Noun clauses

11-1 NOUN CLAUSES WHICH BEGIN WITH IF OR WHETHER

YES/NO QUESTIONS NOUN CLAUSE a) Is John at home? I don’t know ifJohn at home. b) Does the bus stop here? Do you know ifthe bus stops here. c) Did Alice go to Chicago? I wonder ifAlice went to Chicago.	When a yes/no question is changed to a noun clause, ifis used to introduce the clause.
d)I don’t know ifJohn at home or not.   e)I don’t know whetherJohn is at home. f) I don’t know whetherJohn is at home or not.	When ifintroduces a noun clause the expression or notfrequently comes at the end of the clause. Whetherhas the same meaning as if. Note: Ifand whetherhave the same meaning when they are used to introduce noun clauses. Both of them are used in spoken English and informal writing. In formal English whetheris usually more appropriate than if.In informal English ifis more common than whether.

Exercise 1: Change the questions into noun clauses.

1. Did Steve go to the bank? I don’t know if (whether) Steve went to the bank.

2. Where did Steve go? I don’t know where Steve _______.

3. Is Karen at home? Do you know _________________.

4. Where is Karen? I wonder ____________________.

5. How is Pat feeling today? I wonder ______________________.

6. Is Pat feeling better today? I wonder ______________________.

7. Does the bus stop here? Do you know ___________________.

8. Where does the bus stop? I wonder ________________________.

9. Why is Elena absent today? The teacher wants to know ___________.

10. Where did Janet go last night? Do you know ___________________.

11. Should I buy that book? I wonder _________________________.

12. Can Jerry speak French? I don’t know _______________________.

13. Where is the nearest drug store? I wonder ___________________________.

14. Is Jane married? Sam wants to know _________________.

15. Is there life on other planets? No one knows ______________________.

11-2 NOUN CLAUSES WHICH BEGIN WITH A QUESTION WORD

INFORMATION QUESTION NOUN CLAUSE a) Where does he live? I don’t know where he lives. b) When did they leave? Do you know when they left. c) What did she say? Please tell me what she said. d) Why is Tom absent today? I don’t understand why Tom is absent today.

Exercise 2: Change the questions to noun clauses.

1. Will it rain tomorrow? I wonder ____________________________. 2.What is an amphibian? Do you know ________________________.

3. Is a frog an amphibian? Can you tell me _____________________.

4. What’s on TV tonight? I wonder ___________________________.

5. Where did she go? I don’t know _________________________.

6. Where is the post office? Could you please tell me _______________.

7. What time is it? Could you please tell me ________________.

8. How much does this book cost? Could you please tell me ________________.

9. What does this word mean? Could you please tell me _______________.

10. What country is Ben from? Do you know _______________________.

11. Why was Kathy absent from

class yesterday? Do you know _________________________.

12. How far is it to Moscow? I wonder ____________________________.

13. When does the semester end? Can you tell me ______________________.

14. What is Sue talking about? I don’t understand ___________________.

15. When did Dale arrive? I don’t know ________________________.

16. Where can I buy a computer? Do you know _____________________.

NOUN CLAUSES WHICH BEGING WITH THAT.

a)I think thatMr. Jones is a good teacher. b)I hope thatyou can come to the party. c) Mary realizes thatshe should study harder.	A noun clause can be introduced by the word that.“Thatclauses” are often used as the objects of verbs which express mental activity.
d)I think thatMr. Jones is a good teacher. e) I think Mr. Jones is a good teacher.	The word thatis often omitted, especially in speaking.

COMMON VERBS FOLLOWED BY “ THAT CLAUSES”.