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Longman Group UK Limited,
Longman Hmm!, Bumi Aif, Hadow,
Essex C20 21, 11/and
mu! As.wciated Co111p11iiies thwugho11t the world
{ R. Quirk, S. Greenbaum, G. Leech. J. Svartvik 1990
All :!yhts n:scrvcd; 1 part of this publicati on
may be reproduced, swrec in a retrieval syst0H,
or transmitted in anv form or by any means, electronic,
mechanical, photoc(;pying, rcco.rding, or othCIWi8C,
without the priCJr written permission of the PublisheIS
First pubiishd I 990
Second impression l <90
!SBN 0 582 0597!.2 (Paperback)
ISBN 0 582 07569.6 (Cased)
Set in l v!onophoto Times
P1imed in Great Brit1in by
The Buth Press Ltd .. London & Bath
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Contents
Preface
The English language
2 A general framework
3 Verbs and auxiliaries
4 The semantics of llw verb phras1:
5 Nouns and dcle1miners
6 Pronoun:
7 Adjc<tives and adv1!rbs
8 The semantics and grammar of advcrbials
9 Prepositions and prcposition;t! phrases
I 0 The imp le sentence
l J Sentence types and discourse functions
12 Pro-forms and cllip:;is
13 Coordination
14 The complex sentcn1;c
;
;;

l 5 Syntactic and semantic l't111ctions of subordinate clau:;cs
1 6 Complementation l'1i' verbs and adcctivcs
l 7 The noun phrase
1 8 Theme, focus, and i11fr1111 tion precessing
19 From sentence to text
Bibliography
Index
.. .
1 l
24
47
70
]()8
129
158
188
204
231
247
262
304
336
363
394
434
476
485
Preface
This book is basic<tlly ;1 shortellcd vcrsi\)11 of A Co111preht11si\'e (;a1!1n;;,;:
`
of !he English Language ( l 985). But it is very much more. lr has hec.11 ..
a darted to the needs of stuo -- < with much reorientation and simplitica-
-
tion of the material in the parent book. Moreover. it has made use of
research by ourselves and others that has been published since the mid
l980s, and this is reflected not only in the text throughout but also in the
bibliographical references.
London
May 1990
SG R Q
.!
The English language
The use of English
1.1 English is the world's most widely used language. A distim:tion is often
made that depends on how lhc language is leared: as a 1wtie language
(or 11101/a tUngue), acquired when Lhc speaker is a )'l>Ung d1ild (gc1:rally
in the home), or as a 110111w1ive language, acquired al some subsequent
period. Overlapping with this distinction is that between its use as ajir.11
language, the primary language ol' the spe<ker, and as an additional
language. In some countries (particularly of course where it is the
dominant native language), English is used principally ror intenwl
purposes as an i111rmw1irma/ language, fr speakers to communicate with
other speakers of the same ctmtry; in others it serves chieOy as 1
inreruriona!languagc, the medium ofcommunica t ion with speakers from
other countries.
One well-established categorization makes a three-way distinction
between a natiie language, a seu111dlanguage. and a/i1reig11 language. As a
foreign lunguagc English is used fr interational communication, but as
a second language it is used chiefly fr intranational purposes (for
cxample,-in education and the law courts and by individuals speaking
different native languages).
The meanings of 'grammar'
Syntax and inflections
1.2 We shall be using 'grammar' in this book to include both SYNTAX and that
aspect of MORPHOLOGY (the internal Strctue or words) that deals with
rNrLECT!ONS (or ACCll>t:NCE). The fact that the past tense ofmy is 1!011gh1
[intkction] and the !'act that the interrogative form of !le huught it is Did hl'
huy it.? [syntax] arc therefore both equally within grammar. Our usage
corresponds to one of' the Lomnwn lay uses or the .vord in the Englisb
speaking world. A teacher may comment:
John uses good grammar hut his spelling is awful.
The .ommcnt shows that spelling \s excluded rrom gramm:1r; and ii' John
wrote inrerloper where the context demanded inlerpreter, t!1c tc:.1d1cr
would say that he had ucd the wrng word, not that he had made H
2 The Engllsh language
mistake in grammar. But in the education systems of the English-speaking
countries, it is possible also to use the term 'grammar' loosely so as to
include both spelling and lexicology.
There is a further use ofgrammar' that derives from a period in which
thc teaching of Latin and Greek was widespread. Since the aspect of Latin
grammar on which teaching has traditionally concentrated is the
paradigms (or model sets) of inflections, it made sense for the learer to
say:
Latin has good deal of grammar, but English has hardly any.
This meaning of 'grammar' has continued to be used by lay native
speakers. In effect, grammar is identifed with infections.
Rules and the native speaker
1.3 Yet another sense appears in the remark:
French has a well-defined grammar, but in English we're free to
speak as we like.
Here 'grammar' is used as a virtual synonym of 'syntax'.
Such a comment by a native speaker probably owes a good deal to the
fact that he does not feel the rules of his own language - rules that he has
acquired unconsciously-to be at all cons training; and if ever he happens
to be called on to explain one such rule to a foreigner he has very great
difculty. By contrast, the grammatical rules he learns for a foreign
language seem much more rigid and they also seem clearer because they
have been actually spelled out to him in the learning process.
But another important point is revealed in this sentence. The distinction
refers to 'grammar' not as the observed patterns in the use of French but as
a codifcation of rules compiled by the French (especially by the Academic
Franaisc) to show the French themselves how their language should be
used. This is grammar as codified by grammarians: the Academy
Grammar. There is no such Academy for the English language and so (our
naive native speaker imagines) the English speaker has more 'freedom' in
his usage.
The codification of rules
1.4 The 'codifcation' sense of grammar is readily identifed with the specific
compilation of a specific grammarian:
Jespersen wrote a good grammar, and so did Kruisinga.
And this sense naturally leads to the concrete. use as in:
Did you bring your grammars?
Naturally, too, the codification may refer to grammar in any of the senses
already mentioned. It will also vary, however, according to the linguistic
The meanings 'grammar' 3
theory embraced by the authors, their idea of the nature of grammar
rather than their statement of the grammar of a particular language:
Chomsky developed a transformational grammar that difered
considerably fom earlier grammars. .
Thus, in the framework of formal linguistics, some grammarians speak of
'the grammar' as embracing rules not only for syntax but for phonologi
cal, lexical, and semantic specifcation as well.
Prescriptive grammar
1.5 Finally we come to the use of 'grammar' in statements such as:
It's bad grammar to end a sentence with a preposition.
Here the term refers to a way of speaking or writing that is to be either
preferred or avoided. Such statements pertain lo PRESCRIPTIVE GRA.MMAR,
a set of regulations that arc based on what is evaluated as correct or
incorrect in the standard varieties. Since we do not have an Academy or
the English Language, there is no one set of regulations that could be
considered 'authoritative'. Instead, evaluations are made by self
appointed authorities who, refecting varying judgments of acceptability
and appropriateness, often disagree.
Authorities on USAGE, in this restricted sense, primarily deal with
DISPUTED usage, a relatively small number of syntactic and lexical items
that are controversial within the standard varieties. Their objections may
persuade some to avoid certain usages, at least in their formal writing.
Over the last two centuries prescriptive rules have accumulated into a
general prescriptive tradition for formal writing that is embodied (with
some variation) in school textbooks and student rererencc handbooks,
and in usage guides for the general public.
As an occasional consequence of prescriptive pressures, some speaker;
have mistakenly extended particular prescriptive rules in an atempt to
avoid mistakes. A classic instance or such HYPERCORRECTION is the use of
whom as subject, as in the students whom I hope ll'ijoin us. Others are the
pseudo-subjunctive were as in i ll'onder if he \CC here and the use of the
subjective pronoun I in the phrase between you and J.
Our primary concer in this book is to describe the grammar of English.
Out we occasionally refer to the prescriptive tradition not only because it
may lead to hypercorrection but also because it may afect attitudes
towards particular uses that may in turn influence the preferences of some
native speakers, at least in formal or more considered styles. ft may lead
some, for example, lo replace their usual was by subjunctive ll'ere in I I
was strong enough, I would help you, or to replace who by 11'110111 in the
teacher who I most admired.
I
1
4 n,e English langua,
Varieties of English
Types of variation
1.6 There are numerous varieties of Englisll, but we shall recognize in this
book li ve major types of variation. Any use of the language necessarily
involves variation within all five types, although for purposes of anal ysis
we may abstract individual varieties:
(a) n:gion
(b) social group
(c) fi el d or discourse
(d) medium
(e) 11ttitudc
The first two types of variation rdatt primarily to the language IAlI.
Pcoplc use a regional variety because they live in a region or haw once
lived in that regi on. Similarly, people use a social variety because of thei r
aflilia tion with a social group. These varieties are relatively permanent fr
the language user. At the same time, we should be aware that many people
can communicate in more than one regional or soci al variety and can
therefore (consciously !1unconsciously) switch varieties according to the
situation. And of course people move to other regions or change their
.social alliliations, and may then adopt a new regional or social variety.
The last three types of variation relate to bnguage use. People select the
varieties according to the situation and the purpose of the communica
tion. The field of discourse relates to the activity in which they are
engaged; the medium may be spoken or written. generally depending on
the proximity of the participants in the communication; and the attitude
expressed through language is conditioned by the relationship of the
participants in the particular situation. A ('"OMMON CORE is prccnl in all
the varieties so that, however esoteric a variety may be, it has running
through it a set of grmmatical and other characteristics that arc present
in all the oth'rs. lt is this fact th<Ll justifies the application of the name
' English' to all the varieties.
Regional variation
l.7 Varieties according to region have a well-established label both in popular
and technical use: DALECT. Geographical dispersion is in fact the classic
basis i"or linguistic variation, a11d in the COU"SC of time, wi th poor
communications and relative remoteness, such dispersion results in
dialects becoming so distinct that we regard them as different languages.
Thi latter stage was long ago reached with the Germ:nic dialects that arc
now Dutch, English, German, Swedish. ctc, but it has not been reached
(and may not necessarily ever be reached. given the moder case and range
of communication) with the dia lccts of English that have restiltt:d from the
regional separation of communi ti es within the British Isles and (since the
voyages of exploration and settlement in Shakespeare's time) elsewhere in
the world.
lt is pointless to ask how many dialects of English there are: there arc
indefnitely many, depending on how detailed we wish to be in our
observations. But they are of course more obviously numerous in long
settled Britain than in areas more recently settled by English speakers,
such as North America or, still more recently, Australia and New
Zealand. The degree of generality in our observation depends crucially
upon our standpoint as well as upon our experience. An Englishman will
hear an American Southerer primarily as an American, and only as a
Southerner in addition if further subclassification is called for and if his
experience of American English d!itlects enables him to make it. To an
American the same speaker will be heard frst as a Southerner and then
(subject to similar conditions) as, say, a Virginian, and then perhaps as a
Piedmont Virginian.
Social variallon
1.8 Within each of the dialects there is considerable vanat1on in speech
according to education, socioeconomic group, and ethnic group. Some
differences correlate with age and sex. Much (if not most) of the variation
docs not involve categorical distinctions; rather it is a mallcr of the
frequency with which certain linguistic features are found in the groups.
There is an important polarity between uneducated and educated
speech in which the former can be identifed with the no. nstandard
regional dialect most completely and the latter moves away from regional
usage to a form of Engli sh that cuts across regional boundaries. An
outsider (who was not a skilled dialectologist) might not readily find a
New Englander who said see for U1, a Pcnnsylvanian who said seen, and
a Virginian who said .1wd. These.arc forms that tend to be rcpl actd by `U\
with schooling. and in speaking lo a stranger a diakct speaker would tend
to use ' school' forms. On the other hand, there is no simple equation of
regional and uneu1K'ali.:d English. Just as educaled English I O\ cuts
across regi onal boundaries, so do many features of uneducated use: a
prominent example is lhe double negative as in I don 'r iva11t no cke, which
has been outlawnl from all educated English by the prescriptive grammar
tradition for over two hundred years bul which continues to thrive as an
emphatic form in uneducated speech whereva English is spoken.
Educall:d English naturally tends to be given the additional prestige of
goverment agencies, the professions, the political parties, the press, the
law court, and the pulpit any institution which must attempt to address
itself to public beyond lhc smallest dialectal community. lt is codified in
dictionaries. grammars, and guides lo usage, nnd it is taught in the school
syste111 at all levcls. I l is almost exclusively the language of printed matter.
lk1ause educated English is thus accorded implicit social and political
sane I io11, it L\` to be rr.ferred to as STANDARD EN GUSH, and provided we
O The English language
remember that this dnLS not mean an Pnglish that has been formally
stand1rdi1.cd by olliLia! action, as weights and mcDsurcs arc stand<1rdi:1.cd,
the term is useful and appropriate. !11 contrast with standard English.
forms that arc especially associated with uneducated (rather than
dialectal) USC arc generally called NONSTANDARD.
Standard English
1.9 The degree of acceptance of a single standard of English throughout the
world, across a multiplicity of political and social systems, is a truly
remarkable phenomenon: the more so since the extent of the uniformity
involved has, if anything, increased in the present century. Uniformity is
greatest in orthography, which is rrom most vicwpninis the kat
important type of linguistic organi1ation. Although printing houses in a!I
English-speaking countries retain a tiny clement of individual decision
(cg: rcalize/rea/ise,j1u/gmrtfj11dgl'me11t), there is basically a single spelling
<ind punctuation system throughout: with two minor subsystems. The one
is the subsystcm with British orientation (used in most English-speaking
countries other than the United Slates), with distinctive frms in only a
small class of words, colour, centre, leielled, etc. The other is the American
subsystem, with culor, ce111er, lcve!ed, etc.
In grammar and vocabulary, standard English presents somewhat less
of a monolithic character, but even so the world-wide agreement is
cxtrordinary and- as has been suggested earlier - seems actually to be
increasing under the impact of closer world communication and the
spread of identical material and non material culture. The uniformity is
especially cloc in neutral or formal styles of written English on subject
matter not of obviously localized interest: in such circumstances one can
frcqucn tly go on for page after page without encountering a feature which
would identify the English as belonging to one of the national standards.
National standards of English
British and American English
1.l 0 What we are calling national standards should be seen as distinct from the
slandn rd English which: we have been discussing nd which we should
think or as being supranational, embracing what is common to all. Again,
s with orthography, there are two national standards that arc over
whelmingly predominant both in the number of distincti. vc usages and in
the degree to which these distinctions arc institutionalized: American
English (AmE) and British English (BrE). Grammatical diIercnccs arc
few a ml the most conspicuous arc known to many users of both national
standards: the fact thnt Ar E has t wo past participles for get and BrE only
one, for example, and that in BrE either a singular or a plural verb may be
used with a singular collective noun:
The govement avour o economic sanctions.
{IS } ,
f
. .
arc
Varielie D English 7
whereas in AmE a singular verb is required here.
Lexical difference arc fr more numcrous, but many of these arc
familiar to users of both standards. Recent innovations tend to spread
rapidly from one standard to the other. Thus while radio sets have had
valves in BrE but tubes in AmE, television sets have tub(s in both, and
1ra11sistrs and computer sof tware arc likewise used in both standards.
Mass communication neutralizes differences; the pop music culture, in
particular. uses a 'mid-Atlantic' dialect that levels differences even in
pronunciation.
The United States and Britain have been separate political entities for
two centuries; for generations, thousands of books have been appearing
annually; there is a long tradition of publishing descriptions of both AmE
and BrE. These arc important foctors in est;iblishing and institutionaliz
ing the two national standards, and in the relative absence or such
conditions other national standards arc both less distinct (being more
open to the infuence of either AmE or BrE) and less institutionalized.
One attitudinal phenomenon in the United States is of sociolinguistic
interest. In afrming the students' right to their own varieties of language,
many American educationalists have declared that Standard American
English is a myth, some asserting the independent status (for example) of
Black English. At the same time they have acknowledged the existence of a
written standard dialect, sometimes termed 'Edited American English'.
Other national standards
1.11 Scots, with ancient national and educational institutions, is perhaps
nearest to the self-confdent independence of BrE and ArnE, though the
differences in grammar and vocabulary are rather few. On the other hand,
the 'Lallans' Scots, which has some currency for literary purposes, has a
highly independent set of lexical, grammatical, phonological, and
orthographical conventions, all of which make it seem more like a
separate language than a regional dialect.
Hibero-English, or Irish English, may also be considered a national
standard, since it is explicitly regarded as independent of BrE by
educational and broadcasting services. The proximity to Britain and the
pervasive influence of Am E. and similar factors mean, however, that there
is little room for the assertion and development or a separate grammar
and vocabulary.
.
Canadian English is in a similar position in relation to AmE. Close
economic, social, and intellectual links along a 4,000-milc frontier have
naturally caused the larger community to have an enormous infuence on
the smaller, not least in language. Though in many respects Canadian
English follows British rather than United States practice and has a
modest area of independent lexical use, in many other respects it has
approximated to Am E, and in the a bscnce of strong institutionalizing
frces it would continue in this direction. However, counteracting this
tendency in language as in other malters is the tendency for Canadians to
resist the i nllucm:i: of their powerful neighbour i n their :sertion of an
independent national ident it
y
.
South Ai'rica, Australia, and New Zeal and arc in a very di fferent
position, remote from the direct day-to-day impact ofcith1 BrE or Am E.
While in orthography and grammar Lhe South Afri< .n English in
educated use is vi rtually identical with BrE, rather com foble di ffer
ences in vocabulary ha vc developed, largely under the i. fluence of the
other official language of the countr
y
, Afrikaans.
New Zealand Engl ibh is more like BrE than any other lOn-Euroriean
variety, though it hs adopted qui te a number of v Jrds fom the
i ndi genous Maoris and over the past half-century has :me under the
powerful i nOucnce of Au^tralia and to a considerable cxlc it oflhe United
States.
Australian English is undoubtedly the dominant form0fEnglish in the
Antipodes and by reason of Austl i as increased wealth, topulation, and
i nfuence in world afairs, this national standard (though s ill by no means
fully institutionalized) is exerti ng an influen1e i n the norlh'r hemisphere,
prticularly in Britain. Much of what i s distinctive in Aust alian English is
confined to familiar use. This is especially so of gramma: ical feat ures.
There are othi!r regional or national variants that app1 oximate to the
stat us of a standard. Beside t he widespread Creole in the Caribbean, for
example, i t is the view of many that the language of government and other
agencies observes an indigenous standard that can be referred to as
Cari bbean Engl ish J n addi tion, some bel ieve there are emergi ng
standards in countries where English is a second language, such as India.
and Nigeria.
Pronunciation and standard English
1.12 A II the variants of stndard English arc remarkble primarily in the ti ny
extent to which even the most firmly established, BrE and AmE, di ll'l:r
from each other i n vcHabulary, grammar, and orthography. Pronunci
ation. however. is a special case in that it dihtinguishes one nati onal
standard from another most immediately and completely and it links in a
most obvious way the national standards to the regional varieties. In BrE.
one type of pr0n unciation comes close I enjoying the status of standard :
it is the accent associated with the older schools and universities or
England. ' Received Prom{nciation' or 'RP'. I t is non regional and enjoys
prestige from th.: social importance or its speakers. Alt hough RP no
longer has the unique authority it had in lhe first hai r of the twentieth
century, it remains the >tundard fr teaLhi ng the Bri t ish variety of English
as a foreign language. as can be easily seen from dictionaries and
textbooks intended for countries that leach BrE.
Vorlelles according to field ol discourse
I . U Ti ll Ii, Id 1 1 fdi .1" n11 1se is i l w tvpe of ;1l'l i vi 1 y engaged in through l ang1 1agc.
/ sJ w. i klT ha; ;1 npc1 1 1 1in: n v;1ri eti es :tl"l'llrdi ng l\I lield and switd1,s to
Acceptability and lrequency 9
the appropriate one as occasion demands. Typically, the swi tch involves
nothing more than turning to the particular set of lexical items habitually
used fr handli ng the feld in question. law, cookery, .engineering,
footbal l . As with dialects, there are indefnitely many felds, depending on
how detailed we wish our analysis to be.
Va
r
ieties according to medium
1.14 The diferences between spoken and written English derive from two
sources. One is situational: since the use of a wri tten medium normally
presupposes the absence of the person(s) addressed, writers must be far
more explicit to ensure that they are ltnderstood. The second source of
difference is that many of the devices we use to transmit language by
speech (stress, rhythm, intonation, tempo, for example) are impossible to
represent with the relatively li mi ted repertoire of conventional orthogra
phy. Jn consequence, writers often have to reformulate their sentences to
convey fully and successfully what they want to express within the
orthographic system.
Varieties according to attitude
1. 15 Varieties ccording to attitude are often called 'stylistic', hut 'style' is a
term which is used with several different meanings. We are concerned here
with choice that depends on our attitude to the hearer (or reader), to the
topic, and lo the purpose of our communication. We recognize a gradient
in at titude between frmal (relatively stif, cold, polite, impersonal) and
informal (relatively relaxed, warm, casual, friendly). We also acknow
ledge tha I there is a neutral English' bearing no obvious attitudinal
colouring and it belongs to the common core of English (c/l .6). We shal l
for t he most part confine ourselves t o this three-term distinLtion, leaving
the neutral variety unmarked.
Acceptability and frequency
1 . 16 Our approach in this book is to focus on the common core that is shared
by swndard BrE and standard AmE. We leave unmarked any features
that the two standard varieties have i n common, marking as (BrE) or
(AmE) only the points at which they di ffer. But usually we find it
necessary to say (esp(Lcil l
y
) BrE) or (esp(eci ally) AmE), for it is rare for
a feature to be found exclusively in one variety= Simi larly, we do not mark
features that are neutral with respect to medium and attit ude We
disti nguish where necessary spoken and written language, generally using
'speaker' and hearer as u11n11 rkcd forms for the participanl s i n an m:t 1r
communication. hut dwing on the corhinations 'speaker/writer' and
'htarer/rcader' when we wish to emphasize that what is said appl ies aiross
.
NOTE
1\ The English language
t)1e media. We also frequently need to label feat ures according to variation
in attitude, drawing atlcnli on to those that are formal or informal.
The metaphor of the common core points to a distinction that applies to
two other aspects of our descripti on of English grammar. We di stinguish
between the central nnd the margi nal also for <cccptability and frequency.
Acceptabili ty is a concept that docs not apply exclusively to grammar.
Native spea kers may fnd a particular sentence unacceptable because (for
example) they consider it logically absud or bcca use they cannot find a
plausible context for i ts use or because it sounds clumsy or impoli te.
However, we are concered only with the acceptabili ty of forms or
constructions on the grounds of their morphology or syntax.
Jn general, our examples arc fully acceptable if they are left unmarked.
But we sometimes contrast acceptable and unacceplable examples,
marking the later by placi ng an asterisk ' *' before them. I f they are
tending to unacceptability but arc not rully unacceptable, we put a query
'?" before the asterisk. A query alone signi fies that native speakers are
unsure about the particular language feature. I f native speakers di ffer in
their reactions, `C put the asterisk or query in parentheses.
Assessments by native speakers of relative acceptabili ty largely
correlate with their assessments of relative frequency. We leave unmarked
those fatures of the language that occur frequently, drawing attention
just to those that occur extremely frequently or only rarely.
I n this book we ofer a descri ptive presentation of English grammar. We
make a direct connection between forms and their meani ng, conducting
excursions into lcxicolog.y, semantics, and pragmatics where these
impinge closely on our grammatical description.
The <iamond bracket convention applies to stylistic and other variants. Pho1ictic
symbols used in the book arc those of the I nternational Phonetic Alphabet (IPA);
prosodic symbols arc explained in 2. 1 3--15, and abbreviations in the Index.
Among other conventions: parent hcscs inuicatc optional items, curved hraccs free
alternatives, square brccs rnntingcnt alternatives (1g selection of the top
:lterativc in one pair requires selection of the top one in the other).
Bibliographical note
On varieties of English, sec Bailey and Gerlach ( 1 982): Biber ( 1 988); 1-lughcs and
Trudgill ( 1 979); Kachru ( 1 988); McDavid ( 1 963): Quirk (1988. 1989).
011 a.;ccp! <tbilily and language attitudes. sec Bolinger (1 980); Greenbaum
( 1 977, 198), 1988); Quirk and Stein ( 1 990).
2.l
.1 ' .
2 A general framework
The pl an of this book
Grammar is a complex system, the parts of which cannot be properly
explained in abstraction from the whole. In this sense. al l parts or a
grammar are mutually defining, and there is no simple linear path we can
take in expl aini ng one part in term of another. The method of
presentation adopted in thi s book will be to order the description of
Engl ish grammar so that features whi ch arc si mpler (i n the sense that their
explanation presupposes less) come before those which are more complex
(in the sense that their explanation presupposes more).
Our mode of progression will therefre be cyclic, rather than linear. ln
this first cycle we present a general framework, along with some major
concepts and categories that arc essential for the understanding of
grammar.
The second cycle, Chapters 3-1 1 , is concered with the basic
constituents which make up the simple sentence. Thus Chapters 3 and 4
present the grammar and semantics of the verb phrase, and Chapters 5
and 6 the hasic consti tuents oft he noun phrase, in particular determiners,
nouns. and pronouns. Chapter 7 deals with adjecti ves and adverbs,
Chapter 8 with adverbials, and Chapter 9 wi th prepositions and
preposi tional phrases. In the li ght of these detailed studies, Chapters I 0
and 1 1 then explore the simple sentence in all its structural variety.
The thi rd cycle treats matters which i nvolve still morL complexity of
syntactic structure. Chapters 1 2 and 1 3 move beyond the simple sentence,
dealing with substitution, el lipsis, and coordi nation. three operations
which may be carried out on simple sentences in order to produce
structures of greater complexity. Chapters 1 4 and 1 5 introduce a further
factor of complexity, the subordination of one clause to another, and we
proceed to a more general study of the complex semcnce. Chapter 1 6
follows u p Chapters 3 and 4 in giving further attention to the verh phrase,
with speci al reference to verb classification, together with issues relating to
phrasal and preposi tional verbs, and to verb and adjective complemen
tation. Similarly, Chapter 1 7 resumes the topic of Chapters 5 and 6,
exploring the full complexit y of the noun phrase in terms of structures
separately examined in earlier chapters. Chapter 1 8 also involves a
knowledge of the whole grammar as described in preceding chapters, but
this time with a view to showing the various ways in which individual parts
of sentence can be arranged for focus, emphasis, and the effective
pn.scnlation of i nformati on. Fi nal ly, Chapter I 9 consider> the ways i n
. .
.
.
..
which semcnce grammar relates to the formation of texts, including those
comprising extended di scourse in speech or wri ting.
NOTE At rhe ed of each chaptcr, thc,e is a bibli.ographical note giving guidance on
Curther reading, specially recent monogrphs and articles. We asume that the
reader will have access to the major grammarians of the past whose works are not
mentioned in these notes though they arc of course listed in the general
Bibliogr:ip:1y at the end of the book. These include the compendious works of
Jespcrscn. Kruisinga and others, as well as bibliographies by Scheurweghs and
Vorlat. To the work of such scholars all subsequent studies are heavily indebted,
not least our own Comprehensi1e Grmmcw of 1985 to which the present book is
directly related.
2.2
Sentences and clauses
Let us bc_sin by l ooking at some examples of srtences, those l anguage
units which we mList regard as primary, in comprising a minimum sense of
completeness and unity:
She's scll illg her car.
He ounded a bit doubtful.
You should always clean your teeth after meals.
[ l ]
[2]
[3]
Of course, these cannot mean much to us unless we know who 'she' is in [ I ]
and who 'he' i s i n [2); we would also want t o know i n [2] whUt he seemed
doubtful about. For the place of such sentences in a wider textual context,
we must wai t till Chapter 19, but the scnsc of grammatical completeness in
[l), [2], and [3] is none the less valid.
There are several ways of looki ng at the consti tuents of a sentence in
establishing what needs to be present to make a stretch or language a
sentence. The constituents most widely familiar arc the s11hject and the
predicate. If we heard someone say
went off without paying [4]
we would at once wish to ask Who (went of without paying)'' In [4) we
have a posible prediLate but no subject. But equally if we heard someone
say
that el derly man [S]
we would want to ask ' Wha1 ahoui that elderly man?' sensing th;1l we had
in [5] a possi ble subject but no predicate. By contrast with [4] and [5), we
have a complete sentence in [6]:
That elderly man went o!wi thout paying. (6]
Let us now compare the subjcct of[ J ), (2). [J]. and [61 (She. fie, You, 71J<lf
elderly 11;a11) with the predicates. The latter ar. not merely longer hut
nthcr obviously more heterogeneous:

's sel l ing her cur

soundt.J a bit doubtful
should always ckan your teeth after meals
went off without pOyi ng
As well as seei ng that a sentence comprises a subject and a predical,
therefore, we need to look at the constituents or the predicate itself.
Elements
2.3 One of the indications that the subjeLt is a dearly identifiable constituent
or a cntencc is, as we have seen. a speci fic question:
Who wcnr off without paying?
Thur elrll'rly 11w11 (went of without paying).
[ I ]
f 1 a]
Parts or the pr..:dicatc can simi larly be identified with questions. For
example, tle uh.ee!:
Whcu is she selling?
(She's selling) !ter H.
So too, some wfchia/s:
W!en should you always clean your teeth'
(You should always dean your teeth) ajie 111m/s.
[2]
[2aJ
[3]
f3a
]
Subjet:ts. objet:ts. and advcrbials will be referred to as de111e111s orscntcncl
structure. Other elements that we shall distinguish include the cu111plc111t'111
as in '(He sounded) a br do11h(/iil' Ond of course Lhc w1rh us in ' ( He)
sounded (u bi t doubtful)' , '(Shc)'s st!lli11g (her car)', '(You) should ( al ways)
clean (your teeth after meals)'.
As wi shall sec, especial ly in Chapter H, sentences difer widely as ll'
wliiclt elements and /mr 111a11y dements they indude. This is rcla1.c
primarily to the type lr,orb ckmcnt. If t he V is i111r1111.1i1fr,-. 1 herc ncc<l bc
no l>thcr elements beside S and V:
My wntch [S] has disappeared. [ VJ [
4J
II' ti l e Y is tr1111si1fre, on the other hand. i t is accorpaniLd by an oh.reel:
Someone [S] must have taken [ V] 11 1.r nr111'ft. [O]
A policeman [S] wi tnessed [ VJ rhe ncciile11r. [OJ
[5]
[6J
Transitive verbs can be tured into the pHssive voice (125), with the n:s11lt
ihat corrcsponding to 1 6) there is a sentence or lhe same m<:aning [<>'] in
which the. 0 ol' (6] becomes the S:
T/1: e1ccidc111 was wirncsscd by a policeman.
WI
2.4
14 A general framework
For the present. we need menti on onl y one other type of' V, the copular
verbs, which requi re a complement:
He [S] sounded [ VJ a hil doub(/iil. [CJ [7)
One of my sisters [S] has become [ VJ a cnmp111cr expert. [CJ
[8]
Adverbial elements may be added i rrespective of the verb type:
My watch has disappeared from this desk. [A] [4a)
Someone must apparently [A] have taken my watchji-0111 this
desk. (A] [5a)
By chancc [A] a pol iceman witnessed the accident. [6aJ
He sounded a bit doubtful that night. [A] [7a)
To everyone's dc/Jhl [A] one of my si sters has quite rapidly (A]
become a computer expert. [Sa]
But with some verbs, adverbials are obl igatory; for example:
Did you put the watch i11 this drawer? [9]
The sentence elements i l l ustrated in 2. 3 draw attention to a major issue i n
t he study of grammar: t he distinction between function and form. The
same fonhal unit my 11r11ch has one !'unction in [4] and quite another in [5].
Equally, the same functi on can obviously be performed by uni ts that arc
very diferent i n form. Thus as V we have witnessed in (6], sounded i n [7],
ha.I' rfiS(f/lfll'(ll'((/ ill (4], :llld Ill!/.\'/ have l<!kl'll i n (5). [)ut ;\( leait these al l
involve verbs (2. J O) and we capture what they thus have formally i n
common by refrring t o them as w:rb phrases whether they comprise one
word such as so1111ded or several words, as in 1111s1 haie taken.
The realizations of S arc stil l more vari ous: he in [7], someone in [5] , 111_1
1i(c/1 in [4], and MC of my sisters i n [8]. But al l these i nvolve either
rrono11ns or nouns (2.6) and to capture their formal properties we refer to
them as noun phrses, whether they comprise one word U> wi th /( or
several words such as one of111y sisters. The function 0 is ;1gain fulfilled by
noun phrases. my watch i n (5], the accident in [6].
On the other hand, C is realized by a noun phrase in [8), O computer
expNt, but by a di ferent frmal structure i n [7], a hit doub(ful. Forms l i ke
thi s (11 hit c/011htjii/, q11ile happy, more successful) \C slrnll call {((iec1ive
phrases, since they arc either adjectives (2.6} or expansions of adjectives.
Mot various of Ull in i ts formal realizations is the functi on A. We have
a noun phrase that night in [7a]; adverb plrasCs, i. adverbs (2.6) or
expansions or adverbs, appare11 1/y i n [5a) and quite rapidly i n [8a]; and we
also have A realized by preposi1io11al phrses, that is, a structure
comprising a preposi tion (2.6) and a noun phrase:.from this deskin [4a]. hy
cha11ce in [Ga], and to el'eryone's dciighl in [8a].
Clauseis
2.5 Let us now consider a somewhat longer sentence than lhosc examined in
nr:
2.6
Worcs and word classes i !
My si ster [S) is [ VJ normally [A] + Lli t,crful person. [CJ but she
[S] seemed [ VJ r<1thcr unhappy [C t hat da). [1\] [ l ]
Hc:e we have two units each "'ith the interal tructure that we have been
attri buti ng lo cntcnccs. We call these uni t s clauses and we can now sec
that the elements discussed in 2.3[ should be considered .as constituents of
clauses rather than of sentences. In nlhl:r words, a sentence cor pri ses one
or more clauses, each of which in tur comprises elements.
In [ l ] the two clauses are as it were on an tqual footing and are said to be
coorci11<11cd lo f orh1 the sentence. But a clause may equal ly be subordina1ed
withi n another clause as one of its clement: clearly, the no\111 phrase as A
in [2] performs the same !'unction as the cl nusc <is A in [2a]
She seemed rather unhappy tlwr day.
She seemed rather unhappy 1r/cn I H. ll'ith her.
[2]
[2a]
We must therefore revise our list of formal realizations of elements as
given in 2. 3 si nce the function A can be performed by clauses as in [2a], and
the functions of 0 and S can al so be performed by clauses as we sec by
comparing [3) and [3a], (4] and [4a] respectively:
I suddenly remembered somell1ing.
I suddenly rcmem bcrcd t!tc' I fwd w1 appoi111111e111.
Yor1rfai/11re i s most regrettable.
Thul yo11.fi"1ilnl rhc c'.\'lllll is most regrettable.
(3
]
[3a]
[4
]
(4a)
!Jut as well oconstituting whole elements as i n [24 [3a] and [4a], clauses
may constit utc only a par! of an \lement, especially as relti ve clauses i n
noun-phrase structure ( 17 - f.{. Compare the noun phrases functioning as
0 in [5] and [5a]:
The police questi oned eiery focal ,.,,,1idew.
The pol ice question.d l'l'<'I')' person 11'/io lil'C'd in 1l1C
11ei1:hho11rl10od.
In [5a], the noun phrase as 0 i ncludes the postmodifying cl ause.
who [S) l ived [VJ in the neighbourhood [A]
Words and word classes
[5]
[5a]
Every const ituent of a sentence ul timntel y conists of words. We have
al ready (for example i n .4) refrred to these units in terms of the
traditional 'parts of speech' and it is ti me now to look <Jl a cl:1sific:1tion of
words in some detai l .
It is useful to consider words as falling in to two broad categories. do.\i'tl
an<:I OfCll. The frmer comprises, as the term ugges'.s. classes t h;1 t t!.
fi nite (an<l often smll) with a membershi p that is relatively stabk and
16 A general framework
. nrichanging in the language: words li ke this, in, shall. These words play a
TH\jor par i n English grammar, often corresponding to inflctions in
some other languages, and they are sometimes referred to as 'grammatical
words, 'L.nction words', or 'structure words.
By contrst, t_he open classes of words are constantly changing their
membershi p as old words dop out of the language and new ones are
coined or adopted to refect cultural changes in society. These are words
liki forest, computer, decorative, and signify; their numbers are vast and
aTe the subject matter or dictionaries. Appropriately, they are often called
'lexical words'.
Closed classes:
pro1101111, such as she, they, anybody
determiner, such as the, a, that, some
primary verb, such as be
modal 1erb, such as can, might
/H'e/1usi1io11, such as i11, during, rowul
conju11c1io11, such as and, or, while, ye/
Open classes:
1101111, such as hospital, play, orches1ra, Millicent
adjellive, such as sufcie11t, happy, changeable, round
full verbs, such as grow, befriend, interrogate, play
adverb, such as sufciently, really, aftewards yet
NOTE [aj Other catego!i Ls or words include 111m1erafs, such as hftl, scvc11tysix; and
illf<1jc1ions, such as oh, aha.
[b] Even from the few examples given, we UC that a word may belong to more than
one class. Thus round is given as both a preposition (as in Drive round rhe Ltf)
and an adjective (as in She has a ro11ndj{1cc\; V\ could have gone further and listed
it as, fr example, a foll verb: The LUlrounded 1/1e bend. Moreover, relations across
classes can be ccn in the verb bcfri(11d (cf the noun friend), the adjective
c/w11gc:oble (cl the verb cwnge), and :ibove all in adverbs i n -ly which arc
systcmatk:dly rcl:tkd \O adjccl1vcs: sl!i,ic11t .rfficimtl)'.
2.7 We assign words to their various classes on grammatical grounds: that is,
acrnrding to their properties in entering phrasal and clausal structure. For
example. determinas (5)0.J link up with nouns to form noun phrscs as
in Qsoldier; pronouns can replace noun phrases as in ' 1 saw 11 soldier and I
asked him the time'. l3ut this is not to deny the general validity of
trditional defnitions based on meaning. 'naming things' is indeed a
semantic properly of nouns and many verbs arc indeed concerned with
doing things'.
In fact it is neither possible nor desirable to separate grammat.ical fom
semant ic fd ors, whdher we arc considering the staLus of a word c\r the
structure of a whole st:ntencc. Let us examine the following examples,
The tiger lives in China, India, and Malaysia.
These tigers arc living in a very cramped cage
A hcpcr is coming to feed the tiger.
[ I ]
[2]
[3]
Stalive and dynamic 1 1
Jn [ I ] , the tiger can hardly rclerto any part i Lul ar Liger; the phrase isg111tri|
and illustrates a particular use of' t he determiner 1/11 with a singular noun;
the rlural noun phrase the tiger. coulJ nol be generic. 13y contrast, J/n'.\'I'
liger.I' i n [2] and the tiga in [3] must rel'cr to particular 1igers and the noun
phrase is specfic. But as well as introducing lbc important distinction
between generic and specifc. [ I ] and [2) illustrate a rdated distinction thUt
recurs in the study of grammur. The sin
'
gular form tiger is unmarked as
compared with !he plural form tigers which is marked for plural by the
inflectional cnding -s. But in being literally ' unm;1rked' inflecti
'
onally, the
singular in [ I ] is correspondingly 'unmarked' semantically: it 1
:
cfers to al l
tigers at all times and embraces both male tigers and female tigresses
(1igrl's.1 being thus a 'nwrkcd' frm).


Moreover the distinction between generic and specific, unmarked and
marked, extends beyond the noun phrase as S. The use in ( I ] of the
unmarked present tense lfrts as V (embracing re fore nee lo future and past
as wel l ;1s l l uL l i tl'ral present ) appropriakly matches lhc generi c S. Fqually
the specific n:ll:rcncc of the S in [2] is m:Hchcd by the verb phrase are living
as V, the progressive aspect (4.7j/') marki ng the verb in respect of
something specifically in progress at the present time.
Stative and dynamic
2.8 A further and related contrast is illustrated hy (I] and (2J in 2.7; this i s the
distinction between s1t11il'e and 1ro111i1. Most verbs i1 1 most rontexts
relate to action, activi ty, and to temporary or changeable cundilions:
The car .1/ruck a lampp\1st as I 11'1/.l' parking i t.
Whal aria did she sing l asL night'>
Verbs whose meani ng denotts lack ol' motion can be equally dynamic i11
their gramn1ar:
I 1111.1 qui etl y resting af'ttr a busy d:iy.
. Are you silfing comfortabl y!
But i L is not uncommon to l ind verbs which may be used either
dy11:1 mica l l y or stati vcly. I f L' say tlw t hJLspcci fit: t igcrs are lil'i11:; i 1 1 .
crrpccl cage, we imply that this is ( or ought to he) U temporary conditi on
and the verb phrase is dynamic in its use. On the other hand, wh.:n we say
that the species of animal known as the lig<r lfres or isjinuul in China, the
generic statement entails that this is not a temporary ci rcumstance and the
verb phrase is stative.
St at ivi: use is not, however, confined lo gcm:ric sl.atemcnls:
Mrs host klll'H' O grc;11 d\al ;1hllll l crnomics.
Did yl>U /tear the thunder last night'!
(Note that it is actually ungrammatical Lo say ' Mrs Frost 1 111.1 k1111wi11g .I
great deal . . . ' . ) Nor is the category stative confined to a minority of verb
usages. In contrast to verbs (which are normally dynamic), most nou1b
2.9
18 A general framework
and adjectives are stative in that they denote phenomena or qualities that
arc regarded fr linguistic purposes as stable and indeed for al l practical
purposes permanent:
. fan r11gineer.
Jack IS
l
I/ 11ery ta .
(We may note that it would be very odd indeed to add here an adverbial
like this afteroon wbich would suggest that Jack's profession or height
applied only to 1he moment of speaking.) On the other hand, just as some
verbs such as live can be used statively as well as dynamically, so also can
some nouns and adjectives be used dynamically Uo well as statively:
My little boy seems to like being nuisance when we have friends to
supper.
Do you really like my poem or arc you just being kind?
Pro-forms and ellipsis
One fundamental feature of grammar i s providing the means of refrring
back to an expression wi thout repeating it. This is achieved by means of
proforms:
Their beautiul nell' car was badly damaged when it was struck
by a falling tree.
[ 1)
Jack was born i n a British industrial toll'n and Gillian grew up
in an American one. [2]
My parents live in the north ofthe country and my husband's
people live there too. 1]
I raised the proposal i11 the early months of1988, but no one
was then particularly interested. (4)
She hoped they would play a Mozart quartet and they
will do so. (5)
In l ] we have the pronoun it referring back to the whole noun phrase their
heautiful 11ew car. In .}, the pronoun one refers back to the head part
ill1ustrial 10w11 of the noun phrase a British (industrial t1111 ). In (3) there is
M pro-frm for the adverbial or place in the north ofthe country, while then
in (4) refrs comparably to the time adverbial in the early 1110111/s of1988.
J [5], the pro-form do so refers to a unit not so far discussed, the
predication (2. 1 0), and thus corresponds to the whole of play a Mozart
quartet.
In some constructions, repetition can be avoided by ellipsis ( l 2. 1 4).
Thus instead of [5], we might have:
She hoped they would play a Mozart quartet and they will.
A+|a .:s..ad o|. we might have ellipsis of the V and an A in the sccon
'
d
part:
NOTE
2.10
Operator and predlcalion 19
My parents lh'e in the north ofthe country and my husband's people
too.
Note also the cll iptecl V in
Her daughter is studying physics and her son history.
Some pro-forms can n.:fr forward to what has not been slated rather
than, as in | ]-:], back to what has been stated. There are, for example,
the wh-items, as in
f1/wt was badly damged? (Their beautij/,/ 11e11 car) [ l a)
Jack was bon in a British what? (J11dustrial ro1r) [2a)
Where do your parents live? (Jn tire north ofthe cow11ry) [Ja)
When did you raise the proposal? (111 the early months of
1988) (4a]
What did she hope they would do? (Play a Mozart quartet) [5a]
CJalso ' Which is their car?' (That beautifuf nell one).
But 11'/i-items have further role in subordinate clauses (14. l) when their reference
may-be backw<1rcl Ub in [6) or forward as in [7]:
I met her in 1985, when she was still a student.
Please tell 111c what is worrying you.
Operator and predication
[6]
[7]
Tn 2. 2}; we looked at the traditional division ofa sentence into subject and
predicate, noting the heterogeneous character of the latter. Bearing in
mind what was said in 2.3 about sentence constituents being identifed by
specifc questions, it should be noted that no question elicits the predicate
as such. If, however, we secJhc English sentence as comprising a s11/)ject,
an operator. and a predication, we have in this last constituent that can
indeed be eliLi ted bya quest ion. C/[5a] in 2.9. But the analysis of predicate
as operator plus predication has a much widerre1evancc than this.'
We shall consider the operator in more detail i n 3 . 1 1 , but for the present
\e may define it as the first or only auxiliary in the verb phrase realizing
the sentence clement V. Note frst of all the way in which the operator
permits the coordination ( 1 3 . 1 7) of two predications:
You should telepho11e your mother and find out ifshe's reco11ered
ji-0111 her cold.
He is either cleaning the car or ll'Orking in the garden.
Secondly, instead of representing a predication by the do so pro-form (as
in 2.9, [5]), an operator can be used alone, with total ellipsis of the
predication that i s Lo be understood:
{and ll'''Y ll'ill
She hoped that thcv would plav a Mozart quarrer
b ' . 1 W
'
-
Ul t 1ey 11'011 I.
20 1- general iruncwor
The second varianl in this example draws attention to a further
<haracteri,1h; or the operator: il L\1 be followed by the infrmal
contracti on /1 ' 1 (as well . by the full J'orm oo,
The posi1 ion immcdiatdy afler the opera I or is in fact crucial in formi ng
a negation or a quetion.
(a) Negation is expressed by i nserti ng 1101 (i nfrmal l y 11'1) artcr the
operator:
They slwuld ha \'e bnugh t a new house.
They should 1101 have bought a new house.
(b) goes|oos are formed by pl acing the subject of the sentence after the
opera Lor:
They should have bought a new house.
Should |, have bought a new house?
Where the V element in a positive declarative sentence has no operator, a
form of do is i ntroduced as operator in the negative or interrogative
version:
They houghr a new house.
They did11't buy a new house.
Did they h11y a new house'
Where the V el ement is realized by a frm of be, this functions as itself an
operator:
The sea is very rough.
The sea is not very rough.
ls the sea very rough?
'OTE The vt:rb hme can function like he, especially i n BrE:
2.1 1
She has the time to spare.
She liasn the time to spare.
Jlas she the time to spare?
Ilut sec Jrthcr 3 . 1 4 Notes [a] and [b].
Assertive and nonassertive
Irwe consi<l;r the following example. we see that more can be involved
than what occupies tht: position after t he operator, when we move from a
positive statement as in ( ! ] and [3] to negation or question:
She has finished her thesis al ready.
She ha11 't finished her thesis yer.
The priest g<ive some money lo some of the beggrs.
Did 1/ie prie.1 give any money to a11y of the beggars?
[ I )
[2)
[31
.^l
! '1 ,2} )c| corresponds to the occurrence of alrlady in [ I } , and in (4], (Ill_
twic1 ;orresronds to the use of `|L in [3]. We express the.e di fferences by
NOTE
The primacy of speech 21
saying that the predicati on i n positive statements is 'assertive terri tory
and that the predication in negative sentences and in questions is
' nonassertivc territory. While most words can be used equally in assertive
and nonassertive predications, some determiners, pronouns, and adverbs
have specifically assertive or nonassertive use. See further, 10.37.
(a] As well as assertive and nonasscrtivc frms, there are also some negative forms.
Compare
I saw somebod.v.
I didn't see anybody.
I saw nobody.
[assertive pronoun]
[nonassertive pronoun]
{negative pronoun]
(b) Nonasscrlivc territory is nol confined to negation and qu\:stion prcdicalions, as
we shall sec in 1 0.37 Nole [b]; for example
If you ever want a11y11ti11g, please ask.
She is more intelligent than a11yo11e I know.
The primacy of speech
2. 12 Al l the material in thi s book i s necessarily expressed in the silence of the
printed word. But in ! | we referred to discourse in speech or writing',
and at no point must we forget that languge is normOlly spoken and
heard. Even what we write and read needs to be accompanied by an
i magined realization in terms of pronunciation and s
'
uch prosodic features
as stress and intonation. The fmil iar graphic devices of spaces between
words and punctuation marks such as comma, colon, semi-colon, and
period help us to recover from writing how sentences would sound if
spoken, bu 1 thc correspondence between punctuation and prosody is only
parti al . From time to time, shal l need in this book to express examples
with. the hel p of a 'prosodic transcription', and we now expl ain the
transcription system anti the phenomena it represents.
Stress, rhythm and intonation
Stress
2.13 The relative promi nence ofa syllabic wi thin a word, or ofa word wi thin a
phrase, is indicated by relative stress. In transcription, we mark the
stressed segment by putting i n front of it a short raised vertical stroke:
i n' dignant
i n the 'middle
An exceptionally heavy stress can be shown hy a doubl e vertical, and O
lower level of stress (secondary stress') can be marked by a l owrcd
vertical stroke. For ex;unpk:
22 A general framework
It's ,abso'lutcly in"crediblc.
The ability to indicate stress is particularly valuable where i t is unusual, as
for example in a contrast:
Well, 'you may think she's 'happy, but in 'fct she's ' very "unhappy.
Pronouns arc normally unstressed and the speaker here emphasizes ym1 to
indicate the addressee's isolation in so thinking; l i kewise, although
prefxes like 1111- are normally unstressed, here it is emphasized i n contrast
with the previous mention of happy.
Rhythm
2. 14 English connected speech is characterized by stressed syllables inter
spersed by unstressed ones such that, when the speaker is unaffected by
hesitation on the one hand or excitement on the other, the stressed
syllables occur at fairly regulUr intervals of time. Absolute regularity of
rhythm is avo.ided for the most part, as oppressively mechanical, but is
often used in children's verse:
'Hickory 'dickory 'dock
The 'mouse ran 'up the 'clock.
I t is also heard when a speaker is speaking severely or stating a rule:
You should 'always 'clean your ' teeth 'after ' meals.
lut absolute regularity is quite normal as an aid to keeping track of
numbers when we arc counting things:
'one 'two ' three ' four . . . 'scven,teen 'eigh,teen ' ni ne.teen ' twenty
, twcnty-'onc , twenty-'two . . .
NOTE When not part of a counting series, -1ee11 numbers have the main stress on lhis
ctcmcnl: Sin i.1 11i11e'tet11.
Intonation
2.15 Like stress, intonation is a mode of indicating relative prominence, but
with intonation the variable is pitch. the aspect of sound which we perceive
in terms or 'high' and 'low'. li1tonalion is normally realized in tone units
comprising a sequence of stressed and unstressed syllables, with at least
one of the stressed syllables made prominent by pitch. We call such a
syllabic the nucleus of the tone unit and we mark it by printing it in small
capitals. The first prominent syllable in a tone unit is called the onset and
where necessary it is marked with a slender long vertical and the end of the
lone unit can be indicated with a thicker vertical:
sbcs j selling her CAR [
l'it1.h promi nence at (be: nucleus is usually associated with pitch change
and the direction of this can be indicated by the use of accents. The
commonest form of pitch change is a fall. as in:
Conclusion 23
She's J sel ling her ci[
But i f the speaker were using these words not to make a statement but to
ask a question, the next commonest pitch change would be
.
used, a rise:
She's j selling her c [
Other nuclear tones to be especial l y noted are the fal-rise and the
fall-plus-rise:
He J sounded a bit rtt+.![
It's Jnlis type that I LiKE
Conclusion
2.16 The material presented in this chapter constitutes a modest but essential
fundation for studying English grammar as a whole. We have introduced
features and concepts which cut across the individual topics that will now
occupy our atention, chapter by chapter. Thus we have i l l ustrated a
system by which intonation and other prosodic fatures of speech can be
related to grammar; w
e
have outlined major conLepts such as the
distinctions between generic and specifc, stative and dynamic. assertive
and nonassertive.
But we have also provided a framework of sentence analysis, within
which the detailed material of individual chapters may be ftted, much as
these must i n turn modify and clarify this framework. Thus we have
examined the 'parts of speech'; the sentence elements such as object and
complement; the segmentation of sentences into subject, operator, and
predication; and some of the chief grammatical processes such as those
relating positive to negative. statement to question.
Bl bl fographlcal note
For a fuller treatment of the material here and elsewhere ih this book, sec Quirk et
al. ( 1 985); cf also Attal ( 1987).
On the theory of English grammar, see Huddleston (1 984); Langackcr (1987);
Radford ( 1 988).
On intonation and related features of speech, see Bolinger (1972b); Crystal
(1969).
On syntactic and semantic relations, see Li (1 976); Lyons (! 977); Matthews
(1981).
3.1
3 Verbs and aU>c il iaries
Major verb classes
The term VERB is used i n two senses:
I The verb is one of the elements in clausL structure, like the subject and
the object.
~~~+.. . ,, ..
2 A verb is 4 bcr .2U-or!c!lss, li ke a noun and an adjective.
The two senses are rel ated in this way: A VERB PHRASE consists of one or
more verbs (sCnse 2), eg linked, is making, co11 helie1e, might be leaving in
the sentences below; the verb phras operates as the verb (sense l) in the
clause, eg:
They linked hands.
r C1J believe you.
He is making a noise.
She might he leaving soon.
As a word class, verbs can be divided into three major categories,
according to their function within the verb phrase: the open class of FULL
vrn11s (or lexical vCrbs, 17[) and the very small closed classes of PRIMARY
VERBS ,. !3) and MODAL AUXILIARY VERBS (1. l 6[} Since the primary
verbs and the modal auxiliary verbs arc closed classes, we rnn list them in
fll.
FULL VERBS
PfUMAR Y VER US
MODAL AUXILIARIES
belie1e,follow. like, see, . . .
be, have, do
can, may. shall. will. mo.,
co11/d, might, sho11/d, l\'Ould
Inhere is only one verb in the verb phrase, it i s the MAIN vrnn. If there is
more than one verb, thJ m!L9. j_th mai i
.
yLrb, and the one or more
verbs that come before it are auxiliaries. For example, lemi11g is the main
verb in this sentence. and mii and be +IL aui l iarie^.
She might he leaving soon.
Of t he three classes of verbs, the ful l verbs can act onl y as main verbs, :he
modal auxi l i ari es can act onl y as uxi l iary wrbs, anu thL primary verbs
can act either as mai n verbs or as auxiliary verbs.

NOTE [a] Some verbs have a status i1\tcrmc<liatc betwen that of main verbs and that ,of
auxi liary verbs, cf 3. 1 8.
(b] Notice that i n Did 11,,_ beliel'! you? the verh phrase Did . . . lwlic1'<' is
discontinuous. The verb phrase is similarly discontinuous in s.ntcnccs such U'
Thry do 1101 btie1e ml and f Cn perhaps help y1111.
Full verb, 2!
[c] Sometimes the main verb(and perhaps other words too) is understood from the
context, so that only auxi liaries arc present in the verb phse:
l can't tell them, but you LM.fie 'can tell them]
Your parents may not have suspected anything, but your sister may /(I. [ie
'may have suspected something']
[d) There are also multi-word verbs, which consist of verb and one or more other
words, eg: lUI 011, look at, plll up with, take place, 1ake adlmtage of CJ 1 6.2. .
Full verbs
Verb forms
3.2 1 eguiarfuli).verbsj eg: CALL, have four morphological forms: ( l ) base
frm, (2) -s form, (3) -ing partiLiplL, (4) -tdform) s !:egulr full verhs:vary
in this respect; for example, the verb SPEAK has fve forms, whereas CUT has -
o
l
y
three. since most verbs have the -edinfection for both the simple past
(They called) and the past participle or passive participle (They have
called; They were called); we extend the trm '-ed form' to covc,r thes two
sets of functions fr all verbs.
i
. Jn some irregular verbs, eg: SPEAK, there are two -ed forms with distinct
sy
ntacllcf;
tions: the past -ed form and the -ed partici ple. In other
irregular verbs, eg; CUT, and i n all regl!!!:. "r.bs, eg; CALL, the two -ed
;ynt.{tic forms arc identical.
They .1pUke to me.
She cut herself.
I called hi m.
They have spoken to me.
She has ml hersel f
I hve called him.
NOTE [a] Regular verbs arc called such bcausc if we know their base form (ie the
dictionary entry form) we can predict their three other forms (-s, -ing, and ed) by
rule. The vast majority of English verbs are regular, and new words that are coined
or borrowed from other lang11agcs adopt the regular pattern.
3.3
[b) The primary verb U (c J. 1 3) has eight frrns.
The functions of verb frms
The vLrb forms have di fferent functions in fni te and nonfinile verb
phrases (cf 3. 1 9/). The_ fOr a:d the past . oin _ _lre always FINIT,
.
whereas the :o participle and the -ed participle are .alwas NONlINITE.
1| H`L frm (the form which has no inflection} is sometime finite, and
sometimes nonfnitL (see below). In a fni te verb phrase (the kind of verb
phrase which normally occurs ir) simple sentences), only the fst verb
word (in bold face below) is fnite: _ l
She cals him every day. She lws cal!cd twice today,
3.4
26 Verbs and auxiliades
and the subsequent verbs, if any, arc nonfinite. i n a \1finite verb phr;1sc.
on the other hand, all verbs arc non finite; eg:
Calli11K early. she found him at home.
Called earl y, he ate a quick break fast.
Hoving been called early. he flt sleepy all day.
Here are the verb forms with their syntactic funct i ons
The BASE FORM (call) is a FlNITJ' verb i n:
(i ) the present tense i n al l persons mid numbers except 3rd person
singular (which has the -.1 form): l/)'011/1re/they call regularly.
(ii) the imperative: Call at once!
(iii) the present s11 hj unLti vc: They demanded tlw1 .ihe call a11d.1ee 1/ie111.
It is a NONFJNJTJ' verb i n:
.
(i) the bare i nf ini tive: /fr may call 1011igh1.
(ii) the to-infinitive: 1-Vl ll'<mi her lo call.
2 The -s FORM (r/s) is a ` verb in the 3rd person si ngular present
tense: He/She caf/s crery day.
1 1ne -/N( PARTICIPLE (rlling) is a NONFlNITE verb i n:
(i ) the progressive aspect following . He's caling her no11'.
(i i ) -in! part iciple clauses: Caling early, l found her m lto111e.
4 The PAST FORM (called) is a FINITE verb in the past tense: Someonr caled
yesterday.
5 The -r:o PARTICIPLE (caf{ed) is a NONFINJTE verb i n:
( i ) the perfect aspect. fol lowing HAVE: lie has called Mice roday.
(i i ) the passi ve voie fol l owi ng BE: Iler hmthf i.> rlled John.
(i i i) -ed partici ple clauses: Called carfy. he ate a quick hreakf'ast.
The -Ing and forms of all verbs
The -i11 and -s frms <ire almost i nvari ably predictable from the base of
both regular and irregular verbs. The -i11g inflection is merely added to 1he
base (hut c/3.6):
ualk -iafking push pushing
The "` i nlkction has three pronunciations:
I /r1. after bases ending in voiced L voiceless sibilants, eg:
pass-passes
Im:; -hu:zes
catch -ca1d1es
budge-budges
push -pushes
camm!flaKl' -camoi!flages
In t hesL cases, the o frm always ends in -es.
fzf ai'Lcr bases ending i n other voiced soutls, eg:
('Ill/ ('({/. .flee -Jees try -rrie.1.
3 /s/ after bases ending i n other voiceless sounds, cg:
ml -cuts hophops lock -tocks
NOTE
3.5
3.6
NOTE
Full verbs 27
The spell i ng rules for thc -ing and -.1 frms are detailed i n 3. 6jf. The rules
for the ` forms are the same as fr lhc regular plural of nouns (c/ 5. 36).
[a] Noliec the i rregulUr -s forms of say f sci/-says /sez/, //ave-has, do /du:/ does
/ dAz /and derivatives of \, eg: outdo/ -du:/-outdoes/ -dt z/. The -s form of BE is
hi ghly irregular: is.
[b) Syll;1bic /1/ ceases to be syllabic before the -ing infection, e:
11Tig1le wri,g/ing.
The -ed forms of regular verbs
The -ed forms of regulr verbs have thre pronunciations:
(a) /1d/ after bases ending i n /d/ and /t/, eg:
pad-padded /-did/ pat-patted f-td[
(b) fcf after bases ending in voiced sounds other than /d/, i ncl udi ng
vowels, eg:
buzz buzzed /-zd/
cal-caled /-ld/
budge-burged /-d:d/
tow-IOll'ed /-'od/
(c) /t/ after bases ending in voiceless sounds other than /t/, eg:
pass-passed /-st/ pack-packed /-kl/
The spelling of regular verb inflections
Doubl ing of consonant befrL -irig and -ed
A single eonsonan t letter at the end of the base is doubled before -ing and
-cd when the precedi ng vowel i s stressed and spelled wi th a single letter:
bar 'barring-barred oc (-ur ,., L '11rri11g -oc birred
There is normally no doubli ng when t be precedi ng vowel is unstressed
( 'en1er-' e111ering-' e111ered, ' 1isi1 - ' visi1ing-' 1isited) or i s wri tten wi th
two letters (dread-drl'ading-dreaded).
For some exceptions, see the Notes below.
(a) BrE breaks the rule by doubling after unstressed syllables ending in -/, -111, and
-p; doubling -is less usual in Am E.
.



-----
trarcl - LJ'{l'ef/i11g, trm-elicd (BrE and /\mE)
- trareling, trarcfed (AmE only)
program(me) - progra111111i11g, progr111111ed (BrE and AmE)
- p1w:ra111ing, progrmed (AmE onl y]
111or5h1jJ 1rrshi ppi11g, H'orshippNI (BrE and AmE)
- 1rorshipi11g, l\'Orshipcd (/mE onl y)
Th verbs handicap and kidnap fol low the patter of irrs!tip, bul 1 nost ot her verbs
ending in -p fo!iow the regular rule in bot h Am[ and BrE, ej: dcrdnp, m1cfop,
ga//op. gossip. -

3.7
NOT
:o vClDS UGO uuxili;riis
[b] In both BrE and AmE the general rule is broken by the doubling of -g in
lr11mbug l11111b11ggi11g-humlmgg.:d and or _words ending i n | (;..|e! ck-), eg:
pa11ic -pa11icking-1u11icked.
[c] In certain verbs whose base ends in a vowel followed by -s, there is variation
between -s- and -ss- when the infection is added:
'bias
bus
JOi'llf
' biasing/' biassing
'busingf' bussing
'focusi11g/'focussing
Deletion of and adllition of -e
'biased/' biassed
bused/bu.setf
'focused/'cussed
I f the base ends in an unpronounced -e. this -e is regll larly dropped before
the -ing and -ed inflections:
.
create creating created
bake . baking-bakrd
slwie shaVingshaved
type typing-typed
Verbs with monosyllabic bases i n -ye, -oe, and -11ge, pronounced /nd3/, are
exceptions to this rule: they do not lose the -e before -ing, but they do lose i t
before -ed:
dye-dyeing-dyed
hoe hoeing-hoed
singe-singeing-singed
tinge, , t i11geing I inged
The final -e is also lost befre -edby verbs ending i n -i or -eg: 1ic-1ied,
die-died, agree,.agreed.
..
Ikfre lhe .-:
..
ending, on the other hand, an :e
..
isJ1dded after the
following letters, representing sibilant consonants:
-s pass . . pas.1es -eh ivatcli ll'atches -x coax-coaxes
"& buzz -buz:es -sh wash -washes
[n] An -e is <1ddcd after U in co ( -goes), DO ( -does/dAz/), ECHO ( -echoes), VETO
( -vetoes).
(b] The -e is regularly dropped in impingi111 and i11)i'i11gi111;.
Treatment of -y
3 .8 Tn bases e1>di ng in a con.smantf ol lowcd by-y, the following changes take
place:
(a) , changes to -ie- before s:. carry-carrig,, try-tries
(b) -y changes to -i- before -ed: carrycarried, try-tried
The _J' n:mains, however, where i t follows a vowd letler. swy-.1wyed,
alloy-alloys, etc; or where i t plecedes -ing: rarry-canying,
stay-staying.
A different spelling change occurs in verbs whose bases end in -ie: DIE,
LE, TIE, VIE. In these cases. the -ie changes to -y- before -ing is added:
:/c~clying, /ie-lyi11g, tie-1yi11g, iie i_J'ing.
NOTE Exceptions to these ruks I certain verb: where the y changes to i after -a-: t^3
(-paid) and !3 ( -laid ) and their dcrivat.ives, ('g: REPAY ( -l'lpoid). ^`+
( N111is/aid). The irregular verb SAY follows the same pallcr C-saitl).
3.9
3.10
Full verbs <8
The morphology of irregular full verbs
Irregular full verbs di ffer from regular verbs in that either 1he past
inflection, or the -ed participle inflection, or both of these, arc irregular.
More precisely the major differences arc:
(a) Iregular verbs either do not have the regular -ed infection, or else
have a variant of that i nflection in which the /d/ is devoiced to /t/ (eg:
h11n1 burnt, which occurs alongside the CgulOr burned).
(b) Irregular verbs typically, but not invariably, have variation in their
base vowel: choose chosl' -cliosen, write 1irote-wrilfen.
(c) Irregular verbs have a varying number of distinct forms. Since the ^
form and the -ing form are predictable for regular and irregular verbs
alike, the only forms that need be listed for irregular verbs are the base
form (V), the past (V-edi ), and the -ed participle (V-ed2). These are
traditionally known as the PRINCIPAL PARTS of the verb. Most
irregular verbs have, like regular wrbs, only one common form for
the past and the -ed participle; but there is considerable variation in
this respect, as the table shows:
v V-ed1 V-ed2
al l three forms alike: cut Cl// Cl//
V-ct/1 V-ed2: meet me/ met
V =V-ed1 : heat heat heat<'//
V=V-ed2: COi/ie came come
all three forms different: speak spok< spoken
Irregular verbs in alphabetical order
Irregular verbs can be classified on the basis of eriteria derived from the
variation discussed in 3. 9. However, we shall merely li st alphabetically the
prinipal parts (including common variants) of the most common
irr;gular verbs. The list omits most verbs with a prefix such as out-, ol'er-.
re-, and 1111- that have otherwise the same parts as the corresponding
unpreflxcd verbs.
UASE (V) PAST TENSE (V-ed1) -edl'ART!CJPLE (V-edz)
arise arose arisen
awake awoke, awaked awoken, awaked
be was, were been
bear bore borne
beat beat btaten
become became become
begin began begun
bend bent bent
bereave bereft, bereaved bereft, bereaved
beseech besought, beseeched besought, bcscech<d
beset beset beset
30 Verbs and auxiliaries
BASE (V) PAST TENSE (Ved1) -ed l'/RT!CIPLE (V-ed2)
bet bet, betted bet, betted
bid bad(c), bid bade, bid, bidden
bind bound bound
bite bit bitten
bleed bled bled
blow blew blown
break broke broken
breed bred bred
bring brought brought
broadcast broadcast broadc<st
build built built
burn burnt. bured burnt, burned
burst burst burst
buy bought bought
cast cast cast
catch caught caught
choose chose chosen
cling clung clung
come came come
cost cost cost
creep crept crept
cut cut cut
deal dealt dealt
deep freeze deepfrozc, -frcczcd decpfrozcn, -frcezed
dig dug dug
dive dived, (AmE) dove dived
do did done
draw drew drawn
dream dreamt, dreamed dreamt, dreamed
drink drank drunk
drive drove driven
cat ate eaten
fall fell fallen
feed fed fed
feel felt flt
fight fought fought
find found found
flee fled fled
ilill"
llung flung
Oy flew flown
BASE (V) PAST TENSE (V-cdi)
forbid
forbade, forbad
forecast forecast
forget forgot
forgive forgave
forgo fo1went
forsake forsook
freeze froze
get got
give gave
go went
grind ground
grow grew
hamstring hamstrung
hang
hung (sec Note)
have had
hear herrd
heave
heaved, hove
hide hid
hit hit
hold held
hurt hurt
keep kept
kneel knelt, kncclecl
knit kni tted, knit
know knew
lead led
lean leant, leaned
leap leapt, leaped
learn leart, learned
leave left
lend lent
let let
lie lay
light lit, lighted
lose lost
make made
mean meant
meet met
miscast miscast
Full verbs 31
-ed PARTICIPLE (V-rd2)
forbidden
forecast
forgotten
forgiven
forgone
forsaken
frozen
(_t
}
l
gottcn (AmE)
given
gone
ground
grown
hamstrung
hung
had
heard
heaved, hove
hidden
hit
held
hurt
kept
knelt, knceled
knitted, knit
known
led
leant, leaned
leapt, leaped
learnt, leared
left
lent
let
l ai n
l i t, lighted
lost
m3de
mean I
met
miscast
32 Veres and auxlaries Full verbs 33
lASE (V) PAST TENSE (V-ed1 ) -ed PARTICIPLE (V-cd2) HASE ( V) PAST TENSE (V-cc/1 ) -et/ l'ARTl(:lPLE (V-eJ
mislead misled misled SOW sowed sown. sowed
misspell misspelt, misspelled misspelt, misspelled speak spoke spoken
mistake mistook mistaken spi!cd sped, speeded sped speeded
misundersland misunderstood misunderstood spell spell, spelled spelt_ spelled
mow mowed
mow, moed
spend spent spent
spi l l spilt, spilled spill, spilled
offset ofset
offset spin spun, span spun
spit spat, spit spat, spit
pul put
put split spl i t split
spoil soilt, spoiled spoilt, spoikd
qlit quit, quitted
quit_ qui tted spread spread spread
spring sprang sprung
read read
read
stand stood stood
rend fl!nt
rent
steal stole stolen
rid rid, ridded
rid, ridded stick stuck stuck
ride rode
ridden ctig stung stung
ring rang rung stink stank stunk
ris rose
risen
stride strode stridden, strid, strode
run ran
run
strike . struck strck
string strung strung
saw sawed
sawn, sawed strive strove, strived striven, strived
say said
said swear swore sworn
see saw
seen sweat sweat, sweated sweat, sweated
seek sought
sought sweep swept swLpt
sell sold
sold swell swelled swollen, swdlcd
send sent sent swim swam swum
set set
set swing swung swung
sew sewed sewn, sewed
shake shook
shaken take took tnkcn
shear sheared
shor, sheared teach taught taught
shed shed
shed tear tore tor
shi nC shone, shined shone, shined telecast telecast telecast
shoLl shot
shot
tell told told
show showed shown
think thought thought
shrink shrank
shrunk
thrive thrived thrived
shut shut shut
throw threw thrown
sing sang
sung
thrust thrust thrust
ink snk
sunk
tread trod trodden
sit at
sat
sleep slept
slept
underbid underbid underbid
slide slid
slid
undergo underwent undergone
sling sl ung
sl \ng
understand understood understood
slit slit
slit
undertake undertook undertaken
smell srnel t, smelled
smell, smelled underwrite underwrote underwritten
34 Ve

rbs and auxiliaries

BASE (V) PAST TENSE (V-ed1) -ed PARTICILE (V-ed2)
uphold upheld upheld
upset upset upset
wake woke, waked woken, waked
wear wore worn
weave wove woven
wed wedded, wed wedded, wed
weep wept wept
wet wetted, wet wetted, wet
Wl won won
wind wound wound
withdraw withdrew withdrawn
withhold withheld withheld
withstand withstood withstood
wring wrung wrung
write wrote written
NOTE ln BrE the verbii is regular, but in AmEJi1 is an alternative tofitred in the p<st and the -cd
parliciplc. lla11g has also the regular form lw11ged for the past and the -er participle in the
sense 'put to death by hanging'.
3.11
Primary verbs and modal auxi liaries
Verbs as operalors
Auxiliaries have one important syntactic function in common: they
beco.nle-tJ1c OPERATOR when they occur as the s:verb of a finite verb
phrase (cJ | ). The main verb rrand (sometimes, cspccial-ly-ii1"8dj the
Jl;li.ln
-
verb HAVr arc al so operators when they arcthe only verb in the verb
phrase. On the other hand, only lhc auxiliary no is an operator (as in 'She
does not know me'), not the main verb DO (as in 'She does a lot of work').
912r lgrs_ share lhc following r)l<ti_1'_ll_1a!1tcL'i!l
(a) To 1gat
-
' !i.t. c]a1
se, we put
10t.}
mmcdiatcly __ (1-t-2P_!_
r
.
Contrast:
She may do i t . She may 1101 do i t.
She sm1 the play. *She saw not the play.
(b) To fon11 an i!1_croga_tycl_<Se, we put the QVirator_i nfront_o[_thc
!bjcl (subject-operator inversion). Contrast:
He will speak first . Will he speak first?
He plans to speak first . * Plans he to speak first?
Subject-operator inversion occurs also in sentences with introduc
tory ncga tives \ semi-negatives (;| c. /)
NOTE
3. 12
Primary verbs and modal auxiliaries 35
At no time 1t11s the entrance l eft unguarded.
(e) The operator can cary .. l!_lC!('ar _slr_cs_--o_ D) _.< .!in.i!e __ cl_<Li as
positive rather than negative:
(d)
Won't you try again? Yes, I wiLL try again.
You must speak to the teacher. I HA VE spoken to him.
The function of this en'phatic positiyc_is !Q_<<l}Y. a neg11ti which has
been stated or implied.
The operator runctions in a range of elliptical clauses where the rest of
thepredicat{fi is cimfftcd (i. .c)Ti1e
-
ci"- - is understood to
repeat the omitted part.
Won't you try again?-Yes, I WILL
No, I CAN'T.
ff there is no operator in a corresponding positive declarative sentence,
the dummy (or 'empty') operator DO is i ntroduced under the above
conditions:
(a) She saw the pl ay. She did not (or: didn't) see the play.
(b) He plans to speak first. Docs he plan to speak frst?
(c) You never listen to your mothcr. But I Do listen to her.
(d) Do you drive a car? Yes, I DO.
No, I miN'T.
The use of. the operator DO is termed DO-SUPPORT.
The mai n verbs nE and HAVE arc operators in these sentences:
I haren 't a car. (esp BrE) ls she your sister?
[a] The cnclitic particle 11 '1 can be attached lo most operators as a contraction of
the negative word nor, eg: isn't, didn 't, 1rn't ((f 3 . 1 3/f} In addition, many
operators have contracted frms:
RE' an1
'
111: is .. s: ore, 're
HA VE: have ' \'e; has s; had 'd
modals: ll'ilf 'If; 11ould-'d
The final /t/ in the ncgalivc contraction is commonly not sounded. Notice that the
contraction 's may represent either is or has, and that the contraction 'd may
represent either had or would.
[b] The contraclions mcntioncd in [a] arc simplified forms that arc institutionalized
in both speech and writing. They are to be distinguished from cuscs of
phonological reduction only, eg /bn/ in the pronunciation of cn.
Characteristics orJdt:i1ia:Jesj
Certain characteristics adqitio.zial to those listed i n 1. ! | apply speeilically
to modal auxiliaries:
. . . .
(a) They are r_n(IVCd by.the bare i nfil.)ilive (ie the base form or lhc verb
alone ydth_o_u! a preceding to):
You 11i/l ask the questions. They might hme stolen it.
36 Verbs and auxiliaries
(b) They cannot occur in nonfni te functions, : as i nfni t i ves or
participles: may - *to may. *maying, *ma.red. In consequence il
l.\Y
cn .o_ccur .only as_.tl1.; lirst_ ys;r]_in the yerl phrase.
(c) They have 111..i form fr the 3rd person singular of the present tense.
Contrast:

You 1111.1.11 writc. Shc must write.
You like to write_ -Shc likes to write.
(d) Their2t1st formscan be usd. to refer to present and f!ll- i-:c (often
with a tentative meaning):
I think he 111ay/111ighr be outside.
u|ll[ |loolyou phone him tomorrow?
NOTE The dummy auxiliary \, l ike the modal auxili His, is followed by the bare
infinitive anJ c;nnot ocnir in nonfinite functions. The primary auxili<ries nE;
A Yl. and DO have an X form, but it is irregular (/'3. 1 3.. For the marginal modal
auxiliaries, sec 3. 1 7.
The primary verbs BE, HAVE, and oo
Be
3.l3 The verb be is a mai n verb (wi th a copul ar fnction: cf 10. 3) i n:
Ann is a happy girl. is that buil ding a hotel?
But he also has two auxiliary functions: as an aspect auxiliary for the
progressive (4. 1 0.f:
Ann is learing Spanish.
The weather has been improving.
and as a passive auxiliary (3.25/):
Ann D awarded a prize_
Our team has never been beaten.
. e is unique in having a full set of 2.1.h fin_ie and non finite forms in
auxiliary function; i t is also uni que among English verbs in having as
many as eight different forms. In the non negative column of Table 3. I 3 the
unstressed pronunciations (with vowel reduction) arc given after the
stressed pronunciation, where they di ffer.
_.
.
NOTE
3.14
~ole3. 13 Forms of /e
base
presrnl
I St person
singul;1r present
3rd person
singular present
nd person
present, I st
:1nd 3rd person
plural present
past
l st and 3rd
person
singular past
2ncl person past
I st and 3rd
person plural
past
-i11g form
he /bi:/. /bi/
UIl /;cm/, /;m/
,,, /m/
l/17/

J fz/, /s/
UI /u:'/
IC jo'/
HOA /woz/, /w(o)z/
hei11g /'bi:11J/
The primary verb eE, HAVE, and UO 31
l.CIJTl\ACTIJJ
Ulll llOI,
'111 1101
is 1101,
'snot
UIc HU
're 1101
\OUU
IC 1101
1101 being
\'0".l RACIUl
t:i:G,\TIVI'
((rC'I)
i.w'1 /'u.rt/
UIIH

I /u:'nt/
O.\!/' WDZIt/

-ed participle bre11 /bi:n/, /bm/ 1JOI been
[a] A_iu '1,is U ncmstandard contraction used commonly (especially in AmE) in place
ofmn not, is 11111. are not, hm not, and have ll(f. Aren't is the standard contraction
fr u111 1101 in questions (epecially in BrE): Aren't I tall?
[b] There is a rare use of be as a perfect auxiliary with the ve:tKO: 711eguests Of
[also /w1e] gone.
Have
Hme functions bLth as an auxjlj,yand as a )ivejb.As an uiliary fo
_ perfect aspect (cf 4.8!, hmc combines with an -ed participle to form
co_mpk;x vtr.b phrasts:
I
/
um! fnished. l t must ltave been eaten.
As a main v
.
crb, it normal l y t_<lk"s a i . .cct o_?i".J
.
liave no 11w1tey_ The -ed
participl e is not used as an auxiliary.
30 Verbs nnd auxlllarlcs
Table 3.14 Forms of /la1e
base
-,\ form
rast
-iug form
-ed particirle
NONNEGATIVE
/wl'( /h<v/, /(11)Jv/
`,',. /v/, /f/
lw.< /h<cz/. /(h):iz/
. /z/, is/
Juul /h:c<l/, /(h):id/
'd /d/
hal'ing /'IHCVllJ/
fwd/h<cd/, /(h)-id/
UNCONTl\AC1H)
NrGATJV!;
horc not
w not
has 11<11
's IlUI
lwcl not
'dnot
1101 haling
CONTl\A<'Tr
^\^,
/r(llTll

I f'h;Vt,11/
lw.111 '1 /'h:t7f/l/
lrad11 '1 {'lucd1,1 I/
NOTE [n] In slativc scnss (c.f 4. 1 Of), haw' is used (generally in rathCr formal style) as an
_Q.r'!_tqr, espLLially in BrE. There is also the infrmal fare go1construc1ion, which
is frequently preferred (espccia!ly i n BrE) as an alternative to stative hal'e. In some
slativc senses, we c;in therefore have three alternatives:
3.15
(a) We lave11'1 any butter. -We hare some.
(b) We haven
'
gnl any butter. ^We fl(ll' got (We've gor) some.
(c) We do11
'
1 have any butter." We do hare some.
Of these, {a) is especially BrE (more formal); (b) is especially BrE <informal); (c)
is AmE, and also common now in BrE.
[b] Ind yna_mic l)scs { c/4. l 0/), have n9
_
rmally_has D9-support, and /!!_vegql is not
possible:
Do
A: Does she lune colfee with her breakfast?
B: Yes, she does.
Do like he and !ave can be both an uxi liary and a mai n verb. As an
Uiili<!ry;do has-o non!ini te_fqr!s, -but only prent :.a, i (rms.
Table 3. 15 Forms of f>o
has
past
-i11g frm
(m;tin verb only)
rd participle
(main vCrb only)
do /cJu:/, /do/. /d/
docs /dA7./, /dn/
/1.;, /s/
did /did/
doing /'d11:111/
dcmr /dAn/
!!!!O!Jr^1LO
ECiATIVF.
du 1101
dnl.< 1101
didIto/
L\H^LL
Nf.(;ATIVF.
don 't /dwnl/
doe.m'1 f'dAZl/li
did1

I f'd1dn1/
m
Modal auxillarles 39
NOTE [a] As a [i!_.'? do can function as a pro-prcdic;i.te or pro-predication (rf
1 2. /) referring to some unspecified action or actions, alone or in combination
with so, it, tltis, that, intcrrogai(e ll''r1t, or - indefnite pronoun:
She didn't earn as much as she might have done. <esp BrE)
I don' t know what to do. so I did nothing.
A: l'J throwing thL>e hook away.
B: Why arc you doing THAT?
A: Whal have they been doing lo the rQad-?"
n Widening i i.
[h) The mai n verb do has a wide range of uses as a general-purpose transitive verb,
especially in ..

| e i speeLh.

.

Let's do the dishes. Who does your car?
[e] As shown i n Table 3. 1 S, does Lbe i nfrmal ly ploUnced /z/ (Wlu?11 does 1he
show begin?) or /s/ (Whal does he \l'a11r?)
.
Modal auxiliaries
3.16 The central modal auxiliaries are in Table 3. 1 6. Rare forms arc 1
parentheses.
Table 3. 1 6 Frms of the modal auxiliary verbs
NQNNEGATIVE UNCONTRACTED CONTRACTED
NEGATIVE N(GATIVE
{rw1 /kan bn/ (`tff!!H! `Ul I1OI r1111'1 /ko:nti (BrE).
cmt!d/k<:d. k/
/k'nt/ (AmE)
could11or co11/d11 't /' kod11t/
. /mc1/ may not (may11'r /mc111t/)
mig/11 /mall/ migh1 1101 mig/1111'1 f'ma1trt/
_. /Jicl, J(;))/ sh111/ 11or (shan 't /Ja:nl/ (BrE>)
should /Jod. J(:)d/

should 1101 shou/c/11'1 f'Iudrit/. /'f"l)t/

{
/wil/ ll'il/ not I!OII 't /wunt/
'I /(JI/ 'I H0
11011ld/wud/ would1101 l!'Ouldn't /'wudrit/
'd /(:)d/ 'dnot
11111.H7mAsl, mst/ 11111.l Il0 11111.<111 t /'mt.srt/
NOTE Mayn '1 and shan
'
1 are virtual ly nonc:dstcnt in AmE, while in n:t sftan is
becoming rare an<l ma_r11'1 eYCn more so.
