ENGLISH

LANGUAGEGRAMMAR LEVELFROM PHRASES TO

CLAUSES
L/O: To learn about and identify the parts of a clause

CLAUSE ELEMENT
FUNCTIONS

A clause may be defined as a group of words clustered

around a verb phrase, containing a :

SUBJECT(S)

VERB (V)

OBJECT (O)

COMPLEMENT (C )

ADVERBIAL (A)

HOW CAN YOU TELL WHAT

A SUBJECT IS ?

The subject is usually the element which performs the

action expressed by the verb:

The cat saw the dog. The cow jumped over the moon.

If the sentence is a statement, the subject usually appears before the

verb:

Rain fell all day long. The bonfire glowed in the dark.

Take care : it is possible to emphasize another clause element by

putting it before the subject:

Yesterday, rain fell all day long. In the dark, the bonfire glowed.

If the sentence is a question, the subject appears after the opening

verb:

Are you going far? Did the bonfire glow in the dark?

WHAT IF THE SUBJECT IS A

PRONOUN?

If the subject is a pronoun referring to a person, it may

have a distinct subjective form. We say I, he, she, we
and they. In other parts of the clause, these words
change to me, him, us and them.

I saw John. John saw me.

She gave it to Mary. Mary gave it to her.

FIND THE SUBJECT

Write out these sentences and underline the subject.

Look out for sentences with more than one clause,
where there is a subject in each.

1.

The car cost nearly nine thousand.

2.

The frying pan fell on the floor.

3.

I like bananas.

4.

She slowly opened the door.

5.

Everybody went to the party.

6.

Cheese and crisps are on sale.

7.

I like bananas but Joe doesnt.

8.

A very wide range of CDs is on sale.

9.

Youve met my Rottweiler?

10.

We have a puncture and the cars got no petrol.

VERB ( v)

The verb element in a clause plays a central role in

clause structure. It can hardly ever be left out, without
the clause becoming ungrammatical.

Look at this 4- element clause:

That old farmer/ drinks /beer /by the bucketful

We could leave out the adverbial, the object and ( if

speaking casually) the subject. We could never leave
out the verb- That old farmer/ beer/ by the bucketful.

You can even have clauses which consist only of a verb:

Drink ! Run ! Stop!

WHAT CAN BE A V?

The V element in a clause can be quite long and

complex, but it usually consists of only 2 or 3 words,
and often it has only 1 word in it. The following SV
clauses show some possibilities:

They jumped.

They were jumping.

They werent jumping.

They

They might have been jumping.

They mightnt have been jumping.

have been jumping.

DISTINGUISH THE VERBS

You have been given an extract from Charles Grants

Whirlwind, one of The X Files, where all the V elements
have been highlighted. Copy these elements into a
table, putting the main verbs in one column and any
auxiliary verbs in another. Ignore any words which
separate any auxiliary from its main verb.

OBJECT (O)

The object in a clause usually tells you who or what has

been affected by the action of the verb phrase. It
usually comes immediately after the subject and verb.
SVO is the basic clause pattern in English.

In most clauses, there is just one object.

The little boy smashed a window.

Here, the window has undoubtedly been affected by the

action of smashing. It is the window which has been
smashed- not the little boy.

In the following clauses, the verbs are not really actions,

but their meaning affects the object in a similar way.

I saw the car.

The table has four legs.

WHAT CAN BE AN OBJECT?

As with subjects, an object can be a single noun:

I saw Colette.

Objects can also be a string of words based on a noun ( a

noun phrase) :

The explosion destroyed a car, a telephone box, and a

shop front. This is not a sequence of three objects, but a
single, complex object.

Pronouns can also be objects, referring to the nouns in

other clauses, just as subjects do:

I found an egg. Then I cooked it.

When I, he, she, we and they appear as an object, they

have a distinct objective form.

Ask me.

We visited Stratford.

Ask him.

Ask her. Ask us.

Ask them.

FIND THE OBJECT

Write out these sentences and underline the object.

Look out for sentences with more than one clause,
where there may be an object in each.

1.

I saw the dentist.

2.

Have you met Charlie?

3.

The mechanic has fixed it.

4.

Jo wants a new pen.

5.

I saw the car and bought it.

6.

Whos paying the bill?

7.

We enjoyed Crete, Cos , and Rhodes.

