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Phrases, Noun phrases, Verb phrases, It is also possible for the verb…
Phrases
We said that grammar can be subdivided into two areas:
syntax and inflections
Inflections
are the grammatical endings which occur on open class words and which give informations about tense and number. Inflection is part of the internal structure of a word.
Syntax
operates on a level higher than the word since it is concerned with the rules by which words are combined into
larger units
. These larger units are:
1) phrases
2) clauses
3) sentences
Phrases are the building blocks of clauses because they fill clause slots.
In a phrase we find
head words
or
heads
: they are lexical items in the sense that some crucial information would be missing without the head word.
The head word may stand alone or it may be
premodified
or
postmodified
There are five types of phrases:
1)
noun phrase
(NP)
2)
verb phrase
(VP)
3)
adjective phrase
(AP)
4)
adverb phrase
(AdvP)
5)
prepositional phrase
(PP)
It differs from the other four types in that a preposition
cannot stand alone as a phrase
. This is linked to its status as a grammatical word rather than a lexical word.
Phrases can be linked together in two specific ways:
1) Coordination
is the joining together of two linguistic units on an equal basis and most typically uses the conjunction
and
2) Apposition
Noun phrases
It may consist of a single lexical item.
They have the capacity to be long and complex.
They have an internal structure which dictates where additional elements occur in relation to the head noun. These positions are:
determiners
these
Determiners can be subdivided into three categories:
- predeterminers
- central determiners
- postdeterminers
they are not obligatory, but if they do occur they will be at the beginning of the noun phrase.
-
premodification
large sugary
They usually are
adjectives
, nouns or nouns in the possessive form.
When the head noun is premodified by more than one type of premodifier, there is a
given order
in which these elements will occur.
Premodifying nouns occur closer to the head noun than adjectives, because they typically categorise rather than qualify the head noun.
Possessive forms precede any premodifying adjectives and nouns.
- head noun
doughnuts
- postmodification
filled with jam and cream
Head nouns can be postmodified by both phrases and clauses
. The clause may be:
a
relative clause
the proposal which the committee put forward last week
- that clause
the belief that God exists
- comparative clause
Rachel gave a louder cry than Miriam did
A
pronoun
or
cardinal numbers
can also be the head of a noun phrase
We can identify the head word of a noun phrase:
deciding which word is most central to the meaning
when the noun phrase is in subject position
Verb phrases
Noun phrases and verb phrases are the most central in the construction of clauses.
The head word can be both a
lexical or an auxiliary verb
Auxiliaries subdivide into:
- primary auxiliaries
be, have, do
They are used to to construct different
aspects
and
voices
Aspect
indicates whether
the action
or state referred to by the lexical verb
is in progress or is complete
- progressive aspect
using the primary auxiliary
be
Aspects are combined with tense
, resulting in two progressive combinations:
- present progressive
1 more item...
- past progressive
1 more item...
- perfect aspect
using the primary auxiliary
have
It denotes that the action is complete, but it is still of current relevance. There are two perfect tense/aspect combinations:
1) present perfect
1 more item...
2) past perfect
1 more item...
The
voice
can be
active
or
passive
- modal auxiliaires
can, could, shall, should, will, would, may, must, might
They are used to add
shades of meaning
, such as possibility or obligation.
Modal auxiliaries usually precede primary ones.
A verb phrase may be simple and consist of just a
lexical verb or it may include one or more auxiliaries
up to a maximum of four.
Tense:
it is a grammatical ending on a verb stem. There are only two tenses in English
1)
present
tense, indicated by the
base form or by -s inflection
2)
past
tense, indicated by an
-ed inflection
in regular verbs
When a verb or verb phrase is marked for tense it is
finite
On the other hand,
non-finite
verb phrases have no marking for tense. They will take the following forms:
It is also possible for the verb aspect to be both perfect and progressive
and again there is a contrast of past tense and future tense.
- present perfect progressive
I have been dancing
- past perfect progressive
I had been dancing
Adjective and adverb phrases
An adjective or adverb phrase may consist of the head word or it may be expanded into a longer phrase with pre- or post- modifying elements.
Head words in adjective and adverb phrases are most typically premodified by a single adverb
, normally an intensifier
The hungry cat was feeling extremely aggressive
Prepositional phrases
They differ from the other four types of phrase in that a
preposition cannot stand alone
as the head word or phrase.
Although the preposition is still the head word in a prepositional phrase, it has to be accompanied by another element, the
prepositional complement
, which will be a noun phrase.
Embedding
An embedded item is in some way subordinate to or dependent on the item in which it is embedded.