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Panda blue 483 Posted 8 years ago
Grammar

Definition of clause

He was eating a bacon sandwich.
[clause]
She had a long careerbut she is remembered mainly for one early work.
[clause][clause]

Every sentence contains at least one main clause. A main clause may form part of a compound sentence or a complex sentence, but it also makes sense on its own, as in this example:

He was eating a bacon sandwich.
[main clause]

https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/grammar/clauses


What is the distinction here. The clause example is the same as the main clause example. What is the difference between a complete clause and a main clause?


I thought both 'she had a long career and 'she is remebered mainly for one early work' are the main clauses?

  

Top answer

I don't follow you. What distinction are you referring to? " She had a long career " and " she is remembered for one early work " are a coordination of main clauses.

— BillJ

  • I don't follow you.
  • What distinction are you referring to?
  • " She had a long career " and " she is remembered for one early work " are a coordination of main clauses.
  • You could say that a clause is 'complete' if it forms a constituent.
  • It may be a finite clause ( Ed was ill ) or a subordinate one ( He said that Ed was ill ).
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3 Answers
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I don't follow you. What distinction are you referring to?

"She had a long career" and "she is remembered for one early work" are a coordination of main clauses.

You could say that a clause is 'complete' if it forms a constituent. It may be a finite clause (Ed was ill) or a subordinate one (He said that Ed was ill).

Clauses are distinguished

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panda blue 483What is the difference between a complete clause and a main clause?

You did not read it correctly.

A clause may form part of a sentence or it may be a complete sentence in itself.

A main clause (standing alone) forms a complete sentence.

A main clause together with subordinate clauses forms complex, compo

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panda blue 483What is the distinction here. The clause example is the same as the main clause example. What is the difference between a complete clause and a main clause?

A main clause is any clause in sentence that is not subordinate to another clause. All main clauses are complete clauses. In fact, if something is a clause, it's a complete clause.

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