Connecting Dep and Ind Clauses
By Michael Wong
Types of Clauses
What's a Clause?
What's a Dependent Clause?
EX: "While Bobby was ordering his soup"
What happened while Bobby was ordering his soup? Did someone come in and start doing the Nae Nae? Did a crying child come in? It isn't a complete thought, therefore, it is a dependent clause.
What's an Independent Clause?
EX: "Bobby was ordering his soup."
That thought is complete, there really is no "cliff hanger" there. Even though, yes, you could add more to this thought, it is complete, therefore, it is an independent clause.
Any other things I need to know?
YES!
Dependent Marker Words:
EX: "While Bobby was ordering his soup"
Now let's go look at the independent clause example:
EX: "Bobby was ordering his soup"
Now, what's the one main difference in these two examples?
Yes, you found it. "While".
EX: "While Bobby was ordering his soup"
EX: "Bobby was ordering his soup"
A dependent marker word can help you easily tell the difference between an independent clause and a dependent clause, and you should look out for them.
Examples & Uses of Dependent Marker Words:
Some examples are (Not in alphabetical order):
-Because
-While
-When
-After
-As
-Until
-Before
-Whenever
Let's check these words out in action!
"Joe walked across the street"
"As Joe walked across the street"
Big difference, right!?
The one on the top is an independent clause, as it is a complete thought. However, the one on the bottom is very obviously the dependent clause, as there is a dependent marker word.
"Jill turned on the TV"
"After Jill turned on the TV"
Same thing again! Just add one word and it changed into a dependent clause! Look for the dependent marker words, as it will make a big difference. All of this will help you connect the two.
Independent Marker Words:
Rules & Guidelines
Ways to Connect Dependent & Independent Clauses:
Rules & Guidelines for "Proper Usage" (How to Properly Connect Dependent and Independent Clauses):
-and
-but
-for
-or
-nor
-so
-yet
When the second independent clause in the sentence begins with one of these words, a comma is needed before it.
"Jacob worked on his homework at the restaurant it was hard to concentrate because of the noise." does not make sense.
Because we are connecting two independent clauses, "Jacob worked on his homework at the restaurant" and "It was hard to concentrate because of the noise" we would use the coordinating conjunction. In this case "but" seems like the best word to use in the scenario. Now it would be "Jacob worked on his homework at the restaurant, but it was hard to concentrate because of the noise." Add the coma and the coordinating conjunction and voila! You connected two independent clauses!
-also
-however
-therefore
-nevertheless
-furthermore
"Jacob worked on his homework at the restaurant it was hard to concentrate because of the noise." does not make sense. This time, we will use an independent marker word. So now it would be "Jacob worked on his homework at the restaurant; however, it was hard to concentrate because of the noise."
Examples
Correct Usage of Connecting Dependent and Independent Clauses:
"Kathrin thought doing Membean was a waste of time; therefore, she never got a good grade on her vocabulary quizzes."
"Mindy hated being in loud places; however, she attended the rock n' roll concert her friends invited her to."
For the one above, you could also do:
"Mindy hated being in loud places; therefore, she didn't attend the rock n' roll concert her friends invited her to."
You use different words for different scenarios in this case. Choose the one you think fits best and then say it a few times to see if it sounds right.
"Oliver never spent time on his phone, so he wasn't involved in social media."
Just a Little (Big) Thought:
"Kathrin thought doing Membean was a waste of time; therefore, she never got a good grade on her vocabulary quizzes."
"Because Kathrin thought doing Membean was a waste of time she never got good grades on her vocabulary quizzes."
"Mindy hated being in loud places; however, she attended the rock n' roll concert her friends invited her to."
"Even though Mindy hated being in loud places she attended the rock n' roll concert her friends invited her to."
So what I'm trying to say here from my observations is that if you're connecting two independent clauses, you need to use either the coordinating conjunction or the independent marker word. But if you're connecting a dependent clause with an independent clause, you don't need to do that! You just need to put in a dependent marker word before the dependent clause.
(The information above may not necessarily be correct, as I observed a pattern that I noticed and I have no proof that it is correct)
Incorrect Usage of Connecting Dependent and Independent Clauses:
Before you start, try correcting these on your own first BEFORE you read the explanation for practice. (Additional practice is available via Google Form (Link below in "PRACTICE" section))
"Jackson studied in the library for his English test; therefore, it was hard to study because of the librarian and a student having an argument." In this one, the use of the independent marker word doesn't make sense. "therefore" doesn't seem to fit. "But" would make more sense here.
"Kathrin thought doing Membean was a waste of time, yet she never got a good grade on her vocabulary quizzes." This doesn't make sense. "So" or "therefore" would make more sense than "yet".
"Mindy hated being in loud places, so she attended the rock n' roll concert her friends invited her to." This doesn't make sense either. Using "so" in this context makes the sentence make no sense. Using "yet" or "but" or even "however" would make more sense here than "so".
"Mindy hated being in loud places; however, she didn't attend the rock n' roll concert her friends invited her to." This is still incorrect. Due to the second independent clause having the effect of the first independent clause, it shouldn't be "however". "so" or "therefore" would make this sentence not be confusing.
"Oliver never spent time on his phone; however, he wasn't involved in social media." This still makes no sense! Since the second independent clause is the direct effect of the first independent clause, you shouldn't use "however", as that says that the second independent clause has the opposite effect of the first independent clause. "so" or "therefore" would fit this sentence perfectly.