Download The Complex Sentence. Adverbial Clauses

1.1 Definition. A sentence is a unit of speech whose grammatical structure conforms to the laws of
the language and which serves as the chief means of conveying a thought. A sentence is not only a
means of communicating something about reality but a means of showing the speaker’s attitude to
it.
1.2 Classification. The classification of SS is based on two principles:
(A) according to the purpose of the utterance;
(B) according to the structure.
According to the purpose of the utterance we distinguish 4 kinds of sentences:
The declarative sentence states a fact in the affirmative or negative form. In DS the subject precedes
the predicate (pronounced with falling intonation) (!: English predicate can have only one negation).
He does not go anywhere.
The interrogative sentence asks a question. It is formed by means of inversion (unless subject is an
interrogative word: Who is in the room? – no inversion).
There are 4 kinds of questions:
(a) General questions requiring the answer yes or no and spoken with a rising intonation.
They are formed by placing part of the predicative (auxiliary or modal verb) before the
subject.
Do you like art? Can you speak English?
Astonishment: Haven’t you seen him yet?
Rhetoric questions: Can you commit a whole country to their own prisons?
Special q. beginning with an interrogative word (falling intonation)
Where do you live? (order of words is as in Gen. question)
Who lives in this room? (Who – is a subject, order of words is as that of a statement)
(b) Alternative questions, indicating choice (1. rising intonation 2. falling):
Do you live in town or in the country?
(d) Disjunctive questions requiring the answer yes or no and consisting of an affirmative statement
followed by a negative question, or a negative statement followed by an affirmative question (1.
Falling 2. Rising intonation)
You speak English, don’t you?
An Imperative sentence serves to induce a person to do smth, so it expresses a command (falling
tone: Come to the blackboard!), a request or invitation (rising tone: Open the door, please!).
An exclamatory sentence expresses some kind of emotion or feeling. It often begins with the words
what and how, it is always in the declarative form (no inversion) (falling intonation: What a lovely
day it is! How wonderful!)
According to their structure SS are divided into two-member and one-member sentences. A twomember sentence is complete when it has a subject and a predicate.
Fleur had easily established immediate contact with an architect.
A two-member sentence is incomplete when one of the principal parts or both of them are missing,
but can be easily understood from the context. Such sentences are called elliptical: What were we
doing? –Drinking.
A one-member sentence has only one member, which is neither subject nor predicate. This does not
mean that the other member is missing, for the one member makes the sense complete. Used in
descriptions and in emotional speech.
If the main part of a one member sentence is expressed by a noun, the sentence is called nominal.
The noun may be modified by attributes.
Dusk – of the summer night.
The main part of a one member sentence is often expressed by an infinitive.
To die out there – lonely, waiting them, waiting home.
SS can be unextended (consisting only of the primary or principal parts) and extended (consisting of
the subject, a predicate and one or more secondary parts: objects, attributes or adverbial modifiers).
1) Birds fly. 2) This big girl is a student. (attr)
The Principal Parts of the Sentence
In a sentence we distinguish the principal parts, the secondary parts and the independent elements.
The principal parts of the sentence are the subject and the predicate.
The subject
The subject is the principal part of a two-member sentence which is grammatically independent of
the other parts of the sentence and on which the second principal part (the predicate) is dependent.
The subject denotes a living being, a thing or an idea. It can be expressed by:
1) a noun (N) in the common case

The waiter brought my tea.
Occasionally a N in the possessive case is used as the subject:

Ada’s is a noble heart.
2) a pronoun – personal, demonstrative, defining, indefinite, negative, possessive, interrogative.

Everyone was silent for a minute.

Who tore this book?
The subject is often expressed by the indefinite pronoun one or the personal pronouns they, you,
we, which refer not to any particular person or thing but to people in general:

Life is beastly short. One wants to live forever./….Хочется жить вечно.

They say he’s clever./Говорят, ….
3) A substantivized adjective or participle:

The wounded were taken good care of.
4) a numeral (cardinal or ordinal):

The two were quite unable to do anything.
5) an infinitive, an infinitive phrase or construction;

To live is to work.
6) a gerund, a gerundial phrase or construction:

Lying doesn’t go well with me.
7) Any part of speech used as quotation:

On is a preposition.
8) a group of words which is one part of the sentence:

The needle and thread is lost.
It as the subject of the sentence
Notional subject – when it
Formal subject – when it
represents a living being or a thing. doesn’t represent a living being
or a thing and performs purely
grammatical function.
When it is a notional subject the pronoun it has the following meanings:
1) The personal it - It stands for a definite thing or some abstract idea

The door opened. It was opened by a little girl.
2) the demonstrative it - It points out some person or thing expressed by a predicate, or it refers
to the thought contained in the preceding statement

It is John.

It was a large room with a great window.
As a formal subject it has the following meanings:
1) the impersonal it is used –
a) to denote natural phenomenon (state of weather, etc.) or that which characterizes the
environment:

It is cold in winter.
The state of weather can be also expressed by meant of there is construction. In such sentences the
N introduced by there is is the subject:

There was a heavy frost last night.
b) to denote time and distance:

it is 5 minutes past 6.

