Parts of a Sentence: The Noun Clause

A clause is a group of words that contains a subject and a verb. Some

clauses are dependent: they can't stand alone and need an independent
clause, or sentence, to support them. These dependent clauses can be
used in three ways: as adjectives, as adverbs and as nouns.
What is a noun clause?
A noun clause is a dependent clause that acts as a noun.
What words are signs of a noun clause?
Noun clauses most often begin with the subordinating conjunction that.
Other words that may begin a noun clause are if, how, what, whatever,
when, where, whether, which, who, whom and why.
What can a noun clause do in a sentence?
Since a noun clause acts as a noun, it can do anything that a noun can
do. A noun clause can be a subject, a direct object, an indirect object, an
object of a preposition, a subject complement, an object complement or
an appositive.
Examples:
Whatever you decide is fine with me.
What he needs is complete rest.
(These dependent noun clause works as subjects of the verb is)
I could see that you'd enjoy bungee jumping.
(the noun clause works as direct object of the verb see)
He worries about how his business will be affected
Give to whoever needs it
(the noun clause works as object of the preposition about and to)
The problem is that my GPS is lost.
(the noun clause works as subject complement after the linking verb is)
Call me whatever you like; you're still not borrowing my car.
(object complement referring to object me)

Al's assumption that bubble tea was carbonated turned out to be false.
(appositive, explaining noun assumption)

How do noun clauses differ from other dependent clauses?

Other dependent clauses act as adjectives and adverbs. We can remove
them and still have a complete independent clause left, with a subject
and verb and any necessary complements.
That is not the case with most noun clauses. A clause acting as an
indirect object or an appositive may be removable, but other types of
noun clauses are too essential to the sentence to be removed. Consider
these examples:
Whether you drive or fly is up to you.
I wondered if you would like to go to the barbecue.
Sandy led us to where she had last seen the canoe.
If we remove these noun clauses, what is left will not make much sense:
is up to you
I wondered
Sandy led us to
That is because, in each example, the dependent noun clause forms a key
part of the independent clause: it acts as the subject, the direct object,
the object of a preposition. Without those key parts, the independent
clauses do not express complete thoughts.
A sentence containing a noun clause is thus the one case in which an
independent clause may actually need a dependent clause to be
complete!
When are commas needed with a noun clause?
Noun clauses may need to be set off by one or two commas in the
following situations.
Appositives
An appositive is a noun, pronoun, or nominal (a word or word group acting
as a noun) that is placed next to a noun to explain it. For example, in the
following sentence, the noun phrase the mayor of Riverton is an
appositive explaining who John Allen is:
John Allen, the mayor of Riverton, is speaking tonight.
Noun clauses are nominals and can act as appositives. In that case, they
may require commas if they are not essential to the meaning of the
sentence:
I did not believe his original statement, that he had won the lottery, until
he proved it to us.

Here, the words his original statement identify which statement is meant,
so the noun clause provides information that is merely additional and not
essential.
Compare this sentence to the one below:
I did not believe his statement that he had won the lottery until he proved
it to us.
In this case, the noun clause is essential for identifying which statement is
meant and therefore takes no commas.
Unusual position
Other than appositives, noun clauses do not normally require commas.
However, if the clause is in an unusual position, it may require a comma:
That the work was done on time, we cannot deny.
(object of verb denyplaced first, instead of after verb)
BUT
That the work was done on time is certainly true.
(subject of verb is, in usual positionno comma)
Whatever I say, she argues with.
(object of preposition withplaced first, instead of after preposition)
BUT
Whatever I say seems to annoy her.
(subject of verb seems, in usual positionno comma)

Clarity
As the above examples show, we do not normally use a comma for a
noun clause acting as subject at the beginning of the sentence, because
that is the usual position for a subject. However, a comma may
sometimes be needed to prevent misreading:
Who the owner of this money is, is a mystery.
Whatever property Alexandra still had, had increased greatly in value.
In the above examples, we use a comma to separate the two identical
verbs in order to avoid confusion.
What Is a Subject Complement? (with Examples)

A subject complement is a word or phrase which follows a linking verb

(e.g., to be, to become, to appear, to feel, to look, to smell, to taste) and
describes or identifies the subject. A subject complement is either an
adjective, a noun, or a pronoun. For example (subject complements
shaded):
He will be fine.
(The linking verb is will be (i.e., the verb to be). The subject complement
describes the subject He. It is an adjective.)
Ben is a policeman.
(The linking verb is is (i.e., the verb to be). The subject complement
identifies the subject Ben. It is a noun.)
I am he.
(The linking verb is am (i.e., the verb to be). The subject complement
identifies the subject I. It is a pronoun.)
That pie looks burnt to a cinder.
(The linking verb is looks. The subject complement describes the subject
That pie. It is an adjective. Don't forget adjectives (just like nouns) also
come in the form of phrases.)
More Examples of Subject Complements
In the examples below the subject complements are shaded and the
linking verbs are bold:
Ella was a ghost. She appeared at 12 and looked stunning.
Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls
and looks like work.
(Remember, adjectives and nouns can come in the forms of adjective
phrases and noun phrases too.)
If you put butter and salt on popcorn, it tastes like salty butter.
As for me, except for an occasional heart attack, I feel as young as I ever
did.
Correct usage of the who/whom pronouns present difficulties for many
writers. The following guidelines and examples may help you determine
which one to use.
If a pronoun (he, she, it, they) could serve as the subject of the
who/whom clause, use who or whoever.
John F. Kennedy, who was assassinated in November of 1963, was the
youngest president elected in the United States.