."^

' l+| x' |.i,

3.17 The marginal modal auxiliaries .!e used to, ought 10, dare, and need.
[ Used 1o;a1ways takes the to-infinitive and occurs only in the past tense:
NOTE
40 Verba and auxiliaries
She 11sed to attend regularly.
It ubQtb
.
._1 n 1uxdiary <_l !ld as __ a main VC[b w,(loo.pp|.
!\
Hc_?!J!/11'[
.
(or: used n01 ) to smoke. (BrE)
He 5fid11 't 11sejcf} to smoke. (BrE and informal AmE)

The
_
r11al inte

rogativc constru< ti91_i _s

l.1 _ro_-_supp_t, even in BrE:

'Did he use to drink? He used to drink, didn't he?
TQglt_.inormally -1e_!_.=1:1live, but
_
t
q
_
!
.
tio
!
1al following
ought \g_JlPis
Ynu ouglt111 '1 10 smoke so much.
A: 011ght I to stop smoking?
B: Yes, I think you ought (to}.
[i51/r ' and 1;,;;,d icn be used either as modal auxiliaries (with bare
intinitiv.: and without the i nfected forms) or as main verbs (with to
v nc with--ified ., -ing, -and - pst- 1:8 5.-The modal
onsi:.|c:|cis. cstrictedto-nonassertive contexts, ie mainly negative and
interrogative sentences, whereas the main verb construction can always be
used, and is i n fact more common.
Blends of the two constructions (modal auxiliary and main verb) arc widely
acceptable for dare:
They do not dare ask for me. Do they dare ask for more?
Modal idioms and semi-auxiliaries
3.18 Two other categories of verbs are intermediate between auxiliaries and
main verbs. They express modal or aspectual meaning.
(a) The)i<DAL rotoM are a combination of auxiliary and infinitive or
adverb. None of them have nonfinite forms and ty_are therefore

always the first verb in the verb phras_c. The __ t.

.
-!!]0!1_!Jo
_
dal
;
iio
ms are ! 2qcbette1:"J.!'.0! /'''/'' -'1 .^0J
NOTE
(b) Th cfii A.uX"i_t:i5Ri Tiare a set of verb ic_iOfl1s_which are introduced by
Ql QfQ_t Pr!
ma.ry verbs HAVE a1_1q BE. They have non fnite forms and
can therefore occur in combination with preceding auxiliaries.
Indeed, two or more semi-auxili aries can occur in sequence. Common
semi-auxiliaries include:
he able 10
be about to
be bound to
be due to
be going to
be likely 10
he .l'llflposedto
have to
Like auxili ari es-in having meanings similar lo those for the aspectual and modal
:iuxili aric; (1/ 4. 7, 4. 21 ) -are the ea tcnativcs, such as appiar f! happen to, L't'II/.
Some calnativcs arc followed by -i11g \l-eel participles ||.than by infinitives:
A|U (working). go 1111 (la! king), keep ( 011) (smoking), get (trapped).
'
The structure ot verb phrase 11
The structure of verb phrases
Finite verb phrases
3.19 A fnite verb phrase is a verb phrase in which the frst or only word is a
finite verb (cf 3.3), the rest of the verb phrase (if any) consisting of
nonflnilc verbs. Finite verb phrases can be distinguished as fllows:
3.20
(a) Finite verb phrases can occur as

the verb phrase of independent

clauses.
.
(b) Finite verb phrases have tense contrast, ie the distinction between
present and past tenses:
He is a journalist now.
He worked as a travel agent last summer.
(c) There is person concord and number concord between the subject of a
clause and the finite verb phrase. Concord is particularly cl.ar with
the present tense of be:
I . _
h
You are
ere.
He/She/It is h
Th
ere.
We/ ey are
But with most fll verbs O\crt concord is restricted lo contrast
between the 3rd person singular present and other persons or plural
number:
He/She/Ji m reads _
l
l the paper every moring.
I/We/Y ou(f 1ey rem
Wi th modal auxiliaries there is no overt concord at all (c/ l ?).
I/You/She/We/They ran play the cello.
(d) Finite verb phrases have mood, which indicates the factual, nonfac
tual, or counl crfactual status of the predication. In contrast to the
'unmarked' INDICATIVE mood, we distinguish the 'marked' moods
rMPERA TIVE (used to express commands and other directive speech
acts; : I l l 5 !), and SUBJUNCTlVE (used to express a wish,
recommendation, etc; l 3. 23.
A clause wi th a finite verb h:scasits V element is called a 'finite verb
clause' or, more tersely, a 'finite clause'. Si milarly, a clause with a
nonfinite verh phrase asitsV element is called a 'nonfnitc (ve1b) clause'
(c/14.3/).
Nonfinite verb phrases
The infinitive ((to) cal), the -ing participle (clling), and the -ed participk
(called) arc the nonfinite forms of the verb. Hence any phrase i n which one
of these vcrh forms is the first or only word (disregarding the infinitive
mai her w) is a nonfinitc verb phrase. Such phrases do not normally occur
as the verb phrase or an inde
p
endent clause. Compare:
r
42 Verbs and auxiliaries
FINITE VERf PHRASES
He smokes.
Mary is '1a1ing smoke.
He 11111s1 smoke 40 a day.
You !w1e hee11 smoking all
day.
Simple and complex verb phrases
NONFINITE VERA PHRASES
To smoke l i ke that must be
dangerous.
r regret having started to smoke.
The Ligars smoked here tend to be
expensive.
That was the last cigarette to/um!
been smoked by me.
3.21 The fnite verb phrase is SIMPLE when (without el l ipsis) it consists of only
one word. ll i s complex when it consists of two or more words.
The auxiliaries follow a strict order i n the complex verb phrase:
{a) MODAL followed by an i nfinitive:
mut go
(b) M1\ (the auxiliary haie) followed by an -ed participle:
has examined; must have examined
(c) PROGRF-5SIVE (the auxil iary he), fllowed by an -i11g participle:
was talking; must have been tal king
(d) PASSIVE (the auxiliary be), followed by an -ed participle:
l!'as visi ted; must have been being visited
While the above order is strictly followed, gaps arc perfectly normal:
(a)+ (c): must be going (modal+ progressive)
(b) + (d): has been examined (perfect + passive)
(a) + (d): may be visited (modal + passi.vc)
Contrasts expressed In the verb phrase
3.22 It may be convenient to l i st here the contrasts i n which the verb phrase
plays an important part.
(a) Tense requires a choice between present and past in the first or only
verb in H fnilc verb phrase (lf 4.3j):
She 1rrks hard. She 1rorked hard.
(b) Aspect 1Lqui res a choice between the nonperfcct and the perfect and
between the non progressive and the progressive (c:f 4. 1(!)
He H'rites poems. (simple: nonpcrfect, nonprogressive)
He has written poems. (perfect, nonprogressivc)
He is writing poems. (progressive, nonpcrfect)
He has been writing poems. (perfect, prog1essivC)
(c) Mood requires a d1oicc between the indicative, imperative. and
subj unctive (c( 1 1 . 1 w: 3. 2/
11 flistc11.1

1 .
.
) , c . . . 111c ica t1ve
s lis1e11111g lo me.
3.23
The subjunctive mood 43
L1ten to me. (imperative)
I demand that he listen to me. (subjunctive)
(d) Finiteness requires a choice between the fnite and nonfnite (3. 1 9[):
She plays tennis.
Playing tennis is good fr your health.
The verb element of a fni te clause (as i n the frst sentence) is a finite
verb phrase; the verb clement of U nonfnitc clause i s a non fnite verb
phrase (eg: Playing in Playing tennis).
(e) Voice involves a contrast between active and passive (c.f3.25f):
A doctor will examine the applicants. (active)
The applicants will be examined by a doctor. (passive)
(f) Questions generally require subject-operator inversion ,c)I l .3jf; for
an excepLion, cf I l . 10):
T should pay fr you. -Should I pay for you?
The >tudents ohjected. -Did the students object?
(g) Negation makes use of operators (cf 1 0. 33, but c/ 3 . 23 Note [b]):
J should pay for you. -I sho11/d11 'r pay for you.
The students objected . ... The students didn 'r object.
(h) Emphasis is frequently carried by an operator (c.f 3. 1 1 ) :
I sH<VLD pay.
The students oio object.
The subjunctive mood
Forms of the subjunctive
There arc two forms of the subjunctive. They are traditionally called the
present and past subjunctive, although the distinction relates more to
mood .than to tense.
The present subjunctive is expressed by the base form of the verb. For
the verb be, the subjunctive form he is distinct from the indicative forms
am, is, and !. For other verbs, the subjunctive is di>tinctive only in the
3rd person si ngulH:
r insist that we reconsider the Council's decisions. [ I ]
[indicative or subjunctive]
I insist that the Council reco11sider its decisions. [2]
[subjunctive]
J insist that the Council's dccision(s) he reconsidered.
[J]
[subjunctive]
!

!"
NOTE
44 Verbs and auxiliaries
. ' ,
The past subj uctiYL (or 11ere-subJunctive) survives only in 1rere as a
past form vfllE. t t is distinguishable from the past indicative ofnr only i n
the l st and
,
3rd persons si ngul ar:
If she osl eaving, you would havL heard about it.
[indicative]
If sh. Ytff leaving, you would have heard about il.
[subjuncti veJ
The indicative H i s more common in less formal style.
[a] Only HtI is acceptable i n as it were ('so to speak'); ire Lis usual in {/'I 11ere you.
[b] Negation of the present subjunctive docs not require an operator. Ilene,
reconsider in [ l a] is unambiguously subjunctive:
I insist that we not reconsider the Council's decision. [ l a]
Uses of the subjunctive
3.24 We distinguish two mai n uses of the present subjunctive:
(a) The MANDATlVE SUBJUNCTIVE i s used i n U that-clause after an
expression of such noti ons as demand, recommendation, proposal,
i ntention (eK: We insist, prefer, request ; It is necessary, desirahle,
impcratil': ; the decision, req11irr111cn1, rr.rn/wio11). This use is more
characteristic of AmE than BrE, but seems to be increasing in BrE. I n
BrE the al ternatives are putative .'1011/d ( 1 4. 1 4) and the indieafr1e.
{ resig11. <esp AmE)
The employeLs demanded that he slrould resign. (esp BrE)
resigns.
(b) The FOR!ULAIC (or 'optati ve') SUBJUNcrrvE is used in certain set
expressions:
God sa11e the Queen.
Long /ii'e the King.
Come whnt may, . . .
Hcavenforhid that . . .
Be that as it may, . . .
Sujice i t to say that . . .
The p1st subjuncti ve is hypothetical in meani ng: . It is used in
conditional and conccssive clauses and in subordinate clauses after wish
and suppo.H:
I f I 11CL a rich man, I would . . .
I wish the journey ll'ere over.
Just sJppos1 everyone were to act l ike you.
Subjunctive H'ere is often replaced in nonformal style by indicative YU^.
Voice
Active and passive
3.25 The distinc1 ion hct w:cn active and P"''i `L applies only lo sentences where
the verb is transitive. The di Jfercnce between thC active voice and the
Voice 45
passive voice invol ves both the verb phrase and the clause as a whnle .. In
the verb phrase, the passive adds a form l>l'thc auxi l iary he loll 'vcd by t he
-<cl participle of the main verb. For exampl e:
kisses is kissed
has kissed
11wy he kissing
has been kissed
111ay he hei11g kissed
At the clause level, changing from active to passive has the fllowing
results:
(a) The active subjcct, if retained, becomes the passive AGENT.
(b) The active object becomes the passive subject.
(c) The preposition h)' is inserted befon: the agent.
The butler murdered the detective. (ACIWE]
The detective was murdcn;d (by the butler). [PASSIVE]
The prepositional phrase (Ac;ENT 1>'-l'HRASE) of passive sentences is an
optional element and is Lnmmonly omitted.
NOTE [a) 61!1 is frqucntly used with the passi ve in infomal English: get caught, gel
dr<ssid, get |U \L. It ortcn conveys the connotation that the referent of the
subjeci has some responsibility for !he action. Comparc the construction wi th a
rdlcxivc pronoun: 'She got hcrsdfcaughl.'
[b] The changl: to passive is highly restricted if the actile obj:!t is a clause. I t
bcconws acceptable when the Llause is cxtraposcd and n:ptaccJ by anticipatory ii:
They thought that she 1\'a.1 attractil'e.
It was thought tlat she 11us atlractfe.
[c] Some slativc transitivc verbs, cal led 'middle verbs', normally occur only in the
active (1f 1 6. 1 5), eg:
They have a nice house.
He lacks confidence.
The audi tori llm ho/di 500 people.
Witl thi s s11ir )'lti'!
[d) In the 'statal passive' the -eel form refers to a state rcsutting from an action, and
the construction contai ns :I copular verb and L\ subject compkment:
The buil ding is de1110/ished.
Her arm was alrc'ady brken when T saw her.
A LLUL such as !/er arm was broken is ambiguous betweLn a dynamic passive
reading ('Someone broke her arm') aml a statal n.:ading ("Her iUH Ubin Ustate or
fracwrc').
Uses of the passive
3.26 Jn sentences where there is choice between acti ve and passive, the acti\'C
is the norm.
Speakers or writers use the passive for the lollowing reasons. In
considering the examples, hear in ind that more than one reason may
apply. R\:asons 1 -4 i l l ust:+te the uses of the passive without the agent hr
phrase, which is commonly omitted:
l They do not know the identity of the agent ol' the action.
46 Verbs and auxlllarles
Many l i feboats 11Ne launclled from the Titanic only partly flled.
2 They want to avoid identifying the agent because they do not want to
assign or accept responsibility.
My letter has not yet heen m1.nl'ered.
A mistake has hee11 made i n calculating your change.
3 They feel that there is no reason for mention of the agent because the
identifcation is unimportant or obvious from the context.
The smci!I thin pieces of metal at the sides arc to protect the
appliance during handling and may he discarded.
Nowadays sleeping sickness ca11 usually be curedi fi t is detected early
enough.
4 Tn scientifc and technical writing, writers often use the passive to avoid
the constant repetition of the subject I or ll'e and to put the emphasis on
processes and experimental procedures. This use of the passive helps to
give the writing the objective tone that the writers wish to convey.
The subject wa. h/11dfolded and a pencil was placed in the left hand.
5 . To put emphasis on the agent of the action;
6 To avoid what would otherwise be a long active subject;
7 To retai n the same subject i n later parts of the sentence.
The following sentence exemplifes a combination of all three reasons fr
using the passive (lf 1 8.22):
As a cat moves, it is kept informed of its movements not only by its
eyes, but also by messages from its pads and elsewhere in i ts skin,
its organs of balance, and i ts sense organs of joints and muscles.
Bibl iographical note
For general treatments of the English verb, sec PHlmcr ( 1 988); Allen ( 1 966); Joos
( 1 964); Huddleston ( i 976).
On the passive bL Grnger ( 1 983); Stein ( 1 979); Svartvik ( 1 966). For studies
relating more pUrticularly to meaning in the verb phrase, consult the Bibliographi
cal note to Chapter 4.
4 The semantics of the verb phrase
Time, tense, and the verb
4. I In abstraction from any given language, we can think of time as a line on
which is located, as a continuously moving point, the present moment.
Anything ahead of the present moment i s in the future, and anything
behind i t is in the past (see Fig 4. l a) :
THE PRESENT MOMENT
PAST
\ FUTURE
.Am-+~--

-+.

~
+~~(_~~-.~.~~~~y
[now)
Fig 4. l a
I n relating this REFERENTIAL view of time t o the meaning of verbs, i t is
useful to reformulate it so that on the ScMANTIC level of interpretation
something is defned as 'present' if it exists at the present moment and may
also exist in the past and in the fture. Hence Paris stands I 1he Rii'er
Seine may be correctly said to describe a 'present' situation, even though
this situation has existed for many centuries in the past and ray well exist
for an indefnitely long period in the future. The same is true fr sentences
of more l i mi ted time span: John hoasrs a lot applies to past and present,
and carries the implication that it will apply t.o an indefnite period in lhc
future (see Fig 4. l b) :
[now]
\
--- PAST
!
__ :
~

r
_____
1
_

` 1 "

`
Fi
g 4.1 b
[preceding now]
' :
[following now]
THE PRESENT T!ME
`
[including now)
TENSE is a grammatical category that is realized by verb infection. Since
English has no foture inflected form of the verb, the threefold semantic
NOTE
4. 2
NOTE
48 The semantics of the verb phrase
opposition is reduced to two tenses: the PRESENT TENSE and the PAST TENSE,
which typically refer to present and past ti me respectively.
Future meaning is conveyed by various means, incl udi ng the present tense:
Tomorroll' is Tuesday. Cf 4. l 3f.
Stative and dynamic senses of verbs
We draw a broad disti ncti on between the STATIVE and DYNAMIC senses in
which verbs are used to refer to situations ( lf 4. l l ) .
Verbs like he, have, and
know have s tativc senses when they refer lo a si ngle unbroken slate of
affairs:
I have known the Penfolds al l my l i fe
.
Verbs l i ke drive, speak, and attack hnvc dynamic senses, as can be seen
when they arc used wi th the present pcrrccl to refer lo a sequence of
separate events:
I have driven sports cars for years
.
[a] A verb may shift in sense from one category to another. Have, fr example, is
usually stative: She has tll'o sisters. But i t has a dynamic sense i n We htne dinner at
Maxim's quite frequently.
[b] Dynamic verb senses can regularly occur with the imperative and progressive
but stative verb senses cannot:
Leam how to swim.
I am leaming to swim.
*Knoll' how lo swim.
*I am knml'ing how to swim.
I n general, only dynamic senses follow do in a pseudo-cleft sentence (cf 1 8.20):
What she did was (lo) leam Spanish.
*What she did was (lo) knoll' Spanish.
Tense
Simple present tense fr present time
4.3 (a) The STATE PRESENT is used with stative verb senses to refer to a single
unbroken state of afairs that has existed i n the past, exists now, and is
l i kel y to conti nue to exi st in the future. It incl udes the ' ti meless
present', which refers to 'eteral truths' such as Two and three make
fve or to less extreme instances of timelessness, such as The British
Isles have a temperate climate. I t also i ncl udes more restricted time
spans:
Margaret is tal l .
We live near Toronto
.
He does 1101 believe in hard work.
This soup taste.1 delicious.
(b) The HABITUAL PRESENT i s used wi th dynamic verb senses to refer to
events that repeatedly occur wi thout l i mi tation on their extension
i nto the past or future. Like the state present, it i ncl udes the ' timeless
Time, tense, and the verb 4g
presn t', such as rv

1ter ho.ls at 100 " C and The earth lllOl'es rowul the
sun, and more restncted l i me spans:
We go to Brussels every year. She doesn
'
t smoke.
She makes her own dresses. Bill drinks heavily.
hccas the state present always refers to something that applies at
l
t 1c
b
_mc of speaki ng or wri ti ng, this is very ofen not so for the
rn 1 t ual present

We ` \

s11 1

k
. .

c, n s,iy 1 t r111 .\` heavill' when Bi l l is not
actual l y dnnkmg
.

(c) The ISTANTANEOUS PRESENT is used wi th dynamic verb senses to refer
o '.mglc event
_
wi th l i t t le or no duration that occurs at the ti me of
spc,1 kmg r wntmg
.
I t i s used only in certain restricted si tuations

for
example, m commentaries and sel f-commentaries (BI k I
ball I J F I 1
ac ' passes ze
,
<

enwni
_
e:; cn

lose a form <( application) and with

pc1 form,1 l l vc ve1 bs that re I er to the speech acts performed by ut t ,
.
'
t
.
hsentencs (/ apologi:e for my belzal'iour; We thank iou r0,
.
\
1

1 ece11/ e11qwry).

It is a sign of the habitual present that one can easily add a fre ucnc adverb"1
.
often, once a day, el'er_r .rear) to specify the frequency of theven.
1 ' I (lg.
Simple present tense fr past and future
Ther are
.
three adi ti onal ki 1ds of uses of the simple present that are best
seen as extended mterprctall ons of the basic meanings of 4 1
(a) The HISTORIC PRESENT refers to past ti me and 1' s 1
-
.
t
. .
f
I

'
c rnrac ensttc o
popu ar narrt1ve style. I t conveys the dramatic i mmedi acy of an
event happemng at the time of narrati on:
Jus
.
t as we arr. vcd, up comes Ben and slaps me on the back as i f we're
hfe-long fnends
.
t is sed as a stylistically marked device in fcti onal narrative for
tmagmary events in the past:
The co
_
wd

warms
.
around the gateway, and seethes with delighted
ant1 c1 pati on; excitement gro11s, as suddenly thei r hero k , . h'
entrance . . .
ma c.1 I S
(b) The si mp
.
le p:cscnt is optionally used to refer to t he past wi th verbs of
0;1111L1ncat1on or rccpti on of communication to suggest that the
111 ormat10n commumcatcd is still valid:
Jack 1
e
lls me that the posi ti on is sti l l vacant .
The Bi ble prohihits t he commi tting of adul tery
.
I hear t hat you need an assist ant
.
I understand that the game has been postponed.
(c) In n
.
ain clause, the si mple present typically occurs with timc

a
son adverbials to suggest that a future event i s certain to take
50 The semantics of the verb phrase
t., .-.leaves --..... .,.-.-... --_.
t....-... -,.,....-.-.. ...-..-..--..------
..--+. -.... .....,... .. ., -.--+.--..-+..-,-.......
(c/ 1 4. 1 1 ):
u. +- . .,-.pay -
i ..,-..--...---...hear --..
NOTE Somewhat aki n to the other optional uses of the simple present for past time is its
use in reference to writers, composers, etc, and their works (cf 1 9. 1 3):
4. 5
Dickens drl!'s hi s characters from t he London underworld of hi s time.
1ccthovcn's Ninth is his best compositi on.
Simple past tense fr past time
t...-,.,.......+.-....-.. .... --......+.--...-.-..
,...
,., t.EVENT PAST ....+.+,-.-....-..-....-...-..-,.
+.-- .....-..-..,...t....-.-.,....,...-...-...-+.+
,...-+( The Normans invaded England in 1066) -....,- -.-..-.
( The plane left at 9 a. m. ).
,-, t.HABITUAL PAST ....+ .+,-.-.....-..-....-...-,...
...-......,....+,-...We spent our holidays in Spain wizen we
11ere children.
,., t.STATE PAST ....+..........-..-....-...-..-,.
.--.-..-.....-......-..,... I once liked reading no11e/s.
NOTE [a] The habitual and state meanings of the past can be paraphrased by used to.
[b] The defnite time may be conveyed by a previous or subsequent time expression
in the linguistic context, for example by a time adverbial such as in 1066. It may
also be presupposed on the basis of knowledge shared by speaker and hearer. For
example, Your brother was at school with me presupposes as common knowledge
that a specifc period of time is spent at school.
Special uses of the simple past tense
4.6 t........,.......-...-,.,...(l:/' 4. 9 N-t.) .
,., .-INDIRECT SPEECH -INDI RECT THOUGHT ( cf 1 4. 1 n, t..-,.,...
.-...,-.-,...--.,..........--....--+-....,-.s
......--.-.... ..+. -.-... -,.,... Size said that size knew
you; J tlzouglzt you were in Paris.
,-,t.ATTITUDINAL PAST .-,. --.,...+.-..--...-....-,
,.-+...-.--..,- . ..,,.-.,....-......-- -+ Did you wal//
to see me now?; I wondered whether you are I were free tomorrow
(lf 1 4. 1 8).
,., t. HYPOTHETICAL PAST . ...+ .- ....- ..--+. -.........,
..,....,/. ..... .- .--..,..... .--....,.-..-...or
.,..... ---...,....(lf 1 4. 1 2) :
4.7
Aspect 51
. ,-.kne11 -,-.-. +- ..,...

....asked -..-. +.,.

,,
...ltad .-.--, ..,-..
,,
'

. .

,
|
t. ..,....- -, , . +
--....-..-+-,

.
/
+
-. --

-. .-- --,,.....
. ---........-.--,
Aspect
ASECT ..,.--........ - , " .
.
..-...-. ..+.;cs
,
...
; .+....

..l l1 . .
H r-,...,.....-+
, -. w. ..-,....-..,...
..,-,.....
.--,...-,... .-+

.+

. ..-..,.--- ..l .
..-.. ,...--,.....-..
,...-.,....
,...,....
,...-.,-,.....
,...,-,.....
,...-.,....,-,.....
,...,...,-,.....
The present perfect
ltas examined
had exami11ed
is examining
was examining
has been exa111ini11g
had been exa11 1 i11i11g
t.,...-.,........+-...-..

...-.,.-+-., -- -,

.
... --.... .--.-+.-- ... -.
. ..,....-+..+.

., t.STATE PRESENT PERFECT ....+

,.,-..,...-
.........-.,.-. - +
... ....-..-....-..-
.,.. .- ...-+..-.
,..,..--.-..-.... ..
.,...-..-+
t.,have bee11 .-.,,, 1
.
w
--, ...
.have lived --...+.-....,....

.ltas ol l 'ned ..-....-......+

.+
.ve ..,.liked .

,-, t.EVENT PRESENT PERFECT ....+.

.---.---....-.......
+
+,-.-....-..-...-..
+

..-.... ..--.
.. -,.,-..
w

. .
nc . -.,.-+
t.
,...-.

+ . -,..-..-.,,..

.. ...-. - ...-.. .. .,-..+ ..

.-.,-.-...,...-..-.
-.-..... ,..,...-....+

a.,.-..-.have wo11 ......--

I ie , ...got .-.,--

t..been ...-.....+.-.
NOTE
52 The semantics of the verb phrase
. t....-.-...-..-....+...--.--..--...-. -..,...
-.... -, . ..-.,.-+....-.......-. -...-....+..,
.-..,...-.
s.has given .- -....-- ,--.. -. . -.. ..-.,,..,..
.--.. -....,

Have ,-.seen ..-.,-+...---King Lear ...... --.

t.....,\-... ..-+-.- ,

.
-.. +.-have had -.....,.-+..,..--. ..,.-... .
.,. -,
,., t.HABITUAL PRESENT PERFECT ....+ .+,-.-.

.-..

-....-
...-,......-......,....+,-....,-.-+ -. .+ -,..
,...-.
t.-.,..-.has been ,.-..+...,---.,. -..1 975).
I ' ve been ..+ -,-- ,...-..-.. --, . --,
s-.....has infuenced -.-,, -.-,..,. --,
u- .....-,.,.....,...-. ,....+-..--. ---.

,.--...
..+..-..... -+......,....,- -. -,.-+-.-. -.,...
c--. ...
I saw ......,-
* I have seen ......,-
.-,.,...,
,...-,....,
[a] The use of lhc present perfect for rcccl even
.
ls may in ply
.
that the
.
rcsul
'
t of t1
,
c
event stil l applies: He's broken his arm (' Hi s arm 1 s broken ); I ie empt1d the basket
('The basket is empty'); The train has arril'ed 011 Platform 4 ('The tram i s now on
Platform 4' ).
[b] The si mpl e past is often used i n place of the present perfect for recent events,
especially i n AmE: I just got a nell' job.
,
[c] Some advcrbials cooccur with the p
.
rcscnt p
.
crfccl and not w1 t1 tl:c sunlc p
.
asl.
They include the adverb sillce (I hme11 t see11 /11m s111ce); prcpos1t10nal phra
.
scs ,md
clauses i ntroduced by si11ce (since M1u/y; si11CC I met you); the phrases ull/up to
no11 and so far. C/8. 22 Nole [a].
.
[d] The simple past must be used if the impl icit time pcnod docs not reach up to the
present moment:
She gave an i nterview onl y once i n her l i fe. (She can give no more i nterviews,
since she is dead.)
Did you see the new production of King Lmr al the National Theatre? (You
can no l onger do so, because the production has closed.)
[c] I f ll'ill (or shall ) is combi ned with the perfect, the resulting future perfect
conveys the meaning 'past in future' :
By ncxl week, they 11i// have completed their contract.
A similar meaning may be conveyed with other modals:
By next week, they may hme Co1I1pleted their contract. [' I t is possible that
they will have completed . . .']
4.9
Aspect 53
But the combination wi lh the modal may represent a simple pasl or a present
perfect:
I 111ay hal'<' le/i the keys al the onicc. [' I t i s possible that I left/have left . . .']
The past perfect
t.,..,....,- , .,....,....-..-......-.--..,...
.-. ..-.,.,...-...,...-...-,.,.....-......-...
-+....+-,... -, .,...
t.,had 1110Fed -.-..-...-.....-.-,..--- ,
t.. -,.,.....--..-.,.....,...,.... - ........ ...-.
. .. --. ,-....-...-. ....--.....
t.,mol'ed -.-..-...-....-.-,..--
( I .,
t.,...,....-.,..-.,...-...,...-..,...-.,....
s.fwd ol l'ned ..-....-...,..-..+ .+
.,
c--....
s.has oll'ned ..-....-...,..-..+ .+
,..,
w......,.-. ....... --...-...., -,.......+-..
--.-- . --
NOTE The pasl perfect has special uses anal ogous lo those for the simple past (c4.6):
[a] J n i ndi rect speech conslruclions i t indicates a backshift i nto lhc more remote
past: I told her the parcel /we/ 1101 arrived.
[b] The AJJlJLll AL lAJ lLKlL[J refers more politely than the simple past to a
present stale of mi nd: I had ll'ondercd ll'hcthcr you are I were free 11011 (lf 1 4. l 8).
[c] The HYlLJHLJlLAL lAJ lLKlLLJ is used i n certain subordinate clauses,
especi al l y [fclauscs, lo impl y lhal lhc situation did not occur (l/ 1 4. 1 2): If' ! had
been there, it 1r11/d 1101 have happened.
Progressive aspect
4.10 t.,-,.....,-.--. -.-.. , ......--... .... --..-.-,-
,-,..... .,.... .-. . -.--..,..-.. . -., -, ,.....
. .... --.. - ..++.. -- .-+... . .--.-...... ,.--,...
,., o.-..,..-..........-...+---.-...-..,-,.....
.-......-..--..,.---,-,...-- -......-. .
.am liking ,-.....
u.ll'as knoll'ing s-,.

w.-..-......-+ -. ,......-...-..,-,.......,
.+-,.+,-.-.-..--,...,-.,. -+ .....lypc --... -..
- ..++... --
54 The semantics of the verb phrase
\-.are being --.. -...
u.-.---,. ,

v..-..,...-,.--. ---... ..+....-+ . ,.... ..

.-.,-.....
-+......-.. ..-.....- ..,-..
I ' m --,-,.-....-,..-.---
I -.-----,...,-..-. +. ,-.
E ....+ .+,-.-...-..-....-...-.- -, t.EVENT PROGRESSIV
...-......+... --.-+.--. .--,...+
.
,

. , --....-,.
I ll't/I" -- .-...-.....

+1

;-
I +

+ +.... . -
c-.-..--,. -.-.--,-.. .. Ill .- .
, ;
.;

, . ; ..,,.........---..,..,.--.
.;:
.
f
.
;
.
.

..-,.,...

- .; -+.......I .+
-..+..+ -,..---.
.---.-..---- ..---. ...- ,.
.;
+ ..,...,-,.....-.
t..-,.,...-----.-. --..,...

.
-

-.; -.......-. +-- -..--,.. - . ....,-

rOll'll//lg l
,
.....--,......+
.
.
1
t.,....-.,.-,......--..----- ,...+..-

....

.
,...-.-...-..-,...-.. -.-......,...-. ...-........,
.,.+.+....-,.--.+ ... --
,.,
w..--,-.---,I'm -,.....
t.HABITUAL PROGRESSIVE ....+ .+,-.-

..

.-..-....-
.-...-.....,....+ ,-... ...-,.... --.....,....
,...-.... - ..+,.-+-.-.
s.writing .--..-....-..
+..----, -..--,..-.....--
c--...... .---,-,..... -,:.;.-+,-.;
s.-..-...-..
u.-----.-..--,..-.....--
:;
-;
:.;
:-;
t.,.-,..... -,....-,-. -..... .

---,-r....

.. .-.-.-..,s....-...-,... u...

......I .
-,

.-- ,t.---. ,........---- ;....

.--,....-.... +

.+..-.
.. -, ... ---..-,-..-....-+ .. - . . .-.
..--......--. --
.... -...-.--.-,. -, -,...--.
;
NOTE [a] The progressive also has some special uses:
Aspect 55
l To refer to events anticipated i n the future, or lo events anticipated in the
past (future i n the past): The train is leming at 11i11e (lamorroll') ; They were
getting married 1/le/r1lo11i11g spring.
2 Arter ll'ill (or shal) lo impl y that the situation will Lake place 'as a matter
of course' i n the future: /'
I /e seeing you next 1 1eek.
[b] Verbs denoting states of bodily sensation may be used more or less
interchangeably i n the progressive and the nonprogrcssivc when referring to a
temporary slate: My ji}/ hurts/is hurting, My hack aches/is aching; I feel/am
feeling cold.
[c] The habi tual progressive is not used lo refer lo sporadic events (*She's
sometimes tl'a/king to the o/ice); the nonprogrcssivc is requi red fr this purpose
(She sometimes tl'alks to the oJfce). In combination with indefinite frequency
adverbs such as alll'ays and crmtinually, the habitual progressive loses its
temporary meaning; i t ofen conveys disapproval : Bill is ahl'ays ll'orking late at the
ofce. The pejorative sense may also be expressed with the simple present or past i n
combination with these adverbs.
[d] The relationship between two simple frms is normally one of TIME-SEQUENCE:
When we arrived, Jan made some jiesh co/ee (The arrival came before the coffcc
making). The rel ationship between progressive and a simpl e frm is normally one
of TIME-INCLUSION: When ll' e arrived, Jan ll'as making some ce (The arrival look
place during the cofee-maki ng).
Verb senses and the progressive
4.1 1 w....,- -..+-.. .....-. .........-...,.-.. ,+---. -...
-..,-,.....,-,4. 1 0) . a.-.........-..-.....,,..,
-...........-++,-.-...-....-+.,......-,..-...
....s..-...-... -..-.+...-....-.... ...-++,-.-...-.

,., STA TIVE

s.....- -.-,.-+..-,--------,------.---
. . -.............------ --.--.---.---
: s.....-.--. ---.. ...+. -.-,---.---- .-
4 s.....-,...,. -- ,----.--.--.-
s.....---+ ,..-...------,--.-----
,-, STANCE: lie, /iie, ---
,., DYNAMIC DURATIVE ... -,,...-..U ,.-+-.-.,
I .. ...,.-.+-,-.- -...-...-+,--,.-,-.,I4
--...,-
. .. ...,.--.+-,.- -....,.-..-------,-,.-,-
: --......+.--.-,..-,.-........ -,,...-...,.-+,
----,-------,- ,-----
4 ..--,.-.-...........-,.,-.-.-+,--., ,,..
---.,-......,---,..,.,.,-,.-....,,
+, DYNAMIC PUNCTUAL ,. . . .---+... --,
v--.-..,...-...-+.... ---,,,------,.-..
,-,......., -+.......,.. . ---.....-. -,a--.
----,-------
56 The semantics of the verb phrase
. t.-. . --. ...-...-+....arrive, die, dro\\'n, land, leave, stop.
.-..,-,.......,...-.,.-+..+ -,.,.-....-,.-
.....eg: the train is (no11) arril>ing al Platform 4.
NOTE St
a
nce verbs may be used wilh either the progressive or lhe nonprogrcssivc, oflen
with l ittl e lo choose between lhe variants. Bul sometimes lhcy seem lo be used wilh
the nonprogressive to express a permanent stale and wi th the progressive to
express a temporary slate:
4. 12
James lives i n Copenhagen
.
[permanent residence]
J ames is lil'ing i n Copenhagen
.
[temporary residence]
The perfect progressive
w.-..,.....-+,-,.......,.......--- -.+ -....-...-
,...( eg: has been working), ........--..--,...-....+ .
.....,.......-.--- -.+.-...-.TEMPORARY SITUATION LEADING
UP TO THE PRESENT .-..,...... .,.,...-...-..has -have.
t..--- -.. --.--..,.....-..-.. . ... -- -,-,... .
- ..++... -- I've heen l l'riting a feller lo my nephew; It 's heen snoll'ing
again. w.-.,.--...........---,-,.......-.. -I' ve l l'rillen
a feller to my nephew; It 's snml'ed again.
. .. ,.... ,-,.......-....--- -.+ . ...--,.-.-.
,.+...--.-,-.... ,.+...--.(c/
4
. 1 1 ), ..- ....-,...
.--..,...,-.. - .,- -.--, ...-...
I've heen cleaning .. -+-. t.,---.,--. -. -..+
.--....I 've cleaned the !l'imlo\\'s ,
t.....has been gelling .-. ,..-.,,...-... ,
t.,...-.,....,-,.....-.,-....+ .+,-.-...-..-...
.-...-.TEMPORARY HA!IT UP TO THE PRESENT. t....-..-...
.,....+,.,.-..,...-..-+,-..-, -.-......
v..-has been scoring ,.-.,-,-.. . .....--,
I've been working --. .- ,. . ..........
t.,....,-,.....-.,.--- -....,.....-...-+.
--+..
t.-.had been raging --......
a,r+.,.will have been living ....-,...
, ,
:,
.-, , ....-,-.,...-...+..,.-.--.,- -. -..,.. .-.,.
..-,-.,...........-...-. -...... -+....+-,Friday.
t.-.--- -.. -- ...,.....-..-.--+. -..+--. ,...,,-....
Some means of expressing future time 57
....-..-+..-.....-....-- .

.
.
,-.--,

s-.., ,
P -. -,.-.+..-.-...
fwd hee11 lalki11g .--- ,...v--+.,
1111/sl '1l1 1e hee11 llllki11g . - ..v.-+,

Some means of expressi ng future ti me

. -...-..-..-an i nflecti onal ..-.. ..
`
. . .
`
.,...-,.....-.--, .. .. .

......,-.. - ...
=
. -...,. +-
--+. .. ... --+. +
+

... Y -..-.-

--..- ..- . ....( /3 I s, - .-.,.,...-..-+,-,...
r
c o - ,..
... --.
Wi !shal+ infinitive
t.--...----- ,-
. .
.

.
'// ...
.
1

.,...-, .. ...,....--.....--- will -

. .-+ ..
u.\ \'ill he ..-. .--.
Will ,-.need .-,.,.
-+-.-.T'll see ,-.-.....
Shall .al so sometimes ...+.., . r .
.
`
a-,.. -+.....

I `
1L - ..,..,.. ,-s-..
. ..Y 1 a . ,..--..-,...
-+-.-.I shall see ,-.-.....
-., .... .--....--. . .. I .

.
.- -.... -...... ..
.-... .,,- -.. --. - .
- .;,
,
.,. .-.-..a .-,.---+. -..--,.,)
Be going to+ infinitive
t.,.-..-..--,-...--..... I
.
.

.. .. . . -.--..,...-. w.'1
Je go11Ig

10

.--....
-..--,. t.. .. ...I f.I
t

...

+ .-,. .-.,...

. 1 -.-- .,....
.
,

.
...-....+.,..--...-.... +

- .-.- --.. .-,

.- .,.-.....-.
w.-are ,-.going lo get -..+
..'.is going lo lend .....-..

.Ill go111g to co111p/ai11 . -,.+-- . -,-..

t.-..-..--, .. ..... -.
.
,

,..--..-+---,..--...-,...
,...-...... ..-.-+ .--.
I t's going lo rain.
t..going to be .-.- .
s.going 10 hm e .-.-,
Y-.re going lo get .-...+

l
56 The semantics of the verb phrase
Present progressive
4. 16 t.,.-..-..-. -,-..,...-. ,-,................-,--
4. 17
4. 1 8
,...-. ..-,.-.-., .- -,-,.--.
t.-......,-,-,.v-....,-,--,......
t.-.....---,..2.30 .----,
---,... +.-.-...---.....,
Simple present
t... .....-...-,.,...-.....,..-.--,....--+. -...
......
v...,-...,. ---,..--..
. ........,...... -.+.-.-.-...,--.-
| --.. -.......... ......,...-...-...+.. ..-.-....
......-.,..... -..-,.-........+.,..-.....-.,--.---.,
...-..........,...-..-+..,... --..-,........+
.....-.-...--.......-+.
t----.t..+., s.-- ,-.--.--. ..v..
.-.-+....-.. --...-....-..
v.-..,..+.. v....-.---...-...-.,.-
......,...-.,-,....... . .....+. ......-+,-.-....-.. ..-.
...-.,-----------,4. 1 1 ) -.--..,..-..-. -,-,.-.
,.-,.--.
I ,---,--,--......---.....
t.,.-.--...--,-.. 20: 30 .--. ,.
......-...+. ...... ....-..-.--..,....-.-..-.-,-...-.
,-,..........---. ,-...-.
---......---.....
Wil shal+ progressive
t..--......---.--. ...,-,......-.,. -+..........-
,..-+-..-.. .. -...--.... ..... ---....
v.-,-.......-+-..-.+,.. ----,......-.
,-....,
.
--.. ... +.--... .... .. . -....-.-... , . . ..-.+.t
. -...,..... ---.- . .. -- . -..-.. -- ,--.......-. ..--0
--,--,-....-. ,
.
w.-,,-,..30,000 ...
' ; em
m
c.,
Some means of expressing future lime 59
s,
-..--,.., - -.-
....-

..
.
30,
?
00 ......---. .-+
..
. :....-,........-.-.-
,..
-,
...--...-.-..
I
, ...+
. ..+....:,.
t..
LI

....- ...--. .... - . ..-..--- ,-,......

ll 'il//slwl:
- -.--..,,........
..-l l 'il/ ,-.--pQ i,-....
_
=
.---.,

Be (about) to
4.1 9
c-- -
-.- . ......+-
..

.,..-
.-..-+
-..-.--
-. ......
-,.-.-. -
, .-.....
t.+..,. .

t
.l.\ ---..+
.---
....---.--.:..

y
.-,.,
-.

.-----...-,0 -.-..

l ..-..---

,-.
..., .+.--.
']

.-.
,-
...-- I

-..-+.-......+ ']

..
-....,
.+.,:
.
c---.- - -.
- ....-,,..,.
...-is --.--
--.---.
,-..

...,
....-......
.-
,....-1101 --.-,..
-

-..-. ---
s.- .----.
r:

- ,-.,-.,..,...+...--
--,-
uturity is often indicated by
modals

'
1111p
'
01e
(10111orrol l ') ; You 111us1 lwl 'e d'
o,l
.
1c

.
than
1 1 '1//slwl: The
ll'ealher
!Ill/ I '
semi-auxi l i aries such
as be sure lo I I
llllll
/
1 I t 11h us (soon). It is also
indicated by
hope, inlmd plan
' Je Joum to, be like/r lo
and by ful l ve b
I
+

'
s sue 1 as
Future time in the past
v-.-...

..-..
..
.--. .. --.
,..
+......+.

.? +...-..--..-,
...

.--....+ -..,...
..,- -. ...,..
.......-...-.--.
,.,
MOD
AL VERB CONSTRUCTION .-.

I ;.. ..
.,
-.......,., ..-....
-- .-+

I
..- ..-.
.,..
..+

,-, 1L G
.. ..-
.
O!NG
TO+
INFINITIVE

.

. .-
--

,
-.-
. .. ..-.. - .-. s .+
-.---,-,-,..-.,-..++..
t.
,- ...---,-,-.
I
. , -..,-.+ +-. ']

..,...
-. .. I
. . .
. ... ---
..-

.. ...,....+.+..-
,.,
PAST PROGRESSI

v ..-,.-.-
,.+...--.+-
..
,...,
:---,-.-a-+ .
I
.....-..+.,
,s,1L -INFINITIVE ,.-. ,

, +

-.-.

..
...-.+
-
, -
..-,.
n ; s
60 The semantics of the verb phrase
(i) He was eventually to end up in the bankruptcy court.
(i i ) The meeting was to be held the fol l owing week.
(c) BE ABOUT TO+ INFINITIVE ('on the poi nt of'; often wi th the sense of
' unful flled i ntention')
He H'as about to hi t me.
Meani ngs of the medal s
4. 21 We distinguish two mai n ki nds of meani ngs for modal auxi l iaries:
(a) INTRINSIC modal i ty (which incl udes 'permission', 'obl igati on', and
' vol i ti on') i nvol ves some i ntrinsic human control over even ls;
(b) EXTRINSIC modal i ty (which i ncl udes 'possi bi l i ty', necessi ty', and
'prediction') involves human judgmcnl of what is or i s not l i kely lo
happen.
Each of the modal s has both i ntrinsic and extrinsic uses. In some
instances there is an overlap of the two uses; ror example, the will in
sentences such as /'// see you tomorrow then can be said lo combi ne the
meanings of vol ition and prediction.
Most of the modal s can be pai red i nto present and past frms ( can/
could, may/might, shall/should, will/would) . From the poi nt of view of
meaning, the past forms are often merely more tentative or more polite
variants of the present forms (lf 4. 32).
NOTE Various terms arc used ror these contrasts in modal meanings. Approximate
synonyms for i11tri11sic arc deo11tic and root ; for extrinsic the common variant is
epistemic.
Can/could
4.22 (a) POSSIBILITY
Even expert drivers ca11 make mistakes. [' l l is possible for even . . .']
Her performance was the best that could be hoped for.
If i t's rai ni ng tomorrow, the sports can lake place indoors. [' I t wi l l be
possible for the sports lo . . ']
(b) ABILITY
Can you remember where they live? ['Are you able lo remember . . .']
Magda could speak three languages by the age of si x.
They say Bi l l can cook better than hi s wi fe.
(c) PERMISSION
Can we borrow these books from the l i brary? ['Arc we al lowed
to . + ]
Meanings of the modals 61
I n those days onl y men could vote in elections.
In this se1
_
1se, can/could is less frmal than ' by prescri ptive tradi tion
.
Illa) ' wl11ch has been fvoured
May/might
4.23 (a) POSSllILITY
We may never succeed [' I t

bi

is poss1 c that we'll n

,
ou 11w1 be right [ ' I t is
.
bi I
ever succeed. J
TI

. poss1 c t rt you arc right ']
1erc n11gh1 be some compl ai nts
.
.
Here
may denotes lh ,
.
bT
becomi ng true.
L poss1 l i ly of a given proposition's being or
{ b) PERMISSION
You may borrow my bicycle i f
.
borrow . . . ']
you wi sh. (' I pcn11 1 t you lo
Visi lors may reclaim ncccssar l . I .
A1ight I ask whether .
y r<1vc expenses up lo a l i mi t of 50.
you arc us1 11 g the typewriter?
As a pcrmissio
1
.
n aux1 i ary, ma1 is more frmal
.
d I
which (except in fixed phra h
.
an css common than can,
scs sue as i I may) can be substi tuted fr i t.
I n rormal English, 111a1/111ir;h1 is so
. .
ca11/co11ftf:
_
metimcs used H the same possibility sense as
During the autumn, many
rare birds
ma ,
coasts or the island
.
) be
observed on the rocky northern
A1ay here is a more rormal substitute ror Cl
paraphrased /1 ; pos.1

i1 1, 1 1
lIl, and the whol e sentence could be
U U XL'l\'C . . .
Must
{a)
(LOGICAL) NECESSITY
There must be some
mistake.
You must be feeli ng tired.
The Smi ths 11111r1 have a l ot f
+
o money.
The logical necessity' meaning of lllust is . . . .
meanmg of 11/ay since it i mplies that the s
ar

l l cl lo the
poss1 bI I I ly
expressed by the
clause lo be

1 pea er J udges the

proposition
likelihood of being true A1
n

ccs
l
s

n y true, or al least lo have a high

d
o ust 1 11 t 11 s sense m ll 1 rawn a conclusion fro111 ll
.
I
cans
i at t ic speaker has
[
.
i 1 11gs a ready k
b log1cal necessity] cannot normal l b
d
_
n

wn or o
.
served. llust
clauses. Can is generally used in
y
lac
use in i
_
nl

rrogal1

e or negative
corresp
ondi ng lo Slie mu rt be 11
P of 111''1 1 l questions, so that
II
+
ie one vou mean 1 s the t
.
le one vou
mew1 ? TJ1 c neg
l
.
f
-
ques I on Can she be
_
.
U IV L
can [ - 0 " bT
so that You 11/ust bejokin [' I t
.
-
P ssi 1 I ly] fills the negative gap
g is necessarily the case that you arc joki ng']

62 The semantics of the verb phrase

synonymous with You can 't be serious [' It is i mpossible that you are
serious']. Si mi larly:
She must be asleep = She can 't be awake.
There i s another necessity meani ng of must in examples l i ke:
To be heal thy, a pl ant must receive a good suppl y or both sunshi ne
and moi sture. ['I t is necessary for a pl ant to . . .']
(b) OBLIGATION or COMPULSION
You must be back by ten o'clock. ['You are obl i ged to be back . . .'; ' I
require you to be back . . . ']
We 11111s1 all share our ski lls and knowledge.
Productivity 111ust be i mproved, i f the nation is lo be prosperous.
ln these examples, there is the i mplication, l o a greater or lesser extent,
that the speaker i s advocating a certain form or behaviour. Thus /llUSI,
unl i ke have (got ) to, typically suggests that the speaker is exercising his
authority.
Need, have (got) to
4.25 Need (constructed as an auxi liary cf 3. 1 7) is used (esp i n BrE) as the
negative and question frm of 111us1 in the sense ' necessary for':
Need they make all that noise? [ ='Do they need/have to make all that
noi se?'] (esp BrE)
You needn 't worry about t he test. [ ='You don
'
I need/have to worry
about that test'.] (esp BrE)
As the above glosses show, however, it is possible, and i ndeed, more
common even in BrE, to replace auxiliary need by need to or have to
accompanied by do-support.
Have (got ) to can also be substi tuted fr must with l i ttle or no di ference
of meani ng. Compare the fol l owi ng wi th the parallel sentences in 4.24:
(a) (LOGICAL) NECESSITY
There has (got) to be some mistake. (esp AmE)
To be heal thy, a pl ant has (got) to receive H good suppl y of both
sunshine and moisture.
(b) 01LIGATION or COMPULSION
You have (got ) to be back by Len o'clock.
We have all got to share our ski l l s and knowledge.
Productivity will have to be i mproved, if the nation 1s to
prosperous.
Since must has no past tense form and no nonfnile forms, have to is us
in many contexts where 111us1 is i mpossible, eg fol l owi ng a modal Y
We 'll have to be patient .
Meanings of the modals 63
4.26
Ought to, should
(a)
TENT
ATIVE INFERENCE
The mo
untains
{should }
. .
ought lo
be v1s1 blc fom here.
These pl ants
{should }
.
ought to
reach maturi ty
afer fve years.
The speaker
does not
know

r h
.
concl udes
that it is true on tl
'
b
i
_
s state
ment is true, but tentatively
(b)
OBLIGATION
'
1e as1s of whatever he knows
.
You
{ should }
oug/11 10
do as he says
.
The
noor
f should ( ,
.
.
louglz1 1oJ
be w,ishcd at least once a week.
Wi th the perfect .
.
<spcct, slwu/d a nd ouglz t to
.
. .
that the recommendation h
b
yp1cally have the unplication
dS no1 ccn earned
out:
They!
should (
loug/1 1oJ
have met her at the station.
The
l ikely
i mplication is ,
but the d"
,
,
should is more freq uent th
.
.
.
y
i dn l . l n both senses (a) and ( b)
an
oug/t lo.
,
ou
g/11 lo and synonynious
uses of sf
necessity' and 'obligation' a
s do
mus

u

/
l
epress the san
ic basic
modali ti es of
and
l
w1
e (go1) l o i n not expressing l hc s

ve (go!) lo
.
T
_
hey contrast wi th
mus
!
event or stale described
. Hence [ I ]
.
p

confdence i n lhc occurrence of the

is nonsensical, but
[2] i s not:
*Sarah
{
11111s1 }
has lo
be home by now,
but she i sn' t
.
Sarah
{shou/d }
ouK/11 10
be home by now, but she i sn't.
Will/
WOU
/d(' /I/ 'd)
(a)
PREDICTION
[ I ]
[2]
I The
com
mon FUTURE predi ctive scn
.
.
.
be1ter
afler !his medicine
has been
s
_
of lt// l
_
You ll'i// (or You '//)feel
correspon
di ng
'pre
dicti on in ll .
'
iscussed 1 11 4. 1 4 and 4. 1 8. The
I
1e past
sense of would is i l l ustrated b
.
was
told l il'ould feel better after this medici ne
y.
2 The
PRESENT
pred'
.
.
. .
.
1 ct1ve sense of ll'i// 1 . 1
. sm11lar
meani ng lo 11/ust in tl
I
.
'
l
w 11 c J i
_
s comparatively rare, Is
1e
og1ca necessity'
sense
She ivi/ have had her
di nner b
.
That'/ be th
Y now.
e pos
tman. [on heari ng the doorbel l ring
]
64 The semantics of the verb phrase
t. HADITUAL ,.+...... -..-. -, -...- -.... .- .--+. ..--. ..-..-...


+

,,.+ .- ...+ . . lt'ill . .. .+

|. . .-.. ,.,. .
- .- ..-..... . ....-.-.. -. ,.+....-. . . .,
c.. . :-.. -- ...

. - .++. .. -- . . -.... . - +.... ,.. --. -. ,..--.. .-. .. - ...........
-....-.
.
1 . ...+ -. \ .....--,
4.28
u. .... - -.. . ,.

, s. ,... ,., . . . .-,.

s. .. . -- ..
-- ,
..

,

1 [
-+ -.-,,
. . -.-. -- .. - c1 ,-
.-+ ,-. .
.
...
I I ,- .- . .--, ... (ie . .. . . ....-- .-
r.., ----, .. .- c
,- ,
,-, VOLITION
+


)
I INTENTION ,-...- .- .---.-...-- . . . ..-.. -. ,. .. .-
I ' II . .. .. .--- .. I ..-
w. . ..., . --,. ..- .- -..
t. -.-.,. ...+ . .-- ,--. -. ... .-.

WILLINGNESS

, -- ,-. . , -. .- .++... .... ......

r II +- . . . ,-. . ..
t.. -..-. -, . . .----- . - .,..... .-+ -.. c- .. ,.... ,- . ..-...
-. .--.
-
INSISTENCE
|. ,-. . ,- -.. . . -.

. ,-. -...-... .. ..- ,-. ..,....

s. .-- ..., . -...,.-, -.
.

.
. .. ,.. -. .. ..-,...
t.. .--... .. ... . -,.... . -... -.
. + . 'I

.
. : ..
.
.

.
,...
-
,...
.
..-
..-.... ..-... - ,-. . ..-...
Shal
1

\" h ,
!I
-s, . ... .. ... .,
Shall . . .- ,...-.+., s-,

.

.
,
.... ,
.-,... .. ,.-.., ...-.
.-+ -- , .- .... --. . . . . ,.--

,., PREDICTION ,. . . ,..-- ..-,....,


s/. .. . ..-... .... .- .. ... .. ... - . - .--.. ..,..

.


.. .. .....,
..-+.-, .- .. -, --- ,-... I
/-
- ,
1
.

. .-- .. ... .. -. .. ...... --.
w ..-
shall

r.,.... , .- ar ,....,.... ..+. .. -- .--.+. . .. . .. .. .....
Meanings of the modals 65
.. I - ll'C, -.. ... ,.... ,.. -- .. -+..--.+ .-+ .. --.+.,. .+..,
.,--.+
,-, VOLITION ,. . ,..-- ..-,...,
|- .. . -.-.. --.. ..-.. - .. .,..- . .-. ,.-+ ..+... --...,
,....-.+, . ..... - ... I -

f. .
w.
.-
j .,-+ . ... - . ,.-,.
. - ,.....--. .--.. - ., s- t, .- .--... . . .... - ..
.++...... .-+ ... --... -- . .- . .. --. .-.+. .- -- .,...--.
-..-.-, . .. ... .-. . -...-, -+..
s/- .,. +. . .. .. ,--+. - ,-. --. .++...: - o- ,-.
.-. -.,. - , ,
.-+ .- -... -, ..,,....--. .--.. ...+ .........
w. - . +- .. ...-. -, s- . ,- .- . ....: :;
|. . --., .- ... ,.... --. . - ..---. .,..., -. .,...+ -, ll'il.
The past tense forms of the modals
'Past time' in indirect speech
t. ,... .-.. --+.. -- might , -- .-+ /-- .. ...+ ,.. ..
.,.., .. ,.. ..-.. .,......-.. - .- -, ll'il, .-+ .. .- . -+. ...
.,... .--.....--. , , : ,
\-. -,- +- .. ,-. .. -,.-....--,
s. ...+ . .--,_/ +- .. . ...+
.. -, ..- ... -,-...-... ,,
w. .. ...+ .. .. might ..- ...
t. ,.- l l'il ......+ - ,.+....--;
. . ... .. .. , - - .....+
+- .-,... . need (as .... ..,, , O, .-. .- - .. --
,...-.,,... + ... -... -- t... ..-. .. ..... .-..-,.+ . - . -+. ...
.,... .--......--. ...- .. .., .. - ,... . -.
'Past time' in other constructions
c....+. . -+. ... .,... .--... .. -.... -. - .. ,... ..-.. --+.
-. . . ... ,.+....-. c-- .-+ -.. .. .. ,... .. -. .,.. ...-..
- . .-+ ll'il; -.. -- .. -. _ .-+ -- +- -- .. .. .. ,...
..-. .,.. ...-.. - -, .-+ -
,., -. -.co
t.. .. -- ... . -- +- , ... .. . .- .+
-,.-....--,
|- -.. +.,. . ..-....-... .-,.,. -- -. +.-,.-..
-,-...-. . ,,
-. - .. -..... -/ .,... s-, .. -.-... .,;
NOTE
4.31
66 The semanti cs of the verb phrase
(b)
WILL WOULD
l or l =predi cti on}
Later, he ivould learn
.
i
!
s e
f
rr
; f the televi si on cont i n
uously.
The old l ady
would sit 1 11 ron o
[
-
habi tual
predi cti on 1
d
-
. b
.
l but no one ll'OUld !en us one.
We tried to borrow u o,i q
[=wi l l i ngness)
[

:
t
, - -}
He ' 11'011/d leave the house in a muJJ\c. = 1 ns1s cncc
.

n thc sense of intention; hence a sentence

Outside i ndirect speech uo11/d1s not used '
.
.
I sl i nevitabl y i nterpreted as free
such as He 11011/d meel me !he 11exl da) is mo
i ndi rect speech (({ 1 4.22).
Hypothetical meaning
f l . t
be used in the hypothetical sense o t 1e pas
The past tense modal s c

n
d b d" natc clauses. Compare:
tense (cf 4. 6) in both mam an su or I
I f Uni ted can wi n thi s game, they may become league
(
I ]
champi ons.
.
/ b me league
If Uni ted could win this game,
they m1g i i eco
[2]
champi ons.
.
.
resses a hypothetical condi ti on; ie It conveys
Sentence [2], un\I ke [ l }, exp
.
d 11 1 wi n the game and therefore
,
tation that U111 te ll'l no '
h
.
l
the speaker s expec
.
For ast hypothetical meani ng (w ic 1
wi l l 1101 become league champ1 0

1s.
t" on) we have to add the perfect
normally has a contrary-to-fact m terpre a I ,
aspect:
l
they
mighl
have hecome
If United could have ll'Oll l ml game,
'
league champi ons.
l
.
l " cat 1on of thi s i s that United di d 1101 win the game.
The usua i mp 1
(
3
]
4.32
Tentativeness or politeness: contd, migl, would
(a) TENTATIVE PERMISSION ( i n pol i te requests):
Could I see your dri vi ng licence'! .
_
I wonder if I mighl borrow some co!lcc .
(b) TENTATIVE VOLITION ( i n pol i te requests):
(c)
l
Would you l end me a dol lar? [more poli te than ll'i//]
I'd be grateful if someone would hold the door open.
TENTATIVE POSSIBILITY
. .
i n expressing a tentative opi ni on:
.
There could be somethi ng wrong with the l i ght switch.
Of course, I miglz t be wrong.
2 in poli te di rectives and requests:
Could you (please) open the door?
You could answer these letters for me.
'Mood markers': 11'1111/d and should
Meanings of the modals 67
(a) WOULD/SHOULD AS A MARKER OF HYPOTHETICAL MEANING
Would ( and sometimes
,
with U l st person subject
,
should) may express
hypothetical meani ng in mai n clauses (cf l 4. 1 2):
If you pressed that button, the engine l\'ould stop. [ l ]
I f there were an accident, we l!'ould/shou/d have to report i t . (2
)
Al though the condi ti onal sentence, as i n ( ! ] and [2], is the most typical
context in which hypothetical would/should occurs, there are many other
contexts i n whi ch hypothetical l\'ould/should i s appropriately used:
I'd hate to lose thi s pen. (
3)
It \!'ou/d be impossible lo estimate how many crimes went
undetected l ast year. (4]
Don' t bother lo read al l these papers. I t \!'ou/d take too l ong.
(
5)
I n such sentences, there is often an i mpl i ci t if" . . . ; for example
,
[5] coul d be
expanded: /1 ivould lake 100 long if you did (fry lo read !hem all ).
(b) SHOULD AS A MARKER OF
'
PUTATIVE
'
MEANING
In this use should+ i nfi ni ti ve i s often equi val ent to the mandati ve
subjunct i ve ( cf 3. 24). In using should, the speaker entertai ns, as i t were
,
some ' putati ve' world
,
recognizing that it may well exist or come i nto
existence (1:f 4. 1 4):
She i nsisted that we should stay.
I t's unfai r that so many people should lose their j obs.
Let me know if you should hear some more news.
Why sfzou/d anyone object lo her enjoying herself?
I can't thi nk why he s/1011/d have been so angry.
Putati ve should i s more common in BrE than in Am E.
The modals with the perfect and progressive aspects
The perfect and progressive aspects arc normally excluded when the
modals express 'abi l i ty' or ' permi ssi on'
,
and also when shall or ll'i!I
expresses ' vol i ti on' . These aspects arc freely used, however, wi th extri nsi c
modal meani ngs other than abi li ty; eg:
'possibi l i ty' He 111ay/111igh1 have mi ssed the trai n.
She ca11 '1/could11 ' 1 be swimming al l day.
' necessity' He 11111s1 hme lcfl bis umbrella on the bus.
You mus! he dreaming.
' prediction' ctc The guests wi///11ou/d fzave arrived by that lime.
Hussein ll'ill/11ould sti l l be reading hi s paper.
\ !
4.35
68 The semantics ol the verb phrase
(On the meani ng of the perfect aspect after a modal ,
and in particular the
possibility or paraphrasing it by means or the si mple past tense
,
cf 1 4. 8
Note [e]).
' Obl i gati on' can only be expressed wi th the perfect or progressive when
combined wi th should or ought to:
'obligation'
I ought to be working now. [' . . . but I ' m not']
You shoulc!!wve finished it. [' . . . but you ha vcn ' t']
She shouldn
'
t have left hi m. [' . .
.
but she did' ]
The combination of both perfect and progressive constructions wi th the
modals is also possible, subject to the conditions already mentioned:
You must have been dreaming.
She couldn' t have been swimming al l day.
The guests would have been arriving by now.
Meani ng in the nonfinite verb phrase
Non fni te verb phrases do not accept modal auxi l i aries, but the meanings
of the modals can be expressed through the use of semi -auxi l i aries,
such as have to, be (un)able to, be a//011'ed to, be ahout to:
I am sorry to have to repeat this waring.
Being unable to free himself, he lay beneath the debris unti l rescued.
The suspects admi tted being about to commi t a crime.
Many i nmates hate not heing alloll'ed t o leave the premises.
We have seen that the distinction between present and past tense does not
apply to non fni te verb phrases (cf 3. 1 9). Although there are nonfni te
perfect constructions, the meaning conveyed by the perfect in such
constructions is si mply time precedi ng some other time.
The full range of perfect and progressive aspect forms is onl y possible
wi thi n an i nfini tive phrase:
{lo be wi nni ng his race. [simple progressive]
S
.
T
lo have won his race. [simple perfect]
tr opaz appears
h b
+ + 1 +
[

to ave een wmmng 11 s race. pcr ecl

progressi ve]
I n an -ing participle phrase in adverbial clauses, the perfecl/nonperfecl
contrast is sometimes available:
Eating a hearty breakfast, } we prepared fr our long
Havi ng eaten a hearty breakfst, journey.
[ I ]
[2]
From [ l ], we understand that the eating and the preparation look place
together, whi l e from [2], we understand that the breakfast preceded the
preparation.
But the progressive/non progressive contrast is not normally applicable
here, since -ing participle phrases arc i ncapable or expressing this
n r =zm '
Meaning in the nonfinite verb phrase 69
?istinction frmally. Moreover the -in ' . . ,

.
. .
I ls appearance
,
necessarily asso
,
ciat . d
,
_
P
tl
<1rl
l
1 c1 plc i tsel f !s not, 1 11 spi te of
e WI 1 t l e progressive:
Being an enemy of the Duke' s
Reali:ing he was in danger
,
} I I r I .
.
Ha1ing no news of his wi r
, le e t t 1e court i mmediately. [3]

The participles in [3] arc slati vc ve b .
. .
progressive.
r s, normally Incompat1 ble with the
Nevertheless' there are constructions in h
.
.
construction has aspect contrast wit! tl
.
- tch the
_
-mg participle
meani ng (c/ 1 6. 2/}
1 lC i nfimti vc, and IS progressive i n
r f
sa
}
them
{ s
hoot al him
.
l heard
shooting at him.
Whereas the i nfini ti ve shoot su , csts a si I
. .
su
_
ggests a repetitive action lasti

over a
ng
.

c shot,
_
the

mg participle
Wi th the i nterpretation of lh .
g
.
pc! IOd of ll JllC, I n accordance

.
e p1 ogrcss1vc aspect in fin" t b h
re1 err111g lo momentary events I
.
I e vcr p rases
. n
.
I watched them
{cl'mh _ the tower.
[4]
cl1mhmg the lower
lh
.
f
.
.
.
[5]
e m mt1 ve c!i11 1b suggests that they reached h
the participle climbing leaves open the
- 1 top of the tower, whereas
completed.
posst 1 tty that the action was not
The -ed participle phrase has no formal .
therefre the most restricted type or hra
.
contasts or ascct, and is
Here again
,
however there is a
p
.
sc 1 11 terms of semantic contrasts.
participle phrase:
, potenti al contrast with the passive -ing
[6]
I saw the tower
{
L1

'nhCd
_
by a student.
bung climbed by a student
TI


.
[7]
le part1c1 plc climhed in [6] is the mssiv
climb i n [4]; i t describes the cl i mb ;s a
c counterpart or the i nfni tive
climbed in [7] describes
.
l .
.
compl eted event
, whereas being
1 <1s 1 11 progress and " bi
+ +
Compare also the perfect p1ss
.
'
.
.
as poss1 y 1 11co111plete.
. L I vc -mg p1rt1c1pl I

reprimanded, f . . .
' c P i rase 1 11 1al
'
ing been
Bi bl i ographical note
General lrcalmcnts of the mean in and u
.
.
Palmer ( I 988).
g sc of vci b conslrucl1ons: Leech ( I 987);
On tense and aspect i n gcncnl sec L
.
On the perfective aspec
l,
sec

M;
Coa

o
;s
9

77, vol . 2); Schopf ( I 987, I 989).

On slal1vc. agentive, and other 'I . . . f
.
.
( 1 973); Jacobson ( 1 980); Vcndlcr\
;
l

c
;
)

verb mcan1 11g, sec Bache ( 1 982); Cruse
On expression of fut_urc time, sec Wekkcr ( I 976).
On modal mcanmgs 1 11 general sec C . l
son ( 1 976); Leech and Coates ( 1 980)

L
O<! cs ( I

83); 1-lcrmcrcn ( I 978); Johannes

. yons ( 1 77. vol . 2); Palmer ( 1 979).
5. 1
5 Nouns and determi ners
Nouns fal l i nto di ferent classes as shown in Fig 5. 1 .
Common
Nouns
Proper
<Concrete
Count
< Abstract
<Concrete
Noncount
Abstract
Fig 5.1
eg bun, pig, . . .
difculty, remark, . . .
butter, gold, . . .
music, laziness, . . .
The disti nction between concrete (accessible to the senses, observable,
measurable, etc) and abstract (typically nonobservable and nonmeasur
able) is important semantically. Of more relevance to grammar, however,
is the di stinction between proper and common nouns. Si nce the former
have unique refrence (cf5. 25.ff), determiner and number contrast cannot
occur: * the Indonesia, *some Chicagos. Contrast with common nouns the
butter, some difculties. But among nouns, we have the further di stinction
between count (also called 'countable') and noncount (also called 'mass')
nouns. Li ke the di stinction between proper and common, we have here a
di ference that has both semantic and grammatical signi fcance, since
count and noncount nouns permi t a di ferent range of determiners. In
Table 5. 1 , we di splay the various determiner constrai nts as they afect the
Table 5. 1
bLLH LLMMLM
LL\M MLMLL\M LL\M or MLMLLLM
(a) Freda *book music brick
(b) *the Freda the book the music the brick
(c) *a Freda a book *a music a brick
(d) *some Freda *some hook some music some hrick
Partitive constructions 7 1
classes of nouns, the furth column showing that some common nouns
can be used as both count and noncount. Thus nouns l i ke cake or brick can
refer ei ther to the substance (noncount) or to units made of the substance
(count). The lines (a)-(e) represent diferent determiner constraints: Can
the si ngular noun occur (a) wi thout a determiner? (b) wi th the defnite
article? (c) with the i ndefi nite article? (d) wi th the partitive some, /s-m/?
Can the plural noun occur (e) without a determiner?
NOTE [a] On apparent exceptions l i ke ' The Chicago of my youth', sec 5. 26/
(b] The absence of article i n I like Freda and I like music makes the two nouns onl y
superfici al l y si mi l ar; in the former there is no article where i n the latter there i s zero
article whi ch can contrast wi th the. Compare
*I like FredU, but the Freda this eveni ng i s bori ng.
I l i ke music, but the music this eveni ng i s boring.
But cf5. 22f
Partitive constructions
5.2 Both count and noncount nouns can enter constructions denoting part of
a whole. Such partitive expressi ons may relate to (a) quantity or (b)
qual ity, and i n either case the partition may be singular or pl ural . It thus
affords a means of imposing number on noncount nouns, since the
parti tion i s generally expressed by a count noun of partitive meani ng
(such as piece or sort, which can be singular or plural), followed by an
of-phrase.
(a) QUANTITY PARTITION
(i) Of noncount nouns; eg:
(ii)
a piece of cake two pieces ofcake
an item ofclothi ng several items of clothing
These partitives (as also the i nfrmal bit ) can be used very general ly,
but wi th some nouns specifc partitives occur; eg:
a blade ofgrass
some specks ofdust
two slices ofmeat/bread/cake
Of plural count nouns; here we tend to have partitives relating to
specifc sets of nouns; eg:
72 Nouns and determiners
Determiners

13
a flck o steep/pigeons
two jocks ofsheep/pigeons
a series (f concerts/lccllHcs
Central determiners
NOTE
two series o/;;onccrts/Jccturcs
(iii) or singular count nouns; e;r
a piece r/a leather belt
a page o a book
two pieces ofa broken cup
two acts ofa play
(b) QUALITY PAR7ITION is expressed most commonly with kind and sort ;
eg:
{ a new kind of
count computer
several new kinds <(
computer(s)
one sort (.)(silk tie
two sons <J/silk tic(s)
"0"'0""' {
a delicious kind of
bread
a fashionable sort <1
wallpaper
some delicious ki1tlI' <1
bread
fashionable sorts of
wallpaper
Other quali ty partitives include type, vanet1', and (especially with
such materials as coffee or tobacco) blend.
(a] Both quan li1y and quality partiti on may be expressed by treati ng the noun itself
as !hough it expressed a quantity or quali ty. Tlws a noncoun1 noun can be given
count characteristics and lll'o co/J<'e.1 may in appropriate contexts mean either 'two
c11ps o/cofee' or 'two types <coffee'.

[b] Quanti ty partitives may be expressions of prtcisc measure: eg a yard of cloth,
two kilos ofput a toes. There can also be fracti onal partition and this may co occur
with normal qu;tnti 'y partition, as in 'He ate a quarter rthut (oint uf) beef".
[c] Since there is no necessary conncction between couniability and referential
meaning, muny Engli sh nouns can simulate the plural only by partitive
constructions where their translation equivalents in some other l anguages arc
count nouns with singular and plural frms. g:
some information -some pieces 1ij' information
his anger- his b11rsts ofa ngcr
Determiners
5.3 I n actual usnge, nouns appear i n 1101111 phrases (Chapter 1 7), and the kind
of reference such a noun rhrase has depends on the accompanying
DETEl\MINl:R. We distinguish three classes of determiners, set up on . the
basis of their position in the noun phrase in relation to each other:
Central determiners (eg: the, a, this)
Predeterminers (eK: half: all, double.; as in all the people)
Postde1..:rmi 11ers ('g: st1e11, 11w11y, jiw; as in the 11 1m1:r 11a.1scngers)
the, a, and zero
5. The definite and indefnite articles are the commonest central determiners
and, as we saw in 5. 1 , their distribution i s dependent upon the class of the
accompanying noun. Relating defniteness to number, we have the
following system fr count and noncount nouns:
NOTE
COUNT NONCOUNT
{ defnite the book the music
SINGULAR
indefinite a book music
{ defnite the books
PLURAL
indefinite books
Beside the sole definite article the, we thus hclVe two indefnite articlcs 11
and zero, the former occurring with singular count nouns, its lcr
analogue with noncount and plural count nouns. Both tlte and a have
a di fferent form when the following word begins with a vowel, though tlw
does not display this difference in writing:
the hird [oo] the owl [oi]
a bird [o) m1 o\\'I [on]
The use of the articles is examined in 5. 1 lj.
[a] The indefnite article 11/1111 cun be regarded as an unst ressed numeral one; c'/1111<'
or mo powrds-a por11ul or two.
[b] With nouns beginning with It, the prcvocalic frms arc used if thi s is 1wl
pronounced:
[5i] /11111011r 1111 hour
Thus fr those who do not pronounce h befre unstressed syllables a di ffl'rl'n<:c is
observed between such pairs as ' history and lri'sorical:
a lrislory book-a11 lristorical nol'el
[c] When the articles arc st ressed for uny reason (as fr examph i n slow SJ>lcls a1 1d
esp.:cially in AmE), they arc pronounced [ii], (ci], [am].
5.5 Like the defnite article, the.re are several other determi n.:rs 1 ha1 lan
cooccur equally with singular count, plural count, and nonc:ount nouns.
{a) The DEMONSTRATIVES this and thal (wi th noncount and sinular wu1 1 t
nouns), these and 1hose (wi th
J
lural count nouns):
I prefer !his picture/music to that (picture/music).
These desks arc i mported but I/rose tables arc made loc:ally.
(b) The POSSESSIVES my, our, your, his, her, its, their:
I admire her house/her books/her taste.
(c) The wh-determiners which. whose, whichever, wl111tt11r, lt'/w.11 11r.
whether as relatives, indctinite relatives, or interrogatives:
74 Nouns and determiners
Please come at noon, by which time I shall be back in my ofce.
The woman whose book you reviewed is on TV tonight.
They will disapprove of wlzate1er music is played.
Which house do you prefer?
What time is it?
(d) The NEGATIVE DETERMINER 110:
He has no car/no chil<lrcn/110 concentration.
AH these determiners (sometimes with a modification of form as in theirs,
none) have a pronominal role as well, and they will be treated in more
detail below (6. 1 6jl
Like the indefinite article, there arc determiners that cooccur only with
singular count nouns.
(a) The UNIVERSAL DETERMINERS every and each.
We need to interview Cl'ery(each student separately.
(b) The NONASSERTIVE DUAL DETERMINER either:
There is no parking permitted on either side of the street.
(c) The NEGATIVE DUAL DETERMINER neither:
Parking is permitted on neither side of the street.
5.6 Like the zero article, there arc determiners that cooccur only with
noncount nouns and pl um] count nouns:
(a) The GENERAL ASSERTIVE IWffRMJNER SOii/( (s;m1):
[ would like some bread/some rolls, please.
(b) The GENERAL NONASSl'RT!VE l>lERMINl'R any:
We haven't m1y bread/any rolls left.
(c) The QUANTITATIVE DFTERMINl'R enough:
We have enough equipment/enough tools for the job.
These determiners will be discussed in more detail when we come to their
pronominal functions (6.25().
NOTE la.I When sl rcsscd in some circumstances, any ea n occur wi th singular count nouns,
as in 'S'hc will considec ;'
a
ny offer - however small'.
{bj /\ stressed form ofsome{st.m] is used with the meaning of strong indefiniteness
('01 1;. unidcnti ficd. a certain') and this has the same distribution potential as items
in 5.4:
You will win some day: some days she feels better; I found sonie st ranger
wniti1 1 for nw: l hey arc playing som(' peculiar music that no one has heard
hci'orc.
Determiners 75
Predeterminers
5.7 Predeterminers form a class in generalty being mutually exclusive,
preceding those central determiners with which they can cooccur, and in
having to do with quantifcation. It i s useful to distinguish two subsets:
(a) all, both, ha
!f
(b) the multipliers
NOTE The items .\/eh and 1r/w1 are exceptional in referring to quality rather than
quantity ('ll'hat a day we had; I can't remember such a time') and this accounts for
combi nations like a/I s11ch.
All, both, half
5.8 These have in common the positive characteristic of being able to occur
before the articles, the demonstratives, and the possessives:
th }{ ;:se } students
ha(( our
They also have the negative characteristic of not occurring before
determiners that themselves entail quanti fication: e1ery, each, (n)either,
some, any, no, enough. Beyond these generalizations, their occurrence
needs to be described on an individual b<isis:
ALL occurs with plural count nouns and with noncount nouns, as in
all the books
all books
all the music
ail music
BOTH occurs with plural count nouns, as in
both the books both books
HALF occurs with singular and plural count nouns and with noncount
nouns, as in
hal f the book(s)
half a book
half the music
(but *half music)
NOTE [a] As well as being predeterminers, all, both and ha/fe<in. li ke demonstratives, be
used pronominally:
All
}
. { and {
a
l } asscd.
Both the students sat for their exam both
p
Hal/ but half failed.
They can also be followed by an of-phrase:
A/1(801/z/!a(fof thc students .
M nrcovcr, 111/ and hoth may appear at the adverbial M position (a fcr the opcrattir:
8. 1 1), as i n:
16 Noun: and determiners
{ all } .
The students
l 1
sat lor the exam.
JO( I
{ all } . .
The students wcn:
both
sittmg or the exam.
[b] Since half' may modify a fl lowing noun as an ad hoe or institutionalized
compound, we can have pairs such as ha{(' an hour and a ha{flwur (where there is
little difference of meaning) or half a bottle of1vine (half of the contents) and a ha{('
bottle ofwine (a small bottle holding half the contents of an ordinary bottle).
[c] Fractions other than half are usually followed by an oFphrase and must
normally be preceded by a nureral or the indefnite article. Compare:
She read ha{/ the book.
She read of the book.
{ a quaner }
rlree q11artas
But, especially with time, distance, heig/11, we sometimes find fractions used as
predeterminers:
He was given six months for the work but he finished in rwo-thirds the time.
5.9 The MULTIPLIERS have two uses as predetermi ners. When the following
determiner is the defni te article, demonstrative or possessive, the
multiplier applies to the noun so determined:
twice/double the length ('a length twice as great')
three times her salary ('a salary three times as large')
When the fllowing determiner is the indefnite article or each or e1ery, the
multiplier appl ies to a measure (such as frequency) set against the uni t
specifed by the fol lowing noun:
once a day
llVice each game
four J imes every year
NOTE We can compare expressions of costing:
Oil then cost only jille11 dollars a barrel.
Her salary is ten rho11sa11d yen a/per month.
Postdelerminers
5. 10 Postdeterminers take their place immediately after determiners just as
predeterminers take their place immediatel y before determiners.
Compare:
Predeterminer: Both the young women were successful.
Postcicterminer: The two young women were successful.
With zero determiner, of course, the distinction is neutralized:
The ar1ic1es In specific reference i i
Both young women were successful.
T110 young women were succcsst'u!.
Postdeterminers fall into two classes:
(a) ordinal s, such asfirst, .fimrth, last, other;
(b) quantiliers, such as se1r, ninety, mw1,', fl'W, plenty of. a lot of.
Where they can cooccur, items from (a) usual ly precede items from (b): fo
example:
the.first lwo poems
my last few possessions
her other 1111111y accomplishments
Among the (b) items, there arc two important disti nctions involvi ng.fe11
and /i11le. First,/iw occurs only with plural count nouns, little only wi th
noncount nouns. Second, when preceded by <1, each has a posi ti ve
meaning; without 11. each has a negati ve meani ng. Thus:
I play a j(11 games (ie 'several').
I play jiw gams (ii ' hardly any').
She ate a little bread (ie 'some').
She ate lirtle bread (ie ' hardly any').
We should note also a contrast involving assertive and nonnsscrtive usage
(2. 1 1 ). Some item are predominantly asserti1e (such as pleirty of; 11/l'll', 11
liule, a good many), while others are predominantly no11assertile (such as
much, many):
We need plenly a/ti me.
We don't need 11wcli time.
She has written a good many poems.
She hasn't wri ttcn many poems.
The articles in specific reference
The definite article
5. 1 1 The articl e !he marks a noun phrase as 1h:finite: that is, as referring 10
something which can be identi fied uniquely in tlie contextual or general
knowledge shared by speaker and hearer. Such shared knowledge is partly
a knowledge of the world and partly a knowledge ofEnglih grammHr, as
we shall sec in 5. I 2- l4.
5.12 Where the use of the depends on shared knowledge of the world, we may
speak of SITUATIONAL REFERENCE, and this is of two kinds. We firs!
distinguish 1/e used in connection with the IMMEDIATE si tation:
78 Nouns and determiners
Do you see the bird sitting on 1he lower branch?
Oh dear! The stain hasn't come out of the carpet.
Tn such cases, the identity of the particular bird, branch, stain, and carpet
is obvious because they are physically present and visible. But the
reference might be obvious because the situational reference was in the
minds of speaker and listener:
When tire policeman had gone, I remembered that 1 hadn't told him
about the damaged window-pane.
