114 Section 2 • Guide to Structure and Written Expression

LESSON 17
INCOMPLETE INDEPENDENT ClAUSES

The structures practiced in this lesson are the ones that are most often tested in the Structure
section. About 20% of all problems in the section (usually three or four per test) involve incomplete
independent clauses.

A) Clauses

All sentences consist of one or more clauses. A simple sentence consists of one clause.
People need vitamins.
The man took a vitamin pill.
Judy lives in northern California.
In the summer, Tom walks to his office.
A compound sentence consists of two independent clauses joined by a coordinating conjunction
(such as and and but).
The man took a vitamin pill, and he drank a glass of orange juice.
Judy lives in northern California now, but she was raised in Ohio.
A complex sentence consists of an independent clause (called the main clause) and a dependent
(subordinate) clause. Subordinate clauses may be adverb clauses, noun clauses, or adjective clauses.
In the sentences below, the independent clauses are italicized.
The man took a vitamin pill because he had a cold.
(independent clause + adverb clause)
I didn't realize that Nancy was here.
(independent clause + noun clause)
Tom walks to his office, which is located on Broadway, every day during the summer.
(independent clause + adjective clause)
All three types of subordinate clauses are commonly seen in the Structure part of the test, and each is
considered in separate lessons (Lessons 18, 21, and 22). The emphasis in this chapter, however, is
on the basic components of independent clauses.

B) Missing Subjects, Verbs, Objects, and Complements

All clauses have a subject and a verb. Clauses with an action verb often take a direct object as well.
Subject Verb Object
People need vitamins.
The verb missing from an independent clause may be a single-word verb (need, was, took, had,
walked) or a verb phrase consisting of one or more auxiliary verbs and a main verb (will need, has
been, should take, would have had, had walked). The verbs may be active (need, take) or passive
(was needed, is taken).
The missing subject and direct object may be a noun (people, vitamins, Tom) a noun phrase
(some famous people, a vitamin pill, my friend Tom) or a pronoun. (He, she, it, and they are
subject pronouns; him, her, it and them are object pronouns.)
After the verb to be and certain other non-action verbs, a subject complement is used rather
than a direct object. (Subject complements are also known as predicate nominatives and predicate
adjectives.)
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Subject Verb Complement

She is an architect.
The teacher seemed upset.
In the Structure section of TOEFL, it is common for any of these elements or a combination of two or
more of these elements to be missing from the stem. The most common problem in Structure
involves a missing verb. A missing subject and a missing subject-verb combination are common as
well. The missing element may also be part of rather than all of the verb or noun phrase.

T Sample Items
The art of storytelling _ _ _~ almost as old as humanity.
(A) that is
(B) is
(C) it is
(D) being

The correct answer supplies the missing verb. Choice (A) is incorrect because the
word that is used to connect a relative clause to a main clause; in this sentence,
there is only one verb, so there can only be one clause. Choice (C) is incorrect
because there is an unnecessary repetition of the subject (The art of storytelling
it ...). Choice (D) is not correct because an -ing form (being) cannot be the main
verb of a clause.
_ _ _~ a few of the sounds produced by insects can be heard by humans.
(A) Only
(B) There are only
(C) That only
(D) With only

The correct answer completes the noun phrase that is the subject of the sentence.
The expletive There in choice (B) is incorrectly used. In (C), the word That creates a
noun clause, but each clause must have its own verb. (Produced is used as a participle,
not a main verb, in this sentence.) Choice (D) is incorrect because a preposition may
not be used directly before the subject.
____ when lava cools very rapidly.
(A) Because pumice is formed
(B) To form pumice
(C) Pumice is formed
(D) Forming pumice

The best answer supplies an independent clause to join to the adverb clause when
lava cools very rapidly. Choice (A) consists of an adverb clause; two adverb clauses
cannot be joined to form a complete sentence. Choices (B) and (D) are incorrect
because they do not contain main verbs, and an independent clause must contain a
main verb. (To form andforming are not main verbs.) Only choice (C) could serve as
an independent clause because it contains a subject (Pumice) and a full verb, the
passive verb is formed.
116 Section 2 • Guide to Structure and Written Expression

Duke Ellington wrote ____ during his career.

