Download Absolute Adjective

Absolute Adjective
The BASE form of an ADJECTIVE on a scale of comparison, for example, big, in
contrast with the COMPARATIVE bigger and the SUPERLATIVE biggest.
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Abstract Noun
Abstract nouns include love, optimism, truth, freedom, belief, hope and communism.
They refer to non-concrete entities.
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Active
A value of VOICE for a VERB, the other value being PASSIVE.
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Additive Adverb
A type of ADVERB which offers a choice between two or more items, e.g. You either
leave or stay.
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Adjective
An open word class which expresses an attribute. The attribute is expressed either by
an ATTRIBUTIVE adjective (a red car) or by a PREDICATIVE ADJECTIVE (my car is
red).
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Adjective Phrase
A phrase headed by an adjective (e.g. proud, good, happy). The Head may be
premodified (very good). Certain Heads may be postmodified (proud of you), or can be
pre- and postmodified (very proud of you).
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Adjunct
This is an optional constituent in a clause or in a phrase. In a clause, it usually describes
how, when or where something happened (John ran quickly, David retired when he
was sixty, We met him in the cinema).
Adverb
An open word class which includes happily, slowly, quietly, now, and very. Adverbs can
modify an adjective (e.g. very big), another adverb (e.g. very quietly) or a verb (e.g.
John walked slowly).
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Adverb Phrase
A phrase headed by an adverb (e.g. quietly, carefully). In an adverb phrase, the Head
word can be premodified as (e.g. too quietly, quite carefully). It can be postmodified
(e.g. carefully enough). An adverb phrase can also consist of a Head which is both
premodified and postmodified (e.g. very luckily for us).
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Agent
The entity which performs the action described by a VERB (John kicked the ball). The
agent may be missing in a PASSIVE construction (cf. The ball was kicked).
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Agentless Passive
In a typical passive construction, the AGENT occurs in the by-phrase: The ball was
kicked by John. In an agentless passive, the by-phrase is missing: The ball was kicked.
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Agreement
This usually refers to Subject-verb agreement, and denotes the fact that a verb ending
agrees with the number of the Subject (the dog barks / the dogs bark). Agreement
applies only to PRESENT TENSE verbs. It is also known as concord.
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Alternative Interrogative
A type of interrogative sentence in which two or more alternatives are presented, e.g.
Should I telephone or send an email?
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Anticipatory it
Anticipatory it occupies the Subject position and "anticipates" a Subject that has been
postponed. For example, It's true that she has finished with Mike. In this example the
Subject is It, which substitutes for the extraposed clause that she has finished with Mike.
Cf. the version with extraposition That she has finished with Mike is true.
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Aspect
Aspect refers to the way an action denoted by a verb should be viewed with respect to
time.
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Asyndetic Coordination
Asyndetic coordination involves two or more CONJOINS which are not linked by a
COORDINATING CONJUNCTION. For example: Slowly, carefully, the thief crept
towards the diamond.
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Attributive Adjective
An ADJECTIVE is attributive if it occurs before the noun which it modifies (a delicious
taste, an entertaining film)
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Auxiliary Verb
An auxiliary verb (or HELPING VERB) occurs with a MAIN VERB. Examples: (1) Sue
has made a chocolate cake (2) Kate is talking to her boss (3) I do not like beans (4) The
cat was chased by the blackbird (5) You must eat your beans
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Bare Infinitive
An INFINITIVE verb which occurs without to, e.g. Help me open the door. Distinct from
the TO-INFINITIVE: Help me to open the door.
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Bare Infinitive Clause
A clause in which a bare infinitive form of the verb is used, I made John leave.
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Base Form
The base form is the form of a word to which INFLECTIONS may be added, eg. walks,
walked, walking
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Cardinal Numeral
A subclass of numerals which includes one, 1, twenty, a hundred.
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Case
IIn English, case is illustrated by the PERSONAL PRONOUNS, where different forms of
the pronoun indicate their grammatical relationship to the VERB. For example: (1) He is
a plumber, He has SUBJECTIVE case. (2) I saw him, him has OBJECTIVE case.
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Central Adjective
A central adjective is one that fulfils all the criteria for identifying adjectives. These
criteria are: being GRADABLE, having COMPARATIVE and SUPERLATIVE forms, and
appearing in ATTRIBUTIVE or PREDICATIVE positions.
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Central Determiner
A subclass of DETERMINER which includes DEFINITE and INDEFINITE ARTICLES as
well as POSSESSIVE and DEMONSTRATIVE pronouns. Central determiners occur
after PREDETERMINERS and before POSTDETERMINERS.
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Circumstantial Adverb
A collective term for MANNER, TIME, and PLACE ADVERBS.