Secondly, we have the LARGER situation, where identification of the
reference depends on assumptions about general knowledge more than on
the specifc experience of the particular speaker and listener:
I do most of my travelling by overnight train, and of course in the
dark one has no idea of what the countryside looks like.
So also with reference to the Pope, the PresidenJ, the govermenr, the
Equator, the stars; and as we see in these examples, the shared assumption
of uniqueness in refrence is often matched by use of an initial capital in
writing. Cf 5.25/
NOTE The same phrase may involve the with immediate or larger situational reference:
Would tlC' children like to go Olli and play?
When we design schools, do we ask ourselves wbat the children would like?
As with the latter example, larger situational reference often overlaps with generic
use: (f 5.22//:
5.13 Special cases of the l arger situation occur with the use of !he fr SPORADC
reference and for reference to the_BODY. In sporadic reference, we promote
to institutional status a phenomenon of common experience. Thus in
contrast to the particular newspaper that a particular individual buys, or
the p<irticuhir theatre that stands in a particular street, we may use the
paper or the tliealre more broadly:
You'll probably see it in the paper tomorrow.
l like to go to the theatre about once a month.
C/also:
She's not on the telephone yet, though she may have one installed
soon.
I won't come by car; I'll take the train.
Everyone would sleep better with the windows open.
With reference to parts of the body, the is often used in prepositional
phrases instead of a possessive such as my or her:
I grabbcu him by the arm.
She banged herself on the forehead.
The articles In specific reftrcncc 79
He has a fracture of the collarbone.
The child has a pain in the chest.
T medical usage, the can replace a possessive without the body part or
function being in a prepositional phrase; thus (doctor to patient):
How is the chest now? Has the breathing been affected?
5. 1 4 The use of the may be determined by logical and grammatical factors. The
uniqueness of a referent may be recognized not by general knowledge of
the world but be logically imposed by meaning. Nouns premodified by
superlatives, ordin<ils and similar restrictive items such as sole will thus be
made logically unique:
When is the next fight?
She was the sole survivor.
They judged him to be the most original painter.
Grammatica{ determination is of two kinds:
(a) Anaphoric reference, where the indicates identity of reference with
that established earlier i n the discourse:
Fred bought a radio and a video-recorder, but he returned the radio.
Here the anaphora is 'direct'; but anaphoric reference may be
'indirect', requiring some support from general knowk:dge:
When she tried to open her front door, she couldn't get the key into
rhe lock.
Here the two defnite articles arc correctly interpreted as grammati
cally anaphoric only because we know that a front door has a lock,
and opening one involves using a key.
(b) Cataphoric reference, where the indicates that the identity of the
reference will be established by what follows:
I am trying to find the book that l wanted to show you.
Here, rlie is only justified by the adct ressec knowing that the speaker
had planned to show him or her a book. Similarly, in
_,_,_,
How did you get the ( = 'that') mud on your coat?
there is the presumption that the addressee knows there is mud on the
coaL Contrast:
{- * the mud}
Do you know that you have
mud
on your coat?
The indefinite article
5.15 Jn contrast to the, an indefinite article is used when a reference cannot be
regarded as uniquely identifiable from the sha red knowledge or speaker
and addressee:
NOTE
5.16
80 Nouns and determiners
I am just about to move into an apartment quite near where you live.
Conlrast the uniquely identifable apartment which justifies the cata
phoric tire in:
J am just about to move into the apartment directly above yours.
The indefinite article is commonly associated with 'frst mention' of an
item with which anaphoric the would be used in subsequent mention:
Her house was burgled and she lost a camera, a radio, and a purse -
though fortunately the purse contained very little money and the
camera was insured.
[a) Body parts which are multiple can be individually referred to with the indefnite
article:
Jack has broken tl fnger/a rib.
but
Jack has bumped his head.
[b] While identical noun phrases with the are taken to be coreferential, this is not
the case when the article is indefinite:
Mary bought the camera from her sister and she has now sold the
camera lo me. [!]
Mary bought a camera last week and sold a camera this week. [2]
In [f ] , only one camera is involved; in [2), the presumption is that reference is made
to two different cameras.
[c] Note also the use of zero with complements of some verbs:
She tured lingui st. She became a linguist.
They made him chairman.
The indefinite article and the numeral vne
We often use the indefinite article in ways that reflect its origin as an
unstressed variant of the numeral. In such cases, one could replace aian
with only a slight implication of greater emphasis:
Our neighbours have two daughters and son.
{ a }
one
Th
. t { a }
d/
{ a } hundred/thousand/million
IS COS poun
.
011e . one pounds.
Compare also variant phrases in which one is used when a conjunction
fllows:
W lk d
f {a mile or two.
c wa e or .
one or two miles.
{a foot and a hal f deep.
The water is only
one and a half !eel dct:p.
The articles in specific reference 81
NOTE In phrases of measure like 'half m1 hour', 1r dollars a day', tl1.: nu1 11.rical

runclion cannot be rllllillcd by une without expansion and recasting: 'ten dollars
for one day'.
5. 1 7
5. 1 8
The zero article
Zero article and some/any
With noncount and plural count nouns, the role of indefnite article is
fulflled by either zero or (where quantification is to be cxpresscd) some or
its nonassertivc (2. 1 1 ) analogue any.
D k
1
{a boysenberry looks like?
o you now w iat . .
boysenberm:s look hke?
{a11 apple
She bought her son
'
1 some app es.
I like milk with my coffee.
I would like some milk with my coffee, please.
He hasn't bought any books for years, whereas she spends half her
salary on books.
She has men as well as women on her staff.
lfwe inserted some before both men and women in this last sentence, there
would be little diference in meaning. But if we inserted some befre one
and not before the other, it would giv< the impression that this indicated
the minority:
She has men as well as some women on her staff.
But the grcatcr generality of zero as compared with some must not lead us
to confound this general usc of zero with the generic use which we shall
consider i n 5.22. Compare:
Quantitative: Some coffee will calm this nervousness of yours.
General: Coffee can be bought almost anywhere.
Generic: Coffee is a common stimulant.
Zero article with definite meaning
Despite its widespread correspondence to the indi;fnite article, the .cr
article can, conversely, be used in ways that closely resemble the definile
article. This is notably so where a phrase specifes a unique role or task. In
the following examples, the parenthesized the could be present or absent
with very little difference of meaning:
Maureen is (the) captain ofnethu// this year.
As {the) chairman, I must rule you out of order.
The speaker will be Mr Watanabe, (the) author <fa recent book 011
i111ematio1w/ affairs and of course (the) presenter ofsereral TV talk
shm1s.

A: though she declined the position of director, she accepwd the nlk
or 11111/ficia/ {(/i>iSC'r.
'
l: Nouns nnd determiners
NOTE
(111 We should note also the contrast between restrictive and nonrestrictive
upposition ( 1 7.27):
Prime Minister Gandhi the Prime Minister, Mr Raj i v Gandhi
lhl In institutional usage, zero replaces tire in a way that implies proper-name
l11h1s for un item:
Council will consider this in due course The Council will . . .
111
/rl ides arc usually omitted in headlines ('Crew deserts ship in harbour') and on
ullkinl lorrns ('Please state reason for application and give names of two
upporlcrs').
5. 19 Analogous to the use of the with sporadic reference (5. 1 3), we have zero
with implication of defnite rather than indefnite meaning. This is
tspc<:ially so with idiomatically institutional ized expressions relating to
tommon experience.
(11) <1111si-locatives (where a particular activity or role in connection with
! he location is implied):
town beside The town is very old.
bo ;"} { bod It's on the bed.
go to chreh How far is the church?
prison Don't stop near the prison.
be at, go home This was the home of a fnancier.
{sea The sea looks calm.
go to
college She drove to the col lege.
Frequently there is a distinction in meaning between zero and the;
thus 011 stage will usually refer to a play or p<Hticipant in current
theatrical production, while on the stage refers to literal physical
h>cation or is an idiom denoting the acting profession: 'She was a
teacher hut now she's on the stage.' Again, there arc distinctions in
meaning between AmE and BrE; thus in school would be used in AmE
for the state of being a school pupil (BrE at school but in BrE it would
refer merely to being inside the building; i11 the hospital in AmE is used
nl' a patient (1rE in hospital) but in BrE denotes physical location.
(h} '/'r1111sport and communication: when by precedes the mode in
question, zero occurs:
travel }
cnmc
1\0
c11d ii by
{bicycle
bus
by train
car
-plane
telex
{post (esp BrE)
mail (esp AmE)
satellite
beside The bicycle was damaged.
She was on the bus.
Should we take 1he train?
ctc
Te post/mail is late today.
Tire satellite is a new one.
5.20
The artlcles in specific reference 83
CJalso: 'The message came by hand/by special delil'ery'.
(c) Time expressions: zero i s common, especially after the prepositions at,
by, after, before:
at dawn/daybreak/sunset/night
by morni ng/evening ('when morning/evening came')
by day/night ('during')
after dark/nightfall
before dawn/dusk
Cfalso '(They worked) day and night', 'It's almost dawn', TH be
travelling all ni ght/week/month'.
J n less stereotyped expressions, the is used, as i n ' The sunrise was
beautiful', TH rest during the evening', 'Can you stay for the night?'
With in, seasons may also have zero, unless a particular one is
meant:
In winter/spring/autumr. (but AmE in the fall), I l ike to have a break
in Switzerland.
This year I am going to Switzerland in the winter/spring/autumn.
(d) Meals: as with seasons, zero is usual unless reference is being made to
a particular one:
What time do you nonnally have breakfast/lunch/supper?
(The) breakfast/lunch/d,nner was served late that day.
(e) Illness: zero is normal, especially where the illness bears a technical
medical name:
She has anaemi a/cancer/diabetes/infuenza/pneumonia/toothache.
But the is also med for afictions Jess technically designated:
She had (the) nu/hiccups/measles/mumps.
Some conditions call for the indefnite article:
a cold (bul catch cold), a fever, a headache, o temperature
Fixed phrases
We noted of several expressions in 5 . 1 9 that zero corresponded to aeertain
idiomatic fixity as compared with analogous expressions using the. Fixity
is particularly notable with some common prepositional phrases and
complex prepositions (9.3):
on foot, in step, out of step, in turn, by heart, in case of, by reason of,
with intent to
Zero is characteristic of binomial expressions used adverbially:
They walked arm in arm/hand in hand/mile after milc/dny i n. day
out.
84 Nu11; and determiners
We stood face to race/side by side/back to back.
(falso inch by inch. eye to eye, tum and t11r about, 1111111 to man, .f0111
beginning to e1ul, from /either to son.
NOTE Not all binomials with zero arc adverbials, but when they are not, articles are
usually optional:
5.21
l am glad to say that (the) 1noth1r and {the) child arc both doi ng well.
The crJsh resulted in the death or {both) (a) father and (a) son.
Article usage with abstract nouns
Abstract nouns tend lo be cunt when they refer to unitary phenomena
such as events and noncoimt when they refer to activities, slates, and
qualities.
Typically count: meeting, arrival, discovery
Genuine discmeries are rarer than gradual improvements.
Typically noncount: employment, happiness, sleep, swimming
Sleep is necessary for good health.
But as we :;aw in 5. 1 , some nouns can be both noncount and count;
compare:
Every child needs to be treated with kimlness.
I_. d. 1
{a (great) kindness that day.
-.e 1 ( me .
many lw1d11esses over the years.
1.h 1 d h
{ revolution }
Id .
.
d
.
.
ey 1ope t at / . wou improve t e1r con 1t1ons.
a revo 1111011
She is studying European J1tory.
The country has a troubled hLHory.
It will be seen from these examples that the efect of the indefinite article is
partitive and that this can be qualitative (a troubled histo1y) or
quantitative (a great kindness). Cf 5.2. The partitive effect is often
accompanied by modification of the noun:
{se11sirivi111.
This ten-year-old plays the oboe with a striking sen.nt1vi1y.
*a sensitivity.
NOTE Names of languages usually have zero:
She speaks Japanese quite fluently.
How do you say this in /111/ian?
But in some expressions, the can be used:
Beckett's works in E11gli slt have often been translated from (rie) Fe11cl.
And the in<lcfinit<: can be used for ()ttalitativc partition:
She speaks " 10/erbe Fre11c!i.
The articles in generic reference 05
The articles in generic reference
5.22 Consider the fol lowing sentences:
My neighbour apparently has dogs; r hear them barking at night.
Dogs make admirable companions for children and adults alike
.
In the frmer the refrence is speciic to particular dogs. In the latter the
reference is generic: the sentence speaks not of parti<:ular dogs but or the
whole class of dogs. All three types of article can be used to make a generic
reference: the usually, and a/a11 always, with singular count nouns: zero
with plural count nouns and with noncount nouns. For example:
The car }
A car became an increasing necessity of life in
Cars century.
Velvet is an excel l :nt material for curtains.
the twentieth
In fact, however, the three article modes are on a very different footing,
wi th zero by far the most natural way of expressing the generic.
irrespective of the function or position of the noun phrase in sentncc
structure:
Research is vital for lrnman progress.
Many professors prefer research to teaching.
Crime is often attributable to d.
Horses are still wild animals in some parts of the world.
Exceptionally, some count nouns function as noncount generics in this
way:
Mary is studying dance as well as
.
film.
When man meets woman, a certain tension seems natural.
But more usually when man occurs with zero it is generic for humaniry (a
usage resisted on grounds of sexism):
Nuclear warfare would jeopardize the survival of man.
5.23 By contrast, the indefnite article has a distinctly limited role in conveying
generic meaning, since it tends in non-referring use to carry a general
partitive implication (such that a means 'any') which may in certain
contexts be merely tantamount to a generic. The limitations on generic
implication can be seen in comparing the fllowing examples:
Tigers run } .
A
.
.
more gracefully than most ammals.
llger runs
Tigers are } . .
*A . . becomrng extrnct.
tiger is
NOTE The foregoing reflects the strong association of the indefinite article (and zaoJ
with a descriptive and hence non-referring role in such functions a> graminatieal
complement:
86 Nouns and determiners
Paganini was a great violinist.
My daughter is training as 11 radiologist.
When were you appointed (as) (a) professor'>
My book wil! be on Jung as (a) thinker.
5.24 The DEFINITE ARTICLE with singular nouns conveys a rather formal tone in
generic use:
No one can say with certainty when the wheel was invented.
My work on anatomy is fcused on the lung.
But in more general use we find the used with musical instruments and
dances:
Marianne plays the harp, frequently accompanied by her brother on
rhe piano.
Do you remember when everyone was keen on the rumba?
When the noun is mea
n
t, however, to represent a class of human beings by
such a typical specimen, the often sounds inappropriate and artificial:
? As rhe child grows, there is always a rapid extension of vocabulary.
? The Welshman is a good singer.
With plural nouns, the is used to express generic meaning:
(a) where the referent is a national or ethnic group, as in !It<' Chinese, the
Russians;
(b) in phrases comprising an adjective head with human reference: rhe
blind, rhe {!f ]uent, tile unemployed.
It could be argued, however, that in neither case arc the noun phrases so
much generic as collective phrases with unique and specifc denotation.
NOTE N<itionality names that h;ivc distinct singular and plural forms (such ;is
Frc11clz111a11, fenchmen: Germon, Gcr111a11.1) arc treated differently in respect of
generic and collective statements from those whid1 du not (such as British. S11'iss,
Chinese):
The Welsh arc fond of singi ng.
Welshmen arc fond of singing.
The Welshman is fond of si nging.
The Welshmen arc fond of si nging.
*Welsh is/arc fond of singing.
On nationality names, sec further 5.33/
Proper nouns
[generic]
[generic]
[generic or specific]
[specifc]
5.25 Proper
'
nouns arc basically names, by which we understand the designa
tion or specific people (Gorh1d1er), places ( Tokyo, Park lane) and
Proper nouns 87
institutions (The South China Moring Post, Thames Polytechnic). But as
can be seen from these examples. names embrace both single-word nouns
(Tokyo) and quite lengthy phrases, often incorporating a defnite article as
part of the name with or without premodifying items (The Hague, The
(New York) Times). Moreover, the concept of name extends to some
markers of time and to seasons thrit are also festivals (Monday, March,
Easter. Passover, Ramadan).
NOTE Names rcncct their uniqueness of reference in writi ng by our use of ini ti al capitals.
This device enables us, if we so wish. to raise to the uni queness of proper-noun
status such concepts as Fare and Heal'e11, including generics such <s Nature, Truth,
Ma11.
Grammatical features
5.26 As we saw in 5 . 1 , proper nouns of their nature exclude such features as
determiner and number contrast. Likewise, the transparent elements of
phrasal names are treated as parts of a unique whole and are
grammatically invariant:
*The Newer York Times
*The thoroughly Asian Wall Street Journal
But there arc many apparent exceptions to these restrictions. Since it is
only the referent that is unique, and different referents may share the same
name, the nouns or phrases conveying the name can be used as though
they were common nouns. Thus if we can say
There arc several places called Richmond.
we can equally sny
There is a Richmond i n the south of England and a Richmond in the
north, not to mention a dozen Richmond outside the British Isles.
So too:
I'm trying to fnd Philip Johnson i n the phone book but unless he's
one of the severl P. Jolm.1011s he's not in.
The situation is very different with the admission of number and
determination with the names of days, months, and festivals. These derive
their proximity to uniqueness largely in respect of specifc instances. Thus
l
She'll be here on 1\fonday/in October/at Christmas.
the reference in each case is to a particular time of a particular year;
Monday is as uniquely contrasted with Tuesday as Tokyo is with Kyoto.
But we know that there is a Monday every week and a Christmas every
year, Lhat the former is characterized by being (for exa mple) ! h.: first
working day of each week and that every Christmas has even more sharply
defned charactcristic8. In other words, Mondays necessarily have
88 NoUh6 ar.d determners
something in common, whereas the various Richmonds do not. So when
we say
She's always here on (a) Monday/in October/at Christmas.
the items no longer have specific refrence, and the sentence can be
paralleled with
She always spends her Mondays/Octobers/Christmases here.
There arc of course no analogies with names of persons, places and
institutions:
* Ric/11nond are always splendid for a vacation.
5.27 On the other hand, it is not only the fct that several places or people may
bear the same name that permits determination, number contrast or
modification. We have the inform11l convention that a married couple, Mr
and Mrs Johnson, can be referred to as the Johnsons ( a designation that
could also embrace their whole household). Again, we can use a famous
name to mean the type that made it fmous; the sentence
There were no Shakespeares i n the nineteenth century
does not mean there were no people called 'Shakespeare' but no writers
who towered over contemporaries as William Shakespeare did over his.
Similarly:
Lu Xun is revered as the Chinese Gorki.
Every large city should have a Hyde Park.
Somewhat akin is partitive restrictive modifcation:
The young Joyce already showed signs of the genius that was to be
fulflled in Ulysses. (' Even while he was young, James Joyce . . . ')
The Duh/in ofJoyce is still there for everyone to experience. ('The
features of Dublin refected in Joyce's writing are still there.')
But there is also nonrestrictive modification, on the one hand colloquial
and stereotypC'd (as in poor old Mrs Fetclrer), on the other formal and
often stylized (as in t/ie.fi111dly rememben:d Jo!rn F. Kennedy, VIT HISTORIC
YO!IK).
Names with the definite article
5.28 It is not difcull to sec why 1hc finds a pb.c in phrases i nst i t utionalized as
names. We can imagine a group of musicians deciding to set up a school
where music will be taught: a school o{ 11111sic. They decide lo enhance its
attractiveness hy locating it in a central position oflhc city, and they hope
that it will not be merely a antral school of music but the only school
meriting this descri pti on: 1/Je central school 11/11111sic. It is a short step from
this to the further decision that this should be not just a description but the
L
I
Proper nouns 89
name: The Central Sclwol lf Music. So too a building in the form or a
pentagon can come to be called the Pc11taK01J, a canal built through t11:
Panama Isthmus becomes the Panama Canal. When a president or a priml:
minister is elected or an earl created, the result is the Prrsident (of France) ,
the Prime Minister (of India), the Earl (of Gwynedd).
NOTE Even where the is always present in continuous text (spoken or wri tten), it has
variable status as part of the name: Tle Hagi1e at one extreme (and always with
initial capital) to the University of London at the other (where 1he is ncvr
capitalized and is absent from the university's letter-head). Cfalso (the) Asian
Wall Stri>lt Joumal. Where a name embodies prcmodilication as distinct from
postmodification (1 7.2), as in ( The) Loni Williams, the is largely confin..d to
formal and oficial style.
5.29 lt may be convenient to group names with the i n classes:
(a) Some titular names of persons and deities:
Tlie Marquis of Salisbury, the .King of Sweden, the President of
General Afotors, the Reverend John Fox, the Cardinal Archbishop
ofWestminster, the Q11een, (tire) Prince Ed1vard, (the) Archduke
Ferdinand, the Goel ofIsrael, the Lord ofHost.\' the Buddha.
(b) Geographical names of plural form, notably:
(i) groups of islands, as in the Hebrides, the Balwmas;
(ii) mountain ranges, as in !he !imafayas, the Pyrenees.
Note also the Netherlands, the Midlands, the Darda11elles.
(c) Names of rivers, canals, expanses of water, areas of territory:
the (River) Thames, the Rhine, the Potomac (River) ; llze S11ez
Canal, tire Erie Canal; t/Je Atlantic (Ocean), the Baltic (Sea) , the
Bosp/wrs; the Crimea, the Ruhr, the Sahara (Desert).
Not e the absence of the i n lake names:
Lake Huron, Denvent1vater.
(d) Geographical names of the form the N1 ofN2, as in the lYle ofM1111. the
Gulf ofMexico, tlze Cape ofGood !lope, the Bay ofNaples. (Contrast:
Long Island, Hudson Bay.)
(e) Names of theatres, galleries and major buildings, etc, as in the
A ldwych (Theatre), 1he Huntington (Library), the Ashmo!l'wl
( M11se11m), the Middlesex ( lospit(J/) , the Taj lvlahal, 1/w Tate
(Gallery), the Hilton ( Hotel) .
(f) Names of ships and (less commonly) aircraf\, as in the Queen /lary,
the ifay(lower, the Spirit of St Louis.
(g) Names of journals, as in The Economist, The Times, The Ne11 York
Rel'ieiv of Books. (Contrast: Punch, Time, New Sciemist.) If in
discourse the title requires premodification, the article is discarded, as
in 'Malcolm lent me today's Times/a recent Ne11 York Rc'l'ir o{
Books'.
90 Nouns and determiners
Names without article
5.30 Whether names have articles (as in 5.2{) or not, they operate without a
determiner contrast, and while it is normal for names to refect the
uniqueness of their referents by having no article, it must be clearly
understood that 'No llfticlc' does not mean 'Zero article' (lf S. l Note).
There arc two major classes of names to consider: names of persons and
names of places. On smaller classes, such as the names of months, sec 5.25.
Personal names
5.31 These comprise:
(a) Forenames (also called frst, given. or Christian names), used alone to
or or family or friends:
It's good to see you, Fra11k; how are you?
Unfortunately, Jacq11eli11e was unable to be present.
(b) Family names (surnames), used alone without discourtesy in address
only in certain male circles (for example, in military use) and in 3rd
person discourse for rnthcr formal and distant (for example,
historical) refrence:
What time do you have to report. Watkinson?
The theories of Keynes continue to be influential.
(c) Comhinations ojforenames mu/ family 11ames. occasionally found in
epistolary address ('Dear Mildred Carter') but chiefly used where 'full
name' is required in self-introduction or in 3rd person reference:
I am Roger Middleton; the manager is expecting me.
Freda .Johnso11 is writing a book on Wilfred O\\'en.
(d) Combi11atin11s i11roll'l'11g a title arc bipartite in address but can be
tripartite in 3r<l person reference:
You are very welcome, Mrs Johnson/Afrs Green/Mr Parker/Dr
Lowe/Major Fielding/Sir .Joh11.
The committee decided to co-opt Mrs (Freda) Johnson/Ms ( Jac
queline) Green/Mr (D R) Parker/Dr (James F) Lowe/Major
( William) Fielding/Sir John (Needham).
NOTE [a] Favourite animals (especially household pets) arc given names. which i n lhe
cac or pedigree ;1nimals arc bestowed and registered wi th special care. Name of
ships. often connolatively female, arc also usually without nrtidc; but cf5.29.
[b] Some terms of close kinship arc treated <ts names in family discourse:
Where's Gr11d111a/Dad?
Some others arc used as lilies. as in 'Where's Unce Harry?'
Proper nouns 91
Locational names
5.32 These are used without article and comprise a wide range of designations:
(a) extraterrestrial: Jupiter, Mars (but the 1110011, the sun);
(b) continents: Asia, (South) America;
(c) countries, provinces, ctc: (Great) Britain, Canada, Ontario, (County)
Kerry (but the United Kingdom, (the) Sudan);
(d) lakes: Lake Michigan, Loch Ness, Ul.mater;
(e) mountains: ( Afount) Everest, Snowdon;
(f cities, etc: New York, Stratford-upon-Avon (but The Hague, 1he
Bronx);
(g) streets, buildings, ctc: Fifth A venue, Park Lane, Brooklyn Bridge,
Canlerbury Cathedral, Scotland Yard, Waterloo Station, Ox.ford
Street (but the Old Kent Road).
On examples with the, c.f5. 28/
Nouns relating to region and nationality
5.33 Many names of regions and countries yield corresponding adjectives and
noun forms of the fllowing pattern, all reflecling thei r 'proper' afnity by
being written with an initial capital. Thus, related to Russia, we have:
I General adjective:
A new R11ssian spacecraft has just been launched.
Both the men are Russian.
II Language name:
She reads Russian but she doesn't speak it very well.
llf Singular noun with specifc reference:
He is a Russian, I think.
TV Plural noun with specific reference:
There are several Russians among my students.
V Plural nouns used generically:
T/1e Russians are a deeply patriotic people.
Normally, the form of If.-V is predictable from J; for example Greece: J
Greek, II Greek, III a Greek, IV Greeks, V the Greeks. In many instances,
of course, there is no language corresponding to form II ('*She doesn't
speak European'), but leaving this aside, the following sets are regularly
predictable and behave as illustrated above:
Africa African
Asia Asian
America American
Australia Australian
and all other names in -(i)a. So too:
92 Nouns and determiners
Belgium-Belgian
Europe European
Hungary -Hungarian
Norway -Norwegian
Israel Israeli
Brazil -Brazilian
Germany German
Italy Italian
IraqIraqi
Pakistan -Pakistani
5.34 But there are name sets in which we encounter irregularities of form or
restrictions in use. Thus where forms I and fl (which are always identical)
end i n -ese or -ish (-sh, -eh), the same form is used fr V (c/7. 12) but not
usually for III and IV. Instead we use either form I plus a suitable noun (a
Chinese lady), indicated in Table 5.34 by '(N)', '(Ns)', or a distinctive noun
form (a Spaniard). With many items where form I ends in -islz, forms III
and IV are traditionally -islzman, -ishmen, but the resistance to man as a
human generic causes widespread hesitation to use these forms except of
males. The chief irregular sets are listed in Table 5. 34.
Tahle 5.34
Ill IV v
(and 11 where
relevant)
Chin:1 Chinese u Chinee Chinese the Chinese
(citizen) (people)
Japn Japanese a Japanese (N) Japanese (Ns) the Japanese
Portugal Portuguese a Portugues(N) Portuguese (Ns) the Portuguese
Vietnam Vietnamese a Vietnamese (N) Vietnamese (Ns) the Vietnamese
Switzerland Swiss a Swiss (N) Swiss (Ns) the Swiss
Bri tain British a British (N) British (Ns) the British
England English an Englishman Englishmen the English
Ireland lrish an Irishman Irishmen the Irish
Wales Welsh a Welshman Welshmen the Welsh
France French a Frenchman Frenchmen the French
Holland
te Dutch a Dutchman Dutchmen the Dutch
Netherlands
Scotbnd Scots a Scotsman Scotsmen the Scots
Denmark Danish a Dane Danes the Danish
Sweden Swedish :1 Swede Swedes the Swedish
Finland Finnish a Finn Finns the Finnish
Poland Polish a Pole Poles the Polish
Spi1in Spanish a Spaniard Spaniards lhe Spanish
NOTE
[a] For Britain, there is limited currency of 1riton(s) as forms III ;rd !V (informally ;ilso
Britisher(.<), wilh 1ril(s) more informal still).
[b] For Scotland. 1hcrc arc alteratives as follows: f()rm I Scouisll, Scorch; rorm I l l 1 Scot, a
Sco1cl11111111; form IV Scol.<. Srorl'i1111<n: fr V rlu Sco1d1. But 1he use of Sco1ch(-) is
contr<>vcrsial; So1c/i lends lo be limited to designating such things lS ohisky.
Numbt!r 93
[cj Arlic is rorm II. Arh(s) forms 111 V, t>ut the ;ctu:tl loca1io11al noun Arabia is now only
rardy 11>cd Il denote tho largo area of the Middle Easl concerod.
Number
5.35 The grammatical category of number, operating for example through
subject-verb concord and pronominal reference, requires that every noun
form be understood grammatically as either singular or plural. Singular
relates to the quantity 'one' for count nouns, to the unique referent for
most proper nouns (eg: Tokyo), and to undifferentiated mass fr
nom:ount nouns. Plural relates to the quantity 'two or more' fr count
nouns, to the unique referent for some proper nouns (eg: the Azores), and
to individual operational units that are seen as reflecting plural
composition (eg: binorlars, goods). For example:
Singular: This s11itfits me and I'll buy it.
Nara 1va.1 full of tourists when l visited it.
The milk is sour and I bought it only yesterday.
Plural: Two/three/several students are hoping you will see them.
The Azures are administered by Portugal but they are
nearly a thousand miles away.
l thought my hi11oc11/ars were in this drawer but I can't fnd
them.
NOTE (a] The distinction between singular and plural is not always clear-cut; fr diferent
reasons, there is vacill;Hion over such words as politics, mwnps, data, criteria.
(b] Within plural', there is evidence in the language fr some special provision fr
dual number; cfsuch words as borh.
Plural formation
5.36 The vast majority of English nouns are count, with separate singular and
plural forms. The singular is the unmarked form (c/2.7) and as such is the
citation form of the word (for example, in dictionaries). For the most part,
plurals are frmed in a regular and predictable way:
(a) in SOUND:
- add /rz/ if the singular ends with a sibilant, namely:
/>/ as i n hurse
/SI
as in blush
/tJ/ as in church
/z/ as in prize
/3/ as in mirage
/d3/ as in language
for example: /prarz/ /pra1zrz/
-add /z/ if the singular ends with a vowt!i or with a voiced consonant
other than a sibilant
k
94 Nouns and determiners
fr example: /dc1/ -/dc1z/ /bed/ -/bedz/
- add /s/ if the singular ends with a voiceless consonant other than a
sibilant
for example: /kat/ /kats/
(b) Jn SPELLING:
With the vast majority of nouns, we simply add -s to the singular; for
example:
horse horses, prize-prizes
But, quite apart from the nouns that are fundamentally irregular in
respect of number (S.37
.
l), the -s rule requires amplifcation and
modi ficati on for many nouns:
(i) If the singular ends with a sibilant (see (a) above) that is not already
followed by -e, the plural ending is -es; for example: box-boxes,
bush-bushes, switch switches; cflanguage-languages.
(ii) Jf the singular ends with -y, this is replaced by i and the plural ending
is then -ie.I; for exam pie: spy-spies, poppy-poppi<s, .mftlquy-sol
iloquies. But -)' remains, and the plural ending is -ys, if the singular
ends with a letter having vowel-value as in -ay, -ey, -oy (thus days,
ospreys, boys), or if the item is a proper noun (the two Germanys;
!
5.26).
(iii) If 1hc singular ends with -o, the pl ural is usually regular (as with
studios, kangaroos, pianos), but with some nouns the plural ending is
-es (as with echoes, emhargoes, heroes,potatoes, tomatoes, torpedoes,
vetoes), and in a few cases there is vari<ttion, as with buffalo( e)s,
cargo(e)s, ha!o(e)s, motto(e)s. 110/cano(e)s.
NOTE [a] Some further spel ling poi nts: In a few words requiring -cs there is doubli ng as
with quizq11izzes. With unusual plurals uch as numerals or inilials, an
apostrophe is sometimes introduced (thus i11 rhe 1990's, some PhD's). In formal
writi ng, some abbreviations can show plural by doubling: p-pp ('pages'), c -cc
('copies'); with .f-JJ; the abbreviations arc to be understood as 'the following
numbred unit(s)', where the unit may be a section, page, chapter, or even vol ume.
[b] Compound nouns arc usually regular in adding -( e)s to the fnal clement (as i n
bobysitters, gmll'n-ups). But i n some cases where the compound has an obvi ous
head noun, i t is to Ibis clement that the plural ending is allixed (as in passlrs-by,
gra111s-i11-aid), and with a few there is variation (as i n mo11rhfuls -mouthsful, cout
111artials courts martial). Wi th some appositional compounds (of the form XY,
where 'The X is a Y) both elements have the plurnl inflection (wnma11
docror-11011111 docrors).
[c) Where a title applies to more than one succeeding name, i t can somctirnes be
plur<ilizcd. as in Professors Wagner and Watson, Drs Brown, S111i1h, a111/ Wei11dli11g;
but the commonest cannot (Mrs Kramer, Mrs Pugh, and Mrs !fonter), though Mr
can have a plural /fes.ffs f' mcs:z/, especially in UrE commercial use ('the firm of
J.frssr.Graymrd Wi!lrC'r.1110011'). Members of the same sex sharing a namcean have
the name in the pl ural: 'The two Miss Smiths as well as their parents were present at
the ceremony.'
Irregular plural formation
Voicing
Number 95
5.37 While io spelling the pair house-ho11se.1 is regul ar, in pronunciation it i
not, the final.voiceless fricative consonant of the singular becoming voiced
i n the plural: /haus/-/hauziz/. Several singulars ending in /f/ and /0/
undergo voicing i n this way, the frmer refected in spelling, the latter not:
5.38
knife-knives /na1 f/ -/na1vz/
mouth -mouths /mauO/-/mauoz/
Like k11(fe are calf half. leafWe, loaf, self, shelf, thief wife, wol. and a fw
others. With some nouns, such as lwndkerc/1 i<f, !roof, and scazj; the plural
may involve voicing or be regular (-/fs/); with others, such as belief, cliff
proof, the plural is always regular.
Like mollh are bath, oath, path, sheath, truth, 1Vreath, youth, though in
most cases the plural can equally be regular (-/Os/). Jn other cases, only the
regular plural is found, as with cloth, death,fai1h, moth, and where there is
a consonant preceding the fricative this is always so (as with birth, length,
etc).
Vowel change
In a small number of nouns, there is a change of vowel sound and spelling
('mutation plurals') without an ending:
foot-feet goose -geese
louse-lice man-men
mouse -mice tooth -teeth
woman /'wum::m/-women /'wunrn/
NOTE [a] Compounds in unstressed -man such asjiemwr, Frrnc!rmrm have plurals that
arc often identical in sound si nce both the -111a11 and -men hiivc schwa.
(b] The plural of c/ri/dinvol vcs both vowel change and an irregular ending, c/1ildre11
/tJiidr:m/. The noun brrher, when used in the sense 'fellow member', sometimes
has a similar plural frmation, brllhren /bre6r;m/. C.falso, without vowel change.
ox.nxen.
Zero plural
Words for some animals
5.39 The nouns sheep, deer, cod, while being unquestionably count, have no
difference in form between singular and plural:
This sheep has just had a lamb.
These sheep have just had lambs.
Nouns referring to some other animals, birds, and fsh<S can have zero
plurals, especially when viewed as prey:
They shot two reind<'er, though this is strictly frbidden.
The 11oodcock/pheasantf herri11g/tro111fsal111011ffslz arc not very plen
tiful this yc<1r
Ya Noun and determiners
Compare:
Aren't those pheasants beautiful?
NOTE Some of Lhe nouns cunsidercd in ..42/as resistant to number contrast could also
be regarded as having zero plural.
Nouns of quantity
S.40 There is a strong tendency for uni ts of number, oflength, of value, and of
weight to have zero plural when premodified by another quantitative
word. For example:
(a) How many people live there? About three dozen/Several hundred/
More than fve thousand/Almost four milion.
(b) My son is nearly six/oo/ tall.
The tickets cost four po1111d ffty each.
Three pou11c/sto11e of potatoes, please.
But i n set (b), zero is much less common than the use of infected plurals
and in some cases zero is largely dialectal ('She lives five mile from me').
Moreover, items in set (a) have normal plural forms when not preceded by
numerals:
Dozens (and do:ens) (of people) crowded into the room.
I have no precise idea how many people live there: tlousands
certainly, perhaps millions.
Foreign plurals
5.41 Numerous nouns adopted from foreign languages, especially Latin and
Greek, retain the foreign inflection fr pl ural. In some cases there are two
plurals, an English regular form (5.36) being used in non-technical
discourse.
(a) Nouns in -us /-s/ with plural -i /a1/:
stimulus focus alumnus bacillus
(b) Nouns in -us /os/ with plural -a /of (only in technical use):
corpus corpora genus genera
(c) Nouns in -a M with plural -ae /i:/ or /ai/:
antenna formula nebula
The plural ending in vertebrae is also pronounced /ei/.
(d) Noims in -um /-m/ with plural -a fdl:
addendum curriculum erratum
ovum stratum
(e) Nouns in -ex, -ix with plural -ices /1si:z/:
appendix index matrix
(f) Nouns in - i s /1s/ with plural -es /i:z/
analysis basis crisis
hypothesis synopsis thesis
(g) Nouns in -on /-n/ with plural -a /:/:
automat on criterion phenomenon
Number ;r
(h) Nouns in -o /:o/ with plural -i /1/; a
.
few words in the field of music
retain their Italian plural, especially in specialized discourse:
libretto tempo virtuoso
(i) Nouns from French sometimes retain a French plural in writing, with
the French (ie zero) ending in speech or - more usually - a regular
English one:
bureau bureaux or bureaus /-oo/ or /-'oz/
So also plateau, tableau. Some other nouns with no change of spelling in
the plural, have regular English plurals in speech: for example, chassis
/Jas1/, pi /Jas1:z/
NOTE [a] The plural -im is sometimes found in the English use of Hebrew words, as in
kibbutzim.
[b] Most originally freign nouns take only regular plural endings. (11111se11111
museums, clc), and in several cases the historically plural ending is reinterpreted as
a singular (agenda, insignia, ctc):
This agenda is rather lengthy as I'm afraid most Senate agendas tend to be.
Nouns resistant to number contrast
S.42 Whether or not with inflectional regularity, number essentially involves
the distinction between one and more lhan one:
This school is . . . These schools are . . .
This woman is . . . Those women are . . .
This sheep is . . . These sheep are . . .
But as we noted in 5.35, there are singular nouns that cannot ordinarily be
plural (eg: meat) and plural nouns that c:innot ordinari ly be singular (eg:
binoculars). We shall look at such nouns under these two broad heads.
Ordinarily singular
S.43 (a) Proper nouns such as London or Nmn1ti/01a arc plural only in such
circumstances as arc described in 5. 2/:
(b) Noncount nouns such as cheese or solidarity can be plural when used
to indicate partition by quantity or qual i ty (5.2). Abstract nouns in
the plural indicate instances of the
.
phenomenon concerned (as in
'many i11j11stices') or intensification of lhe phenomenon (as in 'I must
"
98 Nouns and determiners
express my regrets'). Intensification accounts also for the plural of
some concrete 11011count nouns; for example, wood in the sense of
' forest':
This is a beautiful little wood.
Their house is in the middle of those extensive 1roods.
(c) The noun news and certain other items ending in -s:
(i) nouns in -ics such as acoust ics, physics
(ii) names of diseases such as mumps, shingfrs
(iii) words fr some games such as hilliards, dominoes, fves
But when politics refers to an individual's views, it is treated as plural
('Her politics are becoming more extreme') and for some speakers
such disease words as mwnps can also be plural. Again, \hen statistics
is used loosely to mean 'figures' i t can be plurai and have a
corresponding singular: 'There is one surprising statistic in your
report.'
(d) Collective nouns such as committee, cou11cil, goremment, team
(though in BrE these are often treated as pl ural aggregate nouns: 'The
committee were unanimous'; cf5.44).
NOTE Unlike aggregate nouns, collective nouns retain singular determiners even where
plural concord is used: '"These committee were unanimous.'
Ordinarily plural
5.44 (a) Binary nouns arc those that refer to entities which comprise or are
perceived as comprising two parts: tools and instruments such as
binorlars, forceps, scissors; articles of dress such as jeans, panrs,
trousers:
These scissors are too blunt.
Those trousers don't match your shirt.
Number contrast is usually achieved through quantity partition (5.2)
with a pair of, several pairs of With binary nouns like gloves or socks,
where the two pairs arc more obviously separate, the unit is readily
divisibk into two singulars.
He was wearing a green sock and a brown sock.
Contrast:
'fl
. {the left leg of your trousers.
1crc 1s a slain on (?)
1
f
. your e t trouser.
(b) Aggregate nouns are those that refer t o entities which comprise or
may be perceived as comprising an indefinite number of parts. These
may be plural in form, as for instance arms ('weapons'), com111u11 ica
tions ('means or Cl)l11111U11iCation'), data, goods, 11/Cdia, OlllSkirlS,
remains, troops, works ('factory'). With some items there is vacillation
between singular and plural; for example
This barracks is
} heavily defended.
These barracks are
The dara is/arc insuficient.
Gender 99
But many aggregate nouns arc 1101 plural inform; thus cattle, clergy,
ofspring, people, police, poultry, vermin. Here again there is vacilla
tion between singular and plural with some items:
The cferg_r is/are strongly opposed to divorce.
Cf 5.43(d).
NOTE Some nouns could be regarded either as 'ordinarily plural' or as having zero plural
(5. 39). Thus
She has one offspring/several offspring.
Did he leave ofspring?
W
. . {a new series
} f 1 c arc orgamzing
1
f h
. o cctures.
t 1ree urt er serres
Others have a singular with some shif of meaning. Thus beside 'She used her
brains in defeating her opponent', we can have 'She has a good brin', meaning
approximately ' a good quality of brains' beside 'He didn't receive his wages last
week', we can have 'He has a living 1rge', meaning 'a level of wages that can
support him'.
Gender
5.45 In English, gender is not a feature of nouns themselves (as i n such
languages as German or Russian). Rather. it relates directly to the
meanings of nouns, with particular refrence to biological sex. Gender
then enters the province of grammar by determini ng the selection of
reference pronouns: wh-, personal, and refexive (6.2.f 6. 1 3, 6. 1 7). The
wh- items who and which oblige us to distinguish two broad gender classes,
personal and nonpersonal, the fom1er largely human in reference, the
latter largely nonhuman and including inanimatcs:
This is the pedestrian who witnessed the accident.
That is the cow which has just had a calf.
Then within the personal gender class, the personal and refexive
pronouns relate to male and female sex:
]>J 1
{husband; he has hurt h
.
imsel.
case 1c p my .
w1{e; she has hurt herse(f
But the sex-related pronouns can be used of items marked as nonpcrson;il
by the w- pronouns, as in
I UO Nouns and delerrninl!rs
She is the cow 11'11ich has just had a calf.
She is Lhe ship il'l1ic/1 was launch.:d last month.
In consequence, we have a rather complex pattern of gender classes, with
some overlapping, as summarized i n Fig. 5.2.
GENDER
male
. dual
EXAMPLE
boy
girl
doctor
I fmale
ersonal
/
p
,
common baby
animate collective family

milia '"imal

a1
male bull
non personal
\fmale cow
dual cat
less familiar
animal
inanimate

Fig. 5.2
Nouns with personal reference
weasel
window
PRONOUNS
whu, he
who, she
who, he/she
{who, he/she/it
which/it
{which, it
who, 1hey
{whidi, he/it
(who), he
{which, she/it
(who), she
{which, he/she/ii
who, he/she
which, it/he/(she)
which, it
5.46 These are commonly in male anJ female pairs such as father-mother,
boy-girl, king queen. I n some cases, the female member is morphologi
cally marked; god goddess, hero-heroine, usher-11shere1 re, 111a11
woman. With widowcr- ll'idmv, it is the male that is marked.
But many personal nouns can be regarded as having dual gender, since
they can be 111"le or female in refrenct as required; fr cxample,ji-ie11d,
guest, parent, and person. Most of these are nouns or agency such as artist,
cook, doc1ur, inlwhi1am, librarian, norcli.11, prof('s.rnr, singer, speaker,
s/Udent, 1eacher, writer. By contrast, common gender applies to those
nouns like baby, infanr, child, which though referring undoubtedly to male
or female human beings make gender so irrelevant that we can use the
neuter pronoun it(s) :
The bahy lost its parenls when ir was three weeks old.
The remaining class of person-refrring nouns is collectile where, like
the common gender nouns, the sex of the pirsons concered is irrelevant,
as is shown by our use of it and ll'hich;
The committee, n'iiich met soon after ii was a ppoinLcd, had difficulty
i n agreeing its method of procedure.
NOTE
Gender 1u1
But, especially i n BrE, such collectives can take plural concord with the
personal ivh-pronoun:
The audience, who were largely students, were soon on their feet as
/hey cheered the performers.
Further collectives: army, associ111io11, class, c/uh, community, co111pany,
council, crew, crowd,family,/irm, govemment,jW)', party, ream, university.
Some occur wilh the definite article, for example: the clergy, 1he
intelligentsia, the public. Some are proper names, for example: the Val ican,
Longman, General Aiotors, British Gas, Everton (fotball team).
[a] Nouns morpho!ogically marked fr gender often tend lo be avoided, especi all y
where the sex of the referent is irrelevant; in consequence, nouns with dual gender
such as 11111/ior, chair(persoJ1), poet, supervisor, may be preferred lo auilwress,
chairman, poeress,forc11um.
[b] Although unmarked frms have traditionally been expressed as male while
subsuming female ('Man is mortal', 'If any pason is caught stealing from this
store, he will be prosecuted'; lj" 6.4), reaction against sexual bias has resulted i n
evasions such as:
{ doer or } { he or she wishes.
A parent may appeal tf
Sillger tlwy wish.
[c] Countries and ships (especialty by name) an: often treated as female: 'Fra1Jce is
increasi ng her exports', 'The Lows sank when she strck a reef'.
Nouns referring lo animals and inanimates
5.47 Among animals, we must distinguish between what we may call the
FAMILIAR and the LESS FAMlLlAR. The former embrace the range of animals,
birds, etc, in which human society takes a special interest, and which
signifcantly impinge on familiar experience (for example, i n farming or as
domestic pets). Many of the nouns for these occur in MALE and FEMALE
pairs, as with personal nouns, often with he she as the refrence pronoun
though usually with which as the relative:
This is the b111l 1l'hich has a brand mark on !r:/(its) back.
This is the cm1 ivhich had her/ (its) frst calf when she/( ii) was
already seven years old.
Othei such pairs include ram e1ve, stallion mare, hen cock( ere/), and
there are some with morphological marking, as in lion -lione.1s, tiger-
tigress. But frequently, despite such pairs as dog hitch, one of the two is
used with dual gender, or an item outside the pairing (such as sheep, beside
ram-ewe) so opcrntes:
This horse is two years old; isn't she beautiful?
This horse has sired his frst foal.
But LESS FAMILIAR animals constitute by far the majority of creatures in the
animalt: world. Squirrels, ants, starlings, and moths may be foncilull y
102 Nouns and determiners
referred to as he or she, but fr the most part they are treated
grammatically as though they were inanimate:
Do you see that spider?
Do you sec that hal/oon?
Case
It's hanging from the beam.
It's hanging from the beam.
5.48 As distinct from pronouns (6.6/), English nouns have only two cases, the
unmarked COMMON case and the marked GENIVE. The latter is sometimes
called the 'possessive', by reason of one of the main functions of the case
(as in Tie child's coat, 'The coat belonging to the child').
The genitive innection is phonologically identical with the regular
plural infection (5.36) with a consequent neutralization of the case
distinction in the plural:
The /kau/ was grazing. The /kauz/ were grazing.
One /kauz/ tail was waving. All the /kauz/ tails were waving.
With irregular nouns where no such neutralization can occur, a fourfld
distinction is observed:
The /man/ was watching.
The /manz/ car was locked.
The /men/ were watching.
The /menz/ cars were locked.
Orthographically 1 fourfold distinction always obtains, since the
genitive ending is always spelled with an apostrophe: before the ending for
the singular, after it for the plural:
One cow's tail. All the cows' tails.
NOTE [n] Where noun phrases with postmodilication do not have the plum! inflection al
the end (5. 36 Note [b]) there is a distinction between genitive and plural; compare:
,.
The chief of staf, The chiefs of staf
The chief of staff's role The chiefs of staff's role
But where postmodification is less institutionalized. such a 'group genitive' -
tll(lllgh common informally - is often avoided in favour of the '(-construction
(5.49): 'The name ofr/w mnn in rhe dark suit.'
[h] In being phonologically identical with the plural, the regular genitive plural is
sometimes cllcd the 'zero genitive' . Such a zero genitive is common with names
that end in iz/, especially if they arc freign names:
Socrates' /-ti:z/ doctrines
Moses /-z1z/ k1ws
/1111 Dickens novels /chktnz/ 111 /d1kmz1z/
Note the zero glnitivc also in some expressions such as j(1r goodness' sake.
Case 103
The genitive and the of-construction
5.49 We frequently fnd a choice between using a premodifying genitive and a
postmodifying prepositional phrase with of; the simiiarity in meaning and
function has caused the latter to be called by some the 'of genitive'. For
example:
{the island's inhabitants.
There were strong objections from
the inhabitants ofthe island.
But although both versions in this instance are equally acceptable, with a
choice determined largely by prefrred fcus (cf 1 8. 5, for the most part
we must select either the genitive or the ofconstruction. For example:
These arc father's trousers.
Let's go to the front of the house.
Genitive meanings
*These are the trousers of
father.
*Let's go to the house's
front.
5.50 The meanings expressed by the gemt1ve can conveniently be shown
through paraphrase; at the same time, we can compare the analogous use
of the ofconstruction.
(a) Possessive genitive:
Mrs Johnson'. coat: Mrs Johnson owns this coat.
Tlze ship's funnel. The ship has a funnel.
(b)
CJThe funnel ofthe sh1jJ.
Genitive of attribute:
The vie rim. outstanding courage. The victim was very
courageous.
CJthe outstanding courage ofthe vie rim.
(c) Partitive genitive:
The heart's two ventricles. The heart contains two ventricles.
((The two ventricles ofthe heart.
(d) Subjective genitive:
The parents' consent. The parents consented.
CfThe consent ofthe parents.
(e) Objective genitive:
The prisoner's release. ( . . . ) released the prisoner.
((The release ofthe pri soner.
(f) Genitive of origin:
104 Nouns and determiners
(g)
Aio1ler 's letter. The letter is from Mother.
England's cheeses. The cheeses were produced in England.
CfThe cheeses of England.
Descriptive genitive:
Children's shoes.
A doctor's degree.
The shoes are designed for children.
The degree is a doctorate.
NOTE The distinction bcnvccn (a), (b), and (c) i s fr from clear-cut and much depends on
gender (l/5.5 1 ) and on contextual viewpoint. Tn general, the closer the relation can
be seen lo literal possession, the more suitable is the genitive; by contrast,
attribution and partition arc usual ly more appropriately expressed by the o/
conslruction. Where both genitive and ofconstruction arc grammatically
possible, the decision often turs on the principle of end-focus or end-weight ( 1 8. 5
and Note [a]):
My father's DEATH The death of my FATHER
John's age The age of my oldest and dearest friend
Gender and the genitive
5.51 The genitive is not used with all nouns equally but tends to be associated
with those of animate gender, especially with those having personal
reference (5.45/). For example:
The dug's name.
Segovia's most famous pupil.
The student 's precious possessions.
The commillee's decision.
Geographical names take the genitive innection, specially when they are
used to imply human collectivity; thus China's policy more plausibly than
China's mountains. So too with other strictly in:rnimate nouns when used
with special relevance to human activity or concer: Tlz" hotel's occupa11t.1
rather than The lwtcl's fumi/flre, The book's tre importance rather than
The hook's colour.
NOTE [a] The part played by personal gender in admilling the genitive is well i l luslratcd
hy the 111dclinite prc>11otms
{the shndow o(.1mnelwcz1>.
w1nelu11li\ shadow
I thmk I c<111 sc down llic1 c
the shaliw o/ smllcllwig.
*rnmer/iin1(1 shadow
lb] I n some cxpr.ssions, the gcnitive depends less on the noun so inlkcted tlwn on
the noun following. The ikms edge and sake are especial ly notable i n this
connection:
He stood al the w<1k1 's <dge.
She did it for her wuntry's sake.
With \\'Orth, nn rJr variant is possible:
(C/c1/so . . . lhc edge of' t he water)
(Cfalso . . . the sake of her country)
Case 105
We must try lo gel our money's worth.
The grammatical status of the genitive
As determiner
5.52 For the most part, gc111t1ves function exactly like central definite
determiners and thus preclude the cooccurrence of other determiners.
A new briefcase.
The new briefcase.
This new briefcase.
Joon 's new briefcase.
(*A the new briefcase.)
(*The this new briefcase.)
(*The Joan's new briefcase.)
This equally applies when the genitive is a phrase incorporating its own
determiner.
My cousin's new briefcase.
( = My new briefcase.)
My handsome cousin's new briefcase.
Jn other words, items preceding the genitive relate to the infected noun,
such that a phrase like
That old gentleman's son
must be understood as 'The son of that old gentleman', and not as 'That
son of the old gentleman.'
But an exception must be made where the preceding item is a
predeterminer, since this may relate either to the genitive noun as in [ I ] ot
to the noun that follows as in [2].
We attributed both the girls ' success to their hard work.
(ie the success of both 1he girls)
Both the girl's parents were present.
(ie both the parents of 1he girl)
As modifier
[ I ]
[2]
5.53 Where the genitive is used descriptively (5. 50(g)), however, it functions
not as a determiner but as a modifier with a cl assifying role. Determiners
in such noun phrases usually relate not to !he genitive but to the noun
following it, as can he plainly seen from the followin!, where lhc si ngular a
could obviously not cooccur with the plural wome11:
They attend a 11omen's university in Kyoto.
So also, other modifying items in the noun phrase an: less likely to rclak l<>
the genitive noun than to the noun that follows it; thus in
She lives in a quaint old shepherd's cottage.
i t is probably the collage that is quaint and old, not the shcphLrd.
Grammatically, some phrases can be imbiguous, though ir wt1:dd hc r;t rt
for the context not to make the meaning clear:
10 Nouns and determiners
Where did you find these children's clothes?
(Either ' These children had lost their clothes; genitive as determiner. Or
' These clothes were obviously made for children'; genitive as modifer.)
The independent genitive
5.54 It is common to cllipt the noun following the genitive if the reference is
contextually clear. For example:
.fennifer's is the only face I recognize here.
(ie Jennifcr's face)
He has a devotion to work like Iris father's.
(ie his fther's devotion to lt'ork)
Iy contrast, with the (1/:construction, that or those usually replaces the
corresponding item:
The wines ofFrance are more expensive than those ofCaliforia.
(ie the wines of Califoria)
A special case of the indepndent genitive occurs when the unexpressed
item rcrers to homes or businesses:
When I arrived at Fred's, I found I'd come on the wrong day.
My butcher's stays open late on Fridays.
She wouldn't miss St Martin 's on Easter moring.
Jn most such instances of the 'local genitive', one could not specify
uniquely the unexpressed item, and in many cases it would sound artificial
if one attempted a fuller phrase, often because what is meant is more
abstract and general than any specific noun would convey:
I hate going to the dentist's (? surgery. ? place, ? establishment).
NOTE With the names of major firms, wh;1t begins as a local genitive develops into a
plural. often so spelle and observing plural concord:

Harrod's is a vast store.
larrod.1 arc having a sale.
A further development is to drop the ending am. to treat the item as a collective (cf
5.46).
The 'post-gcnililc'
5.55 Since in its determiner role, the genitive must be definite (5.52), we can be
in some difliculty with a sentence like
George s sister is coming to stay with us.
I fit needs t o be understood that George has more than one sister, this cun
be expressed in one or two ways, each involving a partitive n.f
construct ion:
One c?/George's sisters is coming to stay with us.
A sister ofGeorge's is coming to stay with us.
Cise 107
It is the latter that is called the 'post-genitive' (or 'double-genitive').
Bibliographical note
On noun classes, sec Algeo ( 1 973): Allerton ( 1 987); Seppanen ( 1 974).
On refrence and dctcrmi:Jers, see Auwcra (1 980); Burton-Roberts (1 977);
Declerck ( 1 986); Hawkins (1 978); Hewson ( 1 972); Kal uza (1981); Kramsky
( 1 972); Perlmutter ( J 970); Takami (l 985).
On number, sec Hirle ( 1 982); Juul (1 975); Lehrer (1 986); Sorensen ( 1 985). On
gender and case, sec Dahl (1 971); Jahr S0rheim (1980).
5; Pronouns
6. I As we nottd in 2.9, pro-forms play a vital role in grammar (see especially
1 2. Jf). One category of pro-frms is particularly associated with noun
phrases and this is the PRONOUN. How wide-ranging and heterogeneous
Lhis category is becomes apparent from considering the italicized items in
the following:
As it tured out, somehody offered Elai ne a bicycle at a price which
she and her friends knew was well below that of a new one.
But as with pro-forms in general, all these pronouns have one thing i n
common: their referential meaning i s determined purely by the grammar
of English and the linguistic or situational context in which they occur.
Beyond this, it is necessary to sec pronouns as falling into the following
classes and subclasses:
{personal -- eg: I, me, 1hey, them
CENTRAL refexi ve - eg: myself; lhemse/ves
posscssive-eg: my/mine, their/theirs
RELATIVE -- eg: which, tlw1
INTERROGATIVE - cg: who, what
DEMONSTRATIVE- eg: 1his, those
{universal - eg: both, each
{positive assertive
-
eg: some, sevral
nonassert1 vc -eg: any, either
INDEFINITE
ngative - eg: nobody, 11ei1her
Central pronouns
Personal pronouns
6.2 Like all the central pronouns, the personal pronouns display a person
contrast; that is, they have separate l st, 2nd, and 3rd person forms. In the
3rd person, there is H three-way gender contrast: masculine, feminine, and
non persona!. There are also 1111mber Lotasts (singular, plural) and in the
personal subclass a l st and 3rd person contrast in case also (subjective,
objective). The system of central pronouns is presented as a whole in Table
6.2.
Central pronouns 109
NOTE We f!low the lr:1dition of applying the term 'personal pronouH only lo i\ suhclass
of the central pronouns
.
What arc here termed 'possessive pronouns' an: Dlkn
treated as a third case (genitive) of the primary pronouns; on the paied forms or
possessives (eg: 111y/mi11e), see 6. 1 6.
Table 6.2 Cenfl'al pro1101111s
l'RIMARY REFl.EXl\'E POSSESSIVE
PERSON
l st
2nd
3rd
NUMBEll S\JllJECT!VE OUJECTIVE
AND GENDER CASE
{ singular I
plural we
r singular yuu
l plural you
(
masculine
singular she
fcr:nininc
singular it
non personal
plural they
CASE
me
us
you
you
him
her
it
them
DETERMINHt INOl:PENOENT
FUNC'TION FUNf'TlON
myself my nii nl.'
ourselves our ours
yourself your yours
yourselves your yours
himself his his
herself her hers
itself its (its)
themselves thci1 theirs
6.3 PEllSON distinguishes the speaker or writer ( 1 st person) from the addressee
(2nd person) and from those persons or things which are neither (3rd
person):
I hope that you will express an opinion on them.
I pnouns of different persons are coordina Led, the sequem:e is trcatcd as
I st person if it includes / or we, 2ncl person if i t includes you but not / or we.
Thus:
You and I can go together, can't we?
Y d
{ Gillian }
. I I d , ou an
/
agree wit J t rt, on tyor1;
s te ..
<
[f neither lst nor 2nd person pronouns occur in the coordination, the
scq ucncc is of course 3rd person:
Fred } 1 {J!ona }
. 1.
.
d' d
,
1 ,1
Ji
am
1
met in us, n t 1 ie'
L , IL

The ordering of pronouns in coordination is important from the view

point of style and courtesy: the J st person comes last (especially if it is the
singular) and the 2nd person usually comes first:
!:
110 Pronouns
You, {{;k, } and /will still bc at work.
{John?
Why didn't they invite you and me?
her?
Jrd person coordinates usually have the masculine before the feminine,
the pronoun before the noun phrase:
He and she
}

were both elected.
She and another student
6.4 GENDER enfrces a three-way distinction on the 3rd person singular, with
masculine, feminine, and nonpersonal forms (5.45.f):
le has hurt his hand.
She asked herself why sire had bought ii when its lens was so
obviously scratched.
This causes problems, especially when there is no basis for deciding
between masculine and feminine, either because the gender is unknown or
because i t must be inclusive:
Someone is knocking so l'd better go and let h . . ? in.
An ambitious player must discipline h . . ?self
Traditionally, the masculine can be used as the unmarked form (2.7)
covering male and female reference in such cases, but sensitivity to sexual
bias makes many people prefr a cumbersome coordination:
An amhitious player must discipline himsel or herself
More generally, where an informal di sregard for strict number concord is
felt tolerable, the gynder-neutral plural is used:
Someone has parked their car right under the 'No Parking' sign.
NOTE The graphic device s/he to embrace he and she is of l imi ted value since there is no
equally convenient objective, possessive, or rcnexivc form (though full frms are
ofen used. such as him/her).
(i.5 NUMllER has to be treated separately for each of the three persons of
pronouns. With the 3rd person, number is closest in value to that with
nouns:
A male officer and a woman ofcer interrogated the prisoner but the
oficers disagreed over procedure.
Ile and sire interrogated the prisoner hut tle disagreed over
procedure.
With the 2nd person. there is a number contrast only in the refexive
pronoun. Comparl!:
Central pronouns 1 1 1
Look at vour hand, Jack; yo11've cut yo11rse((
Keep your voices down, children; you must behave yourse/oes.
But, while you . . . yoursefre.1 is straightforwardly the pforal of more than
one addressee, each of which might be addressed as you , . . yourself, the
plural with the lst person is on quite a different basis. lis not the plural
of l (*'We, that is, I and I and J are glad to see you') but a pronoun
meaning I and one or more other people ('We, that is, Jill and I', 'We the
undersigned'). See below, 6. 10.
NOTE In archaic style, t here is a set of singular 2nd person pronouns thou (objective thee),
thy(sel(), tlii11e, and a special subjective plurl frm ye.
6.6 CASH in personal pronouns involves a distinction absent from nouns,
marking broadly the grammatical roles of subject and object. Compare:
The policeman detained this young woman.
He detained her.
The woman resisted the policeman.
She resisted him.
Corresponding to the genitive case in nouns (5.48.f), we have in pronouns
the subclass of possessives, treated below in 6.16:
Tire girl's dog bit an old man's ankle.
Her dog bit his ankle.
6.7 The choice of subjective and objective forms does not depend solely upon
the strict grammatical distinction between subject and object. Rather,
usage shows that we arc concered more with subject 'territory' (the pre
verbal part of a clause) i n contrast to object 'territory' (the post-verbal
part of a clause). In consequence of the latter consideration, it is usual in
informal style to find objective forms selected in such instances as the
fllowing:
His sister is taller than him.
Whoever left the door unlocked, it certainly wasn't me.
Many people arc uncomfortable about such forms, however, especially in
writing, though the subject variants are almost equally objectionable in
seeming unnatural. yhere an operator can be added, of course, the
problem of choice satisfactorily disappears:
His sister i s taller than he i s.
See also 6. 1 1 .
NOTE (a] In contrast with except which is always treated as a preposition and t herefore
followed by the uhjcctivc case ('Nobody cxcq>t ""' objc1tc<l'), Lh.rc is vacillation
Ov'CI" ircpositiona I bw, many people preferring the subjccti1 c form if it is in su lljccl
'tcrril.ory'. Thus:

112 Pronouns
Nobody but she objected.
Even in object territory, but t:an be followed by either frm, as with as and 'hem:
Nobody objected but she/her.
[b] The frequency of the coordination you and I seems lo have resulted in a
tendency to make it case-invariant, though such examples as the following are felt
to be uneasily hypcrcorrcct:
Let's you and I go together then.
Between you and!, there was some cheating.
Specific reference
6.8 Central pronouns resemble noun phrases with the in normally having
definite meaning, and they also usually have specifc reference. I the case
of 3rd person pronouns, the identity or the reference is typically supplied
by the linguistic context, anaphorically as in [l] or calaphorically as in [2]
(cf 5. 14):
There is an excel/em museum here and everyone should visit it. fll
When she had examined the patient, 1he doctor picked
up the telephone. (2)
In [ t ] , it is understood as 'the museum'; in (2], she is understood as 'the
doctor'. Cataphoric reference is conditional upon grammatical subordi
nation; thus [2] could not be restated as: .
*She examined the patient and then tlze doctor picked up the
telephone.
I
Anaphoric refrence has no such constraint, and [2] could b repl aced by:
When the doctor had examined the patient, she picked up the
telephone.
On the other hand, the relative feedom of anaphoric reference can result
in indeterminacy as to identification:
Ms Fairweather asked Janice if she1 could come into her room; she2
seemed to be more upset than she had ever seen her.
English grammar determines only that the italicized items have singular
feminine reference; it does not determine the specific identities. In such a
case, the speaker/writer would have to make sure that the larger context or
the si tuation left it clear whether, fr example, she1 referred to Ms
Fairweather or to Janice and whether she2 had the same reference as she' .
Did Ms Fairweather ask for the interview because Janice seemed upset or
is Janice reflecting that the interview is sought because Ms Fairweather
seemed upset'1
Central pronouns 1 1 3
The pronoun i
6.9 Any singular noun phrase that does not determine reference by he or she is
referred to by it ; thus collectives, noncount concretes, and abstractions:
The commilfee met soon after it had been appointed.
He bought some salmon because it was her favourite food.
When you arc rl!ady to report it, I would like to know your
assessment ofthe problem.
Since this last noun phrase is a nominalization ( 1 7. 23) of a clause ('You
arc assessing the prohtcmt it is easy to see that it can n:lcr to the con lent
of whole sentences and sequences of sentences:
I don't like to say it but I must. You haie lost your job because you
didn 't work hard enough. You have only yourself to blume.
Such a cataphoric use of ii with senl.:ntial reference is analogous to thi
cxtrapositional it (1 8. 23 ):
It has to be said that you have losr your job because . . .
Analogous.too is the anticipatory it in cleft senten

es ( 1 8. 1 8/):
ft was only last week that the death was announced.
Jn many cases where ir seems to be superficially anaphoric, it is to be
explained in terms of this anticipatory use with subsequent ellipsis.
Compare:
I asked where she lived and it turned out to be in my street.
The phone rang and it was the police.
. I . .
On the other hand, it as a prop ('dummy') Sl!bJect frequently occurs where
no plausible sentential refe'rence can be claimed:
ff ii stops raining, we can go out for a walk; but we must be home
before it gets dark.
NOTE A prop it is not confined to subject function:
l take it that she has declined the invitation.
He had a hard time of it in the army.
The 1 st person plural forms
6. 10 The pronoun fr the l st person plural i s a device for referring to ' 1' and
one or more other people. The latter may be INCLUSIVE of the add ressee(s):
T'm glad to see you, Marie, and I hope we (ie 'you and I') can have a
long talk.
Ladies and genllmcn, I hope we (ie 'you and I') can agree: this
evening on a policy for the future.
NOTE
6. 1 1
1 1 4 Pronouns
The l at ter is aki n to the persuasive we associated wi th sermons and
pol i tical speeches as wel l as wi th scholarly wri ti ng; fr example:
We must i ncrease our vigilance i f we are not to fll victim to
temptation.
As we saw i n Chapter Three, we can trace the ori gi ns of human
confl i ct to . . .
The artificial nature of the incl usiveness i n this l ast example (which really
means 'As I hope you saw i n Chapter Three . . . ') is accentuated in the
rhetorical use of we, where the reference i s to a general human collectivity
-possibly in the remote past -and where paraphrase by 'you and I' may be
unthi nkable:
In the eighteenth century, we had l i ttle idea of the effect that
i ndustrial i nventions would have.
Artificial i ncl usi veness of a di fferent ki nd i s fund i n the i nfrmal we used
by doctor to patient:
And how are we (ie ' you' ) feel i ng today?
The obverse of this occurs i n the exclusive use of the l st person pl ural
where 'you' the addressee i s not i ncl uded:
Ms Rogers and I have fnished the report, Mi nister; shall we (ie 'she
and I ' ) leave it on your desk?
Related to this i s the tradi ti onal 'editorial' we:
We can now reveal that the visit was cancelled because of threatened
terrori st activity.
The royal we, now restricted to highly formal material such as charters, can be
regarded as an extreme frm of exclusive we.
Modification of pronouns
There is very l i mi ted scope for modi fication and it l argely concerns the
personal pronouns wi th the objective case -, 6. 7):
(a) Adjectives, chiefy i n i nformal exclamati ons:
Poor me! Clever you! Good old him!
(b) Appositive nouns, with pl ural l st and 2nd person:
Wi l l you others please wait here?
You nurses have earned the respect of the entire country, and we
politicians must see that you get a proper reward.
Us locals are goi ng to protest. (famil i ar)
(c) Here and there, wi th l st person pl ural and 2nd person respectively
(the l at ter tending to sound rude):
6.12
-
---- -- -
Central pronouns 1 1 5
Whatcv
,
er you others do, ll'e here would be wi l l i ng to leav
Could J ou !here collect your passports at the desk?
e now.
(d) Preposi ti onal phrases, with 1 st person (usual l y
person:
pl ural ) and 2nd
It is very much the concern of
f.1'0
1
1
t
I 1 .
lus j
111 1 1l' eared pr1!/essio11s.
(e) Emphatic refexives:
l myse((, she herse((, !hey lhemse/ves
(f) Uni versal pronouns, wi th pl urals:
(g)
We al/ accept responsi bi l i ty.
You ho1h t
The
each j
need help
.
Relative cla
I

fl
uses, c l i e Y Ill frmal style:
rYe 11'/oJiJuglll jiJr 1/ii:\' pri11c1iJ/e wi l l not ligll lly 1b d
.
He or rhe 1 / I /'
'
c1n on I t
:
i
1
0 l 1 a rse ill 111 1 of/ice should cl
.

possible
.
. . ai m 1 t as soon as
They Iha! ( *They ll'ho) is rare, !hose ll'ho being preferred.
Generic reference
In the type of modi fication i l l ustntcd i n 6
.
generic rather than spc r
'
.
1 1 (g), most mstanccs have
c1 ic re1 ercncc, as I the proverbial
He (ie 'Anyone') 11'/io hesi1a1es is lost.
For ordinary purposes the prono
use as generics; for exa
,
mplc:
uns ll'e, you, and !hey have widespread
e live in an age of
_
moral di l emmas
.

z
ou an always tell I f someone is lying. (i nfrmal )
( I ]
ll')' I I soon fi nd a cure fr cuiccr (1 11r
I )
[2]
'
. 1 orma
[
3]
Tn each case, the subject could be re I
.
major stylistic and semantic di ffe
P .icd , ?Y the generic one but wi th
frmal in each case but esp
.
l l
renc

s. ty istical l y,
o11e
would be
more
i ncl usionary warm;h of i
ec
l
1

d
y s
l
o Il (3]. Semantically, we retains the
mp ic st person i nvol
(6 comparably i mpl ies special i nterest i n th
ve1

en t . 1 0), you
the
general observation equal ly fro l b t

a
l
ddressee, whil e !hey
detaches
In consequence, it is cspecial l
I l o i
_
t ie s

eaker and the addressee.

disapproval:
y convenient I rel ati on to regret or
I wonder why !hey don't repair tl1e d roa s more often.
; I
6. 1 3
1 1 6 Pronouns
The reflexives
The refexive pronouns arc always coreferential with a noun or another
pronoun, agreeing wi th it i n gender, number, and person:
Veronica --.-, saw the accident.
[ l ]
The dog was scratching .-.
[2]
He and hi s wif poured --.--. a dri nk.
[3]
The refexives here are coreferential with -.-- (as appositivc subjec),
t-- --, (as object), and a- --- -. ,- (as i ndi rect object). By contrast, 1 11
He and hi s wife poured -- a dri nk.
[
4]
the indirect object --- refers to people other than the subject.
The corefercnce must be within the clause; thus we have a contrast
between
Penelope begged Jane to look after -- ( = Penelope)
Penelope begged Jane to look after --.-/ ( =Jane)
But the item determi ni ng the refexive may be absent from the clause in
question; for example, i mperative cl auses are und

rst

od to i

volve nd
person, and nonfini te clauses may reveal the subject 11 a ne1ghbour111E
main clause:
Look at ,-..-, i n the mi rror!
Freeing .- from the trap, the rat l i mped away.
NOTE [a] Where a pronoun object is only partially corcfcrcnti al with the subject, the
refexive is not used. Thus beside '! could make mysel an omelette', ' We could
make ourselves an omelette', we have ' ! could make us an omelette'.
[I] Appositivc use of refexives i s associated with the need for emphasis.
6. 1 4 A few transitive verbs require that subject and object are corefcrential:
They pride ---.--. on their well-kept garden.
The wit ness was suspected of having perjured --.-/
So also --.-- ----. -,.-- ---.- --- ---.: though with this
last the refexive can be omi t ted. Wi th some other verbs, there is a
threefold choice:
She dressed --.- with care.
She dressed with care.
She dressed - wi th care.
So also .-.- .-.- --- ,-,-- etc.
[ I ]
[2] =[ 1 ]
[3]
6. 1 5 Prepositional complements coreferential with an i tem i n the same clause
take reflexive form where the preposition has a close relationship with the
verb (as i n the prepositional verbs -- . -- -,- .-- - -, 1 6. 5.f).
The same holds in sequences concerned with representati on:
NOTE
Janet
{look a photo of }{ -e.-(( =Janct)
told a story about -- ( fJanet)
Central pronouns 1 1 7
B t \h
.
e
.
r7 the prcpositio
?
al phrase i s adverbial (especially relating to
space. lj 8. 2, 8. 1 //), co reference can be expressed wi thout the reflexive:
Fred closed the door behind -
Fred draped a blanket about -
In such cases, context alone would show whether - referred to :-- or to
someone else
:
replacement of .- by himse((would of course remove any
doubt but thi s woul d be unusual unless emphasis were requi red.
ith s
.
omc
.
common existential expressions (I 8. 3Q/'), the reflexive i s rare or
1 111poss1blc i n the prepositional emnplcmcnt:
She hadn't any money on /er.
I have my wi fe wi th me.
On the other hand, there arc idiomatic phrases m which the prepositional
complement must be refexive:
They were beside t/e111sefres with rage.
I was si tti ng by 111yse(f
Contrast:
They were beside 111e. ('near')
I was si tti ng by /er. ('near')
The possessives
6.16 As sho
.
wn i n Table 6.2, most of the possessive pronouns difer in form
accord111g as they function as determiners or as independent items.
Compare:
{Mi ri am's ) M
'
'
These are /
.
J
Ibooks. These books are
{ ram s.
- --.
That is -, bicycle. That bicycle is -
Which are -- clothes? Which clothes are -.
Is this -. car? Is this car -.
BUT Those are . paw-marks. *?Those paw-marks are .
Whe
.
n th

emphai c -,. - follows a possessive (the onl y form of

10difcat10n admi tted), there is no diference between determiner and

1 11dependent function:
That i s m - bicycle. That bicycle is , --
With this modi fcation, even can now sometimes assume enough
weight for i ndependent status:
The cat knows that this is The cat knows that thi s dish is
. -,; -- dish. . -,; -
NOTE
6. 17
1 1 8 Pronouns
. .
h
parts of the body
without any feeling of
Possessives arc used with items sue as
tautology:
She shook /er head:
I tried to keep my balance.
"thout a person contrast
Pronouns w1
Rel ative prono
uns

t
series

Relative pronouns compnse wo
.
( I ) wh- i tems: who, whom, whose, which
d
the latter i ndicated below as ( )
(2) that an zero,
Compare:
{which }
that
you have for sale.
I'd l i ke to come and sec the house
( )

( I ) we
. .
tions of person or number, but m
I n neit her series are there d1 stmc
d
.
.
Wi th who and
whom the


of gender an
wse.
.
h
have
some d1stmct1ons
. d . (5 45)" with
which it must ave
antecedent
must have
.
personal g
l
e e
t
r
cedcn( is usual l y personal but can
nal gender with whose t 1e an e
nonperso
,
also be nonpersonal . Thus:
A
the doctor who looked after my dau
ghter?
re you
/

b
xpandcd
That i s the hospi tal w/zic l is to c c
.
.
{doctor
} whose phone number I gave
you.
That 1s the
hospital
.
c
ender reference, thei r dilTere
.
nce m or
Whil e who and
whom shar g
. .
d objective rcspcct1vcly,
withi n
rc!ccts t he case disti ncti on, subJccl1vc an
the relative clause:
{who greeted me }
.
d

a neighbour
.
The man whom I greete
is
10 whom I spoke
But see 1 7 . 8f.
d
" thout reference to t he gender of the
I n series (2), that ea be s
.

1
relative clause, except that i t cannot
antecedent or the funct10
.
n
.
w1 t m 1c
be preceded by a prepositi on:
The actor
that I admi red
i s new to London.
{that pleased me
}
The play
}
that I was
attracted to
6. 18
Pronouns without a person contrast 1 1 9
Zero has a similar range, lacki ng onl y the subject functi on:
The actor }{ ( ) I admi red
}

t L d 1s new o on on.
The play ( ) I was attracted to
A major di fference between the two series is that i tems i n (2) can operate
only i n restrictive clauses. Sec 1 7. 8.
Interrogative pronouns
There arc fve i nterrogative pronouns:
who whom whose which what
The frst four are identical wi th series ( I ) of the relative pronouns (6. 1 7),
but there are notable di fferences both i n their reference and i n their
grammar within the clause
.
Whose as well as who and whom can be used
onl y with reference to items of personal gender; nor is whose restricted to
determiner function. Whi l e whom can function only as the objective case,
who can be both subjective and (especially i n speech) objective except after
a preposi tion
.
To ill ustrate these poi nts:
Wiza owns this house?
W!z o(m) does this house belong to?
To whom does this house belong? (fmrnl )
Whose is this house?
With which, refrence can be both personal and non personal :
Of h
_cars, } / . / _is best?
t CSC I' l/C I .
students, do you hke most?
When what is used as a pronoun, the questioner assumes that the reference
is nonpersonal:
WI
_is i n that box?
wt
were you weari ng that day?
But whal and 11'!1ich can also be determiners ( 5. 3) , and in this function the
noun phrase can be personal or nonpcrsonal, the di fference then being
that which assumes a l i mi ted choice of known answers:
What doctor(s) would refuse to sec a patient?
Which doctor (s) [of those we arc discussing] gave an opi ni on on thi s
problem?
As determiner, whose retains its personal reference:
Whose house is this?
The distinction between 11'10, ll'lat, and llic/ is brought out in a set like the
fol lowing:
6. 19
NOTE
6.20
1 20 Pronouns
Wlo is his wife? The novelist Felicity Smi th. (/5. 1 1 )
W/at is his wi fe? A novelist. (/ 5. 1 5, 23)
Whiclz i s hi s wi fe? The woman nearest the door.
Demonstrative pronouns
The demonstratives have the same formal range and semanic contrst
both as pronouns and as determi ners (5. 5), 1/zis/1/zese suggesti ng relative
proxi mi ty to the speaker, 1/za1///10se relative remoteness:
1/zis 1/za1
}
We shal l { (picture)
}
here with
{ (picture)
over there.
compare 1/zese 1/zos

(pictures) (pi ctures)
But whi l e al l can be used as determi ners irrespective of the gender of the
noun head, as pronouns the reference must be to nouns of non personal
(and usually i nani mate) gender:
{!his plastic bag. r/zis
I n the garden, I noticed 1/zis ki tten. ?1/is .
1/zis woman. * 1/m
An excepti on is where the demonstrative pronoun is subject of a be-clause
with a noun phrase of specifc reference as compl ement:
Thal is my ki tten.
These are the chi l dren I told you about.
?' 'WI
.
I ?' CJalso 'Who is 1/za1 ?' 'Who is ii ?' beside ' Who are you. 10 i s s 1.
Occasional l y too the demonstrati ves may be used as pronouns with
ani mate refrence where there is el lipsis:
I attended to 1ha1 patient but not 1/zis (one).
As in the example, howevr, i t
_
woul d be usuI to add the
_
proun on
A further partial except10n 1s that 1/zose wi th postmod1 fcat1on ( 1 7.-)
can readily have personal reference:
Wi l l 1/zose sealed in rows 20 10 30 now please board the ai rcraft.
Success comes to !hose who have delerminalion.
Whether as determiners or pronouns, the demonstratives can be modifed by
predeterminers (5. 7j):
She pain led all (of) t/ose (pie lures) last year.
Hi s fee was twenty dollars but now it's tll'ice tlat (amount).
The deictic or ' poi nti ng' contrast between 1his/1/zese and 1/za1/1/zose is not
confi ned to spati al percepti on. Whi l e 1/zis momin

usual l y refers to
' today' 1/za1 moring refers to a more di stant morning, past or future.
More enerally, 1/zis/1hese have more i mmediate or i mpendi ng relevance
than 1/zal/ 1/10se:
NOTE
Pronouns without a person contrast 1 21
These fgures ha vc just been compiled; rlose of yours arc out of date.
In consequence, 1/zis/1/zese tend to be associated with cataphoric reference
(5. 1 4), tlwr/tlose with anaphoric reference:
Watch careful l y and I' l l show you: 1his is how i t' s done.
So now you know: Iha/' s how it's done.
This is an announcement: will Mrs Peterson please go lo the enqui ry
desk
.
And Iha/ was the six o'clock news.
Especially in i nformal usage, a further extension of the polarity lends to equate
this/these with the speaker's approval, and especially tlat/tlose wi th disapproval:
How can 1his i ntelligent girl think of marrying 1!1at awful bore?
Indefinite pronouns
6.21 I ndefi nite pronouns arc heterogeneous i n frm and they embrace also a
wide range both of meanings and of grammatical properties. They are
characterized as a whol e, however, by having a general and nonspccifc
reference which the term ' i ndefni te' seeks lo capture. Equally, they are
characterized by having functi ons di rectly i nvolved in expressing qua111i1y,
from total ity (' al l ' ) to i ts converse (' nothi ng'). Reference i n some cases
i nvokes gender, such that items in -ho((!' are personal , items in -I/zing
nonpersonal . Quantifcation i n some cases i nvokes countabi l i ty and
number, such that each is singular count, ho1/z dual count, while some may
be noncount or pl ural count.
Several of the indefni tes can function both as determiners and as
pronouns, as we shal l sec i n what follows.
