Transcript PRESENTATION NAME

Functions of Dependent Clauses
Adjective, Adverb, and Noun
The Adjective Clause
• An adjective clause (surprise!) acts like an
adjective.
• These relative pronouns relate an adjective clause
to the noun that it is modifying.
That
which
who
whom
whose
– Hamsters that injure their hamstrings are hampered
from doing handsprings. (That relates the adjective
clause that injure their hamstrings to hamsters, the
noun that the adjective clause is modifying.)
The Adjective Clause
• Sometimes adjective clauses also begin with
adverbs like
Where
when
why
– Cousin Henrietta always tells the story about the time
when she was on an elevator with someone who
looked a little like someone who might be famous.
(When she was on the elevator with someone modifies
the noun time.)
The Adjective Clause
• Relative pronouns are actually multi-talented. Not
only do they relate clauses to nouns, they often
act as either subjects or objects in their own
clauses.
– Aphrodite recently joined a self-help group for people
who are addicted to self-help groups.
(Who is the subject of the clause who are addicted to
self-help groups.)
The Adjective Clause
– For some reason, the children’s book that Opal wrote
about head lice, an invisible terror, was not a bestseller. (Which book? The children’s book that Opal
wrote.)
– Tadpoles that swallow marbles become bloated when
they swallow cantaloupes. (Which tadpoles?)
– Tadpoles, which are smaller than rhinos, become
bloated when they swallow cantaloupes.(Which
tadpoles?
(Spoiler alert: There are other dependent clauses in the
tadpole sentences. What are they modifying? Yep,
we’ll be talking about adverb clauses next.)
The Adjective Clause
– With his new braces, which have pieces of taco salad
caught in them, Erkle can receive messages from alien
life forces.
– The messages that Erkle receives through his braces
are prank calls from bratty little space aliens.
– Chucky, who has a degree in psychology, counsels
angst-ridden teenage monkeys.
– Everyone who counsels angst-ridden teenage monkeys
must have a degree in psychology.
– Jed’s brother who sheds is named Harry.
The Adjective Clause
– Geese that feast on greasy gravy are usually obese.
– The children who sold the most candy bars for the
Thespian Club had to act like they won a prize.
– Mr. Sqwakleman, a slightly myopic but considerate
driver, always replaces the neighborhood pets that he
runs over.
– Novack has a birthmark, which is shaped like a
hunchbacked yak, on his back.
The Adjective Clause
• That pesky implied that:
– Sometimes the relative pronoun that is
invisible. You can’t see it when it starts a
clause, but you know it is there.
• Where is the picture of the squiggly line you
painted in your art class? (The subordinate clause
is actually that you painted in your art class, but
the relative pronoun that is omitted. Don’t ask me
why. I guess it saves time talking. Every .00000009
of a nano-second counts.)
The Adverb Clause
• An adverb clause functions as what in a sentence?
– A toaster?
– A hamster?
– An adverb?
– A small rock?
If you guessed an adverb, congratulations! If you
guessed toaster, hamster, or small rock, don’t worry. I
know this grammar stuff can be pretty tricky. That’s
why I have this handy powerpoint.
The Adverb Clause
• An adverb clause is simply a type of dependent
clause that functions as an adverb. An adverb
clause answers these questions about a verb, an
adjective, or another adverb:
– how?
– when?
– where?
– Why
– How much?
– Under what condition?
The Adverb Clause
• After Little Miss Muffet ate too much whey, she
weighed too much to sit on a tuffet. (After Little
Miss Muffet ate too much whey answers when?
about the verb weighed.)
• If an octopus had only three legs, would it be
called a tripus? (If an octopus had only three legs
answers under what condition? about the verb
would be called.)
The Adverb Clause
• Binky’s mother was upset because Binky brought
home a tarantula for a pet. (Because Binky
brought home a tarantula for a pet answers why?
about the adjective upset.)
• People misunderstand Stan because he always
stands on his hands. (Because he always stands
on his hands answers why? about the verb
misunderstand.)
The Adverb Clause
• Aston proudly burped louder than anyone else in
his kindergarten class. (Than anyone else in his
kindergarten class answers the question how
much? or to what degree? about the adverb
louder.)
The Adverb Clause
• Adverb clauses begin with little gizmos called
subordinating conjunctions. Some of the most
frequently used of these are:
– After
– Although
– As
– As if
– As long as
– As soon as
– Because
– Before
if
in order that
since
so that
than
though
unless
until
when
whenever
where
wherever
while
The Adverb Clause
• Beware of words like after, since, before, and
until. They are sneaky! They look like
subordinating conjunctions, but sometimes they
function as prepositions that begin phrases, not
clauses. Remember: A prepositional phrase begins
with a preposition and ends with a noun or
pronoun – the object of the preposition.
– After much debate, the senators voted to make the
daisy the state flower and the fonsecaea pedrosoi the
state fungus.
– After Hailey quit biting her nails, she began chewing
on screws.
The Noun Clause
• The last, but not least, type of clause is the noun
clause. Noun clauses pop up in places where you
would expect to find nouns or pronouns. Noun
clauses can be used for all the things that nouns
or pronouns can be used as:
– Subjects
– Direct objects
– Indirect objects
– Objects of the preposition
– Predicate nominatives
The Noun Clause
• Noun clauses usually begin with some of the same
pronouns that begin adjective clauses.
– Who
– Whoever
– Whom
– Whomever
– That
– What
– Whatever
These pronouns often (but not always) function as the
subjects or objects of the clauses they begin.
The Noun Clause
• Whoever ate that piece of fudge actually
swallowed a pudgy bug. (Whoever ate that piece
of fudge is the subject of the sentence. The
pronoun whoever is the subject of its own clause.)
• One finding of the Highway Commission revealed
that 67 percent of all roadkill is due to squirrel
hazing. (The clause that 67 percent of all roadkill
is due to squirrel hazing is the direct object of the
verb revealed. The pronoun that functions only as
an introduction to the clause.)
The Noun Clause
• The winner is whoever picked the lottery numbers
2, 6, 7, 15, 29, 204, 907, 3, 22, 1, 18, 30, 405, 92,
and 508. (The clause whoever picked the lottery
numbers 2, 6, 7, 15, 29, 204, 907, 3, 22, 1, 18, 30,
405, 92, and 508 is the predicate nominative of
the sentence and the pronoun whoever is also the
subject of its own clause.)
• Remember predicate nominatives? I was afraid of
that. A predicate nominative is a noun or pronoun
(or a noun clause!) that follows a linking verb and
points back to the subject to identify it further.
The Noun Clause
• Sometimes adverbs start noun clauses.
– When
– Where
– Whether
– Why
– How
• For the science fair, Eldridge demonstrated how to
make furniture polish out of earwax. (How to
make furniture polish out of earwax is the direct
object of the sentence. )