NOUN CLAUSES 11 B What is a noun

NOUN CLAUSES 11 B

What is a noun clause? ■ functions as a subject, subject complement, direct object, or object of a preposition. – I know what he said. – I know where Sue lives. – What he said is true.

More about noun clauses ■ Noun clauses are not modifiers, so they are not subordinators like adjectives and adverbs ■ They cannot stand alone. ■ They must function within another sentence pattern and always as nouns

Noun Clauses, continued A noun clause usually begins with a relative pronoun like ■ "that, “ ■ "which, “ ■ "whoever, “ ■ "whomever, “ ■ "whose, “ ■ "whatsoever. “ ■ It can also begin with the subordinating conjunctions "how, " "when, " "where, " "whether, " and "why. "

That clause ■ Main Clause That Clause ■ They didn’t think (that) it would break. ■ I think (that) he called. ■ Have a subject and a verb ■ No comma between the main clause and the that clause ■ That can usually be omitted

That clause ■ – – – That clauses follow mental activity verbs to express Opinions Thoughts Feelings

Noun clauses with Question words ■ – Question Where does she live? Noun Clause I don’t know where she lives. s v o **does/did/do are used in questions but not NC’s

NC’s with question words ■ Question – What did he say? – What did she say? ■ Noun Clause – I couldn’t hear what he said. – What she said surprised me.

NC’s with question words ■ Question – When do they arrive? ■ Noun Clause – Do you know when they arrive?

NC’s with question words ■ Question – Who lives there? ■ Noun Clause – I don’t know who lives there.

Whether or if ■ Use “whether” or “if” when a yes/no question is changed to a noun clause. ■ Whether is more common in formal English ■ Both whether and if have the same meaning and are commonly used in speaking

Whether or if ■ Yes/no question – Will she come? ■ Noun clause – I don’t know whether she will come. s v o – I don’t know if she will come.

Whether or if ■ Notice the patterns with or not is used. ■ I wonder whether or not she will come. ■ I wonder whether she will come or not. ■ I wonder if she will come or not ■ Whether she comes or not is unimportant.