What is an Elliptical Clause?
An elliptical clause is a type of dependent or subordinate clause in which some words have been omitted, but the meaning is still clear from the context.
Examples of Elliptical Clauses
Some examples of elliptical clauses would be the following:
Harriet has more musical training than Taylor.
No one ate more sugar cookies than I.
Jasmyn’s brother was more excited to go to the football game than she.
The pop quiz did not worry my classmates as much as me.
My dogs are jealous that the new kitten is getting more attention than they.
A Closer Look at Elliptical Clauses
Elliptical clauses are a more efficient means of getting your point across. They are an abbreviated version of what your sentence really is. Let’s look at a few examples:
Elliptical Clause: No one played more minutes in the game yesterday than I.
Long Form: No one played more minutes in the game yesterday than I (played in the game).
The actual elliptical clause is “than I,” but what we are really saying is “than I played in the game.” We are simply shortening our subordinate clause down to an elliptical clause. Let’s try another example with an elliptical clause:
Elliptical Clause: Jasmyn has more trading cards than Walter.
Long Form: Jasmyn has more trading cards than Walter (has trading cards).
Again, notice that the elliptical clause is simply a shortened form of the subordinate conjunction. There are words omitted, but the reader still understands the meaning of the sentence.
Download a Free Worksheet on Elliptical Clauses!
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