6.3 GRAMMAR: Using Noun Clauses

Noun clauses are very helpful to academic writing for many reasons. The most important, perhaps, is that they are an important part of reported speech. For example, when you write The computer scientist at Google says that …., you will be using a noun clause to complete the sentence. But noun clauses are also important to academic writing because they help give form to abstract ideas. An example of this is: How this technology works is important to understand. In this case, we are not talking about the physical form of the technology or even the work that it does; instead, we are talking about the way it works. As you can see, noun clauses are essential for academic writing!

A CLOSER LOOK

A clause is a group of words with a subject and a verb.

A clause can be independent. That means it has a subject and a verb, and it expresses a complete idea. A simple sentence is an independent clause.

A clause can be dependent. That means it has a subject and a verb, but it does not express a complete idea. It must be attached to an independent clause to make sense.

A noun clause is a dependent clause that works like a noun. It can serve as a subject or object. For example:

• What the doctor said was very important. (subject)
• The weather website says  that it might snow tomorrow. (object)

A noun clause frequently follows certain adjectives, nouns, and verbs. For example:

• The author of the report says  that the majority of students prefer to continue to study remotely on Zoom.
• Many people hold the belief  that marijuana should be legal everywhere.
• She insisted  that her cousin had lied about the money.

Relative pronouns

A noun clause begins with a relative pronoun. Here are some of the most common ones:

who, whom, which, how, what, when, whether, where, why, if, that

and

whoever, whomever, whichever, however, whatever, whenever

The relative pronoun is usually followed by the subject and verb of the clause. However, sometimes the words who, what, and which  are both the relative pronoun and the subject of the clause. When a that  clause is the subject of the sentence, the word that i s necessary. In all other cases, the word that is optional when it begins a noun clause. Formal academic writing usually uses that  whereas informal speaking often omits it. For example:

• So it is clear now that eating a balanced diet is important for your health.

The sentence above can be reduced to:

• So it is clear now eating a balanced diet is important for your health.

Functions of a noun clause in a sentence

As a noun, a noun clause can be the subject, object of the verb, or object of a preposition. It can also be a complement.

Subject

Here is an example where a noun clause is the subject of the sentence (a second noun clause forms a subject complement, which is described later):

• What this research revealed … was that the COVID vaccine helped to prevent many deaths.

In the sentence above, the noun clause is the subject of the sentence. The whole idea of what this research revealed  is the subject of the verb was.

The structure is [relative pronoun] + [subject of the clause] + [verb of the clause].

Object of the verb

The noun clause can also act as an object of the verb. For example:

• So hopefully you can see now  that pets help to prevent depression in many people …

The structure is [relative pronoun] + [subject of the clause] + [verb of the clause]. In the sentence above, the noun clause is the object of the verb see.

Object of a preposition

The noun clause can also act as an object of a preposition. For example:

• The race car driver wrote a short novel about  how he won four national competitions.

In the sentence above, the noun clause is the object of the preposition about.

The structure is [preposition] + [relative pronoun] + [subject of the clause] + [verb of the clause].

Complement

We sometimes use a noun clause after a be verb as a complement to identify or complete the meaning of the subject.  For example:

• What this research revealed was  that the COVID vaccine helped to prevent many deaths.

We sometimes use a noun clause after a linking verb + adjective to express an attitude or degree of certainty about something. In the sentence above, the second noun clause (that the COVID vaccine helped to prevent many deaths) acts as a subject complement. It follows a be verb and identifies or explains what the research revealed. This is called a subject complement. For example:

• I am not surprised  that you need a good night’s sleep to do well on the test.

In the sentence above, the linking verb is followed by an adjective and then the noun clause. This is called an adjective complement.

How do you form a noun clause?

There are three ways to form noun clauses:

• Begin with that
• Begin with if  or whether
• Begin with a question word such as who, what, where, when, how

That  clauses

These can come at the beginning of the sentence and act as the subject. In this case, the word that cannot be omitted. For example:

• That she loves me is certain.

These can come after certain nouns such as idea, thought, belief, opinion, claim, statement. For example:

• It is our opinion  that the COVID pandemic is a very serious problem.

These can come after the verb of the independent clause. In this case, the dependent clause is embedded in the independent clause and functions as the object. For example:

• I insist  that you come to the party.

These can come after certain adjectives such as happy, sad, worried, certain, sure, surprised. For example:

• I am certain  that the exam is on Tuesday.

These can be used to report what someone else said. For example:

• She said  that she was retiring and moving to Sweden.

NOTE: Except for the first use described above, that can be omitted from the noun clause.

If / whether clauses

These are statements, not questions, that begin with if  or whether. They are often used to integrate a yes/no question into a statement. Whether is more formal than if. An optional addition is the phrase or not. For example:

• Will she come?
• I don’t know  whether she will come or not.
• Is he interested in buying your car?
• I wonder  if he is interested in buying your car.

Question word clauses

Although these clauses begin with question words, they are not questions, so they follow the regular subject-verb order. There are two patterns.

1. who  and what  may act as the subject of the noun clause:

• I don’t know  who is coming to the party.
• He saw  what happened.

2. who, what, when, why, where, how, how much, how long  begin the clause and are followed by a subject:

• I wonder  where she went.
• I heard  what you said.

Watch this short video to learn more about noun clauses:

Practice

Now practice with this exercise; it is not graded, and you may repeat it as many times as you wish:

Optional: Where to get more information

If you want more instruction and examples about the noun clauses, try these links:

• SmrtEnglish Video: Noun Clauses (full class with Shaun)
• EnglishSentences.com: Noun Clauses

Video from: Benn, Adam. “Advanced English Grammar: Noun Clauses.” YouTube, 12 July 2016, www.youtube.com/watch?v=9SrEEPt4MQA. Accessed 29 Sept. 2020.