Clauses

Adverb Clauses

A whole clause — with its own subject and verb — doing an adverb’s job. The first of the three subordinate clause types, and the one whose diagram is easiest to read.

What you’ll learn

Recognise a subordinating conjunction and the clause it introduces
Draw a second base line joined by a dashed line
Work out which word in the main clause the adverb clause modifies
Tell a subordinating conjunction from a coordinating one

A clause where an adverb would go

Compare We left early with We left because the bridge closed. Both answer why or when; the first uses one word and the second uses a whole clause. Structurally they occupy the same position.

An adverb clause begins with a subordinating conjunction — because, although, when, if, until, since, while, unless, after, before — which is what makes it dependent: it cannot stand alone as a sentence.

Find the subordinating conjunction
It is the first word of the clause, and it is the reason that half cannot stand alone.
Diagram each clause separately
Each has its own subject and verb, so each gets a full base line with a full vertical.
Join them with a dashed line
From the word the clause modifies — usually the main verb — down to the subordinate clause’s verb, with the conjunction written along it.

“Because the bridge closed, we took the ferry.”

Reed-Kellogg — two base lines, joined by a dashed conjunction line

markMarker
detDeterminer
nsubjNominal subject
advclAdverbial clause modifier
ROOTRoot of the sentence
dobjDirect object

Dependency — advcl, on the same row as the other dependents

Comparing the two views

Reed-Kellogg gives the subordinate clause a base line of its own, so it visibly has the same internal structure as the main clause — a subject, a verb, the lot. The dependency tree flattens it: closed becomes one more dependent of took, labelled advcl, sitting on the same row as we and ferry. The tree tells you the clause is adverbial; only the diagram shows you it is a clause.

Subordinating or coordinating?

Both kinds of conjunction join clauses, and they produce completely different diagrams, so telling them apart matters.

A coordinating conjunction joins equals — two independent clauses, stacked with a step-down between them. See Compound Sentences.
A subordinating conjunction makes one clause depend on the other, and the dependent clause hangs below.

What the clause modifies

Usually the main verb — the clause tells you when, why or under what condition the action happened. But an adverb clause can also modify an adjective or another adverb, in which case the dashed line comes from that word instead.

Comparison clauses are the common case: This store is as large as that one — the clause modifies large, not is.

Key terms

Adverb clause: A dependent clause doing an adverb’s job. Relation advcl. We left because it rained. When the bell rang, everyone stood.
See: Modifier Relations
Subordinating conjunction: The word introducing a dependent clause. Coarse category SCONJ, relation mark. We left because it rained. Although it was late, she kept reading.
See: Determiners & Function Words
Dependent clause: A clause that cannot stand alone. The three kinds are adverb, adjective and noun clauses, named for the job they do. We left because it rained. The violin that she inherited needs strings. — each clause has a subject and a verb, and neither can be a sentence by itself.
See: Grammar Basics, Adjective Clauses, Noun Clauses
Complex sentence: A sentence with one independent clause and at least one dependent clause. We left because it rained. The violin that she inherited needs new strings.
See: Compound-Complex Sentences

Practice on a real sentence

A comparison clause modifying an adjective rather than a verb. Look for advcl or mark in the dependency exercise.

“This store is as large as that one.”

Parts of speech

Give every word its coarse Universal Dependencies category.

Words 0/8Attempts 0Correct 0Time 0:00

Sentence — select a part of speech below, then click the word(s) it applies to

This store is as large as that one.