n Indo-European languages, a relative clause—also called an adjective clause or an adjectival clause—will meet three requirements.
First, like all dependent clauses, it will contain a verb (and it will also contain a subject unless it is a non-finite dependent clause). However, in a pro-drop language the subject may be a zero pronoun—that is, the pronoun may not be explicitly included because its identity is conveyed by a verbal inflection.
Next, it will begin with a relative adverb [when, where, or why in English] or a relative pronoun [who, whom, whose, that, or which in English]. However, the English relative pronoun may be omitted and only implied if it plays the role of the object of the verb or object of a preposition in a restrictive clause; for example, He is the boy I saw is equivalent to He is the boy whom I saw, and I saw the boy you are talking about is equivalent to the more formal I saw the boy about whom you are talking.
Finally, the relative clause will function as an adjective, answering questions such as "what kind?", "how many?" or "which one?".
The adjective clause in English will follow one of these patterns:
- Relative Pronoun [Functioning as Object of Verb] + Subject + Verb
- This is the ball that I was bouncing.
- Relative Adverb + Subject + Verb (possibly + Object of Verb)
- That is the house where I grew up.
- That is the house where I met her.
- Relative Pronoun [Functioning as Subject] + Verb (possibly + Object of Verb)
- That is the person who hiccuped.
- That is the person who saw me.
- Relative Pronoun [Functioning as Object of Preposition] + Subject + Verb (possibly + Object of Verb) + Preposition
- That is the person who(m) I was talking about.
- That is the person who(m) I was telling you about.
- Preposition + Relative Pronoun [Functioning as Object of Preposition] + Subject + Verb (possibly + Object of Verb)
- That is the person about whom I was talking.
- That is the person about whom I was telling you.
- Possessive Relative Pronoun + Noun [Functioning as Subject] + Verb (possibly + Object of Verb)
- That is the dog whose big brown eyes pleaded for another cookie.
- That is the dog whose big brown eyes begged me for another cookie.
- Possessive Relative Pronoun + Noun [Functioning as Object of Verb] + Subject + Verb
- That is the person whose car I saw.
English punctuation
The punctuation of an adjective clause depends on whether it is essential or nonessential and use commas accordingly. Essential clauses are not set off with commas, while non-essential clauses are. An adjective clause is essential if the information it contains is necessary to the meaning of the sentence. For example:- The vegetables that people often leave uneaten are usually the most nutritious.
However, if the additional information does not help to identify more narrowly the identity of the noun antecedent but rather simply provides further information about it, then the adjective clause is non-restrictive and does require commas (or a spoken pause) to separate it from the rest of the sentence. For example:
- Broccoli, which people often leave uneaten, is very nutritious.
- The broccoli which people leave uneaten is often nutritious.
Adverbial clause
"He saw Mary when he was in New York" and "They studied hard because they had a test" both contain adverbial clauses (in italics). Adverbial clauses express when, why, where, opposition, and conditions, As with all dependent clauses, they cannot stand alone. For example, When he was in New York is not a complete sentence; it needs to be completed by an independent clause. For example:- He went to the Guggenheim Museum when he was in New York.
- When he was in New York, he went to the Guggenheim Museum.
Dependent clauses and sentence structure
A sentence with an independent clause and one or more dependent clauses is referred to as a complex sentence. One with two or more independent clauses and one or more dependent clauses is referred to as a compound-complex sentence. Here are some English examples:My sister cried because she scraped her knee. (complex sentence)
- Subjects: My sister, she
- Predicates: cried, scraped her knee
- Subordinating conjunction: because
- Subjects: they, I, I, I
- Predicates: told me, won the contest, cried, didn't faint
- Subordinating conjunctions: when, that (explicit or understood)
- Coordinating conjunction: but
Non-finite dependent clauses
Dependent clauses may be headed by an infinitive or other non-finite verb form, which in linguistics is called deranked. In these cases, the subject of the dependent clause may take a non-nominative form. An example is:- I want him to vanish.
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