CIUBAR IOANA-RALUCA

LIMBA SI LITERATURA ENGLEZA-GERMANA

ANUL 2 , GRUPA 1

Lecture 6
4.3. The noun phrase 4.3.1.
Definition: A noun phrase is a phrase in which the head is typically a noun or a pronoun. A noun
phrase may minimally consist of a noun (cats), as in [NP Cats] make wonderful pets preceded or
not by a determiner, or of a pronoun (they), as in [NP They] make wonderful pets.
There are cases where the head of a noun phrase is an adjective, especially when the structure
definite article + adjective occurs, as in the soap opera title [NP The young] and [NP the
restless]. Other examples include: the poor, the blind, the sick, and so on.

4.3.2. The structure of the noun phrase

The head of a noun phrase may be accompanied by other words or phrases, which provide
information about it. For instance, the noun phrase all indoor cats of different breeds contains a
determiner (all), a premodifier (indoor), the head (cats) and a postmodifier (of different breeds).
[NP [det All] [AdjP indoor] cats [PpP of different breeds]]
The structure of the noun phrase can be represented as follows:

determiner premodifier Head(noun) Postmodifiers

Industrially Countries
A Small wooden Bax that he owned
A market System That has no
imperfections
The New training College For teachers
Patterns Of industrial
development in the
U.S

Pronoun-headed NP phrases usually don’t include a determiner or premodifier, but they may
have postmodifiers :

Determiner Premodifier Head(noun) Postmodifier

I
She
Anyone Who is willing to
listen
Those Who take the trouble
to register
The Big one In town

Much in the same line, Hasselgård, Lysvåg & Johanssonan note that nominalized adjectives may
refer to people, in which case they function as plural-only nouns, usually with generic reference:
The poor need help from the government. The French are considered gourmets. If reference to
one person is required, you need to add a noun such as person, man, woman after the adjective.
Colour adjectives can easily be nominalized, as in She was dressed in red. Furthermore,
adjectives referring to abstractions may be nominalized (overcome evil with good; the
unexpected often happens; the unknown is usually feared), as well as adjectives in the
superlative, also with reference to abstractions (We'll hope for the best and expect the worst).
Both color adjectives and nominalized adjectives referring to abstractions function as singular
(uncountable) nouns.
Determiners/ determinatives are function words that come before the head and before all the
other dependents in a noun phrase and determine or specify “how the reference of a noun phrase
is to be understood. For example, this determines the reference of table in this table: it tells us
which or what table is intended.” (Leech, 2006, p. 33) the author also mentions that “in an older
tradition of grammar, determiners were treated as adjectives, and terms like ‘demonstrative
adjective’ and ‘possessive adjective’ are still used in some grammars.”
Determiners can be divided into three classes:
1. predeterminers, e.g. all, both, half, as in [det all] cats, [det both] breeds.
2. central determiners, e.g. a(n), the, those, as in [det a] breed, [det those] cats.
3. postdeterminers, e.g. other, two, first, as in [det two] cats, [det other] breeds.
Premodifiers are modifiers placed before the head. They are normally realised by adjectives
(indoor cats), participial premodifiers (broken heart, breaking news) but can sometimes be
realized by nouns (church roof) or other types of phrases. An example proposed by Biber et al.
shows a prepositional phrase that premodifies a noun.
The head governs concord, that is, the agreement in grammatical form between elements in a
clause or a phrase. It may be preceded by determiners and premodifiers and followed by
postmodifiers.
The postmodifiers incorporate all the elements placed after the head and typically consist of
prepositional phrases (cats [PpP of different breeds]), relative clauses (cats [that-Cl that stay
indoors]) and non-finite clauses (cats [ing-Cl staying on the sofa]). Appositive clauses can also
be embedded in noun phrases quite often, as in [NP the fact [app-Cl that she was his worst
nightmare]].
The issue can be further clarified if we consider Leech's definition of the apposition: A relation
between two constituents such that the following statements normally apply: (a) apposition exists
between two noun phrases; (b) the two constituents in apposition are in a relationship which
could be expressed by the verb be; (c) the two constituents are juxtaposed and combined in a
single noun phrase, which can act, for example, as subject or object of a sentence. Examples of
apposition are: George Washington, first President of the USA; My neighbour Mrs Randall;
tequila, a powerful Mexican drink. By extension, the term apposition can apply to a noun phrase
next to a coreferential nominal clause (for example, the idea/hope that the White House would
change its policy can become a sentence with be: The idea/hope was that the White House would
change its policy). An of-phrase in which of links coreferential expressions may also be termed
appositive: the city of Beirut; the disgrace of losing the contest.
To sum it up, modifiers are optional elements that are dependent on the head. Premodifiers and
postmodifiers can appear in the following combinations in the structure of noun phrases:

Noun phrase structure example

Head cats
Determiner+head those cats
Premodifier+head white cats
Determiner +premodifier+head some white cats
Head+ postmodifier cats on the sofa
Determiner + head + postmodifier some cats on the sofa
Premodifier +head + postmodifier white cats on the sofa
Determiner + premod. +head + postmod. Some white cats on the sofa

EXERCISES
Exercise 4.1 The noun phrase
Indicate whether each underlined noun phrase contains a premodifier, a postmodifier, or
both.

