Writing a sentence in English consists of many parts and each part has a purpose to serve along with some characteristics. English is not only considered as the most used language, but it is also home to some of the mysterious terms and phrases which always leads to the debate on phrase vs clauses. Everybody knows that nose is used for smelling and feet is used for running, but if a person is suffering from cold then we say, “His nose is running” and when there is a foul smell from the shoes then we say, “ His shoes are smelling”.  Similarly, the phrase, “That’s really hot” or “That’s really cool” mean one and the same thing in English. You can find two different spelling for same-sounding words but having a different meaning like know and no or flew and flu or an hour and our, the list can continue. Not only different spellings but there are certain grammatical norms which makes the language difficult to comprehend.

A sentence can have a phrase and a clause which sometimes makes it difficult to differentiate. These difficulties make the student fear when they are asked to write assignments related to Communication, language, linguist, etc. in the English course. This blog will help in understanding the phrase vs clause debate and how they differ from each other.

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Understanding what does phrase vs clauses individually mean
Understanding the difference between phrase vs clause is an important aspect which a student should be aware of to score good and also to be correct in their professional life. At times usage of phrases and clauses helps in venting out the emotions that we have for our near and dear ones. If you had written a letter to your friend when you were young, then it is definite that you must have used phrases and clauses. You were not aware of it at that time, but if in case you have those replies; you will find that the response sent by your friend consists of phrases and clauses.

Let’s first understand the clause:

The clause in English grammar is a set of words having a verb and a subject. People use this form to communicate their thoughts; it’s easy to use as it has a smaller number of words. If a sentence has been said with the help of a clause, then the subject is the one who is performing the action, and the action is the verb that is being performed by the subject. The clause can help in the creation of a complete thought which does not require any support, and it can stand alone as a complete statement. Statements like, “He danced” or “Kevin spoke” or “Let’s celebrate” are all examples of clauses. Now it seems that you will get familiar with the phrase vs clause difference.

Now its turn to understand the phrase:

The phrase in English grammar is a set of words that stands united as a team. The phrase can find its place in a clause or a sentence, but it does not have its own subject or verb. Using the phrase, you may not be able to express your thoughts completely. This is the exact difference between a phrase and a clause leading to a better understanding of phrase vs clause difference. Statements having, “Best pal” or “For ten days” or “Were standing for the prayer” are all examples of phrases.

If you compare the examples provided for both phrase vs clause, it can be seen that the phrase has no subject which is performing the action whereas clause not only has a subject but it also has a verb in it. The phrase always consists of more than one word.

Different categories of phrases and clauses
Usually, writing a phrase starts with one word, but in the process of writing it develops into a complete sentence having a subject and a predicate. Clause plays an important part in the formation of a sentence, but it requires the support of another element to form a communicative thought.

Different Categories of phrases:

In simple terms, a group of words is known as a phrase. It is a part of grammar which helps in making a complete and meaningful sentence. There are six types of phrases, noun phrase, infinitive phrase, verb phrase, appositive phrase, prepositional phrase and participle phrase. The below discussion will highlight the definition and examples of these phrases:

Noun phrase: As the name suggests, the phrase will have a noun with divergent modifiers. The white house, the fat boy, a chessboard, the glittering sky, etc. are the examples of this phrase. In the examples, white house, fat boy, is the noun phrase.

Verb phrase: The phrase will have a verb along with divergent modifiers. She was doing some work, he must run right away, these boys are working hard, the professor is scolding the student, are the examples of the verb phrase. In the examples, was doing, run right away, are working, is the verb phrase.

Infinitive phrase: The phrase begins with an infinitive verb along with divergent modifiers. I want to learn dancing quickly, he prefers to eat slowly, the man returned to pay homage, are the examples of infinitive phrase. In the examples, to learn dancing, to eat slowly, to pay homage, is the infinitive phrase.

Appositive phrase: It is similar to a noun phrase which renames the nouns present in a sentence. Tennis player Rodger Federer won many grand slams in his career, the journal Management of Science was first published in 1960, television series Friends is the best online comedy series to watch for, are the examples of appositive phrase. In the examples, Roger Federer, Management of Science, Friends, is the appositive phrase.

