Noun Clauses

A noun clause is a dependent clause that acts as a noun in a sentence. It can function as a subject, object, or complement.

A noun clause can serve as a subject, an object, or a complement in a sentence.

An independent clause can stand alone as a complete sentence, while a subordinate clause cannot stand alone and depends on an independent clause.

"What you said is true." (The noun clause 'What you said' acts as the subject.)

"I believe that he will come." (The noun clause 'that he will come' acts as the object of the verb 'believe.')

"The truth is that she won the competition." (The noun clause 'that she won the competition' acts as a complement to the subject 'The truth.')

Look for clauses that begin with words like 'that', 'what', 'who', 'whom', 'whether', or 'if', and check if they can function as a noun.

The word 'that' often introduces a noun clause and can indicate that the clause is providing additional information.

The noun clause is 'if he will join us.' It acts as the object of the verb 'wonder.'

A subordinate clause cannot stand alone as a complete sentence and usually begins with a subordinating conjunction.