Clauses Unlocked: The Building Blocks of Every Sentence

Read these three groups of words carefully: 1. 'The dog barked.' 2. 'Because she was tired.' 3. 'Running quickly through the park.' One of these is a complete sentence on its own. One feels like it is waiting for something more. One is missing a verb altogether. Which is which — and why? Think about it for a moment before you read on. Your instinct about language is already working, even if you have never heard the word 'clause' before.