Noun Clauses

Ever since you learned English, your

teachers have been telling you thata noun

is a person, place or thing.
Unfortunately, some erudite linguists have

demonstrated that such a definition is

entirely too simple.
But since we arent linguists, we will lock

those fellows in the closet (metaphorically

speaking, of course) and hang on to the
definition we know:A noun is a person

Remember

1. A noun is a part of speech.

2. Subjects and objects are parts of a
sentence.
3. Nouns function as subjects or objects.
4. Therefore: Nouns = subjects or objects.

Example:

The burrito gave me heartburn.

("Burrito" and "heartburn" are the nouns in this
sentence. "Gave" is the verb and "burrito" is the
subject.)
But What About This One?

What I had for breakfastgave me heartburn.

(The verb is still "gave," but the subject is a noun
clause: "What I had for breakfast.")

Thesentence like the one above sends some people to the aspirin
bottle.
Why isnt the subject "I"?
Why isnt it "breakfast"?

Remember
To find the subject of a sentence, locate the verb and ask who or
what about the verb.
In the sentence above, ask "what gave me heartburn?"
"I"? clearly not.
"Breakfast"? not exactly.
"What I had for breakfast"? Right.

"But wait," you say. "I thought a noun was a person place or
thing"?
It is. Think about "what I had for breakfast" as being a thing or
things.

Let's look at some more examples:

(the noun clauses are underlined)

What the English teacher saidwas downright inspiring.

(This noun clause is used as a subject.)

The wonderful thing about English teachers isthat they

all get along so well.
(This noun clause is used as a subject complement)
I must decidewhich English course to take.
(This noun clause is used as a direct object.)

English teachers dispense wisdom towhoever will listen.

(This noun clause is the object of a preposition)

By now it is becoming clear that lots of dependent signals

introduce noun clauses.
Below is a list.

Dependent signals which introduce noun clauses

Who Whom
Whose Which
That if
Whether What
When Where
How Why
And various forms of "-ever":
Whoever Whenever
Whatever Wherever

Let's look at some more examples:

Don't all students wishthey knew more

grammar?
(Be careful here. The dependent signal,
"that," is implied.)

The students don't knowwhether or not

they can stay awake during the lecture.
(This is a noun clause used as a direct
object)

Although I respectedwhat the teacher said, I disagreed

with his conclusion.
(Wow, this is tricky. This is a noun clause inside an adverb
clause. The adverb clause is "Although I respected what
the teacher said." The verb of the clause is "respected."
The subject of the clause is "I." The direct object of the
clause is "what the teacher said.")

Anyone who saysthat English teachers are boringwill be

punished.
(This is another tricky one. This is a noun clause inside an
adjective clause. The adjective clause is "who says that
English teachers are boring." The verb of the adjective
clause is "says." The subject of the clause is "who." The
object of the adjective clause is "that English teachers
are boring." Isn't that neat? Doesn't that make you want
to become an English teacher? Or at least marry one?)