The universal items
6.22 We may frst consider the compound i ndefni tes (eienone, e1errhodr,
cl'e111hing; 110 one, noh((ZI', 1101/zing), noti ng that all ecepl 110 (;/le ac
wri llen as single words. These function onl y as pronouns, and despite
thei r entai l ment of pl ural meaning they take singular verbs:
The room was ful l of youngsters and el'eryone/eFeryhoczr was
l istening i ntently to the speeches.
I appealed to the whole crowd, but 110 one/nobody was wi l l i ng to gel
up and speak.
Father was very particul ar about how his tools were arranged i n the
workshop; he knew where e1er1/zi11g was supposed to be and he
insisted that 1101/zing was ever to be misplaced.
These and the other uni versal i ndefni tes are shown together i n Table
6. 22.
NOTE
6.23
122 Pronouns
Table 6.22: Universal indefnites
COUNT
NUMHER FUNCTION
NONCOUNT
PERSONAL NON PERSONAL
Positile everyone everything
everybody
pronoun
singular each
every
determiner each all
pronoun :ill/both
pl ural
determiner all/both
Ngatfe no one nothing
nobody
pronoun
singular none none
pronoun and
neither
determiner
plural pronoun none
I
singular or determiner
no
plural
1 th se m -bodv but m
.
.
commoner in written usage t ian o
. . '
l ] The frs m -one are
s;eech it is the !au
.
er that are
d
mr:n.
genitive: Th nouns r n -one an - .
h
[b] c pro
.
h' se the accident seems lo ave Safety is everyone s respon ,
.
sibility but ml ts ea
been nobodi 's fault.
.
.
.
f the compound not/zinK: /n1101f/. [c]
Pronunciation obscures the
.
0

en function as inde
f
i ni te advcrbials, they [
d] Though everwhere and nou hen y
can also be pronouns:
I
.
.
draughty and no11'here is comfortable. Every\\' ie1e is
able to operate rther indefi ni tes are each and none, both Two f.
nder wi th si ngular reference: i rrespective of ge
/ . pressed 10 act, none Many members hesitated but al though eal ' was
was in the end wi l l i ng.
b t ! though each was tried I knives in the drawer
,
u a There were scvcra
1 l cul through the rope. in t urn none was sharp enoug 1 o
.
.
'
.

which role 1t 1s 1 f Lion as a determiner, m Each (but not none) can a so unc
closely paralleled by every:
Pronouns without a person contrast
123
Each }
d
'
d
1 1
b
.
d
.
'
d II
.
.
d
E
can 1 ate w1
e in 1 v1 ua y 1 nterv1ewe .
l'e1y
Where they di lTcr is that each is more targeted on the i ndividual
among the
total i ty, ePery on the
total i ty
i tsel f I n conse
quence,
eve1y is subject to
quan titative
modi fica
tion as in
Almost
e1e1:i candidate
was over the age of
twen
ty-five.
By contrast with each, 11011e is not restricted lo
sing
ul ar reference, though
pl urals l i ke the
fl l owi ng are
objectionabl e lo some users:
Hundreds were exami ned but 11011e l l 'ce acccrtabl c.
With the determi ner 110 whi ch corresponds to none, however, pl ural is as
uni v
ersal ly
used as the singular:
No photography is permi
tted
duri ng the
ceremony
.
There were no passen
gers on the
train.
The
individ
ualizing
role
or
each can be
preserved in ot herwise plural
environments:
The knives
were
each
tried i n turn.
6.24
Wi th al and both, we make pl ural and dual uni versal reference:
The
fctory
produces l uxury cars and al arc
fr export.
Pol ice i nterviewed
the
( two) susp
ects and botl
were
arrested.
These two i tems al so
have a
predetermi ner function:
A I these cars arc fr export.
Both
(the)
susp
ects
were arrested.
The converse
of al is no(ne) (6.23); that of hot/ is neitler, usual l y with
singul ar verb concord:
Pol ice i ntervi ewed t he ( two) suspects but neitler
was arrested.
I t has a paral l el determi ner functi on:
Neitler suspect was
arre
sted.
As with
each (6.23 Note), al and hoth can appear medially.
The cars were al fr export.
The (two) suspects
were bot/i arrested.
In this function al/ is used feely
with
a noncount
reference otherwise largely
con
fned lo its predetermi ner functi on:
The money had al been
spent.
Al the
money had been
spent.
124 Pronouns
Partitive indefnites
6.25 In dealing with the parti tives (see Table 6. 25), we must make a primary
distinction between (a) those in assertive use, and ( b) those i n non-assertive
usc ( 2. l l ):
(a)
(b)
{someone } . .
I can sec
l d
ch
mbmg that tree.
some JO y
There's sometlzi11g I want lo tell you.
There are nuts here; please have some.
There is wine here; please ha vc some.
Al l the students speak French and some speak I talian as well.
D
'
d
{a11yo11e . 1
.
. . .1
1 .you sec
l
I
J
i n t 1c v1c1111 ty.
a/lyJOC J'
I couldn' t fnd anything to read.
I'd l i ke nuts, i f you have any.
I'd l i ke wi ne, i f you have any.
All the students work hard and 1 don' t thi nk any will fai l .
When used pronominally, some and any usually have clear contextual
reference to a noun phrase. Both occur more freely as determiners:
(a) I would love some nuts and some wine, please.
(b) If you haven't any nuts, I'll not have any wine, thank you.
The examples above illustrate. the use of these i tems wi th personal,
nonpcrsonal, count, and noncount reference. But i t should be further
noted that with any the number distinction is typically bl urred:
The woman said she'd seen an animal runni ng for cover, but her
companion said that he hadn' t seen any animal(s) al all.
NOTE [a] On -one and -body, sec 6.22 Notes [a] and [b].
[b] Corresponding fairly closely lo the negative neichcr (6.
24), there i s the
nonasscrtivc either:
The police did not arrest eicher (suspect)
.
[c] Beside the partitive some [s;m] as determiner, a stressed form [sw1] can be used
with singular count nouns in the sense 'a certain' ( 5. 6 Nole [b]):
'Some 'man slopped me lo ask the way
.
[d] Like everywhere, nowhere (6
.
22 Note [d]), we have so111e1\'here, WIJ'll'liere; in
AmE also -place.
[c] Assertive forms can be used in nonasscrtivc 'territory' when the presupposition
is positive:
Can you sec someone i n the garden ( =There is someone i n the garden; can
you sec hi m/her?)
Would you l i ke some wine ( = I invite you to have some wine).
6.26
6.27
Pronouns without a person contrast 1 25
Table 6.25: Partitive indefnites
COUNT
NUMBER FUNCTION NON COUNT
PERSONAL NON PERSONAL
Ass!'rlfrl' pronoun omconc something
singul ar somebody
determiner a (an) some
pl ural pronoun and some
determiner
No11asser1fre pronoun anyone anything
anybody
singular
either
determiner any any
plural
pronoun and
any
determiner
he

arli
.
tivc
.
s include quanti fiers, which may (a) increase or (b) decrease
d
t

e t mp!1cat10ns of some; thus beside 'There arc some who would

1sagrce , we have:
(a) There arc many who would disagree.
(b) There arc a/el l ' who would disagree.
Analogously with noncount reference:
{some.
The bread looked delici ous and I ate a great deal.
a !if/le.
This use of quantifi

rs is not paralleled exactly in nonassertive contexts

where the contrast is rather between total and partial excl usi on:
'
There arcn: l any who would disagree. ( =No one)
There
.
arcn t m
.
any

ho would disagree. ( =A few)

The w

nc was 1 11fcnor and I di dn' t dri nk l/111'

.
( = Non )
The
.
c wmc was m cnor and I di dn' t dri nk much. ( =A l i ttle)
s, many, a Ill' , a lillle, and 111uc/1 can be As well as being pronoun
J
determiners.
The ofpartitives
It is typical of the indefinites which have both a pronoun md a d l
.
role to fuse th . . I (
' c crmmer
ese ro cs m -expressions where the fnal part is a personal
pronoun or a noun preceded by a defi ni te determiner; for example:
NOTE
6.28
1 26 Pronouns
Some are doing wel l .
Some students are doing wel l .
{t!e s/lldents }
Some of these students arc doing well.
them
Thus, wi th si ngular count partition:
each of
one of
any of
(the students)
either of
none of
neither of
Wi th pl ural count partition:
all of
both of
some of
many of
(our supporters)
more of
most of
(a) few of
feiver, -est of
Wi th noncount parti ti on:
all of
some of
a great deal of
much of
more of
most of (Beethoven 's music)
(a) Ii/lie of
less of
least of
any of
none of
Comparative frms can be preceded by items of absolute meaning:
There were a few more ofour supporters than I had expected.
She played muclz less ofBeetlzovell
'
s music than we had hoped.
As well as one, the other cardinal numerals are readily used
of-partitives:
Pronouns without a person contrast 127
Three ofmy friends arc comi ng to di nner.
So too the ordinals, and these can be used with both count and noncount
expressions:
A/one <
1
1111rter of' hi.1 hooks were destroyed i n the fre.
She regulates her l i fe careful l y, devoting at least
.
fve-sixths ofherfree
time lo practising at the piano.
With hal, there is considerable freedom i n usage; as a predeterminer, it
must i tself be without a preceding determiner:
r I If I
{perfrmance.
saw ia l 1e 1
p aycrs.
In of-parti ti ves or otherwise pronomi nal l y, it may be determined:
{hal f }
I h If f I
{performance. }
saw a a o t 1e 1
one hal f
p ayers.
Outside of-partitives, another has onl y l i mi ted use as a pronoun:
There was another ofthose 1111explainedfires i n the ci ty yesterday.
But cf:
There have been many fires in the ci ty recently;
{another was }
I
reported yesterday.
severa were
By contrast, other does not enter i nto of-parti tives, but in its pl ural form is
otherwise common in pronoun usage:
You should treat others as you would l i ke to be treated yourself
NOTE (a] I n association with eaclz and olle, otler and wwtlzer function as reciprocal
pronouns. For example:
One student will often help c11101her.
Eaclz of us must support tlze 01/er.
. { eaclz otler.
The chil dren were very fond of
Olle another.
[b] The pattern ( i n figures and words) of the cardinal and ordinal numerals is as set
out below. As ordinals, items arc usually preceded by the, as fractions by a or one:
't/efourt/ of July', 'a third or a l i tre'.
0 nought, zero
I one
2 two
3 three
4 four
5 fve
6 six
7 seven
l st frst
2nd second (asfraclion, a half)
3rd third
4th fourth
5th frth
6th sixth
7lh seventh
1 28 Pronouns
8 eight
9 nine
1 0 ten
1 1 eleven
12 twelve
13 thirteen
14 fourteen
15 fifteen
16 sixteen
17 seventeen
18 eighteen
19 nineteen
20 twenty
21 twenty-one
22 twenty-two
23 twenty-three
24 twenty-four (etc)
30 thirty
40 forty
50 fifty
60 sixty
70 seventy
80 eighty
90 ninety
100 a/one hundred
1 20 a/one hundred and twenty
I ,OOO a/one thousand
1 ,500 a/one thousand fve hundred
2,000 two thousand (etc)
I 00,000 a/one hundred thousand
1 ,000,000 a/one million
1 ,000,000,000 a/one billion
Bi bl iographical note
Sth eighth
9th ninth
I Oth tenth
1 1 th eleventh
1 2th twelfth
1 3th thirteenth
14th fourteenth
I 5th ffteenth
1 6th sixteenth
I 7th seventeenth
I 8th eighteenth
1 9th nineteenth
20th twentieth
21 st twenty-frst
22nd twenty-second
23rd twenty-third
24th twenty-fourth (ete)
30th thirtieth
40th fortieth
50th llfticth
60th sixtieth
70th seventieth
80th eightieth
90th ninetieth
I OOth hundredth
I 20th hundred and twentieth
l ,OOOth thousandth
I ,500th thousand fve hundredth
2,000th two thousandth (etc)
100,000th hundred thousandth
1 ,000,000th millionth
1 ,000,000,000th billionth
On pronouns in general, sec Bolinger ( 1 979); Jackcndoff ( 1 968); Stevenson and
Vitkovitch ( l 986).
On central pronouns, sec Helke ( 1 979); Jacobsson ( 1 968); Saha ( 1 987);
Seppanen ( 1 980); Thavenius ( 1 983); on reciprocal pronouns, sec Kjcllmer ( 1 982);
on indefnite pronouns, sec Sahlin ( 1 979); on numerals, sec Hurford ( 1 975).
7. 1
7
Adjectives and adverbs
Adjectives
Characteristics of the adjective
Four features are commonly considered to be characteristic of adjectives:
(a) They can freely occur in ATTRlUTIVE function, ie they can prcmodi fy
a noun, appearing between the determiner (including zero article) and
the head of a noun phrase:
an ugly painting, the round table, dirty l i nen
(b) They can freely occur in PREDICATIVE function, ie they can function as
subject complement, as in [ I ], or as object complement, as in [2], eg:
The painting is ugly.
He thought the painting ugly.
(c) They can be premodifed by the i ntensifer very, eg:
The children are very happy.
[ l ]
[2]
(d) They can take COMPARATIVE and SUPERLATIVE frms. The comparison
may be by means of infections (-e and -est), as i n [3-4], or by the
addition of the premodifers more and most ('periphrastic compari
son'), as in [5-6]:
The chi l dren are happier now. [3]
They are the happiest people I know. [4]
These students are more intelligent . [5]
They are the most beautiit! paintings I have ever seen. [6]
Not all words that arc traditionally regarded as adjectives possess all
these four features. The last two features generally coincide for a
p
articular word and depend on a semantic feature, gradabi l i ty. The
adjective atomic in atomic scientist, for example, is not gradablc and we
therefre do not fnd * very atomic or *more atomic. Gradabil i ty cuts
across word classes. Many adverbs are gradablc, and since they also take
premodifcation by lery and comparison, these two features do not
di stinguish adjectives from adverbs.
The ability to function attributively and the abi l i ty to function
predicatively are central features of adjectives. Adjectives l i ke happy and
infnite, which have both these features, arc therefre CENTRAL adjectives.
Those l i ke ul/er that can be only attributive and those l i ke afraid that can
be only predicative are PERIPHERAL adjectives.
NOTE
130 Adjectives end adverbs
Some sufxes arc fund only, or typically, with adjectives. eg:
-able: comfortable -al: seasonal
-ui: playful -ic: scientific
-ish: greyish -less: useless
-ous: dangerous -y: dirty
However, many common adjectives have no identi fyi ng form, eg: good, hot, little,
young, fat.
The adjective and other word classes
Adjective and adverb homomorphs
7.2 Normally there is a regular di fference of form between an adjective and a
corresponding adverb in that the adverb is distinguished by its -/y sufx. In
a rapid car, rapid is an adjective; in He drole rapidly, rapidly i s an adverb.
However, there arc some words that have the same frm, without the -ly
sufx, in adjective and adverb functions, eg:
Bill has a fast car. (adjective]
Bill drove/as/. [adverb]
Norma arrived i n the
l
ate afteroon. [adjective]
Norma arrived late i n the afternoon. (adverb]
Sometimes there is also an -ly adverb form but with a different meaning:
Have you seen her lately? ['recently']
And sometimes there are two forms: one may be used as either adjective or
adverb and the other is an adverb with an -ly sufx:
Take a deep breath. [adjective]
B
l
h
{
deep. (esp informal) }
[ d b] rea e / a vc r
ueep y.
Finally, there are some words in -ly that can function both as adjectives
and as adverbs, eg:
I caught an early train. [adjective)
We finished early today. (adverb]
That was a kindly gesture. [adjective]
Will you kindly refain from smoking? [adverb]
They include a set of words denoting time, eg: daily, hourly, monthly,
\l'eekZv.
NOTE fa) Where there is varialion, some people prefer the -ly form for the adverb
fu11c1ion, particularly i n formal style. The adjective form cannot precede the verb:
T d 11
{dea } r
h' . k c w1 pay
l /
or ts m1sta c.
t car y _
Ted wil l
{d*de
a
lr
} pay for hi s mistake.
eary
Adjectives 131
[b] When we require adverbs corresponding to -ly adjetives such asfriendly, lively,
and masterly, we normally use an adjective construction, thereby avoiding the
double sufix -lily:
She received us in a friendly way [NOT: she received us.friendlily.}
Adjectives and adverbs beginning with a-
7.3 Some words beginning with a- are adjectives and can be used predicatively
with both be and other copular verbs, but the a-adverbs can be used only
with be. The distinction diferentiates adjectives from adverbs.
{asleep. }
[ d
' .
) a JeCt1ves
'fh
.
t
hungry.
e pat1cn was
b d a roa .
}
I
[adverbs]
t 1ere.
asleep. }
[ d
' .
] {h a Ject1ves
T
he patient seemed
* w
l
i
g
ry
d
.
a 1roa . }
* /
[adverbs]
t 1ere
Another. difference is that a-adjectives refer to temporary states and
cannot be part of the predication after verbs of motion; a-adverbs, on the
other hand, denote direction after such verbs.
J
{*asleep/*alert. [adjectives]
ean went
abroad/away. [adverbs]
Common a-adjectives include ablaze, afloat, afraid, alert, alone.
ashamed, asleep, aware, GlVake.
NOTE [a) Alert and aloofHc freely used attributively. Most other a-adjectives can occur
atlributively only when they arc modifed: a somewhat afraid soldier, the fast
asleep children. a really alive student ('li vely').
(b] Some a-Hdjcctives freely take prcmodifca lion by very and comparison. eg: 1ery
afr
a
id, more alert. Others do so marginally, eg: asleep and awake.
Adjeetirns and nouns
7.4 Nouns commonly function as premodifiers of other nouns (cf 17.35):
the bus station, a business friend, student grants
However, they do not share other characteristics of most adjectives:
(a) There is no corresponding prc<lica tive function:
the !ms station - *The station is bus.
(b) They cannot be modifed by very:
*a very bus station
JJ,; Adjective:; and adverbs
(c) They cannot take comparison:
*:1 hmser stat i on
Furthermore, nouns have other features which distinguish them from
adjecti ves: for example aricle conLrast (the busia hm), number conLrnst
(one bus/tu:o buses), genitive infection (the student 's essays), prernodifica
ti on by an adjective (the young student ).
The basically nominal character of a premodifying noun, such as
garden in garden tools, is shown by its correspondence to a prepositional
phrase with the noun as complement: roolsfor the garden. Compare also:
the city courH.:il tht. counci l /iir the cty
a stone wall a wall (made) of stone
August weather weather (usual) in August
Such a corrcspomh:ncc is not avai l abl e f"or uttrihut ivl: adjectives:
a long poem
the urban council
a thick wall
hot weather
Some items can be both adjectives and nouns. For example, criminal is
an adjective in that i t can be used both attributively (a criminal at tack) and
predicatively (The arrnck seemed criminal to us). On the other hand,
crilllinal has been converted in to a noun in The criminal pleaded guilty and
They are violent criminals. Here arc other examples of conversion from
adjective to noun:
ADJECTIVES
an a11L'ie11t tustom
a hlack student
a cassic book
intellectual interests
a noble fmi ly
a natural skier
a six-year-old boy
NOUNS
She is investigating the anl"ients'
conception of the universe.
There was only one black i n my class.
You won't find many classics in our
library.
She considers herself an intellectual.
The king greeted hi s nobles.
He's a 1wwia! for the job.
Our six-year-old is at school.
NOTE la] Like adjcc1ivcs, nouns can functi0n as subject complement after copular vcrhs,
in particular afLcr b<':
That man is a fool.
The noise you heard was thunder.
She bcamc a nurse.
Some nouns can also be used within the subject complement after .veem (esp lrE):
He seems afool. [ =fi >olish]
Your remark seems (rnmplete) nonsense to me. [ = 1w11se11sical]
My stay there seemed sheer bliss. [ = hliil]
His fric11d s1.cms very much 1111 Englislt111a11. [ =very E11glishj
. ,
Note however the change of prcmodificr in: vey 111111'1 m1 E11glisl11m111 - 1<'1)'
E11glisli: and Lhc use of the indefinite artick (a sure sign of noun slat us) i n n/iwl and
an Hnglishmm1.
(b] Some noun forms can function both attributively and prcdicativcly, in whii1
case we can rcrhaps regard thtn: as adjectives. They denote style or material fom
which things arc made:
Lhat concrete foor - That foor is concrete.
Worcester porcel ain This porcelain is Worcester.
Lhosc apple pies - Those pies Hrl! apple. (i nformal )
Adjectives and participles
7.5 There arc many adjectives that have the s:1 111e sullixcs as p1rticiplcs in -i11
or -ed (including other forms corresponding lo -ed, c/3. 2, 3. 9f. These arc
PARTICIPIAL ADJECTIVES:
NOTE
l'Rl'DICATIVE USE
His views were very surprising.
The man seemed very offended.
ATTRlllUTIVE USE
"'hi s surprising views
-the ofj'tllied man
They include forms in -ed that have no corresponding verbs:
The results were unexpected.
Her children must be downhearted.
All his friends are taler1ted.
His lung is diseased.
, the unexpected results
-her do\\'11/iearted children
-his talented friends
-his diseased Jung
When there are no corresponding verbs (*10 1111expect, *to dow11hear1, *to
talent, * to disease), the forms arc obviously not participles.
When there is a corresponding verb, attributively used -ed forms
usually have a passive meaning, eg:
losr property -property that has been lost
[:] In some cases the -ed parLkiple is nol interpreted as passive. The passive
inLrpretation is excluded if the corresponding verb can be used only
intransitively:
the escaped prisoner ['Lhe prisoner who has escapd')
the departed guests ('the guests who have departed']
But even in other instances, the participle relates l the intransitive use of the verb;
thus the passive interpretation is impossible in:
a grol1 boy ['a boy who irns grown (up)']
It is unlikely in:
the faded curtains ['the curtains which have faded'.]
the retired manager ('the manager who has retired']
Predicative use occurs only with some of these parLicipial adjectives:
The curtains arc faded ['The curtains have fadid']
Iler fatli<r is now relired.
7.6
134 Adjectives and adverbs
Her son is gr111f11. [dubious in BrE, but ji1/l-grmr or gro1r-11p is fully
acceptable]
The guests arc deported. (archaic)
[b] Sometimes there is a corresponding verb, but it has a different meaning. We can
therefore have ambiguous sentences where the ambiguity depends on whether the
word is a participle or a participial adjective:
_-.-...
PARTICIPL:
.
...
She is (very) calc11/a1i11g (but her husband is frank).
She is calculati11g(our salaries). ['. . . sodon't disturb her
while she is doing the arithmetic'.)
They were (very) rclie11cd (to find her at home).
They were rclie1ed (by the next grnL1p of sentries).
Often the difference between the adjeclive and the participle is not clear
cut (cf l 7. 3Qff). The verbal force of the participle is explicit fr the -ing
form when a direct object is present. Hence, the following -ing frms arc
participles that constitute a verb phrase with the preceding auxiliary:
Her views were alarming her audience.
You are frigl11e11i11g the children.
They arc ins11lti11g us.
Similarly, the verbal force is explicit for the -ed frm when a by-agent
phrase with a personal agent is present, indicating the correspondence to
the active form of the sentence:
The man was ojenclecl hy the policeman.
He is apprecated by his students.
She was 111is1111dC'rstood by her parents.
For both participle forms, prcmodification by the intensifer very is an
explicit indication that the forms have achieved adjective status:
.Her views were very alarming.
You arc very Ji'ig/1tening.
The man was very offended.
We might therefore expect that the presence of verr together with an
explicit indicator of verbal force would produce an unacceptable sentence.
This is certainly so for the -ing participle form:
*His views were very alarming bis audience.
H owevcr, with the -ed participle, there appears to be divided usage, with
increasing acceptance of the cooccurcnee of very with a hy-agent phrase
containing a personal agent:
?The man was very offended by the policeman.
rn the absence of any explicit indicator, the status of the participle frm is
indctermina le:
The man was (>/fended.
Adjectives 135
For the -ed form in this example, the participle interpretation focuses on
the process, while the adjective i nterpretation fcuses on the state
resulting from the process. For the -ing form the difference is perhaps
clearer. In the sentence John is insulting, with no object present, the
participle interpretation is implausible because the verb is normally
transitive.
NOTE [a) Generally. -ed participle frms accepting iery can retain l'ery when they
cooccur with a by-phrase containing a non personal noun phrase that expresses the
notion of cause or reason:
7.7
I'm very disturbed by your attitude.
We were verypleased by his behaviour.
[b] The participle sometimes reaches full adjective status when it is compounded
with another clement:
It is breaking my heart. -It is {very) heart-breaking.
[c] Not only participial adjectives allowing the intensifer very, but also -ing and -ed
participles can be attributive, as the following examples show:
her crying children
a winning team
boiing wa tcr
a married couple
his published work
the captured prisoner
Some verbs have di f krcnt participle forms for verbal and adjectival use:
You have drunk 100 much.
Have you shaved?
The shirt has shrunk.
-drunk( en) drivingdriver
-a cean-shaven young man
-a shrunken shirt
Note the pronunciation /id/ of the ending -ed in some adjectives, eg: beloved
/b1'Lw1d/. Other examples:
C'l Ok1c
naked
dogetl
ragged
jagged
wicked
leared
11retched
The sufx of aged is pronounced as a separate syllable /1d/ when the word is
predicative or is attributive of a personal noun (The man i s aged; 1111 agedman
'old'), but not, for example, in an aged wi11e or 1 man aged.ffry.
Syntactic function! of adjectives
Attributive and predicative
Adjectives are attributive when they premodify the head of a noun phrase
( 1 7.29):
a smal garden popular ballads
They arc predicative when they function as subject complement or object
complement (c/ 10. 5):
He seems careless. (C,)
I fnd him carefess. (C0)
136 Adjectives and adverbs
Adjectives are sub
j
ect complement not only to noun phrases, but also 10
finite clauses and nonfnite clauses:
That you need a car is obi.ious.
Whether she will resign is uncertain.
To complain may be dangerous.
Playing chess can be Cl!joyable.
Adjecti ves can also be object complement to clauses:
I
. what he did .
consider
k
.
1
.
k
/oo!tsh.
ta mg suc . ns s
NOTE The adjective functioning as object complement often expresses the result of the
process denoted by the verb:
7.8
He pulled his bell t(ht.
He pushed the window open.
He \vritcs his letters large.
The result can be stated for each sentence by using the verb be:
His bet is tight.
The window is open.
Hi s letters ar large.
Postpositivc
[
J ]
[2]
[3]
[ l a]
[2a)
[3a]
Adjectives can sometimes be postposi tive, ie they can immediately follow
the noun or pronoun they modify. We may thus have three positions of
adjectives:
PREDJCA TlVE:
ATTRJnlJTIVE:
POSTPOSIT!VE:
This information is useful.
usejii/ information
something useful
[ I ]
[2)
(
3
)
A postpositive adjective can usually be regarded as a reduced relative
clause:
something that is use/iii [3a]
Compound indef
i
nite pronouns and adverbs
'
ending in -body, -one,
-thing, -ll'here can, be modified only postpositively:,
Anyone (who is) i111elligent can do it.
I want lo try on something (that is) larger.
We're not going anyll'here very e
.
rciti11g.
Of course, adjectives that can occur only attributively (cf 7 . 1 7j) are
excluded:
*something (which is) main *somebody (who is) meie
NOTE [a] Post position is obligatory for proper in the meaning as strictly defined', eg: 1/ie
Ci1y fl{ Londoa prpN.
7.9
Adjectives 137
[lJ] In several institutionalized expressions (mostly in olfcia! dcsignalions), the:
adjective is poslpositive, eg: 1/ie president elc(, heir apparent, atwmey ge11eral.
notary public, hoc1 politic, proof positive.
[c] Adj.ctivcs ending in -able and -ible can be postpositive, as well as ;1ttributive,
when they are modified by another adjective in the sup.:rlativc degree or by certain
other modifiers: the best usepossible, thegrcate.1 insult inurginable, the onlyactor
suitable; the adjective phrase is I hen discontinuous (cftlre be.rt possible useand 7.9).
Some can be postpositivc without this constraint, eg: the stars visible, rivers
navigable. These convey the implication that what they are denoting has only a
temporary :ipplication. Thus, 1/e swrs l'isible refers to stars that arc visible al a
lime specified or implied, while the visible stars more aptly refers to 'a category or
stars that can (at appropriate times) be seen.
Postposition is usual fr absent, present, co11cemed, and involvecl when they
designate tcmporry as opposed to permanent attributes:
Tile soldiers presmt were bis supporters.
[d) Appoi11ted, dcsired, required, jiitlowed, past, and prt!ceding can also be
postpositivc as well as attributive, eg: m the time appointed, in years past.
Adjectives with complementation
Adjectives with complementation normally cannot have attributive
position but require postposition. Compare:
a sllitable actor DUT NOT: * a suitable for the part actqr
The complementation can be a prepositional phrase or a 111-i nfinitiw
clause:
( know an actor suitable for the part.
[I]
They have a house larger than yours. [2]
The boys easiest to teach were in my class.
[3]
Students brme enough to a/tempt the course deserve to succeed. (4]
If the adjective is alone or merely premodified by an intensifier,
postposition is not normally allowed:
*They have a house (much) larger.
*The soldiers (rather) timid approached their ofcer.
However, if the noun phrase is generic and indefnite, we can postpone
coordinated adjectives, or adjectives with some clause element added,
though such constructi ons arc formal a
_
nd rather infequent:
Soldiers timid or cowardly don't fght well.
[5]
A man usually lzo11est will sometimes cheat. [6]
The more usual constructions are premodi
f
ication or a relative clause:
Timid or cowardly soldiers . . .
A man who is usually honest . . .
[Sa]
[6a]
The adjective phrase can be discontinuous (l7.8 Note [c]): the adjecti ve
is attributjve and its complementCtion i s in postposil
i
on. Thus, equivalent
to sentences [2] and [3
]
:
NOTE
138 Adjectlves and adverbs
They have a larger house than yours.
The easiest boys to teach were in my class.
[2a]
(3a)
(a] An 1djective modified by rnough. too. or so can he separated from its
complementation if the moditicd adjective is placed befre the indefnite (or zero)
article or the noun phrase:
She is hrvl c11ougli a student to artempt rie course.
It was too bori11g a book to read.
They are so di{ic11lt people ro please.
[7)
(8)
[9]
But with c111;11gh and 100, Lhis construction seems to be possihlc only if the adjective
phrase is part of the subject complement or object complement:
*!rare e11011g/1 a student ro attempt the course deserves to succeed. [7b)
With so. the construction is also possible if the adjective phrase is part of the
subject:
AS' 111
1

/
n
f
i
sold((C'ufl
J
l
to ple
a
se must be hard to work with.
, o 1 1 1c11 t a man
{h] Exceptional ly, certain short prepositional phrases may also prcmodify an
adjective i n attributive position:
a b1 110 111ea11s irresponsible action
-an action (which is) by no means irresponsible
Adjectves as heads of noun phrases
7.10 Adjectives can function as heads of noun phrases, which (like al l noun
phrases) can be subject of the sentence, complement, object, and
prepositional complement. Adjectives as noun-phrase heads, unlike
nouns, do nol infect for number or for the geni ti ve case and they usual ly
require a definite determi ner.
Adjccti vcs arc typical ly used as heads of noun phrses to refer to certain
fairly well-established classes of persons: eg: t/w brave, the weak . . the
nwladj11.1ted, the elderly, the 1111derpri!iileged.
There arc t hree types of adjectives functioning as noun-phrase heads,
and these arc exemplified in the following sentences:
(a) The i1111oce11t arc often deceived by 1he 1111sc11p1i/011s. (7. 1 I )
(b) The i11d11strio11s Dutch arc admired by thei r neighbours. (7. 1 2)
(c) She admires the 111_rs1ic11!. (7.13)
Type (a): tle i1111ocent
7.1 1 Adjectives which can prcmodify personal nouns (the young people) can be
noun-phrase heads (tlte yo1111g) with plural and generic reference denoting
classes, categories, or types of people. The adjective can itself be
prcmndilicd [:I 5] or postmodificd [6-7]:
The poor arc causi ng the nation's leaders great concern. [ I ]
There i s a lck or communication between the yo1mg und the old. [2]
The extre111cly old need a great deal of attention. [3]
Adjectives 139
The c111otio11ally dist11rbed and the physically and mentally
handicapped need the ai d of society.
The 11ery wise avoid such temptations.
Tire yo1111g in .1pirit enjoy life.
Tire old who resist change can expect violence.
[4]
[5]
[6]
(7
NOTE (a] Modification of the adjective is usually restrictive, 1.(5): rhr very 111ise. Inflected
comparison frms or the adjective arc also possible (tire wiser). Comparative
inOection and adverb modifcat:on arc indications of the adjective status of thc>c
noun-phrase heads. while modifcation by adjectives (ns in !he hungry poor) is
more Lypical of nouns, and modificntion hy relative clauses is normally n
indication of noun status.
[l] The definite determiner is normally the generic definite article rile. Note,
however, the use of the possessive determiner in:
We will nurse your sick, clothe your naked, and feed yo11r h1111grJ'.
It is the duty of the Government to care for 011r poor, our 1111employed.
The adjectives can function without a determiner if they arc conjoined (cf5.20):
He is acceptable to both (the) old anti (the) young.
Also in some 1constructions:
The number of jobless is rising.
Type (b): the Dutch
7.12 Some adjectives denoting nationalities (lf 5. 33/) can be noun-phrase
heads:
The i11clus1rious /)urc/1 arc admired by thei r neighbours.
You French and we British ought to be allies.
As with type (a) in 7. 1 1 , these noun phrases normally have gencnc
refrence and take plural concord. The adjectives in question arc
restricted to words ending in - (i)sh (eg: British, Sf1anish, Welsh), -eh (cg:
Dutch, French), -ese (eg: Chinese, Japanese), and the adjecti ve Sil'iss.
NOTE These adjectives can in turn be modified by adjectives, which arc normally
nonrcslrictivc:
the i11d1strio11s Dwch ['the Dutch. who arc industrious')
Postmodifying prepositional phrases and relative clauses can be either restrictive
or nonrcslrictivc (cf
17.3):
The lrLth (11ho !il'e) in America retain sentimental links with Ireland.
Thi Dutch, for numy of whom speaking Eiiglish i second nature, have
produced many of the greatest grammarians of the English language.
Type (c); tire mystical
7.13 Some adjectives rnn function as noun-phrase heads with abstract
rc[crcncc. They include, in 1x1rticular, supcrlutivt:s, i n which case we can
sometimes insert a general noun like thing i n its abstract sense:
NOTE
140 Adjeciivcs and adverbs
The 1<11est {thing/news) is that he is going to rn for n:-eleclion.
Unlike types (a) and (b), type (c) adjecti ves functioning as noun-phrase
heads t1kc singular concord:
They ventured into the unknown, whid1 was . . .
The best is yet to come.
Type (c) is restricted chiefy to certain flxcd expressions. Thus, for
example, the superatural, the exotic, the unreal are more likely to occur
than the lovely, tire foreign, the exciting, with abstract, generic reference.
[al Some of these adjcc1ivcs can be modified by adverbs:
The very best is yet to come.
He went from the extremely sublime lo rlze extremely ridiculous.
[h] Thcrc an: <>me sc< cxpn:si011s in whi.11 an adjcctivc with abstract n:fcn.ncl is
the complement or a preposition:
He lcfl for good.
in public/prirnwlsecret
in short
on the sly
Verblcss clauses
He enjoyed it to the jidl.
from bad co worse
out ofthe ordinary
in comnw11
7. 14 Adjectives can function as the sole realization of a verb less clause (c/ 14.6,
1 5.34/) or as the head of an adjective phrase realizing the clause:
The man, quietly assertive, spoke to the assembled workers.
Unlwppy 1ith the /'C'.l'ult, she retured to wurk.
Glad to accept, lhe boy nodded his agreement.
Anxious for a quick decision, the chairman called for a vole.
Long and untidy, his hair played in the breeze.
The clause is mobile:
The chairman called for a vote, tmxiousf(>r a quick decision.
Its implied subject is usually the subject of the sentence ('The chairman is
anxious for a vote'). However, if the clause contains additional clause
constituents, it can be related to a noun phrase other than the subject:
She glanced wi t h digus t at the cal, now quiet in her daughter's lap.
Sometimes the adjective phrase can be replaced by an adwrb phrase
with little change of meaning:
Rather nervous, the man opened the letter.
Rather nervously, the man opened the letter.
ln this function, the adverb phrase is like the adjective phrase in referring
to an attribute of the subject ('The man, who was rather nervous, opened
Adjccllv"" 1.11
the letter'), hut it normally docs so specifically 111 n.:latil)n 1 0 ti t -
performance of an action.
NOTE Th.: implied subject of the dause can he 1hc whole of Lhc su1x:rordina1c clause:
Simge, it was she who initiate divorce proceedings.
Most important, his rcporl ofered prospects of a great profit.
1\fore remarkable still, he is in charge or the proj<l.
Here too it is possible to substitute an ndvcrb for the adjcclivc with lillk or no
difference in meaning (cj' contcnt disjuncls in 8.42):
Strangely, it was shl! who initiahd divorce proceedings.
Contingent vcrbless clauses
7.15 One type ofverbless clause, which is ofen introduced by a subordinator,
expresses the circumstance or condition under which what is said in t he
supcrordinatc clause applics:
( Whether) right or wrong, he always comes off worst in an argum<nt
because of his inabilily Lo sp<:ak cogently.
When fit, the Labrador is an excellent retriever.
Ifwet, these shoes should never be placed too close to the heat.
The cn1i ngent clause can also rcl'cr to the object nf the supcrordina t c
clause, i n which case i t usually appears i n final posi ti on:
You must cat i t when.fresh.
NOTE The clause can also refer to the who! of the superordinate clause (which would he
realizd in the subordinate clause by the pro-form it). In such cascs the
subordinator cannot be omitlcd:
When {it is) necessarr, he can b taken to the doctor.
You must <ome a.1 soo11 as (i l is) possible.
Exclamatory adjective clauses
7.16 Adjectives can he exclamations, with or without an initial 11'11-element:
7.17
Excdlent! (How) 1ro11derful! (How) good of you'
Such :la uses need not b dependent on any previous linguistic con text, but
may be a comnH:nt on some object or activity in the situational context.
Syntactic subclassilication of adjectives
Attributive only
In 1enernl adjectives that are restricted to attributive position, or th:lt
occ.r predominantly in attributive position, do not characterize the
referent or the noun din:ctly. For example, old can be eithcr :i centrl
adjective or an adjcclive rc:tricted to attributive position. I tltat oU 111,11;
NOTE
7. 18
142 Adjectives and adverbs
(the opposite of that young man), oh/ is ' central adjective, and can thus
also be predicati ve: That man is old. On the other hand, in the usual sense
of (/I old friend ofmine ('a friend of old, a long-standing friend'), old is
restricted t o attributive position and cannot be related to My friend L5 old.
Jn this case, old is the opposite of new ['recently acquired']. The person
referred to is not being identified as old; it is his friendship that is old.
When adjectives characterize the referent of the noun directly (that old
man, My.friend is old) they are termed lNHERENT, when they do not (an old
friend ofmine) they are termed NONJNHERENT (cf7.25).
A fewadjectives with strongly emotive value are restricted to attributive position,
though the scope of the adjective clearly extends to the person referred to by the
noun, eg: you poor man, my dear lady, that wretched woman.
Intensifying adjectives
S0mc adjecti ves have a heightening effect on the noun they modify, or the
reverse, a lowering effect. At least three semantic subclasses of intensifying
adjectives can be disti ngui shed:
(a) emphasizers
(b) amplifiers
(c) downtoners
(a) EMPHASIZERS have a general heightening effect and are generally
attri buti ve only, eg:
a true scholar
a clear failure
pure ['sheer'] fabrication
a real ['undoubted'] hero
a certain winner
plain nonsense
the simple truth
an outright lie
sheer arrogance
a sure sign
(b) AMPl .JflERS scale upwards from an assumed norm, and arc central
adjectives if they are inherent and denote a high or extreme degree:
a complete victory-The victory was complete.
great destruction The <lest ruction was gr ear.
On the other hand, when they are noninherent, amplifiers arc attributive
only:
a co111ple1e fool + *The fool is complete.
afinn friend f *The friend isjirm.
Complete refers to the completeness of the folly, and.rm to the firmness of
the friendship (i n which sense it is asterisked here).
In additio11, amplifiers arc only attributive when they are used as
emphasizers. conveying principally emphasis rather than degree. For
example. r111af in to!al 111111.wue is an emphasizer, while in total destruc1io11
it is an ampli fier and has a literal application ('the destruction of
everything'). Hence the contrast:
7.19
total nonsense f *The nonsense was total.
total destructi on The destruction was rota!.
AdlCctlves 143
Further examples of adjectives as ampli fiers that arc attributive only:
utter folly
a close friend
an extreme enemy
a great supporter
a s1ro11g opponent
the absolute li mit
a comp/ere stranger
his entire salary
a /H!1fect stranger
total irresponsibility
(c) DOWNTONFRS have a lowering effect, usually scaling downwards
fom an assumed norm. They are relatively few (eg: slight in a slight effort,
f
eeble in a feeble joke) and can be ignored for our present purpose, since
they arc generally central adjectives.
Restrictive adjectives
Restrictive adjectives restrict the reference of the noun exclusively,
particularly, or chiefly. Examples, within noun phrases, include:
a certain person
the principal objection
the same student
the only occasion
a particular child
his chic' excuse
the exact answer
the sole argument
the specic point
the very man
Again, some of these have homonyms. For example, cerlain in a certain
person is a restrictive (equivalent to 'a particular person'), while in a
certain winner it is an intensi fer (equivalent to 'a sure winner').
NOTE Notice the use of very as a restrictive adjective:
You arc th< vrry man I want.
Adjectives related to adverbs
7.211 Some noninhcrcnt adjectives that arc only attributive can be related to
adverbs, even though they are not intensifying or restrictive. They include:
my former friend
an old friend
pas/ students
a possible friend
the present king
an occasional visitor
('rormerly my friend']
['a friend of old']
('students in the past']
('possibly a friend']
['the king al present']
['occasionally a visitor']
Some adjectives require implications addi t ional to the adverbial:
the late president ['the pe;son who was formerly the president (bnt is
now dead)']
If the adjectives prcmodify agentive nouns, the latter also suggest n
relationship to an associated verb:
144 AdjectiV(s and adverbs
a big cater
a clever liar
a lwrd worker
a heavy smoker
a sound sleeper
NOTE The noun can be inanimate:
['someone who eats a lot']
['someone who lies cleverly')
['someone who works hard']
['someone who smokes heavily']
['someone who sleeps soundly']
mpidcalculations ['calculations made rapidly']
occasional showers ('showers occurring occasionally')
a fast car ['a car that can go fast']
afasl road ['a road on which one can drive fast']
Adjectives related to nouns
7.21 Some denominal adjectives (ie adjectives derived from nouns) are
restricted to attributive position:
an atomic scientist ['a scientist specializing i n the theory of atoms']
a criminal court ['a court dealing with crime']
a criminal lawyer ('a lawyer specializing in cases of crime']
a polar bear ['a bear living near the pole'J

a medical school ['a school for students of medicine']

11111sical comedy ['a comedy accompanied by music']
a tidal wave ['a wave produced by the tide']
Predicative only
7.22 Adjectives that are restricted, or virtually restricted, to predicative
position are most like verbs and adverbs. They tend to refer to a (possibly
temporary) condition rather than to characterize. Perhaps the most
common are those referring to the health (or lack of health) of an animate

'
He felt ill/poorly <both esp BrE>f welllaint/umvefl.
However, many people use such adjectives as attributives too, for
example:
A well person need see a doctor only for a periodic check up.
A large group of adjectives that are restricted to predicative position
comprises adjectives which can take complementation (lf 16. 38
.
ff):
able (to+ infnitive)
afraid (that, of, about)
answerable (to)
averse (to,from)
aware (of)
conscious (that, of)
fond (of)
glad (that, to)
happy (that, to, with, about)
loath (to)
subject (to)
tantamount (to)
Some of these adjectives must take complementation (eg: subject to and
tantamount lo), and many normally do.
Many of these adjectives closely resemble verbs semantically:
He is cifiaid to do it. ['He fears to do it.']
They are/mu! (fher. ('They like her. ']
Adlectives tb
That is tant1111wu111 t an ultimatum. ['Thal a1110wits to an
ultimatum.']
NOTE [a] Sick is the exception among the 'health' adjectives in that its attributive use is
very common:
7.23
the sick woman ['The woman is sick. ']
[b] Some of the adjectives that arc restricted to predicative pos1t1011 hav
homonyms that can occur both prcdicativcly and attributively, eg:
the conscious patient The patient is conscious. [ = 'awake']
Cf He is conscious of his faults. [ ='aware'] .
Semantic subclasslficalion of adjectives
Stative/dynamic
Adjectives are characteristically stative. Many adjectives, however, can be
seen as dynamic. In particular, most adjectives that arc susceptible lo
subjective measurement are capable of being dyn<1ric. Stativc and
dynamic adjectives differ syntactically in a number of ways. For example,
a stative adjective such as tall cannot be used with the progressive aspect
or with the imperative:

*He's being tall. *Be tall.
On the other hand, we can use .fi111ny as a dynamic adjective:
I didn't realize he was being.fimny. Her story was very funny.
Adjectives that can be used dynamically include brave, calm, chee1jiil,
conceited, cruel, foolish, friendly, fimny, good, greedy, helpful, jealous,
naughty, noisy, tidy.
Gradable/nongradable
7.24 Most adjectives are gradable. Gradability is manifested through
comparison:
tall
beautiful
taller
more beautiful
tallest
most beautiful
It is also manifested through modifcation by i ntensifers:
very tall so bea
u
tiful extremely useful
Gradability applies to adverbs as well a
s
adjectives (cf7. 39/f).
All dynamic and most stative adjectives (eg: tall, old) are gradablc;
some stativc adjectives are not, principally denominal adjectives like
atomic scirtist and liydroc/iloric acid, and adjectives denoti1g proven
ance, eg: British.
. . '
146 Adjeciives and adverbs
I nhercnt /non inherent
7.25 Most adjectives are inherent. For example, the inherent adjecti ve in a
wooden cross applies to the referent of the object directly: a wooden cross
is also a wooden object. On the other hand, in a 1roode11 actor the adjective
is noninherent: a wooden actor is not (presumably) a wooden man. Some
other examples:
INHERENT
a firm handshake
a perfect alibi
NONINHERENT
a J rm friend
a pe1fec1 stranger
a certain winner
a true scholar
a certain result
a tme report
NOTE Modifcation of a noun by means or a noninhcrcnt adjecti ve can be seen as an
e)tension of the basic sense of lhc noun. Thus a frm friend is 'a friend whose
friendship is firm', and a pe1jict .1rr11gcr is 'a stranger who is perfectly strange'.
Ordering of adjectives in premodification
7.26 When two or more adjectives cooccur in attributive position, the order of
the adjtctives is to a large extent determined by their semantic properties.
The principles for the order of items in prcmodifcation arc discussed i n
1 7.41 . Here we will only mention t he major positional ranges of adjectives
in premodifying position.
In the prerodification structure of the noun phrase, adjectives arc
placed between the determiners and the head of the noun phrase (c/l 7.2).
We distinguish four zones:
(I) PRECENTRAL
Here, after the determiners, is where peripheral, nongradable adjectives
are placed, in particular the intensifying adjectives, (c/ 7. I 8) eg: certain,
deji11ite, sheer. complete, slight.
(II) CENTRAL
This zone is the pla.e of the central adjectives, (c/7. I) eg: hungry, ugly,
funny, stupid, silent, rich, empty.
(111) POSTCENTRAL
Thi zone includes parti1:i plcs, eg: retired, sleeping, and col our adjectives,
eg: red, pink.
(TV) PREHloAD
This zone includes the 'least adjectival and the most nominal' items, such
as denominal adjectives (l/ 7. 21 ) denoting nationali ty, ethnic back
ground, cg: A11stria11, Midwestem, and denominal adjectives with the
me<tning 'consisting of' . 'involving', 'relating to', eg: experimenwl,
statistical. political, statutory. ln the prehcad zone we also fnd nouns in
attributive position (c/further 1 7. 35).
On the basis of this classification. we can expect the following order:
I + I I
[ + I I I
certain i111por1ant people
the same restricted income
I + TV
II+ !TI
JI + IV
I + l I + IV
Adverbs
your present m1111ta! turnover
a.funny red hat
an enormous Iida! wave
certain rich American producers
Characteristics of the adverb
Adverbs 147
7.27 There arc two types of syntactic functions that characterize the traditional
adverbs, but an adverb need have only one of these:
7.28
(a) clause element adverbial (l/7. 3 1 ):
He quite forgot about it.
(b) prcmodifer of adjective and adverb (7.32/:
Th
. {happy.
cy are q111te
h
.
1 . d appt y mare .
The most conspicuous example of an adverb that functions only as a
modifer of adjectives and adverbs, and not as a clause element, is very.
(For very as an adjective, c/7. 1 9 Note.)
Morphologically, we can distinguish three types of adverb, of which
two are closed classes (simple and compound), and one is an open class
(derivational):
(a) SIMPLE adverbs, eg: just, only, 11elf. Many simple adverbs denote
position and direction, eg: back
,
do11'11, near, out, under.
(b) COMPOUND adverbs, eg: somehow, somewhere, there.fore.
(c) DEIUVATIONAL adverbs. The majority of dcriv;1tional adverbs have the
sufx -ly, by means of which new adverbs are created from adjectives
(including participial adjectives): odd oddly; interesting interest
ingly. Other, less common, derivational sufxes are:
-wise:
-ward (s):
-fashion:
clockwise
northward(s)
schoolboy-fashion
The adverb and other words classes
Conjunct adverb and conjunction
-111ays:
-style:
sideways
cowboy-style
A few adverbs functioning as conjuncts (cf8.43, such as so and yet.
resemble coordinators both in being connectives and in having certain
syntactic features. In particular, these adverbs cannot be transposed with
their clause i n front of the preceding clause. Thus, the order of t he
following two clauses (with the conjunct adverb so in the second clause) i s
fxed:
We paid him a very large sum. So he kept quiet about what
h1 ; S<IW. [ I ]
I f we reverse the order of the clauses, the relationship between the two
clauses is changed, and so must now refer to some preceding clause:
So he kept quiet about what he saw. We paid hi m a very
large sum.
[2]
However, the conjunct adverbs di ffer from coordinators in that they can
be preceded by a coordinator:
We paid him a very large sum, and so he kept quiet about
what he saw.
Reaction signal and initiator
[ l a]
7.29 Certain other items must be positioned initially. They are important
because of their high frequency i n spoken English. Some arc restricted Lo
the spoken language. These can be assigned to two small classes:
(i) 'reaction signals', l!g: 1w, yes, yeah, yep, 111, hm, mhm
(ii) 'initiators', eg: well, oh, ah; oh well, well then, why <esp AmE)
Adverb an<l 1ircposition
7.30 There are various combinations of verbs plus particles (cf I 6.3!). Since a
preposition is normally followed by its complement, the particle i s an
adverb if the verb is intransitive:
The plane has taken o
ff:
When a noun phrase follows the particle, the verb may still be an adverb.
The particle in the phrasal verb i n [ ! ] is an adverb because it can be
transposed to follow the verb, as in [I a]:
They turned 011 the light.
They turned the light on.
[ I )
[ l a]
In contrast, to in (2) is a preposition, part of the prepositional verb take to,
because its position i s fixed, as we see from [2a]:
They Look to us.
*They took us to.
Syntactic functions of adverbs
Adverb as adYcrhial
[2]
[2a)
7.31 ADJUNCTS and SUBJUNCTS are relatively i ntegrated withi n the structure of
the clause ((/8. 1 3, 8. 32). Examples of adjuncts:
Slowly they walked back home.
He spoke to me about it brifly.
Examples of subjuncts:
We haven't yet tinished.
Would yuu kindly wait for me.
Adverli: 14\l
By contrast, disjuncts and conjuncts have a more peripheral relation i n
the sentence. Stmantically, DIJUNC (lf8.40) express an evaluation of
what is being said either with respect to the form of the communication or
t o i t s meaning. We identify di;juncts with the speaker's authority for, or
comment on, the accompanying clause:
Frankly, I'm t i rc<l.
Fortunately, no one complained.
They are probably at home.
She wisely didn't attempt to apologize.
CONJUNCTS (l/ 8.43) express the speaker's assessment of the relation
between two linguistic units, eg:
She has bought a big house, so she must have a lot of money.
We have complained several times about the noise, and yet he docs
nothing about it.
.All our friends are going to Paris this summer. We, however, are
going to London.
If they open all the windows, then l'm leaving.
I didn't invite her. She wouldn't have come, anyway.
Adverb amodifer
Modifer of adjective
7.32 An adverb may premodify an adjective. Most commonly the adverb is an
intensifer or emphasizer (cf8.36/):
extremely dangerous
deeply concerned
pe1fectly reasonable
really beautiful
very good
just impossible
Some premodifers arc related to adverbs that express such notions as
manner and means but also have some intensifying efect:
easily debatable
openly hostile
quietly assertive
readily available
Some premodifers express 'viewpoint' (cf 8.33):
politically expedient ('expedient from a political point of view')
theoretically sound technically possible
NOTE Enough and i11dcd may postmodify an adjective: old io11gh, laty i1ufe<'d Tlly
m<:y also postn1odify an adverb, though indeed tends lo go with a premodifying
150 Adjectives and adverbs
very: cnty e11011g'1, 1cr_' easily indeed. lndcecl, but not C'nough, may also
prcmodify an adjective: indeedcold.
Modifer of adverb and preposition
7.33 An adverb may prcnwdify another adverb:
very heavily
extremely quickly
surprisingly well
so clearly
Adverbs modifying other adverbs can only be intensifers. On postmodi
fyi ng enough and indeed, sec 7.32 Note.
A few intensifying adverbs, particularly right and well, prcmodify
prepositions:
The nail went right through the wall.
He made his application wel within the time.
Her parents arc dead against the trip. (informal)
Modifier of pr6noun, predeterminer, and numeral
7.34 fntensifying adverbs can prcmodify:
(a) indefinite pronouns (c/ 6.2 tf):
Nearly (everybody) came to our party.
(b) predeterminers (c/5. 7/f):
They recovered roughly (half) their equipment.
(c) cardinal numerals ((/6.28 Note [b]):
Over/under (two hundred) deaths were reported.
(d) ordinals and superlatives (lf7.39) in which case a defnite determiner
is obligatory:
We counted apprximately (the first) thousand votes.
She gave me almost (the largest) piece of cake.
Modifier of noun phrase
7.35 A few intensifiers may premodify noun phrases and precede the
determiner when they do so. The most common among ndvcrbs arc quilc>
and rather (esp BrE):
We had q11i1e a party.
Tbey were quite some players.
ft was rather a mess. (esr BrE)
The predeterminers such and what have a similar function:
He is such a fool. What a mess they made!
A few intcnsilicrs precede the indefinite article when it is equivalent Lo
the numeral 11111:
They will slay for ohout a week.
Nearl.1 a thousand demonstrators a ttended the meeting.
Correspondence between adjective and adverb 151
NOTE [a) Kil/<!(and sort of(hoth informal) usually follow the determiner:
7.36
This must be a sort rfjoke.
Other ({phrases precede the determiner:
l had a bit ofa shock.
[b] Ever can be an intensifier with interrogutive 1r'1-words:
Why ePer should she apply fr such a post?
Some time and place adverbs postmodify nouns:
!he meeting yesterday
the meal afterwards
her trip abroad
the way ahead
Others may either premodify or postmodify:
the do11nHairs hall
the above quotation
the hall dmrstairs
the quotation aboie
A very few may only premodify:
an away game inside information
NOTE Else can postmodify:
7.37
{a] compound indefnite pronouns and compound adverbs in -body, -one, -H'here,
etc:
somebody else, someone else's, nmrfere else, somNhing else
[b] interrogative 1rh-pronouns and wh-adverbs:
who else, irhat else, how else, when else
[c] singular all, much, a great/good deal, a lot, litrle:
all else, 11111d1 else, Iii/le else.
Adverb as complement of preposition
Some place and time adverbs function as complement of a preposition:
over here
near there
from abroad
fom behind
since ricent ly
till then
from now
for ever
Correspondence between adjective and adverb
7.38 We have earlier observed (7.27) that open-class adverbs arc regul:1rly.
though not invariably, derived from adjectives by suflixaiion. Thrc is
another sense in which adjectives and adverbs are related. A correspon
dence often exists between constructions containing adjectives and
152 Adjectives and adverbs
constructions containing the corresponding adverbs. The simplest illus
tration is with adverbs equivalent to prepositional phrases containing a
noun phrase with the corresponding adjective as premodifier:
He liked Mary considerably.
He liked Mary tu a considerable extent.
She explained the process brilliantly.
She explained the process in a brilliant manner.
Be wrote frequently.
He wrote un frequent occasions.
Politically, it is a bad decision.
From the political point of vie11', i t is a bad decision.
Here are some other examples of adjective--adverb correspondences:
a heal'y sleeper
aj(mncr student
a faith/it! friend
a neat typewriter
hi s legible writing
a tre scholar
the main reason
somebody who sleeps heavily
somebody who was/lir111erl.1 ;1 st udent
a friend who acts faithfi1lly
a typewriter that types neatly
He writes legibly
She is truly a scholar
It was mai11/y the reason
Comparison of adjectives and adverbs
7.39 With gradable adjt:ctives and adverbs there are three types of
COMPARISON:
(a) to a higher degrtc
(b) to the same degree
(c) to a lower degree
The three types of comparison are expressed by these means:
(a) Comparison to a higher degree is expressed by the inflected forms in
-er and -est or their periphrastic equivalents with more and most :
. {cleverer > .
Anna 1s / 11 than Susan.
more c eier
. {cleverest }
Anna is the
/
student in the class.
most c ever
(b) Comparison to the same degree is expressed by as (or sometimes
so) . . . as:
Anna is as tall as Bill.
{. (S I
Anna is not
J
tall us John.
so
Comparison al adjectives and adverbs 153
(c) Comparison to a lower degree is expressed by less and least :
This problem is less di icult than the previous one.
This is the least dif ficult problem of all.
For higher degree comparisons, English has a three-term infectional
contrast between ABSOLUTE, COMPARATIVE, and SUPERLATIVE forms for
many adjectives and for a few adverbs. In Table 7 .39 the three infectional
frms are displayed with their periphrastic equivalents.
Table 7.39 Comparison of adjectives and adverbs
ABSOLUTE COMPARATIVE SUPERLATIVE
INFLECTION
adjective high h i gher highest
adverb .())/l sooner soonest
PERIPHRASIS
adjective complex more complex most complex
adverb comf orlably more comfortably most comfortahly
NOTE Comparatives of adjectives and adverbs, whether inflectional or periphrastic, can
be modifed by intensifiers:
much easier
much more difcult
very much better
very much more carefully
somewhat shorter
a lot more inconvenient
a good deal sooner
a great deal more easily
Similarly, superlatives can be modified by intensifiers:
the youngest candidate ever
the most remarkable result ever
by far the best solution
the most absurd answer by far
JnOccted superlatives can be premodifcd by very. if u defnite determiner is
present: at rhe 1ery last moment, rhe very youngest. But neither periphrastic
superlatives nor comparatives can he premodifie<l by 1wy.
7.40 The comparative is generally used to express a comparison between two
persons, two items, or two sets:
Jane is cleverer than her sister.
Jane is cleverer than all the other students in the class.
The superlative is generally used when more than two are involved:
Jane is the cleverest of the three sisters.
Jane is the cleverest of all the students in the class.
With the superlative, Jane is included in the group and compared wi 1h the
others.
154 Adjectives and adverbs
NOTE Afore and most have other uses in which they arc not equivalent to the comparison
inncctions. Notice the paraphrases in the following two uses of more:
He is more 1ha11 lwpp_1 ahout it. ('He is happy about it to a degree that is not
adequately expressed by the word happy.']
He is more good than bad. ['It is more accurate to say that he is good than
that he is bad.']
She is more keen than wise. ['She is keen rather than wise.')
Most may have an intensifying meaning, as in Dela i s a most ejficie111 p11blisl1er.
Comparison ol adjectives
Irregular forms of comparison
7.41 A small group of highly frequent adjectives have comparative and
superlative forms with stems which are diferent from the base:
good -better -hest
had -worse -worsr
far
{
-further -furthest
-farther ".farthest
NOTE [a] Oldis regularly inncctcd as older-oldest. In attrihutive position, particularly
when referring to the order of birth of members of a family, the irregular frms
elder-eldest arc normally substituted (especially in BrE):
My el/ofdrr sister is an arfl.
His cld<st/ohlesl son is still al school.
However, elder is not a true comparative in that it cannot be followed by than;
. . {a/tin }
My sister 1s three years
*elder
than me.
(h] W1// j'in tood health'] and i//['in had health' (esp BrE)] arc i110cctcd l i kc.:ootl
and bod, respectively, for the comp<irative: l1e {'ef.1 better/ll'orsc. lie is belier can
mean either (a) 'He is well again' or (b) 'He is less il l'.
Regular forms of comparison
7.42 With adicllivcs laking the regular inflections, certain changes in spelling
or pron

mciation may bcfotroduce<l in the base of the adjective when the

sull1xcs arc added.
(a) A single consonant al the end of the base is doubled before -er and
-est when the preceding vowel is stressed and spelled with a single letter (c.f
the spelling or verb forms, 3.6):
hig -bigger ,biggest
13ut cc111 lrast:
Ill'([/ -neater .-. neatest
thick .,tfiickt>r ,thickest
Comparison of adjectives and adverbs 155
(b) In bases ending in < consonant followed by -y, y changes to -i before
-er and -est:
-angrier -angriest
(c) If the base ends in a mute (unpronounced) -e, this e is dropped before
the inflection:
pure -purer -purest
The same applies if the base ends i n -ee:
free -freer "freest /' fi:1st/
(d) Syllabic /!/, as in simple, ceases to be syllabic when infections are
added.
(e) Even for speakers who do not pronounce fnal r, the r is pronounced
befre the inflection, as in poorer.
NOTE There is a variant spelling in:
crel
{-crueller
-crueler
-cruellest
-crue/est (esp /\mE)
Choice between infectional and periphrastic comparison
7.43 (a) Monosyllabic adjectives normally form their comparison by
infection:
low ,.lower -lmvest
(b) Many disyllabic adjectives can also take infections, though they
have the alternative of the periphrastic forms:
I-I I ' Id
{politer/more pofire.
er c 11 ren a re . .
(the) pohtesr/(the) most polite.
Disyllabic adjectives that can most readily take infected forms are those
ending in an unstressed vowel, syllabic /I/, or r, eg:
-y:
early, easy, funny, happy, noisy, weal thy, pretty
-oil': mellow, narrow, shallow
-le: able, feble, gentle, noble, simple
(c) Trisyllabic or longer adjectives can only take periphrastic frms:
beautift!
-more heautfful [BUT NOT: *heau1iji1ler]
-the most beautiful [BUT NOT: *beautifri//est ]
Adjectives with the negative un-prefx, such as unhappy and untidy, arc
exceptions:
unhappier -wilwppiest wll idic 1111tidicsr
"" AlJCtives and adverbs
NOTE [a] Participle forms which :re used as adjectives regularly take only periphrastic
forms:
inriresting
ll'Olll'lllei/
worn
more interesting
-more wounded
-more worn
-most interesting
-most wounded
-most worn
[b] Most adjectives that arc inllected fr cornparison can also take the periphrastic
forms with more und most. With more, they seem to do so more easily when they
arc predicative and arc fllowed by a than-clause:
He is more wealthy than I thought.
Comparison of adverbs
7.44 For a small number of adverbs
,
the inflected forms used fr comparison
are the same as those for adjectives. As with adjectives, there is a small
group with comparatives <tnd superlatives formed fom di ferent sters.
The comparative and superlative innections are identical with those for
Lhc corresponding a<ljcctivcs good, bud, and/i1r, and the quantifiers 11mtl
and little:
badly ll'orse -l l'orst
ll'ell helter best
ltt/ less (lesser) "least
far
{ -Ji1rtlier -./ill't hesl
farther "fart hes I
much "'more "1110.l
Adverbs that are identical in form with adjectives take infections if the
adjectives do so:.fast, hard, late, long, quick. They follow the same spelling
and phonological rules as for adjectives, eg: early-earlier"' earliest :
The unmarked term in measure expressions
7.45 We use the adjective old i n measure expressions (x years old) when we
refer to a person's age, regardless of the age:
Mr Jespersen is 75 years old.
His granddaughter is two years old.
I n the scale of measurement, old indicates the upper range (He is old) but it
is also the unmarked term for the whole range, so that She is two years old
is equival ent to Her age is two years. The measure adjectives used in this
wtiy arc the f'ollowing, wi t h the m:1rkcd term i n pan:nthcse:
deep (shallow) high (10111) long (short) old (young) wit (shor)
thick (thin) wide (narroiv)
These unmarked terms are also used in how-questions and, again, they
do not assume the upper range. How old is she? is equivalent to Whar is her
age? Other adjectives arc also used in the same way in how-questions, eg:
Comparison ol adJectives aod adverbs 1 51
br (small), !night (dim), ji1 1 (thin), /1.lll' (ight ). larg' (/i11le). s1r11.
( ll'C'llk).
How hca1'y i s your corn purer?
I/oil' acc11ro1e is that clock'!
Some adverbs arc also used as an unmarked term in h01v-qucstions. eg:
Holl' 11111d1 does it cost?
Hmr fi1r did you drive today?
NOTE If we us. the marked term, as in /lw ycJCmg is Jo/111?. we an: asking a qucstio11 thal
presupposes that the relevant norm is towards the lower end or lhe scale, ie thal
John is young, whereas the unmarked term in Holl' old i.1 Jolt11? does not
presuppose thal John is old. No1icc that neither term is neutral in cxcl:11n;1tions:
/loll' young he is! ['He is extremely young!']
1/011 old he is! ['He is extremely old!'J
Bibliographical note
On adjectives and adverbs, sec Bolinger ( 1 967a); Vcndler ( 1 968); Warren ( 1 984).
On adverbs, sec bibliographical note in Chapter 8.
On comparison and intensification, sec Bolinger ( 1 967b, l972a); Bresnan
(1973); Gnutzman cl al. ( 1 973); Rusiecki ( 1 985).
160 The semantics and grammar of adverblals
Contingency
8.6 Here we have si x types of meani ng expressed adverbial l y:
(a) Cause, as i n:
She died of cancer.
(b) Reason, as i n:
He bought the book 1/zrouglz an interest in me1aplzysics.
(c) Purpose, as i n:
He bought t he book la study melap/zysics.
(d) Resull, as i n:
He read t he book careful l y, so /ze acquired a good k110\\'ledge of
melaphysics.
(e) Condilion, as i n:
/f !ze reads 1/ze book carefully, he wi l l acquire a good knowledge of
metaphysics.
( f ) Concession, as i n:
Though !ze read 1/ze hook careji1/ly, he di dn' t achieve much
knowledge of metaphysics.
Modality
8.7 The truth val ue of a sentence can be changed (eg enhanced or di mi nished)
by the use of adverbi al s. We di sti ngui sh three ways:
8.8
(a) Emphasis, as i n:
She cerlainly helped hi m wi th hi s research.
(b) Approximalion, as i n:
They are probably goi ng to emigrate.
(c) Reslriclion, as i n:
I shal l be i n Chicago only unti l Thursday.
Degree
Like adverbial s of modal i ty i n changi ng the truth val ue of a sentence,
adverbi al s of degree add a special semantic component, gradabi l i ty. There
are two. types:
(a) Amplica/ion, as i n:
He badly needed consol ati on.
(b) Dimim11io11, as i n:
Semantic roles 161
She hel ped hi m a li1 1le wi th hi s research.
Formal realization
8.9 The A-clement can be realized by a wide range of l i ngui sti c structures:
An adverb phrase (2.4) wi th a cl osed-class (2. 6) adverb as head:
(Jus/ ) 1/zen, the telephone rang.
An adverb phrase with an open-class (2. 6) adverb as head:
You should have opened it ( (a hi!) more) carefully.
A noun phrase ( 1 7. If
They had tra veiled a 1e long ll'llJ' .
A preposi ti onal phrase (9. 1 ):
Rowena hurried acros.1 1/ze.field.
A vcrblcss cl ause ( 1 4. 3 ):
Wizen in douhl the answer i s ' no' .
A nonfni te cl ause ( 1 4. 3):
She realized, lying 1/iere, what she must do.
A fni te cl ause ( 1 4. 3) :
We sent for you because you 1 1ere absenl yeslerday.
8.10 Some of these realization types occur more frequentl y than others:
preposi ti onal phrases are very common and nonfni te cl auses relatively
rare, fr exampl e. Some are particul arl y associated with specifc
meanings, grammatical functions, and adverbial posi ti ons: noun phrases
wi th ti me adjuncts, fr exampl e, and fni te cl auses wi th end posi ti on.
Position
8. 11 As compared with other sentence elements (2. 3), the A-element can be
placed wi th relative freedom i n several posi tions i n a sentence:
I By 1/ze11 the book shoul d have been returned to the l i brary.
iM The book by 1/ze11 shoul d have been returned to the l i brary.
Af The book should by 1/ze11 have been returned to the l i brary.
mM The book shoul d have by 1/ien been returned to the l i brary.
eM The book should have been by 1/zen returned to the l i brary.
iE The book should have been retured by 1/zen to the l i brary.
E The book shoul d have been returned to the l i brary hy !hen.
As the notati on i mpl ies, there arc three main posi tions: I(nilial) ,
M(edial) , and E(ml) , but there arc three subordi nate variants of M
(i ni ti al , medi al , and end) and one of E (i ni ti al ). I and E are self-
162 The semantics and grammar of adverbials
explanatory, but the primary M position may need clarifcation. I t is the
position i mmediately following the operator (2. 1 0) or the copula be:
Timothy has al fas/ fnished his thesis.
Timothy is al fas! a doctor of phi losophy.
Where no operator i s present, there can be no variants such as el\, and M
is simply the position between the S and the V; it is simil arly the position
before V when the S is el l i pted:
The play daringly explores a hi therto forbidden subject.
Sharon spoke at this point and slrongly supported the motion.
The choice or position for an adverbial is determined by semantic and
grammatical fctors as we shal l see i n the course or this chapter, but also
by the demands of i nformation processing and the principle of end-weight
( 1 8. 5 and Note [a]). I f no special fctors determine otherwise, the
adverbial is placed at E, the position in fact taken in the majority or cases.
NOTE Since the majority of verb phrases combine either the mai n verb alone or the main
verb preceded by only one auxi liary (the operator), it is natural that the M position
is normally fel l lo be immediately before the mai n verb form. This helps lo account
fr the tendency (despite long-standing disapproval) lo place an adverbial
between to and an i nfnitive ('the split i nfnitive'). Compare the similarity between
the following:
Martha always fnishes first.
Martha had always fnished first.
Martha tried lo alll'ays fnish frst.
Grammatical functions
8. 12 In terms of thei r grammatical functions, adverbials fall i nto fur main
categories:
Adjunct
Subjunct
Disj unct
Conjunct
We shall deal with these in turn, along with their respective subcategorie
Adjuncts
8. 13 More than other adverbials, adjuncts have grammatical properti
resembl i ng the sentence elements S, C, and 0. Like them, adj uncts can
the focus of a cleft sentence ( 1 8. 1 8/):
Grammatical functions 1 63
Hilda [SJ helped Tony [OJ because of his injury [AJ
I t was Hilda that helped Tony because of his i njur;.
I t was Tony that Hi lda helped because of his injury.
It was because of his iniury that Hi lda hel ped Tony.
The

arallels extend to the potenti al i ty for being the fcus of subjuncts

(8. 3
.j
Only Hi lda helped Tony . . .
Hi l da helped Tony 011/y because of his injury
.
to elici tation by question forms:
lVho hel ped Tony?
Who(m) did Hi l da help?
Why did Hi l da help Tony?
and to alterative i nterrogation and negation:
D!d Hilda he!

Tony or di d Marjorie (help him)?
Di d she help hi m because of/11: injury or (did she help hi m)
because she ll
'
as bored?
H! lda d!dn' t help Tony but (she helped) Bill.
[SJ
[AJ
[SJ
[OJ
[AJ
[SJ
[AJ
[OJ
Hi i da d1 dn :t help Tony because of his iniury but (she
helped him) because she was bored.
[AJ
Finally, i rrespective of heir position (8. 1 1 ), adjuncts function like other
post-operator elements 1 11
.
comi ng wi thi n the scope or predication ellipsis
or pro-forms ( 1 2.20, 1 2. 6
.
ff). In consequence, the fllowing sentences are
synonymous:
Grace became a teacher [C] in 1981 [AJ and Hami sh also beca
leacher [C] in 1981 [AJ.
me a
111 1981, Grace became a teacher and so also did Ham I IS 1.
But while these characteristics hold generally fr all adj' unct th
three subcat
.
.
s, ere are
.
:
gones rang111g 1 'c
.
cntal i ty' from the obl i gatory predication
adj unct (wluch resembles an object 11 being botl1 re! t' I
.
d
.
d f d
a 1ve Y 11 1spensable
an
.
xe 11 pos1 l1 on) to the sentence adjunct whose position is more
variable and whose presence is always optional:
{obl igatory
{predication
.
opt10nal
Adj unct
sentence
Predication adjuncts
As their
.
name i mplies, the relations of predication adjuncts arc not so muh wi th a whl e
.
sentence as with its predication, the post-operator
section (2. 1 0). This i s true fr both of the fllowing:
1 64 The semantics and grammar of adverbials
She put the letter on !he kilchen fable.
She found the letter on !he ki1chen lahle.
[ I ]
[2]
But whereas i n [2] the adverbial is op1io11al and its omission leaves an
acceptable sentence (' She found the letter'), omission i s impossible with [ l ]
(*'She put the letter') where the adverbial i s thus an ohligalorycomponent
of the sentence.
Predication adjuncts are normally placed al E but may be at iE i f
another post-verb cl ement is l engthy and complex:
She put on 1he /able a letter she had just received from her lawyer.
Jn striving for rhetorical effect
,
such adjuncts can even appear at I ; for
example i n highlighting a balance or cont rast
,
as i n:
From Aus/ralia he came and lo Aus/ra/ia he has returned.
Sentence adjuncts
8. 15 Si nce we can utter ' Ral ph kissed his mother' without needing to add an
adjunct, i t fl l ows lhal i n each of the following the adjunct is opti onal :
Ralph kissed hi s mother on the cheek.
Ralph kissed hi s mother on !he pla1form.
But onl y i n the second can lhe adj unct seem equally natural al / :
On 1/ze pla!form, Ral ph kissed his mother.
[ I ]
[2]
This is a characteristic of the sentence adjunct, demonslrali ng i ts relatively
'peripheral' rel ationship lo the resl of the sentence as compared wilh the
relatively 'central' relati onshi p of the predication adjunct i n [ I ] .
But t he di ference does nol necessarily lie, as i n [ I ] and [2], i n lhe
adjuncts themselves. The same phrase can be used as either predication or
sentence adj unct, accordi ng as i t pi npoi nts new i nformation ( 1 8.4) i n the
predication or provides general background i nformation for the sentence
as a whole:
( I looked everywhere for i t and eventually) I found the lcllcr
in the kitchen. [3]
(I had totally forgotten about lhc matter, bul then,
almost by chance,) I found the leller(,) in !he ki1d1en. [4]
The contexts supplied show Lhal the adjunct in [3] is prcdicalional while
Lhal in [4] i s senlcnlial. The parenthesized comma further suggests lhc
relatively peripheral relation of the adj unct, which might occupy a
separate tone uni t in speech ( I 8. 3), as it certai nl y would if moved from :
. . . but then, in !he kitchen, almost by chance, I found the lcllcr.
NOTE In many cases, i t i s convenient lo sec predication adjuncts as 'object-related' and
sentence adjuncts as 'subjccl-rcl alcd' . Thus i n the following the adj unct would
nornial l y be inlcrprclcd as relating lo lhc dale of lhc disaster:
Grammatical functions 1 65
We foresaw a disaster in June.
By contrast. the adjunct in the following seems naturally lo relate lo the subject
and therefore lo the lime of the foreseei ng:
/11 June, we i"oresaw a disaster
.
The semantic roles of adj uncts
Adjuncts of space
, , .
8. 1 6 Spatial adjuncts realize the roles set oul i n 8 . 2 chiefly by means of
preposi ti onal phrases since these roles can be clearly and conveni entl y
specifed through lhc respective preposi ti onal meani ngs (9. 4//") . But noun
phrases can be used as predication adjuncts of di stance:
TI II d
f
a very l ong way.
iey lravc c
l sevcral miles.
So loo adj uncts of di rection wi th lhc determiners t!tis, t!tat, and ll'hich:
He came 1/tis 1 1ay hut ll '!tic!t dirl'l'tion did he go then?
Clausal realization is common and is convenient i n enabling one lo
transcend the specifcs of locati on or even semantic role:
She still l i ves uhere she was bor.
They want lo know ll 'here \\'e are sending them.
These examples rcllccl the fct that space adjuncts are el icited (again often
neutralizi ng semantic role) by lhc questi on ll'here:
Where did you stay?
Where are they goi ng?
Where is the train comi ngji

om?
But cf ho\\' /ar as i n:
(posi tion)
(di rection)
(source)
/01 1
.
fitr did you drive yesterday? (distance)
NOTE [a] The spatial pro-forms lrcre and 1/ere have 'near' and ' fr' orientation as with
!h and 1/a1 (6
.
1 9) .
[b] The position role wi th respect to persons is often expressed by a 11ith-phrasc:
Where i s Mi l dred'? She is (staying) wi1h /1er hr1he.
8.17 Direction adjuncts ( whether goal or source) can normally be used onl y
wi th verbs of moti on or with verbs used dynami cal l y so as Lo allow a l i teral
or metaphorical motional meani ng:
The boy kicked the ball through !he open ll'indo\\'.
She was speaki ng i1110 a 1iny microphone.
By contrast, position and di stance adj uncts can be used freely with verbs
i n slali ve or dynamic use:
166 The semantics and grammar of adverbials
Th
r
{in London.
ey i ve
20 kilometres from here.
I
. {in Yorkshire at prescn l .
He' s trave ! mg
a long way.
With be, we can have position adjuncts:
Charles i s on the top foor.
Given that the verb is appropriate, more than one space adjunct can be
used in the same sentence; distance and position as in [ I ], di rection and
position as i n [2], distance and di rection as i n [3]:
They swam a mile [A I] in the open sea [A2].
He fel l into the water [Al ] near that rck[A2].
She walked a few steps [A 1 ] toll'ards him [A2].
[ I ]
[2]
[3]
Since space adj uncts (especially of position) can enter a hierarchical
rel ationship, we can also have two adj uncts even of the same semantic
role:
Many people eat in restaurants [A I] in London [A2].
The order here is essential in order to match the logical relationship, but
si nce the l arger l ocati on i s relatively peripheral, this referring adj unct (but
not the other) may be at I :
!11 London, many people eat i11 restaurants.
Di rection adj uncts of goal and source may also be paired, wi th a choice or
order dependent largely on i nfrmation processing ( 1 8.4.l) :
We ew .
f {

om Cairo [A I ] to lsta11hul [A2].

to IstanlJI [A I ] from Cmro [A2].
When adj uncts are coordinated, they must have the same semantic role:
We can meet you in the theatre or at the station.
I drove down Gower Street and into University College.
8. 18 I rrespective of semantic role, space adjuncts are normally at E, but where
two or more adj uncts are clustered at E, they are ordered as follows:
distance-direction (source, goal) - position
For example:
She walked afe11 steps [A 1] tol!'ards him [A2] in the darkened room
[A3].
Adjuncts of position can be more easily moved to / :
On the top ofthe building, two men were gesticul ati ng wildly.
Some adj uncts, especially i f short, can also be at M:
Grammatical functions 1 67
You could there catch a train to Manchester.
With be, it i s very common for there and here to be at /, with subject-verb
i nversi on ( 1 8. 1 6) unless the subject is a pronoun:
There he was, wai ting i n the cold.
Here is the book.
l n a similar way, prcdica tion adjuncts of posi lion and direction can occur
at / :
D
{swooped the hawk.
Ol l
'
n .
It swooped.
/11 a 11eighbouri11g street lived my mother.
I n negative sentences, predication adjuncts must be al E:
My mother did not live i11 a 11eighhouri11g street.
But sentence adjuncts can be at / and remain wi thi n the scope of negati on:
il Delhi, i t sometimes did not rai n f or months on end.
Adjuncts of time
8. 19 We tend to use the language of spatial di mensi ons fguratively when we
refer lo time. I n consequence, adj uncts of time are predomi nantly realized
by preposi tional phrases, with fgurative adaptation of the preposi tional
meanings (c/9. /). For example:
The music stopped at midnight.
011 the folloll'i11g day, we decided lo go out for a picnic.
r completed the pai nti ng in 111' 0 days.
But i n addi ti on, a wider range of structures is available for time than for
any other type of adjunct. Noun phrases, as i n:
They visit her eiery month.
Fi ni te verb clauses, as i n:
Stay i n bed until your temperature comes doll'n.
Nonfni te clauses, as i n:
Travelling 011 the Co11tinent, I miss the English pub.
Verbless clauses, as i n:
I go t o t he theatre as often as possible.
Closed-class adverb phrases, as i n:
She (almost ) ahrys leaves home befre sa. m.
Open-class adverb phrases, as i n:
1 68 The semantics and grammar of adverbials
He spoke to me about it quile recenl/y.
Time-position adjuncts
8.20 Time-posi ti on adjuncts can be elici ted by the questi on word 11he11 and the
time specifed may be narrowly stated or left rather vague:
. {Al 10. 15.
When did she arve?
Some hours ago.
Moreover, the time position itsel f may be narrow as in [ l ] or broad as in
[2] , i rrespective or the speci fcati on:
{ill 1 756.
Mozart was bor .
/
.
/ / 111 I 1e e1g 11ee111 1 ce11111ry. [ I ]
{i11 1he eigh1ee111h ce11/1ir1.
Mozart l i ved
i11 a period ofgreal musica/ L-rea/ilily. [2]
The general anaphori c pro-form for time-position reference is !hen and it
is normally associated wi th the past, especially i n contrast to now:
I worked i n publ i shi ng !hen, but 11011 I work for an advertising frm.
But 1hen can refer equally to a time i n the future:
She will telephone you 1011zo1-ro1v ajier110011 and hopes that you will
be able to speak to her 1he11.
Nor is now necessarily confi ned to present-time reference; in the following
example, now means 'by that time', 'then':
They had been courting for two years and he no11 fel t that she knew
his worst ful ts.
Li ke spatial adj uncts of position, time-position adjuncts can be i n a
hierarchical rel ati on, usually wi th the one denoti ng the l onger or
superordinate period comi ng second:
I' l l see you al nine [A I ] on Monday [A2].
The doctor wants to sec you again [A I ] qfienvards [A2].
