Parenthetical (comment) clauses

A parenthetical clause (parenthesis) interrupts another sentence with which it is either not connected syntactically or is only loosely connected with separate parts of the sentence. They may occur initially, finally, or medially, and thus generally have a separate tone unit. They are usually marked off from the rest of the sentence by commas, dashes, or parentheses (brackets) in written English.

Parenthetical clauses are used to express the speakers' comments on the content of the utterance, or to convey the speakers' views on the way they are speaking.

We distinguish the following types of parenthetical clauses:

1) like the main clause:

There were no other applicants, I believe, for that job.

2) like an adverbial finite clause:

I'm working the night shift, as you know.

3) like a relative clause:

What was more upsetting, we lost all our luggage.

4) to-infinitive clause:

I'm not sure what to do, to be honest.

(v) -ing clause:

I doubt, speaking as a layman, whether television is the right medium for that story.

(vi) -ed clause:

Stated bluntly, he had no chance of winning.

In each category, there are idiomatic or cliché expressions: you see, as I say, what's more to the point, to be fair, generally speaking, put bluntly. Similarly, in each category there is at least some freedom to coin new expressions.

Parenthetical clauses may be patterned like different communicative types of sentences or clauses - statements, questions, imperative or exclamatory sentences or clauses.

It was - why hadn’t he noticed it before? - beginning to be an effort for her to hold her back straight. (a why-question)

I felt - such curious shapes egoism fakes! - that they had come because of me. (an exclamatory sentence)

PRACTICAL EXERCISES

Nominal clauses

<== попередня сторінка	\|	наступна сторінка ==>
Adverbial clauses of result	\|	Define the kinds of subordinate clauses (subject, object and predicative clauses). Translate into Russian.

Не знайшли потрібну інформацію? Скористайтесь пошуком google:

Генерація сторінки за: 0.003 сек.