The Minor Parts of SpeechNominal conjunctions
Nominal clauses function just like noun phrases typically function—i.e., as
subjects, objects, and complements. When they do, they are introduced by a
set of subordinating conjunctions that includes most of the wh-words listed
in Table 6 along with the word that. Thus, once you know the wh-words, you
do not need to learn a separate list of nominal subordinating conjunctions. To
illustrate, note the sentences in (42).
(42) a. I didn’t know [who(m) I should call.]
b. [What you don’t know] might hurt you.
c. [Why Zangooli fled] is not clear.
d. I suspected [that he was wanted by the police.]
To assure yourself that the clauses truly have a nominal function, replace
them with the pronouns it or that.
Exercise
Create at least six more examples of sentences containing nominal
clauses modeled on (42a-d). Test that you really have created nominal
clauses by replacing them with it or that.
Relative conjunctions
Relative clauses function as modifiers of the nouns they follow. Typically, they
are introduced by a wh-word, (in this function, traditionally called relative
pronouns), or by that. For example:
(43) a. Anyone [who knows the answer] will receive a prize.
b. The cat [that caught the mouse] was jubilant.
c. The reason [why she left] wasn’t clear.
d. I anticipate the day [when the world will be at peace.]
Exercise
Create at least six more examples of relative clauses modeled on (43a-
d). Identify their conjunctions.