WHAT IS A PHRASE?

Chapter 14

p. 440

PHRASE A phrase is a group of related words that is

used as a single part of speech and that does not contain both a verb and its subject. Example

Could have been [no subject] Instead of Debra and him [no subject or verb]

Note: If a group of words contains both a verb and its subject, it is called a clause.

Example We found your pen. if she will go

PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE

A Prepositional phrase includes a preposition, the object of the preposition, and any modifiers of that object.

Examples To the pool At the Jacksons’ house Instead of them

The noun or pronoun in a prepositional phrase is called the object of the preposition.

ADJECTIVE PHRASE

A prepositional phrase that modifies a noun or pronoun is called an adjective phrase.

The members of the club want sweatshirts with the club emblem. [The prepositional phrase of the club is used as an adjective to modify the noun members. With the club emblem is used as an adjective to modify the noun sweatshirts.]

Adjective Amy closed the cellar door Adjective Phrase Amy closed the door to the

cellar.

ADVERB PHRASE

A prepositional phrase that modifies a verb, an adjective, or an adverb is called an adverb phrase.

An adverb phrase tells how, when, where, why, or to what extent.

Britney answered with a smile [The adverb phrase with a smile tells how Britney answered.]

They sailed across the lake yesterday. [The adverb phrase across the lake tells where they sailed.]

An Adverb phrase may modify an adjective or an adverb.

Melissa is good at tennis but better at volleyball. [The adverb phrase at tennis modifies the adjective good. The adverb phrase at volleyball modifies the adjective better.

EX: 2,3,Review B, Review C

VERBALS AND VERBAL PHRASES

A participle is a verb form that can be used as an adjective.

Ex: We saw the raccoon escaping through the back

door. [The participle escaping, formed from the verb escape, modifies the noun raccoon.]

Waxed floors can be dangerously slippery. [The participle Waxed, formed from the verb wax, modifies the noun floors.]

TWO KINDS OF PARTICIPLES ARE PRESENT AND PAST PARTICIPLES.

Present participles end in –ing

We ran inside to get out of the pouring rain.[The present participle pouring modifies the noun rain.]

Watching the clock, the coach became worried. [The present participle watching modifies the noun coach.]

Note: Participles need to be joined to a helping verb to

form a verb phrase. When a participle is used in a verb phrase, it is part

of the verb and is not an adjective. The rain was pouring. The coach had been watching the clock.

Past participles usually end in –d or –ed. Other past participles are formed irregularly.

A peeled and sliced cucumber can be added to a garden salad. [The past participles peeled and sliced modify the noun cucumber.]

The speaker, known for her strong support of recycling, was loudly applauded. [The irregular past participle known modifies the noun speaker.]

EX: 4,5 P. 450-1

THE PARTICIPIAL PHRASE A participial phrase is used as an adjective

and consists of a participle and any complements or modifiers the participle has.

Seeing the cat, the dog barked loudly.

The cat hissed at the dog barking in the yard next door.

The dog noisily barking at the cat had to be brought in.

Switching its tail, the mountain lion paced back and forth. [participle with object tail]

She heard me sighing loudly. [participle with the adverb loudly]

Living within his budget, Adam never needs to borrow money. [participle with adverb phrase within his budget]

Quickly grabbing the keys, I dashed for the front door. [participle with preceding adverb Quickly and object keys]

STYLE TIP! A participial phrase should be placed very

close to the word it modifies. Otherwise, the phrase may appear to modify another word, and the sentence may not make sense.

He saw a moose riding his motorcycle through the woods. [Misplaced]

Riding his motorcycle through the woods, he saw a moose. [Improved]

Ex: 6, Review D (p452)

THE GERUND A gerund is a verb form ending in –ing

that is used as a noun. Like other nouns, gerunds are used as subjects,

predicate nominatives, direct objects, indirect objects, and objects of prepositions.

The dancing was fun. [subject]Same as—The dance was fun.

My favorite part of the show was his juggling. [predicate nominative]Same as—She has become a dentist.

Shauna tried climbing faster. [direct object]Same as—Lucy visited me.

Give winning the game your best. [indirect object]Same as—Natalie knitted her friend a

sweater.

We worked better after resting. [object of the preposition]Same as—She drove around the corner.

LIKE OTHER NOUNS, GERUNDS MAY BE MODIFIED BY ADJECTIVES AND ADJECTIVE PHRASES.

We listened to the beautiful singing of the famous soprano. [The article the, the adjective beautiful, and the adjective phrase of the famous soprano modify the gerund singing. Singing is used as the object of the preposition to.]

The Mallorys enjoy talking about their vacation. [The adjective phrase about their vacation modifies the gerund talking, which is the direct object of the verb enjoy.]