It is along way from the station.
2) the introductory/anticipatory it introduces the real subject:

It’s no use disguising facts.
3) The emphatic it is used for emphasis:

It was he who won the race.
The Predicate
The predicate is the second principal part of the sentence which expresses an action, state, or
quality of the person or thing denoted by the subject. It is grammatically dependent on the subject.
According to the structure and the meanings of the predicate we distinguish 2 main types of
predicate: the simple predicate and the compound predicate.
The Simple Predicate
It is expressed by a finite verb in a simple or a compound tense form. There is a special kind of
simple predicate expressed by a phraseological unit (to get rid, to take care, to pay attention, to have
awash, to lose sight…) – phraseological predicate: the 1st component –the finite verb has lot its
concrete meaning to a great extent and forms one unit with the N, consequently the N cannot be
treated as an object to the verb.

The man gave a violent start.
We distinguish 2 types of phraseological predicates:
1) word combinations of the following type to have a smoke, to have a run, to take a look, to give a
laugh, to make a move, to give a push (finite verb + N formed from a verb (V) and mostly used
with the indefinite article).

He had a smoke.
2) word combinations of the following type to get rid, to get hold, to make use, to take care, to lose
sight, to make fun, to pay attention, to change one’s mind… (the 2nd component of these
combinations is in most cases an abstract N used without any article.)

You were making fun of mother just now.
The Compound Predicate
It consists of 2 parts: a finite verb + some part of speech (N, ProN, Adj.,Verbal). It can be nominal or
verbal.
The Compound Nominal Predicate
It denotes the state or quality of the person/thing expressed by the subject, or the class of
persons/things to which the person/thing belongs. The compound nominal predicate consists of a
link verb + a predicative (the nominal part of the predicate).Most link verbs, except be, to some
extent preserve their meanings: to appear, to get, to grow, to continue, to feel, to keep, to look, to
turn, to prove. to remain, to fall, to go, to seem, to smell.

He grew more cheerful.
There are some verbs which, though fully preserving their concrete meaning, perform the function
of a link verb: to lie, to sit, to die, to marry, to return, to leave, to come, to stand, to fall…

The poor woman sat amazed.
According to their meaning link verbs can be divided into 2 large groups:
1) link verbs of being and remaining (to remain, to keep, to continue, to smell, etc.)

The door remained wide open.
2) link verbs of becoming ( to become, to get, to leave, to run, to turn, to make, etc.)

this becomes uninteresting, however, after a time.
The predicative can be expressed by:
1) N in the common case

She’s a pretty child.
2) adjective

He’s awfully selfish.

It tastes delicious.
3) ProN

It’s me.
4) word of category of state

But I’m afraid I can’t keep the man.
5) numeral

He was the first to break the silence.

I’m only 18.
6) prepositional phrase

The things were outside her experience.
7) infinitive, inf. phrase/construction

Her 1st thought was to go away.
8) gerund, gerundial phrase/construction

My favorite sport is swimming.
9) Participle II

He was surprised at the sound of his own voice.
10) Adverb
The Compound Verbal Predicate
The compound verbal
modal predicate
The compound verbal
aspect predicate
The Compound Verbal Modal Predicate
It shows the action as possible/impossible, obligatory, necessary, desirable, etc. and may consist of:
1) Modal verb + infinitive

You can prove everything.
2) modal expression: to be + infinitive, to have + infinitive

I have to work for my living.
3) a V with a modal meaning + infinitive/gerund (to hope, to expect, to intend, to try, to attempt, to
long, to wish, to want, to desire, etc.)

He tried to open the tin and badly cut his finger.

We intend going to Switzerland.
4) modal expressions + infinitive (to be able, to be obliged, to be bound, to be willing, to be anxious,
to be gong, to be capable, etc.)

I’m going to leave Paris.
5) verbs and expressions used in sentences containing the Subj.Inf.Construction:

About 4000 workers of the port are believed to be on strike
The Compound Verbal Aspect Predicate
It expresses the beginning, duration, or the cessation of an action and consists of such verbs as to
start, to begin, to fall, to set about, to go on, to keep on, to proceed, to continue, to stop, to cease, to
finish,etc. + infinitive/gerund. Here also belong would and used to + infinitive.

His bones ceased to ache.
Mixed types of predicate
(containing 3 elements)
1) the compound modal nominal predicate

Don’t think I mean to be unkind.
2) the compound aspect nominal predicate

The grey house had ceased to be the house for the family.
3) the compound modal aspect predicate