In the example sentence, who is part of a clause that modifies the subject
of the sentence, JFK.
If who were replaced with he or JFK, the clause would make sense and
reinforce the idea that who not only refers to the subject of the sentence
but could also replace it.
When a pronoun functions as the object of a clause, use whom or
whomever.
John F. Kennedy, whom people respected for his political savvy, was
assassinated in November of 1963.
In this example sentence, the whom clause modifies the subject of the
sentence. It differs from the first example, however, in that whom
functions as the object of the clause in which it exists. People is the
subject in the clause, while whom (referring to JFK) is the object the verb
respected refers to.
When a preposition (in, of, on, without, at, from) precedes the pronoun,
use whom or whomever.
The anonymous donor, of whom we speak, graciously gave ten million
dollars to the flood-relief fund.

In this example, whom functions as the object of the preposition instead

of as the object of a clause.
The relative pronoun "who" replaces the original subject in the clause.
Use "WHO" BEFORE A VERB. The relative pronoun "whom" replaces the
original object in the clause. Use "WHOM" BEFORE A SUBJECT + VERB to
mean "me, you, him, her, it, us, them". The relative pronoun/adjective
"whose" replaces the original possessive adjective in the clause. Use
"WHOSE" BEFORE A SUBJECT + VERB to mean
"my/your/his/her/its/our/their"

That is the man _________ killed my grandmother. That is the man who
killed my grandmother.
(who = he)

I am looking for the woman in this class _________ shoes are size 6 1/2. I
am looking for the woman in this class whose shoes are size 6 1/2. (whose
= her)

Where is the man __________ you were talking to yesterday? Where is the
man whom you were talking to yesterday?
(whom = him. Also, see "to whom" you were talking yesterday)

That is the little boy _______ I hit with my car. That is the little boy whom I
hit with my car. (whom = him)

I can see the little girl ________ broke my window with her baseball! I can
see the little girl who broke my window with her baseball. (who = she)

I'm looking for a student __________ last name begins with the letter "S".
I'm looking for a student whose last name begins with the letter "S".
(whose =his/her)

He wants to marry a woman _________ has a lot of money. He wants to

marry a woman who has a lot of money.
(who = she)

I have never met anyone ________ speaks Portuguese before. I have never
met anyone who speaks Portuguese before.
(who = she/ he)

I don't think I know that man ________ your brother is looking at.
I don't think I know that man whom your brother is looking at. (whom =
him. Also, see "at whom" your brother is looking)

I want to introduce you to the man ________ started Microsoft: Bill Gates! I
want to introduce you to the man who started Microsoft. (who = he)

Have you ever met someone __________ hands are bigger than their* face?
Have you ever met someone whose hands are bigger than their face?
(whose = his / her... NOTE: People
Whom is an object pronoun

A clause is a group of words which include a subject and a verb. There are
two types. Main clauses, which begin with a capital letter and end with a
period or other form of punctuation, can stand alone as complete
sentences. Subordinate clauses on the other hand, cannot stand alone as
complete sentences. Instead, they give more information about a noun or
verb in the main clause. Whom is a relative pronoun used to introduce
subordinate clauses that refer to people, not things, as in example
sentences below. Because it is an object pronoun, whom cannot be the
subject of a subordinate clause. The pattern is: whom + subject + verb.
Main clause + subordinate (adjective) clause:
Isn't he the man whom we saw earlier.
Main clause + subordinate (adjective) clause
Whom with a preposition
Whom is often used with a preposition, as in the example sentences
below. Whether the preposition comes at the beginning of a clause or at
the end makes no difference to the meaning of the clause. However,
placing the the preposition at the beginning makes it more formal.
That is the man about whom we spoke. (more formal)
That is the man whom we spoke about. (less formal)
Unlike whom and whose, whos is not a single word, but rather, a
contraction for who + is. (Who is relative pronoun which, unlike whom or
whose, can be the subject of a subordinate clause.) See the example
sentence.
"Who" is a Subject Pronoun
"Who" is a subject pronoun like "he," "she" and "we" in the examples
above. We use "who" to ask which person does an action or which person
is a certain way.
Examples:
Who made the birthday cake?
Who is in the kitchen?
Who is going to do the dishes?
"Whom" is an Object Pronoun
"Whom" is an object pronoun like "him," "her" and "us." We use "whom"
to ask which person receives an action.
Examples:
Whom are you going to invite?

Whom did he blame for the accident?

Whom did he hire to do the job?