LIKE VERBS, GERUNDS MAY ALSO BE MODIFIES BY ADVERBS AND ADVERB PHREASES

Reading widely is one way to acquire judgment, maturity, and a good education. [The gerund Reading is the subject of the verb is. The adverb widely modifies the gerund Reading.]

Floating lazily in the pool is my favorite summer pastime. [The gerund Floating is used as the subject of the sentence. It is modified by the adverb lazily (telling how) and also by the adverb phrase in the pool (telling where).]

GERUNDS, LIKE PRESENT PARTICIPLES, END IN –ING. TO BE A GERUND, A VERBAL MUST BE USED AS A NOUN.

In the following sentence, three words end in –ing, but only one of them is a gerund.

Circling the runway, the pilot was preparing for landing.

[Circling is a present participle modifying pilot. Preparing is part of the verb phrase was preparing. Only landing, used as the object of the preposition for, is a gerund.]

Ex: 7 (p. 454)

THE GERUND PHRASE

A gerund phrase consists of a gerund and any modifiers or complements the gerund has. The entire phrase is used as a noun.

The gentle pattering of the rain was a welcome sound. [The gerund phrase is the subject of the

sentence. The gerund pattering is modified by the article The, the adjective gentle, and the prepositional phrase of the rain. Notice that the modifiers preceding the gerund are included in the phrase.]

I feared skiing down the mountain alone. [The gerund phrase is used as the object of the

verb feared. The gerund skiing is modified by the prepositional phrase down the mountain and by the adverb alone.]

My dog’s favorite game is bringing me the newspaper. [The gerund phrase is used as a predicate

nominative. The gerund bringing has a direct object, newspaper, and an indirect object, me.]

Evelyn Ashford won a gold medal for running the 100-meter dash. [The gerund phrase is the object of the

preposition for. The gerund running has a direct object, dash.]

Ex: 8, Review E (p. 455-456)

THE INFINITIVE

An infinitive is a verb form that can be used as a noun, an adjective, or an adverb.

Infinitive can be used as nouns. To fly is glorious. [To fly is the subject]

Infinitives can be adjectives. The place to visit is Williamsburg. [To visit

modifies the noun place.] Infinitives as can be used as adverbs.

Sabina jumped to shoot. [To shoot modifies the verb jumped.]

Ready to go, we soon loaded the car. [To go modifies the adjective Ready.]

THE INFINITIVE WITH TO OMITTED

Sometimes the sign of the infinitive, to, is omitted in a sentence

She’s done all her chores except [to] feed the cat.

I’ll help you [to] pack. The dogs like to roam in the field and [to]

chase rabbits. Fuel injection helps cars [to] run better and

[to] last longer.

THE INFINITIVE PHRASE

The infinitive phrase consists of an infinitive and any modifiers or complements the infinitive has. The entire phrase can be used as a noun, an adjective, or an adverb.

To make tamales quickly was hard. [The infinitive phrase is used as a noun, as the subject of the sentence. The infinitive has a direct object, tamales, and is modified by the adverb quickly and by the predicate adjective hard.]

Chris is the player to watch in the next game. [The infinitive phrase is used as an adjective modifying the predicate nominative player. The infinitive is modified by the adverb phrase in the next game.]

We are eager to finish this project. [The infinitive phrase is used as an adverb modifying the predicate adjective eager. The infinitive has a direct object, project.]

APPOSITIVES

An appositive is a noun or a pronoun placed beside another noun or pronoun to identify or describe it.

The sculptor Isamu Noguchi has designed sculpture gardens. [The appositive Isamu Noguchi identifies the noun sculptor.]

Eric, a talented musician, plans to study in Europe. [The appositive musician describes the noun Eric.]

Those, the ones on the right, are on sale. [The appositive ones identifies the pronoun Those.]

AN APPOSITIVE PHRASE CONSIST OF AN APPOSITIVE AD ANY MODIFIERS IT HAS.

Lucy Sanchez, my longtime friend from my old neighborhood, has a new Scottish terrier.

Dr. Jackson has a degree in entomology, the scientific study of insects.

Note: Sometimes, an appositive phrase precedes the noun or pronoun to which it refers. The terror of our class, Grant was on the

warpath.

APPOSITIVE AND APPOSITIVE PHRASES THAT ARE NOT ESSENTIAL TO THE MEANING OF THE SENTENCE ARE SET OFF BY COMMAS. IF THE APPOSITIVE IS ESSENTIAL TO THE MEANING, IT IS GENERALLY NOT SET OFF BY COMMAS.

My teacher, Mr. Byrd, trains parrots. [The writer has only one teacher. The appositive is not necessary to identify the teacher. Because the information is nonessential, it is set off by commas.]

My teacher Mr. Byrd trains parrots. [The writer has more than one teacher. The appositive is necessary to tell which teacher is meant. Because this information is essential to the meaning of the sentence, it is not set off by commas.]