He ought to stop doing nothing and criticizing everybody.
The Object
The O. is a part of the complementation of a verb, a verbal or an adjective within verb,
verbal (non-finite) or adjective phrases. It refers to a person or thing, or a state of affairs
which is affected or produced by, or is related to the action or state expressed by the
predicate of a sentence. There may be 2 objects in one simple sentence: Mary sent Jane a
letter. The pronoun it can be used as a formal object (expressed by an infinitive or gerundial
phrase) extraposed to the end of the sentence: I don’t like it to be treated like this. The O.
may be represented by a single word, a phrase, a predicative construction or a subordinate
clause.
Parts of speech: a noun, a pronoun, a numeral, a substantivized adjective or participle (the
wounded), an infinitive, a gerund, a predicative construction (non-finite clauses) – They
insisted on my answering him, a quotation – She exclaimed “My God”. In a complex
sentence, a subordinate clause may serve as an O. to a verb in the main clause – I didn’t
know where they lived.
Kinds of O:
1. The direct O. is used after transitive verbs and denotes a person or a thing wholly
involved and/or directly affected by the action of a transitive verb: She saw me and
smiled. The d.O. may complement monotransitive phrasal verb with the adverb
preceding or following it: Ray gave up his work. Come on, I’ll show you around.
2. The indirect O. is the first complement of the distransitive verb. The second noun
phrase complementing the verb functions as direct object: Give me a chance!
Sometimes the i.O. is used alone to complement the verb: Shall I tell hem? The i.O. is
related to a prepositional phrase introduced by to, for, of: He bought a dress for her.
3. The prepositional O. is a nominal phrase introduced by a preposition which serves as
part of the complementation of the prepositional verb or an adjective with a “fixed”
preposition: The value of liberty depends on other values. Ditransitive prepositional
verbs are complemented by a direct object and by a prepositional phrase, which
follows it: She blamed herself for saying it.
The Attribute
The A. is a secondary part of the sentence which constitutes part of a noun phrase, modifies
its head and denotes a quality of a person or a thing. It may be represented by a single
word, a phrase, or a subordinate clause; it may precede or follow the word it modifies.
Parts of speech: an adjective, a pronoun (my, these), a numeral, a noun, a participle – a
sleeping baby, a gerund – sleeping tablets, an infinitive – a book for you to read, an adverb –
the room above, prepositional phrases – jokes of your brother’s. Attributive clauses used as
postmodifiers transform the whole sentence into a complex one: I’ll never forget the day
when we first met.
Apposition
A. is a special kind of attributive relation between noun phrases (appositives) which denote
the same person or thing: a person or thing referred to by one appositive is characterized or
explained by the other appositive which gives the person or thing another name: J.Smith,
the Dean, wil…; the word “grammar”.
Kinds of A:
1. A non-detached, close or restrictive A. Here the appositive noun phrases constitute a
single semantic unit and are not separated by punctuation: My friend Gregory. Most
often a.word-groups comprise the name of a person functioning as a head-word and
a noun denoting a title, rank, profession, kinship or a geographical name: Pr.Jones,
Captain Brown, Aunt Polly, President Putin, the River Thames. In set combinations
like William the Conqueror, Richard the Lion Heart the modifying appositive follows
the word.
2. A detached (non-restrictive) or loose appositive is not so closely connected with the
head-word and is separated by commas. It gives some additional information about
the person or thing denoted by the head-word, carrying some explanation or
identification: He was in grey, his favourite colour. A d.a. usually follows the headword, although it does not always come immediately after it: She was taller than her
brother, a slim, pretty girl.
The Adverbial modifier
The A.m. is a secondary part of the sentence which modifies a verb, an adjective or an
adverb. A.m. denote the time, place, cause and manner of the action or process expressed
by the verb. When modifying an adjective, the A.m. characterizes quality or quantity of a
state denoted by the adjective. The A.m. may be expressed by a single word (an adverb), a
phrase consisting of two or more words (prep.phrase), or a clause (modifies the whole
clause it relates to, characterizing the latter denotes – He was ten when I saw him first.)
A.m.can be placed at the beginning, in the middle or, most typically, at the end of the
sentence. Adverbials denoting indefinite time (usually, never, recently) and degree (almost,
completely, only) – a medial position. They follow (modal) auxiliaries or the first of two
auxiliaries in any complex verb group: No one could quite understand it. Interrogative
sentences – after the subject: What have you finally decided? Modal words (Perhaps,etc) –
at the beginning or in the middle. Enough – after the word it modifies. When more that one
adverbial comes in the sentence, first – an A.m. of place and time.
Semantic types of AM
1. The A.m. of place and direction may be expressed by a prep.phrase, an adverb, an
adverbial phrase or a clause.
2. The A.m. of time may be expressed by a noun (tomorrow), a prep.phrase (before the
war), a partII preceded by when/while (When refused…), a participle or a part.phrase
(Take care crossing the street), a gerund with a prep. or a ger.phrase and clauses of
place (You won’t recognize the house when you come next time)
3. The A.m. of condition is expressed by a noun or a pronoun preceded by the
prepositions and conjunctions but for, except for, in case, by a participle or an
adjective with the conjunctions if, unless(if necessary,…), by a gerundial phrase
introduced by the prep. without, by an adv.clause of condition.
4. The A.m. of concession is introduced by the preps despite, for all, in spite of, with all
and the conjunction though.
5. The A.m.of cause (reason) may be expressed by a prep.phrase: He couldn’t speak for
tears. Because of, due to, on account of, owing to, thanks to…, by a clause or by a
participial phrase: Wishing to say sth he jumped from the chair.
6. The A.m. of purpose is rendered by a single infinitive, an inf.phrase (He stood up to
say goodbye), an inf.construction, a nominal or ger,phrase with the prep. for (They
