Noun Clause with Examples read and get your doubt clear to score well in exams. Here, you can also get Clause MCQ | Test with Answers in a simple and clear language which is understood by all.
CLAUSES
What is a Clause?
A clause is a group of words that includes a subject and a verb. It may be a sentence or the part of a sentence.
There are three kinds of clauses:
- Noun clause
- Adverbial/ Adverb clause
- Relative/ Adjective
Noun Clause with Examples
Read the following sentences:
(a) I hope that I shall pass. (noun clause)
(b) She knows what I want. (noun clause)
The underline words are noun clauses and form parts of the sentences (a) and (b).
The noun clauses answer the question what?
Note- The that-clause following the main clause ‘I hope’ is also a noun clause just as What I want’ is a noun clause which follows the main clause ‘she knows’.
Identification- Noun clauses begin with the following connectives:
(i) Pronouns: what, which, who, whom, whose.
(ii) Adverbs: when, where, why, how.
(iii) Conjunctions: if, that, whether.
For example:
Type-I
- You can see what we have done.
- I don’t know which book he has bought.
- Can you tell me who had done it?
- I can’t say whom I should believe.
- Do you know whose car it is?
Type II
- I can’t tell you when he will come.
- I don’t know where he has gone.
- Please tell me why he is always late.
- Does anyone know how it has happened?
Type III
- wonder if the weather is going to be all right.
- I can tell you that he is a good boy.
- She asked whether the train will leave on time.
Functions of Noun Clauses:
Noun clauses function like nouns or noun phrases. They can function as subject, object, complement, or object of a preposition, etc:
(a) Subject:
- What you said surprised me.
- That he would come is seemed unlikely.
- When she will come is uncertain.
- How he crossed the border is a mystery.
- Whether he will help you will be known soon.
- Why he came here is still unknown to us.
What cannot be cured must be endured.Whether it will rain today is not clear.
(b) Object:
- He says that he will help me.
- I don’t know who gave hint this advice.
- She couldn’t decide what she should do.
- Have you decided where you will go for your holidays?
- You must learn when you should speak.
- I asked him how I can reach that village.
- She wondered whether she should stay any more.
- I don’t know why he sold his house.
-
He got what he wanted.I expect that she will help us.I wish to know why he behaved in that manner.
(c) Complement:
- Our belief is that he will help us.
- This is what you are looking for.
- This is where she works.
- The problem is how we can cross this river
- My worry is why he should behave like that.
(d) The object of Preposition:
- You should pay attention to what the teacher says.
- There is no complaint except that he comes late.
- There is no meaning in what he says.
- No one is aware of how he has opened the lock.
- Everything depends on whether he helps us or not.
- It was difficult to decide where we should go for
- They couldn’t agree about who should do the work.
Do not believe in what he says.He was greatly annoyed by what I told him.
(e) The complement of a Verb:
- I am not sure where he has gone.
- They are confident that they will find out the thief.
- It is doubtful whether she will reach in time.
It seems that he will win the race.His ambition was that he should be a doctor
(f) The object of an Infinitive:
- She wants to know what is going on here.
- He came to see that he was mistaken.
- She wanted to ask if I could help her.
(g) In Opposition to a Noun (Noun + Noun clause)
- The rumour that he was killed is true.
- The idea that we should set up a factory should be pursued.
- The fact that he has failed surprised his parents.
(h) The object of a Participle:
- Thinking that he would die, they took him to a hospital.
- Hoping that they would win, they felt overjoyed.