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Contributor: Heather Cameron. Lesson ID: 13735
Sentences are made up of clauses. Clauses contain a subject and a verb, but sometimes clauses do not form a complete thought. How do we know? Let’s find out!
Take a look at these song titles:
"Since U Been Gone" by Kelly Clarkson
"While My Guitar Gently Weeps" by the Beatles
"When We Were Young" by Adele
All the titles of the songs are called dependent clauses!
When you hear the word clause, you might think of a cat's nails or the holiday season with Santa.
In this case, we are not talking about cat's paws or claws and Santa or Santa Claus. We are talking about something that you use and something that affects your everyday life -- a clause in your sentences.
First, let's look at the words independent and dependent.
Grab a sheet of paper and fold it in half. On one side, list the qualities of an independent person and list those of a dependent one on the other side.
Your paper may look something like this:
Thoughts and sentences are made of independent and dependent clauses.
Just like you noted in your list, dependent clauses -- like dependent people -- cannot stand alone. They cannot stand alone because they do not form a complete thought.
Independent clauses, on the other hand, can stand alone just like independent people can stand alone. They form a full thought.
Here are some examples of both:
Independent Clauses
She wore pink bunny slippers.
The turtle has a hard shell.
Dependent Clauses
while the clown was juggling bowling pins
even though he ate the broccoli
You should notice how the independent clauses are complete sentences that convey a complete thought. You can read each and understand the whole meaning.
The dependent clauses, however, are not complete sentences. They do not convey a complete thought that can be understood.
Keep going in the Got It? section with some practice activitites.
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