came for lunch. He did it for making me angry) or a clause of purpose.
7. The A.m. of result (consequence) is expressed by an infinitive, an inf.phrase or an
inf.construction which refers to an adjective or an adverb preceded by such adverbs
of degree as too, enough (You are clever enough not to do it), or the conjunction
so…as (She is not so foolish as to do anything wrong).
8. The A.m. of manner is expressed by adverbs or prep.phrases introduced by the preps
by, by means of, with, without or with the help of. + part.phrases (She ran fast,
without looking back), absolute constructions (She entered, her eyes sad) and
clauses.
9. The A.m. of attendant circumstances is rendered by a participial (He was sitting
smoking cigarettes), gerundial (She entered without looking at him) or infinitive
phrase or by an absolute construction (I hurried away, her pale face still in my eyes).
Don’t confuse №8, since №9 denotes an action or a state which is relatively
independent of the action of the main verb. When expressed by an infinitive phrase,
the modifier denotes an action which is neither the result nor the purpose of the
action denoted by the main verb. (He opened the door to see that all had gone – Он
открыл дверь и увидел, что все ушли.)
10. The A.m. of degree and measure is expressed by an adverb or a prep.phrase.
intensifier adverbs (nearly, almost, rather, really) denote a point along a scale of
intensity to which the action or property has been fulfilled: It’s rather chilly outside.
11. The A.m. of comparison is expressed by adjective or participle phrases introduced by
the conjunction as, as if, as though. Adverbials of comparison may also be expressed
by noun phrases introduced with than or as. These adverbials are preceded by
comparatives – Some jobs are more difficult than others.
12. The A.m. of exclusion and substitution is expressed by nouns or nominal phrases
introduced with the preps apart from, but, but for, except, instead and transfers the
meaning of exception to the idea expressed by the rest of the sentence. Everybody
was present but Jane.
Independent Parts of the Sentence
Words of phrases which are not connected grammatically (syntactically) to any constituent
of the sentence. They are marked by intonation, pauses, special stress in spoken language;
in written language they are separated by commas or dashes.
1. Direct address is represented in the sentence by the name of a person or a non-person to
whom the rest of the sentence is usually addressed:
What would you advise me, Doctor?
2. Disjuncts express the speaker's attitude towards the content of the sentence. These may
be words and phrases specifying the sense in which the sentence is supposed to be understood (personally, frankly, generally, briefly, to be fair). Disjuncts may also be modal adverbs
commenting on the truth-value of the sentence (perhaps, probably, actually) or adverbs
expressing emotional attitude of the speaker (happily, hopefully, strangely):
Actually, he was enjoying himself immensely.
Hopefully we will do well.
3. Conjuncts provide a logical link to a preceding sentence and to indicate the place of the
sentence within the structure of the discourse. These are: after all, besides, by the way,
consequently, first, firstly, for example, moreover, on the contrary, otherwise, to begin with,
on the other hand:
4. Exclamatory emotive words (interjections) can also be very loosely connected to the rest
of the sentence:
Oh, Good Gracious, you couldn't have done that!
The Compound Sentence
Plan:
1. Compound s. – an outline;
2. Asyndetic Compound Sentences;
3. Syndetic compound sentences;
a. C.s. with disjunctive coord.
b. C.s. with adversative coord.
c. C.s. with causative-consecutive coordination
d. C.s. with copulative coordination.
A c.s. is a multiple sentence of two or more clauses coordinated with each other. Clauses
combined by means of coordination are regarded as independent^ they are linked in such a
way that there is no hierarchy in the syntactic relationship$ they have the same syntactic
status. Two clauses are coordinated if they are connected by a conjunct or a coordinator/
Coordinated clauses are sometimes called “conjoins” Coordination can be asyndatic or
syndatic. Grammar books differ greatly in their treatment of coordinators. Clausal
coordinators are regarded as those linking elements which do not allow other linking
words before them. Coordinators are to be distinguished from conjuncts (therefore,
otherwise, also, then).
Asyndetic Compound Sentences:
In a.c.s. coordinators are absent. 1. Two or more clauses can be made into one s. without a
coordinator being used. The result is a.c.s. Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it. It is natural that
asyndetically joined coordinate clauses should convey related ideas. Grammatically, these
relations might not be expressed explicitly: the speaker or writer has them in mind when
producing an utterance and listener deduces them from the semantic context, intonation
contour and some structural features of the coordinated clauses. More often the relation
between a. joined coordinate clauses is shown with the help of conjunctive adverbs or
conjuncts (however, yet, thus, so, besides). They want to be slim, of course, yet after
months of dieting failure they might think it was time to stop. 2. In writing, asyndetically
joined coordinate clauses are separated by a semicolon (;), colon (:) or a dash (-). The
semicolon is perhaps most frequently used. The colon is mainly used to set off a clause
that explains or elaborates the statement expressed in the first clause. The dash is
especially common in informal writing; it can be used in the same way as the colon. A
comma can be used in a.s. if the clauses are very short or the ideas expressed are closely
related: I came, I saw, I conquered. 3. If both a.c. are negative in meaning and the second
clause opens with still less, much less or even less, this second clause has inverted word
order, similar to the interrogative sentence inversion She doesn’t even like him; much less
does she want to marry him. 4. A.s. are found in a number of proverbs Two is a company;
three is none/ a crowd.
Syndetic compound sentences:
In s.c.c. the type of coordination is expressed explicitly by means of coordinators,
coordinating conjunctions and, but, for, so that The lights went out, the curtain went up
and the show began. The peculiarity of and and or is that they can link more than two
clauses. Coordinators can be divided into one-member, or simple (and, but) and multimember (either…or).
