clauseadjacent

Clauseadjacent is a term used in linguistic annotation and natural language processing to describe elements that sit directly next to a clause in a syntactic or discourse representation. It denotes material that interacts with a clause at its boundary but is not part of the core clause structure itself, such as boundary markers, parentheticals, or peripheral modifiers.

In practice, clauseadjacent material can include left-peripheral items like discourse markers (for example, however, frankly) and right-peripheral elements such as sentence-ending adverbials or brief parenthetical insertions. In dependency or constituency graphs, clauseadjacent relations are often modeled as edges or tags connecting a clause node to neighboring tokens or phrases that flank the clause. This separation helps analysts distinguish core clause syntax from peripheral material that influences interpretation, stance, or discourse structure.

Clauseadjacent is used to improve parsing, discourse analysis, and sentiment or stance labeling by capturing periphery information without conflating it with the main clause. It is typically contrasted with adjuncts, which attach inside the clause structure, and with dislocated or parenthetical constituents that may have different boundary conditions.

Examples include a sentence-initial discourse marker like "However, the plan proceeds," where "However" is clauseadjacent to the main clause, or a sentence ending adverbial such as "The results are conclusive, frankly," where "frankly" is clauseadjacent on the right. The concept serves as a useful annotation layer in some linguistic frameworks.