Phrases and Clauses

A phrase is a group of words that does not contain a subject-verb pair and does not express a complete thought.

A clause is a group of words that contains a subject and a verb. It can express a complete thought (independent clause) or not (dependent clause).

An independent clause is a clause that can stand alone as a complete sentence because it expresses a complete thought.

A dependent clause is a clause that cannot stand alone as a complete sentence because it does not express a complete thought.

"the much-awaited game of the season" is a phrase because it does not have a subject-verb pair.

"because the family was well prepared" is a clause because it has a subject and a verb.

A phrase can be identified by the absence of a subject-verb pair and it does not express a complete thought.

A clause can be identified by the presence of a subject and a verb, and it may express a complete thought.

The main difference is that a clause has both a subject and a verb, while a phrase does not.

"She loves to read books." is an independent clause because it expresses a complete thought.