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NOUN PHRASES REVISITED
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Presentation title CONCORD 3
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• 1. Crises often occur in the best regulated families.
• 2. Other criteria are needed in analysing these phenomena.
• 3. The anonymous workmen were the real heroes on the campuses.
• 4. The runners-up were given pound notes.
• 5. The skeletons found in the lower strata were taken at once to the museums.
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1
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• 1. two beautifully-carved oak chairs.
• 2. Your old blue Japanese silk scarf.·
• 3. This small round iron cooking-pot.
• 4. the riverside villa murder.
• 5: their neat white smog masks.
• 6. several thousand recently-stolen unused insurance stamps.
CHAPTER 5:
ADJECTIVES AND
ADVERBS
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CHARACTERISTICS OF THE ADJECTIVE
• Most adjectives can be both attributive and predicative (E.g. a big company or
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the company is big)
• Some adjectives are
- attributive only (e.g. the major reason NOT the reason is major)
- predicative only (e.g. The boy is afraid of snakes NOT an afraid boy)
• Most can be premodified by the intensifier ‘very, rather, quite’, e.g. The
question is very/ rather difficult,
• Most can take comparative and superlative forms.
E.g. Happy happier happiest
intelligent more intelligent most intelligent
SYNTACTIC FUNCTIONS OF ADJECTIVES
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• Attributive and predicative
- Adjectives are attributive when they premodify nouns (=premodifier)
his main argument the former president a complete idiot
- Predicative adjectives can be
(a) subject complement: (b) object complement:
Your daughter is intelligent I consider him foolish.
Driving a bus isn’t easy I find playing computer games addictive.
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SYNTACTIC FUNCTIONS OF ADJECTIVES 13
• Postpositive
- Adjectives can sometimes be postpositive (=post-modifier)
- Some adjectives are postpositive only (absent, present, concerned, involved, ablaze)
e.g. The people involved were not found.
A postposed adjective = a reduced relative clause.
- Indefinite pronouns ending in -body, -one, -thing, -where can be modified only
postpositively:
E.g. I want to try on something larger {ie ‘which is larger’)
- In legal compounds: attorney general, body politic, court martial, heir apparent,
notary public (AmE), postmaster general.
SYNTACTIC FUNCTIONS OF ADJECTIVES
• Head of a noun phrase (the+adj)
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- They must take a definite determiner ‘the’. Some have generic and plural reference.
(1) Adjectives have personal reference: the rich, the poor, the disabled, the young, the old, the
elderly…
(2) Some adjectives denote nationalities:
- -ish (the British, the Spanish), -ch (the Dutch, the French) and -ese (eg: the Chinese, the
Japanese), and the Swiss
(3) Some adjectives have abstract reference. These take singular concord.
• The latest (ie ‘the latest news, thing’) The very best (ie ‘the very best part,
thing’)
• the unknown the true the good the bad
• the beautiful
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• Verbless adjective clause
- An adjective /an adjective phrase can function as a verbless clause.
E.g. Anxious for a quick decision, the chairman called for a vote
The chairman, anxious for a quick decision, called for a vote
The chairman called for a vote, anxious for a quick decision.
When ripe, these apples are sweet
What is the implied subject in the verbless clause in each sentence below?
1 Long and untidy, his hair played in the breeze.
2 Strange, it was she who initiated divorce proceedings.
3 She glanced with disgust at the cat, quiet (now) in her daughter's lap.
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SYNTACTIC FUNCTIONS OF ADJECTIVES 17
- Exclamatory adjective sentences
e.g. How good of you! How wonderful! Excellent!
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ADJECTIVE AND PARTICIPLE
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• Overpopulation is an alarming problem.
adjective
• His views were alarming his audience.
Participle (followed by an object)
• The man was offended by the policeman.
• Participle (with a by agentive phrase containing a personal agent)
• The man seemed very offended.
Adjective (premodified by ‘very’)
• His views were very alarming The man was very offended
Adjective (premodified by ‘very’)
SYNTACTIC SUBCLASSIFICATION OF ADJECTIVES
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• Adjectives can be subclassified according to whether they can function as:
(1) both attributive and predicative (central adjectives) , eg: a hungry man / the
man is hungry;
(2) attributive only, eg: the main reason NOT *the reason is main
(3) predicative only, eg: *a loath woman NOT the woman is loath to admit it
SYNTACTIC SUBCLASSIFICATION OF ADJECTIVES
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• Attributive only
(1) INHERENT ADJECTIVES vs. NON-INHERENT ADJECTIVES
- NON-INHERENT adjectives in attributive position do not characterize the referent of the noun directly.
e.g. a small businessman
does not denote an attribute of the businessman. It cannot be rephrased as a businessman who is small. In fact,
it refers to a businessman whose business is small.
an old friend (‘one who has been a friend for a long period of time’) does not necessarily imply that the person is
old, so that we cannot relate my old friend to my friend is old.
