Noun phrases have the following basic structure:
Determiner Premodifier Noun Postmodifier
the young boy who lives beside us
Determiners introduce noun phrases. Premodifiers and postmodifiers
depend on the main word – the noun – and may be omitted.
- Determiners
The most common determiners are the articles – the definite
article the and the indefinite article a/an.
the tree
the books
a newspaper
an optician
Other determiners include:
1 Possessive pronouns :
my books
your ideas
his diet
our house
their problem
2 Demonstrative pronouns :
this book
that car
these buildings
those children
3 Numerals :
one page
two books
second chance
fourth paragraph
4 Each, every, all, both and some:
each child
every time
all types
some sugar
both children
5 Many, more and most:
many years
more food
most people
With certain restrictions, determiners can co-occur in a noun
phrase:
all the children
our first home
every second week
his many talents
all my many relatives
Determiners are unique to noun phrases. They do not occur in any of the other phrase types.
- Premodifiers
Premodifiers in a noun phrase occur before the noun, and after any determiners which may be present. In a noun phrase, the premodifier is typically an adjective:
green eyes
a young child
some beautiful flowers
Premodifiers can co-occur, that is, more than one adjective can premodify the same noun:
lovely green eyes
an innocent young child
some beautiful yellow flowers
As well as adjectives, the following words can function as premodifiers
in a noun phrase:
1 Nouns :
bank manager bedroom window
computer manuals the Science Museum
2 Genitive nouns :
David’s homework the President’s office
the company’s accounts our child’s school
- Postmodifiers
Postmodifiers in a noun phrase occur after the noun, and are most
commonly prepositional phrases introduced by of:
a piece of cheese the rotation of the earth
the top of the hill a biography of Mozart
a view of the sea the Museum of Mankind
The postmodifier may also be introduced by other prepositions:
the house on the hill
the Museum in Kensington
a coat with a brown collar
people without computer skills
As well as prepositional phrases, postmodifiers of noun phrases can be:
1 Relative clauses :
the boy who lives beside us
the books which you bought
the film that I enjoyed most
2 To-clauses :
a valve to regulate the airflow
a place to store your clothes
the first man to walk on the moon
Postmodifiers in a noun phrase can co-occur. The following examples illustrate noun phrases with two postmodifiers each:
a holiday [for two] [in Rome]
the shop [in the High Street] [that sells fish]
the photograph [you took] [of Napoleon’s tomb]
- Restrictive and non-restrictive postmodifiers
A postmodifier in a noun phrase may be restrictive or non-restrictive. A restrictive postmodifer serves to define the noun:
The student who got the highest grade was given a prize.
Here, the postmodifier, who got the highest grade, is used to define exactly which student was given a prize. The postmodifier is therefore strictly necessary to the meaning of the sentence. Compare this with:
The student, who comes from Birmingham, was given a prize.
Here, the postmodifier, who comes from Birmingham, does not define exactly which student, from among all the students in the class, was given a prize. It simply conveys additional, optional information. This is a nonrestrictive postmodifier.
In writing, non-restrictive postmodifiers are usually marked off with commas, as in the example above. In speech, the intonation pattern usually indicates their status.
- Postmodifiers and complements
Complements are a type of noun-phrase postmodifier , but
they have a much closer link with the noun than ordinary postmodifiers. Compare the following:
[1] Postmodifier:
The news that he gave us today was welcomed by everyone.
[2] Complement:
The news that he intends to resign was welcomed by everyone.
In [1], the postmodifier that he gave us today does not define the news.
It does not tell us what the news was. In contrast with this, the complement in [2], that he intends to resign, plays a defining role. It tells us precisely what the news was (he intends to resign).
The distinction between a postmodifier and a complement is not just one of meaning. There is also a grammatical difference. In the
postmodifier, we can usually replace that with which:
[1a] Postmodifier:
The news which he gave us today was welcomed by everyone.
We cannot replace that with which in the complement:
[2a] Complement:
*The news which he intends to resign was welcomed by
everyone.
In general, nouns which take complements tend to have abstract reference.Here are some more examples:
the realisation that it wouldn’t work
the fact that no one came
the idea that secularisation means something
the theory that light is a wave motion
- Apposition
Apposition is a relationship between two noun phrases which have identical reference:
the poet, Andrew Motion
The two noun phrases, the poet and Andrew Motion, refer to the sameperson, and are said to be in apposition to each other. Further
examples of apposition include:
the Yugoslav capital, Belgrade
John’s favourite food, pasta
the SAC’s chairman, Sir Alan Peacock
our good friends, the Browns
Apposition is often used as a device for clarifying the meaning of the first noun phrase:
the SB (the Polish secret police)
the larynx (voice box)
230 litres (50 gallons)
In this type of ‘clarifying’ apposition, the word or is sometimes introduced between the two noun phrases:
phototaxis, or light-directed motion
vexillology, or the study of flags
- The functions of noun phrases
Noun phrases are grammatically very versatile. They can perform a wide range of functions in sentence structure . We illustrate the main functions of noun phrases here:
1 Subject :
A large tile fell from the roof.
Four people entered the room.
The man who lives beside us is unwell.
2 Subject complement :
Paul is my nephew.
She is a teacher of English.
That is the wrong way to wire a plug.
3 Direct object:
The plane left the runway.
I bought a jar of coffee.
Our teacher writes detective stories.
4 Indirect object :
She told the chairman the bad news.
I offered the girl beside me a drink.
It gives people with disabilities more independence.
5 Object complement:
He called her an idiot.
They appointed him President of the Board of Trade.
The unions made Britain the country it is today.
6 Adjunct :
Last week, our freezer broke down.
She’s going to Harvard next year.
