A clause is a chunk of words that sits on its own, fenced in by a bit of punctuation.

It can be a short sentence.

Or, sometimes, it can be a single word, or something a bit longer.

Sometimes it's fenced in by a punctuation mark and it's got a noun verbing something; since all you need to make a sentence is a noun and a verb, any chunk of words that's got both is independent, a whole sentence all on its own, full of spark and spunk and go-to pioneer spirit, and anything on the other side of that punctuation mark can go to hell, or go hide behind a semicolon or something.

See? Crystal clear!

Or not. Thank God I'm not a teacher.

Fay, keep up the stories about your students. They are wonderful!

Today my "baby dyke diver" came into my room in tears. She just felt like it was hard being gay and could I help her make it stop. In the end she also talked to another one of my students and told her she is gay. My other student gave BDD a hug and said, "So. That doesn't change anything about you. You are one of my best friends and nothing will change that. We'll still have lunch one day so I can approve of your partner."

They had a 15 min 'confessional' in my office. My other students admitted she has an eating disorder and her mom is verbally abusive. BDD talked about a girl she had a crush on who led her on and then dropped her for a guy. She is also scared her parents will disown her if/when she finally tells them.

Then, they both wanted to know if Hub and I will be their "adoped parents forever". Teenagers...gotta love them

Connie, would it help you if I sent you a grammar workbook? I've got a few extra that I know can go 'missing'.

What is the difference between transitive and intransitive anyway?

Transitive verbs take an object. "I kicked the ball." Ball is the object of kicked.

Intransitive verbs don't. "I slept until noon." The verb sleep has no object.

Don't fence me in, JZ!

GG, I feel so much for both of those kids right now, but I'm also so very glad to hear that BDD is out to as fab and supportive a friend as that.

What is the difference between transitive and intransitive anyway?

Transitive verbs take a direct object. Example: I extolled her virtues. Extol needs a direct object (her virtues); it transitions, sort of. You wouldn't just say "I extolled." That would make us say, "You extolled WHAT??" A verb like "walk," however, is intransitive. It doesn't need a direct object. You can say "I walked" and have a complete thought. If you remember "in" = not (or without? I forget), you can remember that "intransitive" means that it does not need to transition to a direct object. It can stand on its own.

(I'm so much better at teaching this in person with shiny things and visuals.)

ETA: x-posty, of course

What is the difference between transitive and intransitive anyway?

Transitive verbs do things to other things. They need an object.

Intransitive verbs can function all on their own.

Going off Kristin's example, for instance:

Hec enjoys baseball. What does Hec enjoy? Baseball. That's transitive.

Hec walks down the sidewalk. What does Hec walk? Well, he's not walking anything; he's just walking. That's intransitive.

Some verbs can be both transitive and intransitive.

Hec eats gourmet food. What does Hec eat? Food. Transitive.

Hec eats at gourmet restaurants. What does Hec eat? We don't know; all we know is that he eats, just like any other creature. Intransitive.

Hec really enjoys baseball; therefore, he coaches Little League. (This is another example of two independent clauses joined by a semicolon.)

Hec really enjoys baseball, so he coaches Little League.

Why isn't there a comma before "therefore", because it's not one of the FANBOYS? (I love that by the way)

Connie, would it help you if I sent you a grammar workbook? I've got a few extra that I know can go 'missing'.

It would be immensely useful! Profile addy good to work out details.

The Transitive/Instransitive thing makes sense, it's a matter of remember which one goes which way. I keep thinking "intransigent", which I may be able to work with.

You guys are the most useful, helpful people ever.

it transitions, sort of

Ah ha! The link to the terminology! The answer is in the thing itself!

Am I a complete and utter dork for getting choked up at the resolution of a 40-year intellectual roadblock?

I sure you can ace the grammar test, Connie. You're a good writer and you read. You'll recognize something that looks wrong.