| 释义 |
The noun phrase A noun phrase is a word or group of words that can function as the subject, the object, or the complement in a sentence.- The manager interviewed all the applicants on Tuesday.
- Lydia was the successful applicant.
See Direct and indirect objects and Complements for more information about these functions. A noun phrase must always contain a noun or a pronoun.A noun phrase may consist of only one word. That word will be either a noun or a pronoun.- Mary left late.
- She left late.
- Cheese is expensive.
- It is expensive.
A noun phrase may consist of more than one word. One of these words, a noun or a pronoun, is the headword. The other words describe or modify the headword.- the tall girl
- the very tall girl
- a strikingly beautiful girl
- the tall girl with green eyes
Words that go before the headword are called premodifiers. A noun can be premodified by:- a determiner. See Determiners.
| the girl | that boy | | a spider | some rice |
- one or more adjectives. See Determiners, The indefinite article, The definite article, Nouns used without a determiner, Demonstratives, Possessives, Quantifiers, Numbers, Distributives, Exclamatives, Noun phrases with several determiners, Adjectives and Comparison.
- tall girls
- tall dark girls
- tall dark handsome men
- a number, another noun, or the present participle or past participle of a verb.
- three days
- the railway station buffet
- an annoying habit
- an overworked man
Words that go after the headword are called postmodifiers. A noun can be postmodified by:- a prepositional phrase (a noun phrase with a preposition in front of it).
- the person in the corner
- the view across the valley
- the house opposite the church
- creatures under the sea
- a subordinate clause (usually one beginning with who, which or that). See Subordination.
- All the women who had gathered there finally went away.
- Milk that has been kept too long can go sour.
- less commonly, certain adjectives. See Determiners.
- the princess royal
- the president elect
- Personal pronouns are only rarely premodified or postmodified. See Personal pronouns.
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