Grammar: Phrases and Clauses Practice 100%

Read the following sentence. Opening a stained glass window can be tricky. How is the underlined phrase functioning in the sentence? A. adjective B. adverb C. noun D. verb

C. Noun

In your own words, explain the similarities and differences between a phrase and a clause.

A phrase is a group of words that functions as a particular part of speech but not as a sentence on its own; it lacks a subject and predicate. A clause, on the other hand, does have a subject and a predicate, but it can only stand on its own if it is an independent clause and not a dependent clause. Phrases and clauses can both contribute to sentence variety by being used as modifiers to add precision and interest to sentences.

Read the following sentence. Stained glass windows, intricate and beautiful, are hard to keep clean. How is the underlined phrase functioning in the sentence? A. adjective B. adverb C. noun D. verb

A. Adjective

Which of the following is a phrase? A. when we got home B. outside the window C. because the window was left open D. the house got dirty

B. Outside the window

Which of the following is a clause? A. in the summer B. should have given C. open the window D. looking clear and bright

C. Open the window

Read the following sentence. Sea glass is broken glass that is worn smooth in the ocean and washed up on beaches. Determine whether the underlined group of words is a phrase or a clause, then determine if it is essential or nonessential. A. phrase, nonessential B. clause, nonessential C. phrase, essential D. clause, essential

D. Clause, essential

Read the following sentence. Sea glass is perhaps the only beautiful thing that can come from litter. Determine whether the underlined group of words is a phrase or a clause, then determine if it is essential or nonessential. A. phrase, nonessential B. clause, nonessential C. phrase, essential D. clause, essential

D. Clause, essential

Read the two sentences below and explain how the punctuation changes the meaning of each. Artisans who made beads in ancient Egypt wound thin strings of molten glass around a removable clay core. Artisans, who made beads in ancient Egypt, wound thin strings of molten glass around a removable clay core.

The first sentence, which has no commas, depends on the clause "who made glass beads in ancient Egypt" to narrow down how the reader understands which artisans were winding glass around clay cores. In other words, the clause is an essential (restrictive) adjective clause in the first sentence. However, it is nonessential (nonrestrictive) in the second sentence; it doesn't narrow down (or restrict) which artisans at all. Instead, it is like an afterthought or additional description of the artisans, implying that ALL artisans made beads in ancient Egypt.

Read the following sentence. Pliny once wrote that Phoenician sailors who cooked on blocks of natron (soda) on a beach discovered glass accidentally. Is the underlined phrase essential (restrictive) or nonessential (nonrestrictive)? Explain your reasoning.

The underlined phrase is essential. It isn't just any group of Phoenician sailors who discovered glass, nor is it that Phoenician sailors in general discovered it; the sentence refers to a particular group of sailors that used blocks of natron to cook on the beach.

Read the following sentence: On the last night of camp, we laid our sleeping bags under the trees. Identify if the underlined portion is acting as a phrase or clause, and then explain which type of phrase or clause (noun, adjective, verb, adverb) it is.

The underlined portion of the sentence is a phrase--a propositional phrase--that is acting like an adverb.