Академический Документы
Профессиональный Документы
Культура Документы
GABRIELA NISTOR
SIBIU, 2012
From the point of view of the levels of subordination, we are interested in the
distinction between governing clauses (principal or regent) and governed clauses
(subordinated to either the principal clause or one of the regent clauses).
From the point of view of their meaning and as related to the various parts of
speech, clauses can be classified as follows:
1. subject clauses;
2. predicate / predicative clauses;
3. direct object clauses;
2
e.g. What I know about him (subject) is that he works late (predicative).
Once their order in the sentence is changed, these subordinate change their role, too.
e.g. That he works late (subject) is what I know about him (predicative).
The conjunction that is not to be used after I wish, Id rather, Id sooner, it is time, which require the use
of a subjunctive.
e.g. I wish he were here.
Definition:
The chapter of the sequence of tenses in English covers "a set of rules
1. Subject Clauses - are not influenced by the rules of the sequence of tenses.
But there are a number of constructions which require the use of a specific mood (i.e. the
subjunctive) or tenses.
a. The construction "it is necessary / important / advisable / inevitable / better /
natural..." must be followed by the analytic subjunctive present with should.
e.g.: It is advisable that she should be notified about it.
(American English favours the synthetic subjunctive: "It is advisable that she
be notified...")
b. The construction "it is possible / probable / likely..." must be followed by
the present analytic subjunctive with may or by the analytic subjunctive with might (for
more probability).
e.g.: It is possible that the film may have ended.
It is possible that he might have resigned. (=I doubt it).
c. The construction it is strange/surprising/amazing/gratifying is
followed by the indicative in contemporary English.
e.g. It is surprising that she doesnt want to come with us.
d. The construction it is certain/sure/etc. does not impose constraints, but
if it is used in the past, must be followed by a past tense, past perfect tense or a future-inthe-past.
e.g. It was certain that he was tired/that he had worked
hard/that he would fall asleep.
2.Predicative Clauses allow perfect freedom in the use of tenses.
e.g. The question is if he likes it/ if he has done it/ if he would
accept it/ if he will notice it etc.
3.Direct Object Clauses are the ones which are subject of many rules and
14
verbs of request, order and insistence are followed by the analytic subjunctive
with should in BE or the synthetic subjunctive in AE:
e.g. I demand that you should leave. (BE)
I demand that you leave. (AE)
- after the verb suggest, the indicative follows normally, but AE uses the synthetic
subjunctive I:
e.g. I suggest that she leaves right away. (BE)
I suggest that she leave right away. (AE)
b. When the predicate of the main clause is used in the past tense, the
past perfect or any other tense whose auxiliary is in the past tense, the
following rules are to be obeyed:
- the rule of concomitance/ simultaneousness/ simultaneity of the direct
object clause with the main clause, which is shown by the use of the past tense
throughout:
e.g. He said he liked the new house.
- The rule of anteriority/ previousness/ priority, which is indicated by
using the past perfect in the subordinate clause:
e.g. I knew he had worked hard.
- the rule of subsequence/ posteriority/ ulteriority, which is indicated by
the use of the future-in-the-past in the subordinate clause:
e.g. Last year he promised he would come on Christmas.
Exceptions:
15
general or lasting truths, i.e. assertions whose validity exceeds the moment of
speaking; among the former category we include truths which are generally
accepted, or scientifically demonstrated.
e.g. The teacher told us that the Universe is infinite.
16
The tenses in the group of the present, as well as the imperative, allow
freedom in using tenses in the subordinate clauses:
e.g. I lock the door when I leave/ when he has left.
No future can be used in these clauses.
The tenses in the group of the future require the present indefinite for
concomitance and the present perfect for anteriority:
e.g. Shell call on you when she considers.
He will have a cup of coffee as soon as he has had
dinner.