(A) that over a thousand songs
(B) over a thousand songs
(C) over a thousand songs were
(D) there were over a thousand songs

The direct object is missing from this sentence. In choice (A), the connecting word
that is used unnecessarily. In (C), the verb were is used unnecessarily because there
is only one clause and it has a verb (wrote). In choice (D) the phrase there were is
not needed between a verb and its direct object. Choice (B) correctly supplies a
noun phrase that serves as the direct object.
Before the invention of the printing press, books _ _ __
(A) that were very rare
(B) were very rarely
(C) were very rare
(D) as very rare

Choice (A) incorrectly forms an adjective clause; an adjective must be joined to a

main clause. Choice (B) contains an adverb; after the verb to be, an adjective is
required. Choice (D) lacks a verb. Choice (C) correctly supplies a verb (were). ...

C) Clauses with There and It

Some clauses begin with the introductory words there or it rather than with the subject of the
sentence. These introductory words are sometimes called expletives.
The expletive there shows that someone or something exists, usually at a particular time or place.
These sentences generally follow the pattern there + verb to be + subject:
There are many skyscrapers in New York City.
There was a good movie on television last night.
The expletive it is used in a number of different situations and patterns:
It is important to be punctual for appointments.
(with the verb to be + adjective + infinitive)
It was in 1959 that Alaska became a state.
(with the verb to be + adverbial + noun clause)
It takes a long time to learn a language.
(with the verb to take + time phrase + infinitive) -
It was David who did most of the work.
(with the verb to be + noun + relative clause)
It and there, along with the verb and other sentence elements, may be missing from the stem.
 Section 2 • Guide to Structure and Written Expression 117

.... Sample Items

In Michigan, ____ over six hundred feet deep.
(A) salt deposits
(B) where salt deposits are
(C) having salt deposits
(D) there are salt deposits

Choice (D) correctly supplies an introductory word (there), a verb, and a subject.
Choice (A) lacks a verb. Choice (B) contains a subordinator, used to introduce a
clause; there is only one verb, however, so there can only be one clause. Choice (C)
also lacks a main verb.
____ a tomato plant from 75 to 85 days to develop into
a mature plant with ripe fruit.
(A) It takes
(B) To take
(C) That takes
(D) By taking

Choice (A) correctly completes the sentence with the introductory word It and a
verb. Choice (B) and (D) do not supply main verbs. Choice (C) incorrectly creates a
noun clause. ...

Exercise 17
Focus: Completing structure problems involving incomplete independent clauses. (Note: Three or
four items in this exercise do not focus on missing subjects, verbs, complements, or introductory
words; these items are marked in the answer key with asterisks.)
Directions: Choose the one option-(A), (B), (C), or (D)-that correctly completes the sentences,
and then mark the appropriate blank. The first one is done as an example.
1. In the United States, is generally the responsibility of municipal governments.
___ (A) for water treatment
~ (B) water treatment
___ (C) where water treatment
___ (D) in which water treatment
2. Crop rotation of preserving soil fertility.
___ (A) it is one method
_ _ (B) one method
____ (C) a method is one
_ _ (D) is one method

3. the dollar as its monetary unit in 1878.

_ _ (A) Canada adopted
_ _ (B) Adopted by Canada,
___ (C) It was adopted by Canada
_ _ _ (D) The Canadian adoption of
118 Section 2 • Guide to Structure and Written Expression

4. almost impossible to capture the beauty of the aurora borealis in photographs.

