Phrases and Clauses

Phrases – groups of words that function as a part of speech.

Noun Phrase: A group of words consisting of nouns or pronouns and their modifiers that function as a noun. All the customers wanted to try the new dish on the menu. Verb Phrase: A group of words consisting of verbs working together and that function as a verb. The chefs knew they would be working hard during dinner time. Prepositional Phrase: A group of words that begins with a preposition and ends with a noun, and functions as an adjective or an adverb. Adrian was warmly welcomed to the kitchen staff as a new chef. Appositive Phrase: A group of words that include all the words that modify an appositive and function as an adjective - IT MUST BE SURROUNDED BY COMMAS. Adrian, a new chef, worked diligently to prepare and cook food for the customers. Verbal Phrases: A group of words that begin with a verbal and ends with a noun. ● Gerund Phrase verb ending in -ing that functions as a noun. Running down the street, the children found the ice cream truck. ● Participial Phrase word ending in -ing (present participle) or -ed (past participle) that functions as an adjective. The customers quickly threw away the disgusting food. ● Infinitive Phrase verb preceded by the word “to” (to read, to study, to write) that function as nouns, adjectives, or adverbs. The chefs knew their shift started so it was time to cook.

CLAUSES

Clauses – groups of words with BOTH a subject and a verb that function as parts of speech. There are TWO kinds: Independent and Dependent (called “Subordinate”)

INDEPENDENT – CAN stand alone as a complete sentence, known as a simple sentence pattern. The brand new restaurant requires customers to follow a dress code.

DEPENDENT (SUBORDINATE) – CANNOT stand alone as a complete sentence and MUST begin with a SUBORDINATE CONJUNCTION. There are seven (7) kinds:

Noun Clause: Used as the noun in a sentence and may function as a subject, a predicate noun, a direct object, an object of a preposition, an indirect object, or an appositive. ○ Where he learned how to cook firmly made the chef who he is. ○ Kindly give whoever orders a greeting and thank you. ○ That the customer was happy when the chef delivered the food. ○ John quickly checked what he had to eat. Adjective Clause: Used to modify a noun in an independent clause. Some adjective clauses begin with an introductory word: ○ This is a restaurant where chefs cook food for you. ○ There is the ingredient that I absolutely needed. ○ The food that you wanted is located in the other aisle. Some adjective clauses begin with relative pronouns: ■ Jerry is obviously the one who got the most votes for best dish. (ONE is the antecedent of WHO and is modified by the adjective clause.) ■ There goes the chef whose only job is to prepare the food. (CHEF is the antecedent of whose and is modified by the adjective clause.) ■ The head chef informatively teaches how to cook the dish that goes to the buffet. ■ Is that the candy that you so vehemently want? (that is the direct object of want) ■ Tony is the chef whom made the delicious cake.. (whom is the direct object of made.) ■ The steak and lobster dish which you love has sadly been burnt. (which is the object of the preposition to.)

■ Manny is a chef who easily shrugs off criticism. (who is the subject of shrugs.) Adverb Clause: Used to modify verbs, adjectives, and adverbs in an independent clause, introduced by a subordinate conjunction and used to indicate time, place, cause, purpose, result, condition, and/or concession. Modifying verbs: ■ They unfortunately misplaced the silverware where a few could see it. (place) ■ When the timer rang, the chef took the cake out of the oven. (time) ■ We sluggishly left the restaurant because we were tired. (purpose) ■ The customer talked as if she were passionately craving another tiramisu. (condition) Modifying adjectives: ■ Baking a cake takes twice as long as it used to be. (how much) ■ Jared is as good of a cook as his father. (to what extent) Modifying adverbs: ■ Suzy baked better than her sisters typically did. (condition) Relative Clauses: Dependent clause that begins with a relative pronoun. ○ The customer who finishes their food first will earn an indulgently tasty cookie. Elliptical Clauses: Adverb clauses in which part of the clause is omitted. ○ When cooking, the chef keenly keeps her eyes on the food. Essential Clauses: Clauses necessary to the meaning of the sentence. ○ The new dish that most interests the new chef is clearly the beef wellington. Nonessential Clauses: Clauses that are NOT necessary to the meaning of the sentence. ○ Chef Ramsay’s cooking lessons, which began many years ago, are sadly done.