- INHERENT adjectives that characterize the referent of the noun directly .
e.g. that old man, old is a central adjective (the opposite of young) and we can relate that old man to that man is old.
• Here are examples to illustrate the contrast between inherent and non-inherent adjectives:
Inherent Non-Inherent
distant hills distant relatives
old woman old friend
complete chapter complete fool
heavy box heavy smoker
new book new friend
late train late president
a wooden chair a wooden actor
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INHERENT VS. NONINHERENT
ADJECTIVES
• - If an adj is inherent, it is often possible to derive a noun from it:
Her soft touch the softness of her touch
- With a noninherent adj, no such deriviation is possible:
E.g. A true report the truth of the report
a true scholar X the truth of the scholar
SYNTACTIC SUBCLASSIFICATION OF ADJECTIVES
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• Attributive only
(2) INTENSIFYING ADJECTIVES (heightening or lowering effect on the Noun they modify. )
INTENSIFYING ADJECTIVES
EMPHASIZERS AMPLIFIERS
(certain, pure, mere) (absolute, utter, complete, total, great)
- have a general heightening effect - the upper extreme of the scale
- are attributive only - are central adjectives when they are inherent:
E..g. a certain (‘sure’) winner e.g. a complete victory = the victory was complete
pure (‘sheer’) fabrication -But when they are non-inherent, they are attributive only:
e.g. a real (‘undoubted’) hero
a complete fool
a perfect idiot
his entire salary
a great supporter
SYNTACTIC SUBCLASSIFICATION OF ADJECTIVES
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• Attributive only
(3) LIMITER ADJECTIVES
Limiter adjectives particularize the reference of the noun.
E.g. the main reason the precise reason the only occasion the same student
a certain person
(4) RELATED TO ADVERBIALS
• Other adjectives that are attributive only can be related to adverbials.
E.g. my former friend ~ formerly my friend
an occasional visitor ~ occasionally a visitor
the late president ~ till lately the president (now dead)
a hard worker ~ a worker who works hard
an excellent pianist ^ a pianist who plays the piano excellently
(5) DENOMINAL ADJECTIVES
• Some adjectives derived from nouns:
E.g. criminal law (law concerning crime)
an atomic scientist (a scientist specializing in atomic science)
a medical school (a school for students of medicine)
.
SYNTACTIC SUBCLASSIFICATION OF ADJECTIVES
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• Predicative only : Adjectives that are restricted to predicative position
- They tend to refer to a possibly temporary condition rather than to characterize:
e.g. faint ill (esp BrE) well unwell
- A larger group comprises adjectives that can or must take complementation:
E.g. afraid {that, of, about) conscious {that, of), fond {of),
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SEMANTIC SUB CLASSIFICATION OF ADJECTIVES
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(1) Stative/Dynamic
- a stative adjective cannot be used with the progressive aspect or with the imperative:
good, old, tall, short, round, square, etc.
e.g. *He’s being old. *Be old.
- a dynamic adjective can be used with the progressive aspect or with the imperative:
e.g. He’s feeling tired. Be careful.
• Adjectives that can be used dynamically include: awkward, brave, calm, careless, cruel,
extravagant, foolish, funny, good, greedy, impudent, irritable, jealous, naughty, noisy, rude,
timid, …
Note: Dynamic adjectives denote qualities that are thought to be subject to control by the
possessor and hence be restricted temporally
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(2) Gradable/Non-gradable
• Most adjectives are gradable (include comparison and can be modified by adverbs which
convey the degree of intensity of the adjective :
cheap cheaper cheapest
expensive more expensive most expensive
very cheap so expensive extremely useful rather useful
• Some adjectives are non-gradable, principally ‘technical adjectives’ like atomic {scientist)
and hydrochloric {acid) and adjectives denoting provenance, eg: British.
SEMANTIC SETS AND ADJECTIVAL ORDER
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ADVERBS
• Characteristics of the adverb
- Many adverbs have the derivational suffix –ly: beautifully, clearly, briefly, etc.
- Functions of adverbs::
(1) Adverbial
E.g. They are waiting outside.
He speaks English fluently.
(2) modifier of adjective and adverb
E.g. She has a really beautiful face.
