Punctuation Rules with Clauses & Phrases!

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What is a clause?

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A clause is a group of words that contains a subject and a verb. It can be independent (able to stand alone) or dependent (cannot stand alone).

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What is a phrase?

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A phrase is a group of words that does not contain a subject-verb pair and cannot stand alone as a complete thought.

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What is an independent clause?

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An independent clause is a clause that can stand alone as a complete sentence. It expresses a complete thought.

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What is a dependent clause?

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A dependent clause is a clause that cannot stand alone as a complete sentence. It depends on an independent clause to provide meaning.

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What is a compound sentence?

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A compound sentence is made up of two or more independent clauses joined by a coordinating conjunction (e.g., and, but, or).

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What is a complex sentence?

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A complex sentence consists of one independent clause and at least one dependent clause.

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What is a compound-complex sentence?

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A compound-complex sentence contains at least two independent clauses and at least one dependent clause.

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What is a coordinating conjunction?

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A coordinating conjunction is a word that connects words, phrases, or clauses of equal importance (e.g., for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so).

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What punctuation is used before a coordinating conjunction in a compound sentence?

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A comma is used before a coordinating conjunction when it connects two independent clauses.

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How do you punctuate a complex sentence?

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In a complex sentence, if the dependent clause comes first, it is followed by a comma before the independent clause. If the independent clause comes first, no comma is needed.