Independent clauses can stand completely by themselves. They
have both a subject and a predicate, and they are complete thoughts. An
independent clause can be a sentence, but a sentence can be more complex than
an independent clause. For example, a sentence can contain two independent
clauses instead of one.
Consider the following example of an independent clause.
I gave Shelby the present.
This sentence is an independent clause. It has a subject (I)
and a predicate (gave Shelby the present). It is also a complete thought. The
reader does not have any major questions about the sentence.