Coordinators and conjuncts in a compound sentence express four logical types of
coordination: copulative, disjunctive, adversative and causative-consecutive.
C.s. with copulative coordination.
In such s. the clauses are simply linked together to express 2 or more related facts.
Coordinators: and, neither … nor, not only … but, and so on. Clauses containing the
endorsing item not only have direct word order when this element is found in midposition, and inverted word order when this element is found in initial position. Clauses
opening with neither, nor, so always have inverted word order; I don’t blame you, and
neither do I doubt your honesty; Not only did Harry lose his wallet, but he was also
robbed of his Swiss watch. C.s. can be used in an informal style to express advice, threat or
warning. This is done by conjoining an imperative clause and a clause opening with and
and containing a verb in the future tense: Go by train and you’ll get to N. at 4 a.m. C.s. are
found in proverbs: Give him an inch, and he’ll take a mile.
C.s. with disjunctive coord.
Such s. express an alternative. This is achieved with the help of or, or else, either…or,
otherwise: Either the pump is broken or the drainage is clogged. D.s. can be used to give
advice, warning or an order, using otherwise and or: Hurry up, or you’ll be late again.
C.s. with adversative coord.
In such s. the statements expressed by the clauses are contrasted in meaning, using
coordinator but and conjuncts however, nevertheless, still, yet etc. At first, she refused to
join us; later, however, she changed her mind. The order of clauses cannot be reversed,
because implications of the whole s. will be different. A.s. are found in proverbs: It never
rains but it pours.
C.s. with causative-consecutive coordination
Such sentences express the idea of cause and consequence. This is done with the help of for,
hence, then, therefore, thus etc. I’m off on holiday, so I won’t be seeing you for a while. For
is sometimes interchangeable with because, although the use of for in place of because is
regarded as dated.
Subject, predicative and object clauses are referred as nominal clauses because their
counterparts in the SS are expressed by nominal parts of speech.
Subject clause is a kind of dependent clause that serves as subject to the predicate of the
main clause: That she was still there was a surprise for me.
SC can be to the end of the sentence and the introductory it takes the initial subject
position, in this case a subordinate clause is regarded as an extraposed subject of the
sentence: It was a surprise or me that she was still there.
The introductory it is often used to move a longer subject clause to final position. Some
adjectives are often found in the main clause as predicatives to the formal it:
It was appropriate that the guests wore evening dresses
A sentence may contain emphatic what-clause, it cannot be shifted to the end and
sometimes called pseudo-cleft sentence: What I enjoy is a good laugh.
The conjunctions but that (formal), except that, save that (formal), apart from the fact that
are used to introduce clauses elaborating or making more specific the meaning of the
subject of the main clause: Nothing would satisfy his parents but that he should get only the
top grades.
SC in proverbs and idiomatic expressions: What is done can’t be undone.
Predicative clause is a kind of dependent clause that serves as predicative,
complementing as it does a link verb in the main clause. Link verbs: be, feel, look, seem,
taste, sound, become and remain: The point is that my pass is no longer valid.
Introduced by means of the same subordinators as subject clause (both that-clauses and
wh-clauses): And that’s why we agreed.
With as if/as though can vary according to the presumed reality or unreality and the time of
reference. Susan looks as if she is intelligent (похоже что она умна),
Susan looks as if she was intelligent (but she is not),
Susan looks as if she were intelligent (but she is not – formal)
A marginal type of PC: Their requirements are as follows.
PC in idiomatic expressions: That’s there a shoe pinches (= That’s the problem)
Object clause is a kind of dependent clause that serves as object to a finite or not finite
verb in the main clause: I knew that they were tired.
Only that-clauses and wh-clauses in object position in complex sentence. Wh-clauses can be
preceded by a preposition: Don’t you ever listen to what I say?
Conjunction that can be sometimes omitted (after common reporting verbs – say think
know…): She said she had married Ronald.
OC are often found after predicative adjectives and participles: afraid, angry, certain,
pleased proud…
He was very anxious that we should meet.
With formal object it: I hate it when people are cruel to animals.
The predicate of the OC stands in the subjunctive mood if this clause is subordinated to one
of the following volitional verbs in the main clause: advise, ask, beg, insist, order, propose,
recommend, suggest and so on.
OC found after the verb wish use various verb forms depending on the meaning of the
utterance and time reference of the action named in OC: I wish tomorrow was Saturday (it
isn’t). Now she wishes she had gone to college.
The past subjunctive and the past indefinite forms are found in OC following I’d rather/I’d
sooner: I’d rather you didn’t tell him.
Inverted word order in a main clause: 1. Little + verbs of mental activity – Little did she
realized what have become of her children; 2. Well may…, With good reason may… or With
every justification may…: With every justification may you say the journey was well worth
money.
OC in idiomatic expressions: I hope Billy will get what’s coming to him (=what he deserves)
An attributive clause is a dependent clause that serves as attribute to a noun or pronoun
in the main clause (with one exception to be pointed out below); the noun or pronoun thus
qualified is termed the antecedent: • Anyone who goes to a psychiatrist ought to have his
head examined.
On the basis of their semantic and syntactic relationship with the antecedent, attributive
clauses are divided into two major classes: appositive (or appositional) and relative clauses.
1.Attributive Appositive Clauses
AAC are also termed content clauses because they disclose the semantic content, or the
meaning of the antecedent: • / agree with the old saying that fortune favours the brave.
Attributive appositive clauses are joined syndetically, by means of conjunction that,
other subordinators (e. g. whether and why) are very rare.
Because an attributive appositive clause is closely connected with its antecedent, it is
