Noun clauses – what are they, and are they any different from nouns? Find out the answers to these questions and learn all about noun clauses and their functions in this article.
A noun clause is a dependent clause that works just like a noun in a sentence. The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Linguistics explains a noun clause as “a clause whose syntactic role is seen as like that of a noun or noun phrase”, and the Collins Dictionary defines it as “a clause that fulfils the same function as a noun”.
Just like a noun has various functions, a noun clause has multiple functions too. A noun clause can perform the following functions.
You can identify a noun clause in two steps:
Let us look at a famous dialogue from the story Aladdin and the Magic Lamp – “Your wish is my command.” Now, look at this sentence, ‘Whatever you wish is my command’. Can you find the difference between the two? Both sentences mean the same thing but have slightly different structures. ‘Your wish’ contains a pronoun (your) and a noun (wish), thereby constituting a noun phrase. On the other hand, ‘whatever you wish’ can be considered a noun clause as it contains a subject (you) and a verb (wish).
To have a clearer understanding of how noun clauses are used in sentences and how they perform different functions, go through the following examples.
Identify the noun, noun phrase or noun clause present in the following sentences.
1. Whoever finds the clues and reaches the destination first will win a trip to the United States.
2. The teacher congratulated the three students.
3. I would hate for you to miss the concert.
4. Whoever comes up with an idea will be acknowledged.
5. Do you like pizza?
6. Do you know when the next bus to the Mysore Palace will arrive?
7. I appreciate my mom buying me all that I need when I need them.
8. She asked if I was coming.
9. Whether we will go to the beach this weekend depends on the weather.
10. The reason why he quit his job is still a mystery.
The answers to the above exercise are given below. Take a look to find out if you have identified the noun, noun phrase and noun clauses correctly.
1. Whoever finds the clues and reaches the destination first will win a trip to the United States.
Whoever finds the clues and reaches the destination first – Noun clause
A trip to the United States – Noun phrase
2. The teacher congratulated the three students.
The teacher – Noun phrase
The three students – Noun phrase
3. I would hate for you to miss the concert.
For you to miss the concert – Noun clause
4. Whoever comes up with an idea will be acknowledged.
Whoever comes up with an idea – Noun clause
5. Do you like pizza?
6. Do you know when the next bus to the Mysore Palace will arrive?
When the next bus to the Mysore Palace will arrive – Noun clause
7. I appreciate my mom buying me all that I need when I need them.
My mom buying me all that I need when I need them – Noun clause
8. She asked if I was coming.
If I was coming – Noun clause
9. Whether we will go to the beach this weekend depends on the weather.
Whether we will go to the beach this weekend – Noun clause
The Weather – Noun phrase
10. The reason why he quit his job is still a mystery.
The reason why he quit his job – Noun clause
A mystery – Noun phrase
A noun clause is a dependent clause that works just like a noun in a sentence.
The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Linguistics explains a noun clause as “a clause whose syntactic role is seen as like that of a noun or noun phrase”, and the Collins Dictionary defines it as “a clause that fulfils the same function as a noun”.
The four main functions of a noun clause include,