sentence analysis 9/12/06

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Hela

#302260 Sat, 09 Dec 06 08:11 PM

Dear teachers,

1) A day will come when you will no longer remember my face.
Is “when you will no longer...” a relative clause?

2) Tell me when you will arrive.
Is this an indirect question? And “when you will arrive” a nominal clause?

All the best,
Hela

Hela

Joined on Mon, Nov 15 2004

Tunisia

Regular Member (831)

Clauses, Indirect questions, Direct questions

Marius Hancu

#302272 Sat, 09 Dec 06 08:31 PM

I think tense simplification in the subordinates could be applied in both cases:

1) A day will come when you no longer remember my face.

2) Tell me when you arrive.

(See Swan, Practical English Usage, tense simplification)

Marius Hancu

Joined on Wed, Apr 26 2006

Montreal, Canada

Veteran Member (11,673)

Tenses

Inchoateknowledge

#302274 Sat, 09 Dec 06 08:53 PM

A day will come when you will no longer remember my face.

when here is a conjunction word
A relative clause is introduced by a relative pronoun. When is not a relative pronoun. consequently, there is no relative clause in the sentence

Tell me when you will arrive.

yes, the object is a noun clause used adverbially.

Indirect question, yes

Inchoateknowledge

Joined on Wed, May 3 2006

Senior Member (2,528)

Beep! Beep! :)

Clauses, Nouns, Pronouns, Relative pronouns, Indirect questions, Direct questions

Hela

#302278 Sat, 09 Dec 06 09:05 PM

Marius, please, would you tell me what Swan says about these cases? I haven't got the book at hand, unfortunately.

I'm glad to see that my analysis of the second sentence is correct. Smile [:)]

But in the first sentence, isn't "when" a relative adverb? It can't be a conjunction of time since we have the future in the subordinating clause.

Any comments?

Hela

Verbs, Clauses, Adverbs

Inchoateknowledge

#302281 Sat, 09 Dec 06 09:09 PM

That does not mean your second sentence analysis is correct, but that we are of the same opinion. Wink [;)]

when is an adverb and conjunction, but not a relative pronoun.

In modern English there are five relative pronouns: that, which, who, whom, and whose.

Inchoateknowledge

Verbs, Nouns, Pronouns, Adverbs, Relative pronouns, Whom

Marius Hancu

#302283 Sat, 09 Dec 06 09:13 PM

>Marius, please, would you tell me what Swan says about these cases? I haven't got the book at hand, unfortunately.

I only have time to defend my arguments, sorry.