_ _ (A) Being
_ _ (B) His
_ _ (C) There is
_ _ (D) Is

5. Usually, political cartoons ______ on the editorial page of a newspaper.

_ _ (A) appear
_ _ _ (B) whose appearance
_ _ (C) by appearing
_ _ (D) when they appear
6. two major art museums, the Fogg and the Sadler.
__ (A) Harvard University has
__ (B) At Harvard University
___ (C) Harvard University, with its
__ (D) There at Harvard University
7. American actress and director Margaret Webster ______ for her production of
Shakespearean plays.
___ (A) who became famous
___ (B) famous as she became
___ (C) becoming famous
___ (D) became famous
8. gas tanks connected to welding equipment, one full of oxygen and the other
full of acetylene.
_ _ (A) It is two
_ _ (B) Of the two
_ _ (C) There are two
_ _ (D) Two
9. is more interested in rhythm than in melody is apparent from his compositions.
_ _ (A) That Philip Glass
_ _ (B) Philip Glass, who
_ _ (C) Philip Glass
_ _ _ (D) Because Philip Glass

lO. Compressed air ______ the power to drive pneumatic tools.

_ _ (A) by providing
_ _ _ (B) provides
___ (C) that provides
___ (D) the provision of
11. by cosmic rays.
_ _ (A) The earth is constantly bombarded
_ _ (B) Bombarded constantly, the earth
_ _ (C) Bombarding the earth constantly
___ (D) The earth's constant bombardment
12. primary colors are red, blue, and yellow.
___ (A) There are three
_ _ (B) The three
_ _ (C) Three of them
_ _ (D) That the three
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13. who was elected the first woman mayor of Chicago in 1979.
___ (A) It was Jane Byrne
_ _ (B) Jane Byrne
_ _ (C) That Jane Byrne
_ _ (D) When Jane Byrne
14. Every computer consists of a number of systems _ _ _ _ _ _ together.
_ _ (A) by working
_ _ (B) work
_ _ (C) they work
_ _ (D) that work

15. On the Moon, ______ air because the Moon's gravitational field is too weak to retain an
atmosphere.
_ _ (A) there is no
_ _ (B) where no
_ _ (C) no
___ (D) is no
16. The Glass Mountains of northwestern Oklahoma _ _ _ _ _ _ with flecks of gypsum, which
shine in the sunlight.
___ (A) they are covered
_ _ _ (B) covered them
_ _ _ (C) that are covered
_ _ _ (D) are covered

17. In some cases, _ _ _ _ _ _ to decide if an organism is a plant or an animal.

_ _ (A) difficult if
_ _ (B) it is difficult
_ _ (C) the difficulty
_ _ (D) is difficult

18. The first American novelist to have a major impact on world literature _ _ _ _ __
___ (A) who was James Fenimore Cooper
_ _ _ (B) James Fenimore Cooper was
___ (C) it was James Fenimore Cooper
___ (D) was James Fenimore Cooper
19. important railroad tunnel in the United States was cut through the Hoosac
Mountains in Massachusetts.
_ _ (A) At first
_ _ (B) It was the first
_ _ (C) The first
_ _ (D) As the first of

20. Generally, in the valleys and foothills of the Pacific Coast ranges.
_ _ (A) the California poppy grown
_ _ (B) the growth of the California poppy
_ _ (C) the California poppy grows
_ _ (D) growing the California poppy
21. When bats are at rest, _ _ _ _ _ _ hang upside-down.
_ _ (A) they
_ _ (B) and
_ _ (C) to
_ _ (D)as
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22. that the capital of South Carolina was moved from Charleston to Columbia.
_ _ (A) In 1790 was
_ _ _ (B) There was in 1790
_ _ (C) In 1790
_ _ (D) It was in 1790
23. Although not as important as they once were, _ _ _ _ _ _ a major form of transportation
in North America.
___ (A) there are still railroads
_ _ _ (B) railroads, which are still
_ _ (C) railroads are still
___ (D) railroads still being
24. The Loop, which is the commercial heart of Chicago, _ _ _ _ _ _ within a rectangular loop
of elevated train tracks.
___ (A) that is enclosed
___ (B) enclosing it
___ (C) is enclosed
_ _ (D) enclosed
25. amino acids that serve as the basic building blocks of all proteins.
_ _ (A) About twenty
_ _ (B) For about twenty of
_ _ (C) About twenty are
_ _ (D) There are about twenty