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Clause
A clause is a string of words which expresses a proposition and typically consists of at
least a SUBJECT and a verb: David sings, Yesterday we visited Canterbury. A
SENTENCE contains one or more clauses. The sentence She retired early because she
was ill contains two clauses, a MATRIX clause, consisting of the whole sentence, and a
SUBORDINATE clause, because she was ill.
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Cleft it
A special use of the PERSONAL PRONOUN it which appears in CLEFT sentences: It
was John who broke the window.
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Cleft Sentence
A sentence which is split into two clauses, placing emphasis on one part (the "focus"): It
is her kindness that I will remember. Here, the focus is her kindness.
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Closed-Class Item
Word classes are of two types: OPEN-CLASS and closed-class. Closed-class items
include AUXILIARIES, PREPOSITIONS, CONJUNCTIONS, DETERMINERS and
PRONOUNS. These classes consist of finite sets of words which can be exhaustively
listed, and they do not admit new members.
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Code
One of the NICE PROPERTIES of AUXILIARY VERBS. The DO AUXILIARY can
replace the verb under ELLIPSIS. John wants to go to the cinema, and so does Mary.
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Collective Noun
A noun which refers to a group of individual people or animals: population, herd, flock,
committee.
Common Noun
A noun which refers to common, everyday entities such as: cat, dog, sister, bucket,
book.
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Comparative
The form of an adjective or an adverb at the middle point on a scale of comparison.
Comparison is expressed using an -er ending or with more:
Tim is taller than Mary
Amy is more industrious than Paul
John reads more quickly than David
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Comparative Clause
A type of subordinate clause which expresses comparison, and which is introduced by
than or as:
She is older than I expected
She is (not) as old as I expected
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Complement
A constituent of a phrase which is required to complete the meaning of the Head. In a
review of the book, of the book is the Complement of the Head review. Similarly, in
detectives examined the scene, the scene is the Complement of the Head examined.
Complex Preposition
A two- or three-word preposition: along with, because of, due to.
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Complex Sentence
A complex sentence contains a main clause and at least one subordinate clause. For
example, Your dinner is cold because you were late. The subordinate clause is because
you were late.
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Compound Sentence
A compound sentence contains coordinated main clauses:
[Debbie bought the wine] and [Ben cooked the meal]
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Concessive Clause
A type of subordinate clause which expresses concession, usually introduced by
although or though: He bought me a lovely gift, although he can't really afford it.
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Concord
Another term for AGREEMENT.
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Conditional Clause
A type of subordinate clause which expresses a condition, typically introduced by if : I'll
be home early if I can get a taxi.
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Conjoin
An element which undergoes COORDINATION. In the following examples, the conjoins
are bracketed:
[John] and [Mary]
The river was [wide] and [deep]
He [came home] and [lit the fire]
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Conjunct Adverb
Conjunct adverbs connect two sentences and indicate a logical relationship between
them:
Your have not repaid your loan. Therefore, we cannot give you any more credit.
Other conjunct adverbs include: nevertheless, nonetheless, otherwise, in addition, on
the other hand
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Conjunction
A CLOSED wordclass which includes COORDINATING words such as and, but, and or,
and SUBORDINATING words such as because, if, and when.
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Constituent
A constituent is a word or a group of words which acts syntactically as a unit.
Constituents may be words, phrases, or clauses.
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Content Word
Another term for OPEN-CLASS words or LEXICAL words.
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Coordinating Conjunction
A type of CONJUNCTION which connects elements of equal status. The most common
coordinating conjunctions are and and but. Also known as a COORDINATOR.
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Coordination
Coordination involves the syntactic linking of two or more elements of equal status:
[John] and [Mary]
[up] and [down]
David [sings] and [plays guitar]
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Coordinator
Another term for COORDINATING CONJUNCTION.
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Copular Verb
Copular (or linking) verbs link the Subject to the element that follows the them. This
element says more about the Subject:
Jill is a lawyer
That sounds good
The most common copular verb is be.
Count Noun
A type of COMMON noun which is countable. Count nouns can be SINGULAR (dog) or
PLURAL (dogs).
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Declarative Sentence
A type of sentence which typically makes a statement: Bob is a fast swimmer.
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Degree Adverb
A subclass of ADVERB which specifies the degree to which some property applies.
Degree adverbs include very and extremely.
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Definite Article
The definite article is the.
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Demonstrative Pronoun
The demonstrative pronouns are this, that, these, and those.
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Denominal Adjective
An ADJECTIVE derived from a NOUN, e.g. a mathematical puzzle = a puzzle based on
mathematics.
