Subordinate clauses are the building blocks of complex sentences. They add depth and nuance to our writing, allowing us to express more sophisticated ideas. Understanding their types and functions is crucial for crafting clear, engaging prose.

Adverbial, relative, and nominal clauses each play unique roles in sentences. Adverbial clauses modify verbs, relative clauses provide extra info about nouns, and nominal clauses act as nouns themselves. Mastering these helps create richer, more varied writing.

Types of Subordinate Clauses

Types of subordinate clauses

• Adverbial clauses modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs answering when, where, why, or how (While I was sleeping, the cat knocked over the vase)
• Relative clauses modify nouns or pronouns providing additional information (The book that I borrowed from the library is overdue)
• Nominal clauses function as nouns in a sentence serving as subject, object, or complement (What she said surprised everyone)

Function of adverbial clauses

• Express time (when) indicating when an action occurs (After the concert ended, we went for dinner)
• Indicate place (where) specifying location of an action (Wherever you go, I will follow)
• Show reason (why) explaining the cause of an action (Because it was raining, we canceled the picnic)
• Describe manner (how) detailing how an action is performed (She sang as if she were on stage)
• State condition (if/unless) presenting circumstances for an action (If it snows, the schools will close)
• Placement varies: beginning, middle, or end of sentence (Before the sun rises, the birds begin to sing)
• Common subordinating conjunctions: after, before, while, because, although, if

Role of relative clauses

• Types: restrictive (essential information) and non-restrictive (additional, non-essential information)
• Relative pronouns: who (people), which (things), that (people or things), whose (possessive)
• Provide specific details about the antecedent (The car, which was red, belonged to my neighbor)
• Clarify or define the noun being modified (The woman who won the lottery donated half to charity)

Purpose of nominal clauses

• Act as nouns within a sentence providing a complete thought as a sentence element
• Structures: that-clauses, wh-clauses (what, who, whom, which, whose, when, where, why, how), if/whether clauses
• Function as subject of a verb (What she said surprised everyone)
• Serve as direct object of a verb (I wonder whether he will come)
• Act as object of a preposition (The decision depends on what the committee decides)
• Work as subject complement (The question is why they left so early)
• Operate as object complement (They made him what he is today)

Construction of complex sentences

• Steps for constructing:
  1. Start with an independent clause
  2. Add subordinate clauses to provide additional information
  3. Use appropriate subordinating conjunctions or relative pronouns
• Combine multiple clause types (The book that I borrowed, which was recommended by my professor, is due tomorrow)
• Punctuation rules: commas with non-restrictive relative clauses, no commas with restrictive relative clauses, comma usage with adverbial clauses based on placement