Glossary entry (derived from question below)
English term or phrase:
finite clause
Romanian translation:
constructii predicative / nepredicative
Added to glossary by
Catalina Tomescu
Apr 20, 2012 09:04
12 yrs ago
English term
finite clause
English to Romanian
Art/Literary
Linguistics
finite clause
non-finite clause
non-finite clause
Proposed translations
(Romanian)
5 +2 | constructii predicative / nepredicative | Catalina Tomescu |
Change log
Apr 30, 2012 11:25: Catalina Tomescu changed "Edited KOG entry" from "<a href="/profile/1150228">beatrice25's</a> old entry - "finite clause"" to ""constructii predicative / nepredicative""
Proposed translations
+2
1 hr
Selected
constructii predicative / nepredicative
The division of clauses into finite and non-finite is fairly recent. Until a few decades ago, clauses with grammatical subjects and finite verbs were known in traditional grammar as clauses, while those with non-finite verbs were called phrases--infinitive phrases, participial phrases, etc. This nomenclature has been largely superseded by the classification "finite/non-finite."
A finite clause has, at the very least,
1) a grammatical subject (except for imperatives like "Listen to this," which have an understood second-person subject)
2) a verb (the first or the only verb) marked for tense and often for number and person
The verb is a full verb, "anchored" in time.
A finite clause can be an independent clause, as in
Marvin owns a posh heath club
or a subordinate clause, as in
She stands for several principles that I don't agree with
When you decide to move to the new apartment, you can stay with me until you're settled
A non-finite clause does not need a grammatical subject. The verb is incomplete, that is, it does not carry markings for tense, number, or person.
The verb can be 1) the infinitive:
(from Google) Gary`s greatest ambition is to walk backwards without actually moving, like the singer Michael Jackson.
2) the past participle :
Stunned by his criticism, she quit her job and moved to Tibet
or 3) the present participle:
Melinda, raising her voice over the crowd, called for order
In short, a finite clause has a full verb, while a non-finite clause has a verb form that is not marked for tense.
A finite clause has, at the very least,
1) a grammatical subject (except for imperatives like "Listen to this," which have an understood second-person subject)
2) a verb (the first or the only verb) marked for tense and often for number and person
The verb is a full verb, "anchored" in time.
A finite clause can be an independent clause, as in
Marvin owns a posh heath club
or a subordinate clause, as in
She stands for several principles that I don't agree with
When you decide to move to the new apartment, you can stay with me until you're settled
A non-finite clause does not need a grammatical subject. The verb is incomplete, that is, it does not carry markings for tense, number, or person.
The verb can be 1) the infinitive:
(from Google) Gary`s greatest ambition is to walk backwards without actually moving, like the singer Michael Jackson.
2) the past participle :
Stunned by his criticism, she quit her job and moved to Tibet
or 3) the present participle:
Melinda, raising her voice over the crowd, called for order
In short, a finite clause has a full verb, while a non-finite clause has a verb form that is not marked for tense.
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Discussion
http://www.ucl.ac.uk/internet-grammar/clauses/fin.htm
As a working definition, let us say that clauses contain at least a verb phrase:
[MC [VP Stop]]
[MC David [VP composed an aria] when he was twelve]
[MC My solicitor [VP sent me a letter] yesterday]
As these examples show, clauses can also contain many other elements, but for now we will concentrate on the VP. We have already seen that verbs (and therefore the VPs that contain them) are either FINITE or NONFINITE, so we can use this distinction to classify clauses. Clauses are either finite or nonfinite.
Finite verb phrases carry tense, and the clauses containing them are FINITE CLAUSES:
[1] She writes home every day (finite clause -- present tense verb)
[2] She wrote home yesterday (finite clause -- past tense verb)
On the other hand, nonfinite verb phrases do not carry tense. Their main verb is either a to-infinitive [3], a bare infinitive [4], an -ed form [5], or an -ing form [6]:
[3] David loves [to play the piano]
[4] We made [David play the piano]
These are NONFIN