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Determiner
Determiners occur before NOUNS and indicate the kind of reference which the noun
has:
the boy
a bus
our car
these children
both hospitals
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Direct Object
A Direct Object follows a TRANSITIVE verb, and may be defined as that part of the
clause which is affected by the "action" of the verb. For example, in Jim sold his car, the
Direct Object is his car. The Direct Object may be identified by asking what or who is
affected:
Jim sold his car
Q. What did Jim sell?
A. His car ( = the Direct Object)
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Disjunct Adverb
A subclass of ADVERB which comments on the sentence as a whole.
Honestly, I couldn't believe it.
Unfortunately, Kim has had to leave us.
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Ditransitive Verb
Ditransitive verbs take two Complements, an Indirect Object and a Direct Object.
Robin gave Linda a book
The teacher asked James a question
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Do Auxiliary
The auxiliary verb do used with a main verb when forming interrogative or negative
sentences, or for adding emphasis. Also called the DUMMY OPERATOR.
I do not like cheese
Don't cross the road
Do you want some coffee?
Do leave me alone!
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Dummy it
A special use of the PERSONAL PRONOUN it used in references to time and the
weather:
It is raining
It's five o'clock
Also called PROP IT.
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Dummy operator
Another term for the DO AUXILIARY
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-Ed Participle
A NONFINITE form of a VERB characterised by the -ed INFLECTION. It is used to
express perfective aspect (the chairman has resigned), and the passive (the chairman
was persuaded to resign).
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-Ed Participle Clause
A type of subordinate clause whose verb is in the -ed participle form, Tired of the long
meeting, John left.
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Ellipsis
Ellipsis occurs when clauses, phrases, or words are omitted from a sentence, but where
the meaning is recoverable from the context. For example:
A: Can I have a glass of wine?
B: Yes you can [have a glass of wine]
The phrase in brackets is the ellipted material.
Emphasis
One of the NICE PROPERTIES of AUXILIARY VERBS, eg I do like carrots, I can speak
French..
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Enclitic
A contracted form of an AUXILIARY VERB.
I have left ~I've left
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Exclamative Sentence
An exclamative is a sentence used as an exclamation. For example, How tall you've
grown!
Exclusive Adverb
A type of ADVERB which excludes some possibility. For example, It was just Mary who
saw me.
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Existential Sentence
A sentence that contains existential there, e.g. there is a man in the garden.
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Existential there
This element is used to introduce existential sentences. Eg There is a fly in my soup.
Different from its ADVERBIAL (locative) use.
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Extraposition
A process in which a clause that acts as a Subject or Direct Object is displaced from its
normal position, and is replaced by anticipatory it. For example:
That John isn't coming is clear ~It is clear that John isn't coming
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False Coordination
Use of a COORDINATING CONJUNCTION where no COORDINATION actually takes
place, eg. Try and come tomorrow.
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Finite
A verb is finite if it carries TENSE. If it does not carry tense it is NONFINITE. In the
following example the finite verb is highlighted: She eats too much.
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Finite Clause
A clause containing a finite verb. For example, Henry has a large black cat. The
following types of clause are always finite: if-clauses, that-clauses, and zero thatclauses.
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Formal Analysis
A formal analysis is one which looks at structural categories such as word classes,
phrases, and clauses.
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Formulaic Expression
A type of MINOR WORD CLASS expressing greetings, farewells, and apologies, eg.
hello, goodbye, sorry.
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Function Word
Function word and grammatical word are terms used for CLOSED CLASS words such
as PREPOSITION, CONJUNCTION and PRONOUN.
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Functional Analysis
A functional analysis is one which looks at the grammatical functions of constituents,
such as SUBJECT, DIRECT OBJECT, etc.
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Generic
When a noun phrase is used to refer to all members of the class denoted by the phrase,
the noun phrase is said to have generic reference. For example, Monkeys are hairy.
Genitive Marker
The -'s ending on NOUNS which usually indicates possession, e.g. John's book.
Gradable
Both ADJECTIVES and ADVERBS are gradable, in that they are subject to
intensification and COMPARISON. The adjective happy is intensified in the following
examples: very happy, extremely happy, quite happy, happier, and happiest.
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Grammatical Hierarchy
This term refers to the hierarchical ordering of grammatical units like words and phrases.
Words are at the lowest level and sentences are the highest.
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Grammatical Word
Another term for function word.
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Head
The central, obligatory element in a phrase. The Head of a phrase determines the
phrase type, e.g. if the Head is a noun, then the phrase is a noun phrase.
Helping Verb
Another term for AUXILIARY VERB.
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If-Clause
A subordinate clause which is introduced by the subordinator if, e.g. If you leave, I will
too. Another term for if-clause is conditional clause.
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Imperative Sentence
A sentence type usually used to issue orders or directions. The verb is in its base form,
e.g. Move over!
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Indefinite article
The indefinite article is a(n). A occurs before a consonant (a bag) and an before a vowel
(an apple).
