Noun phrase
A noun phrase or nominal
phrase (abbreviated NP) is a phrase which has a noun (or indefinite pronoun) as its head word, or which performs the same
grammatical function as such a phrase. Noun phrases are very common cross-linguistically, and they may be the most
frequently occurring phrase type.
Noun phrases often
function as verb subjects and objects, as predicative expressions, and as the complements
of prepositions
or postpositions. Noun phrases can be embedded inside each other; for instance,
the noun phrase some of his
constituents contains the shorter noun phrase his constituents.
In some modern theories
of grammar, noun phrases with determiners are analyzed as having the
determiner rather than the noun as their head; they are then referred to as determiner phrases.
Identifying noun phrases
Some examples of noun
phrases are underlined in the sentences below. The head noun appears in bold.
The election year politics are annoying for many people.
Almost every sentence contains at least one noun phrase.
Current economic weakness may be a result of high energy prices.
Noun phrases can be
identified by the possibility of pronoun substitution, as is illustrated in the
examples below.
a. This sentence contains two
noun phrases.
b. It contains them.
a. The subject noun phrase that is
present in this sentence is long.
b. It is long.
a. Noun phrases can be embedded in
other noun phrases.
b. They can be embedded in them.
A
string of words that can be replaced by a single pronoun without rendering the
sentence grammatically unacceptable is a noun phrase. As to whether the string
must contain at least two words, see the following section.
Components of noun phrases
A
typical noun phrase consists of a noun (the head of the
phrase) together with zero or more modifiers of various types. The chief types
of these modifiers are:
- determiners, such as the, this, my, some
- attributive adjectives, such as large, beautiful, sweeter
- adjective phrases and participial phrases, such as extremely large, hard as nails, made of wood, sitting on the step
- noun adjuncts, such as college in the noun phrase a college student
- prepositional phrases, such as in the drawing room, of his aunt
- relative clauses, such as which we noticed
- other clauses serving as complements to the noun, such as that God exists in the noun phrase the belief that God exists
- infinitive phrases, such as to sing well and to beat in the noun phrases a desire to sing well and the man to beat
The
allowability, form and position of these elements depend on the syntax of the
language in question. In English, determiners, adjectives (and some adjective
phrases) and noun modifiers precede the head noun, whereas the heavier units –
phrases and clauses – generally follow it. This is part of a strong tendency in
English to place heavier constituents to the right, making English more of a head-initial language. Head-final languages
(e.g. Japanese and Turkish) are more likely to place all modifiers
before the head noun. Other languages, such as French, often place even single-word adjectives
after the noun.
Noun
phrases can take different forms than that described above, for example when
the head is a pronoun rather than a noun, or when elements are linked with a coordinating
conjunction such as and, or, but. For more
information about the structure of noun phrases in English, see English grammar: Noun phrases.
Countable Nouns
Countable nouns are easy to
recognize. They are things that we can count. For example: "pen". We
can count pens. We can have one, two, three or more pens. Here are some more
countable nouns:
- dog, cat, animal, man, person
- bottle, box, litre
- coin, note, dollar
- cup, plate, fork
- table, chair, suitcase, bag
Countable nouns can be singular or
plural:
- My dog is playing.
- My dogs are hungry.
We can use the indefinite article a/an
with countable nouns:
- A dog is an animal.
When a countable noun is singular,
we must use a word like a/the/my/this with it:
- I want an orange. (not I want orange.)
- Where is my bottle? (not Where is bottle?)
When a countable noun is plural, we
can use it alone:
- I like oranges.
- Bottles can break.
We can use some and any
with countable nouns:
- I've got some dollars.
- Have you got any pens?
We can use a few and many
with countable nouns:
- I've got a few dollars.
- I haven't got many pens.
Uncountable Nouns
Uncountable nouns are substances,
concepts etc that we cannot divide into separate elements. We cannot
"count" them. For example, we cannot count "milk". We can
count "bottles of milk" or "litres of milk", but we cannot
count "milk" itself. Here are some more uncountable nouns:
- music, art, love, happiness
- advice, information, news
- furniture, luggage
- rice, sugar, butter, water
- electricity, gas, power
- money, currency
We usually treat uncountable nouns
as singular. We use a singular verb. For example:
- This news is very important.
- Your luggage looks heavy.
We do not usually use the indefinite
article a/an with uncountable nouns. We cannot say "an
information" or "a music". But we can say a something of:
- a piece of news
- a bottle of water
- a grain of rice
We can use some and any
with uncountable nouns:
- I've got some money.
- Have you got any rice?
We can use a little and much
with uncountable nouns:
- I've got a little money.
- I haven't got much rice.
a
exempel
-I was watching
a movie in a cinema
-
I shop to buy a shirt
An
Exempel
- -
I eat an apple
- -I bought an animal at the fair
The
Exempel
- -
chelse is the winner
-
- the gladiator is history
from roma
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