26. The Clause.

[grammarshit2]

Sentences can be broken down into clauses.
A Clause is a part of a sentence that usually contains a Subject and a Verb. It is usually connected to the other part of the Sentence by a Conjunction. It is not a complete sentence on its own. However, a sentence containing only one clause is called a simple sentence.
For example:
The boy is going to the school, and he is going to eat there.

This is a complete sentence composed of two clauses.
There are mainly two types of clauses: independent clauses and subordinate clauses.

Independent clauses act as complete sentences, while subordinate clauses cannot stand alone and need another clause to complete their meaning. For example:
Independent clause: “The boy went to the school.”
Subordinate clause: “After the boy went to the school…”

A clause is a group of words which acts as a single unit and is built round a verb, for example:
he lives in America
Compound and complex sentences contain two or more clauses:
Simple:
John is living in America.
Compound:
He lives in America, but his family is still in Wales.
Complex:
While his family is still in Wales, John’s staying with friends.
Minor: A minor sentence is one without a verb, e.g:
First, a word about sentences.
America, of all places!