clause
[ klawz ]
/ klɔz /
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noun
Grammar. a syntactic construction containing a subject and predicate and forming part of a sentence or constituting a whole simple sentence.
a distinct article or provision in a contract, treaty, will, or other formal or legal written document.
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Origin of clause
1175–1225; Middle English claus(e) (<Anglo-French ) <Medieval Latin clausa, back formation from Latin clausulaclausula
OTHER WORDS FROM clause
clausal, adjectivesub·claus·al, adjectivesubclause, nounWORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH clause
clause , clawsDictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
Example sentences from the Web for clause
British Dictionary definitions for clause
clause
/ (klɔːz) /
noun
grammar a group of words, consisting of a subject and a predicate including a finite verb, that does not necessarily constitute a sentenceSee also main clause, subordinate clause, coordinate clause
a section of a legal document such as a contract, will, or draft statute
Derived forms of clause
clausal, adjectiveWord Origin for clause
C13: from Old French, from Medieval Latin clausa a closing (of a rhetorical period), back formation from Latin clausula, from claudere to close
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Cultural definitions for clause
clause
A group of words in a sentence that contains a subject and predicate. (See dependent clause and independent clause.)
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.