PHRASES

PHRASESA group of related words that

lacks either a subject or a predicate or both

fearing an accident

at the lake’s edge

CATEGORIES OF PHRASESI. Prepositional Phrases

A. AdjectivalB. Adverbial

II. Appositive Phrases

III. Verbal PhrasesA. ParticipialB. GerundC. Infinitive

A preposition connects a noun or pronoun to another word in the sentence. The noun or pronoun so connected is the object of the preposition. The preposition plus its object and any modifiers is a prepositional phrase.

on the surfacewith great satisfactionupon entering the roomfrom where you are standingexcept for ten employees

PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES

PREPOSITIONAL PHRASESA word group consisting of a preposition

and its object (OP), plus any modifiers. A prepositional phrase usually functions as an adjective or as an adverb.

The boy in green stood up.

He walked to the speaker’s platform.

OPadjectival

OPadverbial

PUNCTUATING PREPOSITIONAL PHRASESA prepositional phrase that introduces a

sentence IS set off with punctuation, usually a comma, unless it is short.

1. According to the newspaper and other sources, the governor has decided to veto the bill.

2. In 1865 the Civil War finally ended.

PUNCTUATING PREPOSITIONAL PHRASESA prepositional phrase that interrupts or

concludes a sentence is NOT set off with punctuation when it restricts the meaning of the word or words it modifies.

1. The announcement of a tuition increase surprised no one.

2. Students expected new fees for the coming year.

When an interrupting or concluding prepositional phrase does NOT restrict meaning, but merely adds information to the sentence, then it IS set off with punctuation, usually a comma or commas.

The governor, according to the newspaper and other sources, has reluctantly decided to veto the bill.

PUNCTUATING PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES

One last thing--

A preposition and its object are not separated by a

comma.

PUNCTUATING PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES

A noun or pronoun placed beside another noun or pronoun to identify or describe it.

My teacher, Mrs. Boyd, lost her book.

APPOSITIVE

An appositive and any modifiers the appositive has.

Mrs. Boyd, my English teacher, lost her book.

APPOSITIVES AND APPOSITIVE PHRASES

VERBALSSpecial verb forms that can function as

nouns or as modifiers. Smoking is dangerous.

Verbals cannot stand alone as the complete verb in the predicate of a sentence.

The man smoking

Any verbal must combine with a helping verb to serve as the predicate of a sentence.

The man was smoking.

THREE TYPES OF VERBAL PHRASES

Participle

Gerund

Infinitive

All verbs have two participle forms, a present and a past.

The present participle consists of the dictionary form of the verb plus the ending –ing: beginning, completing, hiding.

The past participle of most verbs consists of the dictionary form plus –d or –ed: believed, completed. Some common verbs have an irregular past participle: begun, hidden.

Both present and past participles function as adjectives to modify nouns and pronouns.

PARTICIPLES

1. Shopping malls sometimes frustrate shoppers.

2. Shoppers may feel trapped.

PARTICIPLES

LV

PARTICIPLE PHRASESParticiples may take subjects,

objects, or complements, and they may be modified by adverbs.

The participle and all the words immediately related to it make up a participle phrase.

Participle phrases always serve as adjectives, modifying nouns or pronouns.

PARTICIPLES IN A POEMfrom “I Hear America Singing” by Walt Whitman

I hear America singing, the varied carols I hear, Those of mechanics, each one singing his as it should be blithe and strong, The carpenter singing his as he measures his plank or beam, The mason singing his as he makes ready for work, or leaves off work, The boatman singing what belongs to him in his boat, the deckhand singing on the steamboat deck, The shoemaker singing as he sits on his bench, the hatter singing as he stands,

1. Buying things, most shoppers feel

themselves in control.

2. They make selections determined by

personal taste.

PARTICIPLE PHRASESN

N

GERUNDSA gerund is the name given to the –ing

form of the verb when it serves as a noun.

1. Strolling through stores can exhaust the hardiest shopper.

2. Many children learn to hate shopping.

N

N

GERUNDS

Present participles and gerunds can be distinguished only by their function in a sentence.

If the –ing form functions as an adjective (a teaching degree), it is a present participle.

If the –ing form functions as a noun (Teaching is difficult), it is a gerund.

GERUNDS

Writers and speakers often use gerunds and gerund phrases to talk about present or ongoing activity.

GERUND PHRASESThe gerund and all the words immediately

related to it make up a gerund phrase.

Gerund phrases ALWAYS serve as nouns.

1. Shopping for clothing and other items satisfies personal needs.

2. Malls are good at creating such needs.

Sentence Subject/Noun

Object of Preposition/Noun

INFINITIVES

The infinitive is the to form of the verb--the dictionary form preceded by the infinitive marker to: to begin, to hide, to run.

Infinitives may function as nouns, adjectives, or adverbs.

INFINITIVESWhile gerunds and gerund phrases often

refer to present or ongoing activity, infinitives and infinitive phrases often point readers to the future.

Present Action: Coral-reef diving has long been a passion of mine.

Future Action: Someday, I would like to dive at Australia’s Great Barrier Reef.

gerund

infinitive

INFINITIVES

1. The question to answer is why shoppers

endure mall fatigue.

2. The solution for mall fatigue is to leave.

3. Still, shoppers find it difficult to quit.

adjective

noun

adverb

INFINITIVE PHRASESInfinitive phrases may serve as nouns,

adverbs, or adjectives.

1. To design a mall is to create an artificial environment.

2. Malls are designed to make shoppers feel safe.

3. The environment supports the impulse to shop for oneself.

sentence subject predicate noun

LV

adverb

adjective

INFINITIVE PHRASES

One more last thing—

When an infinitive or infinitive phrase serves as a noun after verbs such as bear, let, tell, help, make, see, and watch, the infinitive marker to is omitted:

We all heard her tell [NOT to tell] the story.

PUNCTUATING VERBAL PHRASES

A verbal or verbal phrase serving as a modifier is almost always set off with a comma when it introduces a sentence.

To pay tuition, some students work at two jobs.

infinitive phrase

A modifying verbal or verbal phrase that interrupts or concludes a sentence is NOT set off with punctuation when it restricts the meaning of the word or words it modifies.

Jobs paying well are hard to find.

PUNCTUATING VERBAL PHRASES

participle phrase

When an interrupting or concluding verbal modifier does NOT restrict meaning, but merely adds information to the sentence, it IS set off with punctuation, usually a comma or commas.

One good job, paying twelve dollars an hour, was filled in fifteen minutes.

PUNCTUATING VERBAL PHRASES

participle phrase

IDENTIFY EACH VERBAL OR VERBAL PHRASE. THEN INDICATE WHETHER IT IS USED AS AN

ADJECTIVE, AN ADVERB, OR A NOUN.

1. Laughing, the talk-show host prodded her guest to talk.

2. Shunned by the community, Hester endures her loneliness.

3. Written in 1850 by Nathaniel Hawthorne, The Scarlet Letter tells the story of Hester Prynne.

4. Hester is humble enough to withstand her Puritan neighbors’ cutting remarks.

5. Despite the cruel treatment, the determined young woman refuses to leave her home.

6. By living a life of patience and unselfishness, Hester eventually becomes the community’s angel.

fin