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Indefinite Pronoun
A type of PRONOUN. Forms include: something, anything and nothing.
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Independent Relative Clause
Another term for nominal relative clause.
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Indirect Object
The Indirect Object is usually the 'receiver' of an action described by a verb: John gave
Mary flowers. Verbs that require Indirect Objects are called DITRANSITIVE VERBS.
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Infinitive
The infinitive form of a verb is the form which follows to, eg. to go, to be, to wish.
However, infinitives can occur without to: Help me open the door. Infinitives without to
are known as BARE INFINITIVES.
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Infinitive Clause
There are two types of infinitive clauses: to-infinitive clause and bare infinitive clause.
Both contain a verb in the infinitive form, e.g.
I want to go (to-infinitive).
All I did was touch it (bare infinitive).
Inflection
An inflection is an ending which carries grammatical information such as TENSE or
NUMBER and is added to the BASE FORM of a word, eg. -ed (walked), -s (walks).
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-Ing Participle
A form of VERB ending in -ing (ADJECTIVES can also have this form, under the cover
term PARTICIPIAL ADJECTIVE). An -ing participle can be used to form the
PROGRESSIVE ASPECT.
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-Ing Participle Clause
An -ing participal clause is a nonfinite subordinate clause in which the verb is in the -ing
participle form: Running away is a bad idea.
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Inherent Adjective
A type of ADJECTIVE which expresses an attribute or quality of a NOUN, e.g. red car.
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Interjection
An interjection is an exclamation (MINOR WORD CLASS), e.g. Damn!, Oh!, Good
heavens!
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Interrogative Adverb
An interrogative adverb is a type of adverb used in wh-questions such as, How did you
do that? They are subsumed under the general term wh-word, like interrogative
pronouns and the relative equivalents.
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Interrogative Pronoun
Who, which, whose, whom can be used in wh-quentions like, Who is Henry going to
invite? Do not confuse interrogative pronouns with DETERMINERS of the same form,
e.g. which book. They are subsumed under the general term wh-word, like interrogative
adverbs and the relative equivalents.
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Interrogative Sentence
An interrogative sentence is a type of sentence which usually asks a question. For
example, Will you go to the supermarket for me? There are four types, yes/no
interrogatives, wh-interrogatives, alternative interrogatives and tag questions.
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Intransitive Verb
An intransitive verb is one which does not take any Complements, e.g. Jake cried, Sue
slept.
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Inversion
One of the NICE PROPERTIES of AUXILIARY VERBS. Auxiliaries can be inverted in
interrogatives, e.g. can you run fast?
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Lexical Verb
Another term for MAIN VERB.
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Lexical Word
Lexical word is another term for CONTENT or OPEN-CLASS word.
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-Ly Adverb
An ADVERB formed by adding ly to an adjective, eg. bad ~badly.
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Main Clause
A main clause is not subordinate to or dependent on any other clause, eg. I am happy.
Also called matrix clauses.
Main Verb
A main verb is a VERB with independent meaning which can stand alone in a sentence.
For example, I am here. He is signing the contract.
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Major Word Class
The major word classes are NOUN, DETERMINER, ADJECTIVE, ADVERB,
PREPOSITION, VERB and CONJUNCTION. Many, though not all, of these are also
open-class items.
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Manner Adverb
A type of CIRCUMSTANTIAL ADVERB which expresses the manner in which an action
is performed. He ran quickly.
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Mass Noun
A noun denoting an undifferentiated substance, e.g. wool, nitrogen, sugar, water and
music. These are also called NON-COUNT NOUNS.
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Matrix Clause
The whole of I think I'd like coffee is a matrix clause, consisting of a main clause and a
subordinate clause. Matrix clauses are generally finite, but cf. imperative clauses.
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Minor Word Class
The minor word classes include FORMULAIC EXPRESSIONS, INTERJECTIONS,
PARTICLES, EXISTENTIAL THERE and special cases of the personal pronoun it,
dummy it, prop it, anticipatory it and cleft it. Most, though not all, of these are also
closed-class items
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Modal Auxiliary
A modal auxiliary is a type of AUXILIARY VERB. These auxiliaries express meanings
such as permission (may), obligation (must), prediction (will, shall), ability (can), etc.
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Modification
In a phrase (e.g. a noun phrase) another phrase can occur before or after the Head
word. These phrases add something to the meaning of the head (i.e. they modify their
meaning). For example: Red lorry, father of the bride. In the first example, the Head
lorry is premodified by red. In the second example, the Head father is postmodified by
the preposition phrase of the bride.
Monotransitive Verb
Monotransitive verbs are verbs that take one Complement, namely a Direct Object, e.g.
Tim cut the grass.
