Phrases, Clauses,
Conjunctions, and Sentence
types
What is the difference between phrases and
clauses? How are conjunctions used to create
different sentence types?
Phrases and Clauses –Building
blocks of sentences
Phrase - a group of words that act as a part
of speech but cannot stand alone as a
sentence.
Clause - Clauses are groups of words that
have a subject and a verb. Independent
clauses express a complete thought and
can stand alone as a sentence but
subordinate clauses depend on other parts
of the sentence to express a complete
thought.
Two types of Clauses
An independent clause contains a
subject, a verb, and a complete thought.
A dependent clause contains a subject
and a verb, but no complete thought.
Examples –
Independent – I ate cookies.
Dependent – Since I ate fries
**What is wrong with the second clause?
Using clauses in sentences
A SIMPLE SENTENCE has one independent
clause.
A COMPOUND SENTENCE has two
independent clauses joined by a
conjunction.
Examples –
Simple – I ate a hamburger.
Compound – I ate a hamburger, and I drank
a milkshake.
**What do you notice in the second
sentence?
Coordinating Conjunctions
(FANBOYS)
Coordinating conjunctions joins –
words to words, phrases to phrases, clauses
to clauses.
For, and, nor, but, or, yet, so
Examples –
Jim did not walk to the store, nor did he
walk to school.
Jeff woke up late, so he ate breakfast at
school.
How to join two independent
clauses
Forming compound sentences can be done in
2 ways –
Using a comma and a coordinating
conjunction
Or
Using a semicolon
Examples –
I ate cookies, and I drank milk.
I ate cookies; I got a stomach ache.
Practice
Using either a comma and FANBOY or a
semicolon, join the independent clauses to
create compound sentences:
1) She went to work. She did not want to go.
2) The scientists trained him well. They helped him find a job when his
training was through.
3) Polar bears are fierce, territorial animals. Grizzly bears are the same.
4) Mark told me not to come with him. He looked longingly at me as I left.
5) I will not give in to you. I will not let you push me around.
6) He loves to drive during the day. They will let him drive before 9pm.
7) My cat was hungry. It had not eaten since breakfast.
8) They couldn’t think of anything better to do. They decided to baby-sit
for the family.
9) A book can be a lot of fun to read. A book can be boring.
10) That movie looks great! I would love to come see it with you.
Subordinate clauses -
Dependent
Subordinate or dependent clauses need the
help of subordinating conjunctions to form a
complex sentence.
A complex sentence contains one
independent clause and one dependent
clause.
Subordinate or dependent clauses can be at
the beginning, middle, or end of a sentence.
Subordinate conjunctions are the clue in
identifying dependent clauses.
Subordinate conjunctions
(List)
After in order unless
Although in that until
As once when
As far as since whenever
As soon as so that where
As if than wherever
As though that whether
Because though why
Before till while
Even if
Even though
How
If
In case that
Forming complex sentences
Because it is raining, I brought an umbrella.
Since the tire was flat, we called a tow
truck.
The underline word is a subordinating
conjunction. The colored clause is the
subordinate or dependent clause. It cannot
stand alone as a complete thought.
Practice forming complex
sentences
11) They made plans to go. They ended up not being able to make it.
12) Some say that dogs are friendlier than cats. Cats can also be
extremely loving.
13) What we’ve accomplished is a milestone. Let’s raise our glasses
for a toast.
14) Dr. Johnson ate a big meal. He went to work afterward.
15) I simply cannot get out of bed. I am too tired.
16) Don’t give me a hard time. We’ve been close friends for so long.
17) We don’t believe the way you do. Our culture is very different
from yours.
18) I can’t believe that you would do something so crazy. If I were
you I might do the same.
19) The two weren’t always this close. When she died, they became
closer.
20) I refused to talk about it. I was put in jail.
