English.

Adverbial phrase
Main clause

Main clause

you must not shorten the clause if the subjects in the two clauses are different.

Multiple Choice

She studied _____three hours in the library, surrounded by textbooks and notes, before______a well-deserved break.

• for... taking

• since.. taking

• for... take

• during...to take

Adverbial Clauses & Phrases: Contrast

Adverbial clauses and phrases can be used to describe contrast of ideas or to
express an unexpected result. In these cases, we can use conjunctions such as

although, even though, though, in spite of (the fact that) and while.

Although racial profiling is prohibited, people of color still experience it.

Adverbial clause

Main clause

People of color experience racism even though racial discrimination is illegal.

Adverbial clause

Main clause

In 1955, African Americans weren’t allowed to sit at the front of the bus.

Rosa Parks still sat in the front and refused to move, though.

Though African Americans weren’t allowed to sit at the front of the bus, Rosa

Parks still sat and refused to give up her seat.

Adverbial clause

Note that ‘although’, ‘even though’ and ‘though’ can all be used at the beginning
of an adverbial clause. However, the informal ‘though’ can also be used at the end

of a sentence. This is exclusive to ‘though’, not the other two.

In 1955, African Americans weren’t allowed to sit at the front of the bus.

Rosa Parks still sat in the front and refused to move, even though.

Adverbial Clauses & Phrases: Contrast

It’s important to identify the context before choosing the conjunction. This is even more

important in the case of ‘while’ considering that it could indicate contrast or time.

While criticizing the United States for its racism issues,
many people refuse to acknowledge that there is racism in their own
home countries.

Adverbial contrast clause

The racially profiled man
was filming the incident on
his phone while the woman

was calling the police on

him.

While the man was clearly
not doing anything wrong,
the woman still called the

police to report him.

This expresses contrast considering that normally
the police won’t be called if someone wasn’t doing
anything wrong. You can replace ‘while’ with other
contrast conjunctions
(although, (even) though, in spite of the fact that).

This expresses time considering the
sentence is describing two actions
happening at the same time.
Therefore, you cane even replace
‘while’ with ‘as’

Adverbial Clauses & Phrases: Contrast

When forming adverbial clauses and phrases to express contract, you may use

‘in spite of’ for phrases and ‘in spite of the fact that’ for clauses.

In spite of the laws against racial discrimination,

people of color all around the world still experience
racism.

Adverbial phrase

Noun phrase: it doesn’t have a subject and a verb

In spite of the fact that the law prohibits racial discrimination

people of color all around the world experience racism anyways.

Subject

Verb

Adverbial clause

Note that we must not use ‘in spite of the fact that’ in the first sentence or
‘in spite of’ in the second sentence. Before deciding which to use, identify
whether it is a phrase (in spite of) or a clause (in spite of the fact thqt).

Note that it’s common to use ‘still’ and ‘anyways’ in the main clause

whenever the adverbial clause or phrase expresses contrast.

Adverbial Clauses: Condition

Adverbial clauses can also be used to express conditions that are either powerful
enough to affect the results or not. We may use ‘if’, ‘unless’ or ‘even if’ to express
present, past or future conditions.

IF you finish

your classwork early…

THEN you will go out

for a break!

Condition Clause

Affected result

The result won’t happen if
the condition doesn’t occur.

The condition is powerful

Note that as you learned in ENG102 in the case of future conditions, we use the
present simple in the ‘if’ clause and the future simple in the main clause.

If- Clause: Present simple

Main Clause:
Future simple

Adverbial Clauses: Condition

When using adverbial clauses to express negative conditions, you may use (if +
negative form of the verb: e.g. if you don’t finish you work early, you’ll have to work
extra hours.). You may also use ‘unless + affirmative form of the verb’ to express a
negative condition. ‘unless’ provides a powerful condition affecting the result.

Unless you’re terrified of

riding rollercoasters…

we can go to the Six

Flags amusement park.
All the rides there are

rollercoasters.

Condition Clause

Affected result

The condition is powerful

Unless can be replaced with “if
not….(if you aren’t terrified..)”

Adverbial Clauses: Condition

When using adverbial clauses to express powerless conditions that will not affect the
result, you may use ‘even if’ for such conditions. In other words, you’re saying
‘regardless of this condition, I will still do the action.’

Even if my parents
don’t approve of my
interest in music…

I’ll still practice music

with my friends

Condition Clause

Unaffected result

The result is more powerful

Regardless of this condition, the
result will occur

Condition Clauses: Even if

Even if the

immigration of
Hispanics slows

down…

their number will
probably increase

Condition Clause

Unaffected result

The result is more powerful

Regardless of this condition, the
result will occur

The Future Condition Clauses

If schools teach

people about social

justice from an

early age,

the world will

have more

changemakers.

Condition clause =

present simple
main clause =
future simple

Unless people believe in

social justice

they probably won’t apply

it in the real world.

Even if people don’t learn

about social justice in school

they will probably self-

teach themselves about it.

The Past Condition Clauses
You can use the simple past with both the main and
condition clause when talking about past conditions.

Even if there were
available bus seats

in the front,

African Americans
were only allowed
to sit in the back in

the 1950s.

In the past, teachers

continued to use

violence as a form of
discipline in school

unless parents came

to complain.

Back in 1920s,
immigrants got

detained

if they showed any
signs of bad health.

You can use the simple past with both the main and
condition clause when talking about past conditions.

The Present Condition Clauses

You can use the simple present for both clauses when talking about

general facts that always happen under certain conditions.

If you heat water to

100 degrees…

it boils

Unless my insomnia
gets worse at night,

I usually fall asleep

around 12 am.

Even if it isn’t past its

expiry date,

milk goes bad after four

to seven days once

opened