Grammar Archives - Page 4 of 4

The Function of Phrases within Clauses

21 February 2014

Graham Williamson

Categories: Grammar

Phrases take on different grammatical functions within clauses. There are five types: verb, subject, object, complement and adjunct.

Verb Phrases

20 February 2014

Graham Williamson

Categories: Grammar

The simplest verb phrase (VP) consists of just a head verb, which is always a lexical verb. So, in the utterance the boy hugged the dog, the verb phrase is simply the head lexical verb hugged. This can be represented diagrammatically by using what is known as…

Verbs

19 February 2014

Graham Williamson

Categories: Grammar

Three classes of verb So-called main verbs are typically the most important element in a clause, taking the central role. In contrast, auxiliary verbs are usually placed before a main verb and serve to qualify the meaning of the main verb. The word class of verbs can be…