A prepositional phrase is a phrase in which a preposition functions as the head of the phrase plus a prepositional complement. The four grammatical forms that appear within the internal structure of English prepositional phrases are: Noun phrases Verb phrases Noun clauses Prepositional phrases All four grammatical forms function as prepositional complements within prepositional phrases. […] More
Traditional grammars define prepositions as “words that link nouns and pronouns to other words.” Simple prepositions consist of a single word. Complex prepositions consist of two or more words. A subcategory of the English preposition, postpositions follow, rather than precede, the prepositional complement. The following dictionary lists the prepositions of the English language. A aboard […] More
Noun phrase complements are words, phrases, and clauses that complete the meaning of a noun or noun phrase. Unlike noun phrase modifiers that modify or describe a noun or noun phrase, noun phrase complements complete the meaning of a noun or noun phrase. Although five grammatical forms — noun phrases, adjective phrases, prepositional phrases, verb […] More
Noun phrase modifiers are defined as words, phrases, and clauses that describe a noun, pronoun, or noun phrase. Although adjectives and adjective phrases most frequently function to describe nouns, five grammatical forms can perform the grammatical function of noun phrase modifier in the English language. The five grammatical forms that can function as noun phrase […] More
Prepositional complements are defined as the word, phrase, or clause that directly follows the preposition and completes the meaning of the prepositional phrase. Prepositional complements are also called objects of prepositions and complements of prepositions. Although noun phrases most frequently function as the prepositional complement in prepositional phrases, four grammatical forms can perform the grammatical […] More
Indirect objects are words, phrases, and clauses that follow a ditransitive verb and indicate to or for whom or what the action of the verb is performed. Sentences with indirect objects must also have direct objects. Although nouns and noun phrases most frequently function as the indirect objects of sentences, four grammatical forms can perform […] More
Nouns are traditionally defined as words that refer to people, places, things, and ideas. A subcategory of nouns, pronouns are words that take the place of nouns, noun phrases, noun clauses, and other grammatical forms. A noun phrase is a phrase that consists of a noun including a pronoun plus any modifiers, complements, or determiners. […] More
Verbs are traditionally defined as “words that indicate action or state of being.” English verbs may be either transitive or intransitive. Transitive verbs require direct objects and may also take indirect objects. For example, the verb eat in the rabbit ate the lettuce is transitive because of the direct object the lettuce. Conversely, intransitive verbs […] More
Traditional grammars define pronouns as “small words that take the place of other words, phrases, and clauses.” Pronouns in English more specifically take the place of nouns, noun phrases, and noun clauses as well as some other grammatical forms. English pronouns may be further classified into more specific categories: personal pronouns, indefinite pronouns, demonstrative pronouns, […] More
Traditional grammars describe nouns as words that name people, places, things, and ideas. Pronouns are a subcategory of nouns that take the place of nouns, noun phrases, noun clauses, and other grammatical forms. A noun phrase consists of a noun including a pronoun plus any modifiers, complements, and determiners that provide more information about the […] More
Traditional grammars define nouns as naming people, places, things, and ideas. Noun phrases consist of a noun including a pronoun and any modifiers, complements, and determiners that provide more information about the noun or pronoun. A pronoun is word that takes the place of a noun, noun phrase, noun clause, or other nominal form. Pronouns […] More
The traditional definition of the noun is a word that names a person, place, thing, or idea. A noun phrase is a phrase consisting of a noun including a pronoun and any modifiers, complements, or determiners. Pronouns are a subcategory of nouns that take the place of nouns, noun phrases, noun clauses, and other forms. […] More
The imperative mood is one of three grammatical moods in the English language. As a grammatical mood, the imperative expresses modality, which is the grammaticalized expression of the subjective attitudes and opinions of the speaker including possibility, probability, necessity, obligation, permissibility, ability, desire, and contingency. In the English language, the imperative mood is a verb […] More
Object complements are defined as words, phrases, and clauses that directly follow and describe or complete the direct object. Object complements are grammatical constituents embedded in the predicate of a clause. Although noun phrases and adjective phrases most frequently function as the object complement of clauses, five grammatical forms can perform the grammatical function of […] More
Irregular English verbs are verbs whose conjugations differ from the conjugation patterns of regular verbs. Many common English verbs are irregular in the simple past and the past participle. Irregular verbs are verbs in Germanic languages that express the simple past tense by means of changes to the stem vowel (ablaut). Irregular verbs are also referred […] More
A noun clause is a dependent clause that consists of a subordinating conjunction followed by a clause and that performs a nominal function. Noun clauses perform nine grammatical functions in English grammar: Subject Subject complement Direct object Object complement Indirect object Prepositional complement Noun phrase complement Adjective phrase complement Appositive The following sections define and […] More
Similar to the noun and noun phrase in grammatical function, a noun clause is a dependent or subordinate clause that consists of a subordinating conjunction followed by a clause and that performs a nominal function. Some grammars use the term nominal clause for noun clauses. Conjunctions are “words that link words, phrases, and clauses.” A […] More
Nouns are traditionally defined as words that name people, places, things, and ideas. A pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun. Noun phrases consist of a noun including a pronoun plus any determiners, modifiers, and complements. A pronoun may also take the place of an entire noun phrase. Pronoun is a […] More
All conjugated verbs in the English language express grammatical tense, grammatical aspect, grammatical voice, and grammatical mood. Tense is defined as the grammaticalized expression of time. Aspect is defined as the grammaticalized expression of temporal structure. Voice is defined as the expression of relationships between predicate and nominal functions. Mood is defined as the expression […] More
English verbs that are conjugated express a combination of grammatical tense, grammatical aspect, grammatical voice, and grammatical mood. Tense is the grammaticalized expression of time and roughly corresponds to actual time. Aspect is the grammaticalized expression of temporal structure and corresponds to duration. Mood is the expression of modality, or the expression of possibility, necessity, […] More