8.

Why dont you invite everyone?

9.

I like coffee but Anne likes tea.

10.

Shes got over 300 books about the Beatles.

CLAUSES WITH TWO OBJECTS

Sometimes a clause has two objects, as in this

sentence:

I / gave/ Fred/ a sandwich.

If we ask, What has been given?, the answer is the

sandwich. The action of the verb, giving, directly
applies to the sandwich. The sandwich is what has been
given. A sandwich is therefore called the direct object
of the verb. The indirect object is the person or animal
that receives the benefit of an action- Fred.

FIND THE TWO OBJECTS

Look at these clauses and work out which is the direct

object and which is the indirect object. Draw a line
between them, and label the direct object DO and the
indirect object IO.

1.

We have to pay the garage 100

2.

My kind cousin lent the fare to me.

3.

I read a bedtime story to the children.

4.

Will you find Mary a pen?

5.

The dog brought me my slippers.

6.

She offered sweets to her friend.

7.

Throw your partner the ball.

8.

Have you left a drink for Santa?

9.

The teacher told the class the questions.

10.

The waitress served some eggs to the customer.

COMPLEMENT
The

complement element express a

meaning which adds to that already
present in the subject or object. A
useful way of remembering its job is
to think of the word complete: the
complement completes a meaning.

COMPLEMENTS HAVE TWO

VARIETIES

There are 2 chief kinds of complement.

The first kind is called a subject complement, because

it completes the meaning of the subject. It comes after
the subject and verb.

Hilary / is/ a doctor.

What comes after the verb identifies very closely with

what has gone before the verb.

The second kind of complement is called an object

complement , because it completes the meaning of the
direct object. It usually comes immediately after the
object.

She / made/ her friend/ angry.

A tulip/ is/ a flower.

S

EXPAND THE COMPLEMENTS

Take these clauses and replace their single- word

subject complements with a string of words. Make them
as unexpected as possible.

1.

Ive sprayed the room with disinfectant, and it now

smells lovely.

2.

Wearing those hats, we looked cool.

3.

Naturally Im upset because we missed the party.

4.

My parents have decided to become students at the

Open University.

5.

To suggest that I go to bed at 8 o clock sounds sensible.

ADVERBIAL (A)

The circumstances of the action or event ( the where,

when, how), for example I saw him at the concert.

The adverbial element is very different from the other

clause elements.

One clause can contain several instances:

Later, / Oscar/ kicked/ the ball/ fiercely/ across the

field.

The three adverbials are optional extras: they add new

bits of meaning to the SVO sentence, but they dont
change the basic meaning.

ADVERBIALS EXPRESS A WIDE

RANGE OF MEANINGS

TIME: I left at 3 o clock. ( Adverbial-When?)

PLACE: I went to London. ( Adverbial- Where?)

MANNER : I walked slowly. ( Adverbial- how?)

ADDING A COMMENT: Frankly, I think its right.

LINKING TWO CLAUSES : The bus was full. However, I

found a seat.

ADD SEVERAL ADVERBIALS

Write out these clauses with some optional extra

details, adding adverbial elements to tell us when? or
where? or how? Use some of these examples, or
make up adverbials of your own.

When? Soon, then, next week, often, today, in the

morning, on Sunday

Where? There, in town, nearby, upstairs, that way,

outside, on the table

How? Slowly, loudly, happily, well, like an expert, by

car, with haste

1.

Our team beat the league champions.

2.

Im doing a new jigsaw.

3.

They crossed the park.

4.

I saw a huge grasshopper.

5.

Joan will speak in the debate.

6.

The visitors have arrived.

KMP 2 HOMEWORK :WRITE A

SPORTS COMMENTARY

You have been given a piece of radio sports

commentary. ( Punctuation has been added.)

Rewrite it, taking out all the adverbial elements. Write

a brief paragraph explaining how the commentary has
changed, and whether you think the new version is
better or worse, and why.

Now write another piece of sports commentary , on

your favourite sport, putting in as many adverbials as
you can think of. Next lesson, well read our results out
and decide who would make the best commentator!!!

VARIATIONS IN CLAUSE
PATTERNS

There are 7 basic clause types

yawned

am

ready

went

gave

got

put

opened

the door

A
to London

him

a pen

my shoes

wet

the box

on the floor