His answer was far more easily understandable.
FUNCTIONS OF ADVERBS
• Adverb as adverbial
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- 3 classes of adverbials: adjuncts, disjuncts, conjuncts.
• ADJUNCTS are integrated within the structure of the clause to at least some extent.
E.g. They are waiting outside. I can now understand it.
He spoke to me about it briefly.
• DISJUNCTS and CONJUNCTS are not integrated within the clause.
DISJUNCTS express an evaluation of what is being said either with respect to the form
of the communication or to its content.
E.g. Frankly, I am tired Fortunately, no one complained
CONJUNCTS have a connective function. They indicate the connection between what
is being said and what was said before.
E.g. We have complained several times about the noise, and yet he does nothing about it
I have not looked into his qualifications. He seems very intelligent, though
If they open all the windows, then I’m leaving
SYNTACTIC SUBCLASSIFICATION OF ADVERBS
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• Adverb as modifier
(1) Modifier of adjective
- An adverb may premodify an adjective, and function as intensifier :
E.g. That was a VERY funny film It is EXTREMELY good of you.
She has a REALLY beautiful face
- One adverb —enough — postmodifies adjectives, as in high ENOUGH.
(2) Modifier of adverb
- An adverb may premodify another adverb, and function as intensifier:
E.g. They are smoking VERY heavily
They didn’t sing THAT loudly (informal)
- the only postmodifier is enough, as in cleverly enough.
(3) Modifier of prepositional phrase
- The few adverbs that premodify particles in phrasal verbs also premodify prepositions
/prepositional phrases:
E.g. The nail went RIGHT through the wall. His parents are DEAD against the trip
SYNTACTIC SUBCLASSIFICATION OF ADVERBS
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(4) Modifier of determiner, predeterminer, postdeterminer
E.g. NEARLY everybody came to our party
OVER two hundred deaths were reported. I paid MORE THAN ten pounds for it
(5) Modifier of noun phrase
- A few intensifiers may premodify noun phrases: quite, rather; and the predeterminers
such, the exclamatory what, So and interrogative and exclamatory how
E.g. It was RATHER a mess
WHAT a (big) fool he is!
I didn’t realize that he was SO big a fool
HOW tall a man is he? HOW tall a man he is!
- Some adverbs postmodify noun phrases:
PLACE: the way ahead, the neighbour upstairs, the sentence below
TIME: the meeting yesterday, the day before
SYNTACTIC SUBCLASSIFICATION OF ADVERBS
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(6) Adverb as complement of preposition
• Some place and time adverbs function as complement of a preposition.
Preposition + Adverbs (place)
E.g. along, around, down, from, in, near, on, out {of), over, round, through, under, up +
THERE/ HERE
at, from, near, toward{s) +HOME
FROM + above, abroad, inside, outside…
Preposition + adverbs (time):
Since + recently, yesterday
Until + now, later, afterwards
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COMPARISON AND INTENSIFICATION
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• There are three degrees of comparison:
ABSOLUTE: young¡easily
COMPARATIVE: younger¡more easily
SUPERLATIVE: youngest¡most easily
• Modification of comparatives and superlatives: The comparatives of both adjectives and adverbs can themselves be
premodified by amplifying intensifiers
• Many downtoners may premodify the comparatives:
• Comparatives and superlatives can also be postmodified by intensifying phrases, the most common of which is by far,
eg: He is funnier¡funniest by far.
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Notes:
+ Some adjectives do not admit comparison,
E.g. perfect, unique, full, empty, square, monthly etc.
+ There are some idiomatic constructions with the
comparison,
E.g. had better, would rather, the comparative + the
comparative…
CHAPTER 8: ADJUNCTS,
DISJUNCTS, CONJUNCTS
FUNCTIONS OF ADVERBIALS
• The functions of the adverbial are realized by:
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(1)Adverb phrases
E.g. Peter was playing as well as he could. We’ll stay there
(2) Noun phrases (less common):
E.g. Peter was playing last week
(3) Prepositional phrases:
E.g. Peter was playing with great skill
(4) Finite verb clauses:
E.g. Peter was playing although he was very tired
(5) Non-finite verb clauses, in which the verb is
(a)infinitive: Peter was playing to win
(b) -ing participle: Wishing to encourage him, they praised Tom.
(c) -ed participle: If urged by our friends, we’ll stay
(6) Verbless clauses:
E.g. Peter was playing, unaware of the danger
CLASSIFICATION OF ADVERBIALS
• Classes of adverbials: adjuncts, disjuncts, conjuncts
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Adverbials may be integrated to some extent into the structure of the clause or they
may be peripheral to it.