The tenses in the group of the past (past tense, past perfect, conditional
present or perfect) require a temporal clause in the past tense for
concomitance and in the past perfect for anteriority:
e.g. The meeting ended as soon as an agreement had been
reached.
SUBORDINATE CL.
I.
Real condition
Future Indicative
Present
Indicative
referring to the future
II.
He will come,
Real condition
Present Indefinite
We stay at home,
Real condition
if it rains.
Present Perfect/Past
Tense
referring to the past
IV.
Disguised tempo-
Present Indefinite
Present
Indefinite
ral clause referring
He reads a lot
to the present
V.
Disguised temporal
Past Tense
(habitual)
clause referring to the
He dined out
past
VI.
Unreal condition
Conditional Present
Synthetic Subjunctive
II
referring to the pre-
I should/would go there
Unreal condition
Conditional Perfect
Adverbial Clauses of Reason (known as Causal/ Causative Clauses) are free from the
constraints of the sequence of tenses.
e.g. I came/ have come because I have something to tell you.
I finished earlier because Ill have to go away soon.
Adverbial Clauses of Result are also free from any constraints from this point of
view.
e.g. I was so tired that I didnt hear the doorbell.
Adverbial Clauses of Purpose (also known as Final Clauses) impose the use of
various forms of the subjunctive mood:
- when the present perfect, future, or the imperative are used in the main clause,
the analytic subjunctive with may (or will) is to be used in the subordinate clause:
e.g. Im doing it/ I have done it so that I may help you.
- in the negative we use the conjunction lest or the phrase for fear that + the
analytic subjunctive with should or would:
e.g. I spoke in a whisper, lest the baby should/ would wake up.
- when the past tense or the past perfect is used in the main clause, we use the
analytic subjunctive with might or would in the subordinate clause:
e.g. He came early, so that he might/would find me at home.
- if negative purpose is implied, lest or for fear that + the analytic subjunctive
with should or would follow:
e.g. He put the money in his pocket, for fear/ lest he should lose it.
19
In the English grammar, indirect speech rules are based entirely on the rules of the
sequence of tenses, namely those regarding the subordinate direct object clauses. Apart
from the changes in verb tenses, however, the transition from direct to indirect speech
frequently implies changes in the field of time and place adverbs, as well as pronouns and
demonstratives.
Regarding the morphological changes, the following aspects have to be mentioned:
The adjective is affected at the level of the possessive and the demonstrative ones.
Possessive adjectives change, usually together with the person of the subject. There
are rare cases when the subject remains the same, and consequently the possessives
accompanying it remain the same.
e.g. I expect you to drive your own car, she said.
She said she expected him to drive his own car.
but:
I will drive my own car, I said.
I said I would drive my own car. (There is no need here to change the
possessive, as there is no need to change the subject pronoun of the direct object clause.)
Several types of pronouns are affected: personal, emphatic, possessive and
demonstrative pronouns often have to change in indirect speech when the person
changes.
e.g. She said: He cannot join us.
She said he couldnt join them. (personal)
Richard said: I consider myself a lucky person.
Richard said he considered himself a lucky person. (emphatic)
He said: This hat is mine, not yours.
He explained to me (that) that hat was his, not mine. (possessive)
The teacher said: This is your homework.
The teacher told us (that) that was our homework. (demonstrative)
As to demonstrative adjectives of proximity (this, these), they change to
corresponding demonstrative adjectives denoting remoteness, no matter if they are part of
phrases expressing time or location.
e.g. The boy said: These streets will be repaired this year.
The boy told me (that) those streets would be repaired that year.