One day you’ll regret quitting college.
Determiner Premodifier Noun Postmodifier
the young boy who lives beside us
Determiners introduce noun phrases. Premodifiers and postmodifiers
depend on the main word – the noun – and may be omitted.
- Determiners
The most common determiners are the articles – the definite
article the and the indefinite article a/an.
the tree
the books
a newspaper
an optician
Other determiners include:
1 Possessive pronouns :
my books
your ideas
his diet
our house
their problem
2 Demonstrative pronouns :
this book
that car
these buildings
those children
3 Numerals :
one page
two books
second chance
fourth paragraph
4 Each, every, all, both and some:
each child
every time
all types
some sugar
both children
5 Many, more and most:
many years
more food
most people
With certain restrictions, determiners can co-occur in a noun
phrase:
all the children
our first home
every second week
his many talents
all my many relatives
Determiners are unique to noun phrases. They do not occur in any of the other phrase types.
- Premodifiers
Premodifiers in a noun phrase occur before the noun, and after any determiners which may be present. In a noun phrase, the premodifier is typically an adjective:
green eyes
a young child
some beautiful flowers
Premodifiers can co-occur, that is, more than one adjective can premodify the same noun:
lovely green eyes
an innocent young child
some beautiful yellow flowers
As well as adjectives, the following words can function as premodifiers
in a noun phrase:
1 Nouns :
bank manager bedroom window
computer manuals the Science Museum
2 Genitive nouns :
David’s homework the President’s office
the company’s accounts our child’s school
- Postmodifiers
Postmodifiers in a noun phrase occur after the noun, and are most
commonly prepositional phrases introduced by of:
a piece of cheese the rotation of the earth
the top of the hill a biography of Mozart
a view of the sea the Museum of Mankind
The postmodifier may also be introduced by other prepositions:
the house on the hill
the Museum in Kensington
a coat with a brown collar
people without computer skills
As well as prepositional phrases, postmodifiers of noun phrases can be:
1 Relative clauses :
the boy who lives beside us
the books which you bought
the film that I enjoyed most
2 To-clauses :
a valve to regulate the airflow
a place to store your clothes
the first man to walk on the moon
Postmodifiers in a noun phrase can co-occur. The following examples illustrate noun phrases with two postmodifiers each:
a holiday [for two] [in Rome]
the shop [in the High Street] [that sells fish]
the photograph [you took] [of Napoleon’s tomb]
- Restrictive and non-restrictive postmodifiers
A postmodifier in a noun phrase may be restrictive or non-restrictive. A restrictive postmodifer serves to define the noun:
The student who got the highest grade was given a prize.
Here, the postmodifier, who got the highest grade, is used to define exactly which student was given a prize. The postmodifier is therefore strictly necessary to the meaning of the sentence. Compare this with:
The student, who comes from Birmingham, was given a prize.
Here, the postmodifier, who comes from Birmingham, does not define exactly which student, from among all the students in the class, was given a prize. It simply conveys additional, optional information. This is a nonrestrictive postmodifier.
In writing, non-restrictive postmodifiers are usually marked off with commas, as in the example above. In speech, the intonation pattern usually indicates their status.
- Postmodifiers and complements
Complements are a type of noun-phrase postmodifier , but
they have a much closer link with the noun than ordinary postmodifiers. Compare the following:
[1] Postmodifier:
The news that he gave us today was welcomed by everyone.
[2] Complement:
The news that he intends to resign was welcomed by everyone.
In [1], the postmodifier that he gave us today does not define the news.
It does not tell us what the news was. In contrast with this, the complement in [2], that he intends to resign, plays a defining role. It tells us precisely what the news was (he intends to resign).
The distinction between a postmodifier and a complement is not just one of meaning. There is also a grammatical difference. In the
postmodifier, we can usually replace that with which:
[1a] Postmodifier:
The news which he gave us today was welcomed by everyone.
We cannot replace that with which in the complement:
[2a] Complement:
*The news which he intends to resign was welcomed by
everyone.
In general, nouns which take complements tend to have abstract reference.Here are some more examples:
the realisation that it wouldn’t work
the fact that no one came
the idea that secularisation means something
the theory that light is a wave motion
- Apposition
Apposition is a relationship between two noun phrases which have identical reference:
the poet, Andrew Motion
The two noun phrases, the poet and Andrew Motion, refer to the sameperson, and are said to be in apposition to each other. Further
examples of apposition include:
the Yugoslav capital, Belgrade
John’s favourite food, pasta
the SAC’s chairman, Sir Alan Peacock
our good friends, the Browns
Apposition is often used as a device for clarifying the meaning of the first noun phrase:
the SB (the Polish secret police)
the larynx (voice box)
230 litres (50 gallons)
In this type of ‘clarifying’ apposition, the word or is sometimes introduced between the two noun phrases:
phototaxis, or light-directed motion
vexillology, or the study of flags
- The functions of noun phrases
Noun phrases are grammatically very versatile. They can perform a wide range of functions in sentence structure . We illustrate the main functions of noun phrases here:
1 Subject :
A large tile fell from the roof.
Four people entered the room.
The man who lives beside us is unwell.
2 Subject complement :
Paul is my nephew.
She is a teacher of English.
That is the wrong way to wire a plug.
3 Direct object:
The plane left the runway.
I bought a jar of coffee.
Our teacher writes detective stories.
4 Indirect object :
She told the chairman the bad news.
I offered the girl beside me a drink.
It gives people with disabilities more independence.
5 Object complement:
He called her an idiot.
They appointed him President of the Board of Trade.
The unions made Britain the country it is today.
6 Adjunct :
Last week, our freezer broke down.
She’s going to Harvard next year.
One day you’ll regret quitting college.