• If integrated, they are termed ADJUNCTS. If peripheral, they are termed DISJUNCTS and
CONJUNCTS. Conjuncts have primarily a connective function.
• it is an ADJUNCT if
- (1) it cannot appear initially in a negative declarative clause: *Quickly they didn’t
leave for home.
- (2) IT is part of the basic structure of the clause or sentence in which it occurs, and
modifies the verb it can be the focus of a question or of clause negation:
E.g. Does he write to his parents because he wants to (or does he write to them because he
needs money)!
We didn’t go to Chicago on Monday, (but we did go there on Tuesday)
CLASSIFICATION OF ADVERBIALS
• a DISJUNCT or a CONJUNCT is not affected by negation or interrogation : to
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my regret can appear initially in a negative declarative clause:
E.g. To my regret, they didn’t leave for home. (Disjunct)
and cannot be the focus of a question or of clause negation:
• *Does he write to his parents, to my regret,(or does he write to them, to my
relief)!
On the contrary, city life offers a bustling environment. (Conjunct)
• POSITIONS OF ADVERBIALS
Initial position : I (ie before the subject)
• Medial position:
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Ml: (a) immediately before the first auxiliary or lexical be, or (b) between two auxiliaries or an auxiliary
and lexical be,
M2: (a) immediately before the lexical verb, or (b) in the case of lexical be, before the complement.
• Final position: (a) after an intransitive verb, or (b) after any object or complement.
Note: - No auxiliaries M1 or M2. (He often watches Korean films.)
- No subject I or M1 or M2
SYNTACTIC FEATURES OF ADJUNCTS
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• Syntactic features of adjuncts
(1) They can come within the scope of predication pro-forms or predication ellipsis.
E.G. John greatly admires Bob, and so does Mary
(2) They can be the focus of limiter adverbials such as only:
They only want the car for an HOUR (‘for an hour and not for longer’)
(3) They can be the focus of additive adverbials such as also:
E.g. They will also meet afterwards (‘afterwards in addition to some other time’)
(4) They can be the focus of a cleft sentence:
It was when we were in Paris that I first saw John.
SUBCLASSIFICATION OF ADJUNCTS
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SUBCLASSIFICATION OF ADJUNCTS
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•
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Viewpoint adjuncts
• Viewpoint = ‘if we consider what we are saying from a [adjective phrase] point of view’ =
‘if we consider what we are saying from the point of view of [noun phrase]’.
E.g. Geographically, ethnically, and linguistically, morally
= from a geographical/ethical/linguistic/moral point of view
As far as mathematics is concerned, he was a complete failure
Looked at politically, it was not an easy problem
• Viewpoint adjuncts, whatever their structure, are usually in initial position.
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•
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Focusing adjuncts
• LIMITERS
(a) EXCLUSIVES restrict what is said to the part focused eg: alone, just, merely,
only, purely, simply
(b) PARTICULARIZERS restrict what is said particularly or mainly to the part focused
eg: chiefly, especially, mainly, mostly: in particular
• ADDITIVES (a focused part is an addition): also, either, even, neither, nor, too; as well as,
in addition
E.g. You can get a В grade JUST for that answer
The workers, IN PARTICULAR, are dissatisfied with the government
We bought some beer AS WELL
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• Intensifiers
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• Emphasizers
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[A] actually, certainly, clearly, definitely, indeed, obviously, plainly, really, surely, for certain,
for sure, of course free to co-occur with any verb or predication
E.g. He actually sat next to her
He will definitely come.
[B] frankly, honestly, literally, simply: fairly (BrE), just tends to co-occur with verbs
expressing attitude or cognition:
E.g. I honestly don’t know what he wants They honestly admire her courage
I simply don’t believe it
Note: Most emphasizers normally precede the item they emphasize (medial positions for verb
phrases) but for certain and for sure are exceptional in being postposed.
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•
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Amplifiers
• Amplifiers are divided into
(a) MAXIMIZERS, which can denote the upper extreme of the scale,
(b) BOOSTERS, which denote a high point on the scale.
• MAXIMIZERS: absolutely, altogether, completely, entirely, fully, quite, thoroughly, utterly; in all respects:
most
E.g. I can perfectly see why you are anxious about it.
I entirely agree with you.