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Mood
Mood is used to classify verbs e.g. indicative, subjunctive forms. It is also used for
classifying clauses - declarative, imperative, interrogative, exclamative.
Multi-Word Verb
A multi-word verb is a unit composed of a verb plus one or more other words, eg. Dad
woke up this morning. The semi-auxiliaries are multi-word verbs, eg. I am going to
leave now.
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Negation
One of the NICE PROPERTIES of AUXILIARY VERBS, which can have a NEGATIVE
marker added to them, e.g.
You can leave -- You can't leave.
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NICE Properties
Four properties of AUXILIARY VERBS which distinguish them from main verbs, namely,
Negation, Inversion, Code, and Emphasis.
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Nominal Adjective
ADJECTIVES that denote a class of entities by describing one of their ATTRIBUTES are
called nominal adjectives, e.g. The poor, the sick, the elderly, my local. They can have
COMPARATIVE and SUPERLATIVE forms, e.g. the best.
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Nominal Relative clause
A type of relative clause that does not have a Head word. The man who I know contains
a standard relative clause with a Head noun man. In what I want is a new car, what I
want is a nominal relative clause, which may be paraphrased as "the thing which I want".
They are also known as independent relative clauses.
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Non-Count Nouns
A NOUN that refers to an indivisible whole. They only have SINGULAR forms. Examples
include courage, butter, software. They are also called MASS NOUNS
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Nonfinite Verb
A Nonfinite verb does not carry tense agreement. The INFINITIVE, -ED PARTICIPLE
and -ING PARTICIPLE are nonfinite verb forms.
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Nonfinite Clause
A clause that contains a nonfinite verb, e.g. (1) To err is human contains a to-infinitive
clause. (2) I made her laugh contains a bare infinitive clause. (3) Turning the corner, I
ran over the vicar contains an -ing participle clause. (4) She sat in the corner, snubbed
by her colleagues contains an -ed participle clause.
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Non-Inherent Adjective
A type of ADJECTIVE that does not denote an ATTRIBUTE of a NOUN, e.g. small
businessman.
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Notional Agreement
Agreement between a Subject and verb that depends upon our interpretation of the
Subject, rather than its form, e.g. the government is/are useless. The agreement here
depends on whether we treat government as an entity in its own right, or as a collection
of people.
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Noun
A noun is a word which can inflect for number and which usually names people, places
or things.
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Noun Phrase
A string of words that has a noun as its Head:
computers
the man in the moon
young people who live in Italy
NPs may take a determiner phrase as a premodifier, and PPs, to-infinitive clauses or
relative clauses as postmodifiers.
Number Contrast
The difference between SINGULAR and PLURAL forms of NOUNS.
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Numeral
An OPEN CLASS of words that comprises all numbers, and is a subclass of the class of
NOUNS. Different types include CARDINAL NUMERALS and ORDINAL NUMERALS.
Numerals can function as NOUNS or as DETERMINERS.
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Objective Case
The form of PRONOUNS that can appear in the highlighted position of the following
example: I love John/him.
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Open-Class Item
This term refers to wordclasses such as the main lexical categories NOUN, VERB,
ADJECTIVE and ADVERB, which can have new words added to them.
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Operator
When more than one verb occurs in a finite verb phrase, the first auxiliary verb is called
the operator. The operator carries negation, and inverts with the Subject in interrogative
sentences, . In the sentence Ivy will be working for your father, will is the operator.
Ordinal Numeral
A type of NUMERAL, including items like first, 1st.
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Paradigm
A list of forms that a particular word may assume. For example: write, writes, writing,
wrote, written are different forms of the verb paradigm write.
Particularizer Adverb
A type of ADVERB which focuses attention on what follows, e.g. mostly in This is
mostly true.
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Participial Adjective
An adjective in the form of an -ed participle or an -ing participle.
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Particle
A MINOR WORD CLASS consisting of the PARTICLE to (e.g. I want you to leave), as
well as for (It's difficult for you to leave) and with (I can't read with you standing behind
me).
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Particle To
The PARTICLE which appears in TO-INFINITIVES: I want to leave.
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Part Of Speech
Nouns, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions and verbs, amongst others, belong to different
word classes and are known as Parts of Speech.
Passive
In a passive sentence, the PASSIVE AUXILIARY be is combined with the -ed participle
of a verb, e.g. John was kicked.
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Passive Auxiliary
This is the auxiliary verb be which is combined with the -ed participle of a verb to form
the PASSIVE, eg. the money was stolen
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Past
A value for TENSE, which indicates that the event referred to took place in the past. It is
indicated by an -ed inflection on regular verbs.
