subordinate clause

Definition:

A group of words that has both a subject and a verb but (unlike an independent clause) cannot stand alone as a sentence. See also:

• Adverb Clause
• Adjective Clause
• Noun Clause
• Subordinating Conjunction

Examples and Observations:

• "Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect."
  (Mark Twain)



• "When I'm good, I'm very, very good, but when I'm bad, I'm better."
  (Mae West, I'm No Angel)



• "Memory is deceptive because it is colored by today's events."
  (Albert Einstein)



• "If you can't leave in a taxi you can leave in a huff. If that's too soon, you can leave in a minute and a huff.
  (Groucho Marx, Duck Soup)



• "If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich."
  (John F. Kennedy)



• "Man, when you lose your laugh, you lose your footing."
  (Ken Kesey)



• "Every book is a children's book if the kid can read."
  (Mitch Hedberg)



• Finite clauses are introduced by a subordinator, which serves to indicate the dependent status of the clause together with its circumstantial meaning. Formally, subordinating conjunctions can be grouped as follows:
  • simple conjunctions: when, whenever, where, wherever, because, if, unless, until, while, as, although
  • conjunctive groups: as if, as though, even if, even though, even when, soon after, no sooner
  • complex conjunctions:: there are three subclasses:

    (i) derived from verbs . . .: provided (that), granted (that), considering (that), seeing (that), suppose (that), supposing (that), so (that)
    (ii) containing a noun: in case, in the event that, to the extent that, in spite of the fact that, the day, the way
    (iii) adverbial: so/as long as, as soon as, so/as far as, much as, now (that)

  (Angela Downing, English Grammar: A University Course. Routledge, 2006)

Pronunciation: suh-BOR-din-it