LESSON IX

NOUN PHRASE
PHRASE
NOUN PHRASES
 A noun phrase is any noun or pronoun along with its modifiers:
 Example:
 The school children
 Yesterday’s newspaper
 An old and rusted car
Often a noun phrase consists of….
1. determiner and a noun: (signal the approach of a noun)
Our friends have bought a house in the village.
I invited all our friends.
Those houses are very expensive.
2. with an adjective:
 Our closest friends have just bought a new house in the village.

Sometimes the noun phrase begins with

1. a quantifier:
All those children go to school here.
Both of my younger brothers are married.
Some people spend a lot of money.
2. Numbers:
Quantifiers come before determiners, but numbers come after
determiners:
My four children go to school here.
(All my children go to school here.)
Those two suitcases are mine.
(Both those suitcases are mine)
Two of those suitcases

Formula:
Quantifiers + determiners
Determiners + numbers
EXERCISE:
1.
HOW NOUN PHRASES ARE
FORMED
1. Determiner + noun:
the village, a house, our friends; those houses
2. Quantifier + noun:
some people; a lot of money
3. Determiner + adjective + noun:
our closest friends; a new house
4. Quantifier + determiner + noun:
all those children;
5. Quantifier + determiner + adjective + noun:
both of my younger brothers
POSTMODIFIERS
 Some words and phrases come after the noun. A noun phrase can be postmodified in
several ways.
1. with a prepositional phrase:
a man with a gun
the boy in the blue shirt

Exercise:
2. the house on the corner
3. a girl with a flower on her hand
4. a cat under the table
5. the scorching sun over the ocean
2. with an –ing phrase
the man standing over there
the boy talking to Angela

Exercise:
my mother nagging all morning
the students acting like small children
all of the flowers dancing in the field
the kite flying in the sky
3. with a relative clause:
A clause introduced by a relative pronoun (that, which, who, whom,
whose)
the girl that won the lottery
the man [that] we met yesterday (contact clause)

Exercise:
the house that Jack built
the woman who discovered radium
an eight-year-old boy who attempted to rob a sweet shop
Leah’s food [that] her mom prepared for her
4. with a that clause
This is very common with reporting or summarizing nouns like belief,
fact, hope, idea, possibility, suggestion, statement, claim, comment, argument:
a ceremony that honored the animals
He’s still very fit, in spite of the fact that he’s over eighty

Exercise:
She got the idea that people didn’t like her.
There was a suggestion that the children should be sent home.
An experience that embarrassed him for life.
An assumption that arose after the incident.
5. with an infinitive
This is very common after indefinite pronouns and adverbs:
You should take something to read.
I need somewhere to sleep in.

Exercise:
You should take something to read.
I need somewhere to sleep in.
I’ve got no decent shoes to wear.
Humans need food to eat. I need some money to buy food.
Remember that the functions of nouns are the same with the functions of noun phrases.
as subject
Examples:
Agathe visited her friends yesterday.
The group of students aboard the boat will gather data for their research.
as object
Examples:
Agathe visited Sally yesterday.
Mr. Aguila instructed his student in English 001.
as subject complement
Examples:
The new teacher is Agathe.
The newly hired school nurse is my daughter.
 There may be more than one postmodifier: (the noun phrase is underlined)

 1. An eight-year old boy with a gun who tried to rob a sweet shop was arrested.
 an – determiner (article)
 eight-year old – adjective
 boy – noun
 Postmodifiers
 with a gun (prepositional phrase)
 who tried to rob a sweet shop (relative clause)
 2. Give this card to that girl /over there/ in a green dress/ drinking
coke.
 that – determiner (demonstrative pronoun)
 girl - noun
 Postmodifiers
 over there (prepositional phrase)
 in a green dress (prepositional phrase)
 drinking coke (-ing phrase)
GERUND
PHRASE
GERUND PHRASE
 A gerund is a noun formed with a verb ending in -ing
 In understanding gerund phrases, be guided by these rules:

 1. Gerund phrase always starts with gerund, an -ing word.

 2. Gerund phrase always include modifiers and often include other objects.
 3. A Gerund phrase always functions as a noun, so they are always used as a subject, an
object, or a subject complements in sentences.
 EXAMPLES.

 1. Eating ice cream on a windy day can be a messy experience if you have
long, untamed hair.
Eating ice cream on a windy day= subject of the verb can be

 2. Blowing bubbles on a windy day is a fun activity for children.

Blowing bubbles on a windy day = subject of the verb is

 3. Jessica really enjoys bothering the neighbors with loud music.

bothering the neighbors with loud music =direct object of the verb enjoys
GERUND VS PARTICIPLE PHRASE
 Example: 1.
 Bernard hates buttering toast with a fork.
buttering toast with a fork =direct object of the verb hates

 2. Buttering toast with a fork, Bernard vowed that he would finally wash the
week’s worth of dirty dishes piled in the sink.
Buttering toast with a fork =present participle phrase describing Bernard
PARTICIPLE PHRASES
 a phrase that looks like a verb, but actually functions as an adjective; it
modifies a noun in the same sentence. Phrases like this provide added
description about what a noun is doing or what it looks like.
 Examples:
 Singing with glee, the children were applauded.
 Turning the volume knob a bit more, Jack hummed with the song on the
radio.
 Fond of brushing her hair, Kelly always had smooth and silky locks.
 PARTS OF A PARTICIPIAL
PHRASE
 Participial phrases will always start with a participle. A participle is formed
from a verb, but it acts as an adjective. They modify other nouns in sentences,
and are often parts of longer phrases.
 can be either the present participle or the past participle.
 The present participle of a verb expresses the action of a verb, specifically in
the present. It will always end in –ing, every single time.
 Meanwhile, the past participle of a verb usually ends in -ed, for regular past
participles.
 Example 1. The woman, smiling and waving, said hello.
 Example 2. Framed and hung, the painting lit up the room
HOW TO AVOID MISTAKES WHEN
WRITING PARTICIPIAL PHRASES
 will need to use a participle, in past or present form
 describes a subject (usually a noun) but isn’t part of the main clause of a sentence. The
main clause of the sentence describes the action going on. If you take out the participial
phrase, the main clause should still be a complete sentence.
1. Don’t Forget Punctuation
When you start a sentence with a participial phrase, you’ll need to use commas to set
it apart from the main clause. But when your participial phrase describes the word right in
front of it, you don’t need the commas.
2. Avoid Misplaced Modifiers
This happens when a participial phrase is put in the wrong place, and
that makes it seem like they’re describing the wrong noun or subject in a
sentence. This can confuse people, but it can also create some pretty funny
misunderstandings and the sentence doesn’t make logical sense.

The cup of water spilled everywhere and Connor walked over to clean it up,
dripping over the sides of the table.

Put the participial phrase near the right noun.

Dripping over the sides of the table, the cup of water spilled everywhere, and
Connor walked over to clean it up.