Types of Phrases
A phrase is a group of related
words (within a sentence) without both subject and verb. For example, He is laughing at the
joker.
A
phrase functions as a noun, verb, adverb,
adjective or preposition in a sentence. The function of a phrase depends on
its construction (words it contains). On the basis of their functions and
constructions, phrases are divided into
various types i.e. noun phrase, verb phrase, adverb phrase, adjective
phrase, appositive phrase, infinite phrase, participle phrase and gerund
phrase.
Noun Phrase
A noun phrase consists of a noun and
other related words (usually modifiers and determiners) which modify the
noun. It functions like a noun in a sentence.
A noun phrase consists of a noun as the head word and other words (usually
modifiers and determiners) which come after or before the noun. The whole
phrase works as a noun in a sentence.
Noun Phrase = noun + modifiers (the
modifiers can be after or before noun)
Examples.
He is
wearing a nice red
shirt. (as
noun/object)
She
brought a glass full of
water. (as
noun/object)
The boy
with brown hair is
laughing. (as
noun/subject)
A man
on the roof was shouting.
(as noun/subject)
A
sentence can also contain more noun phrases.
For example. The girl with blue eyes bought a beautiful chair.
Prepositional
phrase.
A
prepositional phrase consists of a preposition, object of preposition(noun or
pronoun) and may also consist of other modifiers.
e.g. on a table, near a wall, in the room, at the door, under a tree
A prepositional phrase starts with
a preposition and mostly ends with a noun or pronoun. Whatever prepositional
phrase ends with is called object of preposition. A prepositional phrase
functions as an adjective or adverb in a sentence.
Examples.
A
boy on the roof is singing a song.
(As
adjective)
The
man in the room is our
teacher. (As
adjective)
She
is shouting in a loud
voice. (As
adverb)
He
always behaves in a good
manner. (As adverb)
Adjective
Phrase.
An adjective phrase is a group of words
that functions like an adjective in a sentence. It consists of adjectives,
modifier and any word that modifies a noun or pronoun.
An adjective phrase functions like an adjective to modify (or tell about) a
noun or a pronoun in a sentence.
Examples.
He
is wearing a nice red shirt.
(modifies shirt)
The
girl with brown hair is singing a song. (modifies girl)
He
gave me a glass full of
water. (modifies glass)
A
boy from America won the
race.
(modifies boy)
Prepositional phrases and participle phrases also function as adjectives
so we can also call them adjective phrases when they function as adjective. In
the above sentence “The girlwith brown hair is singing a song”, the phrase
“with brown hair” is a prepositional phrase but it functions as an adjective.
Adverb Phrase
An
adverb phrase is a group of words that functions as an adverb in a sentence. It
consists of adverbs or other words (preposition, noun, verb, modifiers) that
make a group with works like an adverb in a sentence.
An adverb phrase functions like an adverb to modify a verb, an adjective or
another adverb.
Examples
He
always behaves in a good
manner. (modifies
verb behave)
They
were shouting in a loud
voice.
(modifies verb shout)
She
always drives with
care. (modifies
verb drive)
He
sat in a corner of the
room. (modifies
verb sit)
He
returned in a short
while. (modifies
verb return)
A
prepositional phrase can also act as an adverb phrase. For example in above
sentence “He always behaves in a good manner”, the phrase “in a good
manner” is a prepositional phrase but it acts as adverb phrase here.
Verb Phrase
A
verb phrase is a combination of main verb and its auxiliaries (helping verbs)
in a sentence.
Examples.
He is
eating an apple.
She has
finished her work.
You should
study for the exam.
She has
been sleeping for two hours.
According to generative grammar, a verb phrase can consist of main verb,
its auxiliaries, its complements and other modifiers. Hence it can refer to the
whole predicate of a sentence.
Example. You should study for the exam.
Infinitive
Phrase
An
infinitive phrase consist of an infinitive(to + simple form of verb) and
modifiers or other words associated to the infinitive. An infinitive phrase
always functions as an adjective, adverb or a noun in a sentence.
Examples.
He
likes to read
books. (As
noun/object)
To earn
money is a desire of everyone. (As noun/subject)
He
shouted to inform people about fire. (As adverb, modifies
verb shout)
He made
a plan to buy a
car. (As
adjective, modifies noun plan)
Gerund Phrase
A
gerund phrase consists of a gerund(verb + ing) and modifiers or other
words associated with the gerund. A gerund phrase acts as a noun in a sentence.
Examples
I
like writing good
essays. (As
noun/object)
She
started thinking about the
problem. (As
noun/object)
Sleeping
late in night is not a good
habit. (As noun/subject)
Weeping
of a baby woke him
up. (As
noun/subject)
Participle
Phrase
A
participle phrase consists of a present participle (verb + ing), a past participle
(verb ending in -ed or other form in case of irregular verbs) and
modifiers or other associate words. A participle phrase is separated by commas.
It always acts as an adjective in a sentence.
Examples
The
kids, making a noise, need food.
(modifies kids)
I
received a letter, mentioning about my
exam. (modifies letter)
The
table, made of steel, is too
expensive.
(modifies table)
We
saw a car, damaged in an accident.
(modifies car)
Absolute
Phrase
Absolute
phrase (also called nominative phrase) is a group of words including a noun or
pronoun and a participle as well as any associated modifiers. Absolute phrase
modifies (give information about) the entire sentence. It resembles a clause
but it lack a true finite verb. It is separated by a comma or pairs of
commas from the rest sentence.
Examples
He
looks sad, his face expressing worry.
She
was waiting for her friend, her eyes on the clock.
John
is painting a wall, his shirt dirty with paint.