not set off by a comma in writing, nor is it pronounced as separate tone group in speaking.
The antecedent of an attributive appositive clause is most typically countable abstract
noun:
Advice, belief, decision, demand, fact, hope, idea, opinion, promise, saying, suggestion.
• There was little hope that the climbers would be found alive.
Another group of frequently used antecedents to appositive clauses includes such
uncountable abstract nouns as news, information and knowledge:
• Have you heard the news that the border has been closed?
The antecedents question and problem are followed by an AAC with the preposition of:
• The question of whether we should demand a payment for our services was not even
discussed.
The use of a plural antecedent is rare:
• The colonel gave orders that he was not to be disturbed.
2.Attributive Relative Clauses
ARC are so called because they are joined with the help of relative pronouns or adverbs.
Their function is to qualify the antecedent:
 The dean saw all the students who had received poor grades.
Attributive relative clauses are chiefly introduced with the help of subordinators who,
whom, whose, that, which, whose, when, where, and why. They can also be joined
asyndetically. Occasionally, we find attributive relative clauses joined by means of as and
(such.. ) as:
• The question as it is put by the author admits of no real answer.
The ARC can be divided into two groups: limiting and non-limiting.
2.1Attributive Relative Limiting Clauses
ARLC are also called defining, restrictive, or essential. They limit the semantics of the
antecedent; they are essential to the meaning and structure of the sentence and could not
be eliminated:
• I can't stand people who are cruel to animals (But not (?) I can’t stand people).
Because ARLC are closely connected with the main clause, they are not set off by a
comma in writing, nor are they pronounced as a separate lone group in speaking.
ARLC qualifying a personal antecedent are joined by means of the subordinators
(relative pronouns) who, whom, whose, and that: He is the sort of man that/who never lies.
ARLC qualifying a non-personal antecedent are joined by means of the subordinators
that, which, whose / of which, when, where: She retired to the town where she had spent
her youth.
There are a few cases where that is preferred to which:
1) when the antecedent is an indefinite pronoun:
• The governor promised to do all that lay in his power to help the flood victims;
2) when the antecedent is qualified by an ordinal numeral:
• The 1st church that was built in the city became very popular;
3) when the antecedent is qualified by a superlative adjective:
• “Hamlet" is perhaps the most profound tragedy that has ever been written in the
English language;
4) when the limiting clause has a compound nominal predicate:
• 'Doom' is a computer game that has become popular all over the world.
2.1.1Attributive Relative Limiting Particularizing Clauses
ARLPC restrict the meaning of the antecedent by establishing a reference to a particular
person or thing (or a particular group of persons or things). Their antecedent is
accompanied by the particularizing definite article or the demonstrative pronoun
that/those:
• The girl I told you about is my next door neighbour.
Occasionally, the antecedent is modified by the pronoun such, and the
2.1.2Attributive Relative Limiting Classifying Clauses
ARLCC restrict the meaning of the antecedent by establishing a reference to a certain
class or category of persons or things. Their antecedent is accompanied by the classifying
indefinite article (the zero article with non-count nouns or nouns in the plural) or an
indefinite determiner (such as some, any, no): She lectured on a topic I know very little
about.
ARLCC typically qualify pronouns; the meaning of nouns is rather vague and often
needs to be limited in context: Is there anything / could do to help out?
2.2Attributive Relative Non-Limiting Clauses
ARNC are also called non-defining, non-restrictive or non-essential. They do not
restrict the meaning of the antecedent; but provide some additional info about a person
or thing denoted by the antecedent. They aren’t essential to the structure of the
sentence and could be left out:
• In my class there are only advanced students, most of whom are from Eastern
Europe.
Non-limiting clauses are loosely connected with the main clause; they are set off by
commas (or sometimes by parentheses) in writing and pronounced as a separate tone
group in speaking.
Non-limiting clauses are always joined syndetically, by means of relate pronouns and
adverbs.
ARNC can be further subdivided into descriptive and continuative, depending on the
structural type of the antecedent.
2.2.1Attributive Relative Non-Limiting Descriptive Clauses
ARNDC provide a description of the antecedent. An antecedent is a proper noun, a
'unique’ noun, or a noun (group) made definite by the context or situation:
• She introduced me to her husband, who struck me as a very shrewd man.
• The Mississippi River, which flows south from Minnesota to the Gulf of Mexico, is the
major commercial river in the US.
The use of the indefinite or zero article with the antecedent of a ARNDC is also possible:
• Rice, which is grown in many countries, is a staple food throve out much of the world.
The subordinator can be preceded by a quantifier or a superlative:
• / bought a dozen eggs, two of which were bad.
• I bought a dozen eggs, the smallest of which /of which the smallest was bad.
The importance of punctuating descriptive clauses can be illustrated by the following
examples:
• (a) The hikers who knew about the avalanche took another road.
• (b) The hikers, who knew about the avalanche, took another road.
Sentence (a), which contains a ARLPC, implies that only some of the hikers took another
road, but there were presumably others who did not.
Sentence (b), which contains a ARNDC, implies that all the hikers knew about the
avalanche and therefore took another road.
2.2.2Attributive Relative Non-Limiting Continuative Clauses
The antecedent of the ARNCC is not just a noun or pronoun, but the whole main
clause. They are added as an afterthought and continue, as it were, the idea expressed in
the main clause:
• Julia refused, which was unwise (= 'and that was unwise').
Continuative clauses are joined syndetically, by means of the subordinator which.
Sometimes a continuative clause opens with a combination of a preposition, the pronoun
which, and a noun like case or event, which is a very general word for a situation:

I was reprimanded by the boss, at which point I gave her notice.
The Complex Sentence. Adverbial Clauses
1. An adverbial clause is a dependent clause that serves as adverbial modifier to the
predicate or another member of the main clause:
Andrea couldn't type any more letters as her eyes were tired.
As Doris ran up the steps, she twisted her ankle.
Pretty as she was, nobody liked her.
2. Adverbial clauses can be joined syndetically, i. e. by means of subordinating conjunctions,
or asyndetically (in which case a sentence could always be paraphrased so as to include a
conjunction). An adverbial clause can precede, interrupt or follow the main clause. The
general rule is to punctuate adverbial clauses placed in initial or medial position:
An Englishman, even if he is alone, forms an orderly queue of one.
3. According to their meaning we distinguish the following types of adverbial clauses:
adverbial clauses of time, place, condition, reason, purpose, result, manner, comparison and
concession.
Adverbial Clauses of Time
1. Adverbial clauses of time (or temporal clauses) are used to say when something
happened by referring to another event:
I can't pay my bills until my paycheque comes.
Adverbial clauses of time are introduced by the following one-member and multi-member
subordinators: when, before, by the time (that), the first/last/next time (that), wherever,
since, directly, during the time (that), after, until, immediately, no sooner…than, as, till, once,
hardly / scarcely / barely... when, as/ so long as, while, every / each time, the
moment/minute, etc. (that).
2. As a rule, future tenses are not found in clauses of time; present tenses with a future
reference are used instead.
3. Main clauses opening with the endorsing items barely, hardly, scarcely and no sooner
have inverted word order. If these endorsing items occur in medial position, the word order
is normal. These sentence models generally use the past perfect tense in the main clause
and the simple past in the time clause.
If a clause of time preceding the main clause opens with only after, only when or not until,
the main clause has inverted word order.
After wherever (and other -ever compounds in various types of subordinate clauses) we
sometimes find the modal auxiliary may, which can imply a remote possibility.
Minor breakdowns, whenever they may occur, will be fixed promptly.
Adverbial Clauses of Place
1. Adverbial clauses of place are used to say where something happened by referring to the
scene or direction of another event or process. Adverbial clauses of place are introduced by
the subordinators where, wherever, anywhere, everywhere:
Where buildings were destroyed by the earthquake, rescue parties are now at work.
Sometimes an adverbial clause of place is preceded by a preposition:
I can see it clearly from where I'm sitting.
2. Present simple is normally used to denote a future action after the subordinators
anywhere, everywhere and wherever.
Adverbial Clauses of Condition
1. Complex sentences with adverbial clauses of condition (called "conditional sentences" or
"conditionals") are used to refer to an event, described by the main clause, that depends for
its occurrence on another event (condition), described in the subordinate clause. Conditions
may be thought of as real or unreal (hypothetical or counterfactual).
2. Adverbial clauses of condition are introduced by the following one-member and multimember subordinators: if, so/as long as, on (the) condition (that), if…then, assuming (that),
in the event that, unless, given that, suppose / supposing (that), what if, in case (that),
provided/providing (that), say, once, on the understanding that.
3. An adverbial clause of condition can be joined asyndetically provided that it has inverted
word order.
In asyndetic conditional sentences, the contracted forms Weren't, Shouldn't and Hadn't
cannot be used to open a conditional clause; the corresponding full forms should be used.
4. In dealing with conditional sentences and their varied structure, two criteria should be
taken into account: the time reference and presumed reality or unreality of the situation
described. These factors combine to determine the choice of verb forms in conditional
sentences. Accordingly, we distinguish three basic models of conditional sentences:
Type 1: situation thought of as real; present, past or future time reference.
Type 2: situation thought of as unreal or hypothetical; present or future time reference.
Type 3: situation thought of as unreal; past time reference.
Within these types there is considerable variation of form and meaning.
Adverbial Clauses of Reason
1. Adverbial clauses of reason (or cause) are used to give a reason for the event or situation
named in the main clause or to say why the statement expressed in the main clause is true.
Adverbial clauses of reason are introduced by the following one-member and multi-member
subordinators: because, now that seeing (that), as, in that considering (that), since, for the
reason that, insofar as (formal), due / owing to the fact that, so / as long as, in view of the
fact that, inasmuch as (formal), on the ground(s) that.
2. Adverbial clauses of reason introduced by as occasionally have inverted word order, with
a predicative of the subordinate clause moved to the front. Cf.: Tired as she was, I didn't like
to disturb her. As she was tired, I didn't like to disturb her.
