Chapter 5: Introduction
This chapter will introduce the basic structure of all clauses by building off the two primary elements: the nominal subject and main verb/predicate. A clause is a fundamental grammatical structure, which means that if both elements (subject AND main verb) are not present, then it cannot be a clause. And, just to reiterate, it’s important to remember that a clause is NOT a sentence, although a sentence, if it is grammatically correct, must contain at least one independent clause; a sentence, of course, can also contain many, many clauses.
In describing the five basic clause types, this chapter begins by showing ways that each clause type is made up of very specific FUNCTION SLOTS, and that recognizing how all phrases and clauses follow predictable patterns, and that they fit into these FUNCTION SLOTS, is another set of key markers for analysis.