But thi s sequence can be readily reversed i f end-weight ( 1 8. 5 Note [a]) or
other communicative req ui remcnt is to be served:
I lived there in 1he ffies [A 1] ll'he11 111yjirs1 child was bor [A2].
NOTE Out or context, a whe11-clause may be ambiguous:
Tell me wizen you 're ready.
This may be a noun clause as object ('Let me know the time at ll'hich you 'l be
ready') or a time-position adjunct (' Wlze11 you 're ready, let me know').
Grammatical functions 169
Adjuncts of duration and span
8.21 Adj uncts may express duration of specifc (' for ten mi nutes') or i ndefni te
( 'for a short time' ) length, the durations in question bei ng in the past, the
present, or the future:
She worked i n China /(1r several years. [ l ]
At present hi s grandchildren are staying wi th hi m/or a.few days. [2]
I i ntend to go ski i ngji1r lhree 11eek.1. [3]
' NOW'
'
-

.
-
-
:-1 = =
-
3
'Severl
' a few days'
' three
years'
weeks
I l l
f 2J
(3 J
Al though i n [3]
,
we know the precise duration, in none of the sentences [ l ],
(2], or [3] can we relate the begi nni ng or end of the periods mentioned to
the speaker's 'Now'. By contrast, adjuncts of forward and backward span
speci fcally relate durati on to such a 'Now' (or other fxed point of
orientation), though again without necessarily being defni te about the
length or the durati on i tself'.
Forll'ard span i s particularly associated wi th till and 11111i/ :
I shall be in my oflice w11iljil'e o
'
clock.
' NOW'

' five o' cl ock'
The begi nni ng of the time span is fxed i n relation to the speaker's
orientation point
,
but its termi nus is as i ndicated by the adj unct only if the
clause is positive:
He waited until she relumed.
'THEN'
'she returned'
. . . . . ,, . . - . . .. wai t . . . . - . . . . - . . +
170 The semantics and grammar of adverbials
By contrast:
He di dn' t wait u11til she retured.
THEN
v
'?
+ - - - - - - -
wail
- - - - - - - I
' she returned'
v
Wi th negative clauses and verbs of momentary meani ng
,
on the other
hand, the span i ndi cated by the

dj unct mark s the extent or the

nonoccurrence of the momentary acti on:
He didn' t arrive 1111/i/ she retured.
' THEN'
v
' she returned'
'
,
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
period o
f nonarrival
- " - " "
Compare also:
I slept ti/l 11ine o 'clock.
' THEN'
v
' ni ne o'clock'
6
,
~ - - - - - - - -
slept
- - - - - -
I di dn' t sleep 1i/l 11i11e o 'clock.
' THEN'
v
' nine o'clock'
v
he ari vcd
?

,
- -
- - - -
- -
- slept
- - - - - - -)
8.22 Backward span is particularly associated with si11ce and the perfect aspect:
I have been i n my otrce si11ce 11i11e o 'clock.
.. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
'nine o'clock'
' NOW'
v
- - -J.
Grammatical functions 1 71
But adjuncts wi th si11ce must specify a definite starting poi nt; i f the span is
more general, for can be used or a noun phrase without /or:
l have been in my ofllcc (or) se1eral hours.
NOW'
?
,- . . . . . . . . . = . . = ~ ~~ - - - - - - -
I f the backward span is not to be related to the speaker's orientation poi nt,
the verb phrase is not i n the perfect, and we are now dealing si mply with
duration which may be defni te or i ndefni te. For example:
. . {/iir three rears.
She was runn1 11g her own busmcss (1.
)
:
1
+
.
or qulle a rmg 11111e.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - )
' running her
own business'
' NOW'
v
Fi nal ly
,
we may note since-cl auses according as these clauses do or do
not have verbs i n the perfect:
She has become much better off si11ce she has worked with us. [ l ]
She has become much better off since she worked 11ith us. [2]
In both cases, the period of i mprovement extends to the present, but
whereas [ I ] entails that she still works 'wi th us', [2] i mplies that she does
not. If the verb in the si11ce-clause does not i tself i nvolve duration, on the
other hand, the contrast is less absol ute:
H
,
b
.
b d
1
d h
{si11ce he has joined the army. [3]
e s cen getting a lea ac cs
since he joi11ed the army. [4]
Whi l e [3] certainly entails that he is still in the army, [4] leavcs it open as to
whether or not he is still in the army.
NOTE [a] Span may be specified also by j-0111, up 10, over, by, before, and by noun phrases
like 1/zis pas/ (111on1/z ), 1/zese fas/ (.ell' days), 1/iis nexl year:
We'll be here up 10 midday.
She has worked here 011fy 1/zis fas/ 11eek.
The begi nning and end of a span can be indicated by the corrclativesj0111 . . . 10
(esp BrE), .
fom . . . 1/zro11glz (esp AmE), be111een . . . and:
The ofllcc is closed helll'een one and 11\'o o
'
clock.
1 72 The semantics and grammar of adverbials
[b] Especially informally, especially i n AmE, and especial l y where the main clause
refers lo the present, backward span can be expressed wilhoul the perfect:
Thi ngs are much worse since you leji.
I never saw you here be/m!.
[c] Adjuncts of duration and span usual ly answer questions of the form How
long . . . ? or more specifcally Ti/ l!"len
.
. . ' Since ll"hen
. . . ?
Time-frequency adjuncts
Defnite frequency
8.23 It i s necessary to distinguish frequency of occasion ( ' How many times?')
from frequency of period wi thi n which occasions took place ( ' How
often?'). The former are normal l y predication adjuncts, the l atter sentence
adjuncts, and when in a hierarchical relation these are pl aced i n the more
pcriphcn

l posi tion:
Veronica came to sec me t ll'ice. [occasion)
Veronica came to sec me daily. (period)
Veronica came to sec me t ll'ice [o] daily (p).
Each year [p) I have to make a presidential address three times [o].
Indefnite frequency
8.24 Here we must, on both semantic and grammatical grounds, di sti nguish
fur subsets:
(a) Denoti ng usual occurrence (11or111al/y, generally, ordinarily, etc), as in
Jenny usualy goes to bed before mi dni ght.
Si nce one can speak of somethi ng normal l y 1101 occurring, r t 1s a
characteristic of these adjuncts to be sentential and to be capabl e of
precedi ng a cl ausal negative:
Usualy, Jenny doesn't go to bed before mi dni ght.
( b) Denoti ng uni versal frequency (ahrs, continually, permanently, etc),
as in
He has been aski ng-for you incessantly.
(c) Denoting hi gh frequency (often, time and again, repeatedly, ctc), as i n
She has had plays broadcastfequently.
(d) Denoting l ow frequency (occasionally, rarely, seldom, never, etc), as i n
I l'ery seldom pl ay gol f these days.
I f pl aced at I, some i tems i n (d) can oblige us to i nvert subject and
operator:
Nel'er have I experienced such rudeness.
Grammatical functions 1 73
Unl ike the adjuncts in (a) and (b), some of those in (c) and (d) can be used
i n antithetic sentence sequences:
Often he lakes his medicine, but often he doesn't.
She occasionally greets me but ocasionally she doesn't
.
I tems from (a) and other subsets as sentence adjuncts can readily cooccur
with predication adjuncts from (b), (c), or (d):
Generally (a), they arc continually ( b) compl ai ni ng.
He (almost ) nel'rr (d) goes out at night, normal/)' (a).
Sometimes (d) , the dog barks repeatedly (c).
=
Time-relationship adjuncts
8.25 The time adjuncts which express a relationship between two time
posi tions arc of three types:
(a) Typical l y uenoli ng a temporal sequence
,
as in
When did you preFiously go to the dentist?
(b) Typically i mpl ying a concessivc relation, as in
I don' t understand (even) NOW.
(c) Typical l y contrasting one Lime wi th another, as i n
Maureen shoul d compl ai n about it again.
NOTE But Lime rel ationship is often expressed by subjuncts (l/8. 35) such as already, still,
yet.
Positions of time adjuncts
8.26 Al though l i ke other adjuncts, time adjuncts are most frequentl y at E, al l
types can readi l y Lake the 'scene-setting' I posi tion:
In 1982, the economy started to recover
.
For many years, no one seemed i nterested in buying the house.
Normally, l ate nights have a bad effect on me
.
El'en after that, he refused lo cooperate.
But A1 is al so common for time adj uncts, especi al ly those realized by
adverbs:
She has recently compl eted a new play.
We may not often get such an opportuni ty.
Where time adj uncts cooccur i n the same sentence, time duration tends
to be most 'central ' , time position most 'peripheral ', so that if the three
mai n types al l occurred at E they woul d most l i kel y be ordered as i n:
I was there.for a short while [d ur] every day or so [freq] last year. [pos]
174 The semantics and grammar of adverbials
NOTE Placing of a lime adjuncl is acutely afected i f there is a decided orientation
towards either lhc subject or the object; c/8. 1 5 Note.
Process adjuncts
Manner adjuncts
8.27 Manner adj uncts are chiefy realized by adverb phrases, by like-phrases_
as-clauses, and by prepositional or noun phrases i nvol vi ng such nouns as
way and manner; for example:
She looked at him co/dlj1
He walks like his j(1t/zer.
Please don't speak in t/ull rude way.
They cook ((in) the) French style.
I wish I could write as you do.
Manner adjuncts are almost always at , but although thus associated
with the greatest rhetorical weight in a clause, there is no simple
i nterrogative device for eliciting them.
Adjuncts of means, instrument, and agency
8.28 There are close semantic si mi l ari ties between means, instrument, and
agent, and there i s considerable overlap in realization. The means and the
agent are often expressed with by-phrases, but the latter is grammatically
di sti nct in correlating with the passive (and hence corresponding to a
transitive clause); for example:
He was ki l led by a terrorist. ( - A terrorist ki l led hi m. )
A means adj unct, on the other hand, can easily occur i n a transitive clause:
She i nfuenced me by her example.
Instrument adj uncts difer from both means and agent adjuncts m
generally being realized by with-phrases:
He was ki l led with a hunting k11(e.
But means and i nstrument adj uncts can share realization wi th adverbs;
thus means i n:
They decided t o treat the patient surgically. ( =' by means of
surgery')
Si milarly, instrument i n:
She examined t he specimen microscopically. (where the adverb is
here i ntended to mean 'with a microscope')
NOTE (a] lfin lhc lasl example, microscopically meant ' i n microscopic detail', the adjunct
would be one of manner (8.27) and could be gradable, ' (qui te) microscopically'.
[b] Means and instrument adjuncts can be elicited by /1011-qucstions: 'How arc you
travelling to Hamburg?' 'By air/By Lufthansa'.
Grammatical functions 175
(c] Al l process adjuncts arc normally placed at , though manner adjuncts can be
at M. Cooccurrcncc of process adjuncts is by no means unusual ; for example:
She was accidC
'
nta/1 [manner] struck ll'ith a racket [inslrumcnt] by her
par/Iler [agent]
.
Adjuncts of respect
8.29 A wide range of realization is available for adjuncts that express the
respect i n which the truth value of a sentence is bei ng claimed. For
example:
legall.
on legal issues.
A neighbour is advising me so /(ir us legal mallers are concered.
ill l"l'.\'f)('Ct to /11 1 1 .
j111 a legal standpoint.
Respect i s a relati onship often expressed by subjuncts or disjuncts (8. 33,
8. 41 ), but when adjuncts are i nvolved they are usual l y predicational and
are placed at E.
Adjuncts of contingency
8.30 Conti ngency relations arc commonly expressed by disj uncts (8.41 ), but
adj uncts are often used f or reason and i ts correlate purpose, both of which
can be elicited by the same question forms, Why . . . ? What . . .
.
for? as i n:
He di d i t
{becaue he ;11as angry. [reason]
to reheve /us anger. [purpose]
As well as by fi ni te clauses, reason adjuncts are realized by prepositional
phrases and nonfini tc clauses; fr example:
She made the sacrifce/or her son.
There were many deathsji

om ma/nutrition.
With him being so angry, I didn' t tell him the worst part.
Purpose adjuncts are realized by nonfini tc ( i nfi nitive) clauses:
The driver slowed down
{( in ordf)
t 10 moid w1 accident
(so us) J
+
In formal style, finite clauses can occur:
I nocul ati on must be carried out lest the disease spread.
He died ( i11 order) that others might live.
But some forms of fni te clause arc used more generally:
Turn the gas off in case there
'
s a11 explosion.
We'd better leave now so we can get home be.fore dark.
When the concessil'e relation is expressed by an adjunct, this takes the
frm of a prepositional phrase:
She gave the lecture despite her illness.
8.31
8.32
176 The semantics and grammar of adverbials
Conti ngency adj uncts are usually sententi al and al though normally at
E they are commonl y (especial l y those of purpose and concession) placed
at /.
Relative positions or adjuncts
Looki ng now at the whole range of adj unct types (8. 1 6-8.30), we can
consider some general pri nci ples of their relati ve ordering in cooccurence:
(a) the order, especial l y of sentence adj uncts, can be dictated by such
considerations as what can be taken !Or granted and what needs lo
have most i mpact (lf 1 8- 4/T on i nformati on processing);
( b) shorter adj uncts tend to precede longer ones.
But subject to (a) and (b), where adj uncts cl uster at , they will lend to
occur in the followi ng sequence:
respect - process - space - lime - conti ngency
It is less usual to fnd more than one adj unct at /, but any such cluster
would tend to follow a converse order; eg: space (or process) - time.
Subjuncls
Subj uncts have a subordi nate and parenthetic role in comparison with
adj uncts; they l ack the grammatical parity with other sentence elements
that we saw as criteria! in 8. 1 3. There are two mai n types, each with
subtypes (Fig 8. 32). Those with narrow orie111a1io11 are chiefy related to
the predication or to a particular part of the predicati on. Those with wide
orie11tatio11 relate more to the sentence as a whole, but show their subjunct
character in tendi ng to achieve this through a particular relationship with
one of the clause elements, especially the subject.
{
viewpoi nt
wi de orientati on
{
courtesy
SUlJUNCT
{
item
{
narrow orientation emphasizer
i ntensifer
focusing
subject
predication
Fig 8.32
Wide orientation
Viewpoint subjuncts
8.33 The subjuncts which express a viewpoi nt arc l argely concerned with the
semanti c concept of respect, arc predomi nantl y expressed by nongradable
(7. 1 ) adverb phrases, and are characteristically placed at f. For example:
8.34
NOTE
8.35
Subjuncts 177
Archilecturally, the plans represent a magni fcent concepti on.
But there can be other frms of realizati on:
From a personal viel l 'poinl, he is l i kely lo do wel l i n thi s post.
Looked al politimlly, the proposal seems dangerous.
Especially i n AmE, we fi nd adverbs i n 1 rise:
Wea1henl'i.1l'. the outl ook is di smal .
Courtesy suhjuncts
A small
.
number of avcrbs in -ly, along with please, serve to convey a
formulai c lone of pol1tcncss lo a sentence. They normally occur al Jl :
You arc cordially i nvi ted to take your places.
He asked if l would please read his manuscript.
Courtsy sub uncts obviously i nvolve the semantic category manner but
arc qui te d1 sl1 nct from manner adj uncts. Contrast:
She kindly [subj unct] olcrcd me her scat.
('She was ki nd enough to offer . . . ' )
She olcrcd me her scat kindly [adj unct]
.
('She olcrcd me her scat in a kind manner. ')
Though thanks ( or thank you) communicatively matches please as a response
form
'
.
there arc few grammatical similarities except that both can occur i n
1solall on:
' Woul d you l i ke a drink? ' Please'.
' Here is your dri nk. ' Thanks'.
Whi l e please usual l y occurs al ! ( = I wi th the imperative), thank.1 is al :
' (Wi l l you) please have another helping
.
'
' I really have had enough, rl11111ks.'
Narrow orientation
I tem subjuncts
The com1
.
11011cst i lc11 lo be associated with subjuncls is the suhjccl of a
cl
.
asc
,
\I th the subJ unct operating in the semantic area of manner but
d1 st1 11gu1shcd from the correspondi ng manner adjunct by being placed al f
or M:
She has consislenlly opposed the lawycrs's arguments.
This
.
docs not mean that her own arguments have been conducted
cons1sl
.
cntly but that she has been consistent in always opposing the
lawyer s.
Many such subjuncts express vol i ti on, as i n:
fnle/l/iona//y, they said nothi ng lo hi m about the fre.
With grea/ reluclance, he rose lo speak.
178 The semantics and grammar of adverbials
Si nce many ,----- subj uncts are i di omatically l i nked with particu
l ar verbs, they are best treated under phrasal verbs i n 1 6. 2
.
l. Here,
however, we should menti on the subjuncts associated with the expression
of time. The uses of ----, . and ,- as time-relation subj uncts can be
summarized as fl l ows:
Declarative positive:
{---- }
d
. .
(I
*I d
.
1. )
I
.
a mi re h1 1n. ,- a mi re 1 m.
Declarative negative, wi t h subjunct ,-----, the negative:
I . haven't spoken to hi m. *I -.--,,- haven't . . . )
Declarative negative, wi th subj unctfo/lowing the negative:
H
{,- drive.
c can t .
dnve ,-
?He can't . drive/drive . (*He can' t ----, drive.)
I nterrogative positive:
Is he ----,.,- here? (all three - esp ,- - also at )
Interrogative negative:
Isn' t he ----,.,- here? (all three - esp ,- - also at )
NOTE [a] Any more and any longer function as nonasscrlivc, and 110 more and no longer
as negative time-relation subjuncls:
He doesn't work for us any more/longer.
He 110 longer works for us.
She said she would sec me no mol'e.
[b] Other common time subjuncls arc just, (n) e1er, the frst cooccurring mainly
with the perfect or progressive:
I've just fnished my supper.
She was just talking lo hi m a moment ago.
{
don' t el'er
} They
neier
seem lo read books.
Emphasizers
8.36 Emphasizers are subjuncts expressing (l argely at or M) the semantic
role of ----, with a rei nforcing effect on the meani ng of a sentence. For
example:
I {:,
}
can't believe a word he says!
.-,,
Some emphasizers arc characteristic of very i nfrmal speech; fr example:
I wish I could ---- - fnd that book.
They told him to get - - off their l and.
Subjuncts 1 79
Others occur onl y in certain grammatical envi ronments, notably --.
and - with modal izcd verb phrases:

Even i f you di dn' t know where I was, you could --,. have
telephoned to ask.
She said that she had no money and that may - be true.
NOTE Emphasizer subjuncls can frequently occur as responses; thus to the question 'Arc
you willing lo help?' we might have
(Y cs) certain1
'
.
Sure(ly). (esp AmE)
(Yes) indeed.
Cer1ainly not.
Intensifers
8.37 The i ntensifer subjuncts arc broadly concerned with the semantic
catgory of -

- i ndicating an increase or decrease of the i ntensity with

which a prcd1cat1on (usually containing an attitudinal verb) is expressed.
They characteristically appear at M.
NOTE
(a) I nrcased i ntensifcation to various degrees is realized by --,,-.
as m:
Theyji1, appreciate t he problem.
He has -,--, ignored my question.
She was ---, in need of hel p
.
- , they must have suffered!
(b) De
.
creased i ntcnsifca lion to various degrees is realized by -.--.
as m:
They have ,--, forced hi m t o resign.
I n spi te of his manners, I l i ke hi m.
She .- -, laughed at the idea. (i nformal)
I was -, joki ng.
He di dn' t - - --. enjoy the party.
specially al
_
the extremes of i ntensity, subjuncts of (a) and (b) can be
given emphasis by appeari ng at :
I understand your attitude -
She won't mi nd - - .,-. . .
[a] Some i
.
ntcnsitcrs occ

r only in specifc environments; for example, possibly

with can( 1) i n nonasscrt1vc clauses:
She can't possibly expect you lo wai l so long
.
180 The semantics and grammar of adverbials
[b] As well as relati ng ta- altitude, intensifiers arc used in respect of quantity and
time:
I paid him a grear deal for his advice.
She slept a litrle in the afternoon.
Focusing subjuncts
8.38 Special attenti on may be called to a part of a sentence as broad as
predication or as narrow as a consti tuent wi thi n a phrase. There are two
types of focusing subj unct that can so operate; one is restrictive, as i n:
I merely wanted t o know hi s name. (ie I di dn' t want t o know
anything else)
Only her sister vi si ted her in hospi tal . (ie No one else did so)
The other i s additive, as i n:
Fred had also i nvi ted hi s mother-in-law. (ie i n addi ti on to others)
Even on Sundays, my doctor i s wi l l i ng to come and see me. (ie i n
addi ti on t o ordi nary worki ng days)
With most focusi ng subjuncts, the usual posi ti on i s i mmediately before
the part to be focused, and if that i s the whole or part of the predication,
the posi ti on is M. As wi th negati on, therefore, there i s the possi bi l i ty of
ambigui ty:
She had {;)'
}
questioned her patients the previ ous week.
also
Si nce it is normal to give the prosodic emphasis to the fnal phrase of a
sentence, thi s would usual ly be spoken, read, and understood wi th the
focus on the ti me adjunct. But of course in speech, the focus could be
clearly placed on any of the three post-operator consti tuents.
. . . QUESTIONED her patients . = . (ie as opposed to exami ni ng them)
. . . questioned her PA TJENTS . . . (ie as opposed to her colleagues)
. . . questioned her patients the PREVIOUS week . . . (ie as opposed
to the current week)
In wri ti ng, care can be taken to place a focusi ng subjunct in close
proxi mi ty to the part requi red (and prescri pti ve tradi ti on urges this
particularly wi th only). Usual l y this i s before the item ('only her patients')
but may be after it (' the previous week only'), and thi s i s obligatory with
alone and too ('her patients too') but is di sall owed wi th just and generally
with even (*?'the previous week even').
NOTE In focusing 11'/i-itcms, exacrly and just arc common:
I know exactly where to find him.
Just when did you send in your application?
Disjuncts 181
8.39 Focusi ng can i nvolve correlative constructions
.
For example:
I saw her neither that day nor the day after.
They had neirher met the author nor (e1cn) read any of hi s novels.
Wi th ei ther of these items at /, there i s subject-operator i nversi on:
They had neither met the author, nor had they (even) read any of hi s
novels
.
C/also:
She had both written poems and (also) had some published.
We must i gnore not only hi s manners hut (also) the way he 1 s
dressed
.
Such correlati on is frequently achieved through a construction resem
bl i ng a cleft sentence ( I 8. I 8):
I t was not just that she i gnored me; i t was particularly that she was so
poi ntedly nice to my wi fe.
More formally, not only and not merely can be in I-posi ti on wi th
consequent subject-operator i nversi on:
Not merely have I l ent you money; I have (also) helped you get jobs.
Di s ju nets
8.40 Where adjuncts arc seen as on a par wi th such sentence elements as S and
0, whi le subjuncts are seen as havi ng a lesser role, disjuncts have by
contrast a superior rol e to sentence elements, bei ng somewhat detached
from and superordinate to the rest of the sentence. There arc two broad
types, each wi th subtypes (see Fig 8.40). First we have the relatively small
class of STYLE disjuncts
,
conveyi ng the speaker's comment on the style and
form of what i s bei ng said and defni ng in some way the condi ti ons under
which ' authori ty' is being assumed for the statement. Thus where [ l ] i s
stated as an unsupported fct, [2] i s conditioned by a style disjunct:
Mr Forster neglects hi s chi l dren. [ I ]
From my personal observation, Mr Forster neglects hi s chi l dren. [2]
The second type is the much larger class of CONTENT di sj uncts, maki ng an
observation on t he actual content of an utterance and on i ts truth
condi ti ons:
To the disgust oflzis neighbours, Mr Forster neglects hi s chi ldren. [3]
8.41
182 The semantics and grammar of adverbials
DISJUNCT
{modal i ty and manner
styl e
{
respect
{relating to certainty
content
relating to evaluation
Fig 8.40
Al though not restricted as to position (and whi le some, as we shall sec, arc
often at M) , most disjuncts appear at /.
Style disjuncts
.
Many style di sj uncts can be seen as abbrc:iated clauses 1
adverbial would have the role of manner adj unct:
Frankly I am tired.
(lf: i tell you frankly that I am tired'.)
Sometimes the di sjunct has full clausal form:
which the
If I may say so without giving you ofence, I thi nk your wri ti ng is
rather i mmature.
More often, a clausal di sjunct i s nonfni te, as in to be frank, putting it
bluntly, considered candidly.
.
.
The semantic roles of disjuncts fall under two mam heads.
(a) Manner and modality, t hus i nvol vi ng i tems such as crudely,Jrank/y,
honestly, truthfully; eg:
( To put it) briefy, there is nothi ng I can do to hel p.
You can, in all honesty, expect no further payments.
(b) Respect, t hus i nvolving i tems such as generally, literally, personally,
strictly; eg:
Strictly (in terms of the rules) , she should have conceded the point to
her opponent.
I would not, (speaking) personally, have taken ofence at the
remark.
From what he said, the other driver was in the wrong.
It wi l l be seen that disjuncts i n (b) often consti t ute ways of
.
guadedy
'hedgi ng' the accompanying statement. A particular case
.
of thi s anes m
metalinguistic comment i n which the di sj unct draws attenti on to a pomt of
terminology:
In a word, he i s a traitor, though I would not say that he had literally
betrayed anyone.
Disjuncts 183
[a] When used i n questions, disjuncts i n (a) may relate to the speaker or to the
addressee:
Pri\'(Ifcfy, was Henry ever in prison?
This can mean either I ask you privately to tell me' or 'I ask you to tell me
privately'.
[b] Disjuncts i n ( b) can be expressed by ({-, since- and because-clauses, but the latter
must be at :
He was drunk, because h e couldn 't stand.
Content disjuncts
8.42 Comment on the content of an utterance may be of two ki nds:
(a) rel ati ng to certainty;
(b) relating to el/uation.
Both can be expressed by a wide range of adverb phrases, by preposi tional
phrases and - especially those i n (a) - by clauses.
(a) Certainty. These disj uncts comment on the truth value of what is
. said, firmly endorsing i t, expressing doubt, or posing conti ngencies such
as conditions or reasons. For example, beside the statement 'The play was
wri t ten by Francis Beaumont' , we may have:
{undoubtedly }
The play was apparently written by Francis Beaumont.
perhaps
Compare also:
In essence, the j udge called her evidence i n questi on.
Since size had no time to have the car
.
fxed, Rachel telephoned fr a
taxi .
The proposal would have been accepted i the chairman had put it
more forcibly.
(b) Evaluation. These disjuncts express an attitude to an utterance by
way of eval uati on. Some express a judgment on the utterance as a whole,
i ncl udi ng its subject:
Wisely, Mrs Jensen consulted her lawyer.
( ' Mrs Jensen was wise in consul ti ng her lawyer.')
.
So also correctly, cw111ingly, foolislzly, just/y, rightly, stupidly, etc. Other
evaluation disjuncts carry no i mplication of comment on the subject:
Naturally, my husband expected me home by then.
(' I t was natural for my husband to expect me back by then' - not
'My husband was natural . . . )
So also curious/y, .fi11111i/y (enough) , strangely, unexpectedly, predictably,
understandably, disturbingly, pleasingly, regrettably, fortunately, happily,
luckily, sadly, amusingly, lzopefiilly (csp AmE), signicantly. Prepositio-
184 The semantics and grammar of adverbials
nal phrases and relative clauses (sentential and nomi nal ) i nvol vi ng such
lexical bases are also used:
To my regret, she did not seek nomi nati on.
Whal is especially fortunate, the child was unhurt.
We were not, which is surprising, i nvi ted to meet the new members of
staf.
NOTE [a] The semanti c di lTcrcncc between the relationships i n (a) and (b) i s underlined by
the fct that sentence paraphrases fr (a) cannot involve putative should ( 1 4. 1 4),
whereas those fr (b) always can:
(a) Obviously, the child i s recovering
.
' l l is obvious lhal the chi l < is recovering
.
'
(b) Forrwwtely, the chi l<l is recoveri ng
.
J l is frtunate that the chi ld
{
is
l

l<l
h l j recoveri ng. '
S l OU C
[b] J ust as in to my regrel (i n contrast lo regreuably) it is made explicit as lo who
feels the regret, so with some adverbs we may a<l<l such a specification with a/or
phrasc. For example:
Luckily (for Peter), the doctor arrived speedily.
Conjuncts
8.43 As their name i mpl ies, conjuncts serve to conjoi n two utterances or parts
of an utterance, and they do so by expressing at the same time the semantic
relati onshi p (eg of time or contingency) obtaining between them. For
example:
The candidate is a fine teacher, a broadcaster of some experience,
and a respected drama critic. All !he same, there is a feeling on the
commi ttee that someone younger should be appoi nted.
The conj unct all the same here connects two separate sentences, i ndicating
a eoncessive relation between them: despile the candidate's high qual i fca
tions, some members of the commi ttee were not satisfed.
As i n this example, conj uncts are usually at /, but their connective role is
often achieved more smoothly when they are placed at M:
The cinema has lost none of i ts attracti ons i n I ndi a and the flm
i ndustry has in consequence conti nued to fl ourish.
Al though some conjuncts (such as the i nfrmal !hough) commonly appear
at , this position can somewhat obscure the connective role.
NOTE [a] Conjuncts often correspond lo advcrbials i n an otherwise unexpressed clause:
My wi fe is very busy this evening, and [I tell you somethi ng] in addition, she
is not feeling very well.
Conjuncts 185
[b] As well as co1111ecting ullcranccs, some of the commonest conjuncts such as nmv
and so have a major role as di scourse initiators. Consider the following as the frst
wore.ls of a street encounter:
So you're better again, Bi l l !
Here an exrralinguistic si tuati on seems lo be conjoined as i l were, wi th an
appropriate linguistic reacti on lo i t: 'I sec you up and about, so I conclude you've
recovered from your illness
.
'
The commonest di scourse i ni ti ator of al l (ll'el) is less easy lo account for
plausibly
.
When used connectively it has a transitional function ('Given that my
previous po111 l 1s ll'e/ founded, my next poi nt i s .
.
. '), as i n:
I hear you've bought a new house; ll'el, when arc you moving?
Note the fllowing exchange i n Mal l Cohen's novel Flo1 1ers of Darkness ( 1 98 1 ):
'Well,' sai<l Donna
.
'Well.' i\ nnahcl k replied. I!'/ was al ways Donna's openi ng remark,
dclivcrc<l i n a way lo make clear that she knew Annabelle was i n the midst of
some inadmissible train of thought.
[c] Conjuncts can semantically endorse a connection already expressed by
grammatical subordination; for example:
I see her regularly because she is, hy 1he ll'ay, a friend of my brother's.
The semantics of conjuncts
8.44 We now group some of the commoner conjuncts accordi ng to thei r
semantic roles:
A: LISTING
(i) E11umeralil'e, as i n:
Il ! he
.
firs/ place, t he economy is recovering, and seco11dly
unemployment is begi nni ng lo decline.
Cf also for 011e thing ( . . . for w101/zer 1/zi11g), 11ex1, 1/ze11 (again),
.
fi11al/y; especially i n formal and technical use, we find a . . . b . . . c
. . . , 011e . . . lll'o . . . !hree . . .
(i i ) Addilil'e, as i n:
B:
She has t he abi l i ty, t he experience, and ahove a// t he courage to
tackl e the problem.
CJ alsofurlhermore, moreover, 11 '/w/ is more, similar/JI, i11 addi1io11 011
lop f!{lhal.
- 3
SUMMATIVE, as i n:
He was late for work, he quarrelled wi t h a colleague, and he lost
his wallet; all i11 all, i t was a bad day.
(/" also a/1oge1her, overall, lherej(Jre, i11 s11111, 10 su111 up.
186 The semantics and grammar of adverblals
C: APPOSITIVE, as i n:
There was one snag; namely, the weather.
C.f also Iha/ is ( 10 say), ie, . f11 example, eg, in other irrds,
spec{fically.
D: RESUL TIVE, as i n:
E:
F:
( i )
I got there very ]ale, so I missed most of t he fun.
({also !here.fore, as a resu/1, accordingly, in conse1111ence, of course.
INFERENTIAL, as i n:
You haven' t answered my lUcsti on; in other 1111rds
,
you di sap
prove of the proposal.
C.f also in Iha/ case, s, !hen, olhenl'ise, else.
CONTRASTIVE
Re.for11111/a1ory and replacive, as i n:
She' s asked some of her fri ends - some of her husband's fri ends
,
ra1her.
C.f also (or) belier, more accura/e/y, in a/her ll'Ords, alias, worse.
(i i ) An1i1he1ic, as i n:
They had expected t o enjoy bei ng i n Mani l a but ins lead they both
fel l i l l .
Calsu on !he con/rary, by con1ra.11, on ! he a/her hand, 1hen.
(i i i ) Concessive, as i n:
My age is agai nst me: slill, i t' s worth a Lry.
Cfalso, however, 11ever1heless, ye!, all !he same, of course, Iha! said,
and several i nformal expressions such as anyholl' , any11ays (esp
AmE), .11ill and all (esp AmE), only, !hough.
G: TRANSITIONAL
(i) Discourscil, as i n:
Let me i ntroduce you l o my si ster, and by 1/ze ll'a)', di d I tell you
that I ' m moving?
C/also i11cide111ally, now.
(ii) Temporal, as i n:
The ambul ance got stuck i n rush-hour trafc and in !he meantime
the child became deli ri ous.
C/also meanwhile, originally, subsequenl/y, even111ally.
C'njuncts 187
Cooccurrcncc and correlation
8.45 Conjuncts from di fferent sets can appear in the same sentence:
So [rcsul tivc] l did reasonably well, all in all [summativc] .
Then [i nferential] she' ll gel the job neFer1he/ess [conccssive]?
Conjuncts from the same set are sometimes used in reinforcement; for
example
,
Lhc addi tive i tems i n:
Pforeo1er, he had in addition a qual i fcation i n accountancy.
More usually
,
such rei nforcement occurs through conjuncts appearing
along with compatible conjunct i ons
.
These may i nvolve coordi nation (as
with and so, /ml yl' I, or rather) or subordi nation (as wi th {/ . . . !hen,
al/hough . . . st ill ) :
Eien !f you' re t aki ng t he car only a short distance
,
you should
never1hele.1
.
,1 have your dri vi ng li cence wi th you.
NOTE Correlation often seems excessively heavy and formal , cspccially perhaps i n causal
relati onships (hecause . . . there.f(ire). By contrast, rei nforcement where no
subordination i s i nvol ved often seems over-i nformal (as i n ' But still, she got the
job, though') and i n some cases it is regarded as objecti onably tautologous (as i n
the sequence hut ho11e1er).
Bi bl i ographical note
For general studies or advcrbials, sec Buysschacrt ( 1 982); Greenbaum ( 1 969);
Gui micr ( 1 988); Huang ( 1 975); Ni lsen ( 1 972); with a theoretical emphasis, Bartsch
( 1 976), Emons ( 1 974); Schreiber ( 1 972); Ungcrcr ( 1 988)
.
On particular subsets or English advcrbials, sec A arts ( 1 989b); Bol i nger ( 1 972);
Dudman ( 1 984); Hartvigson ( 1 969); Hcny ( 1 973); Jacobson ( 1 978, 1 98 1 ); Lee
( 1 987); Schi fri n ( 1 985); Svartvik ( 1 980)
.
On adverbial collocations, sec Backlund ( 1 970); Crystal ( 1 966); Greenbaum
( 1 970).
On adverbial positions, sec Jacobson ( 1 964, 1 975).
On i ntonational aspects of adverbial usage, sec Halliday ( 1 967); Taglicht
( 1 983).
Other relevant studi es include: Anderson ( 1 976); Greenbaum ( 1 973); Halliday
and Hasan ( 1 976); Lakof ( 1 975); Larson ( 1 985)
.
I .
9.1
9
Preposi ti ons and prepositi onal phrases
Preposi ti ons are a closed cl ass of items (2. 6
,
but c/9. 3) connecti ng two
uni ts in a sentence anc specifyi ng a relati onshi p between them. ror
example:
(I don't like to) dri nk out of a cracked cup. [ I ]
(He was) very grateful
.
for her help
.
[2]
The elderly man i11 the raincoat (l ooks i l l . ) [3]
In al l three, the second uni t i s the prepositional comp/eme11/, but in [ l ] the
l i nk is to a verb phrase, in [2] an adjective phrase, and i n [3] a noun phrase.
The sequence of preposi ti on and its complement i s known as a
prepositional phrase, and i ts role may be to act as a postmodifier i n noun
phrase structure (such that the whole sequence The elderly man in t/ze
raincoat of [3] consti tutes a complex noun phrase: 1 7. lj). But as we have
seen i n Chapter 8, preposi ti onal phrases can also functi on as adverbials,
and the ' l i nk' can then be between the preposi ti onal complement and a
whole clause. Compare, for example, the adverbial in [4]:
In a few minutes, we' l l know the resul t of the blood test. [4]
Preposi ti ons may be si mpl e or complex (9.3), and i n ei ther case their
complements are usually noun phrases; but they can also be nonfni te
(-ing) clauses or nomi nal (w/z-) cl auses. For example:
near }
,r + the control tower
Oil /Op OJ
{the fnanci al estimates
from scruti ni zi ng the results
in terms of}
+
what you were sayi ng
where she was si tti ng
NOTE [a] Al lhough also having a nomi nal functi on, that-clauses and i nfni livc clauses
cannol be prcposi lional complcmcnls
.
Compare:
{al licr angry response.
ai hearing her objcclion
.
I was surprised al whal she said.
to hear her objection.
thal she responded so angrily.
[b] A preposilional complcmenl i s 'objccl lcrrilory' (6.7) and personal pronouns
arc therefore in lhc objective case:
They moved towards me/us/ him/ her/ them.
9.2
NOTE
Deferred prepositions 1 89
Afer and, however, subjective forms arc sometimes found in hypcrcorrccl usage

c:f6. 7 Nole [b]
.
'
Deferred prepositions
Though preposi ti ons normally precede thei r complements there
circumstances in which thi s cannot happen:
'
(a) Where
.
he subject of a passive construction corresponds to
prepos1 t1 onal complement in the active analogue; thus
We have pai d/i1r the car.
The car has been paid
.
for.
arc
the
(b) Where the prepositional complement i s thcmatized ( 1 8. 23
.
ff) 11
sentences with i nfi ni tive or -ing clauses; thus
It i s unpleasant to work ll'ith that man.
That man i s unpleasant to work with.
It i s not worth li steni ng to his advice.
His cufrice i s not worth li steni ng to.
I n add
_
i ti on, here arc circumstances where deferment is opti onal ,
dependmg chiefy on styl i sti c preference. Where the preposi ti onal
complement i s an i nterrogative pronoun, deferment i ndeed i s normal:
What are you l ooki ng at ?
Who is she tal ki ng about ?
In such cases, the clos

relation between the verb and the preposition
( 1 6./) makes al terati ve arrangement awkward and rare. Elsewhere,
there can be a choice:
Who did you sell your house to?
Tu 11'ho111 did you sell your house? (frmal )
A si mi l ar choice i s more general where the preposi ti onal complement is a
relative pronoun:
The bui l di ng ( that ) you' re standi ng in ji-0111 (( was designed by
Lutyens.
The bui l di ng in ji0111 of 1l'hic/1 you are standi ng was designed by
Lutyens. (formal )
[a] Wi th some simple prepositions (such as through) and most complex ones (such
as because of, in addition lo), deferment is vi rtually disallowed
.
[b] S
_
upcrfcially rc
_
scmbling deferred prepositions arc prepositional adl'erbs,
1denl1cal 111 form w1 lh the corresponding preposi tions except that, unlike them,
they arc never unstressed
.
Compare:
1 90 Prepositions and prepositional phrases
Until you recover, you must ' stay in rhe 'house.
Unti l you recover, you must ' slay ' in.
I should have parked the car behind 1he house but I left i t i11.fi

o111.
Si mpl e and complex prepositions
9.3 The commonest preposi tions are a small number of monosyllabic items
such as at, for, in, on, to, with, typically unstressed and often with reduced
vowel except when deferred. Compare:
What are you l ooki ng at [at]?
I ' m l ooki ng at [:t] this huge telephone bill.
But i n addi tion there are polysyllabic preposi tions, some of them
compounds formed historically from the monosyllabic ones (such as
inside, within) or derived from participles (such as during) or adopted from
other languages (such as despite, except ). Thus al though prepositions are
a closed class i n comparison with truly open classes l i ke nouns, they are
less l i terally a closed class than determiners or pronouns.
The number or prepositions has been i ncreased partly by usi ng still
more participles (fr example, barring, concering, granted) but chiefly by
combi ni ng prepositions wi th other words to frm 'complex prepositions'.
These are of two main types:
(a) a simple preposition preceded by a participle, adjective, adverb, or
conjunction, as with owing to, devoid of away from, because of;
(b) a si mpl e preposition fllowed by a noun and then a further simple
preposition, as with in charge of by means oj; at variance with, in
addition to, as a result of
NOTE [a] Some prepositions of foreign origin arc not thoroughly 'acclimatized' i n
general use; for example, qua, re, vis-a-vis, a propos.
Jb] Items of quasi-preposition status include near ( /0) which admits comparison
('He came and sat nearer the front ' ) as well as 1ha11 and as which can also be -and
for some people can only be - conjunctions:
She i s taller than I am. ( than as conjunction)
She i s taller than I . (!hem as conjunction with ellipsis: rather formal)
She is taller than me. (than as preposition)
[c] Some complex prepositions ending in of admit alternative genitive
constructions:
for the sake ofthe fmily -for the family's sake
on behal ofmy fiend -on my friend's behalf
Prepositional meanings 191
Prepositional meani ngs
9.4 Though the relationship between l wo l i nguistic units as menti oned in 9. 1
may be wide-ranging i n meani ng, most or them arc either spatial or
fguratively derived from noti ons of physical space. Consider in as used in
the fl l owi ng examples:
I like being in this room.
She' ll fnish the work in the present month.
His l i fe is in danger.
They told me this in all seriousness.
( 1 ]
[2]
(3]
[4]
The period or time in [2], the danger in (3], and the seriousness in [4] arc to
be understood as having the capacity to envelop in a ki nd or thrcc
di mcnsional space analogous to the physical room in [ 1 ] . We must
therefore begin by understandi ng the ways i n which preposi tions refer to
some of the basic spatial dimensions, as set out i n Fig 9.4. This shows three
di ferent ki nds or distinction.
Posi ti ve
Negative
Destination Position Destination Position
lo at (ll11ay) jim11 uwuyji-0111
Dimension-
-
Oe . _.
type 0

0 (point)
011 (lo) Oil o
f
f
o
f
f
Dimension-
- (
0
type I or 2
(l i ne or
n
surfce)
i11 (10) in 011/ (}f out r!
Dimension-
C c
0
type 2 or 3
D
(area or
volume)
Fig 9.4
1 92 Prepositions and preposlllonal phrases
First, the prepositions are contrasted as 'positive' or 'negative' (such
that of for example, means ' not 011'). Secondly, the prepositions
disti nguish between 'desti nati on' (movement with respect to an i ntended
location) and 'position' (static locati on). Thirdly, we have three di men
si on types: one which ignores di mensi on altogether, treating location as a
poi nt even i f i n reality it is a continent:
He walked to the la111p-post.
They few to Australia.
The second di mension type embraces what is in real space either one
dimcnsional or two-dimensional:
She put her toe 011 the line.
They were alone 011 the tennis-court.
The third dimension similarly straddles two actual di mensions: two
dimensional or three-dimensional space:
Some cows were grazing in 1hejield.
My coat is in the wardrohe.
Space
Position and direction
9.5 Between the notions of di rectional movcmcn t and static position there is a
cause-and-effect relation which applies equal l y to (a) the positive
preposi ti ons and (b) the negative prepositions:
(a) Jack ran to the comer and then stood at the comer.
Put the book on( to) the top shelf and leave it 011 the top shel
She went into her o.ce and stayed in her ofce.
(b) Mi ldred moved
.
fro111 Bloomsbury last year and enjoys l i vi ng away
from the city centre.
Take the typewriter a
.
f the table and leave it a
.
ffthe table.
He walked out ofthe house and stayed out ofthe house all afteroon.
Where places are regarded as points on a route or as i nsti tuti ons to which
one i s attached, di mension-type 0 is i nvoked:
Does this trai n stop at Lincoln?
Our daughter is at Oxord studying philosophy.
But where that same place is thought of in terms of residence, dimcnsion
type 2/3 is appropriate:
I've never lived ei ther in Lincoln or in Oxford.
Analogously, i f the refrent i s considered as a surface, di mension-type 1 /2
is appropriate, while if it is considered as necessarily enclosing, then
di mension-type 2/3 comes i nto play:
. . . Lake IY11ulermere.
They were rowing 011 } .
I was sw1mmmg 111
I ' l l lie 011 the hed for a few mi nulcs.
There was a child asleep in the bed.
Prepositional meanings 1 93
[a] Whi l e 111 usual l y i mplies achieving the destination, 1111111rds is more neutrally
di recti onal :
She drove lo Edinburgh (and arrived at noon).
She drove 1011

anl.1 Edinburgh ( but that may not be her destination)

.
[b] Though the relationshi p 'X is on Y' usual l y i nvol ves Y being a horizontal
surface below X, thi s i s by no means necessary:
There arc several people on the mountai n-side
.
. . .
pi ctures .
. . wal l
.
. .
fies
. .
. ceiling
.
. .
a pplcs . . . tree
Contiguity with a side surface is often expressed hy agai11.11 ('Who left the ladder
agai11.11 !he fence?').
[c] The use of al, in, 011 i s often i di omatic; thus 011 earlh but in 1he warld; 'She i s
doi ng wel l al school ' is often preferred i n BrE, whi l e ' . .
.
in school ' is general i n
Am E. (/(wi th di ferent determi ner constrai nts: 5. 1 9) 'on l and, 111 sea, and in the
ai r'.
Relative position
9.6 Rather than absolute posi tion, many prepositions indicate the position of
something relative to the position of somethi ng else:
The police station is opposite my house.
My house is opposite the police station.
Some prepositions frm antonymi c pairs, as i ndicated in Fig 9. 6. A is
above '' and B is beloll' X (as X is beloll
'
A and abo1e B ); C is in.fiont of X
and D is hehind X (as X is hehi11d C and i11
.
fro111 r1{ D ) .
A
! above
..
C - X - D
infro/l/ of
l beh>w
behind
Fig 9.6
B
Si mi l ar to abo1e and be lol arc over and under respectively, though the
latter tend to mean 'directly above' and 'directly below'. Si mi l ar to i11.ro111
ofand behind arc be.ore and after, though the latter tend to i mply relative
precedence rather than physical posi lion. Like under are the less common
beneath (somewhat formal) and undereath. Wi th on top ofwe combine
the sense of ' abovc' with abutment.
NOTE
9.7
1 94 Prepositions and prepositional phrases
Abutment is also normally i mplied wi th -, --.-- and
_
-

}
She left the keys .- -- ,..-
--.--
By contrast, --.- - and --- -, generally cxc! ud

actu

l contact;
.
these
prepositions are uni que in admi tti ng comparative 1 11 !1ccti on (7. 39).
_-.- , - }

, /1
Please move this desk
--- -, -,
It . -

Wi th -- --- we posi tionally relate two objects or groups f obj

cts,
whereas wi th ----, (and --- . , more formally) we arc dealing with a
more general pl ural i ty:
There must be space to walk -- - -- --. . -- -
I left the letter ----, -, ----, --.
The converse of -- --- and ----, is to some extent expressed by --.--
(esp AmE, -.-- is esp BrE):
There were trees --.-- -- --..-
There was a house ----, -- --.
[a] The reciprocal relativity of opposite (to) and facing is re fee led in their
frequently having reciprocals (6.28 Nole [a]) as their complcmcnl:
Let's sil
f
opp
.
osite (to)
\
J
each other
.
Vamg
[b] Especially in BrE, about is used l i ke around:
She put her arms abow him.
[c] Mosl prepositions of relative position can also be used of relative direction and
destination; fr example:
The mouse scampered under the bookcase and disappeared.
Passage
The noti on o passage cor mes f b
.
posi
ti on a11d motion, disregarding
destinati on:
The referee complained because peopl e were movi ng ----- -
,--,-..
.
I love wal ki ng --.,- ---. 11 spri ng.
Other prepositions commonly used for passage are -

', -- --, --..

and ,-. I t is worth noti ng the parallel between posi ti onal . and on the
one hand and ---.. and --.,- on the other:
on ihe grass

across ihc grass
I 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 in the grass I 1 1 I I I I f I 1 1 through ihc grass
Prepositional meanings 1 95
Passage and di rection are frequently related to conceptual axes, especially
the vertical and horizontal, as shown i n Fig 9. 7. Wi th -,-. on the
other hand, the relation is lo a real or fncied point such as a corner or a
centre:
Be careful as you drive -.-- --.
The chi l dren were playing --.- .- ,-
But spatial rel ati ons are often expressed by orientation to the speaker,
so that 'He lives -- -- - will relate not only to the vertical axis as i n
Fig 9. 7 but wi l l i mply 'further down from where I am speaking' or 'further
down from the place I am speaki ng about'. Si mi larly:
Thei r house is ,-. -- -.- (ie ' beyond the church' in relation to
the orientation poi nt)
They have gone --.. -- ---. (ie 'from here')

"
>
Fig. 9.7
-along-
horizontal axis
Note that the di fference between '(coming) ., -- --- and '(going) --.
-- --- may have more to do wi th personal orientation than wi th relative
elevation. CJalso:
There's someone wal ki ng ., --- --- -- --
[a] J ust as verbs l i ke come and go strongly i mply lhc personal oricnlalion, so others
arc congruent with prepositional meani ng, even lo the extent of enabling the
preposi tion lo be omi llcd; fr example climb (up) , jump ( mer)Jee , pass
/by) .
[b] Prepositions lha l can convey moti on or direction can be used also lo express the
slalic rcsulla Live meaning of having reached lhe destination:
The horse has successful l y jumped across tire gap.
[c] Especially when preceded by all and right, prepositions such as over, ( a)round,
and through express pervasive meaning:
Crowds were cheering (all) along tire route
There were police (right) round the house
.
196 Prepositions and prepositional phrases
Metaphorical extension with spatial prepositions
9.8 With many spatial prepositions, metaphor enables similar but abstract
relations to be expressed. This is particularly striking with time (9.9) but a
wide range of other meanings must also be noted, where the proxi mi ty to
l i teral use can be readi ly perceived. For example:
NOTE
in the room
out of the bottle
beneath the branches
under the floorboards
up the hi l l
downhi l l
beyond the post ofce
over the mountai n
from Boston lo Bangor:
between the t rees
through the tunnel
i n this book, i n some di fcul ty
out of danger, out of the competition
beneath contempt
under suspicion
up the social scale
down market
beyond endurance
(she i s getting) over her ill ness
when her temperat ure was over 40 "C
from generation lo generation
between ourselves
through the ordeal
Some prepositions arc used i n whal would seem a converse relationship:
The cow i s in ea/(. ( ?lhc calf is in the co1v 's 110111b)
The ofce is out of envelopes. ( ?All envelopes seem lo be 0111 of the ofce).
Nole also: in/out of luck
Time
Time position
9.9 Three prepositions, at, on, and in, are used i n expressions answering the
question 'When?' and they reflect a concept of time as analogous lo space.
Thus at is used fr points of time, where time is conceived as being
' di mensionless':
The flm will begin at 7.20 p. 11 1 .
I t i s not onl y i nstants that can be so considered:
What are you doing at tlze ll'eekend?
She last saw her parents at Christmas.
Chaucer frequently speaks of books because at that time they were
rare and hi ghly valued.
Where time i s regarded as a period, the usual preposition is in, reflecting
analogy with two- or three-dimensional space:
In the evening, I listened lo some Beethoven records.
Where did he live in his childhood?
I saw her in Jvfarclz/in 1 988/in thefolloll'illg ll'eek.
But in expressions referring lo days, the preposition is on:
Prepositional meanings 197
We can come Oil Jvfonday or Oil any other day that you may prefer.
The baby was born on July the /\\'e(fth.
So loo wi th an i nterval that is specifcally part of a day:
011 S1111day a/iem1111n; 1111 Thursday night.
NOTE [a] Reference lo night may disregard ils 'dimension' as i n:
9.10
I have lo sleep in the afien10011 because I cannot sleep at night very easily.
But it can also be viewed as a period, with the regular use of in:
We heard her coughing several limes i11 the night.
[b] A phrase like in three clays may be used lo indicate a durati on or a poinl l hrce
days
,
hence; lhus ' He'll do il i11 1hr,.,. clays' may mean l'ithl'r ' He'l l lake lhree days lo
do 1l ( w1 l loul comm1 lmcnl lo when lhc lhrcedays will be) or ' He'll do it three days
from now (lhc converse of ' Hc did i l three days ago').
Time duration
In answer to Ho\\' long? we have above all phrases wi t h/or:
We stayed in a rented cottage j(1r the summer.
T1e same meaning, with some emphasis on the durati on, can be expressed
tlh th
'
01
'
ghou' and al/ through. By contrast, during i ndicates a stretch of
lime w1 th1 11 which a more specifc duration can be i ndi cated:
During the s11111111er, we stayed i n a rented collage/or a month.
But
.
wi th appropriate lexical support i n the context, the di ference between
dunng and.for (throughout, etc) can be neutralized:
T l
{throughout }
ry lo slay a erl / .
the entire ceremonr
( urmg .
Durai n express
.
io
.
n with over carry the i mplication of a period
contammg some d1 v1 s1 ons or 'fences'. Thus one can stay ol'emight, orer the
ircekend
:
orer the Christnws period bu l hardly *'lover the ceremony, *'oier
the el'ell/llg.
Duration can be specified by reference to the begi nni ng and ending:
The ofce wi l l be open.om Jvfonday to Friday.
While
.
fom . . . lo corresponds lo/or ('The ofce wi l l be openforfpe cfars')
between . . . and can be used in the more general sense of during:
-
'
The
.
oce wi l l be open betll'een Mon day and Friday. (ie 'for a period
w1 lh1 11 the stretch specifed').
ThC cxprcssio11
.
fio111 x to J' is chiefy BrE and although i l normally means lhal the
pcnods x an Y arc
.
both included, there can be uncertainty. The corresponding
AmE expression (.rom) x thmugh y is inclusive.
9. 1 1
NOTE
9. 12
1 98 Prepositions and prepositional phrases
o.... -- .,...,. -, -- , . ....-, ,-. . - .

.... ,-. -.

.. .......:
-, ,..... . . by, before,jio111, ajter, smce, 111/, w1til, up to. .- ...-,
s. . -. .. by Friday night.
s. . --. -. ... before Friday night.
. -..+ ji-0111 eight o 'clock ( on11arcls) .
. -.,.- -.. -, .. .--. ..-., afier eight o 'clock.
. ... -..- -..-, since eight o
'
clock.
u. +.+ --. ... -..
{till
. } Monday afteroon.
w1tzl
\-. ..- ..., .. till /1111/il/up to lunch time.
-.. .. .--.... . -
v. . .,. until midnight . -. ..-,,.+ ...,.-, .

-,
v. +. +- . ..., until 111idnight. -. .....+ ...,-, ..-,
.
1 t al l y denotes a period and the
With the rather formal pem/mg, the comp emen usu
d
.
(th
preposition thus roughly corresponds lo 'up to the start of and unng e
period)':
They should cease action pending negotiations.

f
d in such cases the
But . complement can also refer lo a poml o lime an
preposition means ' unti l ':
They shoul d cease acti on pending tbe court 's decision.
The items prior 10 and in adl'ance o/can replace before in formal style
.
Cause and purpose
t.. .. . .,....- - ....--. ....-+. -, - ..... .- ,

,-.. -- ..
,... .-...-, ..... ...-- .-+ -.... . .

.. ,.,

. . .-. ,....
. . ...-. ... .. because of, 011 account of, fo1 , out of.
u. -.. . . ,-- because ofhis laziness.
s. .. -.+ for dangerous driving.
u. -..+......+ .. .... out ofspite.
t., +..+ji-om exposure.
s. ..-. . .- .. ....-, -- for fear of afire outbreak.
t. ,.-. ....+ through some navigational error.
a.. - .-... .. --.. -- - --.... ..+.. . -.- ,.,-.. ,-. .-+ ..,..
. . - . . .. .----- ,.,-...-- .. for:
- .,,.. . . -..-, -,.-.+ for a new hospital.
t., ... .,,.. . -,, donations.
v. .+ -..... ... -.. for ho111e.
s. . . .,, ,. -,, a bell er job.
NOTE
9.13
Prepositional meanings 1 99
v.. . .-,.-.-. .. .-. ... .. ,... ...., -..-. . -..-+.+
...,..-.

u. -.. . ,.,,.-, the little girl.
s, .--... to .. ...+ . . .. ..... ... ,. .-.
s. ,...-..+ . ,.,.. to the retiring supervisor.
v. . at, .. ,-. - ..,.. .. .... , ....+ . . -... . .,. .--....
u. .-...+ at the111. -.+, .,-..+,
u. .-...+ to the111. ...+,
t. ,- ... ...+ at the house. .,.+,
t. ,-... ...+ to the house. ...+,
a.. with aim, point, .-+ .--.. . s111ile, .. ..,.. ..- -. ....+ -...,
.--....
s. ...+ .. -+,, at the child.
t., ..,.+ .-.,,......,, at the idea.
[a] The converse of goal is source, expressed usually by from or out o/(but /9. 1 4
Note (c]):
She made i t
.
fc1r 111e -jom a piece (!/ pigskin.
X lends to Y- Y borrows/rom X.
Compare also ' He comes from Anu'rica' ( =' He is an American') in contrast to
' He has come.o111 America ( =' He was in America recently').
(b] When as i s used in the sense 'in the role of', the phrase comes close to expressing
reason:
As a subscriber, I ought lo have been consulted.
From means to stimulus
--.. .,.... - ...--. ..,....+ -, ,.,-....--. .-... -..-.
. -...-.-. .,.-., .-+ ... . .. t. .. .. .- ..,--+ - .. ,.....--
u-:

. . by ...+ . ..-. .-+ 1 1 i1h . . -...-.-. .. .-
. ,- .- -. by car.
-.... ..-+ ... .- . o. . -.. by telex.
t. -.,. .-...+ by the back door.
s. -- .. ... with herfast service.
u. ....+ .. ., 11i1h a crowbar.
-. . .-..,--+. -, -.,.... - with:
u. -.-.,.+ .- -,.- .. .. withow a key.
.- .--.... .- ..-. and . -....-. .. .,.-. .. .- .-. -... ..
. -...,.... - ...... .-...-, .. . . ..,....+ -, .. ,.,-....-- by, ..
NOTE
9.14
200 Prepositions and preposllional phrases
complement of whi ch frequently corresponds to the subject of a transitive
verb:
Thi s picture was pai nted by Degas.
Degas pai nted this pi cture.
1 was bi tten by a neighbour 's dog.
A neighbour 's dog bi t me.
But an agent phrase need not be accompanied by a passive verb phrase:
People thought the play was by Webster.
Sti mul us and reacti on arc expressed chicfty by at :
I' m surprised al her al/itude.
E l
.
.
l but i n BrE ll'ith is preferred if the sti mul us is a
I n Am t us 1s genera ,
person:
They were furious with Paul.
Other sti mul us and reaction prepositions incl ude ahout, in, ofand to:
I was pleased about the choice ofdate.
Arc you i nterested in qua/I/um theory?
I think he's jealous ofher.
To me, her proposal is broadly acceptable.
With means of lransporl, oil pl us article can often be used in place of by pl us zero:
1 often go lo work oil the 8
.
15 train.
1 . l
.
' nee the latter sense
The use of o11 here is shown lo be means and not oc.i ivc, s1
would require ill (9.5).
Accompaniment
Especially when the complement i s ani mate
,
ll'ith conveys the meaning 'in
the company of'
'
without the converse:
.
I hope you wi ll come to di nner 11ith your lwshwzd. (ie 'accompamed
I h you wi ll come to di nner with us. (ie - usually - 'al our home')
He is goi ng fr a walk with his dog.
For once, Ji l l went witholll her hushaml.
But the complement need not be ani mate:
What wi ll you dri nk with your meal?
1 cannot concentrate without silence.
.
.
t may therefore become a circumstance and the phrase
The accompammen
connote 'manner':
He entered the room ll' ith a 1101Tied look.
She set of ll'ithout a care.
NOTE [a] Manner is al so expressed with (1111)/ike:
Prepositional meanings 201
He spoke 1 1ith a harris1er's skil. ( Contrast: ' He spoke with a barrister' )
Fred, (1111)/ike his hro1her, is trusted by few
.
(Contrast: 'Fred is (un) l i kc hi s
hrolher')
[Ii] The sense of accompaniment can shade into or even eooccur with opposition:
She was arguing 1ri1h her hro1her. (<f'She and her brother were arguing')
But there is also a contrast between 1ri1h and agai11.11, ji1r and again.11 :
l would rather have him ll'ith 111e than agai11s1 111e.
A
{ll'i!h I
I
.
.
? re you 1.
J
t ie government or aamsl 11 .
. or
-

[c] Expressions of accompaniment arc used al so for possession, so that there is
some i nlerclwngc between 11i1h(o111 ), of, and the genitive:
The pianist has great talent. -A pianist ll'ilh grea/ 1ale111
- A pianist ()fgrea/ 1ale111
- The pianist's great talent
Another close lie is with the notion of 'ingredienls', expressed by 11i1h and (out)
of
:
The sauce was made 11i1hjiesh crea111.
The fence i s 1f 11oocl but the posts arc '!fco11cre1e.
Concession and other relations
9.15 Preposi tions expressing concession include in spite of and its more formal
synonym despite, the sti l l more formal 11otll'ithstanding, and the somewhat
i nformal /or all, ll 'ith all :
TI

b br l d
{
in spi
re of
\ 1
d
.
l
1c art1c c 1s Clllg pu 1 s ic
jiir all

J
icr 1sapprova .
For exception, the chief preposi tions arc except (for) , excepting, 11' it/z the
exception 1!f; excluding, apart.fiom (esp BrE), aside from (esp AmE)
,
but,
and the rarer sal'e, har, and lwrring:
Excep
r
for 1he ll'eather, our stay in Scotland was enjoyable.
Everyone seemed ti red hut me.
The converse of excepti on is addition, expressed by besides, as 11ell as, in
addition to; compare:
TI I
d
. . .
{
except fr
1
.
ic ore iestra was 1 sappol lll l llg
11

J

t 1c sol01sl.
as 1 1 e as
Negative condition is expressed by but for, as i n:
202 Preposlllons and preposlllonal phrases
But for me, the case would have been lost. (ie ' I f it hadn't been for
me')
For the relati onshi p respect, we have the preposi tions as/or, as to, ahout,
on the mailer of, concering, as regards, with regard to, and the more
formal with reference to, with respect to, and re.
Now, about your application, are you sure you woul d l i ke a job of
this kind?
The coat i s splendid as to the material, but I ' m less happy as regards
the CUI.
The pair as to and as for di fer in that the latter tends to i ntroduce a topic
transi ti on:
The coat is spl endi d but asfor the hat I don' t thi nk i t sui ts you.
Many expressions of respect occur i n complementation of verbs and
adjectives (Chapter 1 6):
He told her ofhis problems but was si l ent 011 his failed marriage.
They argued about the children and quarrelled over 111011ey.
One aspect of respect is to make explicit a standard by which assessment is
made; for this, several prepositions arc in common use:
For a teacher, he seems extraordi narily ignorant.
I' m better at squash than I am as a tennis player.
She is very clever with her hands.
Modification
9. 16 Both preposi tions and prepositional adverbs (9. 2 Note [ b] ) can be
modi fed i n terms of measure and degree by bei ng accompanied by
i ntensifers (7. 33). For example:
SI
.
d
{shortly after ten.
le arnvc
at ten or slwrtll
'
after.
He expected to be well ahead ofCo111pto11 but he fnished in fact just
behind.
Please rehang the picture about half a 111etrefurther down (the 1vall ).
Though i n many cases such modifcation seems clearly to apply to the
preposi ti on, there are equally cases where i t seems to apply to the whole
preposi ti onal phrase:
Should I stand at one side or right in the 111iddle?
Many people arc against public ownership co111pletely.
Modification 203
Bi bliographical note
For general and theoretical studies of prepositions, sec Bcnncll ( 1 975); Vcslcr
gaard ( 1 977). Guimicr ( 1 98 1 ) provides a valuable bibliography.
On specific issues, sec Buysscns ( 1 987); Jacobsson ( 1 977); Jaworska ( 1 986);
Leech ( 1 969); Li ndkvi st ( 1 976); Quirk ( 1 968, Ch. 1 4) .
1 0 The si mpl e sentence
Cl ause structure
Cl ause types
J O. I A simple sentence consists of a single independent clause, which may be
one of seven types. The types di ffer according to whether one or more
clause elements (c/2. 3) arc obligatorily present (cf I 0.4) in addition to the
S(ubjcct) and V(crb). The V clement in a simple sentence is always a fnite
1 0. 2
verb phrase (c/3. 1 9).
! .
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
SV The sun (S) i s shinihg (V).
svo That lecture (S) bored (V) me (0).
SVC Your dinner (S) seems (V) ready (C).
SVA My ofce (S) is (V) in the next building (A).
svoo I (S) must send (V) my parents (0) an anniversary
card (0).
svoc Most studcn ts (S) have found (V) her (0) reasonably
helpful (C).
SVOA You (S) can put (V) the dish (0) on the table (A).
Optional advcrbials can be added to sentences of any of these types:
Luckily, the sun is already shining.
Later, you can perhaps put the dish on the table.
[SV]
[SVOA]
Multipl e cl ass membership of verbs
A given verb can belong, in i ts various senses, to more than one class, and
hence can enter into more than one clause type. The verb get is particularly
versatile, being excluded only from type SV (and even then not
universally; c/Notc):
svo
SVC
SVA
svoo
svoc
SVOA
He'll get a surprise.
He's getting angry.
He got through the window.
He got her a splendid present.
He got his shoes and socks wet .
He got hi mself i nt o trouble.
Through the mul ti ple class membership of verbs, ambiguities can arise:
She made a good model. - SVO or SVC
I found her an entertaining partner. - SVOC or SVOO
He is cooking his fmily dinner. - SVO or SVOO
Syntactic functions of clause elements 205
The compl cmcn l at i on of verbs receives detai led Lrea tmenl in Chapter 1 6.
NOTE In i nfrmal (especial l y dialectal) AmE, get is used imperatively as an intransitive verb
( ='leave at once') in type SV: She raid him 10 ger.
Verb classes
1 0.3 There arc three main verb classes, which are exemplifed in I O. I :
NOTE
1 0.4
INTRANSITIVE VERBS arc followed by no obligatory clement, and
occur in type SV (eg: shine).
TRANSITIVE VERBS arc fol l owed hy an OBJECT, and occur in types svo
(l'g: hore), SVOO (eg: send), SVOC (eg: .fi11d), SVOA (eg: put ) .
COPULAR VERBS arc followed by a SUBJECT COMPLEMENT or an
ADVERBIAL, and occur in types SVC (eg: seem), SVA (eg: be).
The term TRANSITIVE is appl ied lo all verbs that require an object. Transi tive verbs
can be further classifed:
MONOTRANSJTIVE VERBS occur in type svo.
DITRANSITIVE VERBS occur i n type SVOO.
COMPLEX-TRANSITIVE VERBS occur i n types svoc and SVOA.
Complementation
The elements 0, C, and A in the patterns exemplifed in J O. I/ are
obligatory elements of clause structure in that they arc required for the
complementation of the verb. By that we mean that i fwc use a particular
verb in the relevant sense, the sentence is incomplete when one of these
elements is omi tted: eg: * Your dinner seems (type SVC) and * You can put
the dish (.type SVOA) arc unacceptable. In some cases, however, an
clement could be considered grammatically optional:
They're eating. [SV] c/Thcy'rc eating lunch. [SVO]
We elected her. [SVO] cfWe elected her our delegate. [SVOC]
He's teaching. [SV] cfHc's teaching chemistry. [SVO]
He's teaching them chemistry. [SVOO]
We regard the verbs in these sentences as having mul tiple class
membership (cf 1 0. 2), so that eat (for example) can be either transitive or
in transi tivc.
Syntactic functions of cl ause el ements
Objects and complements
1 0.5 There arc two subcategories each of object and complement. The two
types of object can cooccur:
1 0.6
NOTE
206 The simple sentence
Justin poured David some whisky. [ I ]
J n [ I ] Dmid i s the i ndi rect object and some whisky i s the di rect object.
Whenever there are two objects (in type SVOO) the i ndirect object
normally comes befre the di rect object. Although the i ndi rect object is
more central i n being closer to the verb, i n other respects i t is more
peripheral than the di rect object: it is more likely to be opti onal ( Justin
poured some whisky), and it can often be paraphrased by a prepositional
phrase functioning as an adverbial (Justin poured some whisky for Dmicf).
The two types of complement occur in di fferent clause patterns. The
subject complement is found in the SVC pattern:
Robert is becoming qui te mature. [2]
The object complement, on the other hand, is fund in the SVOCpattern:
Doris considers Robert quite mature. [3]
Jn [2] the subject complement characterizes the subject Rohert, whereas i n
[3] t he object complement characterizes the di rect object Rohert. Jn [
2
] and
[3] the complement i s an adjective phrase, but the same di stinction applies
where the complement i s a noun phrase:
Benjami n is becoming a conscientious student [Cs].
Hi s parents consider Benjami n a conscientious student [C0].
Obl i gatory adverbi al s
Obligatory adverbials typically refr to space. They can be divided i nto
those occurring in the SVA patern, in which a location is attributed to the
referent of the subject, and those occurring in the SVOA pattern, in which
a location i s attributed to the referent of the di rect object. There i s a
parallel between obl igatory adverbials and complements, which is
demonstrated in the pairs of sentences below:
Daniel stayed 11e1:v quiet [C,]. [ I ]
Daniel stayed in hed [A,]. [2]
Linda kept Daniel l'ery quiet [C,.] . [3]
Linda kept DHniLl i11 hed [1\,]. [4]
Jn [2] the adverbial is subject-related (like the subject complement in [ I ]),
and i n [4] i t is object-related (l i ke the object complement i n [3]). The
parallel is further evident in the verb classes, and we therefore call the verb
in both [ I ] and [2] copular (since it is equivalent i n function to the copula
be) and call the verb i n both [3] and [4] complex-transitive (cf 1 6. 24./).
Space advcrbials include not only position (in bed i n [2]), but also direction (to bed,
as i n Jolin and Linda went to bed. Other meanings conveyed by obligatory
adverbials include metaphorical extensions of space:
The next meeting will be in Ma/h.
We kept hi m 1Jjf" c("arettes.
1 0. 7
Syntactic characterization of clause elements 207
Still others have no connection with spatial meanings:
They treated her kindly.
He is without a job.
Syntactic characterizati

n of cl ause el ements
The VERB i s always realized by a verb phrase. It i s normally present in al l
clauses, including imperative clauses (where the subject is typically
absent). The verb determines what other elements (apart from the subject)
may or must occur in the clause (cf I 0. 3/).
The SUBJECT:
(a) is typically a noun phrase (lf Chapters 5, 6, and 1 7);
(b) normal l y occurs before the verb i n declarative clauses and after the
operator i n yes-no i nterrogative clauses (cf 1 1 . 3
.
/);
(c) determines the number and person, where relevant, of the verb
(cf 1 0. 1 9);
(d) i n fni te clauses requires the subjective frm for pronouns that have
di stinctive case frms (lf 6. 6f).
The OBJECT:
(a) is typically a noun phrase;
(b) normally follows the subject and verb (but cf 1 0. 3(, 1 1 . 1 0, 1 1 . 20,
1 8. 1 4), and if both objects are present, the i ndi rect object normal ly
comes before the di rect object (lf 1 8. 26 Note [b]);
(c) may general l y become the subject of the corresponding passive
clause;
(d) i n fni te clauses requi res the objective frm for pronouns that have
distinctive case frms.
The COMPLEMENT:
(a) i s typically a noun phrase or an adjective phrase;
(b) normally fllows the subject and verb if subject complement, and the
di rect object i f object complement;
(c) relates to the subject if subject complement, or to the di rect object if
object complement (cf I 0. 5);
(d) does not have a corresponding passive subject;
(e) in fni te clauses requires the subjective form of pronouns i n frmal use
(especially in AmE), but otherwise the objective frm.
The ADVERBIAL (cf Chapter 8):
(a) is normally an adverb phrase, prepositional phrase, or clause, but can
also be a noun phrase;
(b) i s typically capable of occurri ng in more than one position i n the
clause, though i ts mobility depends on the type and frm of the
adverbial;
(c) is optional, except for adverbials i n the SVA and SVOA clause types.
rUC lDE SlDQlE SEDEDCE
NOTE [a] The distinction between obligatory adverbial and complement is not clear-cut
for all preposi tional phrases. Some prepositional phrases are semantically similar
to adjective or noun phrases functioning as complement:
They were under suspicion.
Norma was in good health.
They were suspects.
Norma was healthy.
Unlike obligatory adverbials, they can be used as complementation for copular verbs
;
other than HE, a characteristic of subject complements:
Barbarba appeared ow of breath.
That seems of no importance.
We similarly fnd prepositional phrases functioning as object complement:

1 don't consider myself at risk.

Charles put me a1 my ease.
Some adverbs can also function as complements:
The perfrmance is over.
I am behind in my rent.
[b] Equally, the distinction between optional adverbial and subject complement is
not clear-cut fr adjective and noun phrases. We find instances where the adjective
or noun phrase is optional, unlike clear cases of subject complement:
They married young.
We parted goodji-iends.
Sometimes there is a close connection between the verb and the fnal element:
The sun shone bright.
The door banged shut.
[c] After some verbs, noun phrases of measure arc indeterminate between direct
object and adverbial:
Kathy jumped ten feet.
The book costs 1en dollars.
Unl ike objects, however, these do not generally permit the passive, and they allow
adverbial questions (Hm1far did Ka1hyj11mp? )
[d] lLl NlHUh, a small group of verbs that seem transitive in other respects,
normally occur only in the active:
Fred and Ani ta have fur children.
The coat doesn'tf/ me.
Five times six equals thirty.
[e] Prepositional phrases, adverbs, and also clauses that otherwise function as
adverbials may sometimes function as subject:
Slow/1 is exactly how Jeremy speaks.
Will qfter the sho11 be soon enough?
Bemuse Sal/1 wm1 1s /Ii leave doesn't mean that we have t o. (i nformal )
1 0.8
Semantic roles of clause elemenls 209
Semantic roles of cl ause elements
Participants
Every clause describes a situation which involves one or more PARTICI
PANTS, ie enti ties realized by noun phrases. We find two participants in [ I ] :
Unfrtunately, their child broke my window yesterday.
[ I ]
The sentence i n [ I ] contains a verb describing the nature of the action, a
subject denoting an agentive participant (the doer of the action), and a
di rect object denoting the affected partici pant. In addition, it contains an
adverbial evaluating the situation (1111/ortunately) and an adverbial
locating the situation in time (yesterday).
Agentive, affected, recipient, attribute
1 0.9 The typical semantic role of a subject in a clause that has a di rect object is
that of the AGENTIVE participant: that is, the animate participant that
instigates or causes the happening denoted by the verb:
Margaret is mowing the grass.
The typical role of the di rect object is that of the AFFECTED participant: a
participant (animate or inanimate) which does not cause the happening
denoted by the verb, but is di rectly involved in some other way:
James sold his digital watch yesterday.
The typical role of the indirect object is that of the RECIPIENT
participant: ie of the animate being that is passively involved by the
happening or state:
We paid them the money.
The typical role of a subject complement and an object complement is
that of ATTRIBUTE. We can distinguish two subtypes of role fr the
attribute: identi fcation and characterization.
IDENTIFICATION:
Kevin is my brother. Sidney is now the Dean.
His response to the reprimand seemed a major reason for his
dismissal.
They named their daughter Edna.
CHARACTERIZATION:
Martha was a good student. Daniel remains helpful.
I consider the operation a success:
NOTE I I Attributes may be 'current', nonnally with verbs used statively, or ' resul ti ng' (ie
from the event descri bed by the verb), with verbs used dynami cal l y Uf 4.2, 4. 1 1 ):
Z U The simple sentence
LHHlP PHLl.
He's my brother.
He seems unhappy.
We fel t cold.
HbLLPL ATTRIBUTE:
We became restless.
He turned traitor.
He fel t ii/.
She remained silent.
I want my food hot.
They consider me their closest friend.
They elected hi m president.
The heat turned the mi l k sour.
He drives me mad.
[b] I f the verb is BE, identifcation allributcs al l ow reversal of subject and
complement:
Kevi n i s my hrother. /Iy brother i s Kevi n.
Onl y characterization attributes can also be real ized by adjective phrases.
Subjects
Subject as external causer, instrument, and afected
1 0. I O The subject sometimes has the role of EXTERNAL CAUSER; that i s, i t
expresses the unwitting (generally i nani mate) cause of an event :
NOTE
The avalanche destroyed several houses.
The electric shock ki lled hi m.
It may al so have the rol e of INSTRUMENT; that is, the enti ty (general l y
inanimate) which an agent uses to perfrm an action or i nstigate a process:
A car knocked them down.
The computer has solved the probl em.
With i ntransitive verbs, the subject also fequently has the AFFECTED
role elsewhere typical of the di rect object:
Jack fel l down (accidental l y).
The pencil was l yi ng on the table.
The term ' afected' can also be applied to subjects of copular verbs:
The pencil was on the table.
But we can make some further distinctions according to whether the
subject complement as attribute identifies or characterizes (c/1 0. 9). Thus,
the subject i s IDENTIFIED i n [ I ] and CHARACTERIZED i n [2]:
Kevin is my brother.
lfartlw was a good student.
[ I ]
[2]
There is sometimes a regul ar rel ation, in terms

of clause function, between
transitive verbs expressing CAUSATIVE meaning and corresponding intransi tive
verbs or adjectives. In the last group, the company and my dog as object arc
afected but as subject are agentive.
{ i )
(ii)
(iii)
(iv)
SVO
Tom is cooki ng the di nner.
Brenda is improving her writing.
SVO
The frost has ki l led the fowers.
Fred is waving the fag.
SVO
They have dimmed the l ights.
The sun (almost) bl inded him.
SVO
Semantic roles of clause elements 2 1 1
sv
The di nner i s cooking.
Her writing is improving.
sv
The fowers have died.
The fag i s waving (in the breeze).
SVC
The lights became dim.
He (al most) went bhnd.
sv
The sergeant paraded the company. The company paraded.
I HH exerci si ng my dog. My dog i s exerci si ng.
Recipient and experiencer subjects
10. 1 1 The subject may have a recipient role with verbs such as have, own, possess,
beneft (from}, as is i ndicated by the fl l owing rel ati on:
10.12
Mr Smith has given his son a radi o. [So now hi s son has . a radio.]
The perceptual verbs see and hear require an expericncer subject, i n
contrast to look at and listen to, whi ch are agentive. The ot her perceptual
verbs taste, smell, and feel have both an agentive meani ng correspondi ng
to look at, as i n [ ! ] , and an experiencer meani ng corresponding to see, as i n
[2]:
I want you to taste the soup.
I can taste the pepper in my soup.
The soup i n [3] has the affected role:
The soup tastes good.
[ I ]
[2]
[3]
Verbs i ndicating cogni ti on or emotion may also require an experiencer:
I thought you were mistaken.
I l i ked the play.
Normal l y, recipient and experiencer subjects go with verbs used statively.
Positioner subject
The subject may have the role of POSITIONER with i ntransitive stance verbs
(cf 4. 1 1 ) such as sit, stand, lie, /hie ['dwell'], stay, remain, and with
transitive verbs related to stance verbs such as carry, hold, keep, wear. The
transitive verbs are causative and the di rect objects that fl low them have
an affected role. In this positioner role the participant i s i n control , but the
situation is not resultative in that no change i s i ndicated in the positioner
during the period i n which the si tuation lasts:
I have l i ved i n London most of my l i fe.
The hijacker was holding a revolver.
They are stayi ng at a motel .


2 1 2 The simple sentence
He kept himself upright.
My friend i s sitting in a chair near the door.
Locative, temporal, and eventive subjects
10. 1 3 The subject may have the LOCATIVE role of designating t he place of the
state or action, or the TEMPORAL role of designating i ts time:
Los Angeles is fggy. ['It's foggy in Los Angeles.']
This jar contains cofee. ['There's cofee in this jar.']
Yesterday was a hol iday. [' It was a hol iday yesterday.']
An important role of the subject is EVENTIVE. The noun at the head of
the noun phrase is commonl y deverbal (ie derived from a verb) or a
nominal ization (cf 1 7. 23):
The match is tomorrow.
The Norman i111'(1sion took place in 1 066.
The dispute ol'er the inheritance l asted a decade.
Prop it subject
1 0. 1 4 There are clauses i n which no participant i s required. T n such cases, the
subject function may be assumed by the 'prop' word it (cf6. 9), which has
l
i ttl e or no semantic content.
1 0. 1 5
Prop i t mainl y occurs in clauses signifying (a) time, ( b) atmospheric
conditions, and (c) distance:
(a) It's ten o'cl ock precisel y.
It's our wedding anniversary next month.
(b) I s i t raining?
It's getting dark.
(c) I t' s not very far to York.
It's just one more stop to Toronto.
Objects
Locative, resultant, and cognate objects
The direct object may have a LOCATIVE role wi th such verbs as walk, sll'im,
pass, jump, t11r11, leme, reach, .111rro111J(/, aoss, climh:
Joan swam the ril'er. ['Joan swam acro.1s the river.']
I passed a cyclist. ['I passed by a cyclist.']
A RESULTANT (or ' effected') object is an object whose referent exists onl y
by virtue of the activity indicated by the verb:
Baird invented tele1ision. They are designing a new car.
With an agentive subject and an affected object, one may al ways capture
part of the meaning of a cl ause (eg: X destroyed Y) by saying x did
something to Y'; but this does not apply to a resul tant object. Baird
il/\'ented relel'ision does not i mpl y Bai rd di d somethi ng to tel evi si on' .
Semantic roles of clause elements 21 3
Contrast the afected object in I'm digging the ground with the resultant
object i n I'm digging a hole.
A COGNATE object is similar to a resul tant object in that it refers to an
event indicated by the verb:
Chris wi l l sing a song fr us. She lived a good lie.
The noun head is semantically and often morphologically related to the
verb, and its function is merely to repeat , wholly or partial l y, the meaning
of the verb.
NOTE In one type of resul tant object, the activity re-creates the referent:
She acted the part ofOphelia.
They are playing the Egmont Overture.
Eventive object
1 0. 1 6 A frequent type of object general l y takes the frm of a deverbal noun
preceded by a common verb of general meaning, such as do, gii>e, hme,
make, take. This EVENTIVE object (cf I 0. 1 3) is semantically an extension of
the verb and bears the major part of the meaning. Compare:
1 0. 1 7
They are arguing. [verb onl y]
They are hal'ing an argument. [verb +eventive object]
Other examples:
J gal'e them some advice.