21
The most consistent changes, however, concern the verb, affecting its tenses. As a
direct speech sentence becomes a subordinate direct object clause when reported, the
rules discussed in the lecture on the sequence of tenses for this type of subordinates will
be applied here. Therefore, changes occur when the reporting verb (say, tell, mention,
announce, let know, remind, order, warn, threat, promise, admit, explain, repeat, assure,
reassure, doubt, complain, deny, agree, invite, advise, inform, ask, demand, inquire,
require, want to know, exclaim, insist, wonder, retort, answer, reply, etc.)2is used in a past
tense (past tense itself or past perfect tense). In this case, the reported verb is subject to
the BACKSHIFT RULE, i.e. present tense becomes past tense, past tense and present
perfect tense become past perfect tense, past perfect tense remains the same, and future
tenses built with will become future-in-the-past tenses built with would (shall/should,
respectively).
e.g. I like (present simple) tea. He said he liked (past simple) tea.
He is talking (present continuous) to us. I informed you he was talking (past
continuous) to us.
They left (past simple) early. She let us know they had left (past perfect)
early.
The child was playing (past continuous) alone. He complained the child had
been playing (past perfect continuous) alone.
I havent finished (present perfect simple) yet. Sue warned us she hadnt
finished (past perfect simple) yet.
Tom has been driving (present perfect continuous) since morning. Mary
reminded us (that) Tom had been driving (past perfect continuous) since
morning.
Dinner will be ready (future simple) in a minute. Mother promised dinner
would be ready (future-in-the-past simple) in a minute.
Note: Examples can continue with all the types of future built with will/would.
It is to be noted, however, that the imperative of the 2nd person singular and plural,
either affirmative or negative, changes to the infinitive, no matter the tense of the
reporting verb.
e.g. Go home! Dont stay here! He orders/ordered us to go home and not to stay
2
The longer the text reported, the wider the variety of reporting verbs should be, in order to avoid
monotony and dullness in speech.
22
there.
The imperative with lets usually turns into a gerundial construction introduced by
suggest/propose (when the reporting subject is involved in the action of the verb), or into
a subjunctive construction (when the subject is not involved in it).
e.g. Lets wait for Jim. a. He suggests/suggested waiting for Jim. B. He
suggests/suggested that they should wait for Jim.
There are numerous exceptions from these rules, covering quite an extensive area:
a. If the reference time remains the same, the above rules are no longer valid.
(For example, if the sentence is reported only a short while after it is
uttered.) Such a situation must be either specified or evident from the
context.
e.g. She will graduate in July 2012. Her mother said she will
graduate in July 2013. (As long as it is obvious that it is not July 2013
yet.)
b. If we report a general/universal truth, or a scientific law, whose reference
time cannot affect the time of the action of the reported verb.
e.g. The Earth spins around its own axis. The teacher told us (that)
the Earth spins around its own axis. (Because it is unlikely that a
shift in the reference time could affect in any way the occurrence of
this physical phenomenon.)
c. The subjunctive and the conditional mood are not subject to these changes,
as they are not concerned with real situations. Thus, a sentence containing a
subordinate conditional clause type I (real condition referring to the
present/future) will change, turning to a type similar to type II (unreal,
referring to the present/future); all the other types of subordinate conditional
clauses remain as they are.
e.g. Ill do it myself if I have time. (type I) He promised he would do it
himself if he had time.
But:
He would help you if you asked him. (type II) She told me he would
help me if I asked him.
She would have left if it hadnt been too late. (type III) I told you she
23
modal
auxiliaries
will/shall/may/can
will
turn
to,
respectively,
becomes
then
today
that day
tomorrow
yesterday
whole
series
phrases
built
with
this
(this
24
this subordinate clause are reflected in the word order which sticks to the rules for
declarative sentences only.
Declarative sentences
They become subordinate object clauses and are governed by verbs such as: to
say, to tell, to insist, to declare, to state, to announce.
e.g. He said: I want to do everything by myself.
He announced/said/insisted/declared (that) he wanted to do everything by
himself.
Interrogative sentences
They become direct object clauses, and are introduced by verbs such as: to ask, to
inquire, to question, to wonder, to want to know.
In particular, the following situations must be considered:
Exclamatory sentences
Reporting verbs such as: to exclaim, to shout, to cry are used to introduce
exclamatory sentences into indirect speech.
