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3 Phrases - Phrase Types

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17 views

3 Phrases - Phrase Types

Uploaded by

salak.anas01
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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HASSAN II UNIVERSITY Modular Program: English Studies

FACULTY OF LETTERS Semester 3

AND HUMAN SCIENCES Grammar 3

CASABLANCA Pr. S. FATHI

MOHAMEDIA

Chapter 3: PHRASES & PHRASE TYPES

A phrase is a group of words not containing a verb and its subject. A phrase is
used as a single part of speech. There are different kinds of phrases: verb
phrases, noun phrases, adjective phrases and adverb phrases.

 grammatical category vs. grammatical function

Verb phrase: it is made up of a main verb and one or more helping (auxiliary)
verbs: has played, will be coming, should have paid, must have been injured.

Verb phrases can be finite when they occur as the verb element of main clauses.
The non-finite forms of the verb are:

 the infinitive: to call


 the –ing participle: calling
 the –ed participle: called
 To smoke like that must be dangerous.

 I found him working hard.

 The people were frightened by the growling dog.

Noun phrase: it is made up of a head noun which can be accompanied by


determiners (the, his, a, etc.) and one or more modifiers. Modifiers which
precede the head noun are called pre-modifiers (e.g. new, very attractive), and
those which follow it are called post-modifiers:
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 Mary likes - the boys.

- a tall boy.

- boys in general.

- all those ugly boys with long hair

A noun phrase can act as subject, object (Od, Oi), complement (Cs, Co),
prepositional complement or in apposition to another noun phrase.

 The grim boss found the new secretary in his office a very attractive woman.

 Mary is a capable girl.

 George Lamb, your old school friend, has just telephoned.

Adjective phrase: it is actually an adjective clause that is reduced when the


relative pronoun of the adjective clause is the subject of the main clause. The
clause marker and the auxiliary words and/or “be” are omitted.

a- The man (who is) driving the bus has a new car.
b- She published a book (which contains/containing) nice photos.
c- The ideas (which had been) presented in the previous meeting were
discussed.
d- The man (who is) responsible for training was absent.
e- Her name, (which is) Lou Ann, contains easy sounds for the deaf to
pronounce.
f- The books (that are) on the table belong to my friend.

Adverb phrase: it is actually an adverb clause that is reduced when the subject
of the main clause and the adverb clause are the same.

 time sequences

a- After (they sang/singing) two songs, they did a dance.


b- Before (she answered/answering) the phone, he took a pen and paper.
c- Once (he had been) challenged to play tennis, Tom wouldn’t stop
practising.
d- Since (she finished/finishing) her university degree, Helen joined the
private sector.
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e- We worked on the project until (we finished/finishing) it.


f- When (he is) working on a new project, John always works overtime.
g- While (he was) in London, George phoned daily.

 reason

h- Because (she is/being) interested in sports, Linda has become an avid


supporter of the team.

 concession

i- Although (he was) hurt, Jack managed to smile.


j- Despite (the fact that he was/being) ill, Lisa went on stage.
k- Though (I am) capable of making cakes, I prefer to bake cookies.
l- While (she is) fond of Jeff, she doesn’t want to marry him.

Other kinds of phrases include: prepositional phrase, participial phrase, gerund


phrase and appositive phrase.

Prepositional phrase: it consists of a preposition followed by its complement,


which can be a noun, pronoun, wh-clause or gerund phrase.

a- I met them at the bus-stop.


b- She made that cake for us.
c- He was surprised at what she said.
d- The war ended by signing a peace treaty.

 Although that-clauses and infinitive clauses have a nominal function in other


respects, they do not occur as prepositional complements.

Cf. He was surprised at what she said.

_____________ that she said that.

_____________ to hear her say that.

Prepositional phrases can usually take the role of a noun phrase as a subject,
complement or prepositional complement:

a- After dinner will be too late.


b- They are in the kitchen.
c- The view from above the shore is magnificent.
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Prepositional phrases can be used as post-modifiers in a noun phrase. They


actually function as some form of adjective modifying nouns or pronouns.

a- The people on the bus were singing.


b- Marrakech has been the venue of many conferences.
c- Tourists from the North visit countries in the South.
d- Many of the tourists like the imperial cities of Morocco.
e- A visit to the desert intrigues tourists from states without deserts.

Prepositional phrases can also be used as adverbs modifying a verb, adjective


or another adverb.

a- The players train with diligence.(manner)


b- -------------- before the tournament.(time)
c- -------------- in their club stadium.(place)
d- -------------- for days.(frequency)
e- -------------- for the interest of the club.(reason)
f- To my surprise, the doctor phoned the next morning.(manner)
g- I want to congratulate you on your success in the exam.(reason)
h- He is always true to his word.(mod. Adjective)
i- George is good at mathematics.(mod. Adjective)
j- He threw the ball far to the left.(mod. Adverb)
k- We turned left at the traffic lights.(mod. Adverb)

The participial phrase, gerund phrase and infinitive phrase are all kinds of
verb phrases as the most important word in them is, in fact, a verbal, i.e.
participle, gerund or infinitive. In some respects, they act like verbs/not as verbs
in that they denote an action, may have modifiers and may be followed by
complements. Verbals are not used as verbs in a sentence, but can be used as
nouns, adjectives or adverbs.

Participial phrase: it is a phrase containing a participle (present/past) and any


complements or modifiers it may have. It is used as an adjective.

a- Removing his coat, Jack rushed to the river bank.


b- Hesitating there for a moment, he quickly grasped the situation.
c- Awakened by the noise, the baby started crying.
d- Destroyed by fire, the museum was never rebuilt.
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Gerund phrase: it is a phrase containing a gerund and any complements or


modifiers it may have. It is used as a noun.

a- Finding a needle in a haystack is a traditional example of the


impossible.(subject)
b- The company advises sending applications by post only.(object)
c- They won the match by scoring a golden goal.(preposition complement)
d- His most important achievement was winning the Olympic gold
medal.(Cs)

Infinitive phrase: it is a phrase containing an infinitive and any complements or


modifiers it may have. It is used as a noun, an adjective or an adverb.

a- To save money became her obsession.(subject)


b- We tried to convince her.(object)
c- Her ambition is to travel abroad.(Cs)
d- There must be a way to solve this problem. (Adjective)
e- I am too busy to go out tonight. (mod. Adjective)
f- We study to improve our knowledge.(adverb of reason)
g- He was driving too fast to avoid the accident. (mod. Adverb)
h- He was driving too fast to get to work on time. (adverb of reason mod.
Verb)

 Sometimes the word “to” is omitted.

a- The teacher makes us [to] work harder.(Co)


b- Can you help me [to] carry this suitcase.(Co)

Appositive phrase: it consists of a noun/pronoun and its modifiers and is placed


beside another noun/pronoun to explain/identify it. Actually, it acts as an
adjective.

a- The Canard Enchainé, a satirical weekly tabloid, has the largest


circulation in France on the weekend.
b- My brother’s car, a sporty red convertible with leather seats, is the envy of
my friends.
c- A beautiful collie, Skip was my favourite dog.

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