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Perfective Aspect
PERFECTIVE ASPECT is grammatically encoded by the PERFECTIVE AUXILIARY + ED PARTICIPLE of a VERB. For example, I have broken the glass. Perfective aspect
indicates that an action/situation started in the past but has current relevance.
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Perfective Auxiliary
The AUXILIARY have is used in combination with the -ED PARTICIPLE to denote
PERFECTIVE ASPECT, eg. We have decided to leave
See also
Peripheral Adjective
Peripheral adjectives do not fulfil all the criteria for membership of the ADJECTIVE class.
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Person
I (the speaker/writer) is a first person pronoun, you (the listener/reader) is a second
person pronoun, and he/she/it are third person pronoun. First and third person pronouns
also have a plural form: we (first person plural) and they (third person plural), whereas
you is both the singular and plural form. The form of the verb has to agree with person.
For example, I am, you are, he is, we are they are. For regular verbs all forms are the
same except in the third person singular present tense which takes -s (e.g. she laughs, it
works) - this is AGREEMENT or CONCORD.
See also
Personal Pronoun
Personal pronouns are a type of PRONOUN which refer to people. They have
SUBJECTIVE and OBJECTIVE forms depending on their function. Also includes it.
See also
Phrasal Verb
A phrasal verb is a MULTI-WORD VERB made up of a VERB and ADVERB. For
example, The toaster blew up. Give up teasing your sister. The meaning of the phrasal
verb is not usually obvious from the meaning of the parts. For example, blew up means
'exploded' and give up means 'stop'.
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Phrasal-Prepositional Verb
A MULTI-WORD VERB comprising a VERB, an ADVERB and a PREPOSITION:
Jenny is looking forward to meeting you
I don't know how you put up with him.
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Phrase
A phrase is a syntactic unit which may be composed of one or more words. For
example, Jim, the man; the girl in the corner. A phrase takes its name from the Head
word. For example, ADJECTIVE PHRASE, ADVERB PHRASE, VERB PHRASE,
PREPOSITION PHRASE. Phrases may have premodifiers and postmodifiers.
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Place Adverb
A type of CIRCUMSTANTIAL ADVERB that refers to the direction in which an action is
taking place, put the book there.
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Plural
A form of the NOUN indicated by the -s INFLECTION, denoting more than one entity.
The converse of SINGULAR.
See also
Polysyndetic Coordination
COORDINATION in which all CONJOINS are linked by COORDINATING
CONJUNCTIONS, John and Mary and Bill.
See also
Possessive Pronoun
The possessive pronouns are my, mine, your, yours, his, her, hers, our, ours, their,
theirs. They indicate possession. They can function as NOUNS, for example, Is this
yours? Pass me mine, or as DETERMINERS, e.g. my house.
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Postdeterminer
A type of DETERMINER which occurs after PREDETERMINERS and CENTRAL
DETERMINERS. They include CARDINAL and ORDINAL NUMERALS, e.g. my two
cats.
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Postmodifier
A phrase or clause which follows and modifies the meaning of a Head, for example
The book on the table
The man who sells fruit
fast enough
Postpositive Adjective
Postpositive adjectives occur after the nouns which they modify, for example, the
governor general.
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Predeterminer
A type of DETERMINER which generally specifies quantity in a NOUN. They include
ORDINAL NUMERALS such as twice, half, all, and both. They occur before CENTRAL
DETERMINERS and POSTDETERMINERS.
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Predicate
Everything that follows the Subject in a sentence is the Predicate of that sentence. For
example, in the sentence the farmer shot the rabbit, the Predicate is shot the rabbit.
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Predicative Adjective
A predicative adjective heads an ADJECTIVE PHRASE which follows a COPULAR
VERB. E.g. He is clever.
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Predicator
This is a functional term for the Head of the Predicate of a sentence. In the farmer shot
the rabbit, the Predicate is shot the rabbit. The Head of this constituent is shot, which
functions as the Predicator.
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Premodifier
A phrase which precedes and modifies the meaning of a Head, for example, in very fast
the adverb phrase very premodifies fast .
Preposition
Prepositions are short words, including in, of, by, and with, that occur before a noun
phrase. Some prepositions consist of more than one word (along with, out of, up to), and
are known as COMPLEX PREPOSITIONS.
See also
Prepositional Complement
The phrase that follows a preposition within a prepositional phrase is called a
Prepositional Complement. This is usually a noun phrase. In the following examples, the
highlighted phrases are Prepositional Complements:
around the shops
through the streets
on the bed
Prepositional Object
This term may be used to refer to two things: (1) the Object of a prepositional verb (I
agree with your arguments) and (2) a PREPOSITIONAL COMPLEMENT (in the
cupboard)
Prepositional Verb
A prepositional verb is a MULTI-WORD VERB consisting of a VERB + PREPOSITION.
