Phrases and Clauses
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A phrase is a group of related words that does not include a subject and verb. (If the group of related words does contain a subject and verb, it is considered a clause .) There are several different kinds of phrases. Understanding how they are constructed and how they function within a sentence can bolster a writer's confidence in writing sentences that are sound in structure and various in form.
The Garden of Phrases
At the minimum, a prepositional phrase will begin with a preposition and end with a noun , pronoun , gerund , or clause , the "object" of the preposition. A prepositional phrase will function as an adjective or adverb . As an adjective, the prepositional phrase will answer the question Which one? Sometimes a noun within the prepositional phrase seems the logical subject of a verb . Don't fall for that trick! You will never find a subject in a prepositional phrase.
The Prepositional Phrase
Introduction to English Phrases and Clauses
Introduction to Phrases Phrases are considered as the second level of classification as they tend to be larger than individual words, but are smaller than sentences. We refer to the central element in a phrase as the head of the phrase. If the head is a noun then the phrase is called a noun phrase. There are nine generally accepted classifications for phrases.
The Structure of a Sentence
Remember that every clause is, in a sense, a miniature sentence . A simple sentences contains only a single clause, while a compound sentence, a complex sentence, or a compound-complex sentence contains at least two clauses. Usually, however, the sentence has a subject as well as a predicate and both the subject and the predicate may have modifiers . All of the following are simple sentences, because each contains only one clause: As you can see, a simple sentence can be quite long -- it is a mistake to think that you can tell a simple sentence from a compound sentence or a complex sentence simply by its length. The most natural sentence structure is the simple sentence: it is the first kind which children learn to speak, and it remains by far the most common sentence in the spoken language of people of all ages.English grammar - clauses in sentences. - Waylink English
In the first sentence it appears that there are as many as four separate segments which look like partial sentences connected to each other in different ways: We can call these segments clauses . Many sentences are short - they contain only one segment or clause. These single-clause units are called simple sentences .
Phrases, Clauses, and Sentences: Middle School Grammar Essentials | Suite101.com
In this four part humorous series, middle school students continue to learn the essential elements of grammar as a foundation for writing. Note: This is the third in a series of four articles offering the fundamental basics of grammar for middle school students. More about the series can be found in the first article .