Sarah is doing her lwmell'ork.
The baby's having a bath.
We made allowance fr his inexperience.
I took a sholl'er earlier.
The construction with the eventive object provides greater weight than
the corresponding SV type, especial l y i f there are no optional adverbials,
and is often preferred to the SV construction in infrmal English.
Afected indirect object
The affected indi rect object is the one exception to the normal role of
recipient taken by the indi rect object (cf I 0.9). The afected indirect object
combines with an eventive direct object (cf! 0. 1 6), and the most common
verb is give:
J gave Helen a nudge. ['J nudged Helen.']
We gave the baby a bath. ['We bathed the baby.']
I should give the car a wash. ['J should wash the car.']
Judi th paid me a visi t. ['Judith visited me.']
Derek owes us a treat. ['It's Derek's turn to treat us+ ]
The indirect object has the same role as the affected di rect object i n the
para phrases.
21 4 The simple sentence
NOTE The object may occasi onal ly be instrumental (c( 1 0. 1 0):
We employ a computer for our calculations.
She is playing the piano.
.
He nodded his head.
Summary
1 0. 18 Al though the semantic functions of the elements (particularly S and Od)
are quite varied, there are certain clear restrictions, such as that the object
cannot be agentive; a subject (except i n the passive) cannot be resultant; an
indirect object normally has only two functi ons - those of rLLi ricnt and
afected. The followi ng syst em of pri ori ties generl l y obtai ns:
I f there i s an agentive, external causer, or positioner, it is S; if not,
I f there is an instrument, i t is S; if not,
If there is an afected i tem, i t is S; if not,
I f there is a temporal, locative, or eventive i tem, i t may be S; if not,
The prop word it is S.
Naturally, the role of the direct or indirect object in an active clause is
assigned to the subject in passive clauses.
The semantic functions of clauses are treated in Chapter 1 5.
Subject-verb concord
General rul e
10. 19 The most important type of concord in English is concord of 3rd person
number between subject and verb. A singul ar subject requires a singular
verb:
My daughter ivatches television after supper.
A plural subject requires a plural verb:
My daughters watch television after supper.
The number of a noun phrase depends on the number of its head:
The change in male attitudes i.v most obvious i n industry.
The changes i n male atti tude are most obvious i n industry.
For coordinated noun phrases, see 1 0. 22
.
l
Clauses as subject (cf 1 5 . lf) count as singular for number concord:
How you got tlrere doesn 't concer me; Smoking cigarettes is dangerous to
your health. The same applies to prepositional phrases and adverbs
functioning as subject: /11 the evenings is hesl for me; Slowly does it!.
Subject-verb concord 21 5
Nomi nal relative clauses, on the other hand, resemble noun phrases in lhis
respect (cf 1 5. 7/) and may have plural as well as singular concord: What
was once a palace is no11 a pile ofrubble; What ideas he has are his wie 's.
NOTE (a] It is possible to generalize the rule of concord to 'A subject which i s not clearly
semantically plural requi res a singular verb'; that is, to treat singular as the
unmarked frm, to be used i n neutral circumstances, where no positive indication
of plurality is present. This would explain, in additi on to clausal subjects, the
tendency in i nformal speech for is/was to fl l ow the pseudo-subject there in
existential sentences (l:f 1 8. 30) such as ?There 's hundreds 1( people 011 the 11aiti11g
list and in sentences such U5 ? Werl' '.1 the scissors ; ?llere s John 111111 i\111rr. /s
what precedes t he suhjecl here i s not marked f"or pl ural , t he si ngul ar verb f"o
.
l l ows
by attracti on.
On the other hand, the princirlc of proximity (({ 1 0.20) effects a change from
singular to plural more often than the reverse, and this perhaps suggests tha t we
should regard the pl ural as the unmarked frm.
[b] Apparent exceptions to the concord rule arise with singular nouns ending with
an apparent plural -s (measles, billiards, mathematics, ctc, lf 5. 43) or conversely
plural nouns lacking the i nflection (cattle, people, clergy, ctc, c:f 5.44):
Measles is sometimes serious.
Our people are compl ai ning.
[c] Plural phrases (i ncluding coordinate phrases) count as singular i f they arc used
as names, titles, quotations, etc:
Crime and Punishment is perhaps the best constructed of Dostoycvsky's
novels, but The Brothers Karama:ov is undoubtedly his masterpiece.
'Senior citizens' means, in common parlance, people over sixty.
The titles of some works that arc collections of s tories, ctc, may be counted as
either singular or plural :
{e 'iVts }
The Canterbury Tales . i n many manuscripts.
e:nst
Notional concord and proximity
10.20 Two factors sometimes confict with GRAMMATICAL CONCORD as described
in I 0. 1 9. NOTIONAL CONCORD is agreement according to the idea of number
rather than the presence of the grammatical marker fr that idea. In BrE,
fr example, collective nouns such as govem111e111 arc often treated as
plural ( lf I 0. 2 1 ). The goverme111 have broken all I heir promises.
The principle of PROXIMITY denotes agreement of the verb with a noun
or pronoun that closely precedes i t in preference to agreement with the
head of the noun phrase:
?No one except his own supporters agree with him.
One i n ten take drugs.
Attraction of number through proxi mi ty occurs mainly i n unplanned
discourse.
21 6 The simple sentence
Col lective nouns
1 0. 21 In BrE grammatically si ngul ar collective nouns are treated as notionally pl ural i f the group is considered as a collection of i ndividuals:
The audience 11ere enjoyi ng every mi nute of i t.
England hal'e won the cup.
Singular and pl ural verbs are more or less i nterchangeable i n the contexts of[ ! ] and [2], but si ngular has to be used i n sentences l i ke The audience was enormous, where the group is being considered as a single undivided body. In AmE grammatically si ngul ar collective nouns are generally treated as singular, especially when they refer to governments and sports teams.
[ I ]
[2]
NOTE In both BrE and AmE, plural pronouns are often used to refer to singular collective nouns even when the verb is singular; fur example, they is an alterative to it i n The commillee has 1101 ye! decided how !hey should reac/ to !he feller.
1 0.22
Coordi nated subj ect
Coordination with a11d
When a subject consists of two or more noun phrases (or clauses) coordinated by and, a distinction has to be made between coordi nati on and coordinative apposi tion.
Coordi nati on comprises cases that correspond to fuller coordinate forms. A pl ural verb is used even if each conjoi n is singular:
Tom and Al ice are now ready.
What I say and what I think are my own afai r.
Conjoins expressing a mutual relationship, even though they can onl y i ndi rectly be treated as reductions of clauses i n thi s way, al so take a pl ural verb:
Your problem and mine are similar. ['Your problem i s similar to
mi ne and mi ne is si mi l ar to yours. ']
What I say and do are two di fferent things. ['What I say is one thi ng and what I do is another thi ng. ']
With the less common COORDINATIVE APPOSITION, no reduction is implied, since each of the uni ts has the same reference. Hence, a singular verb is requi red i f each noun phrase is singular:
This temple of ugli ness and memorial to Victorian bad taste 11'as erected in the main street of the ci ty.
The two opening noun phrases here both refer to one enti ty (a statue). The fl l owing example, however, could have ei ther a singular or plural verb, depending on the meaning:
NOTE
10.23
NOTE
10.24
Subject-verb concord 21 7
Hi s brother and t he subsequent edi tor of his
collected papers
{was }
wi th hi m at his deathbed.
were
S
.
1

s used if the brother and the edi tor are the same person, and mgu ar was 1
pl ural 11'ere if they are two di ferent people.
[a] A plural verb is required i n asyndetic coordination (without a coordinatr):
Hi s camera, his radio, his money 11ere confscated by the customs ofcials.
1 a be l i nked by quasi-coordinators, ii' prepositions [b] Subject noun P irases nr Y
II ) tll t are semantically similar to I
.
I/ , !lum and as we U (such as along It'll l, la lL
' .
l rb if the frst noun coordinators. Grammatical concord requires a smgu ar ve
phrase is singular:
The captain, as well as the other players, was tired.
. . . . .
the second noun phrase, the construct10n is [c) If an adverbrnl is present m
.
1 ord requires the verb Lo agree i n considered parenthetic, and grammat1ca cone
number with the frst noun phrase:
The ambassador - and perhaps his wife too - is likely Lo be present.
.
r when the second phrase is negative, whether or The same grammatical rule app tes
. .
1
f otional concord reinfrces the use not linked by and, though here the prmc1p e o n
of the singular:
.
The Prime Minister, (and) not the monarch, decides government policy.
.
head with coordinate premodi fers may imply

l
o
n
r::antences. I t may be followed legitimately by a
plural verb:
. .
American and Dutch beer are (both) much
_
light:r than Bnt1sh beer.
['American beer is . . . and Dutch beer 1s . . + l
The same phenomenon occurs with nomi nal relative clauses:
What I say and do are my own a1 1 air. t . . .


['WI
.
t I s iy is and what I
do is')
The singular would mean 'That which I say and do i s my own affair' .
A singular verb is required when the phrases are postmodifying:
. .
A
.
d the Netherlands is much lighter than Bnt1sh beer. Beer from menca an
.

) ['Beer that comes from America and the Netherlands is . . .

Coordination with F and IMF
For subject phrases or clauses that are coordinated with (either . ." :l m; \ nd
.
I , 1 1 , nor grammatical concord is clear when the con101 11s 1<1ve w
l
i t 1 lL IL .
b
.
er 1
'
n [ I ] the verb i s singular and i n [2] it is pl ural : t 1C same n um .
21 8 The simple sentence
Either the Mayor or her deputy is bound to come. [ I ]
Either the strikers or the bosses have misunderstood the clai m. [2]
When conjoins di fer in number, recourse is generally made to the
principle of proximity: the number of the second conjoin determines the
number of the verb, as in [3] and [4]:
Either your brakes or your eyesight is at faul t.
Either your eyesight or your brakes are at faul t.
[3]
[4]
In less formal usage, phrases coordinated with neither . . . nor are treated
more like and for concord. Thus, [5] is more natural in speech than [6]:
Neither he nor his wife hme arrived.
Neither he nor his wife has arrived.
[5]
[6]
When or is used for coordinative apposition (cf 1 0.22), grammatical
concord requires the verb to agree in number with the fi rst appositivc:
Gobbledygook, or the circumlocutions of bureaucratic language, i.1
i ntentionally difcul t to understand.
The circumlocutions of bureaucratic language, or gobbledygook,
are i ntentionally difcult to understand.
Indefinite expressions as subject
10.25 Some indefnite pronouns and determi ners have both noncount and count
uses. With noncount nouns (present or implied), the verb is singular:
Some (of the cement) is arriving later today.
So far no money has been spent on repairs.
With plural nouns (present or implied), the verb is pl ural :
No people of that name live here.
Some (of the books) are being placed on the shelves today.
The pronouns either and neither generally take a singular verb:
. {and either } .
The two guests have arved,
b t
.
/
1s welcome.
u nelf Cr
Wi th none, the pl ural verb is more frequently used than the singular,
because of notional concord, even without the efect of the proximity
principle:
None (of the books) are being placed on the shelves today.
10.26 The proximity principle may lead to plural concord even with i ndefnites
such as each, every, everybody, anybody, and nobody (or i ndefni te phrases
such as every one, any one), which are otherwise unambivalently singular:
{ll'aS } ) " .
Nobody, not even the teachers, ? 1stenmg.
. were
Subject-verb concord 21 9
Every member or t he vast f ll"as
l ,. *
d f 50 OOO I
.l'I j ple,i sed to sec hun.
crow o . peop L + \\CC
Al though these sentences with pi ural verbs might well be uttered in casual
speech, or inadvertentl y written down, most people would probably
regard them as ungrammatical, because they fatly contradict grammati
cal concord. Other, more acceptable, instances arise with expressions
involving quantity (where the singular would seem pedantic):
A (l arge) number of people have applied fr the job.
The majority agree with me.
NOTE The fol l owi ng i l l ustrates an i di omati c anomal y: there i s a di screpancy i n number
between t he noun and the determiner those, as well as wi th the verb:
{sort }
T
Tl
hesc
ki nd of parties arc dangerous. (i nformal )
1OSC
type
Rephrasi ng can avoid the anomal y:
Those kinds of parties arc }
That kind of party is dangerous.
Parties of that ki nd ar
Concord of person
In addi tion to number concord, there is concord of person in the present
tense:
f U your fri end. [ J st PERSON SINGULAR CONCORD]
H
He
k
is your friend. }
[3rd PERSON SINGULAR CONCORD]
e W you.
In the past tense, only the verb BE has distinctions of person:
I was your fri
f
e

d.
d
}
[ l st and 3rd PERSON SINGULAR CONCORD]
He was your ncn .
You l\`CC my fri end. [2nd PERSON]
In a coordinate subject noun phrase where the coordinator is or or nor,
the last noun phrase determi nes the person of the verb, in accordance with
the principle of proximity:
Neither you, nor I, nor anyone else knows the answer. [ I ]
(?)Either my wife or I am going. [2]
[a] Because of the awkwardness of the choice i n [ I ] and especially [2], a speaker
may avoid it by using a modal auxi l iary which is i nvariable for person (eg: Either
my wife or I will be going) or by post posing the last noun phrase (eg: Eitber my wie
is going or I am) .
1 0.28
1 0.29
[b] Jn relative clau

cs and cleft sentences, a relat i ve pronoun subject is usuall

followed y
.
a Yerb agreement with i ts antecedent: It is I ll'ho am to blame It
Kay l
'
''10 Is
_
111 command, It is they who are complaining. But 3rd person cocor
p
'
rev
.
1 J s fa English where the objective case pronoun me is used: It 's me
i; /10 to blame.
_
S1 m1 J arly, 3rd personal singular may be used in i nformal English i n
b
l
/
1ese construcllons when l he pronoun you has singular refrence lt's;ou who 's to
ame.
=
Other types of concord
Subject-ompl ement and object-ompl ement concord
There is usually concord of number between subject and subject
complement and between di rect object and object complement:
My chld i s an angel. r consider my child an angel.
My chi l dren are angels. J consider my chi l dren angel s.
This type of
_
co
_
n
_
cord arises natural ly from the semantic role of the two
complements (lj I 0. 9). There are, however, exceptions:
Their principal crop is potatoes.
Good manners a re a rarity these days. [also ?is]
The younger chi l dren are a problem.
The next few bars are pure Tchai kovsky. [also ?is]
Dogs are good company.
Pronouns and determiner reference
The tgreement between a pronoun or determi ner and its antecedent is
c
th
ore e
l
rence rather than grammatical concord, but i t i s convenient to treat
e P 1enomenon here.
d
A reft
d
exive pronoun must agree with i ts antecedent i n number person
an gen er: '
Y
He injured himself in both legs.
She's maki ng a sweater fr herse(l
I wrote to them about myself
Personal pronouns a d
= . .
. .
n possessive determmers the I st and 3rd

ersons agree with their antecedents in number. Those i n the 3 d

smgular al so agree with their antecedents in gender:
r person
Tom hurt his foot.
Beatrice knows that she is late.
The books were too heavy, so 1 left them.
[ I ]
[2]
[3]
Other types of concord 221
In [ I ] and [2] the pronoun may of course also refer to somebody other than
the subject.
The relative pronouns who, whom, and which agree with their
antecedent in gender, the first two being personal, and the last
non personal :
Here's the hammer which I borrowed yesterday.
That's the man who(m) I saw talking to your parents.
10.30 The pronoun they i s commonly used as a 3rd person singular pronoun
that i s neutral between masculine and femi ni ne. It is a convenient means
of avoi di ng the dilemma of whether to use the he or site frm. Al one time
restricted l o i nfrmal usage, it i s now increasingly accepted even i n formal
usage, especially in AmE.
NOTE
Rather than use he i n the unmarked sense or the clumsy he or site, many
prefer to seek gender i mpartiality by using a plural frm where possible i n
reference to the i ndefni te pronouns everyone, e11eryboc(v, someone,
somebody, anyone, anybody, no one, nobody:
Everyone thi nks they have the answer.
Has anybody brought their camera?
[ I ]
[2)
A si mi l ar use of the pl ural occurs wi th coordi nate subjects referring lo
both sexes, as in [3], and wi th a singular noun phrase subject having a
personal noun of i ndetermi nate gender as head, as in [4]:
Either he or she is going to have to change their atti tude. [3)
Em-y student has to hand i n their paper today. [4]
In formal English, the tendency has been to use he as the unmarked frm
when the gender is not determined. The formal equi valent of [ I ), though
i ncreasingly ignored now, is therefre:
E11eryone thi nks he has the answer.
[ l a)
A more cumbersome al ternative is the conjoining of both masculine and
femi nine pronouns:
El'ery student has to hand i n his or her paper today. (4a)
The i ndefni te pronoun one is fol l owed in frmal usage by the same
pronoun for subsequent references:
One should choose one's friends carefully.
[5)
But AmE may also use the masculine pronoun:
One should choose his friends carefully.
[5a)
One way of circumventing the gender problem is to make the subject rlural:
All s1ude111s have to hand in rleir paper today. i .bj
1 0. 31
1 0.32
&44 4 simple sentence
Similar methods can usually be employed for the indefnite pronouns too:
All of' theH think they have the answer.
Have any ofyou brought your cmera?
For (3] the only alternative in formal English is to rephrase the sentence:
( l b]
[2a]
Either he is goi ng to have to change his allitude or she hers. (3a]
For [Sa], indefnite one can be replaced with indefnite we, you, or they, as
appropriate:
We should choose our friends carefully. (Sb]
Vocatives
A vocative is usually a noun phrase, denoting the one or more persons to
whom the sentence is addressed. It i s either a CALL, drawing the attention
of the person or persons addressed, singling them out from others in
hearing, as i n ( ! ], or an ADDRESS, expressing the speaker's relationship or
attitude to the person or persons addressed, as i n [2] and [3]:
JOHN, DI Nner's ready. [voc SVCs] [ l ]
And THAT, my FRIENDS, concludes my SPEECH. [voc SVOd] [2]
My BACK is aching, DOCTOr. [SV voc] [3]
Sentences [ 1 -3] show that a vocative may take ini tial, medial , or fi nal
position i n the sentence; i n i ts optionality and freedom of position, i t i s
more like an adverbial than any other element of cl ause structure.
Intonationally, the vocative is set off fom the rest of the clause either by
consti tuting a separate lone uni t or by formi ng the tail of a tone uni t. The
most characteristic i ntonations are fl l-rise for an i ni tial vocative
functi oni ng as a call, and otherwise rise; and rise fr a vocative
functioni ng as an address.
Vocati ves may be:
(a) Names, perhaps with a title: Dm1frl, Mrs Johnson, Dr Turer, Ginger.
(b) Standard appellatives, usually without modifcation:
(i) terms for fmi l y relationships: mother, father, uncle; or more
familiar forms like mom(my) (AmE), 11111m(111y) (BrE);
(i i ) title of respect: madam, sir, my Lord, your Honour;
(iii) markers of status (sometimes with ini tial capital even for those not
so marked here); Mr President , Prime Minister, Father [fr priest],
professor, doctor.
(c) General nouns, ofen used in more special ized senses: bIother, buddy
(i nfrmal AmE), hu1 , ladie and gentlemen; man, mate (BrE).
(d) The personal pronoun you ( Vim, ll 'hy lwl'en " t you finislwd yet ! ) is
I '
\ '
10.33
Negation 223
markedly impolite. An indefi ni te pronoun (as in Get me a pen. somebody)
is abrupt.
(e) Nomi nal clauses (very occasionally): Whoe1er said that, (come out
here).
(f Items from (a), (b), (c), and (d) may be expanded by the addition of
modifi ers or appositive elements of various kinds:
(a) my dear Mrs Johnson; young David
(b) my old friend; you flthy liar
(c) old man, young man; old chap (BrE)
(d) impolite: you over there; you with the red hair; i nformal : you boys, you
people, you chaps (esp BrE), you guys (esp AmE).
Negation
Cl ause Negation
Clause negation through verb negation
A positive clause can be negated by inserting not between the operator
(cf3 . l l ) and the predication:
I have fnished. I have not fnished.
They are ready. They are not ready.
If no operator is present in the positive clause, the dummy operator oo is
i ntroduced (but cf 3. 23 Note [b]):
She works hard. She does not work hard.
They know you. They do not know you.
Except i n formal English, the negator more usually occurs also as an
encli tic (ie attached to the precedi ng word) in the contracted form n't :
I haven' t fnished They don' t know you.
NOTE There are commonly two possibilities for contraction i n negative clauses in
i nformal English: negator contraction and auxi l i ary contraction (lf J. I Jj):
10.34
1 haven't fnished.
They aren't ready.
l ' ve not fnished.
They're not ready.
Syntactic features of clause negation
Negative clauses difer syntactically from positive clauses:
(i) They ca
'
n typically be fllowed by positive tag questions:
They aren' t ready, are they?
[c( They are ready, are11 't they?]
1 0.35
1 0.36
224 The simple sentence
( i i ) They can be followed by negati ve tag clauses, with addi ti ve
meani ng:
They aren' t ready, and neither are you.
(i i i ) They can be fol l owed by negative agreement responses:
A: He doesn' t know Russian. B: No, he doesn 't.
(iv) They can be followed by nonassertive i tems (c.f 1 0. 37):
He won't notice any change i n you, either.
Other kinds of clause negation
Words negative in form and meaning
We sometimes have a choice between verb negation and negati on of some
other element:
An honest man would not lie.
Thal was not an accident.
He wouldn 't say a word.
I won 't make that mistake
ever agai n.
No honest man would li e.
That was no accident.
He would say not a word.
I will never make that mistake
agai n.
The scope of negation (Lf 1 0, 38) is frequently di fferent. For example,
Many people did not come to the party i mplies the absence of many people,
whereas Not many people came to the party i mplies the presence of few
people.
In formal style, the negative element may often be movecfrom its usual
position to i ni ti al posi ti on, i n which case there is i nversion of subject and
operator:
Not a word would he say.
Neier will I make that mistake agai n.
Words negative in meaning but not i n form
Several words are negative i n meani ng but not in form. They i nclude:
seldom, rarely
scarcely, hardly, haref1
lil tle, few (in contrast to the posi ti ve a little and a few)
They can efect clause negati on, i nducing the characteristic syntactic
features of clause negati on (lf 1 0.34):
They scarcely seem to care, do they?
I hardly have any friends, and neither do you.
A: Cri me rarely pays. B: No, i t doesn 't.
I seldom gel any sleep, eitl1er.
Fell' members have ever attended the annual general meeti ng.
When positioned i ni tially, the adverbs normally cause subject-operator
i nversion (lf 1 0. 35):
NOTE
1 0.37
Negation 225
Littl did I expect such enthusi asm.
Scarcelr el'er has Bri tai n suffered so much cri ti ci sm.
Verbs, adjectives, and preposi ti ons wi lh negative meani ng may be
followed by nonassertive i tems (/ 1 0. 37):
He denies I ever told hi m.
We were unaware of any hostili ty.
I' m against going ou l any11here to nigh l.
[a] Only is to some extent negative. When i t focuses on a subject noun phrase, the
latter is followed by nonasscrtivc items: Only rwo of us had any experience in
sailing. And when it focuses on a fronted initial clement rather than the subject, it
may occasionally (but need not) take subject-operator inversion: Only 011 Sundays
do they eat ll'ilh their children.
[b] Rarely may be positive when placed i ni tially as an adjunct (c/8. 1 3), in which
case i t docs not cause subject-operator inversion: Rarely, cri111e pays well. ['On
rare occasions, crime pays well.']
Nonassertive items
Clause negation i s frequently followed (not necessarily di rectly) by one or
more nonassertive i tems. The followi ng examples i l l ustrate the range of
these i tems, whi ch may be determiners, pronouns, or adverbs:
ASSERTIVE
We've had some l unch.
I was speaki ng to somebody.
They'll fni sh i t somehow.
He sometimes vi si ts us.
He' s still at school.
Her mother's coming, too.
I l i ke her a great deal.
NON ASSERTIVE
We haven' t had any l unch.
I wasn' t speaki ng to anyho<fv.
They won' t fnish i t at all.
He doesn' t ever vi si t us.
He' s not at school any longer.
Her mother's not comi ng either.
I don' t li ke her much.
I n many i nstances, the negative particle and the nonasscrtivc form can
combine lo produce a n
e
gati ve form (not ever never) or can be replaced
by a negative form (111 anyll'here nowhere).
[a] The primary di fference between some and w11 (and bet wccn the so111e- and w11
compounds) i s thal AIIlIH' is generally specific. t hough unspecified, while any
.
is
nonspccific. Thal is, .10111e implies an amount or number that may be known lo the
speaker. This di fcrcncc lends lo correlate with the di ference between positive and
negative contexts:
I have so111e 111011ey on me. [a specific, though unspecifed amount of money]
I don 'l have any 111011ey on me. [an unspecified, and also nonspecific amount
of money]
[b] Nonasscrtivc items appear i n other contexts: questions ( 1 1 .4/: conditional
clauses ( 1 5. 1 9 Note [a]); comparative clauses ( 1 5. 36); putative should-clauses
( 1 4. 1 4); restrictive relative clauses within generic noun phrases, which have
condi tional meaning (St1ule111s who have any complaints should raise their hands, ' I f
students have any complaints . . . ' ).
10.38
f c] If a clause is negative, nonassertive items tha
. .
(c/1 0.38) are used in place of every t
. .
t come within the scope of negation
co
d
. '
sser i ve i tem that wo Id h rrespon 1 ng posi tive clause:
l ave occurred i n the
I haven' t eJ1er been on an , f 1
. .
Not man of t
) o t ie big l i ners, either.
y he refugees have anyll'here to l i ve l'et.
[d] Occasionally two negatives occur in the sam
.
('Everybody has something to eat') N
> e clause: Nobo1' has not/ing to eat
told lies at some time') 1"111 't t
h' ne o us hal'e never told lies ('All of us have ' no o e1 11er ( T 1 t b cancel each other out producin
. . .
iavc o o ey her'). The two negatives
ne t
.

'
g posi tive values
but th ga 1 ve syntactically as indicated (l'

e sentence remains
.

or example) by the
1 L Ul 1 not o ey her, can f?
norma tag question: f
fc] The multiple negatives in n t d
I
ons an ard English en nee each other out . No on ' , , ,
.
.
.
1
.
are i ntensi fying, and do not
E 1 h N
t nt l L I
.1ail 11otli111g aho t r -ng is o one el'er saidw1 1tl . b
.
. u I is equivalent to standard
f
f]
_ ung a our 11
Sme nonassertive expressio
.
ns are us
.
e ,
.
. nega li ves; for example, bp an)' means a bit
.
d

to gi ve emoti ve i ntensificati on to
like it in the least. Ncgati

e d

termi nes .
(i n ormal), in the least, at al; We did11 'r
11hare1er: You hme no excuse 11'/ !
and ponous are emphasized by at alland
combined wi th i ntensifying phrases (
c e1
l
e.
_
.
e1er is
_
repeated for emphasis or
a
.
/'
SUC l <1s 111 alm1 l1f ) n1 ga111, 1e 11e1er seen anitlii /"k
.
.
- .
e
ne1er, ne1ergo there
e
.
. ng e l Il all 1111 lif' Otl
.
xpress1ons are exemplifed in ff
.
! . .
. . t . icr emotively coloured
t I
e lH ll t g1l'e me a tlii I 1 ! . 1 11 t see u soul.
ng; 1 11 t sleep a ll'ink; IYe
Scope of negation
A negative item may be said to govern (or de
.
nonassertive i tem only if the l tt
. . .
termi ne the occurrence of) a

h
. a er IS withi n the sco f h wit i n the stretch of l angt1age ov l
.
h h
PE o t e negative ie
er w 11c t e f
'
i nfuence. The scope of the
f
nega ive I tem has a semanti c
i tem i tself to the end of the
:ega I;
h
nor

al ly extends fom the negative

two sentences:
ause. ere i s thus a contrast between these
She defni tely didp't speak to h
.
[' Tt' d f
i m,.
_
s ; ni te that she di dn' t. ']
She d1 dp t defni tely speak to hi m
[' I ts not defni te that she di d. '
When an adj unct is fnal
.
t . . 1 may or may not he outside the scope
T wasp't LISTENING all the TiME
.
[ie r
,
Ji sened ne of the tim.]
f was
,
t l i steni ng al l the TlME
[ie r l i stened some of the tie.]
ff a

n assertive frm is used, it must l i e outside the scope:
I di
_
dp ' t
_
l i ste to some of the speakers
[te r l i stened to some.]
.
r di
_
dp't
_
listen to any of the speakers
[1e r l i stened to none.]
.
Negation 227
The scope can sometimes extend i nto a subordi nate clause: I wouldn't like
to disturb anyone.
Focus of negation
10.39 We need to i denti fy not only the scope, but also the Focus of a negation.
NOTE
The focus is signalled in speech by the placement of nuclear stress, which
i ndicates that the contrast of meani ng i mplicit in the negation is located at
that spot whi l e the rest of the clause can be understood in a positive sense.
The fcus can precede the negative i tem, and hence we must al low fr
disconti nuous scope. Di fferent placements of the fcus di st i ngui sh the
fol l owi ng sentences. The parts that are not within the scope are
understood positively:
r di dp't take Joan to swim i n the POOL today,. - I frgot to do so.
I di d,ake J6AN to swim i n the pool today. - It was Mary.
I di dpake Joan to swIM i n the pool today. - Just to see i t.
I di d,ake Joan to swi m i n the P60L today. - r took her to the
seaside.
r di dake Joan to swim i n the pool toDAY. - rt was last week that I
di d so.
,pi d take Joan to swi m i n the pool today. - It was my brother
who took her.
Scope must include the fcus. One way of signalling the extent of the
scope is by the posi tion of the fcus:
I didp't leave HOME
,
because r was afraid of my FATHER. [ I ]
[ = Because I was afraid of my fther, I di dn' t leave home.]
I di dleave home
,
because I was afraid of my FATHER,. [2]
[ = I left home, but it wasn't because r was afraid of my father.]
With the i ntonati on given (which i s the more common), [ I ] all ots a
separate tone uni t to each clause, and so places the because-clause outside
the scope of the negative. (This i nterpretation can also be singled out by H
comma in wri ting.) But [2] extends a single tone uni t over both, and places
a contrastive fl l + rise on father. The effect of this is to place negative
fcus on the because-clause, so that the mai n clause is understood
positively.
Intonati on may be crucial also i n marking whether or not the subject i s
the focus of negation i n noun phrases containing one of the uni versal
i tems all or every:
Al l the chi l dren di dp't SLEEP
,
. ['All the chi l dren fi led to sleep.']
ALL the chi l dren di dn' t sleeJ. ['Not al l the chi l dren slept.']
fn denial sentences the clause negutor may have the focus, since the rest of the
clause has al ready been asserted or implied:
228 The simple sentence
I did ofer her some chocolates. [' It is not true that I olfered her some
chocol ates. ']
The same clfcct is achieved by rocus on a negative operator:
I piDN'T
,
ofer her some chocolates.
or some other negative word:
I NEVER ofered her some chocolates.
Local negation
I0.40 Local negat i on negates a word or phrase, wi thout maki ng the clause
negative ( 1 0. 34). One common type i nvolves the combi nati on of not
wi th a morphologically negated gradable adjective or adverb:
She's a not unintelligent woman. ['She's a fi rly i ntel l i gent woman. ']
T vi si t them not i1ifieq11ently. ['T vi si t them rather frequently. ']
The negative particle partly cancels out the negative prefx, as i ndicated by
the paraphrases.
Ot her types of local negati on are exempl i fed below:
I saw a not too .1ympathetic report about you. ['rather
unsympathetic']
I saw Dave not long ago. [' fi rly recently']
We sensed not a little hostility in his manner. ['qui te a lot of hosti l i ty']
She was decorated by none other than the President. ['by the
Presi dent himsel f']
If moved to i ni ti al posi ti on, these do not cause subject-operator i nversion
(cf 1 0. 35):
Not long ago I saw David mowing hi s l awn.
Negation of modal auxi l i aries
1 0. 41 The scope of negati on may or may not i nclude the meani ng or the modal
auxi l i aries. We therefre di sti nguish between AUXILIARY NEGATION and
MAIN VERB NEGATION. The contrast i s shown i n the two fl l owi ng sentences
wi th may not, where the paraphrases i ndicate the scope of negati on:
AUXILIARY NEGATION
You ,ay not smoke in here,. ['You are not al l owed to smoke here.']
MAIN VERB NEGATION
They may pot l i ke the party, [ ' I t is possible that they do not l i ke the
party. ']
We give examples below of the modal auxi l i aries in their various senses
(lf4.1 ljf") accordi ng l o whether the scope of nega l i on usually i ncludes the
auxi l i ary or excludes i t:
Negation 229
AUXILIARY NEGATION
ma)' not [ = 'permi ssi on']
.
You ,ay not go swi mmi ng. ['You are not al lowed to . . .']
cannot, can 't [in all senses]
You can' t be serious. ['ft is not possible that . . . ']
,
You can' t go swi mmi ng. ['You are not al l owed to . . . ]
He cn' t ride a bicycle. ['He i s not able to . . .']
need not, needn 't (both esp BrE)
You ,eedn' t pay that fne, ['You are not obliged to . . . ']
,
I t reedn' t always be my ful t,. [' ft i s not necessary that . . . ]
dare not, daren 't
I daren't quarrel wi th them. [' I haven' t got the courage to quarrel
wi th them. ']
MAIN VERB NEGATION
ma)' not [ = 'possi bi l i ty']
.
They may ,ot bother to come i f i t's wet,. [' I t is possible t hat they will
not bother to come . . . ']
shall not, shan 't (al l senses; esp BrE; shan 't rare)
Don' t worry. You sha,'t lose your reward, [' I'll make sure that you
don' t lose your reward . . . ']
.
I sha,'t know you when you return,. ['T predict that I will not know
. . . ']
must not, mustn 't ['obligati on']
You must,'t keep us wai ti ng. [' It i s essenti al that you don' t keep us
wai ti ng.']
ought not, oughtn 't [both senses]
You ought,' t to keep us wai ti n

. ['
_
obligatio. ']
He ought,' t to be long. [' tentative r nference. ]
The distinction between auxi l i ary and mai n verb n

tion is neutral ized

for will in al l i ts senses, as the paraphrases below md1cate:
Don' t worry. T won' t i nterfere. ['T don' t i ntend to i nterfere'; 'T i ntend
not to i nterfere.']
He won' t do what he's told. ['He refuses to do what he's told'; 'H

i nsists on not doi ng what he's told. ']
.
They won' t have arrived yet. [' I t's not probable t hat they've arrived
yet'; 1 predict that they haven' t arrived yet. ']
Jn the necessi ty sense, the auxi l i ary negation of must i s
_
usu<

lly
_
achieved
through can 't ; hence, the negation of They must be tellmg hc.1 1s usual ly
230 The simple sentence
They can 't be telling lies. Needn 't and drm 't have to are used fr auxi l i ary
negation in both senses of must :
{don't have to .
We
d 't J

pack till tomorrow.
nee n
The past tense negative auxi liaries (mightn 't, couldn't, ll'Ouldn 't,
shouldn't ) fllow the same negative pattern as thei r present tense
equivalents.
NOTE [a] Because of the diametric opposition of meaning between 'permissi on' and
'obligation' , an odd-seeming equivalence exists between may 1101 ['not pcrmillcd
l o'] and 11111s111
'
1 ['obliged not to']:
You mustn' t go swimming today.
[ =You may not go swimming today.]
[b] Very rarely, PREDICATION NEGATION occurs i n the context of denials and
permission. The scope of negation is different from that. normal wi th the particular
modal auxiliary:
They may ' rt go swimming' . ['They arc allowed not to go swi mmi ng. ']
I can, of course, 'pot obey her,'. [' I t's possible, of course, not to obey her.']
In such instances of main verb negation, the clause is not negated (c{I 0.34), and i t
i s possible t o have double negation - auxiliary negation and prediction negati on:
l ca1111ot, of course, 1101 obey her. (c.f 1 0. 37 Note [d]).
Bi bl i ographical note
On major theoretical discussions, sec Lyons ( I 977); Stockwell et al. (I 973).
On syntactic structures and functions, see Ellegard ( 1 978) fr frequency data;
Halliday ( 1 967-68); Schopf ( 1 988).
On semantic roles, see Fillmore ( 1 968; l 977b); Hal l i day ( 1 967-68); Longacre
( 1 976, Ch. 2); Lyons ( 1 977, Ch. 1 2); Schlesinger ( 1 979; 1 989).
On number concord, sec Juul ( 1 975).
On vocatives, sec Zwicky ( 1 974).
On negation, sec Bolinger ( 1 977, Chs. 2 and 3); Horn ( 1 978a); Jackcndoff
( 1 969); Jespersen ( 1 9 1 7); Klima ( 1 964); Stockwell et al . ( J 973, Ch. 5); Tot tie ( 1 977,
1 980).
1 1 Sentence types and di scourse functi ons
Introduction
1 1 . 1 Si mple sentences may be di vided i nto four major syntactic types, whose
use correlates largely with di fferent discourse fncti ons:
(T) DECLARATIVES arc sentences i n which i t is normal fr the subject to be
present am.I to precede t he verb:
Paul i ne gave Tom a digi tal watch for hi s birthday.
On declaratives without a subject Lf1 2. 1 6, and on declaratives where the
verb precedes the subject c/ 1 8 . 1 6[
(II) INTERROGATIVES are sentences which are frmally marked in one of
two ways:
(i) yes-no i nterrogatives: an operator i s placed in front of the subject
(c/ l l . 3j):
Did Paul i ne give Tom a digital watch for hi s birthday?
(ii) wh-i nterrogatives: an i nterrogative ll'lz-element is positioned
i ni ti ally ( cf 1 1 . 9) and there is generally subject-operator i nversi on (c/
I I . I 0):
What did Pauli ne gi ve Torn fr hi s bi rthday?
(III) IMPERATIVES are sentences which normally have no overt gramma
tical subject, and whose verb has the base frm (cf 1 1 . 1 5/):
Gi ve Tom a digi tal watch for his bi rthday.
(IV) EXCLAMATIVES are sentences which have an i ni tial phrase i ntro
duced by what or holl', usually with subject-verb order (c/ 1 1 . 20):
What a fi ne watch he received fr hi s birthday!
Associated wi th these four types are fur major classes of discourse
functi ons:
(a) STATEMENTS are primarily used to convey i nformati on.
(b) QUESTIONS are pri mari l y used to seek i nfrmation on a specifi c poi nt.
(c) DIRECTIVES are primarily used to i nstruct somebody to do something.
(d) EXCLAMATIONS are pri mari l y used for expressing the extent to which
the speaker is i mpressed by somethi ng.
NOTE [a] Direct association between syntactic type and discourse class is the norm, but
the two do not always match. For example, a declarative question (c/ 1 1 . 7) is
syntactically a declarative but semantically a question, and a rhetorical question
(c
.
f 1 1 . 1 3) is syntactically an i nterrogative but semantically a statement.
232 Sentence types and discourse functions
(b] We can make many more refined distinctions in the use of sentences. For
example, It 's going lo rain any minute 1101\' and I'm sorry about the delay arc both
statements, but the frst can be used lo make a prediction and the second lo make
an apology; Could you please make less noise? is a question intended as a request,
whereas Do you want another cup? is a question that may be intended as an offer;
Make your bed al once and Make yourself at home are both directives, but the frst
has the force of a command and the second the force of an invitation.
Questions
Major classes
1 1.2 Questions can be divided i nto three major classes according to the type of
reply they expect:
I Those that expect afrmation or negation, as in Have you
.
fnis/ed the
book?, are YS-NO QUESTIONS.
2 Those that typically expect a reply from an open range of replies, as in
What is your name? or How old are you?, are W-questions.
3 Those that expect as the reply one of two or more options presented in
the question, as i n Would you like to go for a WALK or stay at HOM?, are
ALTERNATivE questions.
Yes-no questions
Form of yes-no questions
1 1 .3 Yes-no questions are usually frmed by placing the operator before the
subject and giving the sentence a rising intonation:
The boat has LEFT. Has the boat LEFT?
If there i s no i tem i n the verb phrase that can funti on as operator, DO is
i ntroduced, as with negation (cf I 0. 33):
They live i n Sydney. Do they live in Sydney?
Again as with negation, mai n verb BE fnctions as operator; in BrE mai n
verb HAVE often acts as operator, but informally HAVE . . . got is more
common:
Patrick was late. Was Patrick late?
Sh h Id
{Does she have a cold? (esp AmE)
e as a co .
Has she (got) a cold? (esp BrE)
NOTE By placing the nuclear stress on a particular part of ayes-no question, we are able
to focus the i nterrogation on a particular item of infrmation which, unlike the
rest of the sentence, is assumed to be unknown (cfl 0.39). Thus the fcus falls in
diferent places i n the following otherwise identical questions:
Questions 233
Was he a famous actor in THOSE days?
(' I know he was once a famous actor - but was it then or later?']
Was he a FAMOUS actor i n those days?
['I know he was an actor in those days - but was he a fmous one?']
Positive yes-110 questions
1 1.4 Like negative statements, yes-no questions may contain nonassertivc
items such as any and ever (cf I 0. 37). The question containing such forms
is generally neutral, with no bias in expectation towards a positive or
negative response.
STATEMENT
Someone called last night.
The boat has left already.
QUESTION
Did anyone call last night?
Has the boat left yet?
But questions may be CONDUCIVE, ie they may indicate that the speaker
is predisposed to the kind of answer he has wanted or expected. Thus, a
positive question may be presented in a frm which is biased towards a
positive answer. It has posi tive orientation, for example, i fi t uses assertive
frms rather than the usual nonassertive forms:
Did someone call last night? ['Is it true that someone called last
night?']
Has the boat left already?
Negative yes-no questions
1 1 .5 Negative questions are always conducive. Negative orientation is fund in
questions which contain a negative form of one kind or another:
Don't you believe me? Have they never invited you home?
Hasn't he told you what to do? Has nobody called?
Negative orientation is complicated by an element of surprise or disbelief.
The implication is that the speaker had originally hoped fr a positive
response, but new evidence now suggests that the response wil l be
negative. Thus, Hasn 't /e told you 11'/at 10 do? means 'Surely he has told
you what to do, hasn't he? I would ha\e thought that he had told you. '
Here there is a combining of a posi tive and a negative attitude, whi ch one
may distinguish as the OLD EXPECT A TIO: (positi ve) and NEW EXPECTATION
(negative). Because the old expectation tends to be identifed with the
speaker's hope or wishes, negatively orientated questions often express
disappointment or annoyance:
Can't you drive straight? ['I'd have thought you'd be able to, but
apparently you can't.']
Aren't you ashamed of yourself? [You ought to be, but i t appears
you' re not. ']
Hasn't the boat left yet ? ['I'd hoped it would have left by now, but it
seems i t hasn' t. ']
NOTE
11. 6
234 Sentence types and discourse functions
rr a negative question has assertive items, it is biased towards positive
orientation:
Didn' t someone call last night? ['I expect that someone did. ']
Hasn' t the boat lef alreac(r? ['Surely it has. ']
Such questions are simi lar in effect to type (i) tag questions (cf 1 1 . 6).
The enclitic negative particle precedes the subject, since i t is attached to the
operator, whereas not (used in less infrmal style) generally follows the subject:
Didn' t they warn you? Did they not warn you?
Some speakers fnd i t acceptable fr not to be placed (in rather frmal style) in the
same position as the enclitic. This construction is especially likely where the
subject i s lengthy:
Does not everything we see testify to the power of Divine Providence?
But in printed texts not may merely represent (misleadi ngly) the printed equivalent
of the attached enclitic.
Tag questions
Maximum conduciveness is expressed by a tag question appended to a
statement (i n the frm of a declarative):
Joan recognized you, didn't size? ['Surely Joan recognized you. ']
The boat hasn't lef, has it? ['Surely the boat hasn't left . ']
For the most common types of tag question, the tag question is negative i f
the statement is positive and vice versa. The tag question has the frm of a
yes-no question consisting of merely an operator and a subject pronoun,
the choice of operator and pronoun depending on the statement. The
nuclear tone of the tag occurs on the operator and is either rising or flling.
Below are the fur main types of tag questions, which vary according to
whether the statement is positive or negative, and whether the tag
question is rising or flling:
POSITIVE ST A TElfENT + NEGATIVE TAG
(i) RISING TONE on tag (iii) FALLING TONE on tag
He likes his JOB. D6Esn' t he? He likes his JOB, DOEsn' t he?
NEGATIVE ST A THfENT +POSITIVE TAG
(ii) RISING TONE on tag (iv) FALLING TONE on tag
He doesn't l ike his JOB, DOES he? He doesn't l ike his JOB, DOES he?
The meanings of these sentences, like their frms, involve a statement
and a question; each of them, that is, asserts something, then i nvites the
listener's response to i t. Sentence (i), fr example, can be rendered 'I
assume he likes his job; am I right?', (ii) means the opposite: 'I assume he
doesn't like his job, am I right?'. These sentences have a positive and a
negative orientation respectively. A similar contrast exists between (iii)
and (iv). But it is important, again, to separate two fctors: an ASSUMPTION
Questions 235
(expressed by the statement) and an EXPECTATION (expressed by lhc
questi on). On thi s principle, we may distinguish fur types, where ' +
indicates a positive frm of the statement or tag and ' -' a negative form:
statement lag
(i)
(ii)
(iii)
(iv)
Positive assumption + neutral expectation
Negative assumption + neutral expectation
Positive assumption + positive expectation
Negative assumption + negative expectation
+ - ns1 11 g
+
+ risi ng
-fa lling
+ fl l i ng
The tag wi th a rising tone i nvites verifcation, expecting the hearer to
decide the truth of the proposition in the statement. The tag with the
flling tone, on the other hand, i nvites confrmation of the statement, and
has the force of an exclamation rather than a genuine question. The truth
of the statement may be self-evident however, and therefre no response is
expected:
I wasn't bor yesterday, was I?
NOTE [a] There i s a further, less common, type of tag question in which both statement
and question are positive:
Your car is outsioE, is it?
You've had an Accident, HAVE you?
The tag typically has a rising tone, and the statement is characteristically preceded
by oh or so indicating the speaker's arrival at a conclusion by i nference, or by
recalling what has already been said. The tone may sometimes be one of sarcastic
suspicion:
So rnAT's your l i ttle, game, is it?
[b] Tag questions can also be appended to imperatives and exclamatives:
Turn on the l i ght, won' t you?
Open the door, can't you?
Don' t make a noise, will you?
Let's not discuss it now, shall we?
How thin she is, isn't she?
What a beautiful painting it is, isn' t it'
[c] Several tag questions are invariant, ie they ha\'e the same form whether the
statement or exclamation is positive or negative: isn't that so?, don't you think:'.
right? (infrmal ), wouldn 't you say?
Declarative questions
1 1 .7 The declarative question has the frm of a declarative, except fr the fnal
rising i ntonation:
You' ve got the TiCKets?
They've spoken to the amBAssador. of course?
You realize what the RISKS are?
Boris wil l be THERE, I suppose?
236 Sentence types and discourse functions
Declarative questions are conducive (c( I I .4), and resemble tag
questions with a rising tone in that they i nvi te the hearer's veri fcati on.
Positive questions have positive orientation and can therefore accept onl y
assertive items ( 1 0. 37):
He wants something to eat?
Somebody is with you?
Negative questions have negative orientation, and nonassertive forms
may be used fllowing the negative:
You di dn' t get anything to eat?
Nobody ever stays at your place?
Yes-10 questions with modal auxiliaries
1 1.8 The formation of yes-no questions with modal auxi liaries i s subject to
certain l i mi tations and shifts of meaning. The modals of permission (Illa\'
(esp BrE), and can) and of obligation (must (esp BrE), and lzal'e t;)
generally i nvolve the speaker's authority in statements and the hearer's
authority in questions:
. NOTE
A:
B:
A:
B:
May }
Can
I leave now?
Yes, you
{may } .
can
Must I }
Do I have to
leave now?
{must }
Yes, you
h
.
ave to
['Will you permit me . . . ']
['I wipermit you . . . ']
['Are you telling me to . . . ']
['I am telling you to . . . ']
The question frm anticipates the frm appropriate for the answer.
In the possibility sense, can or (more commonly in AmE) could are used
rather than may:
A:
Can }
Could
they have missed the bus?
B.
.
y th
{may have.
es, ey .
h h m1g t ave.
The past forms might [permission], irould[volition], and could[volitionJ
ar

regularly used fr politeness in place of the present forms; fr example.
Mzglzt I calf you by your frst name?; Would you stand at tlze back, please?:
Could I see you/or a moment?
(a] Shall [volition] is used (esp i n BrE) to involve the hearer's will in questions:
Shal ! switch ofthe television? As common al ternatives we have Should f? or Do
you wam me to?
[b] Need (esp in BrE) i s used as a nonassertive modal auxiliary wi th negati ve

. .

I
.

Questions 23 7
orientation: Need they lea\'e nmv?. Common substi tutes (esp in AmE) arc the
mai n verb need to and have to: Do they needihare to leave nmr? On the other hand.
111ust in the necessity sense has positive orientation: Why 111ust it alHays rain 1rhen
11e 11ant to hme a picnic?
[c] Dare is occasionally used as a nonassertive modal auxili ary, especial! in BrE:
Dare ll'e co111plain? Common substi tutes are the main verb dare and (esp In AmE)
t he blend construction wi th DO and the bare i nfni tive: Do 11e dare to Complain:' ; Do
ll'e dare co111plain?
Wh-questions
Form of wh-question
1 1 .9 Wh-questions are frmed with the aid of one of the fllowing simple
i nterrogative words (or wh-words):
1 1. 1 0
who/whom/whose, what, which, when, where, how, why
Unl i ke yes-no questions, w/-questions generally have flling i ntonation.
As a rule,
(i) the w/-element (ie the clause element contai ni ng the wh-word)
comes frst in the sentence,
(ii) the wh-word itself takes frst p

siti
_
on in the wh-element.
.
The mai n excepti on to the second pnnc1ple occurs when te wh-word
_
is
wi thi n a preposi ti onal complement. Here English provides a choice
between two constructions, one being formal. In frmal style, the
preposition precedes the complement, whereas otherwise the complement
comes frst and the preposition i s deferred to the end of the sentence:
On what did you base your prediction? (formal)
What did you base your prediction on?
We may perhaps express this diference more neatly by saying that non
formal style generally requi res that the 1rh-word comes frst, but frmal
style requires that the wh-element as a whole comes frst.
Function of wh-element
The fllowing sentences exemplify the various clause functions in which
the wh-element operates:
Who i s coming to the PARty? [1r/-element: S] [ I ]
What did you buy for your sister? [1rh-element: Od] [2]
Whose beautiul anTiQUS are these? [wh-element: C.] [3]
How wide di d they make the B6oKcase? [w/-element: C
o
l [4]
[5] When will you be proM6Ted? [1r/-element: A]
Where shall I put the GLAsses? [11'/-element: A] [6]
Wlv didn' t you TELL me? [w/-element: A]
[7
]
Ho
;
v di d you MND i t? [wh-element: A] [8]
How much does he CARE? [wh-element: A] [9]
How long have you been wArri
n
g? [11'/-element: A] [ ! OJ
How often do you visit New YORK? [w/-element: A] [ I I ]
238 Sentence types and discourse functions
We see above that the normal statement order of elements is al tered i n
wh-questions not only by the i ni tial placing of the irh-element, but by the
i nversion of subject and operator in all cases except when the lt'/-el emcnt
is subject, where the rule that the ll' h-element takes i nitial position i s given
precedence.
Subject-operator i nversion is the same i n i ts application to irh
questions as i n i ts application to yes-110 questions; i fthere is no opera tor in
the equivalent statement, oo is i ntroduced as operator i n the questi on. The
main verb BE and (occasionally, esp i n Br E) HA VE act as opera tor: Where is
she?, What kind of car hal'e they?
NOTE [a] Adjuncts of instrument, reason, and purpose are normally questioned by the
prepositional construction: What shall I mend it 11i1h?; What did you do that.for?
Al though the latter could be replaced by Why didyou do that?, it has no alternative
with a proposed preposition: *For what did you do that?; In this respect it is like
infrmal questions with BE fllowed by a fnal preposi ti on: What was it in:'
11. 11
[b] Abbreviated questions consisting of a 11h-word and a fnal preposition (which
i n this construction regularly bears nuclear stress), eg: What FOR?, Where FR6.1!
TO?, What wiTH?, Who WiTH/BY?, are as common i n infrmal speech as questions
consisting of the ll'h-word only: Where?, Why?, Who? There is a common
abbreviated negative question Why NOT? and an i nfrmal abbreviated reason
question (esp in AmE) How COME?
[c] Except i n frmal style, who rather than whom i s used as object ( Who did you
want?) or complement of preposi tion ( Who did you give it to?).
[d] Many speakers do not accept an i ndi rect object as ll'h-element: ? Who(m) did
you give the present? They use the equivalent prepositional phrase i nstead:
Who( m) did you give the present to? or (in frmal style) To ll'hom did you give the
present? Some speakers, however, fnd the construction acceptable i f there is no
ambiguity as to which object is di rect and which i ndirect. (There is ambiguity i n
* Who did you shall' your daughter?)
[e] There can be more than one wh-element:
Which present di d you give to whom?
Who said what to whom?
Who did you see where?
Alternative questions
There are two types of al ternative questions. The frst resembles a yes-no
question, and the second a wh-questi on:
Would you l i ke CH6colate, vaNfLla, or STRAWberry (ice-
cream)? [ ! ]
Which ice-cream would you LIKE? CH6colate, vaNiL!a or
srnA wberry? [2]
The frst type di fers from a yes-no question only in i ntonation; i nstead of
the fi nal ri si ng tone, i t contains a separate nucleus fr each al ternative: a
rise occurs on each i tem i n the l i st, except the last, on which there is a fll,
indicating that the l i st i s complete. The di ference of i ntonation between
NOTE

1 1. 12
I
Questions 239
alternative and res-nn questions is important, in that ignrin? i t
.
can lead

d t

d"1 no as the contrast between these replies i ndicates: to m1sun ers an
, -
a/teratil'e: A: Shall we go by Bes or TRAIN?
yes-no:
B: By BUS.
A: Shall we go by bus or TRAIN?
B: No, let's take the CAR.

II a compound of two The second type of alternative question is rea Y
.
separate questions: a wh-question fol lowed by an
.
elliptical alternative
question. Thus [2] might be taken as a reduced version of:
Which ice-cream would you LIKE? Would you l i ke cH6colate,
vaNILla, or STRA wberry?
[a] Any yes-no question can be converted into an al ternative question:
ARE you ready or AREn't you ready?
ARE you ready or NOT?
Si nce the alternative variant unnecessarily spells out the negative possibility, i t
i ntroduces a petulant tone to the question.
[b] EIJipted frms are generally preferred, ie [4] rather than [3]:
Di d irnly win the World Cup or did BraZIL win the World Cup?
Di d irnly win the World Cup or BraziL?
The second part can be placed wi thi n the frst part:
Did irnly or BraziL win the World Cup?
ARE you or AREn't you coming?
Minor types of questions
Exclamatory questions
[3]
[4]
The exclamatory question is i nterrogative in structure, but has t
.
he frce of
t
.
( f 1 I ?Q) Tvpically i t is a negative yes-110
an exclamatory asser 10n c - :
.
question with a fnal fal l i ng i nstead of nsmg tone:
Hasn' t she GROWN!
Wasn' t it a marvellous c6Ncert!
th" on which the speaker has
These i nvi te the hearer's agreement to some mg
f he l i teral strong feelings. The meaning, contrary to the appearance o t
wordino is vigorously positive.
.
1 A poitive yes-no question, also with a '.I l i ng ton
_
e,
.
1s a
_
nother (but ess
common) way of expressing a strong pos1t1ve conv1ct10n.
' Am ' I HUNGry! ' Di d ' he l ook an:6YED! ' Has ' she GROWN!
Both operator and subject usually receive emphatic stress. In

r
English an exclamation mark is usual at the end of the sentence o
ki nds of exclamatory questions.
I 1. 13
240 Sentence types and discourse functions
Rhetorical questions
The rhetorical question i s i nterrogative in structure, but has the force ofa
strong assertion. The speaker does not expect an answer.
A positive rhetorical yes-no question is li ke a strong negative assertion.
while a negative question is li ke a strong positive one.
POSITIVE:
Is that a reason for desPAIR? ['Surely that is not a reason . . . ']
Can anyone doubt the wisdom of this action? ['Surely no one can
doubt . . .']
NEGATIVE:
Isn't the answer 6Bvious? ['Surely the answer is obvious. ']
Haven't you got anything better to 06? ['Surely you have somethi ng
better to do. ']
Unlike exclamatory questions, these rhetorical questions have the
normal rising i ntonation of a yes-no question, and are di sti nguished
chiefy by the range of pitch movement.
There are also rhetorical wh-questions. The positive question is
equivalent to a statement i n which the wh-element i s replaced by a negative
element:
Who KN6ws/cARES? ['Nobody knows/cares' or ' I don't know/care.']
What DTFfrence does i t make?

[' It makes no diference.']

How should r know? ['There is no reason why I should know. ']
The less common negative question is equi valent to a statement in which
the wh-element is replaced by a positive element:
Who DOEsn't know? ['Everybody knows. ']
How c6uLon't you remember? ['You certainly should have
remembered.']
Rhetorical wh-questions generally have a rise-fall tone, less commonly a
simple fal l i ng tone.
Echo questions
1 1. 14 Echo questions repeat part or al l of what has been said. Replicatory echo
questions do so as a way of having their content confrmed:
A: The Browns are emigrating. B: Emigrating?
A: He's a dermatologist. B: WHAT i s he?
A: I'll pay for i t. B: You'll WAT?
A: Have you ever been to Valladolid?
B: Have I ever been WHERE?
A: She always wears a quizzical expressi on.
B: She always wears a WHAT expression?
A: She sat there and ratiocinated.
{WHAT?
B: She sat there and .
d
?
WHATe .

NOTE
Directives 241
Explicatory echo questions, which are always Hh-questions, ask for
clarifcation. They have a falling tone on the ll'h-word:
A: Take a look at this! B: Take a look at WHAT'?
A: He's missed the bus agai n. B: WH6's missed the bus?
[a] The generalized rccapitulalory w/i-queslion WH.4T did you s
_
ay? is s
_
omcti mes
truncated lo the monosyllabic WHAT? (impolite except among fncnds), JUSt as the
alternative frmula I beg your pardon? can be reduced simply to Pardon? Other
abbreviated requests fr repetition are Pardon me? (AmE), Exrse me? (AmE).
and Sorry? (BrE).
[b] What? on i ts own can al so express general i ncreduli ty:
A: I paid 1 , 000 fr lhal picture. B: WHAT? You must be mad.
Di rectives
Di rectives without a subject
1 1. 15 Di rectives typically take the form of an imperative sentence, whi ch di fers
from a declarative sentence i n that:
(i) i t generally has no subject;
(ii) it generally has a verb in the base frm.
Otherwise, the clause patterns of imperative sentences show the same
range and ordering of elements as declaratives (cf 1 0. 1 ); for example;
(S) V: Jump.
(S) VC: Be reasonable.
(S) VOC: Consider yourself lucky.
The imperative verb lacks tense distinction and does not allow modal
auxiliaries: Th
e
progressive frm i s rare, and the perfect, even rarer:
Be listening to this station the same time tomorrow night.
Passives with be occur chiefy in negative directives, where they
generally have the meaning 'Don't allow yourself to be . . . ' :
Don't be deceived by hi s looks.
Don' t be bullied i nto signing.
They are less common in positive directives: Be guided by what I say. What
might be analysed as passives occur with get: Get washed; Don 't get
dressed yet.
Imperatives are restricted to verbs used dynamically, hence the
incongruity of * Be old. Many predications that are stative with respect t
_
o
disallowing

the progressive (cf 4. 1 1 ) are available with a dynamic
i nterpretation: Forgive us; Love your enemies; Don 't be a stranger.
242 Sentence types and discourse functions
Di rectives with a subject
l l. 16 The meaning of a directi ve implies that the omi tted subject is t he 2nd person pronoun you. The implication can be demonstrated by the occurrence of you as subject of a fllowing tag question (Be quiet, ll'ill you?), by the occurrence of only yoursel or yourselves as the refexi ve (Behave yoursel or Help yourselves), and by the occurrence of onlv the emphatic possessive your Ol\'n (Use your Ol\'n comb).
.
NOTE
There is, however, a type of directive in which the stressed subject you is added. You may be noncontrastive and admoni tory:
'You be Quret!
'You ' mind your own Business, and ' leave this to ME!
'You ' take the BOOK.
It fequently expresses strong irritation or (as in the last example) merely insistence. On the other hand, noncontrastive you may be persuasive:
I know you can do i t if you try hard enough. 'You 'show me what
you can Do.
You may also be contrastive in the sense of singling out one person or one set of persons.
Don' t tell ME to be QUIET. You be quiet!
Thi rd person subjects are also possible:
Somebody open this door.
Parents with children go to the font.
Nobody move.
There is blurring of subject and vocative (cf 1 0.3 1/) in these commands. But whereas the subject always precedes the verb, the vocative i s an element that can occur in fnal and medial, as well as initial, positions in t.he sentence. Another diference is. that the vocative, when initially placed, has a separate tone unit (typically fall-rise); the subject merely receives ordinary word stress:
VOCATIVE:
SUBJECT:
MARY, play on MY side.
Play on MY side, MARY.
'Mary play on MY side.
The distinctness ofvoative and imperative subject is confrmed by the possibility of their cooccurrence: JOHN, 'you listen 10 ME
Vocative you, as opposed to imperative subject you, is very impolite: YOU, ' come HERE.
Directives with let
11. 17 First person i mperati ves can be frmed by preposing the verb let followed
by a notional subject in the objective case:
l l. 18
NOTE
11. 19
NOTE
Directives 243
Let us work hard. ['We must work hard.']
Let me see now. Do I have any money on me? ['I must consider thi s
now.']
The same applies to 3rd person subjects:
Let 110 one think that a teacher's l i fe is easy. ['No one must thi nk . . . ']
Let each man decide fr hi msel f ['Each man must decide . . . ']
Except fr the let me type, these are generally rather archic and elevated
in tone. A colloquial alternative to let us, however, rs the common
abbreviated frm let 's: Let 's have a party.
Negative imperatives
To negate imperatives, one simply adds an initial Don 't or Do not,
replacing assertive by nonassertive items where necessary:
Open the door. Don't open the door.
Get some wine. Don't get any wine.
You open the door. Don 't you open the door.
Someone open the door. Don 't anyone open the door.
Imperatives with let are informally negated vith don't:
Don't let 's say anything about it. (esp BrE)
Let 's don't say anything about i t. (esp AmE)
Don't let me disturb you. (esp BrE)
Don 't let anyone fool himself he can get away with it.
Variants occur, especially with let 's, where no1 is inserted after the pronoun: Let 's
not say anything about it.
Do with positive imperatives
A positive imperative can be made more persuasive or insistent (esp in
BrE) by adding do (usually with a nuclear tone) befre the verb:
oo have some more tea. DO let's go fr a wal k.
Thi s use of do applies onl y when a subject is absent or when let 's i s present.
Do, like don 't and /et
'
s, acts as an i ntroductory imperative marker. When used with
imperatives, do and don't are not acting as dummy operators (c/3. 1 1 ), and they
can be used with be: Do be quiet ; Don't be sil. (Contrast the unacceptb1hty of
*They do be quiet.) The same applies i n the quasi-imperative construct10n Why
don't you be more careful?
1 1.20
NOTE
1 1. 21
244 Sentence types and discourse functions
Exclamatives
Exclamatives as a formal category of sentence are restricted to the type of
exclamatory utterance i ntroduced by H'hat or how (cf 1 1 . 1 2). The H'h-word
indicates an extreme position on some scale of value, and therefre ca n
only appear at points where an expression of degree is possible: What as
predetermi ner i n a noun phrase [ ! ]; and how as i ntensifer of an adjective
[2] or adverb [3], or as a degree adverbial [4]. The H'h-element i s fronted,
but i n contrast to 1\'h-questions there is no subject-operator inversion:
What a time we've had today!
How delightful her manners are!
How quickly you eat!
How I used to hate geography!
( l ]
(2]
(3]
[4]
Sometimes, one must i nfer from the context whether the reference i s to
one end of the scale or the other. For example, What a time i n [ l ] could
refer to a very good time or a very bad time.
[a] When the wh-element i s the complement of a preposi tion, the preposition is
normally left i n fnal position: What a mess we 're in!
[b] Echo exclamations do not have an exclamative structure, but it is convenient to
mention them here. Like the echo question (cfl 1 . 1 4), the echo exclamation repeats
part or all of a preceding utterance. It is characterized by a rise-fll or high-fll
tone:
A: I'm going to London for a holiday.
B: To L6Ndon! That's not my idea of a rest.
A: Have you been to Paris?
B: Been to PAris! I certainly have.
A: I hear you're a linguist.
B: I a linguist! (frmal)
B: Me a linguist!
Irregul ar sentences
IRREGULAR sentences do not conform to the regular patterns of clause
structures (cf 1 0. 1 ) or to the variations of those structures i n the major
syntactic classes (cf 1 1 . 1 ). Some types are listed below.
(i) The formulaic (or ' optative') subjunctive, one use of the base frm
of the verb, survives in a few fssilized expressions. It i s combined
with subject-verb i nversion (induced by the i nitial adverb) in, for
example:
Long live the Republic!
So help me God.
It is fund without inversion i n, fr example:


1 1.22
Irregular sentences 245
God saPe the Queen! God forbid!
A less archaic formula (with subject-verb inversion) for expressi ng
wishes has may in front:
May the best man wi n! May you always be happy!
(ii) There are several ki nds of i rregular H'h-questions, which occur
mai nl y i n conversation, for example:
Hair about another kiss? What about coming to my place'?
How come you' re so late? Why listen to him?
Why all the noi se? What if it rains?
(iii) Several ki nds of subordinate clauses are used as sentences, generally
with exclamatory frce:
That I shoul d live to see such ingratitude!
To thi nk that you might have been killed!
Well, i f i t isn't Susan! ('It is i ndeed Susan!']
If only I'd listened to my parents!
(iv) Adverbials may have the frce of commands, sometimes m
combination wi th another element:
Left, right!
Hands up!
Everybody i nside!
On with the show!
(v) Many proverbs have an aphoristic sentence structure, in which t\vo
short constructions are balanced against each other:
The more, the merrier.
Waste not, want not.
Block l anguage
First come, frst served.
Out of sight, out of mi nd.
Bl ock language appears (especially i n writing) i n such fuctions as l bels,
ti tles, newspaper headlines, headings, notices, and advert1s
.
enents .
.
simple
block-language messages often consist of a noun phrase m 1sol at1 on:
Entrance
English Department
For Sale
50 mph limit
The Nell' York Times
No dogs without leash
Newspaper headl i nes commonly contain block language because of
pressure on space, and they are i mi tated on radio and television news
broadcasts. They can often be analysed in terms of clause structure, but
with the omission of words thafmay be understood from the context, such
as the fni te frms of the verb BE and the articles:
OIL SPILL THREAT DECREASING (SV]
PRESIDENT CALLS FOR CALM (SVA]
SHARE PRICES NOW HIGHER (SAC)
NOTE
246 Sentence types and discourse functions
Omissions of words that can be i nferred from the context occur in other
types of writing:
Wish you were here. [postcard]
MANUSCRIPT RECEIVED CHANGES ACCEPTED [cable]
Refrigerate after opening [label]
[a] Notices of prohibition often take the form of a noun phrase introduced by No:
No entry; No smoking.
[b] I n i nformal conversation many types of phrases occur as complete utterances:
The things they get up to! ; You and your ideas! ; Of all the stupid things to say! ;
Taxi! ; More coffee?; Your name? ; No nell's. In addition there are many frmulae
used for stereotyped communication situations; for example: Good moring;
Goodbye; How do you do? ; Thanks; Happy Birthday.
[c] Interjections are purely emotive words which do not enter into syntactic
relations. Among the common i nterjections are Ah, Boo, Oh, Ouch, Sh, Wair.
Bi bliographical note
On the pragmatic functions of sentences in utterances see Austin ( 1 962); Cole and
Morgan ( 1 975); Leech ( 1 983); Lyons ( 1 977); Searle ( 1 979).
On questions see Bolinger ( 1 957); Hudson ( 1 975); Pope ( 1 976); Stenstrom
( 1 984); Stockwell et al. ( 1 973, Ch. 9); on tag questions, Algeo ( 1 990); Bald ( 1 979);
Nassli n ( 1 984); on negative questions, Kontra ( 1 980).
On di rectives see Boli nger ( 1 967c) and ( 1 977, Chs. 8 and 9); Downes ( 1 977);
Stein ( 1 976); Stockwell et al. ( 1 973, Ch. 1 0).
12. 1
1 2 Pro-forms and el l i psi s
Motivation for abbreviation
Pro-fo:ms and ellipsis are syntactic devices fr abbrevi ating constructi ons
to vo1 redundancy. For example, we can avoid the repetition of sing
to1!1g1 t m [ ! ] b he
_
substitution of the pro-form do so, as in [ I a], or by
elhps1s (which 1s md1cated by the symbolL.), as in [ l b]:
She night si ng tonight, but I don' t thi nk she wi l l sing
tomght.
She might sing tonight, but I don't think she will do so.
She might sing tonight, but I don't think she wil l 6.
[ I ]
[ I a]
[ I b]
Other things being equal, language users will follow the maxim ' Reduce as
much as possible'.
The preference for abbreviation i s not merely a preference fr economy.
Abbreviation can contri bute to clarity, since attention i s focused on new
i nformation, as in [2]:
A: Have you spoken to Bob?
B: 6 Not yet 6.
Recoverabi l ity
[2]
1 2. 2 !n order that constructions with pro-forms and ellipsis should be
mterpreted correctly, the full form must be recoverable. We list below
three types of recoverability, and mention frst the most important type
fom the grammatical poi nt of view:
(i) TEXTUAL RECOVERABILITY: The full form is recoverable from a
neighbouring part of the text.
(ii) SITUATIONAL RECOVERABILITY: The full form is recoverable from the
extralinguistic situation.
(i i i) STRUCTURAL RECOVERABILITY: The full frm is recoverable from
knowledge of grammatical structure.
The use of the pronoun she, for example, presupposes that the speaker
and hearer know the identity of the person to whom the pronoun refers. In
[ I ] and [2] we can identify the referent from the linguistic context. We
understand she to refer to the same person as does the poor girl:
The poor girl did not complai n, although she was badly hurt. [ I ]
Al though she was badly hurt, the poor girl did not compl ai n. [2]
12.3
248 Pro-forms and ellipsis
There are two types of textual recoverabi l i ty: [ I ] is an example of the
ANAPHORIC use of the pronoun, where the ANTECEDENT (the poor girl )
comes before the pronoun, and [2] is an example of the less common
CATAPHORIC use, where t he antecedent fllows the pronoun.
Situational recoverability is exempli fed i n:
Js she badly hurt?
[3]
One can imagine someone saying [3] on arri vi ng at the scene of an accident
i n which a girl has been struck down by a car. The identity of the person
meant by she is then obvious fom the si tuati on.
The thi rd type of recoverabili ty, structural recoverability, is i ll ustrated
by the optional ellipsis of the conj unction that in [4]:
He admi ts (that ) he prefers his mother's cooki ng.
[4]
Here, contextual i nfrmation is i rrelevant: the optionality of that is purely
a matter of grammatical structure.
Antecedents and the repl aced expressi ons
Pro-forms and their antecedents may be l i nked by COREFERENCE, a l i nkage
of 'cross-reference' between two expressions that refer to the same thi ng
or set of things. For example, i n [ I ] George and he will generally be
understood to refer to the same person:
George was the best runner i n our school, and so everyone
expected that he would win the prize.
[ I ]
We can also replace the pronoun he by George without changi ng the
meaning of the sentence.
But the relation between a pro-form and i ts antecedent is not
necessarily a relation ofcoreference. For example, i n [2] the pronoun one
substitutes for a.frst prize, as the grammatical and semantic equi valence
of [2] with [2a] shows:
Fiona got a.frst prize this year, and J got one last year. [2]
Fiona got a.frst prize this year, and I got a
.
frst prize l ast
year.
[2a]
Jt is clear, however, that the pronoun one in [2] does not refer to the same
prize as does i ts antecedent a
.
frst prize. Si mi larly, the two uses of a
.
frst
prize are not coreferential in [2a].
The antecedent i s not necessarily identical wi th the expressi on that is
replaced or ellipted. For example, in [3] the pronoun it refers to an
antecedent clause, but -as [3a] demonstrates - the clause that it replaces is
not identical wi th the antecedent clause:

,
.

I
I
12.4
Pro-forms 249
!(you don 't study/or the exami1 atir11. you 1 : regret it.
j f you don' t study for the exammatl on, you I I regret 1101
stuc(ring for the e:wminat ion.
[3]
[3a]
When we refer to a pro-frm as replacing a particul ar
:
yntactic fr
,
m we
mean the frm fr which i t substitutes and not necessarily the antecedinl .
Pro-forms
Pro-forms for noun phrases and thei r constituents
The most obvious pro-forms fr noun phrases are the 3rd person
pronouns and determiners:
Cindy was by fr the best speaker, and so everyone expected
that size would win the prize. [I
l
Ten per cent ofinsomniacs sleep soundly when they come to
a sleep clinic.
. . .
The islanders pay all their l i ves on insurance pohc1es for
expensive funerals.
[2]
[3]
Despite the name, almost all pronouns are pro-frms for noun phrases
rather than simply for nouns.
. .
Other items that can be pro-forms for noun phrases
.
i nclude m
particular i ndefi ni te pronouns such as any, all, both, each,

llher, some,
and none. These, however, can also be regarded as elliptical, smce they can
be expanded, usually with an of-phrase:
When the children entered, each (of the children)/ (child) was given a
small present.
.
Some equipment has been damaged. but none (of the eqwpment) has
been lost.
.
1
,
Both of the engines had been hi t. and neither (of the engines
(engine) could be relied upon to bring us safely home.
.
Her cousins go to the same school as she di d. and all (of her cous111s)
(her cousins) want to become doctors.
This year we produced more coal. but we sold less (coal) .
The demonstratives (cf6. 1 9j) can be pro-frms for noun phrases and
they can also be regarded as elliptical:
I read his frst novel, and that (norel) was boring too.
The pai ntings of Gauguin's Tahiti period are more famous than
those (paintings) he painted i n France.
f h
.
e ([4]) but it can also
The same can be a pro-form or a noun p ras
. .
,
substitute fr a preposi tional phrase ([5]) or an adjective phrase ([6] and
250 Pro-lorms and ellipsis
[7]) functioning as a subject or object complement:
A: Can I have a cup ofblack cofee wilh sugar, please?
B: Gi ve me !he same, please. [4]
Yesterday I felt under !he weal her and today I feel !he same. [5]
The Denison house is small bu1 very comf or/able, and ours is
just !he same. [6]
I want my steak rare and David wants hi s !he same. [
7]
In all i ts substitute uses (cf 1 2. 8 Note [b]), !he same does not i mply iden1i1y
but similarily wi th the antecedent.
One as a proform
12-5 There are two pro-frms one: one has the plural some, and the other has
the pl ural ones. Both are always unstressed (and are thereby distinguished
fom the numeral one), and both substitute fr phrases wi th count nouns
as heads.
U.6
(i) One/some is a substitute fr an indefnite noun phrase:
A: Can you give me a few nails? I need one.
B: I'll get you some soon.
Compare:
I need
a nail.
I need
some nails.
one. some.
(ii) One and ones are substitutes fr a NOMINAL EXRESSION, a noun
phrase head wi th or without one or more modifiers (not the whole
noun phrase):
Have you any knives? I need a sharp one. [ l ]
I wish I'd bought a few jars of honey. Di d you notice the ones
they were selling? [2]
In [ I ] , one substitutes for the noun knie, and i n [2] ones substitutes for jars
ofhoney. One as a pro-form for a nominal expression must have an overt
determiner. The equivalent pro-frm for noncount nouns i s some:
Shall I pass the huller? Or have you got some already?
Pro-forms for clauses and clause constituents
Pro-frm do
The dummy operator do i s a pro-frm for the predicate i n [ I ] , despite the
structural parallelism wi th other operators, as in [2], that are fllowed by
el l ipsis of the predication (cf 1 2. 1 4, 1 2.20 Note [a]):
Martin drives a car, and his sister does, TOO.
Martin can drive a car, and his sister can6, TOO.
[ l ]
[2]
Pro-forms 251
In BrE many allow the possibility of adding after Lhe auxiliary or
auxi li aries an optional i ntransitive main \Ub do as a pro-form for t he
predication (Marlin can dril'e a car, and his sis/er can do, 100). Thi s
happens rarely after the operator do, but is more common after a modal or
after the perfect auxili ary hare:
Do so
Bob says he is going to join the Labour Party.
It will be i nteresting to see whether he DOES (do). (rare)
The Americans are reducing thei r defence expenditure this year. 1
wonder if the Russians will (do) TOO.
I di dn' t touch the television set; but PERcy might have (done).
12.7 The main verb do combines wi th so to form a unit do so that functions as a
pro-frm for the predicate or predication. The verb in this combination
occurs in both fni te and nonfnite forms, and the combination appears in
infni tive and -ing participle clauses as well as i n fni te clauses. Since the do
so construction i s somewhat formal, in informal use the general preference
is for the alternative ellipsis of the predication where possible (cf 1 2.20),
which i s indicated by the parentheses i n the examples below:
They planned to reach the top of the mountain, but nobody knows i f
they did (so).
You can take t he train back to Madrid, but I shouldn' t (do so) until
tomorrow morning.
As no one else has succeeded i n solvi ng the mystery, I'll attempt to
(do so) myself.
As no one else has succeeded in doing so, I'll attempt to solve the
mystery myself.
NOTE Unlike the intransitive do of 1 2.6, the do in do so is usually stressed (but the so is
always unstressed).
Do it, do that, do so
12.8 The transitive mai n verb do also combines with the pronouns ii and that to
frm a unit that functions as a pro-form for the predicate or predication:
Is Connie still trying to light the sto\e? She should have DONE ii by
NOW.
Are you trying to l i ght the stove with a match? I wouldn' t do THAT.
In general, do i n these two combinations has dynamic and agentive
reference; ie i t refrs to an action that i s perfrmed or i ntentionally
i ni ti ated by the referent of the subject. It is hence abnormal fr do ii and do
Iha! to substitute for predicates or predications thatare_stative or denote
i nvol untary processes:
252 Pro-forms and ellipsis
A: They thi nk he's mad.
B: *We do it TOO.
A: He owns a Cadillac.
B *Y h' . h /
that
: CS, JS BRO! er ( oes , TOO.
THAT
With regard to do so, there is divided usage. Some speakers, particularly
in AmE, treat the do in do so as dynamic and agentive, while others accept
do so, at least to some extent, even when the combination is associated
with stative or i nvoluntary process predications:
(?) They think he is mad, and do so TOO.
(?) Peter l i kes work, and BOB does so TOO.
A: Bob might have heard the strange noises.
B: (?) He might WELL have done so.
NOTE [a] Do that gives more prominence lo the object that, which often receives nuclear
stress and is treated to some extent as new or contrastive information. The it of do
it, on the other hand, is always unstressed.
[b] Do the same, do likell'ise, and do similarly are alternatives to do that when a
comparison is involved:
I'll contribute ten dollars, i f you'll do the same.
They refer to a similar event and not to the identical event referred to by their
antecedent.
Pro-forms for adverbials
12.9 Here and there can be pro-forms fr place adverbials, and then fr time
adverbials:
Between London and Oxfrd there i s a famous inn called the George
and Dragon. Here we stopped for lunch.
I f you look in the top drawer, you' ll probably fnd it there.
One morning the captain invi ted us to the bridge. He told us then
about hi s secret orders.
There is the unmarked place pro-frm, whereas here specifcally denotes
closeness to the speaker.
So and thus can be pro-forms for process adverbials (cf 8. 27f). Both
appear i n frmal contexts, and otherwise (in) that iry or like that are
used:
To the Greeks, Pan was a herdsman, hal-man, hal-goat; and he is
so/thus represented i n their sculpture. (formal)
d h
.
. d
(in) that way _
. .
1
. . . ; an e 1s represente
l
'
k 1
1 their scu pture.
1 e t wt
r
I

r
I
Pro-forms 253
It is convenient to refer here to the use of so and that as pro-forms fr
i ntensi fers of adject i ves and adverbs:
Though Bairstow designed the car to exceed 400 miles pe hour, few
people believed that it would go so rhat fast.
I had a headache and a high temperature, but I'm not feeling so/tlwr
bad today.
So as pro-form for complement
12. 1
0 So can substi tute for an adjective phrase or a noun phrase functioning as
complement:
Brett's work is not yet consistent in sryle and quality, but will no
doubt become so.
If he's a criminal, i t' s his parents who have made hi m so.
After be, ellipsis i s preferred, or (informally) the substitutes like that or
that way are used:
The plants are healthy enough nowLbe (?so) .
but I wonder how long they will be like that.
remain so.
After appear and seem, with i ni tial anticipatory it, both so and its
negative equivalent not can be pro-frms for the that-clause:
Ruth i s waiting to hear whether she has been promoted, and it
appears so/not.
NOTE [a] So as pro-form for the subject complement can also be initial:
We hoped that the event would be a success, and so it turned out.
So it appears and so it seems, with initial so. are common expressions of reaction to
previous utterances.
[b] So is a synonym for true, and not a pro-form. after be i n examples like That is so:
ft may be so: l fear that this is not so.
So and not as pro-forms for object that-clause
12. 11 So and i ts negative equivalent not can be pro-forms for a tlwr-clause
functioning as di rect object:
A: Will Oxford win the next boat race?
h
so [ = that Oxford will win . . . ]
B: I ape
not [ = that Oxford will not win . . . ]
This use of not is restricted mainly to verbs of belief or assumption.
whereas the correspondi ng use of so is frequently fund also i n some verbs
of sayi ng such as say and tell. Verbs that commonly allow both so and nor
include:
NOTE
12.12
12.13
254 Pro-forms and ellipsis
believe
expect
guess
hope
imagi ne
presume
reckon
suppose
suspect
think
(a] With
.
crt
.
a n vers
.
(such as say and beliel'e), the pro-clause so occasi onal ly
appear in I I tial position (cf 1 2. I 0 Note [a]). Subject-verb i nversion is possible i f
the sub1cct Is not a pronoun:
A: Oxford will win the boat race.
B:
_So most of the sports wri ters say.
So say most of the sports writers.
A: Most people are backing the Oxfrd crew.
B: So I believe.
(b] Wth verbs taking transferred negation, the use of not (eg / think not ) as a pro
frm IS rather frmal, and is often replaced by so preceded by negation in the main
clause:
I don' t think so. I don't suppose so. I don' t believe so.
(c] Unlike so, the pro-form not usually receives nuclear stress:
A: Has the news reached home yet?
