Syntax of Ame - Clause: view article

A clause is a construction which contains a verb and a noun. A clause is either dependent and independent. A dependent clause can't occur alone and is always a part of a larger structure; while an independent clause can occur alone.

A distinction between a simple clause and a derived clause can be made. A basic clause is an independent clause which is described without referring to other types of clauses, and it can be used as a referent of a derived clause.

Simple Clauses

Simple clauses are the most basic type of all clauses. A simple clause contains two types of constituents: nuclear constituents and complements. Nuclear constituents are obligatory to a clause, a clause is not a clause without nucleasr constituents; while the complements are optional. For most clauses, the nuclear constituent is made of a subject and a predicate. For transitive verbs, one and sometimes two objects are also a part of the nuclear constituents; complements are used to give additional information about the clause, a complement consists of adverbials discussed in the section of phrases; besides, some verbs are usually accompanied with a complement, while others not.

In sum, there are several patterns for the nuclear constituents of a simple clause. They are listed below, arranged by the respective word order:
- Subject - Nonverbal Predicate
- Subject - Verb
- Subject - Verb - Subject Complement
- Subject - Verb - Object
- Subject - Verb - Indirect Object - Direct Object
- Subject - Verb - Object - Object Complment

Subject
The subject represents the agent or the theme of a sentence. An agent represents the doer of an action; while a theme means the topic, that is, something being talked about.

The subject of a clause is usually a noun phrase or a pronoun phrase, but a number of other constructions, such as a gerundive clause and a complement clause, can be the subject of a clause, too. Below are some examples of the subject of simple clauses:
- da koza motari - the house is big.
- Akari okaishi - Akari is tall.
- tame teno da kimeka - he drives the car.
- kayato itami teisa ne etoushi - learing another language is not easy. / it is not easy to learn another language.
- noda da eimoya tokoro sare yo yachi mi karekare - that the queen loves girls is known by everyone.

When the subject is a personal pronoun, the subject pronoun is always used. For example:
- me migo ei sare - I saw a girl.
- te okaishi - you are tall.
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Except for some specific clauses, like imperatives, the use of the subject is obligatory. In structures where a semantic subject does not exist, the demonstrative pronoun ada is introduced into the subject position as a dummy pronoun. The use of the dummy pronoun is similar to the use it of English in describing weathers. For example:

- ada ketashi wataa - it's cold outside.

Predicates
Predicates are the hub of a clause. The type of a clause is determined by the type of predicates it has, a clause with a verb functioning as its predicate center is a verbal clause; and a clause with a non-verbal element as its predicate center.

Nouns as Predicates

Nouns can act as a predicate center, when they act as the predicae center, they act as the identifier of the subject(such as the tamene mei "her thought" and da eimoya "the queen" below), or the explanation of what the subject is(such as the mitane "a soldier" below). For example:
- ani tamene mei - this is her thought
- Akari da eimoya - Akari is the queen
- da sare mitane - the girl is a soldier
- hitaaka aa hida - money is only a medium

The predicative negation ne is used to negate a clause:
- ani ne tamene mei - this is not her thought
- hitaaka ne aa hida - money is not only a medium

Other nominal elements, including pronouns, proper names, and a variety of nominal clauses like the tada clause. For example:
- tamene hedawa tada sabo katana fu da eimoya - her job is to make meals for the queen.
- tamedamene taka ne tada kaako hitaaka - their goal is not to get money. ✎ Edit Article ✖ Delete Article

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