This article is missing information about clauses in non-English languages.(November 2013) |
In language, a clause is a constituent that comprises a semantic predicand (expressed or not) and a semantic predicate.[1] A typical clause consists of a subject and a syntactic predicate,[2] the latter typically a verb phrase composed of a verb with any objects and other modifiers. However, the subject is sometimes unvoiced if it is retrievable from context, especially in null-subject language but also in other languages, including English instances of the imperative mood.
A complete simple sentence contains a single clause with a finite verb. Complex sentences contain at least one clause subordinated (dependent) to an independent clause (one that could stand alone as a simple sentence), which may be co-ordinated with other independents with or without dependents. Some dependent clauses are non-finite.