B:
_.aFRAID so.
I'm afaid NOT.
So as pro-frm fr predication
Initial so can be pro-predication in a construction consisting of so
fl l owed by the subject and the operator (So + S + op):
You asked me to leave, and ' so I DID. [ =i ndeed I DiD] [ l ]
A: It's starting to snow. B: ' So i t is!
A: You've spilled cofee on your dress. B: Oh dear, 'so I H. VE.
So here is equivalent to the so in do so (cf 1 2. 7):
You asked me to leave, and I DiD so. [ l a]
The di erence i

meaning between [ l ] and [ l a] is that [ l ] i ntroduces an
emphasis tha might otherwise be conveyed by indeed or in fact. In replies,
the construct10n So + S + op expresses surprised confrmation of what the
previous speaker has asserted:
A: It's past midnight. B: [looks at watch] ' So it is!
Initial so with subject-perator inversion
A construction superfcially si milar to that in 1 2. 1 2 has i ni tial so followed
by subject-operator i nversion (So + op + S):
YOU aske hi

to
.
leave, and ' so di d i. [ =I asked him to leave, too]
The corn 1s npenmg, and 'so are the APPies.
You've spilled cofee on the table, and ' so have i.
; f


l


r

r
1 2. 1 4
Ellipsis 255
In this construction so is not a pro-form at all, but an additive adverb
equivalent i n meaning to too or also, and the construction is elliptical . So
here is parallel to the negative adverbs neither and nor, which si mi l arl y
take subject-operator i nversion:
The corn isn't ri pening, and 11eitlzer/11or are the apples (ripening) .
El l i psi s
The nature of el lipsis
El l i psis i s grammatical omission. In the strict application of the term,
ellipsis requi res VERBA TIM RECOVERABILITY; that is, the actual war? r
words that are implied must be precisely recoverable. We postulate el l ipsis
to expl ai n why some normally obligatory element of a grammatical
sentence is missing. For example, the infni tive marker to occurs in [ I ]
without the i nfnitive which i t normally i ntroduces:
If he works hard, I won't have to l
r
[ I ]
We therefre say that the predication work hard has been eHipted.
Strict ellipsis requires that when we i nsert the missing words we do not
change the meaning of the original sentence. The subject i n [2] i s therefre
not el l i ptical at all:
The poor need more help.
[2]
Though the poor refers to people, i f we add a word such as peo
P
le we
change the meani ng. The poor people has specifc reference to a particular
group of poor people, whereas the poor has generic reference (1 5. 22).
A further requirement for strict ellipsis i s that when we i nsert the
missing words the sentence should remain grammatical. The comparative
constructi on in [3] is therefre strictly elliptical, as we see from [3a]:
I
[:]
He always wakes up earlier than ! (forma )
-
He always wakes up earlier than I irake up.
[3a]
On the other hand the construction i n [4] i s not strictly ell iptical, because
when we try to i ns;rt irake up the resul ti ng sentence [4a] i s ungrammatical .
He al ways wakes up earlier than me. (i nformal) [4]
*He al ways wakes up earlier than me wake up.
[4a]
An analogous example i nvolves the dummy operator do. The construc
ti on wi th the unstressed dummy operator does in [5] is structurally parallel
to constructions with other operators, such as can in [6]:
SHE understands the problem better than HE does.
SHE can understand the problem better than HE can.
[5]
[6]
256 Pro-forms and ellipsis
But whereas we can regard understand the problem as elli pted in [6]. it
would not be possible to do so in (5]:
*SHE understands the problem better than HE does understand the
problem.
Positional categories of el l ipsis
12. 1 5 We distinguish three categories of ellipsis according to where the ell ipsis
occurs within a construction. In INITIAL ellipsis, the initial elements are
ellipted:
12. 16
(I) hope he's there.
In MEDIAL ellipsis medial elements are el l ipted:
Jill owns a Volvo and Fred (owns) a BMW.
And in FINAL ellipsis the fnal elements are el l ipted:
I know that we haven' t yet set the record straight, but we will (set the
record straight).
Recoverability types of el l ipsis
Situational ellipsis
In SITUATIONAL ellipsis, the i nterpretation may depend on a knowledge of
the extralinguistic context. For example, Get it? in one situation might be
understood to mean the same as Did you get it? (eg: 'Did you gt the
letter?') and in another situation as Do you get it? (ie: 'Do you
understand?' ). In other cases, the structure will make it clear what has
been omitted, eg it i n Looks like rain.
Typical l y situational ellipsis is i ni tial, especially taking the frm of
omission of subject and/or operator; eg: (Do you) Want somet!ing? In
such cases, which are rest ricted to fmiliar (generally spoken) English. the
ellipted words are those that normally have weak stre
s
s and l ow pitch.
Here are some examples of situational ellipsis, with an i ndication of
what has been ellipted:
(a) Ellipsis in declarative sentences
(I) Told you so.
(You) Want a drink, do you?
(It) Serves you right.
(I'm) Sorry I couldn't be there.
(It's) Good to see you.
(I' l l ) See you later.
(It's a) Pity he won't help.
(b) Ellipsis in interrogative sentences
(Are you) In trouble?
(Is there) Anybody i n?



)
NOTE
12. 17
NOTE
12. 18
(Do you) Want some?
(Have you) Got any money?
(Is) Anything the matter?
(Does) Anybody need a li ft?
(Has) Joan fnished?
(Is the) Television not working?
Ellipsis 257
[a] Some other cases are less productive and tend to occur with certain expressions.
For example, the ellipsis of the article alone in ( The) Fact is I don 't k11011 whal lo
do; the ellipsis of the preposition ofin (Of) Course he
'
s there; and ellipsis that
incl udes the initial syllable of a word i n (I am a) 'Fraid f 11011 ' t be there.
[b] In many instances of initial ellipsis, the omission may be al least partly due to
subaudibility or some other process of phonological reduction.
Structural el l ipsis
In STRUCTURAL ellipsis, the interpretation depends on knowledge of
grammatical structure, as in the ellipsis of the conjunction that i n [ l ] and
the preposi ti on/or in [2]:
I believe (that) you are mistaken. [ l ]
We're staying there (fr) another three weeks. (infrmal) (2]
Many examples are confned to written language. They i nvolve the
common omission of determiners, pronouns, operators, and other cl osed
class words in block language (cf 1 1 . 22) - eg in headlines, book titles,
notices - and in such written varieties as lecture notes, diaries, and
telegrams:
US heading fr new slump. [ie: The US is heading fr a new sl ump. ]
There i s no clear dividing line between structural ellipsis and some i nstances of
situational ellipsis given in 1 2. 1 6, where the structure alone would yield the
i nterpretati on.
Textual el l ipsis
Categories of textual ellipsis
In TEXTUAL ellipsis, the i nterpretation depends on what is said or written
in the linguistic context. We distinguish two kinds of ellipsis according to
the relative positions of the ellipsis and i ts antecedent: ANAPHORIC ellipsis
and CATAPHORIC ellipsis. In anaphoric ellipsis, the i nterpretation depends
on what comes befre:
I '
m happy i f you are (happy).
In cataphoric ellipsis, on the other hand, the ellipsis depends on what
comes after:
Those who prefer (to stay indoors), can stay indoors.
12. 19
I
NOTE
258 Pro-forms and ellipsis
It is often necessary to take account of the larger construction in which
the antecedent construction and elliptical construction participate. since
some categories of ellipsis are possible only in certain constructions. We
therefre disti nguish between GENERAL ELLIPSIS, where the functional
relation between the elliptical and antecedent constructions is i rrelevant,
and SPECIAL ELLIPSIS, where the possibilities of omission are determined by
that relation (eg in coordination). In this chapter we confne ourselves
chiefy to general ellipsis, since special ellipsis is more appropriately
handled in the chapters dealing with coordination ( I 3. I 7./), nonfni te and
verbless clauses ( 1 4. 4f), and comparative clauses ( 1 5. 36./) .
General textual ellipsis is typically fnal and anaphoric. We distinguish
two major categories: elliptical noun phrases and antecedent clauses.
General el lipsis
Elliptical noun phrases
Except in coordination, elliptical noun phrases result from fnal ellipsis.
This means that heads and any postmodifers tend to be ellipted:
My own camera, like Peters 6, i s Japanese.
He had to admit that Sarah 's drawings were as good as his own 6.
The.frst expedition t o the Antarctic was quickly fl lowed by another
two 6
Tomorrow's meeting will have t o be our.frst and our last 6.
Although Helen i s the oldest girl in the class, Julie i s the tallest .:. .
Noun-phrase ell ipsis, like clause ellipsis (cf 1 2. 20./), i nvolves some degree
of paral lelism between the original construction and the el liptical
construction.
The domi nance of fnal ellipsis i n noun phrases means that it i s possible
to omi t postmodifers alone:
Stan spent PART of his winnings, and the rest 6 he saved.
If you need any of that frewood, I can give you plenty 6.
Noun phrases can occur with medial ellipsis i f a postmodifer is retained
whi l e the head of the phrase i s ellipted:
They claim that Danish butter is the fnest 6in the world.
That letter was the last 6 I ever received from her.
In other cases one or more modifers, as well as the head, may be ellipted:
His recent pe1for111ance of 'Macbeth ' is the best 6 he has ever
done. [ l ]
That new thick plastic rope that tlzey sell i s stronger than any
other 6 you can get. [2]
[a] In general ellipsis an elli ptical noun phrase must retain more than just the
postmodifers:
12.20
NOTE
Ellipsis 259
*Joan prefers 1he Irias of Mo:arl, while I prefer . of Haydn.
We can make the sentence grammatical by inserting the pro-frm 1hose before o
Haydn:
Joan prefers !he Irias of lfo:arl. while I prefer those of Haydn ,\

Al ternatively, we can replace the fnal prepositional phrase by a genitive:
Joan prefers 1he Irias of Mo:ar/, while I prefer Haydn 's .
[b] The elliptical phrases i n (I] and (2] are ambiguous, according to whether the
modifers arc assumed to be ellipted. I n [ I ] i t may be !he bes/ pe1forma11ce or 1he
bes/ pe1formance of'Macbe1h '. The ambiguity is multiple in [2]. where any lh

r
you can gel may simply be elliptical fr any other rap

you can
.
get, or the
.
ellipsis
may include also plastic or thick plastic or 11ell' tl11ck plas/lc. To avoid such
ambiguity, one has to repeat the words of the antecedent.
El l i ptical clauses
Ellipsis of the predication in fnite clauses
For general ellipsis in the fni te clause, as in the noun phrase, the domi nant
type i s fnal. Typically, the subject and operator (and perhaps other
auxiliaries) remain, and the predication is ellipted:
I'm happy if you are 6 [ I ]
I f I could have bought a ticket, I would have 6 [2]
His fther was at Oxfrd when the Prime Mi nister was 6 [3]
Tom will be playing, but I don' t think Martin will (be) 6 [4]
I' l l do what I can 6 [5]
When Marilyn resigns from the committee, I' m sure that a
number of other people will 6. [6]
[a] If the clause in its unreduced form has no operator, the dummy operator DO is
introduced:
I left school when Dennis did.
[7]
Did, however, in [7] is a pro-frm and there is strictly no ellipsis, since the insertion
of the predication after did would result i n an unacceptable sentence:
*I left school when Dennis did leave school.
[7a]
But there are other constructions with the operator DO that are elliptical:
I don't like l i vi ng i n the country. Do you (like l i ving in the country)? [8]
A: Does she like writing fr the press?
B: Yes, she DOES (like writing fr the press).
[9)
In (9] does i s used as an emphatic operator in both the elliptical and the unreduced
constructions.
(b] Unlike adjuncts (8. 1 3) and subjuncts (8.32). disjuncts (8.40) and conjncts
(8.43) are not carried over to the elliptical clause. We can contrast the adjunct
sometimes with the disjunct wisely:
12.21
260 Pro-forms and ellipsis
A: Has Bob sometimes walked lo work?
B: No, but his sister has. [ = has sometimes walked lo work]
A: Bob has wisely walked lo work.
B: Well, al least he CLAIMS he has. [ =has wal ked lo work]
Similarly, a fnal auxil iary i n the elli ptical clause excludes other, contrasting
auxil iaries i n the antecedent clause:
Nol many people could have enjoyed that trip as much as your mother has.
[ = has enjoyed that trip]
Medial ellipsis
There i s genuinely medial ellipsis when a contrasting adverbial occurs in
fnal posi ti on:
There are more hungry people i n the worl d today than there were
Li
i n 1 900.
In the next example, only the lexical verb i s omitted:
I'll gladly pay for the hotel, i f you will 6 fr the fod.
Ellipsis of a clause
12.22 A more thoroughgoing reduction involves ellipsis of the whole clause or
the whole clause except fr an i ntroductory word.
A wh-interrogative clause, whether independent or subordihate, may be
reduced to the wh-word:
A: We're bound to win the prize some day.
B: Yes, but WHEN 6?
Somebody has hidden my notebook, but I don't know WH0.1\VY/
WERE 6
There i s also a reduced negative wh-question, but this occurs onlv with
why and with wh-i nfnitive clauses:
-
Why NOT? I don' t KNOW why not.
I don't want to accept, but I don't know how not (to).
' to-infnitive clause may be omitted i f it functions as the complemen
tat10n of a verb or adjective (cf Chapter 1 6). An elliptical to-infi ni ti \e
clause may consist of just the i ntroductory unstressed particle to:
You can borrow my pen, i f you WANT to 6
You wi l l speak t o who(m)ever I TELL you to 6.
Somebody ought t o help. Shall I ask PETER t o 6?
I n the negative, not i s placed befre to:
She borrowed my pen, although I told her NOT to.
[ I ]
[2]
[3]
To may also be ellipted, and the result is then ellipsis of the whole clause:

I


-oTE
1 2.23
Ellipsis 261
You can borrow my pen, i f you WA:T .
Somebody ought to help. Shall I ask PEter '?
[ l a]
[3a]
The marginal modal auxi l i aries ought to and used to. the modal idiom haw' got to,
and semi-auxiliaries such as be able to, be going to, h{e to, be supposed to (cf3. 1 7/ )
must retain the to:
We don' t save as much money these days as we used to 6

I won' t disturb you again unless I have to L
Appended clauses
One type of special ellipsis is found in appended clauses. An appended
clause i s an el l i ptical clause (usually parenthetical or an afterthought) for
which the whole or part of the preceding or i nterrupted clause constitutes
the antecedent:
I caught the train -just.
The train arrived - on time for a change.
[ I ]
[2]
These presuppose that two separate assertions are being made. For
example, [ I ] may be viewed as elliptical fr [ l a]:
I caught the trai n - I just caught the train.
[ l a]
In the examples that follow, only part of the i ni tial clause (the i talicized
part) acts as the antecedent:
They are meant to wound, perhaps 6 to kill.
He is playful, 6 even mischievous.
On the related construction of appended coordination, cf 1 3. 30.
Bi bl iographical note
On reduction generally, see Halliday and Hasan ( 1 976).
On pro-forms and substitutes, see Crymes ( 1 968).
On ellipsis, see Greenbaum and Meyer ( 1 982): Gunter ( 1 963).
For further references see the Bi bl iographical notes fr Chapters 1 3 and 1 9.
13. I
13.2
1 3 Coordi nati on
Syndetic, asyndetic, and pol ysyndetic coordi nati on
We disinguish betw

en syndetic (or li nked) coordination and asyndetic

(or unlmked) coordmati on. In syndetic coordination, the more usual
f
?
rm, the units are linked by a COORDINATING CONJUNCTION (or, more
simply, COORDINATOR) - and, or, but:
Slow)' and stealthily, he crept towards his victim.
[I a]
!n asyndetic coordi nation, coordinators are not present, but coul d be
mserted:
Slowly, stealthily, he crept towards his victi m.
[ I b]
Wh

n more than two units are l i nked by and or or, it is usual to insert the
coordmator once only - between the last two units:
The wind roared, the lightning fl ashed, and the clouds raced
across the sky.
[2a]
In polysyndetic coordination, however, the coordinator is repeated
between each pair of units:
The wind roared, and the l i ghtning fl ashed, and the clouds
raced across the sky. [2b]
Coordi nation and subordination
Both
:
oor
_
dination an
_
d subordination i nvol ve the l i nki ng of units; but in
coordmat1on the umts are on the same syntactic level whereas in
subordination one of the units is a constituent of a superordiate uni t . For
example in [ l ] the two clauses linked by the coordinator but are main
clauses, each of which could be an independent sentence:
They are my neighbours, but I don' t know them wel l . [ l ]
I n [2] the subordinate where-clause i s the di rect object of the sentence:
I don' t know where they are staying.
[2]
Similar semantic relationships may be expressed through coordination
and subordination, as in the concessive relationship expressed by
NOTE
13.3
13.4
NOTE
Coordinators 263
coordination with hut in [3a] and subordination with although in [3b) a nd
[3c]:
He tried hard, but he failed.
Although he tried hard, he filed.
He tried hard, although he failed.
[3a)
[ 3b)
[3c]
A third means of expressing this relationship by coordination is t hrough a
conjunct (c/8.43), such as yet:
He tried hard, yet he failed. [3d)
Despite its appearance, [3d] illustrates asyndctic coordination. We can make the
coordination syndetic by inserting and:
He tried hard, and yet he filed.
Coordi nators
Coordinators identified
Three conjunctions are clearly coordinators: and, or, but. And and or are
central coordinators, and but difers from them in certain respects. On the
gradient between 'pure' coordinators and 'pure' subordinators are for and
so that (in the meaning 'with. the result that').
Coordinators, subordinators, and conjuncts are all LIKERS. In what
fl l ows, we examine six features that apply to the central coordinators and
and or and note whether they apply also to other l inkers. At this stage we
restrict ourselves mainly to connections between clauses.
Syntactic features of coordinators
(a) Clause coordinators are restricted to clause-initial position
And, or, and but are restricted to ini tial position in the second clause:
John plays the guitar, and his sister plays the piano.
*John plays the guitar; his sister and plays the piano.
This is generally true of both coordinators and subordinators, but it is not
true of most conjuncts:
John plays the guitar; his sister, moreover, plays the piano.
There are three subordinators (as, that, and though) which are excepti onal i n that
they can occur noninitially (cf 1 5. 21 Note [a], 1 5.26 Note [b]):
Though he is poor, he i s happy.
Poor though he is, he is happy.
264 Coordination
(b) Coordinated clauses arc sequentially fxed
1 3.5 Clauses beginning wilh and, or, and but are sequentially fxed in rel ation lo
the previous clause, and therefore cannot be transposed wi thout
producing unacceptable sentences, or at least changing the relationship
between the clauses:
NOTE
They are living in England, or they are spending a vacation there.
*Or they are spending a vacation there, they are living in England.
This i s true for coordinators and conjuncts, but not fr most subordina
tors. Contrast the unacceptability of [ l a] , containing the conjunct
nel'ertheless, with the acceptability of [ l b] , containing the subordinator
although:
*Nevertheless John gave it away, Mary wanted i t.
Although Mary wanted i t, John gave i t away.
[ l a]
[ l b]
In this respect the subordi nators for and so that resemble coordinators.
Contrast:
*For he was unhappy, he asked to be transferred.
Because he was unhappy, he asked to be transferred.
Related to the fxed position of the coordinate clause i s the fact that when clauses
are linked by the coordinators and, or, and but (also by for and so that ), a pronoun
i n the frst clause cannot normally have cataphoric (ie forward) reference to a noun
phrase i n the second clause. For example, she i n [ I a] does not co refr to my mother:
She fel t ill, but my mother said nothi ng. [ l a]
On the other hand, a pronoun can (but need not) have cataphoric
reference when i t occurs i n an i ni tial subordinate clause:
Although she fel t ill, my mother said nothi ng. [ l b]
(c) Coordinators are not preceded by a conjunction
13.6 The coordinators and, or, and but and the subordi natorsfor and so 1ha1
('with the result that') do not allow another conj unction to precede them.
Other subordinators as well as conjuncts can usually be preceded by
conjunctions (cf 1 3. 8):
He was unhappy about it, and yet he di d as he was tol d.
(d) Coordinators can l i nk clause constituents
13.7 And, or, and but may l ink constituents smaller than a clause, for example
predicates (cf 1 3 . 1 9.i):
I may see you tomorrow or may phone late i n the day.
This feature does not apply to most other l i nkers:
*He did not want i t , for was obsti nate.



NOTp
13.8
13.9
Coordinators 265
The exceptions are the conjunct yet and (in i nformal spoken Engl i sh) t he
conjunct so and the time adverb then ('after that' ):
They didn't li ke i t, yet sai d nothing.
They were tired, so lefl early.
They went home, then went straight to bed.
A subordinator docs not allow this feature even when i ts clause is linked by ,
coordinator:
*She didn't say anything about it because he was new and because lookc
1
L;
unwell.
[
If the second because of [ I ] is omitted, there is a regular permissible case of
coordination of predications:
She di dn' t say anything about i t because he was new and looked unwell.
(e) Coordinators can link subordinate clauses
As well as linking two main clauses, and and or can l i nk subordinate
clauses:
He asked to be transferred,
{because }he saw no prospect
because he was unhappy and
although of promotion.
I wonder whether you should go and see her or whether i t i s better to
write to her.
Such li nki ng is not possible fr conjuncts or for the other conjunctions
except but. But, however, is restricted to linking a ma

i mum of two clauses

and even so it can l i nk only certain types of subordmate clauses.
She said that John would take them by car but (that) they might be
late
.
(f) Coordinators can link more than two clauses
And and or can l i nk more than two clauses, and the construction may then
be called one of MLTIPLE COORDINATION. Al l but the fnal i nstance of
these two conjunctions can be omi tted. Thus:
The battery may be disconnected, the connections may be loose, or
the bulb may be faul ty.
i s i nterpreted as:
The battery may be disconnected, or the connection may be loose, or
the bul b may be fulty.
In this respect, and and or di fer fom subordinators and conj uncs. They
di fer even from but, since but semantically speaking can only hnk two
uni ts at the same level.
266 Coordination
Coordination of clauses and lesser constituents
13. 10 In 1 3 .4-9 we have focused on the li nkage of clauses. But an important
distinguishing characteristic of coordinators is that they can also be used
to link elements that are parts of clauses, eg in [ I ] linked adjecti ves that arc
functi oni ng as subject complement and in [2] linked adjectives that are
functi oni ng as premodifer:
The weather will be eold and cloudv.
The warm but windy weather will

onti nue fr several more

days.
[I J
(2]
In this respect, however, some linking words that are not coordinators
:
eseml e coordinators. Certain concessive subordi nators and conjuncts,
particular, are capable of replacing but in [2] and in similar li nki ngs of
adjectives and other constituents:
Ti m's squat yet ferocious bulldog could be heard growling on the
patio.
I i mmediately recognized Sarah's bold i barely legible handwri tinu.
Marti n was inclined to boast about hi s rich though disreputable
ancestors.
The admiral walked clumsily, yet with dignity.
Simil arly, nor (i n i ts capacity as a correlative after neither, cfl 3 . 1 4) can
l i nk constituents that are less than clauses:
They were neither able nor willing to provide the necessary capital.
In discussing the uses of the central coordinators in 1 3 . 1 1 -1 3 we
generally take our examples from clause coordinati on, but the same
semantic relations apply to lesser constituents.
The uses of coordinators
The uses of and
13. 1 1 And i ndicates that there i s some relation between the contents of the J i nked
clauses. The relation can generally be made explicit by the addition of an
adver!ial, as i ndicated i n parentheses i n the examples:
(a) The event in the second clause is chronologically SEQUENT to that in
the frst:
I washed the di shes and (then) I dried them.
(b) The event in the second clause i s a CONSEQUENCE or RESULT of the
event in the frst:
He heard an explosion and he (therefore) phoned the police.
(c) The second clause i ntroduces a CONTRAST:
Peter is secretive and (in contrast) David is open.
Coordinators 267
(d) The frst clause has CONCESSIVE force:
She tried hard and (yet ) she failed.
(e) The fi rst clause is a CONDITTON of the frst:
Give me some money and (then) r do the shopping.
(f) The second clause makes a point SI!ILAR to the frst:
A trade agreement should be no problem, and (similarly) a cul tural
exchange could be easily arranged.
(g) The second clause is a 'pure' ADDTTIO> to the frst:
He has long hair and (also) he often wears jeans.
(h) The second clause adds an appended COMMENT on, or EXPLANATTO'
of, the frst:
They disliked John - and that's not surprising i n view of his
behaviour.
There's only one thing to do now - and that's to apologize.
NOTE The addition meaning is inclusive in Don't argue and quarrel (equivalent to 'Don' t
argue or quarrel'), whereas the conditional meaning is exclusive i n Don 't drink and
drive ('If you drink, don't drive'). C/1 3. 1 2.
The uses of or
13.12 (a) Typically, or i s EXCLUSIVE: it excludes the possibility that the contents
of both clauses are true or are to be fulflled:
You can sleep on the couch in the lounge or you can go to a hotel .
Even when both alternatives are clearly possible, or is normally
i nterpreted as exclusive:
You can boil yourself an egg or (else) you can make some
sandwiches.
The exclusive meaning can be strengthened by the conjuncts else or
alterativelv.
(b) Someti

es or is INCLUSIVE. We can add a thi rd clause that makes thi s

inclusive meaning explicitly:
You can boil an egg, (or) you can make some sandwiches, or you can
do both.
And can replace or i n i ts inclusive meaning.
(c) The alternative expressed by or may also be a restatement or U
CORRECTIVE to what is said in the frst conjoin:
They are enjoying themselves. or (at feast)/ (rather) they apPEAR to
be enjoying themselves.
NOTE
268 Coordination
(d) I n addition to introducing alternatives as indicated above, or may
imply a NEGATIVE CONDITION. Thus i n:
Switch on the radio or we' l l mi ss the news.
the i mplication can be paraphrased by the negative conditional clause:
Switch on the radio. I you don 't switch on the radio, we'll miss the
news.
The conditional use of or i s thus the negative analogue of the conditional
use of and (cf 1 3. 1 1 ). Unl ike and, however, or typically follows a negative
imperative clause:
Don't be too long, or you'll miss the bus.
In this case, the most appropriate paraphrase wi th an i-clause is positive
instead of negative:
If you are too long, you' l l miss the bus.
[a] In written varieties of the language where precision i s required (eg i n ofcial
instructions), the third possibility can be explicitly included by the use of both
coordi nators (usually written and/or):
If the appliance is defective, write di rectly to the manufacturer and/or
complain to your local consumer protection service.
[b] Because and and or contrast with one another in meaning, or following a
negative is in some respects equivalent to and. Thus:
He doesn't have long hair or wear jeans. [ I ]
i s logically equivalent t o 'He doesn't have long hair PML He doesn 't wear jeans'.
Conversely:
He doesn't (both) have Jong hai r and wear jeans. [2]
is logically equivalent to 'EITHER He doesn 't have long hair OR He doesn 't ll'earjeans
(or both)'. The reversal of meaning arises because in [ I ] and [2] , the coordinator is
within the scope of negation (cf 1 0. 38).
The uses of but
13.13 But expresses a contrast.
(a) The content of the second clause i s unexpected in view of the content of
the frst:
John is poor, but he is happy.
In this use, but can be replaced by and yet.
(b) The second c
i
ause expresses in positive terms what the negation in the
fi rst cl ause conveys:
Jane did not waste her time befre the exam, but (on the contrary)
studied hard every evening.
I am not objecting to his morals, but (rather) to his manners.

Correlatives 269
In this use, hut can be emphasized by the conjuncts on the contrary L
rather. It normally does not l i nk two clauses, but two lesser constituents.
t Correlatives

Either . . . or, both . . . and, neither . . . nor
13.14 The three pairs either or, both . . . and, and neither . . : . nor are correlatives.
The frst word is an ENDORSING ITEM and the second is a coordinator.
Either . . . or emphasizes the exclusive meaning of or (cf 1 3 . 1 2). The
l i nked units may be complete clauses or lesser constituents:
Either the room i s too small or the piano is too large.
You may either stand up or sit down.
Either Sylvia or her sister will be staying with us.
Both . . . and emphasizes the additive meaning of and (cf 1 3. 1 1 ):
David both loves Joan and wants to marry her.
This new machine will both accelerate the copying process and
i mprove the quality of reproduction.
Both Mary and Peter washed the dishes.
The regulations are both very precise and very detailed.
It al so singles out the segregatory meaning of and (cf 1 3. 23/) rather than
the combinatory meaning:
Both David and Joan got divorced. [not from each other]
Neither . . . nor is the negative counterpart of both . . . and. It emphasizes
that the negation applies to both units:
David neither loves Joan, nor wants to marry her.
Mary was neither happy nor sad.
Neither Peter nor his wife wanted the responsibility.
Unl i ke either . . . or, both . . . and and neirher . . . nor cannot l i nk com
plete cl auses:
*Both Mary washed the dishes and Peter dried them.
*Neither Peter wanted the responsibility, nor his wife did.
NOTE [a] When either . . . or is withi n the scope of negation (cf 1 3 . 1 2 Note [b]), i t is
equivalent to neither . . . nor, so that these two sentences are similar in meaning:
He hasn 't met either her mother or her father.
He has met neither her mother nor her father.
[b] According to a prescriptive tradition, the use of correlative coordinators is
unacceptable when there are three or more conjoins:
13. 15
NOTE
270 Coordination
?We arc hoth wi l l i ng, able, and ready lo carry out the survey. [ I
]
'Either the Mi nister, or the Under-Secretary, or the Permanent
Secretary will at tend the meeting. [2]
'Tompki ns has neither the personal i ty, nor the energy, nor the
experience to wi n thi s el ecti on. [3]
[ c] A nolher prescri ptive lradi lion holds that correlali vcs shoul d i ntroduce paral l el
uni ts, ie uni ts or equi val ent functi on. Hence i n wri tten English [ I b] is preferred to
[ l a], and [2b] or [2c] lo [2a]:
?Evelyn is either stupid or pretends that she is. [I a]
Either Evelyn is stupid Ul she pretends that she is. [I b]
?*I admi re both the drawings of Rembrandt and of Rubens. [2a]
I admi re both the drawings of Rembrandt and those of Rubens. [2b]
I admire the drawings of both Rembrandt and Rubens. [2c]
Nor and neither as negative adverbs
Nor and neither, followed by subject-operator i nversion, can be used
without being a correlative pair. They generally presuppose that a
previous clause is negative either explicitly, as in [ I ], or implicitly, as in [2]
and [3]:
He did not receive any assistance from the authorities, neither
did he believe their assurance that action would soon be
taken. (rather frmal) [ l ]
Many people are only dimly aware of the ways i n which
the environment can be protected. Nor have governments
made sufcient eforts to educate them. (formal) [2]
All the students were obviously very miserable. Nor were
the teachers satisfed with the condi ti ons at the school.
(formal) [3]
The morphol ogy of nor suggests that it is the equivalent of or plus 110t. but
i n fact both nor and neither are nearer to bei ng the equivalent of and plus
not :
All the students were obviously very miserable. And (also)
the teachers were not satisfied with the condi tions at the
school.
[ 3a]
[a] For many speakers, the adverbs neill1< and nor can be l i nked to a precedi ng
clause by and or but :
They never forgave
him for the insult,
{(and) } { (neither) } could he rid himself of the feelings of
(b111 ) (nor) guil t for having spoken that way.
This possibil ity excludes them from the class of central coordinators (cf 1 3. 6) .
[b] There is a mixed construction in which neither and nor behave l ike addi t i \e
adverbs i n certain respects, but at the same time they are a correlative pai r and
have the segregalory meaning associated with both . . . and (cf 1 3. 1 4):

[

I
13. 16
I
13. 17
Simpl e coordination 27'
Sam nlitha has l ong hair, nor docs he wear jeans.
Mary was nrither happy, nor was she sad.
[ l j
[ 2)
Here neither appears mediall y, and nor appears i n i ni tial posi ti on fol l owed h:
subject-operator inversi on, but the units that fl l ow neither and nor arc H\
parall el , as one woul d expect them lo be i n a construction or coordi nat i on I d
1 3. 1 4) Note [c]) . Some wri ters woul d therefore recast a sentence such a s [ I ] L
conform wi th the normal correlative structure:
Sam neither has long hair, nor wears jeans. [ 1 :)
Not (only} . . . but
The negator not/n 't or the combination not/n 't only may be correl ati \ e
with a following but :
He didn 't come to help, but to hinder us. ['but rather'] [ I ]
They not only broke i nto his ofce and stole hi s books,
but (they) (also) tore up his manuscripts. [2]
Their status as correlatives is even clearer when the negative particle i s
moved out of its normal posi tion to make the two units parallel:
He came not to help, but to hi nder us. [ l a]
Not only did they break into hi s ofce and steal his books,
but they also tore up hi s manuscripts. [2a]
Not Henry, but his wife is the owner. (3]
Where the two units are complete clauses, a more dramatic efect i s
achieved by positioning not only i nitially, with subject-operator i nver
sion, as in [2a].
Si mpl e coordi nati on
The usual kind of coordination i s srMPLE COORDINA TrON, i n whi ch a si ngl e
clause or clause constituent is l i nked to others that are parallel i n meani ng.
i n functi on, and (generally) i n form. The coordinated uni ts are CONJor::s.
and the resulting combination is a CONJO!NT.
There are two ways of analysing simple coordi nation of clause
constituents: ( ! ) We may examine a construction as an elliptical version of
clause coordination, noti ng what elements are ellipted, or (2) we may
exami ne the construction i n terms of the units themselves, noting what
elements are present. For example, the sentence Sam has trimmed the
hedge and moll'ed the lawn can be viewed as the coordination of two clauses
in which a subject (Sam) and an operator (has) have been ellipted fom the
second clause:
Sam has trimmed the hedge and _ mowed the lawn.
272 Coordination
Or it can be viewed as a single clause contammg two coordi nated
predications, which together constitute the predication of the clause:
Sam has [[trimmed the hedge] and [mowed the lawn]].
For simple coordination (though less so for other kinds of coordi nation),
there are advantages in adopting the coordi nation analysis rather than the
ellipsis analysis.
Types of simple coordination
Coordination of clauses
13.18 Complete independent clauses may be coordi nated:
The winter had come at last, and snow lay thick on the ground.
Subordinate fni te clauses may be coordi nated, so long as they belong to
the same function class:
I you pass the examination and (i) no one else applies, you are
bound to get the job.
(COORDINATED ADVERBIAL CLAUSES]
The Mi ni ster believes that the economy fs, improving and (that)
unemployment will soon decrease.
(COORDINATED NOMINAL THAT-CLAUSES]
I didn't know who she was or what she wanted.
(COORDINATED NOMINAL W-CLAUSES]
Someone who knows the area, but whose home is outside it, is more
likely to be a successful representative.
(COORDINATED RELATIVE CLAUSES]
Nonfnite clauses of the same type and also verbless clauses may be
coordinated:
I've asked him to come this evening or (to) phone us tomorrolt' .
(COORDINATED TO-INFINITIVE CLAUSES}
Samantha is fond of working at night and getting up late in 1/le
moring.
(COORDINATED -ING PARTICIPLE CLAUSES]
All the villagers helped to rebuild the houses damaged by the s1orm
or was/zed away by the foods.
(COORDINATED -ED PARTICIPLE CLAUSES]
Wi1h George ill and (Hith) tlze children at home, Jenny is fnding l i fe
very difcult.
(COORDINATED VERBLESS CLAUSES]
Coordination of predicates and predications
13. 19 Coordination of predicates (as i n [ l -3]) and coordi nati on of predications
(as i n [48]) are very common:
I
13.20
Simpl e coordi nati on 273
Peter ale the fuit and drank 1/ze beer.
[ I ]
I send you 111y 1ery he.1 1 1rishes, and look jimrrd lo our next
mee1 ing. [2]
Margaret is ill, but 1 ri soon recorer. [3]
Most people will have read the hook or seen 1he.f!111. [4)
They should have 1rashed the dishes, dried 1he111, and put 1/e111
in the cupboald. [S]
They were married in 1960, but dii'orced in 1970. [6)
Are you working or on holiday? [7)
Why couldn't she have fnished lt'ork late and still be trarel/ing
home?
[8)
In both types of coordination the subject is shared. The most reduced
form of the sentence will be preferred, and' therefre the predication
coordination of [4] will be preferred over the predicate coordi nati on of
[4a], where the auxi li aries will have are repeated:
Most people will have read the book or will have seen the flm. [4a]
Coordination and the scope of adverbials
Adverbials, as more peripheral elements of the clause, often stand outside
the structure of coordi nation. We may then say that the conjoi ns are
within the scope of the adverbi al s:
Yesterday [the sun was very warm] and [the ice melted]. [ I ]
Unfortunately, we [missed the train] and [had to wai t si x
.

The guests were [walking], [talki ng], and [drinking wine]
in the garden.
[3]
In [ l ] and [2] and i n the usual reading of [3], the scope of the adverbial
extends across the remainder of the sentence. The more complex example
of predication coordi nation i n [4] takes place (according to a likely
i nterpretation) within the scope of three adverbials; one i n i ni ti al , one in
medial, and one i n fnal posi ti on:
In those days they oflen used to [shoot the birds], [bri ng them
home], [cook them], and [eat them] on a single day. [4]
Coordination of noun phrases and thei r constituents
Noun-phrase coordination
13.21 Two or more noun phrases may be conjoined to frm a conjoi nt noun
phrase; fr example, the conjoint noun phrases functioning as subject i n
[ I ] and as object i n [2]:
Some of the staff and all of the students have voted for these
changes [ ! )
On this farm, they keep cmrs, sheep, pigs, and a few chickens. [2]
274 Coordination
A conjoi nt noun phrase may contain general ellipsis of the kinds discw,sed
i n 1 2. 1 9
.f:
Which do you prefer; the red dress, the green _ or the white. :. ?
That must be either John's responsibility or Bridget's _
NOTE [a] It i s considered polite to follow. the order within a conjoi nt noun phrase of
placing 2nd person pronouns frst, and (more importantly) l st person pronouns
last: Jil and.I; you a11i: Jif; you, Jif and me.
[b] Like other conjoin types, noun phrases may have asyndetic coordination ( cf
1 3. 1 ):
We had 110 friends, no family, 110 nw/erial resources.
Combinatory and segregatory coordination of noun phrases
13.22 Phrases l i nked by and may express COMBfNATORY or SEGREGATORY
meaning. The di stinction is clearest with noun phrases. When the
coordination i s segregatory, we can paraphrase it by clause coordination:
NOTE
John and lfary know the answer. [ =John knows the answer, and
Mary knows the answer]
When it is combinatory we cannot do so, because the conjoins function in
combination with respect to the rest of the clause:
John and Mary make a pleasant couple. [ 1 *John makes a pleasant
couple, and Mary makes a pleasant couple]
Many conjoi nt noun phrases are in fct ambiguous between the two
interpretations:
John and Mary won a prize.
This may mean that they each won a prize or that the prize was awarded to
them joi ntly.
Further examples of combinatory meaning:
John and Mary played as partners in tenni s against Susan and Bill.
Peter and Bob separated (from each other).
Paula and her brother look alike.
Mary and Paul are j ust good friends.
John and Peter have di ferent tastes (from each other) .
lfary and Susan are colleagues (of each other).
Lml' and order is a primary concern of the new administration.
The distinction between the two meani ngs applies to pl ural noun phrases in
general. The combinatory meaning i n Te lhree girls look alike contrasts with the
segregatory meaning in The lhree girls have a cold, and They are married is
ambiguous.


I
1 ].23
NOTE
13.24
Simple coordination 275
I ndicators of scgrcgatory meaning
Certain markers explicitly indicate that the coordination is segregatory:
hoth ( . . . and) neither . . . nor respectively (formal )
each respec1ive (frmal ) apiece (rather rare)
While John and Jv fary have ll'on a pri:e i s ambiguous, we are left i n no
doubt that two prizes were won in:
John and Mary have each won a prize.
John and. Mary have won a prize each.
Both John and Mary have won a prize.
John and Mary have both won a prize.
Similarly, whereas John and Mary didn 't ll'in a pri:e is ambiguous, Neither
John nor Mary won a pri:e is unambiguously segregatory.
The adjective respec1ive premodifes a plural noun phrase to i ndi cate
segrega
t
ory interpretation. For example, Jill and Ben visited their
respective uncles can only mean that Jill visi ted her uncle or uncles and t h

t
Ben visited his uncle or uncles, whereas Jill and Ben visited their uncles 1s
ambiguous between the respective reading and the readi ng that th

y
visited persons who were uncles to both. The related nouns can be
di ferent clauses or even in diferent sentences:
Bob and his best friend have had some serious trouble at school
lately. Their respective parents are going to see the principal about
the complaints.
The adverb respectirely i ndicates which constituents go with which in
the two parallel sets of conjoi nt phrases:
John,
P
eter, and Robert play football, basketball, and baseball
respectively.
[ =John plays football, Peter plays basketball, and Robert plays
baseball].
Thomas Arnold and his son Matthew were respectively the greatest
educator and the greatest critic of the Victorian age.
[ =Thomas Arnold was the greatest educator of the Victorian age,
and his son Matthew was the greatest critic of the Victorian age.]
Bo//1, each, respeclive, and apiece also mark segregatory meaning with plural noun
phrases that are not coordinated: My children hare bo1h 11on a prize; The boys
visited !heir respective uncles.
Coordi nation wi thi n noun phrases
Coordinated noun heads
When heads are coordinated, the usual i nterpretation is that the
determiner, premodifer, and postmodifer apply to each of the conjoins:
276 Coordination
his wi fe and child [ =his wi fe and his child ]
old men and women [ = old men and old women]
some cows and pigs from our farm [ =some cows from our.farm nd
some pigs from our farm]
!he boys and girls slaying al !he hos1el [ = 1/ze boys slaying al 1/ze
hos!el and !he girls slaying al 1he lwslel]
It i s also possible to interpret some of these phrases as coordinated noun
phrases:
old men and women [ =women and old men]
some cows and pigs from our farm [ = pigs from our frm and some
cows]
Coordinated modifers
13.25 Only the segregatory meaning i s ordinarily possible when the coordinated
modifers denote mutually exclusive properties:
old and new f1rilure [ = old f1rilure and new furni ture]
workers from France and from I taly [ = workers from France and
workers from I taly]
Exceptions to this are colour adjectives (as in red, white, and blue.fags),
which allow the combinatory sense 'partly one colour, partly another'. On
the other hand, only the combinatory meaning is possible if the head is a
singular count noun:
a dishonest and lazy s1udent [ =a s!udent who i s both dishonest and
lazy]
a book on reptiles and amphibians
The same meaning applies when the coordination i s asyndetic: a dis/zones/ .
lazy s!uden/ .
In other i nstances there may be ambiguity:
old and valuable books [ = books that are old and valuable or old
books and valuable books]
buses for the Houses of Parliament and for Victoria Station [either
the same bus or buses go to both places or a diferent bus or buses
go to each pl ace]
NOTE [a] The coordi nation of determiners (eg: rhese and rhose chairs; your and my
problems) is comparatively rare, and the synonymous construction with conjoint
noun phrases (eg: these chairs and rlzose; your problems and mine) is preferred.
[b] Cardi nal numbers are frequently coordinated with or in an idiomatic
approximative function: one or t wo guests ('a small number'), five or six le11ers
('approximately in the range of five and six'), /en or nrenty studems ('a number
from ten to twenty') .
[c]The conjoins i n a conjoi nt noun phrase may be words (eg: his wife and child,
where the two nouns share the determiner) or phrases (eg: his wie and his
Simple coordination 277
child). They may also be the i ntermediate uni ts called IN ^ L7Kbbl\h ( c/
1 2. 5), eg: eldest child in his 11[(e and eldesl child.
[d] The lags aml 011. and .rnfonh, and el cetera ( Lal i n= 'and others', abbreviated
i n writing as etc) <ire abbrevialory devices which arc added lo a coordinated list. l
i ndicate that the list has not been exhaustively given:
He packed his clothes, his books, his papers, ere.
And so on and a11d so forth (and their combination a11d.10 on and so.orth) arc used
in the same way, but are restricted lo i nfrmal use. and tend lo occur after
coordinated clauses rather than coordinated phrases. A less common phrase of the
same ki nd i s and the like.
Coordination of other constituents
13.26 All the mai n variations of constructions that we have noted for clauses
and noun phrases are fund in the coordination of other constituents.
Examples of the coordination of various constituents are given below:
(a) Verb phrases:
Good cooking can disguise, b111 ca111101 improve the quality of the
i ngredients.
(b) Mai n verbs:
Many people might have been killed or injured by the explosi on.
(c) Auxil i aries:
The country can and must recover from i ts present crisis.
(d) Adjective phrases:
The journey was long and extremely arduous.
(e) Adjective heads:
I'm feeling younger and healthier than I fel t for years.
(f) Adverbs:
She made the announcement quiet\' b111 rery co11jden1ly.
(g) Prepositional phrases and prepositions:
He spoke.far !he frs/ 1110/ion b111 against 1he second 11101io11.
She climbed up and orer the wal l .
Part of the prepositional complement may be ell ipted i n the first conjoin
or a subsequent conjoi n:
He spoke.far !he.frst _ bul against !he second motion. (frmal)
He spoke.far the.frst motion but agai11s1 the second _
(h) Coordination of subordinators and other clause-introducing words:
I am prepared to meet them Jl'hen and irhere they like.
I am determi ned to fi nd out who or 1rhat caused this uproar.
! .
278 Coordination
The general principle governing coordi nation is that the conjoins must
belong lo the same category in form, function, and meaning. There may,
however, be di fferences in form:
The enemy attacked quickly and llilh great force.
You can wash them ma1111a/y or by using a machine.
They can call this ll'eLk or whenever J'Oll wish.
Dennis was carefree and in .good he{;lth.
NOTE The order of conjoined words can be infuenced by a tendency for the shorter item
to come frst. This is particularly noticeable i n BINOMIALS, ie relatively fixed
conjoint phrases having two members; eg: big and ugly, cup and saucer. One
principle at work here appears to be a principle of rhythmic regularity: eg the
dactylic rhythm of ' ladies and 'gentlemen, and the trochaic rhythm of 'men and
' women, are preferable to the less bal anced rhythm of 'gentlemen and ' ladies and
' 11omen and'men. It has also been argued that semantic fctors play a role; eg that
other things being equal, the frst position is given to the semantically salient or
cult urally dominant member, as i nfather and son, gold and sifrer, great and small,
this and that. Phonol ogical constraints have also been suggested: that low vowels
come after high ones; that back vowels come after front ones, etc. Whatever the
constraints may be, they lead to stereotyped coordinations where the conjoins are
in an irreversible order or virtually so; eg: odds and ends, bread and butter, !ml' and
order, by hook or by crook, through thick and thin; knie, fork, and spoon.
Complex coordi nation
13.27 COMPLEX COORDINATION is coordination i n which the conJoms are
combinations of units rather than single units. Such coordination usually
requires -and then reinforces -a strong parallelism between the conjoins
and for this reason it tends to be associated with a premeditated, written
style of English, rather than with i nformal conversation.
In the frst type, each conjoin consists of contiguous elements and rhe
conjoins are combined in fnal position in the clause. For example:
(a) Indirect object + direct object
We gave William a book on stamps and Afary a book on pai111i1g.
(b) Object + object complement
Jack painted tlze kitchen white and the bathroom bl11e.
(c) Object + adverbial
You should serve the coffee in a mug and the lemonade in a glass.
The parallelism is weaker when one conjoin contains one or more
adverbials that the other conjoin lacks:
1 3.28
Complex coordi nation 279
He wears smart clothes and somelimi's a yachting cap at ll'eekends.
Such examples are more li kely to occur in informal speech.
In the second type of complex coordination, the conjoins are not in fnal
position:
Gregory Peck alll 'ays \AS I and ah rys wfL be I her
fvourite Hol lywood STAR I [ I ]
Richard admiri.I', but Margaret despises, the ballyhoo of
modern advertising. [2]
The second conjoin is separated by i ntonarion in speech (as in [ ! ]) and by
punctuation in writing (as in [2]).
As in the fi rst type of complex coordination, the parallelism is weaker
when one conjoin contains one or more adverbials that the other conjoin
lacks:
He is, or at least he ll'as, a major composer of modern classical
music. [3]
In these days, few people lear, or indeed see any point in
learing, the languages of Homer and Virgil.
She thought about, bw never revisited, the haunts of her
childhood.
Similar structures are also found with subordi nation:
Richard admires, though Margaret despises, the ballyhoo
of modern advertising. [2a]
He is - even if people don 't think he is - a major composer of
modern classical music.
She reads, tho11gh not speaks, se\eral Oriental l anguages.
NOTE Because of its medial position and its separation by intonation or punctuation. the
second conjoin seems parenthetic.
Gapping
13.29 GAPPING is a type of complex coordination i n which a second or
subsequent conjoi n contains a medial el l ipsis, so that the elements i n these
conjoins are not contiguous. For example:
(a) Subject + object
One girl has written a poem, and rlze other _ a short story.
(b) Subject + adverbial
Smith completed the course in thirty-five mi nutes, and Johnson .. in
thirty-seven.
(c) Subject + complement
NOTE
13.30
NOTE
280 Coordination
Jane has looked more healthy, and Maurice _ more relaxed. since
their vacation .
Coordination wi th gappi ng i s more di ffcult l o understand than coordi nation
without gapping, and therefre nongapped i nterpretations are more like!\ to be
i ntended where both arc possible. For example, the readi ng of [ ! ] as [ l a] i more
likely than as [I b]:
Barbara gave Sue a magnolia and Ada a camellia. [ ! ]
[ = Barbara gave Sue a magnolia and Barbara gave Ada a
camellia] [ l a]
[ = Barbara gave Sue a magnolia and Ada gave Sue a camellia] [I b]
Appended coordi nati on
APPENDED COORDINATION, which is characteristic of informal speech,
occurs when an elliptical clause (involving one element or contiguous
elements) is appended to a previous clause (cf appended clauses, ll. 23):
John writes extremely well - and sALly, Too.
My mother plays badmi nton, and sometimes even tennis.
He got a bike for his birthday, and a book and a pen.
His left hook could fell the champion, and i ndeed any other boxer in
his class.
[a] With or and but, appended coordination is also li kely to occur in careful speech
and writing:
I am not sure whether JANE wrote the letter, or SALiy
Pter plays fotball, but not JOHN.
[b] The second conjoi n may be i nterpolated as a parenthesis, i n which case the
structure is a type of complex coordination (cf 1 3.28):
John - and Sally. too - writes extremely well.
She can, and probably will, beat the world record.
Pseudo-coordi nati on
13. 31 There are several types of PSEUDO-COORDINATION, mostl y found in
informal speech:
(a) The coordination of two verbs that has an idiomatic fnction similar
to that of a catenative construction (cf 3. 1 8 Note):
I'll try and come tomorrow. [ = try to come]
They've gone and upset her agai n.
Quasi-coordination 281
They sat and talked about the old times. [ =sat talki ng]
(b) The coordination of two adjecti\es of which the first functions as an
i ntensifer of the second:
Thi s room is nice and H"arm. [ =comfortably warm]
His speech was nice and short.
It was lovely and cool in there.
Some speakers (esp in AmE) use good in the same way:
The road is good and long.
even where the adjectival form following and is used as an adverb:
I hit him good and hard.
She drove good and fast.
(c) The coordination of identical comparative forms of ddjectives,
adverbs, and determiners (usually just two conjoins) that expresses a
continuing increase in degree:
She fel t more and more angry. [ =increasingly angry]
The car went slower and slower.
(d) The coordination of two or more identical forms of verbs and
adverbs that expresses continuation or repetition:
He talked and talked and talked. [ =talked for a very l ong ti me]
They knocked and knocked. [ =knocked repeatedly]
She talked on and on and on. [ =continuously]
(e) The coordination of two identical nouns to indicate diferent ki nds:
There are teachers and teachers. [roughly: 'good and bad teachers']
You can fnd doctors and doctors. [roughly: 'good and bad doctors']
(f) The coordination of three or more identical nouns to indicate a large
number or quantity:
We saw dogs and dogs and dogs all ewer the place.
There was nothing but rain, rain, rin from one week to the next.
Quasi -coordi nation
13.32 Most of the QUASI-COORDI:ATORS are related to comparative forms: as
well as, as much as, rather than. mare than. They sometimes resemble
coordinators i n that they l i nk a variety of constituents:
282 Coordination
She publishes as well as prints her own books.
The speech was addressed to the employers as much as t o the strikers.
He is to be pitied rather than disliked.
They may also have a prepositional or subordinating role in that the unit
that they introduce is an adverbial and can be placed in i ni ti al or final
position:
As lt'e// as printing the hooks, he publishes them.
I' m going to frget the whole affair, rather than cause trouble.
These quasi-coordinators are not ful l y coordinative, since in subject
position they normally do not cause plural concord i f the frst noun phrase
is singular:
John, as much as his brothers, was responsible fr the loss.
In this they resembl< prepositions such as ll'ith, in addition to and after
more than coordinators like and; compare:
John, with his brothers, was responsible fr the loss.
Bibl iographical note
General studies of coordination include: Di k ( 1 968); Dougherty ( 1 97071 );
Schachter ( 1 977); Stockwell et al. ( 1 973, Ch. 6).
On coordination in relation to subordination and other kinds of connectivity,
see Greenbaum (1 969, 1 988); Halliday and Hasan ( 1 976); Talmy ( 1 978).
On coordination i n relation to ellipsis/reduction, see Greenbaum and Meyer
(I 982); Harries-Delisle ( 1 978); Hudson ( I 976); Meyer ( 1 979); Sanders ( 1 977).
On coordination of noun phrases, see Hudson ( 1 970).
14. 1
1 4 The compl ex sentence
Subordi nate and superordi nate clauses
A COMPLEX sentence is l i ke a simple sentence in that it consists of only LL
MAIN clause, but unl i ke a simple sentence it has one or more SUDORDINATI'
clauses functi oning as an element of the sentence. For example, [ I ] is a
simple sentence in that the sentence consists of one main clause without
any subordinate clauses:
I reject her conclusions. ( I ]
On the other hand, [2] is a complex sentence because the main clause
contains a subordinate clause fnctioning as an adverbial:
Although I admire her reasoning, I reject her conclusions. [2]
The subject (!), verb (reject ), and direct object (her conclusions) are
identical in the main clauses (or sentences) in [ I ] and [2]. The subordinate
clause has its own subject (!), verb (admire), and direct object (her
reasoning) . The mai n clause is SUPERORDINATE to the subordinate clause
that i t contains.
In [3] we have a more complicated example:
He predicted that he would discover the tiny particle
when he conducted his next experiment. [3]
The sentence is a complex sentence consisting of one main clause. The
mai n clause is superordinate to the subordinate that-clause (which is a
di rect object) that continues to the end of the sentence. The that-clause is
in turn superordinate to the subordinate when-clause (which is an
adverbial) that extends from wizen to the end of the sentence. The
hierarchy of superordination and subordination is displayed in Fig. 1 4. 1 .
For certain purposes it is useful to distinguish between a subordinate
clause and the MATRIX clause. The matrix clause is the superordinate
clause mi nus its subordinate clause. For example, in [4] the matrix clause is
!'// lend you some money:
!'// lend you some money if you don' t have any money on you. [4]
NOTE Some grammarians use main clause in the sense that we give to malrix clause.
Fig 1 4. l
284 The complex sentence
sentence
I
main/superordinate clause
"
s v
I
He predicted
0
subordinate/superordinate clause
s v 0
I I I
that he would discover the tiny particle
A
subordinate clause
when
s v
I I
he conducted
Fig 14.1 Superordinate and subordinate clauses
Subordi nation and coordi nation
0
I
his next experiment
14.2 The device of subordination enables us to construct a mul tiple hierarchy
of clauses, one within the other, sometimes resulting in extremely invol ved
sentences. Further complexity and structural variability are provided by
the i nterrelation of subordination and coordination. Each main clause in
a compound sentence may incl ude one or more subordinate clauses, each
of which may in turn include subordinate clauses. For example. [ ! ]
displays a compound sentence i n which two main clauses are coordinated:
I think that your new position demands sensitive judgments
and I would hope that you ll'il mature as the years go by. [ ! ]


Finite, nonfinite, and verbless clauses 285
Each main clause has a subordinate that-clause as di rect object. The 1ha1-
clause in the second main clause is superordinate to an as-clause, which
functions as adverbial in the that-clause.
On the other hand, the complex sentence in [2] contains two
subordinate cl auses that are coordinated and as a unit function as di reel
object of the sentence:
I have heard that you are a car mechanic and that your brothLr
is a plumber. [2]
NOTE A subordinate clause may functi on as a constituent of a phrase, for example as a
relative clause acting as a postmodifer in a noun phrase:
The school which my children attend is within walking distance.
The noun phrase is complex, but we do not consider that the sentence i s therefore a
complex sentence, since the subordinate clause does not function as a constituent
of the sentence.
Fi ni te, nonfi nite, and verbless clauses
14.3 We recognize three mai n structural classes of clauses:
FINITE CLAUSE: a clause whose verb element is fnite (such as takes, took,
can work, has worked, is writing, was ll'ritten; cf 3 . 3, 3 . 1 9); eg:
I can' t go out with you because I am studying this evening.
NONFINITE CLAUSE: a clause whose verb element is nonfnite (such as to
work, having worked, taken; cf 3. 3, 3. 20).; eg:
Knowing my temper, I didn't reply.
VERBLESS CLAUSE: a clause that does not have a verb element, eg:
Although always helpful, he was not much l i ked.
We recognize nonfni te and verbless structures as clauses because we
can analyse their i nternal structure into the same functional elements that
we distinguish in fni te clauses. Consider. for example, the analysis of the
nonfnite clause i n:
K1101ring [V my temper [Od] , I di dn' t reply.
The analysis depends on the analogy with the corresponding fnite clause:
I [S] know [ my temper [Od] .
Simil arl y, the verbless clause although ahrys helpful i n:
Although [conj] ahrays [A] helpful [C,] . he was not much l iked.
NOTE
14.4
NOTE
14.5
286 The complex sentence
is analysed as in the correspondi ng fni te clause:
Altlzoug/z [conj] le [S] aas [VJ ahvays [A] helpful [Cs], he was not much
l i ked.
One structural type of clause may be embedded wi thi n another:
Too nervous to reply after other speakers had praised her del'otion ro dut i
Margaret i ndicated that she would speak later.
'
The itali cized subordinate clause is a verbless clause that contai ns a subordinate
nonfnite clause (beginni ng to rep(r) that in turn contains a subordinate fnite
clause (beginni ng after other speakers).
Nonfinite clauses
The classes of nonfnite verb phrase serve to di sti nguish fur structural
subcl asses of nonfnite verb clauses:
(i) TO-INFINITIVE
Without subject: The best thi ng would be to tell everybody.
With subject: The best thi ng would be for you to tell everyboc1.
(ii ) BARE INFINITIVE
Without subject: Al l I did was hit him on the head.
With
s
ubject: Rather than you do the job, I'd prefer to fi nish i t
myself.
(iii) -ING PARTICIPLE
Without subject: Leaving the room, he tripped over the mat.
With subject: Her aunt having left the room, I asked Ann for some
personal hel p.
(iv) -ED PARTICIPLE
Without subject: Covered with confusion, they apologized abjectly.
With subject: The discussion completed, the chairman adjourned
the meeting for hal f an hour.
Subclasses (i) and (i i i) are used most frequently, especial l y (i i i ) without
subject; subclass (ii) i s relatively rare.
In negative nonfni te clauses, the negative particle i s generally positioned before
the verb or the to of the i nfni ti ve:
It's his fult for not doing anythi ng about i t.
The wisest policy is (fr us) not to i nterfere.
On the split i nfnitive, cf8. 1 1 Note.
Because nonfi nite clauses lack tense markers and modal auxi l i aries and
frequently lack a subject and a subordinating conjunction, they are
valuable as a means of syntactic compressi on. Certain kinds of non fni te
clause are particularly fvoured i n written prose, where the writer has the

t
[
l

f
i

f


i
NOTE
14.6
Finite, nonfinite, and verbless clauses 287
leisure to revise for compactness. We reco\er meani ngs associated wi th
tense, aspect, and mood from the sentential context. We can al so normally
see a correspondence with a fini te clause that has a frm of the verb he and
a pronoun subject with the same reference as a noun or pronoun i n the
same sentence. For the sentences i n [ 1 -], one might make the insertions
shown in parentheses:
Wizen (she was) questioned, she denied being a member of the
group. [ I ]
(Since/Because/As they were) considered ll'orks ofart, they
were admi tted i nto the country wi thout customs duties. [2]
(If i t is) kept in the refrigerator, the drug should remain
effective for at least three months. [3]
(Si nce/After he was) allmred 111111s11a/ privileges, the prisoner
seemed to enjoy his captivi ty. [4]
On the other hand, [5] shows how the advantage of compactness must be
balanced against the danger of ambiguity: fr the absence of a subject
leaves doubt as to which nearby nominal element i s notionally the subject:
We met you (wizen you?/ire? \\'ere) leaving the room. [5]
With i nfni tive clauses, a corresponding fi ni te clause al so enables one to
identify an understood subject:
I expected to go. I expected that ! ll'ould go.
I expected him to go. I expected that he aou/d go.
When no referential l i nk with a nominal can be discovered in the l i ngui sti c
context, an i ndefi nite subject may be i nferred. or else the 'I' of the speaker:
To be an administrator is to have the worst job in the world. [' For a
person to be . . . ]
It's hard work to be a student. [indefnite subject, eg: anyone]
It's hard work, to be honest. [I as subject]
Auxil iary have is sometimes used in to-i nfnitiw clauses (lo have happened) and
-ing participle clauses (having happened) L i ndi rnte anteriority in time.
Verbless clauses
Wi th verbless clauses it i s usual ly possible to pos t ulate a missing form of
the verb be and to recover the subject. when omitted, from the con text:
Whether right or \\'rang. he always comes off worst i n argument.
['whether he is right or wrong']
One should avoid taking a trip abroad in August where possible.
['where it is possible']
When a clause has a subject. only the verb has to be recovered:
14.7
288 The complex sentence
Seventy-three people have been drowned in the area, many o{the111
children. [' many of them being children']
There he stood, a tray in each hand. ['having a tray in each hand']
The subject is often i ntroduced by 11 itlz or 11itho11t (cf 1 4. 8 Note [b)J:
With the children at school, we can't take our vacati ons when
V
want to.
Without you at my side, I am not willing to answer questions.
Since i t is usually possible to i nterpret the clause as having an omi t ted
frm of the verb be, the verbless clause is l i mi ted to the two clause-types
SVC and SVA, with or without a subordinator (sub):
I do not wish to describe his assertions, some ofthem lzighl_r ofnsfre.
[S (V) CJ
Though somewhat edgy, she said she would stay a l i ttle l onger. sub
[S (V) CJ
Mavis sat in the front seat, her hands in her lap. [S (V) A]
While at college, he was a prominent member of the dramatic
society. sub [(S V) A]
Formal i ndi cators of subordi nati on
Subordination is generally marked by a si gnal i n the subordinate clause.
The signal may be of various kinds: a subordinating conj unction. a ll"h
element, the item that, subject-operator inversion in declarative clauses,
or (negatively) the absence of a fnite verb.
NOTE More than one subordination signal may co occur in the same subordinate clause.
For example, a nonfnite or verbless clause may be i ntroduced by a subordinating
conjunction.
Subordinators
14.8 SUBORDINATORS (or, more fully, SUBORDINATING CONJUNCTio:s) are rhe
most important frmal device of subordinati on, particularly for fnite
clauses. Like preposi tions, which they resemble i n having a relating
function, subordinators frming the core of the class consist of a single
word, but there is a large range of mul ti-word subordinators which
function, to varying degrees, like a single conj unction. In addition. there is
a small class of correlative subordinators, which combine two markers of
subordination, one being a subordinator.
Single-word subordinators
after, although, as, because, before, directly (infrmal, esp BrE)..for,
i, immediately (i nfrmal, esp BrE), lest (esp AmE). like
Formal indicators of subordination 289
(infrmal, esp AmE), once, since. that, though, till, unless, 1111 ' il.
irhen, whenever, lt"here, 1rhereas. whereupon, wherever, 1rlule.
whilst (esp BrE)
Multi-word subordinators
ending with that :
but that, in that, in order that, insofar that (i nformal, rare), in the
event that, save that (l iterary). such that
ending with optional that :
(a) participle frm:
assuming, conidering, e
:
'epting.
_
gil'en, grm'ted,}
(that )
granting, provided, prond1ng, see111g. supposmg
(b) others:
except,for all, }
(that )
noiv, so
ending with as:
according as, as far as, as long as, as soon as,forasmuch as (formal ),
inasmuch as (frmal ), insofar as, insomuch as (frmal )
Others:
as if, as though, in case
Correlative subordinators
as . . . so
as }
so . . . as
such
so }
I
. . . that
Sl/C l
less }
more (/-er)
. . . than
no sooner than . . . rhan, 1rhen (infrmal)
hardiy . . . wizen, than, (infrmal)
barelv
scarcely
tlze . . . the
whether}
i
. . . or
NOTE
290 The complex sentence
[a] There arc also optional conjuncts that endorse the meaning ofa subordi n
ator
that i ntroduces the preceding clause:
although

even
i
( ) I I
. . . ye1, never1heless, ctc
e1en I 10ug 1
ll"hile
i
o'1ce
. . then
smce [reason]
unless
because
}
.
(
1
)
. . . therefore
seemg t 1at
[b] Nonfnite clauses (except bare infni tive clauses) and verbless clauses may have
the subordinators ll'ith and without, which are required to introduce the subject:
Without you to consult, I would be completely lost.
With the mortgage paid, they could afford to go abroad fr their vacation.
Don't walk around ll'ith your shirt hanging out.
With you as myfriend, I don' t need enemies.
Occasionally without is used with -ing clauses when there is no subject:
Without mentioning any names, someone has been gossiping to the boss
about you.
Compare also What 11"ith (paying) my mortgage and my taxes, I have no moner to
spare for luxuries.
-
[e] Bare i nfnitive clauses are limited to the two synonymous subordinators ra1her
than and sooner than:
He paid the fine rather than appeal to a higher court.
As a subordinator with i nfni ti ve clauses.for is restricted to clauses with their own
subject and i ndeed is often obligatory (cf I 5. 9) :
It would be an absurd i deajor them t o more t o another house al this srnge of
their careers.
Marginal subordinators
14.9 There are also three types of borderline cases of mul ti-word subordi na
tors: ( I ) habi tual combinations of a subordinator wi th a preceding or
fllowing adverb (eg: even i, i only); (2) temporal noun phrases (eg: rhe
moment (that), e1ery time (that) ), but the fllowing clause is better
analysed as a restrictive relative clause; (3) prepositional phrases ending in
the fact that (eg: because ofthe fact that, in spite ofthe fact that ) , but the
subordinate clause is better analysed as in apposi tion to the preceding
noun phrase.
'

r
[
t

r

I

t
14. 1 0
NOTE
Formal indicators of subordination 291
Other i ndicators of subordination
We now turn to other indicators of subordination apart frm
subordinators.
(i) Wh-elements are initial markers of subordination in subordinate
interrogative clauses (cf 1 5-) and subordinate excl amative clauses
(cf 1 5.6), in 1rh-relative clauses (c/ 1 5. 7/, 1 5. 33, 1 7. 5
.
f), and in
conditional-concessive clauses ( 1 5. 22/).
(ii) The relative pronoun that, which can often replace wh-pronouns, i s
a subordi nation marker in restrictive relative clauses (cf 1 7. 8/).
(iii) Subject-operator i nversion is a marker of subordi nation in certain
clauses, particularly in conditional clauses (cf 1 5. 1 9 Note [c]). It is
typica!of a l i terary and elevated style. The operators that permit the
inversion are had, were, should, and (less commonly) could and
might :
(iv)
Were she here, she would support the motion.
Inversion of a diferent kind -the fronting of the whole or part of the
predication - may occur with the subordinators as, though and that
in concessive and reason clauses (cf 1 5. 21 Note [a], 1 5.26 Note [b]):
Eloquent though she was, she could not persuade them.
The absence of a fni te verb is itsel f an indicator of subordination,
since nonfni te and verbless clauses are generally subordinate (but cf
1 1 . 2 1 ).
There are three types of subordinate clauses that have no clear indicator of
subordination within them:
(a) Nominal that-clauses allow the omission of that i n certain contexts cf
_
I 5.3),
but they may be said to be recognizable as subordinate through the potentiality fr
the i nsertion of that :
I suppose (that) I can use your phone.
(b) Zero relative clauses (c/1 7. 8/) have no overt marker of subordina
tion, but they are generally structurally defcient:
I can't fnd the note you sent me.
You sent me in this example lacks a direct object, since me is i ntended as the
i ndi rect object ( = ' to me').
(c) Some comment clauses (cf 1 5. 32) have no overt marker of
subordination, but t hey - l i ke zero relative clauses - generally lack an
obligatory complementation of the verb:

I have no al ternative, I suppose.

, I
292 The complex sentence
The verb phrase in subordi nate clauses
The present tense in adverbial and nomi nal clauses
14. 11 The simple present i s commonly used in preference t o the auxili ary 11i/ or shall in certain types of adverbial clauses to express future meani ng:
NOTE
When she arrives, the band wi ll play the National Anthem.
Even if tomorrow's match is cancelled, Lancashire will still be at the
top of the league.
While I am away, the children will look after the house.
Whether or not they ll'in this battle, they won' t win the war.
Whatever they say, I won't pay.
Next time I'll do as he says.
The harder you exercise, the better you'll feel.
The subordinators chiefy involved belong to the temporal, conditional, and conditional-concessive categories.
Nominal that- and wh-clauses tend to contain the simple present when
the matrix clause (as well as the subordinate clause) refers to the future but when the matrix clause refrs to the present, wil is likely to be used i
the subordinate clause. Contrast:
In a few minutes I'll ask him what he wants tomorrow.
The question is what he will H'ant tomorrow.
However, there are exceptional verb constructions l i ke hope, bet. see (to
it), take care, be careful, and (both in the i mperative) suppose and assume,
after which the simple present is often or (fr take care and be careful)
regularly used:
I hope that the parcel comes in time. [also wil come]
Suppose he loses his way. [also 1ri lose]
Take care that she doesn't fl l .
Will and 1r11
'
1 occur i n adverbial clauses, particularly i n i-clauses, i n certain uses: (i) Where the modals have a volitional meaning:
If you'/ help us. we can fnish early. [are willing to']
If you won 't help us. all our plans will be ruined. ['refuse to']
(ii) Where the modals express timeless and habitual prediction:
If drugs ll'i/ cure him, this drug should do the job.
If sugar will dissolve i n a hot liquid
,
this chemical will do so too
.
(iii) Where the modals express the present predictability of the occurrence or
non occurrence of a future event:
If you ll'On 't arrire before six, I can't meet you. ['If you won't be
arriving before six']
[I ]
i4. 1 2
The verb phrase i n subordinate clauses 293
I f the game ll'Oll 't be.nished unti l ten. J ' l l spend the
_
night
,
at your
(2] place. ['If the game is not going to be fni shed unti l ten ]
The matrix clause conveys the consequence of the present
.
predictability. I n [ I ] and
[2] the consequence is a present decision on a future action.
The hypothetical past and hypothetical past perfect
The verbs in hypothetical conditional clauses are back
_
shifted (cf 1 4. 1 8) ,
the past tense form being used for present and future time refrence and
the past perfect frm for past time reference. When these forms have such
hypothetical i mpl ications we term them HYPOTHETICA PAST and HYPOTH
ETICAL PAST PERFECT. The general rule for
.
verbs both clauses of
hypothetical condi tions may be expressed as m Table 1 4. 1 2.
Table 14. 12: Verbs in hypothetical conditions
Present and
future
reference
Past
reference
CONDITIONAL CLAIJSE
HYPOTHETICAL PAST
HYPOTHETICAL PAST
PERCT
MATRIX CLAUSE
PAST
MODAL
PAST PERFECT
MODAL
The modal most commonly used in the matrix clause is w

uld. It is used
to express the hypothetical implication, without necessanly any other
modal implicati ons:
I f she
{tried
. } harder next time, she would pass
were to ti Y
the examination.
[future reference: 'but I expect she rn' t try harder']
If they were alive, they 1ro11/d be monng around.
. ,
[present reference: ' but I assume they are not altve ]
If they had invited hi m to the conference, he ll'ould have attended.
[past reference: ' but they didn' t invite him' ]
As the bracketed i mplications indicate, the hypothetical meaning is ore
absol ute i n the past, and amounts to an implied rejeti on of the cond1 t1on;
whereas with present and future reference the me
_
a?mg may e merely one
of negative expectation or assumption. the pos1t1ve not bemg ruled out
completely.

i n certain other Hypothetical past or past pe
_
rfect are
.
obhgatory
constructions that have hypothetical meamng:
294 The complex sentence
It's time you ll'ere in bed.
I wish this bus ll'ent to the university.
If only I had listened to my parents!
They are optional with other constructions that also have hypothetical
meaning, where the simple present is an al ternative:
He acts as if he knew you.
I t' s not as though we were poor.
Suppose we told her the truth.
Imagine your child played t

uant.
I'd rather we had di nner now.
Generally a negative i nference can be drawn, which i s more strongly
negative with the hypothetical past perfect. Thus I only I had listened 10
my parents implies 'I did not listen to my parents', and He acts as [he knell'
you i mplies the expectation ' He doesn't know you'. In I'd rather ire had
dinner noll', the hypothetical past may express tentative poli teness rather
than hypothetical meaning.
NOTE When modal auxiliaries are used in hypothetical conditional clauses thev combine
with past and past perfect:

If you could type, you would save a lot of money.
If she would have agreed, I would have married her.
In the matrix clause they replace would, since two modal auxi l iaries cannot
cooccur:
If we had enough money, we could buy a computer.
If he had apologized, you should have done so too.
The present and past subjunctive
14. 13 The present subj unctive (cf 3. 23f) i s used i n that-clauses (especially i n
AmE), even i f the matri x verb i s past, after verbs, adjectives, or nouns that
express a necessity, plan, or i ntention for the ft ure:
Congress has voted that the present l aw be mai ntained.
We insisted that {
ey
} leave at once.
They expressed the wish that G
he
} accept the award.
It is essential that a meet i ng be convened this week.
[ I J
[2]
[3]
[4]
In BrE, putative should (cf 1 4. 1 4) wi th i nfni tive i s more common. In both
AmE and (especially) BrE, indicative frms are also often used in this
construction; for example, left in [2] and is in [4].
The past (or were-) subj unctive (cf 3 . 23f) is used in formal style in

i

r
l
h

NOTE
14. 14
The verb phrase i n subordinate cl auses 295
hypothetical conditional clauses and i n other cons t ructions with hypot he
tical meaning exempli fed i n 1 4. 1 2:
I wish she irerc married.
If only I ll'ere not so nervous.
If she ll'ere here, she would speak on my behal f.
The stufed dog barked as if it 1rere a real one.
Suppose he were lost.
I 'd rather I ll'ere in bed.
t
In nonformal styles, the hypothetical past (cf 1 4. 1 2) replaces subjunctive
1vere. In all the above examples, the hypothetical past would be 11as.
[a] The present subjunctive is used very occasionally, and generally in frmal style,
in open conditional clauses (cf I 5. 1 9) and in concessive clauses (lf 1 5.2 1 ):
Whether she be right or wrong, she will have my unswerving support.
More usually, the simple present indiCative is used.
Clauses of concession and purpose may also very occasionally in frmal style
contain a present subjunctive (especially i n AmE) to express putative meani ng (cj'
1 4. 1 4) :
Though he be the President himself, he shall hear us. ['Though he is . . .']
Contrast the use of the past subjunctive fr hypothetical meaning in Though he
were the President himsel he should hear us, where the implication is that he is not
the President.
The more usual verb frms fr the putative meaning i n though-clauses are the
simple present indicative or putative should fllowed by the infnitive. Clauses of
purpose require modal auxiliaries, and therefre only the should-construction is a
possible alternative.
[b] In nonfral styles, the hypothetical past 1rs replaces subjunctive were (eg: I
wish she HU5 not married). The present indicative is a possible alternative after as i
and as though when the reference is to present time (eg: The stufed dog barks as if it
i a real one) and after imperatives suppose and imagine.
Putative should
The modal auxili ary should is used exiensively (esp in BrE) in that-clauses
to convey the notion of a putative situation. which i s recogni zed as
possibly existing or coming into existence. Contrast:
I'm surprised that he should feel l onely.
I'm surprised that he feels lonely.
[ ! ]
[2]
Whi l e [ ! ] questions the loneliness, [2] accepts it as true. Here, as often, the
di ference i s mainly one of nuance, since the factual bias of the matrix
clause overrides the doubt otherwise implicit i n the should-construction.
On the other hand, the nonfctuality i s clearer i n these examples:
It worries me that their only child should tral'el alone. [3]
It' s unthinkable that they should ever deny my requests. [4]
296 The complex sentence
I prefer that she should drfe. [5]
I'm anxious that 1 slzouldn 't be in the way. [6]
They've arranged that 1 should absent myself for part of
the commi ttee meeting. [
7]
I can understand their eagerness that you should be the
main speaker. [8]
The expressions in the matrix clause may convey an emotional reaction
(fr example, surprise or worry), as in [ 1 --], or the notions of necessity,
plan, or intention for the future, as in [5-8]. For [5-8], the present
subjunctive is preferred in AmE (cf 1 4. 1 3).
The perfect wi th temporal sinceclauses
14. 15 A temporal since-clause generally requires the present perfect in the
matrix clause when the whole construction refers to a stretch of t i me up to
(and potentially including) the present:
I have lost ten pounds since I started swimming. [ I ]
Since leaving home, Larry has written t o his parents just once. [2]
In infrmal AmE, and increasingly i n i nformal BrE, non perfect frms are
commonly used in the matrix clauses; fr example, lost instead of have lost
i n [ ! ], and wrote instead of have written in [2].
When the whole construction refers to a stretch of time up to (and
potentially including) the present, the verb in the since-clause may be the
simple past or the present perfect. The simple past is used when the since
clause refers to a point of time marking the begi nni ng of the situation:
She has been talking since she was one year old.
Since I saw her last, she has dyed her hair.
Derek hasn' t stopped talking since he arrived.
The present perfect is used in both clauses when the since-clause refers to a
period of time lasting to the present:
Max has been tense since he's been taking drugs.
Since I have been here, I haven't left my seat.
Since I' ve known Caroline, she has been i nterested in athletics .
I've had a dog ever since I' le owned a house.
I've gone to concerts ever since I' ve lived i n Edi nburgh.
When the whole period is set i n past time, the past perfect or the simple
past is used i n both clauses:
Since the country (had) achieved independence, it (had) revised its
constitution twice.
. {had kn01r } {had been }
Smee he
k
her, she a journalist.
new was
Di rect and I ndi rect speech 297
The perfect with other temporal clauses
1 4. 1 6 When an after-clause or a when-clause refers to a sequence of two past
events, the verb i n the temporal clause may be in t he past perfect, though i t
is more commonly in the simple past:
{afer {returned }
We ate our meal
h j\
we
h d d
from the game.
V en a returne
All fur frms of these sentences are acceptable, and mean roughly the
same. The only difference is that ll'lzen and the simple past (probably the
most popular choice) suggests that the one event follows immediately on
the other in sequence. There may, however, be a contrast when the
subordinator is wizen if the predication in the wizen-clause is durative:
{gave }
They walked out when I /
d
. the lecture.
za gi ven
The variant with the simple past would normally mean 'as soon as I
started giving the lecture' or 'during the time I was giving the lecture',
whereas that with the past perfect means after the lecture was over'.
The present perfect is common in temporal and conditional clauses
when the clauses refer to a sequence of future events:
When they' ve scored their next goal. we'll go home.
As soon as I've retired, I'll buy a cottage in the country.
After they have left, we can smoke.
If 1' 1e written the paper befre Monday, I'll call you.
In each case, the simple present is an alterative.
NOTE These four sentences seem to be equivalent in meaning:
I smr him before he sall' me.
I had seen him before he sall' me.
I salt' hi m before he had seen me.
I had seen him before he had seen me.
[ I ]
(2]
(3]
(4]
Sentence [3] appears to be paradoxical in th2t the second in the succession of
events is marked wi th the past perfect. One exrlanation is that the before-clause i n
[3], and perhaps also i n [4]. is nonfactual; ie He di d not get a chance to see me' . But
it is also possible that the meaning of the subordinator before has i nfuenced the
use of the past perfect as one of the choices of 1erb forms. or possibly there is an
analogy with the use of the past perfect in an 4ier-clause.
Di rect and i ndi rect speech
14.17 DIRECT SPEECH purports to give the exact words that someone utters or has
uttered i n speech or writing. !'DIRECT SPEECH, on the other hand, conveys
NOTE
298 The complex sentence
a report of what has been said or written, but does so in the words of a
subsequent reporter. Contrast the direct speech in [ I ] with two possible
versions in indirect speech as given in [ I a] and [I b]:
David said to me after the meeting, ' In my opinion, the
arguments in favour of radical changes in the curriculum
are not convincing.' [ I ]
David said t o me after the meeting that i n his opinion the
arguments in fvour of radical changes in the curriculum
were not convincing. ( l a]
David told me after the meeting that he remained opposed
to any major changes in the curriculum. [I b]
The report may be a representation of mental activity, which by its
nature is unspoken. Thus [2] and [2a] contain di rect speech and indi rect
speech respectively:
'Should I tell them now,' I thought to myself, 'or should I
wait until they're in a better mood?' [2]
He asked himself whether he should tell them then or wait
until they were in a better mood. [2a]
Direct speech is usually signalled by being enclosed in quotation marks,
as i n [ I ] and [2]. The reporting clause may occur befre, within, or after the
direct speech.
When the reporting clause is positioned medially or fnally, subject
verb i nversion may occur if the verb is in the simple present or simple past:
! John said )
,
d
,
h 'd
' whether I can borrow your
I won er, e sai ,
b
'
1
,
said John
icyc e
{Eliabeth complained.
'The radio is too loud,' she complained.
complained Elizabeth.
[3]
[4]
Inversion is most common when the verb is said, the subject is not a
pronoun, and the reporting clause is medi al . It is unusual and archaic or
dialectal, however, when the subject of the reporting clause is a pronoun.
even when the verb is said (eg: said he).
The structural relationship between the reporting clause and direct speech i s
problematic. I n [ ! ] the di rect speech seems to be a direct object, but i n the other
examples above of direct speech - [2], [3], and [4] - the reporting clause seems
subordinate. The direct speech may comprise what would be represented in
writing as a number of sentences.
Backshifl in i ndi rect speech
14. 18 Several changes are usually made in converting di rect speech to indi rect
speech. If the time of reporting is expressed as later than the time of the
NOTE
Di rect and Indirect speech 299
utterance, there is generally a change of verb forms. The change is t ermed
BACKSH!FT, and the resulting relationship of verb forms in the rq1ort i ng
and reported clauses is known as the SEQUENCE OF TENSES. Bel ow we
assume an exact correspondence for the reporti ng of direct and i ndi rect
speech in illustrating the changes.
