An independent clause is a clause

Clause

In grammar, a clause is the smallest grammatical unit that can express a complete proposition. In some languages it may be a pair or group of words that consists of a subject and a predicate, although in other languages in certain clauses the subject may not appear explicitly as a noun phrase,...

 that can stand by itself, also known as a simple sentence

Simple sentence

A simple sentence is a sentence structure that contains one independent clause and no dependent clauses.-Examples:*The runner jumped....

. An independent clause contains a subject

Subject (grammar)

The subject is one of the two main constituents of a clause, according to a tradition that can be tracked back to Aristotle and that is associated with phrase structure grammars; the other constituent is the predicate. According to another tradition, i.e...

 and a predicate

Predicate (grammar)

There are two competing notions of the predicate in theories of grammar. Traditional grammar tends to view a predicate as one of two main parts of a sentence, the other being the subject, which the predicate modifies. The other understanding of predicates is inspired from work in predicate calculus...

; it makes sense by itself.
Multiple independent clauses can be joined by using a semicolon or a comma plus a coordinating conjunction (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so).The conjunctions can be remembered as F.A.N.B.O.Y.S .

Examples

• I love penguins. (simple sentence)
• I drive a bus. (simple sentence)
• I am a doctor, and my wife is a lawyer. (compound sentence
  Compound sentence
  A compound sentence is composed of at least two independent clauses. It does not require a dependent clause. The clauses are joined by a coordinating conjunction , a correlative conjunction , a semicolon that functions as a conjunction, or a conjunctive adverb preceded by a semicolon. A conjunction...
  
   made up of two independent clauses: I am a doctor and my wife is a lawyer)
• I want to be a nurse, but I need to receive my science degree. (compound sentence made up of two independent clauses:

(I want to be a nurse)

(I need to receive my science degree)

• Go to the store, and get me a carton of milk. (compound sentence) (Though a subject is not visible, in English
  English language
  English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
  
   the subject of an imperative
  Imperative mood
  The imperative mood expresses commands or requests as a grammatical mood. These commands or requests urge the audience to act a certain way. It also may signal a prohibition, permission, or any other kind of exhortation.- Morphology :...
  
   is considered to be the pronoun
  Pronoun
  In linguistics and grammar, a pronoun is a pro-form that substitutes for a noun , such as, in English, the words it and he...
  
   'you')

See also

• Sentence
  Sentence (linguistics)
  In the field of linguistics, a sentence is an expression in natural language, and often defined to indicate a grammatical unit consisting of one or more words that generally bear minimal syntactic relation to the words that precede or follow it...
  
  
• Dependent clause
  Dependent clause
  In linguistics, a dependent clause is a clause that augments an independent clause with additional information, but which cannot stand alone as a sentence. Dependent clauses modify the independent clause of a sentence or serve as a component of it...
  
  
• Simple sentence
  Simple sentence
  A simple sentence is a sentence structure that contains one independent clause and no dependent clauses.-Examples:*The runner jumped....
  
  
• Compound sentence
  Compound sentence (linguistics)
  A compound sentence is composed of at least two independent clauses. It does not require a dependent clause. The clauses are joined by a coordinating conjunction , a correlative conjunction , a semicolon that functions as a conjunction, or a conjunctive adverb preceded by a semicolon. A conjunction...
  
  
• Run-on sentence
  Run-on sentence
  A run-on sentence is a sentence in which two or more independent clauses are joined without appropriate punctuation or conjunction. It is generally considered a stylistic error, though it is occasionally used in literature and may be used as a rhetorical device...
  
  
• Comma splice
  Comma splice
  A comma splice is the use of a comma to join two independent clauses. For example:Although acceptable in some languages and compulsory in others, comma splices are usually considered style errors in English.- Prescriptive view :...
  
  

External links

• The Tongue Untied: Independent Clause
• Owl Online Writing Lab: Independent and Dependent Clauses
• Independent Clauses - Dependent Clauses - Elementary Grammar Lessons & Tests - My Schoolhouse - Online Learning: http://www.myschoolhouse.com/courses/O/1/56.asp