Adverbial Clauses of Purpose
1. Adverbial clauses of purpose are used to indicate the purpose of an action. Purpose
clauses are introduced by the following conjunctions: so that, in order that, lest (formal),
that (old-fashioned), so (informal), in case, for fear (that), if (+ be to).
2. As purpose clauses refer to hypothetical or future events, they often employ a modal, a
future verb or a subjunctive mood form. When the verb in the main clause is in the present
or future, or else in the imperative mood, the purpose clause employs may, can or will. The
present simple is also possible.
Besides, the purpose clause frequently employs the present simple if the predicate of the
main clause includes a modal verb or a subjunctive mood form:
He should drive carefully so that he doesn't get fined.
When the verb in the main clause is in the past, the purpose clause employs might, could,
should or would:
Before coming to class I put my name on the cover so that nobody would take my course
book.
Adverbial Clauses of Result
1. Adverbial clauses of result describe the result entailed by an action or event named in the
main clause. Result clauses are introduced by the following multi-member subordinators:
(so)... that, (such)... that, so that, with the result that. Result clauses always follow the main
clause:
We arrived ahead of time, so that we got the best seats.
2. Adverbial clauses of result introduced by so... (that) and such... (that) are also called
adverbial clauses of degree.
The scope of his knowledge was such that he could lecture on any literary trend without
using any notes. (or: Such was the scope of his knowledge that...)
3. Result clauses introduced with so that may look similar to clauses of purpose. However,
their verb forms are different. A result is a "real" fact; therefore, the predicate of a result
clause stands in the indicative mood (chiefly the simple present or past). A purpose is an
"unreal" fact, or an intended result; therefore, the predicate of a purpose clause often
includes a modal verb (usually should / would), or a verb in the future tense. Otherwise, the
unreality is shown by the verb form in the main clause.
Adverbial Clauses of Manner
1. Adverbial clauses of manner are used to say how something is done by referring to
another action, real or imaginary. Adverbial clauses of manner are introduced by the
following one-member and multi-member subordinators: as, in a way, much as, (in) the way
(that), as if, how (informal), as though, like (informal).
Notice the verb form variants in adverbial clauses of manner after as if and as though:
George writes as if he is left-handed. (One can infer from his handwriting that he is lefthanded.)
George writes as if he was/were left-handed. (but he is not)
Adverbial clauses of manner joined by as can optionally have inverted word order,
particularly when the subject is expressed by a long noun phrase.
2. The meaning of manner as expressed by adverbial clauses often implies comparison.
However, clauses of manner differ structurally from clauses of comparison in that they do
not correlate with an endorsing item in the main clause. Clauses of comparison, conversely,
always require an endorsing item. Besides, clauses of manner can be used to elaborate the
meaning of an adverbial modifier of manner, in which case they could be regarded as
specifying adverbial clauses of manner.
Adverbial Clauses of Comparison
1. Adverbial clauses of comparison are used to compare two things or facts so as to say how
they are similar or different. Adverbial clauses of comparison are introduced by the
correlative subordinators as and than, with an endorsing item in the main clause. The
endorsing item can be an adverb (as, more, less) or a morpheme (-er), modifying a
comparative element.
2. Endorsing items in the main clause often combine with intensifying or limiting adverbs:
half, much, far, etc.
The following structures are most often found in comparative clauses: as... as, not so... as, er... than, more... than, not as... as, as... as if, less... than, nothing like,
(much/nearly/almost/just about) the same... as.
A clause of comparison generally follows the main clause.
3. The present simple is often used to refer to the future in comparative clauses.
Adverbial Clauses of Concession
1. Complex sentences with adverbial clauses of concession express the admission that
although something is true or accepted, another part of the problem, another view or
situation (often unexpected) exists. Adverbial clauses of concession are introduced by the
following one-member and multi-member subordinators: although, though, even though,
even if,
while, whereas, granted that, whatever, wherever, whichever, whoever, not that,
considering, whether... or, in spite of the fact that, despite the fact that, whenever, much as,
however (good), no matter (what).
2. A concessive clause has inverted order if it opens with a predicative followed by the
conjunctions as or though:
Handsome as/though he was, nobody liked him.
In this kind of structure as has a concessive meaning, as distinct from clauses of reason,
where as retains its causal meaning whether the word order is inverted or not. Cf.: Tired as
she was / As she was tired, I didn't like to disturb her. (an adverbial clause of reason)
Tired as she was, she went on typing. (an adverbial clause of concession).