For example:
Shall we listen to this new CD?
I have to look after the kids.
See also
Prepositional Phrase
In general, a prepositional phrase is made up of a preposition (the Head) followed by a
noun phrase. For example, before two o'clock, from my grandparents, past the
hospital, across the bridge. They can take a premodifier, eg. , just over the bridge.
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Present
A value for TENSE. It usually indicates that the action is occuring at the present
moment. It is denoted by the -s inflection on regular verbs in the 3rd person singular.
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Primary Verbs
The AUXILIARY VERBS be, have and do are called primary verbs when they act as
MAIN VERBS. Examples: am a student, I have a car, I did my homework.
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Progressive Aspect
Perfective aspect is grammatically encoded by the PROGRESSIVE AUXILIARY be + ING PARTICIPLE of a VERB are used. For example, Marie is singing tonight. Sean
was reading his paper. Progressive aspect indicates that an action/situation is ongoing.
See also
Progressive Auxiliary (be)
The progressive auxiliary is AUXILIARY VERB be when combined with an -ING
PARTICIPLE to form the PROGRESSIVE ASPECT. It must be distinguished from the
PASSIVE AUXILIARY.
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Pronoun
Pronouns can occur in positions typically occupied by nouns: Ann/she went on holiday
to France. The doctor examined the children/them. This is a message for Jane/her.
Pronouns have a CASE contrast with SUBJECTIVE and OBJECTIVE forms. We
distinguish the following types: PERSONAL, POSSESSIVE, DEMONSTRATIVE,
REFLEXIVE, RELATIVE, INTERROGATIVE, INDEFINITE and RECIPROCAL. They are
closed-class items.
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Proper Noun
A proper noun refers to a particular person or place (e.g. London, Justin). Proper nouns
begin with a capital letter and are not normally preceded by DETERMINERS.
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Prop it
A special use of the PERSONAL PRONOUN it, also called DUMMY IT, in expressions
like: it is raining and hold it!
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Pseudo-Coordination
Another term for FALSE COORDINATION.
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Reason Clause
A type of subordinate clause, describing the reason why some action or event holds
true, e.g. John was an hour late, because he missed the train.
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Reciprocal Pronoun
The reciprocal pronouns in English are each other and one another.
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Reduced Relative Clause
This is a type of relative clause which lacks a relative adverb or pronoun. For example,
the book written by you and the man following us both contain reduced relatives. The
full relative equivalents are: the book which was written by you, and the man who is
following us. Unlike zero relative clauses, reduced relatives contain nonfinite verbs.
See also
Reflexive Pronoun
A pronoun in the OBJECTIVE CASE followed by the -self ending, e.g. Bill cut himself.
We defended ourselves brilliantly. In these examples the highlighted reflexive pronoun
refers back to the SUBJECT of the sentence.
See also
Relative Adverb
When, where and why are a relative of ADVERBS. They can occur at the beginning of a
RELATIVE CLAUSE, as in the following sentence:. This is the house where Diane was
born.
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Relative Clause
A relative clause gives more information about a noun or modifies it, as in the following
example: The man who bought our house has just won the lottery. Relative clauses
contain relative adverbs or pronouns, which do not need to be overt, for example in a
ZERO RELATIVE CLAUSE or a REDUCED RELATIVE CLAUSE.
See also
Relative Pronoun
Who, which, that and whom are relative pronouns. They occur at the beginning of
RELATIVE CLAUSES. For example, The cake that I've just baked is too hot to eat.
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Result Clause
A subordinate clause which describes the result of some event, e.g. the kitchen was
flooded, so we had to eat out.
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Semi-Auxiliary
A type of AUXILIARY VERB that is also a MULTI-WORD VERB:
I am about to leave
You have to sign the form
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Sentence
Sentences are strings of words that usually express a proposition. They consist of at
least one CLAUSE.
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Simple Preposition
A PREPOSITION that consists of a single word, eg. along the road.
See also
Simple Sentence
A simple sentence is a sentence which contains only one clause, e.g. John plays football
for Liverpool.
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Singular
A value of NUMBER CONTRAST used when a single entity is being referred to. The
converse of PLURAL.
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Small Clause
A small clause is a subordinate clause that contains no verb, as in It made John happy.
See also
Stranded Preposition
PREPOSITIONS are usually followed by nouns. Stranded prepositions do not, as in the
following examples:
Carla has no one to go with
What are you listening to?
Subject
Subjects can often be described as the constituent that performs the action described by
the Predicate, e.g. John kicked the ball. The Predicate is kicked the ball and John
performs this action; so John is the Subject of this sentence.
See also
Subject Clause
A Subject clause is a Subject of a Predicate in the form of a clause. For example, To
leave now would be rude. The Subject of would be rude is the clause to leave now. This
is a type of subordinate clause.
