In the sentence "It looks as if it’s going to rain", I am wondering whether "as if it’s going to rain" is acting as a predicative clause or an adverbial clause of manner.
Thank you very much!
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2My 'NO' to the latter option! :) – Maulik V♦ Jul 29 '14 at 5:23
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I know this is not your question, but "It looks like it's going to rain" is more idiomatic, at least to me. Unless you're in Texas, then it's "It looks like its fixing to rain." Even "It looks like rain" will do. I'm putting this comment mainly for other Learners who happen across this question. – user6951 Sep 27 '14 at 16:06
It looks as if it’s going to rain
Actually it plays the role of both.
A predicative clause is a subordinate clause that functions as a predicative of the main clause, where “it looks” is the main clause and “it’s going to rain” is the subordinate clause introduced by the subordinate conjunction “as if”.
The term is used to denote expressions that follow a copula (=linking verb), e.g. be, seem, appear, look, etc.
An adverbial clause is a dependant clause that functions as an adverb. It is usually introduced by a subordinate conjunction.
answered Jul 29 '14 at 6:50
