Non-finite clause

In linguistics, a non-finite clause is a dependent or embedded clause that represents a state or event in the same way no matter whether it takes place before, during, or after text production. In this sense, a non-finite dependent clause represents one process as a circumstance for another without specifying the time when it takes place as in the following examples:

Non-Finite Dependent Clauses

• I'm going to Broadway to watch a play.
• I went to Broadway to watch a play.

Finite Dependent Clauses

• I'm going to Broadway so I can watch a play.
• I went to Broadway so I could watch a play.

Similarly, a non-finite embedded clause represents a qualification for something that is being represented as in the following examples:

Non-Finite Embedded Clauses

• I'm on a street called Bellevue Avenue.
• I was on a street called Bellevue Avenue.

Finite Embedded Clauses

• I'm on a street that is called Bellevue Avenue.
• I'm on a street that used to be called Bellevue Avenue.
• I was on a street that is called Bellevue Avenue.
• I was on a street that used to be called Bellevue Avenue.

In meaning-independent descriptions of language, a non-finite clause is a clause whose verbal chain is non-finite; for example, using Priscian's categories for Latin verb forms, in many languages we find texts with non-finite clauses containing infinitives, participles and gerunds. In such accounts, a non-finite clause usually serves a grammatical role – commonly that of a noun, adjective, or adverb – in a greater clause that contains it.