Good writers vary the length of their sentences
There are two types of grouping of words in the English language, clauses and phrases
Teachers often introduce clause and phrase instruction together. Consequently, learners often mistaken clause and phrases even though they are vastly different.
Clauses contain a subject and its verb.
PHRASE:
Phrases are a group of words that act as a single part of speech.
There are five types of phrases.
Three of the phrases are verbals.
Verbals are verb forms that are used as a different part of speech.
The three verbals are: gerund, participle, and infinitive.
A gerund begins with a verb ending in ing that is used as the subject of the sentence. Thus, a gerund functions as a noun—a verb from used as a noun.
EXAMPLE: Interrupting class is bothersome.
The grouping of words, interrupting class is the subject of the sentence. The phrase in this case, a verb form beginning with ing is used as a noun.
A participle too often begins with a verb from ending in ing. A participle, however, is almost always used as an adjective where a gerund is used as a noun.
EXAMPLE: The student, interrupting class, is bothersome.
The grouping of words, interrupting class, in this case describes the subject of the sentence, the student. In this example interrupting class is a participle.
A participle can be present or past tense.
The present participle begins with a verb form ending in ing
The past participle begins with a verb form often ending in ed or en.
EXAMPLE: The mirror, cracked from top to bottom, was useless.
The grouping of words cracked from top to bottom describe the mirror. Used in the past tense as an adjective the phrase is a past participle.
EXAMPLE: The notes, hidden in her book, cannot be used on the test.
The grouping of words hidden in her book describe the notes. Used in the past tense as an adjective the phrase is a past participle.
In order to best understand past participles it is important to comprehend the difference between regular and irregular verbs
Regular verbs form their past and past participle forms by adding –ed.
Examples:
Walk – walked – walked
Dance – danced – danced
Paint – painted – painted
Work – worked – worked
Irregular verbs form their past and past participle forms in different ways.
There are mainly three types of irregular verbs.
Verbs in which all the three forms are the same (e.g. put – put – put)
Verbs in which two of the three forms are the same (e.g. sit – sat – sat)
Verbs in which all three forms are different (e.g. drink – drank – drunk)
Some verbs can be both regular and irregular.
Examples:
Burn – burnt – burnt (irregular)
Burn – burned – burned (regular)
The final verbal, verb form, used as another part of speech is the infinitive.
An infinitive is easy to identify because it always begins with the verb to.
An infinitive phrase will act as either a noun, adjective, or adverb.
EXAMPLE: To win the approval of his parents is his goal.
In this case the infinitive is used as the subject of the sentence; the infinitive is used as a noun.
EXAMPLE: The best way to learn about clauses and phrases is to do the practices.
In this case the infinitive is used to describe the noun way; the infinitive is used as an adjective.
EXAMPLE: The student is studying her clause/phrase notes to become a better writer.
In this case the infinitive is used to modify why the student is studying; the infinitive is used as an adverb.
Aside from the three verbals there are two other types of phrases, a prepositional phrase and an appositive phrase.
A prepositional phrase begins with a preposition combined with, more often than not, an adjective or two that modifies the object. A prepositional phrase will either serve as an adjective or an adverb.
EXAMPLE: The notes, inside her book, cannot be used on the test.
The prepositional phrase inside her book describe the notes. The prepositional phrase is used an adjective.
EXAMPLE: The dog ran around inside the house.
The prepositional phrase inside the house addresses the question Where did the dog run? The prepositional phrase is used an adverb.
Prepositional phrases are either adjectival or adverbial. A prepositional phrase used as an adjective must be directly next to the noun that it is modifying.
EXAMPLE: The notes, inside her book
Unfortunately an adverbial phrase may be located next to the noun as well, but an adjectival prepositional phrase is always located next to the subject.
The fifth phrase is an appositive phrase.
An appositive phrase is used to re-name or amplify a word that immediately precedes it. It is made up of a noun or pronoun that follows another noun or pronoun to identify or explain it.
An appositive is always used as an adjective.
EXAMPLE: The student who endures succeeds.
The appositive phrase who endures describes the student.
Note that any phrase that does not begin with a verb form ending in ing or ed, en, or does not begin with to, or does not begin with a preposition is an appositive.
CLAUSE:
CLAUSE- a group of words consisting of a subject and its predicate (verb)
EXAMPLE: The dog ran.
INDEPENDENT CLAUSE- a clause that can stand on its own as a sentence
SUBORDINATE CLAUSE- a clause that cannot stand alone as a separate sentence since its meaning depends on the meaning of the main clause and simply gives additional information in the sentence.
Clauses can contain phrases, but phrases cannot contain clauses.
A clause therefore is the essential meaning of a sentence, while the phrase supports that essential meaning.
Subordinate clauses or dependent clauses, as they are called, always begin with a subordinate conjunction.
EXAMPLE: Chris gets nervous when the dog runs.
Independent clauses frequently are joined together with coordinating conjunctions, the FANBOYS.
EXAMPLE: Chris runs and the dog chases him.
A subordinate clause cannot have a FANBOYS before it.
ELLIPTICAL CLAUSE- A type of dependent, or subordinate, clause that is missing a word or words. Often, the missing part is a verb or verb phrase. Often times an elliptical clause exists in the mind of the reader.
EXAMPLE: Chris thinks that he is just as smart (as Peyton is). as Peyton is
is the elliptical clause.