Participle phrase: The participle phrase will start with a participle in present or past form along with the modifiers. If the participle is in a past form then the phrase will end with a word having ed, and if it is in present form then the phrase will end with a word having ing. Crying, she called her injured mother, removing his shoes, Jen went into the river, the boy wearing a yellow t-shirt is my cousin, are the examples of participle phrase. In the examples, crying, removing, wearing, is the participle phrase.

Prepositional phrase: The phrase comprises a preposition along with a noun and other modifiers. There are two cats on the street, she was coming from the left, Roy was sitting beside me, are the examples of the prepositional phrase. In the examples, on, from, beside, is the prepositional phrase.

Different Categories of clauses:

The English language divides clause into two sub-categories, namely independent and a dependent clause.

Independent clause: Being, independent as per its name, it does not require any support. It can solely represent itself in a sentence. Independent clause is considered as the smallest part of grammar having a subject and a verb. The clause can also come along with the modifiers and a verb predicate. He was cleaning the dishes without any help, when the sunshine’s, put the clothes on the stand, he was late for the office, are the examples of independent clauses. In the examples, he was cleaning, when the sunshine’s, he was late, is the independent clause.

Dependent clause: As the name suggests, it is opposite of independent clause and requires support if being used in a sentence. It also contains a verb ad a subject. To make a complete sentence, this clause needs to amalgamate with the independent clause to write or state a grammatically correct sentence. The clause comes along with adverb, noun and adjective clauses. He was able to write his project, after thorough research, he will work as per his needs, when you go to Australia, do visit Opera House, are the examples of dependent clauses. In the examples, after thorough research, as per his needs, when you go to Australia, is the dependent clause.

How to differentiate the phrase vs clause in a sentence?
We tried to explain you the difference between phrase vs clause, but in case you are still in a dilemma then this part of the paper will help you to understand the difference better.

He is lying on the bed.

The example sentence provided above can be divided into two parts. The 1^st part is the act being done, “He is lying”, and the 2^nd part is just an extension of the act, “on the bed”. If you read the 1^st part separately, it will give a clear idea about the act without taking support of the 2^nd part. But if you only read the 2^nd part, it will not give you a clear idea, on the bed, is an incomplete sentence. So it is clear that the first part is a clause which requires no support and the 2^nd part is a phrase which requires support to make sense.

Words used in a phrase have a sense but it cannot be solely used to make a sentence, phrases can be used to enhance the structure of a sentence. The phrase does not have a subject and an object of its own whereas, the clause has. In the above example, the 2^nd part, “on the bed”, there is no subject whereas, in the 1^st part, “He is lying”, there is a subject as well as an object. “He” is the subject and “lying” is the object.

Another way of differentiating between phrase vs clause is to add some points before a sentence which will give the sentence a question format. For example, you can add the words, “Is it true that” before a sentence and check whether it is making a sense or not. If it is making a sense, then it is a sentence or a clause, and if it is not making a sense, then it is not a sentence but a phrase.

Let’s take two sentences as an example:

• The train to Sydney
• The train goes to Sydney.

Now adding the question before the first sentence, Is it true that the train to Sydney. The sentence is not making any sense. It has the train as the subject but there is no helping verb, the sentence is just a phrase, therefore, making no sense.  

Now adding the question before the second sentence, Is it true that the train goes to Sydney. The sentence is sensible and sounds complete. It also has the train as the subject along with a helping verb which is goes in this case. The verb is helping the sentence to make a complete sentence. 

Let’s revise the difference once again, phrase consists of two or more words connected to each other to form a unit whereas clause forms a part of the sentence having a subject that performs the action. The phrase is a part of a sentence or a clause whereas clause is a fragment of a sentence. The clause will always have a subject and a predicate whereas phrase does not require any such supplements. The phrase will always have to take support to convey a meaningful sentence, whereas clause can independently convey a meaningful sentence until and unless it is not a dependent clause. So, the phrase vs clause difference is evident from the above explanations and the points mentioned in the image. The phrase will always require a clause to build a sensible sentence whereas, the clause requires no such support, and it can solely be used to deliver a sensible sentence.

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