1. The umbrella originated in Mesopotamia over 3,000 years ago. (none)

2. It was an emblem of rank and distinction. (postmodifier)
3. It protected Mesopotamians from the harsh sun. (premodifier)
4. For centuries, umbrellas served primarily as a protection from the sun. (postmodifier)
5. The Greeks and Romans regarded the umbrella as effeminate and ridiculed men who carried
umbrellas. (postmodifier)
*Exercise 4.2 The noun phrase Bracket the noun phrases in each sentence below. Some
sentences may have more than one noun phrase. If a noun phrase contains another noun
phrase within it, bracket the embedded noun phrase a further time.

1. Fire is not used in microwave cooking.

2. Electromagnetic energy agitates the water molecules in the food.
3. The agitation produces sufficient heat for cooking.
4. The electronic tube that produces microwave energy is called a magnetron.
5. The magnetron was in use a decade before the birth of the microwave oven.
1. [Fire] is not used in [microwave cooking].

2. [Electromagnetic energy] agitates [the water molecules in [the food]].

3. [The agitation] produces [sufficient heat for cooking].

4. [[The electronic tube] that produces [microwave energy]] is called [a magnetron].

5. [The magnetron] was in use [a decade before [the birth of the microwave oven]].

Exercise 4.3 Combine the (a) and (b) sentences in each set below by turning one of the sentences
into a relative clause.
la. The drugs inevitably damage a patient’s healthy cells as well.
b. The drugs are used for chemotherapy. 2a. Human infants pass through a critical period.
b. The period lasts a few years.
3a. It was a mystery.
b. They could not solve the mystery.
4a. The fundraising campaign has recruited a core of graduates.
b. They in turn contact more graduates.

l. The drugs used for chemotherapy inevitably damage a patient’s healthy cells as well.
2. Human infants pass through a critical period which lasts a few years.
3. It was a mystery that they could not solve.
4. The fundraising campaign has recruited a core of graduates, who in turn contact more
graduates

Exercise 4.4 Apposite clauses

Indicate whether each underlined clause is a relative clause (3.5) or an appositive clause.

1. The manager lacked the experience that would have helped him overcome the crisis.
(relative)
2. You have undermined my conviction that a nuclear war is inevitable. (appositive)
3. She has heard the news that all the passengers and crew escaped unhurt. (appositive)
4. I cannot dispute the fact that you have won the support of most members. (appositive)

Exercise 4.5 In the sentences below, underline the noun phrases that are in apposition.

1. The accelerator hurled ions of carbon and neon at a foil target of bismuth, a metal related to
lead.
2. . Helena Bonham-Carter was in it, the actress who played Ophelia in Hamlet.
3. UK drug authorities have asked for more data on the company’s anti-migraine drug,
Imigran.
4. Wood can supply 5 per cent of our energy needs, leaving 95 per cent that must come from
other sources – solar, wind, coal, nuclear, biomass.
Exercise 4.6 Coordination The coordinated noun phrases below are ambiguous. Rewrite the
phrases unambiguously to show the different meanings.

1. my friends and good neighbours: my friends and my good neighbours

good neighbours and my friends

2. aged cheese and wine: aged cheese and aged wine

wine and aged cheese

3. their properties and other businesses: their properties and their other businesses

other businesses and their properties

Exercise 4.8 Functions of noun phrases Identify the function of each underlined noun phrase
by writing the appropriate abbreviation in the brackets after it:
Identify the function of each underlined noun phrase by writing the appropriate abbreviation
in the brackets after it:

S (subject) oC (object complement)

dO (direct object) cP (prepositional complement)
iO (indirect object) pM (premodifier in a noun phrase)
sC (subject complement) A (adverbial)

1. The great fire of 1174 (S) did not affect the nave, but it gutted the choir (dO).
2. The book offers a vivid picture of Poland and its people (dO).
3. The whole Dickens (pM) family went to stay with Mrs Roylance in Little College Street
(cP).
4. Last April (A ), security staff (S) spotted an intruder (dO) on the White House lawn
(cP).