See also
Subjective Case
The form which pronouns take when they function as Subject: he, she, it, we, they are
subjective personal pronouns.
See also
Subject Complement
A Subject Complement occurs with a copular verb. It provides additional information
about the Subject. For example, Alan is an artist. In this example the noun phrase an
artist is the Subject Complement and it provides more information about Alan.
Subordinate
This term is the converse of superordinate. A clause that is lower on the clause
hierarchy than another is subordinate to that one. Every other clause is subordinate to
the matrix clause. One subordinate clause may be subordinate to another, for example
in [I think [that you know [I like coffee]]], I like coffee is subordinate to that you know.
See also
Subordinate Clause
A subordinate clause occurs at a lower level than some other clause. For example, in I'll
clean the bathroom if you clean the lounge, the if-clause is subordinate to the clause
I'll clean the bathroom. Further subordinate clauses we distinguish are: relative clauses,
that-clauses, small clauses, -ed participle clauses, -ing participle clauses, to-infinitive
clauses, bare infinitive clauses, and comparative clauses.
See also
Subordinating Conjunction
Subordinating conjunctions introduce SUBORDINATE CLAUSES. Examples include:
although, because, if , since, when, while, etc. Also known as a SUBORDINATOR.
See also
Subordinator
Another term for SUBORDINATING CONJUNCTION.
See also
Superlative
In the sentence The cheetah is the fastest animal, the ending -est marks the superlative
form of the adjective fast. The cheetah is being compared with all other animals and is
being picked out for its ability to outrun all the others. Both ADJECTIVES and ADVERBS
can be made superlative. Some words do not take the -est ending but require most as in
the following example: She was once described as the most beautiful woman in the
world.
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Superordinate
The converse of SUBORDINATE. A clause higher in the clause hierarchy to another one
is superordinate to it. A matrix clause is superordinate to all other clauses.
See also
Syndetic Coordination
This term refers to COORDINATION that has a single COORDINATOR between the last
two CONJOINS, as in John, Mary and Bill.
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Tag Question
An interrogative string positioned at the end of a sentence, usually seeking confirmation,
e.g. It's cold, isn't it?
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Temporal Clause
A subordinate clause which expresses 'time when', e.g. I'll ring you again, before I go.
See also
Tense
Tense refers to the grammatical encoding of an event or action in time. English has two
tenses, PRESENT and PAST.
See also
That-Clause
A subordinate clause beginning with the subordinating conjunction that. For example, I
think that you should leave.
See also
Time Adverb
A type of CIRCUMSTANTIAL ADVERB that specifies the time an action takes place, for
example, I will leave soon.
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To-Infinitive
The form of a verb preceded by the PARTICLE TO. For example, in the sentence I want
to see it, the string to see is a to-infinitive.
See also
To-Infinitive Clause
A clause containing a verb preceded by the PARTICLE TO. For example, in the
sentence I want John to see it, the string John to see it is a to-infinitive clause.
See also
Transitive Verb
A transitive verb is a verb that takes one or more Complements.
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Tree Diagram
A visual representation of the syntactic structure of a sentence.
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Verb
Verbs are traditionally described as 'doing' or 'action' words. Verbs are an OPEN and
MAJOR WORD CLASS and comprise two basic types: MAIN and AUXILIARY VERBS.
A verb can be the only unit in a clause e.g. Wait! Verbs are marked for TENSE and
show AGREEMENT with the SUBJECT.
See also
Verb Phrase
This is a phrase whose Head word is a verb.
Vocative
A vocative is a noun phrase which directly addresses someone. For example, Bob, can I
have a word? I need that book now, Sarah.
Voice
Voice refers to the ACTIVE/PASSIVE distinction. For example, Linda bought a Porsche
is active, whereas The Porsche was bought by Linda is its passive counterpart.
See also
Wh-Interrogative
An interrogative sentence or clause that begins with an interrogative adverb or pronoun,
e.g Who are you trying to phone?
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Wh- Question
A question which begins with a wh- word, for example, Who are you?
See also
Wh- Word
Another term for interrogative/relative adverbs and pronouns.
See also
Word Class
Nouns, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions and verbs among others are different types or
classes of words. They are also known as 'Parts of Speech'. Word classes contain
words which share properties.
See also
Yes/No Interrogative
An interrogative sentence or clause that can be answered by 'yes' or 'no'. For example,
Would you like a drink?
See also
Zero Relative Clause
A relative clause from which the relative pronoun has been ellipted, for example: This is
the car I want (compare: This is the car that I want)
Zero That-Clause
A that-clause from which the subordinator that has been ellipted, for example He said
he'd be a bit late (compare: He said that he'd be a bit late)