• BOOSTERS: badly, deeply, greatly, heartily, much, so, violently, well; a great deal, a good deal, a lot, by far;
exclamatory how; more
E.g. They like her very much
I can well understand your problem
• Note: Certain amplifiers tend to co-occur predominantly with certain verbs
E.g. entirely + agree completely + forget
badly + need, want greatly + admire, enjoy
SUBCLASSIFICATION OF ADJUNCTS
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Downtoners have a lowering effect on the force of the verb. They can be divided into four groups:
(1) COMPROMISERS have only a slight lowering effect: kind of, sort of (informal, esp AmE), quite, rather (esp
BrE), more or less
E.g. I kind of like him (informal, esp AmE)
I quite enjoyed the party, but I’ve been to better ones (esp BrE)
(2) DIMINISHERS scale downwards considerably : partly, slightly, somewhat; in part, to some extent; a little
E.g. The incident somewhat influenced his actions in later life.
We know them slightly
(3) MINIMIZERS scale downwards considerably: a bit; negatives: barely, hardly, little, scarcely; non-assertives:
in the least, in the slightest, at all
E.g. I didn’t enjoy it in the least
A: Do you like her? B: A bit.
(4) APPROXIMATORS serve to express an approximation to the force of the verb: almost, nearly, as good as,
all but
E.g. I almost resigned
SUBCLASSIFICATION OF ADJUNCTS
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• Process adjuncts
- Process adjuncts the process denoted by the verb.
- 3 subclasses:
MANNER MEANS INSTRUMENT
- Process adjuncts co-occur with dynamic verbs, but not with stative verbs:
E.g. He likes them *skilfully
(1) MANNER adjuncts:
E.g. She replied to questions with great courtesy
He spoke in a way that reminded me of his father
He always writes in a carefree manner= He always writes carefreely.
(2) MEANS adjuncts
E.g. He decided to treat the patient surgically
I go to school by car
(3) INSTRUMENT adjuncts:
E.g. He examined the specimen microscopically
You can cut the bread with that knife
The injured horse was humanely killed with a rifle bullet
SUBCLASSIFICATION OF ADJUNCTS
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• Subject adjuncts
• Subject adjuncts the referent of the subject in an active clause (or the agent in a passive clause) and the process or state
denoted by the verb.
(1) General subject adjuncts:
E.g. Resentfully, George invited her to the party (‘George invited her to the party and was resentful about it’)
With great unease, he agreed to their plan. (‘He was very uneasy when he ...’)
(2) Volitional subject adjuncts: deliberately, {unintentionally, purposely, reluctantly, voluntarily, wilfully, {un)willingly\ on
purpose, with reluctance
E.g. He left his proposals vague on purpose (‘It was his purpose to ...’)
He deliberately misled us (‘He was being deliberate when he ...’)
Volitional subject adjuncts differ from other subject adjuncts in that
• (1) they express the subject’s intention or willingness, or the reverse
• (2) they can often occur with intensive verbs: He is deliberately being a nuisance
• (3) they can more easily appear before clause negation: Intentionally, he didn’t write to them about it
(3) Formulaic adjuncts : a small group of adverbs used as markers of courtesy.
E.g. He kindly offered me a ride (‘He was kind enough to ...’)
We cordially invite you to our party (‘We express our cordiality to you by inviting ...’)
Take a seat please (‘Please me by taking ...’)
SUBCLASSIFICATION OF ADJUNCTS
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• Place adjuncts:
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SUBCLASSIFICATION OF ADJUNCTS
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• Time adjuncts
Time adjuncts can be divided into four main semantic classes:
Relative positions of time Adjuncts: Time DURATION - time FREQUENCY – time WHEN
E.g. I stayed in Nha Trang for a week every summer during my childhood.
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RELATIVE POSITION OF ADJUNCTS
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• Relative positions of adjuncts : process - place - time
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• Disjuncts
- Most disjuncts are prepositional phrases or clauses. Disjuncts can be divided into two main classes:
(1) STYLE DISJUNCTS convey the speaker’s comment on the form of what he is saying (bluntly, briefly,
candidly, confidentially, frankly, generally, honestly, personally, seriously)
E.g. Seriously, do you intend to resign?
Personally, I don’t approve of her
Strictly speaking, nobody is allowed in here
There are twelve people present, to be precise
If I may say so, that dress doesn’t suit you
(2) ATTITUDINAL DISJUNCTS comment on the content of what the speaker is saying.
E.g. Understandably, they were all annoyed when they read the letter.
They arrived, to our surprise, before we did
Of course, nobody imagines that she will act so foolishly
Even more important, he has control over the finances of the party
What is even more remarkable, he manages to inspire confidence in the most suspicious people
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