One group of such exclamatory sentences is represented by elliptical sentences
(the predicate is understood to be the verb to be). In this case, the verb to be needs
to be reintroduced.
e.g.What fine weather (it is)! She exclaims that the weather is so fine. /
She exclaimed that the weather was so fine.
Another group is represented by exclamations of onomatopoeic type. As a
matter-of-course, these words can no longer be introduced as such into indirect
speech, as they express emotions, states of mind, sounds in nature, etc. As a result,
it is desirable that they are replaced by a reporting verb semantically corresponding,
or that they are completed with an adverbial of manner.
e.g. Wow! I like it! She expressed her enthusiastic admiration.
Ouch! It hurts! He complained it hurt badly. / He cried in pain. / He
gave an exclamation of pain.
Greetings and wishes are rendered by verbs semantically related:
e.g.Hello! How are you doing today? He greeted us and asked how we
were doing that day.
26
II.
What were the simple questions which stood at the origin of these
answers?
1. Yes, I believe she is right.
2. Yes, tourists were allowed to visit the castle.
3. No, there has never been such an accident in this district.
4. Yes, the tea is ready and the guests are waiting for us.
5. No, nobody will feel frustrated by their behaviour.
6. No, my fiance is not travelling to Japan.
7. Yes, it lies in Europe.
27
IV.
28
V.
What do you think might have been the questions that generated
these statements?
1. This activity will help you improve your knowledge of
grammar.
2. I agree. No wonder they went away.
3. An answer is difficult to give right now.
4. There was a storm and some drizzle.
5. She is a shy girl, but quite determined.
6. You are always welcome in this office.
7. Of course you may. Dont mind what she says.
8. It was the doorbell that youve heard.
9. Sorry, I didnt realize you were busy.
10.Unfortunately, I am not.
VI.
VII. Starting from the same simple sentences of the exercise above,
build up complex sentences, having at least three clauses.
VIII. Use the same sentences of exercise V. above to build up
compound-complex sentences.
IX.
X.
TYPES OF CLAUSES
I.
II.
30
BIBLIOGRAFIE:
*** - Limba englez. Exerciii pentru admiterea n nvmntul superior .
Ed. Didactica si pedagogica, Bucuresti, 1978
Aarts, Bas (2011). Oxford modern English grammar. Oxford University Press
Banta, Andrei : Sintaxa limbii engleze. Universitatea Bucureti, Facultatea de
Limbi Germanice, uz intern
Carter, Ronald and Michael McCarthy - Cambridge Grammar of English. A
Comprehensive Guide. Spoken and Written English. Grammar and Usage. CUP, 2007
Grui, Mariana: A Contrastive Syntax of English and Romanian. The Compound
and the Complex Sentence, Cluj-Napoca, 1985
Iacob, Olimpia: English Syntax Through Exercises. Editura Dacia, Cluj-Napoca,
2002
Kolln, Martha J.; Funk, Robert W. (2008). Understanding English Grammar
(8th Edition). Longman
Lctuu, Tamara: Essentials of English Syntax. Composite Structures. Casa
Editorial Demiurg, Iai, 2005
Levichi, Leon: Elements of English Syntax
Ilovici, Edith, Mariana Chioran i Maria Ciofu : A Practical Guide to English
Grammar. Ed. Didactic i Pedagogic, Bucureti, 1972
Nistor, Gabriela, Sintaxa aplicat a limbii engleze. Note de curs (format
electronic)
Quirk, R., Greenbaum, S., A University Grammar of English, Longman, 1978
Quirk, R., Greenbaum, S., A University Grammar of English, Workbook by R.
A. Close, Longman, 1978
Radford, Andrew: Analysing English Sentences: A Minimalist Approach
(Cambridge University Press, 2009)
Side, Richard and Guy Wellman. Grammar and Vocabulary for Cambridge
Advanced and Proficiency. Longman, 2009
31