Clauses

How to structure clauses

The most important part of a clause is the verb. The verb determines the arrangement of the clause's object(s).

An object can be connected to the verb either directly or indirectly (i.e. with a preposition).

Some verbs have to take a direct object (e.g. buy a sandwich) and some do not have to but can (e.g. eat lunch), while others cannot take direct objects (e.g. die Fred X).
For some indirect objects, the preposition is determined by the verb (e.g. please don't worry about me); for others, it is determined by the object (e.g. she died in 1988).
Objects can be independent (e.g. eat lunch at noon), where 'lunch' is independent because 'at noon' can be removed, or dependent (e.g. buy me a sandwich), where 'me' is dependent because 'a sandwich' cannot be removed.

The quick and easy method (Google Ngram)

This method is perfect for the times when you are not 100% sure and want to somehow double check. Google Ngram Viewer provides insights into how frequently word combinations are used in the English language.

To compare potential phrases, type:

phrase 1, phrase 2, etc.

To see potential structures, type:

verb * [or] verb _PRON_ * [or] verb _NOUN_ *

'a' and 'the' indicate a direct object

For prepositions associated with a verb, type:

verb=>*_ADP

For prepositions associated with a noun, type:

*_ADP=>noun (when the preposition comes before the noun)
noun=>*_ADP (when the noun comes before the preposition)

Note that 'to' is not included in the ADP tag. Therefore, you may need to add another search. For example, type adapt=>*_ADP, adapt=>to.
Also, some words can be both a verb and a noun (e.g. land). Therefore, you may want to specify which by using _VERB or _NOUN. For example, type *_ADP=>land_NOUN.

The long and boring method (Oxford Dictionary)

You won't always be able to find the answers you seek with the quick and easy method. In some cases, you will have to open a dictionary (or a webpage) and do it the old fashion way. I recommend Oxford Dictionary and I will show you why.

For the example the teacher will support Jessica and help her adapt (?) her new environment, does the verb 'adapt' need a preposition for the object 'her new environment'? If so, which preposition?

1. Locate the appropriate definition. Most verbs have more than one definition. If you are unsure after reading the definitions' descriptions, look at Synonyms and check whether the words are interchangeable with the word in your sentence.

Checking:

The teacher will help her alter (?) her new environment.
The teacher will help her acclimatise (?) her new environment.

The second one seems to have a closer meaning to our original sentence, so that means we are concerned with Definition 1.1.

2. Identify whether the verb can have direct objects. The text [no object] answers this question. This means that 'adapt' (in Definition 1.1) can only have indirect objects, which means that it needs a preposition.
Some verbs, such as 'adapt' (in Definition 1.2), can have direct objects but only certain objects; the word(s) in (brackets) indicate what kind of objects. For example, Steve Kloves adapted Harry Potter (which is a text) for the big screen.

3. Identity any associated prepositions. The first step is to look at the description. If the description includes a preposition, this is a good sign. The next step is to check the example sentences. In this case, we can clearly see that 'adapt' has only one associated preposition.

Therefore, the correct sentence is: the teacher will support Jessica and help her adapt to her new environment.