Could you please explain me what is the difference between that which is shown below;
a) I have a lot of work which I must do. (Adjectival clauses)
b) He can't decide what he should do. (Noun clauses)
I feel as if we reckon them with the same category.
Could you tell me how to decide which one is Adj or noun clause ?? for what ?
Replies
Dear Bill,
How I can thank you, I do not know at all. I am appreciated.
As you know I am obsessive with english grammar. The time when I deeply struggle against solving some question, I can be confused easily.
You open a window to get it. Especially those words was a golden key for me;
"But an adjectival clause, unlike most adjectives, will usually follow the noun instead of being in front of the noun. So if a noun is followed by a clause that describes the noun, the clause is adjectival."
it was a good emphasis to me;
"The whole clause actually takes the place of a single noun."
and so, your examples very clarify me.
God Bless you.
Take care always Bill,
Selma,
The difference between a noun clause and an adjectival clause:
The complete noun clause acts the same as a one-word noun in its function. The whole clause actually takes the place of a single noun. Therefore just like a noun, a noun clause can act like a subject of a verb, an object of a verb, an indirect object, an object of a preposition or a predicate of a subject (verbs like be, become, appear, etc). In the following examples we can use the noun obligation or the noun phrase what we should do in the same situations. They mean about the same thing.
Examples:
Subject
Often obligation influences our decisions as opposed to personal desire.
Often what we should do influences our decisions as opposed to what we want to do.
Direct Object
We should choose obligation over personal desire as moral beings.
We should choose what we should do over what we want to do as moral beings.
Object of a pronoun
Our decisions should be determined by obligation over personal desire.
Our decisions should be determined by what we should do over what we want to do.
Indirect object
God gave(to) us obligation as a part of our moral character.
God gave (to) us what we should do as a part of our moral character.
Predicate of a subject (Using verb to be)
Our noble decisions are obligation as opposed to personal desire.
Our noble decisions are what we should do as opposed to what we want to do.
The complete adjectival clause acts the same as a one-word adjective in its function. The whole clause actually takes the place of a single adjective. But an adjectival clause, unlike most adjectives, will usually follow the noun instead of being in front of the noun. So if a noun is followed by a clause that describes the noun, the clause is adjectival. So we can use the adjective obligatory or the phrase which I must do to describe a noun.
Examples:
I would rather do fun tasks than obligatory tasks.
I would rather do tasks which I enjoy than tasks which I must do.
So which I must do, follows the noun ‘tasks’ and describes it. Which kind of tasks? – tasks, which I must do.