DIRECT SPEECH
(i) present
(ii) past
(iii) present perfect }
(iv) past perfect
BACKSHIFTED IN INDIRECT SPEECH
past
past or past perfect
past perfect
Thus, i f the present references in the direct speech become past references
in the indirect speech, there is a corresponding shift of verb frms into the
past, or if necessary i nto the past perfect. The verbs in the indirect speech
are thereby related to the time of the reporting. Examples of each part of
the rule are:
'I am being paid by the hour,' she said.
She said she l'as being paid by the hour.
'The exhibition fnished last week,' explained Ann.
Ann explained that { fnished } .
h h
.
b
. .
h df
.
h d
the preceding week.
t e ex i it10n a ms e
' I' ve been waiting over an hour fr you,' she told him.
She told him that she had been waiting over an hour fr him.
' I had studied French fr fur years at school befre I abandoned the
subject,' I said.
I said that I had studied French fr fur years at school befre I
abandoned the subject.
Backshift is optional when the time-reference of the original utterance is
valid at the ti me of the reporting:
Their teacher had told them that the earth moves around the sun.
Sam told me last night that he is now an American citizen.
They thought that prison conditions !al'e improved.
I didn't know that our meeting is next Tuesday.
She said that they are being discriminated against.
The waiter told me that lunch is now being served.
The reporting verb may be i n the present tense fr communications in recent past
time:
Joan tells me that she's going to the airport i n an hour's time.
She says she l\'as too busy to join us last night.
The present tense i s also used fr reports attributed to fmous works or authors
which have present validity:
The Bible says that adultery i s a sin.
Chaucer some1rhere ll'rites that love is blind.
Verhs nfrncni ti nn m'" o c l .~a. . L ----- -- -
14. 19
14.20
300 The complex sentence
I knoll' they don 't care.
Sylvia thinks Paul 11-nt to Lancaster last night.
Other changes i n indirect speech

he r

ference to

ersons in indirect speech must be appropriate to the

s1 tuat1on at the time of reporting. There may therefore be chanres in
pronouns or nouns, as i l l ustrated below:
-
'!' II behave mysel, ' he promised.
He promised that he'
d
behave himsel,
' You know my fmily,' she said.
She told him [or Tom, fr example] that he knew her fami l y.
Other changes may be necessary to adjust the references to ti me or
place. For example, yesterday to last lfonday, now to then, here to there or
at college.
Indi rect statements, questions, exclamations, di rectives
All the main discourse types may be converted into i ndirect speech.
INDIRECT STATEMENT: subordinate that-clause
INDIRECT QUESTION: subordinate wh-clause or iclause
INDIRECT EXCLAMATION: subordinate wh-clause
INDIRECT DIRECTIVE: subordinate that-clause or to-i nfni ti ve
clause (without subject)
Our examples have so far been of i ndirect statements. Here are examples
of the last three categories:
'Are you ready yet? ' asked Joan. [YES-NO QUSTION]
, Joa

asked (me) 1rhether I ll'as ready yet.
When will the plane leave?' J wondered. [ wH-QUESTION]
I wondered ll'hen the plane ll'ould leave.
'Are you satisfed or not?' I asked her. [ALTERNATIVE QUESTIO:]
I asked her 11'!1ether or not she ll'as satisfed.
'What a brave boy you are!' Margaret told him. [EXCLAMATio:-]
Margaret told him 1rhat a brme bar he wa.
'Tidy up the room at once,' I said to Tm. [DIRECTIVE]
I insisted that Tom
{tidy (esp AmE) } up the room
should tidy (esp BrE) at once.
I told Tom to tidy up the room.
All th

types of changes outlined i n 1 4. 1 8/ apply to questions and
exclamations as well as statements. With directives there is no tense
backs
.
hi ft i n the verb forms exemplifed above: mandative subjuncti\ e.
putative should, to-i nfniti\'e.
Direct and Indirect speech 301
The modal auxi l i aries in i ndi rect speech
14. 21 If there is a change in time-reference, a modal auxiliary is backshi lkd
from present tense frms to past tense forms even i f these do not normally
i ndicate past time in di rect speech:
'You may be able to answer this question,' he told her.
He told her that she might be able to answer that question.
'J 1ro11 '1 pay another penny,' I said.
J said that J ll'ouldn 't pay another penny.
If a modal auxi l i ary in the di rect speech is already i n the past tense frm,
then the same form remains in the indirect speech:
'You shouldn 't smoke in the bedroom,' he told them.
He told them that they shouldn 't smoke in the bedroom.
Several modal auxi liaries or marginal modals have onl y one form: nwst,
ought to, need, and fwd better. That frm remains i n indirect speech:
'You must be hungry,' he said.
He said that they must be hungry.
'You had better not say anything about this,' he warned me.
He warned me that I had better not say anything about that.
In i ts obligational sense, however, the past of must may be replaced by had
to i n i ndi rect speech:
'You must be in by ten tonight,' his parents told him.
H
.
I d h' h h
{must }
1s parents to 1m t at e
had t o
be by ten that mght.
Free indirect speech and free di rect speech
14.22 FREE INDIRECT SPEECH is used extensively to report speech or (particularly
in fction) the stream of thought. It i s basically a form of indirect spe
'
ech,
but (a) the reporting clause is omitted (except when retained as a
parenthetical clause, as in di rect speech). and (b) the potentiali ties of
direct-speech sentence structure are retained (fr example, direct
questions and exclamations, rcatives, tag questions, and i nterjections).
It i s therefore only the backshift of the \'erb, together with equivalent
shi fts i n personal pronouns. demonstratives, and time and place
references, that signals the fct that the words are being reported, rather
than bei ng in di rect speech. The i tal icized verbs below are backshifted to
the past tense:
So that was their plan, 1rs i t? He well kne1r their tricks, and l\'ould
show them a thing or two before he Hasfnished. Thank goodness
he had been alerted, and that there ll'ere still a few honest people in
the worl d!
302 The complex sentence
FREE DIRECT SPEECH is also used in fi ction writing to represent a person
'
s
stream of thought. It is basical l y a frm of di rect speech, but it is merged
with the narration without any overt indication by a reporting cla use of a
swi tch to speech. I t is disti nguished from the past time-reference of the
narration by i t s use of unshifted forms. In the fol lowing example the free
di rect speech is ital icized:
I sat on the grass stari ng at the passers-by. Everybody seemed in a
hurry. Why didn 't I stay at home?
Transferred negation
14.23 TRANSFERRED NEGATION, parti cul arly common in i nformal style, is the
transfer of the negative from a subordinate clause, where semantically i t
belongs, to the matrix clause. I don 't think it 's a good idea i s an example of
transferred negation, since i t can be understood as virtually synonymous
wi th I think it isn 't a good idea.
The matrix verbs that all ow transferred negation convey notions of
opinion (eg: believe, expect, imagine, suppose, think) or perception (eg:
appear, seem, feel as i look as i, sound as i). Here are some examples:
I don't believe I've met you befre. ['I believe I haven't met you
before']
She didn't imagine that we would say anything. ['She i magined that
we wouldn' t say anything']
He didn't expect to win. ['He expected not to wi n']
It doesn't seem that we can get our money back. ['It seems that we
can't get our money back']
The baby doesn't appear to be awake. ['The baby appears not to be
awake']
It doesn't l ook as if i t's goi ng to rai n. ['It l ooks as if it isn't going to
rain']
NOTE When the subject of the main clause is /, the tag question corresponds wi th the
subordinate clause:
I don't imagine he CARES, DOES he? [I imagine he doesn't CARE, DOES he?]
Bi bliographical note
On the termi nology fr sentence and clause, see Greenbaum ( 1 988).
On the complex sentence and subordination i n general see Nakajima ( 1 982);
Smaby ( 1 974).
On nonfni te and verbless clauses beginni ng with a subordinator, see Backl und
( 1 984).
Transferred negation JOJ
On the overlap of conjunction and preposition. sec Jacobsson ( 1 977): Mal l hc11 >
( 1 98 1 , esp pp. 1 748 1 ).
On the choice of verb in subordinate cl auss. i ncl uding backshi ft i n i ndi rect
speech, see Palmer ( 1 979, 1 988). both passim.
On transferred negation, see Cattell ( 1 97 3 ); Horn ( I 978b).
1 5 Syntacti c and semanti c functi ons of
subordi nate cl auses
Syntactic functions of subordi nate cl auses
15. 1 Subordinate clauses may function as subject, object, complement, or
adverbial in a superordinate clause:
Subject: That we need a larger computer has become obvious.
Direct object: He doesn' t know whether to send a gift.
Indirect object: You can tell whoever is waiting that I' l l be back in ten
minutes.
Subject complement: One likely resul t of the postponement is that
the cost of constructing the college will be very much higher.
Object complement: I know her to be reliable.
Adverbial: When you see them, give them my best wishes.
In addition, subordinate clauses may function within these elements, eg:
Postmodifer i n noun phrase: (Few of the immigrants retained) the
customs that they had brought with them.
Prepositional complement: (It depends) on what we decide.
Adjectival complementation: (We are) happy to see you.
NOTE There are constraints on the fnctioning of clauses as i ndi rect objects or as object
complements. Among the fnite clauses, only nominal relative clauses (cf 1 5. 7/)
fnction as indirect object or as object complement.
Functional classes of subordinate cl auses
15.2 On the basis of their potential functions, we distinguish fur major
categories of subordinate clauses: NOMINAL, ADVERBIAL, RELATIVE. and
COMPARTIVE.
Like noun phrases NOMINAL CLAUSES (cf 1 5. 3.) may function as subject.
object, complement, appositive, and preposi tional complement. But the
occurrence of nominal clauses is more l i mi ted than that of noun phrases.
because semantically the clauses are normally abstract; ie they refer to
such abstractions as events, fcts, and ideas. The one exception is the
nominal relative clause, which may refer to persons and things and may in
fact be alternatively analysed as a noun phrase (cf 1 5. 7). Since indirect
objects normally refer to persons, we can see why only the nominal
relative clause can function as i ndi rect object. Nominal clauses involved in
the complementation of verbs and adjectives are discussed i n detail in
Chapter 1 6.
ADVERBIAL CLAUSES (cf 1 5. 1 3. ) function mai nl y as adjuncts (8. 1 3) or
Nominal clauses 305
disjuncts (8.40). In those functions they are like adverb phrases. but in
their potentiality for greater explicitness. they are more often l i ke
prepositional phrases:
We left after the speeches ended.
We left after the end of the speeches.
RELATIVE CLAUSES generally function as restrictive or nonrestri cli vc
modifers of noun phrases and are therefore functionally parallel lo
attributive adjectives. Compare:
a man who is lonely a lonely man
But they are positioned like postmodifying preposi tional phrases:
tourists who come from Italy-tourists from Italy
These relative clauses are discussed in Chapter 1 7. Two types of relative
clauses, however, are treated in this chapter: nominal relative clauses
( 1 5. 7f) and sentential relative clauses ( 1 5. 33)
COMPARATIVE CLAUSES (cf 1 5. 36.ff) resemble adjectives and adverbs i n
their modifying functions:
She has more patience than you haVe.
He's not as clever a man as I thought.
I love you more deeply than I can say.
Semantically, the comparative clauses together with their correlative
element (eg: more, as, -er) are equivalent to degree adverbs.
NOTE Unlike noun phrases, nominal clauses may clso function as adjective complemen
tation without a preposition (cf 1 6.39):
I'm not sure that I can remember the exacr detais.
Nomi nal clauses
That-clauses
15.3 Nominal that-clauses may function as:
Subject: That the invading troops hare been withdrawn has not
affected our government's trade sanctions.
Di rect object: I noticed that he spoke English with an Australian
accent.
Subject complement: My assumption is that interest rates Hil! soon
fall.
Appositive: Your criticism, tha1 no account has been taken of
psychological factors. is fully justifed.
Adjectival complementation: We are glad that you are able to join us
on our wedding anniversary.
306 Syntactic and semantic functions of subordinate clauses
They may not, however, function as object complement or as preposi tio
nal complement.
The subject that-clause is usually extra posed (cj 1 8. 23):
It has not afected our government's trade sanctions that the
invading troops have been withdrall' n.
When the that-clause is di rect object, complement, or extraposed. the
conjunction that is frequently omi tted except in formal use, leaving a zero
that-clause:
It's a pity you don 't know Russian.
But that cannot be omi tted in a subject clause or in a nonrestrictive
appositive clause (cf 1 7. 1 3 Note), since without the subordinate marker
the clause would be i ni tially misinterpreted as a main clause:
* You don't know Russian is a pity.
*Your criticism, no account has been taken ofpsychologicalfactors, is
ful l y justifed.
NOTE The zero that-clause is particularly common when the clause is brief and
uncomplicated. Retention of t/at is necessary under certain conditions other than
when the clause is an unextraposed s
u
bject or a nonrestrictive appositive clause:
(i) To clarify whether an adverbial belongs to the matrix or the that-clause:
They told us once again that tlze situation was serious.
They told us tlzat once again tlze situation was serious.
(ii) To prevent a coordinated that-clause from being misinterpreted as a
coordinated main clause:
I realize that I'm i n charge and tlzat everybody accepts my leadership.
I realize that I'm in charge, and everybody accepts my leadership.
(iii) When the object that-clause is fronted (as with an initial subject clause):
Thar she ever said such a thing I simply don' t believe.
(iv) When a clause or long phrase intervenes between the verb and the
that-clause:
We decided, in view of his special circumstances, that we llould admir himfor
a probationary period.
Whinterrogative clauses
15.4 Subordi nate H'h-interrogative clauses occur in the whole range of
functions available to the nominal that-clause and i n addi tion may
functi on as prepositional complement:
Subject: How the book will sell depends on the reviewers.
Di rect object: I can't imagine what they want with your address.


Nomi nal cl auses 307
Subject complement: The problem is 1lho 1l'i// water my plants 1rhe11 I
m11 mray.
Apposi tivc: Your original question, 1rhy lze did not report it to the
police earlier, has not yet been answered.
Adjectival complementation: I'm not sure ll'hich she prefers.
Prepositional complement: They did not consult \ on whose names
should be put forll'ard.
These subordi nate clauses resemble 1r/-questions semantically in that
they leave a gap of unknown i nformati on, represented by the lrh-element .
Contrast t he known i nfrmation expressed i n the that-clause wi t h the
unknown i nformation i n the ll'h-clause:
I know (that) Caroline will be there.
Do you know who will be there?
I'm sure (that) Ted has paid.
I' m not s ure who has paid.
There are also grammatical similarities to i ndependent w/1-questions in
that the ll'h-element is placed frst. If i t is a prepositional phrase, we have
the same choices as for the wh-element in 1rh-questions (cf 1 1 .9):
I asked them on irhat they based their predictions. (frmal)
I asked them what they based their predictions on.
An i nfni tive 1rh-clause (with an obligational sense) can be frmed with
all wh-words, though instances with why are rare:
I don' t know what to say. [' . . . what I should say.']
You must explain to them hm1 to start the motor. [' . . . how one/they
should start the motor.']
I never know who to speak to. [' . . . who one/I should speak to. ']
I' m wondering where to put my coat. [' . . . where I should put my
coat.']
NOTE [a] Al though the subordinate clause usually does not have subject-operator
inversion, such i nversion may occur, particularly when the clause functions as
complement and the superordinate verb i s a form of the verb be, or when it
functions as appositive:
The problem is \lho ca11 we get to replace her.
Your original question, irhy did he 1101 report it ro 1he police earlier, has not
yet been answered.
In literary style, subject-verb inversion occasionally occurs when the ll'h-element
is the subject complement or an obligatory adverbial, particularly if the subject is
lengthy:
She told us how strong \!5 her 111orirario11 to engage in research.
It took me some time to discover i11 1rhic/ village stood the memorial to our
fallen comrades.
308 Syntactic and semantic functions of subordinate clauses
In addition, subject-operator i nversion is common i n Irish English and in some
nonstandard dialects:
Whenever I sec her, she wants to know Hhen will I be visiling her 11w1her.
[b] Prepositions are op'ionally omitted before 1rh-clauses:
We have sol ved the problem (of) 11/10 11as cufau/1.
Yes-no and al ternative interrogative clauses
15. 5 Subordinate yes-no i nterrogative clauses (cf 1 1 . 3
.
/) and subordinate
alternative i nterrogative clauses (cf 1 1 . 1 1 ) occur in the whole range of
functions available to subordi nate wh-interrogative clauses, and

may
include i nfni tive clauses. The yes-no clause is i ntroduced by the
subordinators whether or i:
Do you know whe!her/i the banks are open?
The alternative clauses are formed with the correlatives whether . . . or or
i . . . or,, The subordinator is repeated only i f the second unit is a full
clause:
, {ll'hether }
I can t fnd out
i
the flight has been deLAYDor
{irhether } . ,
i
it has been CANceled.
They didn't say whether it wiRAIN or be suNny.
I asked them i they wanted MT or FiSH.
I don' t care i they JOIN us or N6T.
Repetition is possible fr some speakers with ta-infnitive clauses:
He di dn' t tell us whether to wait for him or (whether) to go on 11'i1hout
him.
But the subordinator i s not repeated i fthe second clause i s abbreviated by
the omission of the i nfni tival to:
He di dn' t tell us whe1her to wait for him or go without him.
NOTE I is more restricted syntactically than 1\'he1her. For example, it cannot i ntroduce a
subject clause:
Whelher she likes !he presen/} .
*If she likes !he presenl
is not clear to me.
It cannot i ntroduce a to-i nfnitive clause:
I don' t know whelher lo see my doc/or 1odar.
*Idon' t know i to see my doc/or today.
-
And it cannot be followed di rectly by or not :
He di dn' t say 11'11e1her or 1101 he 'I be staying hrrr.
* He di dn' t say if or no/ he 'I be staying here.
But or 1101 can be postposcd:
He di dn' t say if he 'll be staying here or no/.
Exclamative cl auses
Nominal clauses 309
15.6 Subordi nate exclamative clauses generally function as extraposed subject,
direct object, or preposi tional complement:
Extraposed subject: I t's incredible how fast size can run. (' I t's
incredible that she can run so fst.']
Direct object: I remember what a good time I had at your par1y. [' I
remember that I had such a good time at your party.']
Prepositi onal complement: I read an account of ll'lat an impression
you had made. (' I read an account that you had made an excellent
(or a terrible) impression.']
As in independent exclamative clauses (cf 1 1 .20), the exclamative element
i s formed with what as predeterminer i n a noun phrase and /mr as
i ntensifer of an adjective, adverb, or clause; the exclamative element is
positioned i ni ti al ly regardless of i ts normal position i n a declarative
clause.
NOTE A subordinate clause may be ambiguous between exclamatory and i nterrogative
15.7
i nterpretations:
You can' t i magine 11'/za1 dicul!ies I have wilh my chidren.
Exclamatory i nterpretation: You can't imagine the great difculties I have
with my children.
Interrogative i nterpretati on: You can't imagine the kinds of difculty I have
with my children.
I told her how la1e she 11as.
Exclamatory i nterpretation: I told her she was very late.
Interrogative i nterpretati on: I told her the extent to which she was late.
Nomi nal relative cl auses
Nomi nal relative clauses resemble uh-i nterrogative clauses i n that they
are also i ntroduced by a irh-element. In some respects they are more like
noun phrases, si nce they can refer to concrete enti ties as well as abstract
entities. They can be analysed as noun phrases modifed by relative
clauses, except that the 11'11-element is merged with its antecedent:
Whoever did that should admit it fankly.
['The person who did that . . . ']
I took il'lzat they offered me.
( ! ]
(2]
1 5. 8
31 0 Syntactic and semantic functions of subordinate clauses
['. . . the thing(s) that they ofered me. ']
I took 11ha1 hooks she gave me.
[' . . . the books that she gave me. ']
Macy's is 1rhere I huy my clothes.
(' . . . the place where I buy my clothes. ']
[3]
(4]
Like noun phrases, they may display number concord with the verb of the
sentence. Contrast, for example:
Whatever book you see is yours to take.
Whatever books I have in the house are borrowed from the public
library.
The wh-element may be a pronoun, such as whoever in [ I ] and what in
(2]; a determiner, such as what i n [3] ; or an adverb, such as where in (4].
Nominal relative clauses have the same range of functions as noun
phrases.
Subject: What I want is a cup of hot cocoa.
Direct object: You should see whoever deals with complaints.
Indirect object: He gave whoever asked for it a copy of his l atest
paper.
Subject complement: April is when ihe lilacs bloom.
Object complement: You can call me what ( ever) you like.
Appositive: I'll pay you the whole debt: What I originally borroll'ed
and what I owe you in interest.
Prepositional complement: You should vote fr which(erer)
candidate you think best.
Like noun phrases, nominal relative clauses require prepositions in
adjective complementation:
He's aware of what I ll'rite.
To-infni tive clauses may be nomi nal rel ative clauses, but they seem to
be restricted to the functions of subject complement and prepositional
complement:
Subject complement: That's ll'here l o go for your next 1acwion.
r . . . the place to go . . . ']
Prepositional complement: The book is on how to use a computC.
r . . . the way to use . . . ']
The ll'h-element may express either a SPECIFIC meani ng (where the -erer
sufx is disallowed) or a lONSPECIFIC meani ng (generally i ndicated by the
presence of the -erer sufx):
SPECIFIC
I took ll'hat was on the kitchen table. [' . . . that which was on
the ki tchen table.'] [ I ]
Nominal cl auses 31 1
May is 1rhr11 she takes her last examination. [' . . . the time
when she takes her last examination. ']
(2]
NONSPECIFIC
Whoever hreaks this law deserves a fne. ['Anyone who breaks
this law . . .'] [3]
I'll send whatever is necessary. [' . . . anything that is
necessary.'] [4]
NOTE A subordi nate clause may be ambiguous berween a nominal relative i nterpre-
tati on and an interrogative i nterpretation:
They asked me what I k11e11.
Relative i nterpretation: They asked me things that I knew.
Interrogative i nterpretation: They asked me, 'What do you know?'
What she ll'rote was a mystery.
Relative interpretation: She wrote a mystery story.
Interrogative i nterpretation: I don't know what she wrote.
Toi nfi nitive clauses
15.9 Nomi nal lo-infnitive clauses may function as:
Subject: To be neutral in this confict i s out of the question.
Di rect object: He l ikes to relax.
Subject complement: The best excuse is to say that you hme an
examination tomorrow moring.
Appositive: Your ambition, to become afar111er, requires the energy
and perseverance that you so ob\iously have.
Adjectival complementation: I'm \'ery eager to 111eet her.
Extra position is usual with subject clauses (cf 1 8. 23):
It i s out of the question to be neutral in this confict.
The presence of a subject i n a 10-infi ni ti \ C clause normally requi res t he
presence of a preceding for. When re subject is a pronoun that
distinguishes subjective and objecti \'e cases. i t is in the objective case:
For vow countrv to be neutral in this co11fic1 is out of the questi on.

It is out o
f
the question jar _1 ;ur cuntry to be neutral in this
confict.
For us to take part in the discussion would be a confict of i nterest.
It would be a confict of i nterest for us to take part in the
discussion.
I'm very eager for 1he111 to 111eet. her.
When the clause i s a direct object, howe\'er.for i s generally absent before
the subject:
I

I
31 2 Syntactic and semantic functions of subordinate cl auses
He likes ereryone to relax.
The nominal to-i nfniti ve often i ndicates that its propos1 t1 on is
possibility or a proposal rather than something fulflled, and it is then
closest semantically to a that-clause with putative should (cf 1 4. 1 4 ):
It's natural jor them to be together.
It's natural that they should be together.
Other types of nominal to-i nfni tive clauses are treated elsewhere: 11h
i nterrogative clauses ( 1 5. 4), yes-no and alternative i nterrogative clauses
( 1 5. 5), and nominal relative clauses ( 1 5. 7/).
NOTE Certain verbs of wanting and their antonyms allow an optional /or i n the object
clause in AmE:
He di dn' t like me to be alone al night.
He didn't like jar me to be alone at night. (AmE).
-ingclauses
15. 10 Nominal -ing clauses may function as:
Subject: Watching television keeps them out of mischief.
Di rect object: He enjoys playing practical jokes.
Subject complement: Her frst job had been selling computers.
Appositive: His current research, investigating attitudes to racial
stereotypes, takes up most of his time.
Adjectival complementation: They are busy preparing a barbecue.
If the -ing clause has a subject, the subject may be i n the geni tive case or
it may be in the objective case (for those pronouns having an objective
case) or common case (for all other heads of noun phrases):
GENITIVE: I object to his/Jeremy's receiving an i nvi tati on.
OBJECTIVE: I objected to him/Jeremy recei vi ng an invitation.
There is a traditional prescription in favour of the geni tive: i t i s preferred if
the subject is a pronoun, the noun phrase has personal reference, and the
style is formal. The genitive is also preferred if the subject is i ni tial i n the
sentence.
lfy forgetti ng her name was embarrassi ng.
On the other hand, the common case is preferred where the subject is a
non personal noun phrase and not a pronoun and the style is not formal:
I don't know about the 11eatlzer being so awful i n thi s area.
The genitive is avoided when the noun phrase is l engthy and requi res a
group genitive (c/ 1 7. 26):
Nomi nal cl auses 31 3
Do you remember the studenrs and reacher.1 protesting against the
ne11 rule?
A nominal -ing clause may refer to a fact or an acti on:
Fact: Your driving a car to Ne1r ror/ in your condition di sturbs |L
greatly.
Action: Your driving a car lo Ne1r York took longer than I expected.
NOTE [a] The -ing participle in a nominal -ing clause is commonly called a 'gerund' .
[b] Extraposition is less common with the -ing participle and often seems li ke an
i nfrmal afterthought (cf 1 8.23):
It was tough ansll'ering all the questions.
Bare i nfi nitive clauses
15.1 1 The most common functions of the nominal bare i nfni tive clause are as
subject or subject complement in a pseudo-cleft sentence (or a variant of
i t, c/l 8 .20), where the other subordinate clause has the substitute verb oo:
What the plan does i s (to) ensure a fair pension for all.
Tur ofthe tap was all I di d.
The to of the i nfni tive is optional when the clause is subject complement .
NOTE A bare i nfni ti ve clause may function as object complement with a relatively few
superordi nate verbs (cf 1 6.28):
15.12
They made her pay for the damage.
It may fllow prepositions of exception (r/9. 1 5):
She did everything but make her bed.
Verbless clauses
The nominal verbless clause is a more debatable category than the other
nomi nal clauses.
Afriend in need is a friend indeed. [proverb]
Wall-to-1rll carpets in every room is their dream.
Are bicycles wise in heary trafc?
These may be paraphrased:
[ l ]
[2]
[3]
To be a friend in need i s to be a friend indeed. [ 1 a]
Having ivall-to-wall carpets in e1ery room is their dream. [2a]
Is it wise to have bicycles in hem')' trafc? [3a]
The paraphrases suggest a clausal analysis. Note also the apparent
semantic anomaly of bicycles are 1rise (implying 1rise bicycles), and the
si ngular verb in [2].
15. 1 3
15. 14
31 4 Syntactic and semantic functions of subordinate clauses
Adverbi al clauses
In Chapter 8 we dis tinguish four broad categories of syntactic functions
for adverbials: adjuncts, subjuncts, disjuncts, and conjuncts. Adverbi al
clauses, however, function mainly as adjuncts and disjuncts.
In thi s chapter we fcus on the semantic functions of adverbial clauses.
Semantic analysis of adverbial clauses is compl icated by the fct that
many subordinators introduce clauses with di ferent meani ngs:
fr
example a since-clause may be temporal or cl ausal. Furthermore, some
clauses combine meanings; in such cases, we treat the clauses under
secti ons that deal with what appears to be their primary meaning.
Cl auses of time
Finite adverbial clauses of time are i ntroduced by such subordinators as
after, as, once, since, until, l l'hen, while:
Buy your ticket as soon as you reach the station.
My family, once they saw the mood I was in, left me completely alone.
Drop by whenever you get the chance.
We came in just as it started to rain.
Wait un t i you 're ea/led.
The -i11g clauses are i ntroduced by once, till, u11til, when, whenever, while,
and (esp BrE) whilst. The -ed and verbless clauses are i ntroduced by as
soon as, once, till, until, whe11, whe11ever, while, and (esp BrE) ll'hilsr :
Once having made a promise, you should keep i t.
The dog stayed at the entrance u11til told to come in.
Complete your work as soo11 as possible.
To-i nfnitive clauses without a subordinator or a subject may have
temporal function, expressing the outcome of the situation:
I rushed to the door, only to discover that it was locked and barred.
I awoke one morning to j11d the house in an uproar.
Wi th durative verbs in the matrix clause, the construction expresses
duration of ti me together with outcome:
She l i ved ro be JOO. ["She reached 1 00 years of age.']
You'll l i ve to regrer it. ['You' l l eventually regret i t.']
15. 15 An adverbial cl ause of time relates the ti me of the situation i n i ts clause to
the time of the si tuation i n the matri x clause. Depending i n large part on
the s ubordinator, the time of the matrix clause may be previous to that of
the adverbial clause (eg until ), si mul taneous with it (eg 1 r/ilf). or
subsequent to it (eg after). The time relationship may also convey
durati on (eg as long as), recurrence (eg ll'henever), and relative proximity
(eg just afer).
NOTE
Adverbial cl auses 31 5
[a] The matrix clause with an unril-clause must be durative, the duration lastinl t o
t he time indicated by the until-cl ause. A negative clause is always durative. ccn
though the corresponding positive clause is not durative, since the absence or the
event extends throughout the indicated period:
I di dn' t start my meal until Adam mTired.
*I started my meal until Adam arriied.
[b] When the matrix cl ause is imperati\e. the sentence with a befoI-cl ause mav
imply a conditional relationship as well as time:
-
Go before I cl the police. ["Go! If you don' t go, I ' l l call the police.']
[c] Nonassertive items (lf 1 0.37) can appear i n before-clauses, perhaps because
before-clauses, like conditional clauses (cf 1 5. I SJ), inherently relate to matters
unfulflled in respect of the matrix clause:
I spoke to them before I ever heard any gossip abour them.
['At the time I spoke to them I had not heard any gossip about them"]
[d] The sequential meaning of after, 1rhen and 1rhenever may i nduce an implication
of cause:
He fel t better afrer he fwd a short nap.
I hit him back when he hit me.
My heart leaps whene1er I see you.
[e] When may imply concession as well as time:
They were gossiping, when they should have been 11orking.
[' . . . whereas they should have been working.']
She cleans the house by herself, 1rhen she could easilyhave asked her children
to help her.
[f The meaning of several subordinators that primarily express time, place, or
condition may be neutralized in certain contexts to convey a more abstract notion
of recurrent or habitual contingency: ll"hen, ll'henever, once; 1rhere, ll'hererer; u:
The subordinators may then be paraphrased by such prepositional phrases as ' i n
cases when' or ' in circumstances where

:
When ( e1er) }{ 1here 's smoke. there's fre.
Where(ver) children are i11rlred. di rrces are
I
particularly unpleasant .
Once kno1r, such facts have been reported.
Cl auses of place
15.16 Adverbial clauses of place are i ntroduced mainly by where or wherever.
Where is specifc and irhererer nonspecifc. The clause may i ndi cate
posi ti on [ l ] or di rection [2]:
Where the fre had been, we saw nothing but blackened rui ns. [ I ]
They went whereier they could
f
tnd ll"ork.
['to any place where'] [2]
NOTE
15.17
15.18
: l
31 6 Syntactic and semantic functions of subordinate clauses
Several temporal subordi nators may have primarily a place meaning in
descriptions of scenes, when the scenes are described dynamically in terms
of movement from one place to another:
Take the right fork when the road splits into two.
The river continues wi ndi ng until it reaches a large lake.
The building becomes narrower as it rises higher.
The road stops just after it goes under a bridge.
Once the mountains rise above the snow line, vegetation is sparse.
[a) Where-clauses may combine the meanings of place and contrast:
Where I saw only 1rilderess, they saw abundant signs of l i fe.
[b) The archaic frms whence ['from where'] and whither ['to where') arc
occasionally found, particularly in religious language.
Cl auses of condition, concession, and contrast
There is considerable overlap in adverbial clauses that express condition,
concession, and contrast (cf 1 5. 1 5 Note [f).
The overlap between the three roles is highlighted by the overlapping
use of subordinators: for example, i i ntroduces all three types of clauses
and whereas both contrast and concessive clauses. Furthermore, even i
expresses both the contingent dependence of one situation upon another
and the unexpected nature of this dependence:
Even i they ofered to pay, I wouldn't accept any money from them.
Al l three types of clauses tend to assume initial position in the
superordinate clause.
Conditional clauses
In general, conditional clauses convey a DIRECT CONDITION in that the
situation in the matrix clause is directly contingent on the situation in the
conditional clause. For example, in uttering [ l ] the speaker intends the
hearer to understand that the truth of the prediction 'she'll scream'
depends on the fulflment of the condition of 'your putting the baby
down' :
I you put the baby down, she' l l scream. [ ! ]
The most common subordinators for conditional clauses are i and
unless, which are also used with nonfnite and verbless clauses. Other
conditional subordinators are restricted to fnite clauses (but cfNote [b]
below); for example: giren (that) (formal ), on condition (that) , prorided
(that) , providing (that) , supposing (that) . Here are other examples of
conditional clauses:
Unless the strike has been called off, there will be no trains tomorrow.
He doesn' t mind inconveniencing others just so he's comfonable.
(informal)
NOTE
15. 19
Adverbial clauses 3 1 7
You may leave the apartment at any time, provided that you gil'l 11
month 's notice or pay an additional month 's rent.
Jn case you want me, I ' ll be in my ofce till lunchtime.
Gilen that ~y, then n(x +a) =n(y +a) must also be true.
(i n formal argumentation)
Assuming that the movie starts at eight, shouldn't we be leaving now?
Unless otherwise instmcted, you should leave by the back exit.
Marion wants me to type the letter if possible.
I not, I can discuss the matter with you now.
[a) Some conditional clauses express an !!DIRECT coD!TlON, i n that the condition
is not related to the situation in the matrix clause. Here are some examples:
His style is fl orid, i that 's the rigJu irrd. [ l ]
Ifyou remember your history lessons, the war was started by the
other side. [2)
I you 're going my l\'ay, I need a lift. [3)
She's far too considerate, i I may say so. [4)
In uttering [4
), the speaker does not intend the truth of the assertion 'She's fr too
considerate' to be dependent on obtaining permission from the hearer. Rather, the
condition is dependent on the implicit speech act of the utterance: Tm telling you,
i f! may, that she's fr too considerate.' In conventional politeness, the speaker is
making the utterance of the assertion dependent on obtaining permission from the
hearer, though the fulflment ofthat condition is conventionally taken fr granted.
[b] Nonfnite and verb less clauses with ll'ith or 1richo11c as subordinator may express
a conditional relationship:
Without me to supplement your income. you woul dn' t be able to manage.
With them on our side, we are secure.
Open and hypothetical condition
A direct condition may be either an OPES CO]DITION or a HYPOTHETICAL
CONDITION. Open conditions are neutral: they leave unresolved the
question of the fulflment or nonflflment of the condition, and hence
also the truth of the proposition expressed by the matrix clause:
IfColin is in London, he i s undoubtedly staying at the Hi l ton.
The sentence leaves unresol ved whether Col in is i n London, and hence i t
leaves unresolved whether he i s staying at the Hi l ton.
A hypothetical condition, on the other hand, conveys the speaker's
belief that the condition will not be ful flled (for future conditions), is not
fulflled (for present conditions). or was not fl fl led (for past conditions)
and hence the probable or certain falsity of the proposition expressed by
the matrix clause:
I he changed his options, he'd be a more likeable person. [ l ]
They would be here with us i they had 1/e time. [2]
Ifyou had listened to me, you wouldn' t have made so many
mistakes. [3]
NOTE
31 B Syntactic and semantic functions of subordinate clauses
The conditional clauses in these sentences convey the fl l owing
impl ications:
He very probably won' t change his opinions.
They presumably don't have the time.
You certainly didn't listen to me.
For the verb forms in hypothetical conditions, see 1 4. 1 2/
[ l a]
[2a]
[3a]
[a] Conditional clauses are like questions in that they are generally either neutral i n
their expectations of an answer or biased towards a negative response
,
and they
therefre tend to admit nonassertive items (i 1 0. 37):
If you e\'er touch me agai n, I' l l scream.
She's taking a stick with her i n case she has any trouble on the way.
[b] Two ways of expressing future hypothetical conditions are occasionally used i n
frmal contexts. They have overtones of tentativeness:
(i) ll'as to or 1rere to fllowed by the i nfni tive (cf subjunctive 11ere, 1 4. 1 3):
If it
{l\'as
}
to rain, the ropes woul d snap. They're fr too tight.
ll'ere
(ii) should fol lowed by the i nfni tive (cf putative should, 1 4. 1 4):
!fa serious crisis slwuldarise, the public woul d have to be i nformed of i t s full
implications.
[c] Conditional clauses may have subject-operator i nversion without a subordina
tor i f the operator is 1rere, should, and (especially) had:
Had I knoll'n, I would have written befre. [' If I had known, . . .']
Were she in charge. she would do thi ngs di ferently.
Should you change your mind, no one would blame you.
Should she be interested, I' l l phone her. [with present subj unctive be: cf 1 4. 1 3
Note [a]]
[d] Infnitive clauses sometimes combine condition with other contingency
relations such as purpose or reason:
You must be STRO:G to l i ft that weight. [' . . . i n order to l i ft that weight": . . .
because you were able to l i f that weight', ' . . . i f you were abl e to l i ft
that weight']
You'd be a fol not to take the scholarship. ['if you didn't . .
.
']
[e] If only is an intensifed equivalent of if, typically used i n hypothetical cbuses to
express a wi sh:
I only you would help me next 1reek, I woul d not be so nervous.
[f Given (that) and assuming (that) arc used for open conditions which the
speaker assumes were, are. or wil l be ful fl led, and from which a proposi ti on is
deduced. A clause i ntroduced by granted (that) is also used as a premise for a
deduction, but usually implies a previous statement on which the premise is based.
I may be used in the same way: lyou ll'ere there (and you say you ll'ere). you must
15.20
15. 21
Adverbial clauses 31 9
have seen her. Giren ( that) and granted 'thlll tend t o be used i n frmal wri t t r
style, particularly i n argumentati on.
[g] As long as and so long as arc less frmal than the semantical l y similar but fnn;i l
prorided (that) and pro1'itling (that) . Just so that) tends to nppcar i n i nformal
conversation. They al l mean ' i f and onl y i f' .
[h] Unless introduces a negative condition: the unless-clause is usual l y roughly
similar to a negative (clause. With unless there i s a greater focus on the condi ti on
as an exception ('only i f . . . not'). There arc therefre contexts in which the unlcss
clausc cannot occur:
I'll

1 1 1
. {i he doesn
'
t come 1rith us.
ce muc 1 iappicr
*unless he comes 1ri1h H.
I you hadn 't studied hard,
}

ou
'
d have failed the exam.
* Unless you had studied hard, }
Rhetorical conditional clauses
Rhetorical conditional clauses give the appearance of expressing an open
condition, but (like rhetorical questions. cf 1 1 . 1 3) they actually make H
strong assertion. There are two types:
(a) If the proposition in the matrix clause is patently absurd, the
proposition i n the conditional clause is shown to be flse:
I they're Irish, I'm the Pope. ['Since I'm obviously not the Pope,
they're certainly not Irish.']
If you believe that, you' l l believe anything. ('You certainly can't
believe that. ']
(b) If the proposition in the conditional clause (which contains measure
expressions) is patently true, the proposirion in the matrix clause is shown
to be true. The i-clause is positioned fnal l y:
He's ni nety i he's a day. ['If you'll agree that he's at least a day old,
perhaps you' l l take my word that he's ninety. ']
The package weighed ten pounds i it \ l'eighed an ounce. ['The
package certainl y weighed ten pounds.']
Concessive clauses
Concessive clauses are i ntroduced chi efy by although or i ts more i nformal
vari ant though. Other subordinators include 1 rhi!e, Hhereas (formal ), and
el' en if
Although he hadjustjoined, he was rreared exactly l i ke al l the ot hers.
No goals were scored, though it \\J an exciting game.
While I don 't ll'allt to make a fuss. I fel I must protest at your
i nterference.
Whereas the amend111e11t is e111lwsiastically supported by a large
majority in the Senate, i ts fate is doubtful in the House.
Except fr whereas, these subordinators may i ntroduce -ing, -ed, and
verbless clauses, eg: Though well over eighty, she can ll 'alkfaster than I can.
320 Syntactic and semantic functions of subordinate cl auses
Concessive clauses indicate that the si tuation in the matrix clause is
contrary lo what one might expect in view of the situation in the
concessive clause. I t is often possible to view each si tuation as unexpected
in the light of the other and therefre to choose which should be made
subordinate:
No goals were scored, although it was an exciting game.
It was an exciting game, although no goals were scored.
NOTE [a) In a rather formal style, the predication i n the concessive clause may be fronted
i f the subordinator is t/ouglz and must be if it is as:
Fail tlzouglz I did, I would not abandon my goal.
Naked as I was, I braved the storm. ['Even though I was naked, . . . ')
That is also used concessively with obligatory fronting of a subject complement,
normally a noun phrase:
Fool that lze nas, he managed to evade his pursuers.
Poor that they were, they gave money to charity. (BrE)
CJ 1 5.26 Note [b) fr a similar fronting with reason clauses.
[b) Even if combines the concessive force of even with the conditional force of i:
Even i you dislike ancient monuments, Warwick Castle i s worth a visit.
The even if clause leaves open whether or not 'you dislike ancient monuments' is
true, whereas an even thouglz clause would presuppose that it was true .
. itself may be used concessively, synonymous either with even i or with even
though:
It's possible, i dicult. [' . . . , even i f it may be difcult.')
Her salary was good, i not up to her expectations. [' . . . , even though i t was
not up to her expectations.')
Alternative conditional-oncessive clauses
15.22 The correlative sequence H'hether . . . or (whether) combines the
conditional meaning of if with the disjunctive meani ng of either . . . or. If
the second unit is a ful l fnite clause, whether may be repeated:
Whether Aorti11 pays for the broken vase or (whether) he replaces it
ll'ith a 11ew 1ase, I' m not inviting HiMagain.
He's getting married. il'hether or not he fnds a job.
Whether trained or 1101, Marilyn is doi ng an excel l ent job.
Whether right or ll'ro11g, your son needs al l the support you can give
him.
The concessive meaning comes from the implication that it is unexpected
fr the same situation to apply under two contrasting conditions.
NOTE [a) It does11'1 matter ll'hetlzer and the more informal No matter whether can also
i ntroduce alternative conditional-oncessive clauses and universal conditional
concessive clauses (tf 1 5. 23):
Adverbial cl auses 321
ft duesn 't matter
}
ll'hether you 1rnt to or 1101, you will
No ma//er have lo face the publicity.
[b) The correlative sequence with . . . 1ri1hou1 is used concessively wi th verblcss
clauses:
With a bank loan or ll'ithout it,
} 1 1 b h l
With or ll'ithout a bank loan,
V uy t e wuse.
There may be further reductions:
Bank loan or no bank loan,
} . 11 b h h
Bank loan or lIU
we uy t e ouse.
Universal conditional-oncessive clauses
15.23 The universal conditional-concessive clause indicates a free choice from
any number of conditions. It is introduced by the wh-words that combine
with -ever:
Whatever I say to them, I can't keep them quiet. [ l ]
Stand perfectly still, wherever you are.
However much advice you give h, he does exactly what he wants.
Don't l et them in, whoever they are.
The concessive implication in [ I ] comes through the inference that I can' t
keep them quiet even if I choose to say something to them from any
possible choices.
NOTE The verb be can be omitted from a universal clause if the subject of an SVC clause
i s an abstract noun phrase:
Whatever your problems (are/may be) , they can't be worse than mine.
However great the pitfals (are/may be), we must do our best to succeed.
Clauses of contrast
15.24 Clauses of contrast are i ntroduced by several of the subordinators that
i ntroduce concessive clauses (cf 1 5. 21 ) : Vhereas, while, and (esp BrE)
whilst. Indeed, there is often a mixture of contrast and concession. The
contrastive meaning may be e,!phasized by correlative antithetic con
juncts such as i11 contrast and by contrast when the contrastive clause is
i ni tial :
Mr Larson teaches physics, while lf Corby teaches chemistry.
I ignore them, whereas my husband is always l\'Orried about ll'hat they
think ofus.
Cl auses of exception
15.25 Clauses of exception are i ntroduced by but that (frmal ), except
(infrmal ), except that, only (informal ). and less frequently excepting
(that), sa\'e (rare and frmal ), and save that (formal ):
NOTE
1 5.26
322 Syntactic and semantic functions of subordinate cl auses
I would pay you now, except that I don 't have any money on me.
No memorial remains ror the brave who fll on that bat tlefield, H'(
that they ll'il! lcc1 1e their image for el'er in the hearts and minds of
their grateful countrymen. (formal )
Nothing would satisfy the child hut that I place her 011 my lap.
(frmal)
I would've asked you, only my mother told me not to. (i nformal )
Clauses introduced by but that and only must fllow the matrix clause.
The subordinator but without that is used in i nfni tive clauses, where it is more
common than but that in fnite clauses:
Nothing would satisfy the child but for me to place her on my lap.
Reason cl auses
In general, reason clauses convey a di rect relationship with the matrix
clause. The relationship may be that of cause and efect (the perception of
an i nherent objective connection, as i n [ ! ]), reason and consequence (the
speaker's i nference of a connection, as in [2]), motivation and result (the
i ntention of an animate being that has a subsequent result, as in [3]), or
circumstance and consequence (a combination of reason with a condition
that is assumed to be flled or about to be flled, as i n [4]):
He' s thi n because he hasn 't eaten enough. [ I
]
She watered the fowers because they were dry. [2]
You'll help me because you 're my friend. [3]
Since the ll'eather has improved, the game will be held as
planned. [4]
Reason clauses are most commonly i ntroduced by the subordinators
because and since. Other subordinators include as, for (somewhat
formal ), and (with circumstantial clauses) seeing (that) :
I lent him the money because he needed it.
As Jane \\'as the eldest, she looked after the others.
Since l\'e lire near the sea, we often go sailing.
Much has been written about psychic phenomena, for they pose
fascinating problems that hal'e yet to be reso/l'ed.
Seeing that it is about to rain, we had better leave now.
A /or-clause must be i n fnal posi ti on.
NOTE [a] Reason clauses may express an INDIRECT REASON. The reason is not related to
the si tuati on in the matrix clause but is a motivation fr the implicit speech act of
the utterance:
As you're in charge, where are the fles on the new project? ['As you're in
charge, I 'm asking you . . . ?']
Adverbial cl auses 323
Vanessa is your favourite aunt, hrm1.1e your parents told me so. ('Since your
parents told me so, I can say that \" anessa is your favourite aunt.' ]
As long as you 're here, why don't WL di scuss our plans?
Since you seem 10 knm1 1he111, why don' t you i ntroduce me to them?
[b] When as is a circumstantial subordinator. the predication may optionally be
fronted:
Writing hurriedly as she ll"as, she didn" t notice the spelling errors.
Tired as they 11ere, they stayed up for the late news.
Thal may be a circumstantial subordinator. when the subject complement is
obligatorily fonted:
Clumsy idiot that he was, Michael completely rui ned the dinner.
CJ1 5. 21 Note [a] for a similar fronting with concessive clauses.
Purpose clauses
]5.27 Purpose clauses are usually i nfni ti val. and may be i ntroduced by in order
to (frmal ) and so as to:
Students should take notes (so as) to make revision easier.
The committee agreed to adjourn (in order) to reconsider the matter
wizen fuller information became available.
They left the door open (in order) for me to hear the baby.
Fi ni te clauses of purpose are i ntroduced by so that or (less commonly and
more i nfrmally) by so, and (more frmally) by in order that :
The school closes earlier so (that ) the children can get home before
dark.
The jury and the wi tnesses were removed from the court in order that
they might not hear the arguments of the lawyers on the
prosecution 's motion for an adjournment.
These fni te clauses, which are putati\e (cf I 5. 28), require a modal
auxiliary.
NOTE Negative purpose is expressed in the i nfni tiYe clauses by so as not to and in order
not lo, and in fnite clauses by in order that . . . m.i1 :j[nfear I 1ha1) , in case (BrE), or
lest (archaic and very formal) convey an implied negatil'e purpose:
Turn the volume down so as not to 1r11ke zhe baby.
They left early for fear ( zhat) they would meet him.
They evacuated the building in case 1h. 1r// collapsed. (BrE)
Resul t cl auses
15.28 Result clauses are i ntroduced by the subordinators so that and so:
We paid hi m i mmediately, so ( thUt ! /ze left contented.
I took no notice of him, so (that ; lze jell' into a rage.
324 Syntactic and semantic functions of subordinate clauses
The same subordinators are used fr purpose clauses but, because they arc
putative rather than fctual, purpose clauses requi re a modal auxi l iary
We paid him immediately, so (that) he would leave contented.
NOTE The subordinator so is indisti nguishable from the conjunct so in asyndctic
coordi nation, but if and is inserted so is unambiguously the conjunct:
We paid him immediately, and so he left contented.
Clauses of si mil arity and comparison
15.29 For both similarity clauses and comparison clauses, there is a semantic
blend with manner if the verb i s dynamic.
Clauses of similarity are i ntroduced by as and (esp i nformal AmE) like.
These subordinators are commonly premodifed by just and exactly:
Please do (exactly) as I said. [ l ]
It was (just) like I imagined i t would be (esp i nformal AmE) [2]
Clauses of comparison are i ntroduced by as i, as though, and (esp
informal AmE) like:
She looks as i she's getting better.
[3]
If the comparison is hypothetical (implying lack of reality), a subj unctive
or hypothetical past may be used as an alternative (cf 1 4. 1 2.D:
She treated me as though { ::e } a stranger.
I had been
The subordinators as, as i, and as though can introduce nonfni te and
verbless clauses:
Fill in the application form as instructed.
You should discuss the company with him as though unmrare that
you were being considered for a job.
As iand as though may also i ntroduce ta-i nfni ti ve clauses:
She winked at me as i to say that I shou/dn 't say anything.
NOTE [a] I f the as-clause is placed initially, correlative so introduces the matrix clause in
frmal l i terary style:
(Just) as a moth is allracted by a light, so he was fscinated by her.
The clause then expresses an analogy.
[b] There are prescriptive objections to the use of like as a subordinator. It is more
acceptable when it expresses pure similarity, as in [2], si nce that is the meaning
expressed by the preposition like, than when it expresses manner or comparison.
Hence like would be less acceptable i f i t replaced as i n [ I ] or [3].
f 5.30
Adverbial clauses 325
Clauses of proportion
Proportional clauses involve a ki nd of comparison. They express a
proportionality or equivalence of tendency or degree between two
situations. They may be i ntroduced by as, with or without correlative
(frmal ), or by the fronted correlati \e 1he . . . the fol l owed by compara
tive forms:
As he grew disheartened, (so) his work deteriorated.
As the lane got narrower, (so) the overhanging branches made it
more difcult fr us to keep sight of our quarry.
The more she thought about it. the less she l i ked i t.
Noncorrelative the is al so used i n the same sense:
She l i ked it less, the more she thought about i t.
Clauses of preference
15.31 Clauses of preference are usually nonfnite. They may be i ntroduced by
the subordinators rather than and sooner than, with the bare i nfni tive as
the verb of the clause:
Rather than go there by air, I'd take the slowest trai n. ['I'd prefer to
take the slowest train.']
They'll fght to the fnish sooner than surrender. ['They prefer to fght
to the fni sh. ']
The same subordinators may i ntroduce fnite clauses:
Rather than (that) size should miss her train, I'll get the car over.
Comment clauses
15.32 Comment clauses are parenthetical disjuncts. They may occur i nitially,
fnally, or medially, and thus generally have a separate tone uni t:
KINGston, I as you probably n6w. I is the capital of JaMArca I
We distinguish the fol lowing types:
(i) like the matrix of a main clause:
There were no other applicants. I be!iere, fr that job.
(ii) an adverbial fni te clause (introduced by as):
I'm working the night shift. as you knoll'.
(iii) a nominal relative clause:
What was more upsetting, we lost all our luggage.
(iv) to-infnitive clause as style di sjunct:
I' m not sure what to do, to be honest.
326 Syntactic and semantic functions of subordinate cl auses
(v) -ing clause as style disjunct:
I doubt, speaking as a lUyman, whether television is the right medi um
for that story.
(vi) -ed clause as style disjunct:
Staled bluntly, he had no chance of winning.
In each category, there are idiomatic or cliche expressions: you see, U I
say, what 's more to the point, to be fair, generally speaking, put hluntly.
Similarly, in each category there is at least some freedom to coin new
expressions.
Comment clauses, many of which are characteristic of spoken English,
are generally marked prosodically by increased speed and lowered
prominence.
NOTE Type (i) comment clauses, which are the most important, generally contain a
transitive verb or an adjective which elsewhere requires a nominal that-cl ause as
complementation. We can therefore see a correspondence between sentences
containing such clauses and sentences containing indirect statements:
15.33
There were no other applicants, I believe, for that job.
I believe that there were no other applicants for that job.
Since the that of an object that-clause i s normally deletable, only the i ntonation
(refected by comma separation i n writing) distinguishes an initial comment clause
fom an initial matrix clause:
You KNOW, I IT think you're WRONG
I
}
Y k I Ith
.
k
, . [ You know 1s a comment clause]
ou now, you re WRONG .
.
You lknow'(that) I think you're WRONG I

[ You know is a matrix clause]
Sententi al relative clauses
Closely related to comment clauses of type (ii) (as you know) and type ( iii)
(what 's more surprising) are SENTENTIAL RELATIVE CLAUSES. Unli ke
adnominal relative clauses. which have a noun phrase as antecedent. the
sentential relative clause refers back to the predicate or predication of a
clause ([ I ] and [2]), or to a whole clause or sentence, ([3] and [4]), or even to
a series of sentences ([5]):
They say he plays trualll, 1l'hic/1 he doesn 't. [ I ]
He 1valks for an hour each moring, which would bore me. [2]
Things then improved, 1rhich surprises me. [3]
Colin married my sister and I married his brother, which
makes Colin and me double in-laws. [4]
Adverbial cl auses 327
- 1rhich is how the kangaroo came to hare a pouch. [said at the
end of a story]
[
5]
Sententi al relative clauses parallel nonrestriclive poslmodif yi ng cl auses
in noun phrases (c( I 7. I I ) in that they are separated by i ntonat i on L
punctuation from their antecedent. They are commonly introduced by the
rel ative pronoun irhich, but which may also be a relative determiner of
abstract nouns, as in [6] and [7]:
The plane may be several hours late, in which case there 's no
point in our waiting. [6]
They were under water for several hours, jom which
experience they emerged unharmed. [7]
The subject of nonfi nite and verbless clauses
15.34 Nonfnite and verbless adverbial clauses that have an overt subject but are
not introduced by a subordinator are ABSOLUTE clauses, so termed because
they are not explicitly bound to the matrix clause syntactically. Absolute
clauses may be -ing, -ed, or verbless clauses:
No further discussion arising, the meeting was brought to a close.
Lunch fnished, the guests retired to the lounge.
Christmas then only days awa_r, the fmily was pent up with
excitement.
Apart from a few stereotyped phrases (eg: present company excepted,
weather permitting, God willing), absolute clauses are frmal and
i nfrequent.
When a subject is not present in a nonfi nite or verbless clause, the
normal ATTACHMENT RULE for identifying the subject is that it is assumed
to be identical in reference to the subject of the superordinate clause:
The oranges, when (they are) ripe. are picked and sorted
mechanically.
The attachment rule is commonly given for participle clauses, but it
applies equal l y to infi nitive and verbless clauses:
Persuaded by our optimism, he gladly contributed time and money to
the scheme. ['Since he was persuaded . . .']
Dril'ing home after 1rork, I accidentally went through a red light.
['While I was driving home after work . . . ']
Confdent of the justice of their cause, the_r agreed to put thei r case
befre an arbitration panel. ['Since they were confi dnt . . . ']
To climb the rock face, we had to take various precautions. ['So that
we could climb . . . ']
328 Synlaclic and semanllc lunclions of subordinale clauses
Sometimes the attachment rule is violated:
?Drfring to Chicago that night, a sudden thought struck me. [' f was
driving']
The violation is considered to be an error. Such unattached (or dangli ng)
clauses are totally unacceptable if the sentence provides no means f
r
identifying the implied subject:
*Reading the e1ening paper, a dog started barking.
NOTE The attachment rule docs not apply, or at least is relaxed, i n certain cases:
(a) The clause is a style disjunct, and the I of the speaker i s the implied subject:
Putting it mildly, you have caused us some inconvenience.
(b) The implied subject is the whole of the matri x clause:
I'll help you [(necessary. [' . . . i f i t is necessary.']
(c) If the implied subject is an indefnite pronoun or prop it (cf 1 0. 1 4), the
construction is considered less objectionable:
When dining in 1he restaurant, a jacket and tie are requi red. ('When one
dines . . .']
Being Christmas, the government ofces were closed. ('Since it was . . .']
Supplementive clauses
15.35 Adverbial participle and verbless clauses without a subordinator are
SUPPLEMENTIVE CLAUSES: they do not signal specifc logical relationships,
but such relationships are generally clear from the context (cf al so 7. 1 4).
The frmal inexplicitness of supplementive clauses allows considerable
fexibility in what we may wish them to convey. According to context. we
may wish to i mply temporal, conditional, causal, concessive, or circum
stantial relationships. In short, the supplementive clause i mplies an
accompanying circumstance to the situation described in the matrix
clause. For the reader or hearer, the actual nature of the accompanying
circumstance has to be i nfrred fom the context:
Reaching the river, we pi tched camp for the night. ['When we
reached the river, . . . ']
Julia, being a nun, spent much of her time i n prayer and meditati on.
(' . . . , since she was a nun, . . . ']
Aware of the dangers to American citizens during the crisis, she still
insisted on staying with the others.
The sentence i s ambiguous, taken out of context. ['if/when i t is . . . ']
Using a sharp axe, Gilbert fught his way into the bui l ding. [ By
using a sharp axe . . .']
Marilyn crawled through the narrow tunnel, hands in front.
We spokeface to face.
Comparalive cl auses 329
They stood silently, their eyes fxed on the horizon.
Elizabeth dived i n head frst.
They strolled through the park 1ri1h their arms intertwined.
Comparati ve clauses
JS.36 In a comparative construction, a proposition expressed in the matrix
clause is compared with a proposi tion expressed in the subordinate clause.
Words that are repeated i n both clauses may be omitted in the subordinate
clause (cf r 5. 38) :
Jane is as healthy as her sister (is) .
Jane is healthier than her sister (is) .
[ I ]
[2]
The comparison is with respect to some STANDARD OF COMPARISON: health
in ( l ] and (2]. The clause element that specifes the standard is the
COMPARATIVE ELEMENT (hencefrth 'comp-element'): as healthy in ( l ] and
healthier in (2]. The BASIS OF COMPARISON (which may be implied from the
context rather than overtly expressed) is Jane's sister i n [ I ] and [2].
Broadly conceived, comparison includes comparisons of EQUIVALENCE
(as in [ l ]) and NONEQUIVALENCE (as in [2]), and comparisons of
SUFFICIENCY and EXCESS (as i n (3] and (4]).
Don is sensitile enough to understand your feelings. [3]
Marilyn was too polite to say anything about my clothes. [4]
More narrowly, comparison covers the types exemplifed i n [ I ] and (2] or
even just those comparisons - like (2] and (5] - that require a than-clause:
{more healthy }
Jane is healthier than her sister is.
less healthy
[5]
Comparisons of equivalence, nonequirnlence. and excess (cf 1 5. 4 1 ) are
nonassertive, as can be seen from the use in them of nonasserti ve forms:
{as hard as '} .
She works
h d h
she erer di d.
ar er t an
{as much as }
He eats vegetables
h
anr other fod.
more t an

We use more and the infectional variant in -er. the typical comparative
items, to exemplify comparative instructions i n the sections that fl low.
The standard of comparison i nvolves a scale \\ithout commitment to absolute
values. Hence, [ I ] and [2] do not presuppose that Jane's sister i s heal thy.
330 Syntactic and semantic functions of subordinate clauses
Cl ause functions of the comp-element
15.37 The comp-element of a comparat i ve const ruction can be any of the clause
elements, apart from the verb:
subject:
More people use this brand than ( use) any other window-cleaning
fuid.
di rect object:
She knows more history than most people (know).
indirect object:
That toy has given more children happiness than any other (toy)
(has).
subject complement:
Lionel is more relaxed than he used to be.
object complement:
She thinks her children more obedient than (they were) last year.
adverbial:
You've been working much harder than I (have).
The comp-element may also be a prepositional complement:
She's applied fr more jobs than Joyce (has (applied fr)).
The same range is available fr the comp-element i n comparisons of
equivalence; fr example:
As many people use this brand as (use) any other window-cleaning
f ui d.
NOTE [a] There is a type of nonclausal comparison in which more . . . than, less . . . 1/an,
and as . . . as are followed by an explicit standard of comparison:
I weigh more than 200 pounds.
It goes faster than I 00 miles per hour.
The strike was nothing less than a national catastrophe.
Our fctory consumes as much as 500 tons of solid fuel per week.
Another nonclausal comparison i s exemplifed by:
J was more angry than fr
.
ightened.
}
[
'
1 t i s more true to say that I was . . . ']
I was angry more than frightened.
The i nfectional fr is not possible:
*I was angrier than frightened.
[b] When more precedes an adjective i n a noun phrase, there may be ambiguity.
For example, more expensive c/01hes is ambiguous i n:
Comparative cl auses 331
Morton has more expensive cl othes than I have.
In one i nterpretation 1110rl modi fes lXpl!nsil'e 1 clothcs that arc more expensive" ) :
in t he other interpretation more is t he determiner for the noun phrase ("a grea t er
quantity of expensive clothes').
[c] The modifying sequences mor< ofa . . . and less of a . . . occur with gradahk
singular noun heads:
He's more of a fool than I thought ( he was).
It was less of a success than I imagined l i t would be).
Cfthe h111l'-qucstion, Holl' much of O fool is he:' [
'
To what extent is he (in your view)
U fool?' ]
There arc parallel constructions with as much ofa . . . as and as I Ille ofa . . . as:
It was as much/little of a success as I imagined (it would be).
[d] When the contrast involves two points on the same scale, one higher than the
other, the part fllowing 1han cannot be expanded i nto a clause. Than is then
functioning as a preposition i n a nonclausal comparison:
It's hotter lhan just warm. (cf It's hotter than 90'.)
She's wiser than merely clever.
We drove farther than (beyond) Chicago.
They fught harder than that.
Another type of nonclausal comparison is expressed by more than:
I am more 1han happy to hear that.
She behaved more than firly to him.
Semantically, more than expresses a higher degree. but i t also conveys a comment
on the i nadequacy of what is said i n the linguistic unit i t modifes.
[e] Some people prefer to use so . . . as instead of as . . . as when the matrix clause is
negative:
He's not so naug/uy as he was.
El lipsis in comparative cl auses
15.38 Ellipsis of a part of the comparative clause i s likely to occur when that part
is a repeti tion of somethi ng in the matrix clause. Since it is normal for the
two clauses to be closely parallel both in structure and content, ellipsi s is
the rule rather than the exception in comparat i ve constructions. Here is a
set of examples of optional ellipsis and optional substitutions by
pronouns and by pro-predicate or pro-predication:
James and Susan often go to plays bur
(i) James enjoys the theatre more than Susan enjoys the theatre.
(ii) James enjoys the theatre more than Susan enjoys it.
(iii) James enjoys the theatre more than Susan does.
(iv) James enjoys the theatre more than Susan.
(v) James enjoys the theatre more.
Ellipsis of the object generally cannot take place unless the main verb too
1 5.39
1 5.40
332 Syntactic and semantic functions of subordinate clauses
is ellipted, as i n (iii) and (iv), where there is a choice between the retention
of an operator and its omission:
*James knows more about the theatre than Susan knoll's.
The comp-element is the hinge between the matrix clause and the
comparative clause. Since the comp-element specifes the standard or
comparison, the same standard cannot be specifed again in the
comparative clause:
*Jane i s healthier than her sister is healthy.
*James enjoys the theatre more than Susan much enjoys the theatre.
The standards of comparison in the two clauses may, however, be
diferent.
Mary is cleverer than Jane is pretty.
Ambiguity through ellipsis
When normal ellipsis is taken to its ful lest extent, ambigui ty can arise as to
whether a remaining noun phrase i s subject or object:
He loves hi s dog more than his children.
The above example could mean either [ I ] ' . . . than his chi l dren l ove hi s
dog' or [2] ' than he loves hi s chi ldren' . If his children i s replaced by a
pronoun, formal English makes the distinction:
He loves hi s dog more than they.
He loves his dog more than them.
[ I ]
[2]
In other styles, however, the objective case them is used fr both [ 1 ] and [2].
Since both forms can be criticized (on account of stifness on the one hand,
and 'bad grammar' on the other), and since in any event we cannot be sure
that the objective case in [2] represents choice in frmal style and is
therefre unambiguous, it is better to expand the clause (than they do; than
he does the) where there is danger of ambiguity.
Partial contrasts
If the two clauses in a comparison di fered solely in the comp-element (* I
hear it more clearly than I hear it ), the comparison would of course be
nonsensical; therefore, contrast of at least one variable is required
between the two clauses. The contrast may afect only tense or the
addi ti on ofa modal auxi l i ary. In such cases it is normal to omit the rest of
the comparative clause after the auxiliary:
I hear i t more clearly than I did. ['than I used to hear it']
I get up later than I should. ['than I should get up']
If the contrast lies only i n tense, i t may be expressed in the comparative
clause solely by an adverbial:
Comparative clauses 333
She'll enjoy it more than (she enjoyed i t) last year.
This provides the basis for the total ellipsi s of the subordinate clause i n
examples l i ke:
You are slimmer (than you were).
You' re l ooki ng better (than you were (looking)).
NOTE [a] There are two other contexts i n which the comparative clause is omitted. One i s
where there is anaphoric reference to an i mplied or actual preceding clause or
sentence:
15.41
f caught the bus from town: but Harry c2me home e1en later. [ie 'later than I
came home']
The other is where the reference is to the extralinguistic situation:
You should have come home earlier. [ie

earlier than you did']

[b] The partial contrast may be i n a superordin2te clause i n the matrix clause or the
comparative clause:
She thinks she's fatter than she (really) is.
He's a greater painter than people suppose (he is).
She enjoyed it more than I expected (her to (enjoy i t)).
Enough and too
There are comparative constructions that express the contrasting notions
of sufciency and excess, chiefy with enough and too followed by a to
i nfnitive clause. Paraphrase pairs may be constructed with antonymous
items:
{They're rich enough to own a car.
They're not too poor to own a car.
{The book is simple enough to understand.
The book i s not too difcult to understand.
If the context allows, the infnitive clause :nay be omitted.
The negative force of too i s shown in :he use of nonassertive forms.
Contrast:
She's old enough to do some work.
She's too old to do any work.
The i nfni ti ve clause may contain an men subject:
It moves too quickly for most people ro see (it ).
He was old enough /or us to talk t o him) seriously.
As these examples i ndicate. a direct object or the object ofa prepositional
verb may be omitted if i t substi tutes for the superordinate subject.
When there is no subject in the infni ti,e clause, it is identifed with the
superordinate subject or with an indefnite subject:
334 Synlaclic and semantic functions of subordinate clauses
She writes quickly enough to fnish the paper ( time. ['for her to
fni sh the paper on time')
He was old enough to talk to him seriously. ['fr others to talk to him
seriously']
And there may be ambiguity as to which identifcation to make:
She was too young to date. [' . . . to date others' or 'fr others to date
her']
When neither subject nor object is expressed in the i nfnitive clause,
ambiguity is possible with verbs that may be used transitively:
. . {(fr others) } {(her). }
She 1s friendly enough
(fr her)
to help
(others).
NOTE Enough of a . . . and too nwch of a . . . may be constructed with gradable nouns (tf
1 5. 37 Note [c]):
, {enough }
He s
h
ofa coward to do that.
too muc
Cf also: He was fool enough to go out without a coat.
So (that) and such . . (that)
15.42 The correlatives so . . . (that) and such . . . (that) i ntroduce constructions
that combine the notion of sufciency or excess with that ofresult. So is an
adverb premodifying an adjective or adverb, and such is a predeterminer.
Paraphrase pairs may be obtained between these constructions when the
that-clause is negative and constructions with too and an infi nitive clause:
It's so good a movie that we mustn' t miss i t.
It's too good a movie to miss.
It was such a pleasant day that J didn't want to go to school.
It was too pleasant a day to go to school.
There may be also similar paraphrases with constructions with enough
when the that-clause is positive:
It fies so fst that it can beat the speed record.
It fies fst enough to beat the speed record.
I had such a bad headache that J needed two aspirins.
I had a bad enough headache to need two aspirins.
When so is used alone with a verb and such is used with a noun that is
not premodifi ed, they express a high degree and the construction conveys
the notion of result:
I so enjoyed it that I'm determined to go again. ['I so much enjoyed
it . . . ')
Comparallve clauses 335
There was such a crowd that ll'e coul dn' t see a thi ng. [There was such
a large crowd . . . ']
NOTE [a] The subordinator tha1 may be omi tted from the 1/w1-clause. An i nformal
variant substi tutes i ntensifer that for so and omits the subordinator tlzat :
I was ' that tired I couldn't keep my eyes open.
[b] The somewhat formal construction so,such . . . as with the i nfni tive is
sometimes used i n place of so/such with a that-clause:
His temper was so violent as lo make even his closest companions fear hi m.
The brilliance of her satires was such as to make even her victims laugh.
Bi bl i ographical note
On nominal clauses i n general, see Huddleston ( 1 971 , Chs. 4 and 5); Stockwell et
al. ( 1 973, Ch. 8); Vendler ( 1 968). On that-clauses i n particular, see Hooper ( 1 975).
On adverbial clauses of time i n general, see Edgren (I 97 1 ) .
On adverbial clauses of concession, see Aarts ( I 988); Al ten berg ( 1 986).
On clauses of reason, see Altenberg ( 1 984).
On comment clauses, see Lakof, G. ( 1 974).
On nonfnite and verbless adverbial clauses introduced by a.-subordinator, see
Backlund ( 1 984).
On adverbial -ing clauses, see Greenbaum (I 973).
On comparative clauses, see especially Huddleston ( 1 97 1 , Ch. 6).
1 6 Compl ementati on of verbs and adj ecti ves
Introduction
16. l In this chapter we examine the COMPLEMENTATION of verbs and adjectives,
ie the grammatical patterns that follow a verb or adjective and complete
the speci fcation of a meaning relationship which that word implies. We
begin with multi-word verbs.
Multi-word verbs
1 6.2 The two main categories of mul ti-word verbs consist of a lexical verb plus
a PARTICLE, a neutral designation fr the overlapping categories ofadverb
and preposition that are used in such combinations (c/1 6.3.fJ). In PHRASAL
VERBS the particle is an ad verb (eg: drink up,fnd out ) and in PREPOSITIONAL
VERBS it is a preposition (eg: dispose of, cope with). In addition, there are
PHRASAL-PREPOSITIONAL VERBS with verbs with two particles, an adverb
fl lowed by a preposition (eg: put up with, cf 1 6.9), and types of multi
verbs that do not consist of lexical verbs fllowed simply by particles (eg:
cut s/wrt, put paid to), cf1 6. 1 0.
1 6.3
There is not a sharp boundary between multi-word verbs and free
combinations, where the parts have distinct meanings. Rather, there is a
gradience ranging fom idiomatic and syntactically cohesive combi
nations to combinations that are loosely connected.
Intransitive phrasal verbs
One common type of multi-word verb is the i ntransitive phrasal verb
consisting of a verb plus an adverb particle, as exemplifed i n:
The plane has just touched down.
He is playing around.
I hope you'll get by.
How are you getting on?
The plane has now taken off
Did he catch on?
The prisoner fi nally broke down.
She tured up unexpectedly.
When wil l they gfre in?
Multi-word verbs J~
The tank blew up.
One of my papers has gone astray.
The two girls haYe/al/en out. [ = quarrelled']
In phrasal verbs like gile in ('surrender'] or blow up ('explode'] , WC
cannot predict the meaning of the idiomatic combination from the
meani ng of verb and particle in isolation. But in free combinations ( cg:
walk past ) we can do so. Furthermore, the semantic separability of the
two parts is shown by possible substitutions: for walk in walk past, fr
example, we can substitute run, trot, sirim, fy, etc; and fr past we can
substitute by, in, through, Ol'er, etc. In other cases the adverb i n a Hc0
combination has an intensifying force (eg: chatter away) or an aspectual
frce (eg: drink up) .
There are also syntactic signs of cohesion. Normally the particle of a
phrasal verb cannot be separated fom the lexical verb ( * She tured rig/11
up), but this separation is possible in free combinations (Go straight on).
Si milarly, the adverb can be fronted in free combinations (Out came the
sun; Up you come), but not i n phrasal verbs (* Up blew tlze tank; *Out he
passed ['finted']).
Transitive phrasal verbs
16.4 Many phrasal verbs may take a direct object, and are therefre transitive:
We will set up a new unit.
Shall I put uwuj the dishes?
Find out if they are coming.
She's bringing up two children.
Someone tured on the light.
They have called off the strike.
He can' t live down his past.
I can't make out what he means.
We pushed home our advantage.
She looked up her friends.
I've handed in my resignation.
They may have blown up the bridge.
Some combinations, such as give in and bloir up, can be either i ntransi ti ve
or transitive. In some cases, eg give in, there is a substantial diference i n
meaning, whereas i n others, eg blmr up, there is not.
As wi th free combinations of the same pattern, the particle can
generally either precede or follow the direct object:
They !limed on the light. They tured the light on.
But whn the object is a personal pronoun, the particle must usually
follow the object:
*They tured on it. They tured it on.
338 Complementation of verbs and adjectives
!he particle tends to precede the object if the object is long, or if it i
s
i ntended that the object should receive end-focus (cf 1 8. 2, 1 8. 5) .
Like intransitive phrasal verbs, transitive phrasal verbs arc
dis
tinguished semantically from free combi nations of verb and adverb
C
?
nt rast the phra

al v
.
erb
.
take in in She took in her parents ['deceivcd'j
wi th the free combmatl on tn She took in the box ['brought inside'], where
the two parts preserve their separate meanings.
If the transitive phrasal verb is fully idiomatic, the particle cannot
normally be separated from the lexical verb by anything except the object
not even by an i ntensifer such as right. Hence, bring up is a frc
combination in She broughl 1he girls rig/1 1 up ['led t hem up' ( the stairs
etc)], since the phrasal verb bring up ['rear'] does not allow t h
i nterruption.
NOTE [a] Some transitive phrasal verbs do not easily allow the particle to come after the
object, unless the object is a pronoun; eg: ?They had given hope up; ?They laid their
arms down. Conversely, some do not easily allow i t to come before the object; fr
example, only fnal position is possible in the idiomatic hyperbolic expressions /
l\'as crying my eyes 0111 ; !nas sobbing my hear/ out.
[b] Some phrasal verbs are semi-idiomatic and allow a l i mi ted number of
. substitutions, eg for Lei 's mrt on !he /ighl :
Let's {:::eh }i t {'
down.
put up.
Similarly, it is possible to i nsert an i ntensifer of the particle for at least some of
these phrasal verbs (eg: Tbey fumed !he music rig/l/ up) .
Type I prepositional verbs
1 6.5 A type I prepositional verb consists of a lexical verb fllowed by a
preposition wi th which it is semantica11y and/or syntactically associated:
Look at these pictures.
I don't care for Jane's parties.
We must go into the problem.
Can you cope Hilh the work?
I apprme oftheir action.
His eyes lighted upon the jewel.
/
The noun phrase fl l owing the preposition is a PREPOSITIONAL OBJECT, a
term that suggests an analogy with the term direct object. Compare the
' transitive' relationship of look at and these pictures in Look at these
pictures wi th that of examine and these pictures in Examine these pictures.
Similarly, the passive is frequently possible fr prepositional verbs, as in:
The picture 1\ loked at by many people.
Multi-word verbs 339
On the other hand, we can easily insert an ad\erbial between the lexical
verb and the preposi t i on:
Many people looked disdainfully at the picture.
By contrast, insertion between verb and direct object is usual l y avoided
unless the direct object is long:
?*Many people examined disdainfully the picture.
We can also isolate the whole prepositional phrase from the verb in other
ways, eg:
On Hhom did he call? On his mother.
He called on his mother and on his sister.
He called on his mother more often than on his sister.
There are therefore two complementary analyses of a sentence l i ke She
looked after ['tended'] her son:
ANALYSIS ] : s v A
r -
She looked after her son
*
ANALYSIS 2: s v 0
The distinction between prepositional verbs and free combinations
16.6 One criterion for disti nguishing prepositional verbs (eg: We called on the
dean) from free combinations of verb plus preposition (eg: We called after
lunch) is the possibility of making the prepositional object the subject of a
corresponding passive clause. In this PREPOSITIONAL PASSIVE the prep
osition is STRANDED in its post-verbal position. Contrast:
The dean uas called on. *Lunch iras called afler.
Here are some examples of the prepositional passive:
Though something very di ferent from ordinary frest management
is called for, the trees i n the parks do need the frester's skil led
consideration.
This matter will have to be dealt 1rirlz immediately.
Other possibilities are talked qf by many of our colleagues.
If a woman wi th g university degree rejects a career fr marriage, her
education i s not to be 1hough1 qfas thrown away unless we count
the family arena of no importance.
A second criterion i s that Hh-questions eliciting the prepositional object
are frmed wi th the pronouns who(m) and H/zat (as with di rect objects)
rather than wi th adverbial questions:
John called on her. Who(m) did John call on?
John looked for it. Whal did John look for?
340 Complementation of verbs and adjectives
Contrast the free combinations in:
John called from the o.ffce. Where did John call from?
John called after lunch. When did John call?
NOTE [a] The passive is acceptable in some instances where the prepos
it
i
d
n i ntroduces a
prepositional phrase of place and is not in idiomatic combination with the verb.
For example:
16.7
They must have played on this feld last week.
This feld must have been played on last week.
Visitors are not to sit on these Louis XV chairs.
These Louis XV chairs are not to be sat on.
Primitive men once lived in these caves.
These caves were once lived in by primitive men.
The passive i s possible i n these instances because the prepositional complement is
being .reated as an afected participant i n the clause (cf I 0.9f.
[b] Some combinations allow both types of w/z-questions: Size died of pneumonia
could be an answer either to Holl' did size die?or (more usuall y) What did size die of
The distinction between prepositional verbs and phrasal verbs
Type I prepositional verbs resemble transitive phrasal verbs superfcially,
but the diferences are both syntactic and phonological. The contrast is
exemplifed for the prepositional verb call on ('visit') and the phrasal verb
call up ('summon').
(a) The particle of a prepositional verb must precede the prepositional
object (unless the particle is stranded), but the particle of a phrasal
verb ca
n
generally precede or follow the direct object:
She called on her friends.
*She called her friends on.
She called up her friends.
She called her friends up.
(b) When the object is a personal pronoun, the pronoun follows the
particle of a prepositional verb but precedes the particle of a phrasal
verb:
She called on them.
*She called them on.
She called them up.
*She called up them.
(c) An adverb (functioning as adj unct) can often be inserted between
verb and particle in prepositional verbs, but not in phrasal verbs:
She called angrily on her friends.
*She called angrily up her friends.
(d) The particle of a phrasal verb cannot precede a relative pronoun or
w/-interrogative:
the friends on whom she called
On which friends did she call ?
*the friends u whom she called.
* Up which friends did she call?
Multi-word verbs 341
(e) The particle of a phrasal verb is normally stressed, and in |1 uul
position normally bears t he nuclear tone, whereas the particle Clu
prepositional verb is normally unstressed and has the 'tail' of the
nuclear tone that flls on the lexical verb:
Which friends did she CALL on?
Which friends did she call 0P?
Type I I prepositional verbs
16.8 Type II prepositional verbs are ditransitive verbs. They are followed by
two noun phrases, normally separated by the preposition: the second
noun phrase is the prepositional object:
He deprived the peasants of their land.
They plied the young man with food.
Please confne your remarks to the matter under discussion.
This cl othing will protect you from the worst weather.
Jenny thanked us for the present.
May I remind you of our agreement?
They have provided the child with a good education.
The di rect object becomes the subject in the corresponding passive clause:
The gang robbed her of her necklace.
She was robbed of her necklace (by the gang).
NOTE There are two minor subtypes in which the direct object is part of the idiomatic
combination:
( I ) The frst i s exemplifed by make a mess o/ make alloll'ancefor, take care of,
pay a//ention to, take advantage of It allows d second less acceptable passive i n
which the prepositional object becomes subjec[:
A (terrible) mess has been made of the house.
(?) The house has been made a (terrible) mess of
(2) The second is exemplifed by catch sighr ./ keep pace with, give way to, lose
touch with, cross sirrds with, keep tabs on. :: rise to. Onl y the prepositional
object can become the passive subject, though i | is considered somewhat cl umsy:
The l i feboat was suddenly caught sighr '.t:
Phrasal-prepositional verbs
16.9 PHRASAL-PREPOSITIONAL VERBS have in addition to the lexical verb, both
an adverb and a preposition as particles. Type I phrasal-prepositional
verbs have only a prepositional object:
We are all looking forward to your party on Saturday.
He had to put up witlz a lot of teasing at schoul.
342 Complementation of verbs and adjectives
Why don' t you look i11 011 Mrs Johnson on your way back?
He thinks he can get m1 ay 11ith everything.
The prepositional passive is possible, though liable to sound cumbersome.
These examples, however, are normal and acceptable:
These tantrums could not be put up ll'ith any longer. ['tolerated']
The death penalty has been recently done a\l'ay \l'ith. ['abolished']
Such problems must be squarely faced up to. ['confronted']
They were looked do1111 011 by their neighbours. ['despised']
Type I I phrasal-prepositional verbs are di transitive verbs (cf 1 6. 32) .
They require two objects, the second of which is the prepositional object:
Don't take i t 0111 011 me! ['vent your anger')
The manager fobbed me oj ll'ith a lame excuse. (esp BrE)
We put our success doll'n to hard work. ["attribute to']
I' II let you in on a secret.
Only the active direct object can be made passive subject with these:
Our success can be put dmr to hard work.
For both types, the ll'h-question eliciting the prepositional object is
frmed with the pronouns Hho(m) and what (cf 1 6. 6):
She looked i n on Mrs Johnson on our way back.
( Wlw(m) ) did she look in on?
They put their success down to hard work.
What did they put their success down to?
Other multi-word verb constructions
16.10 In addition to the types of multi-word verbs discussed in 1 6. 3-9, some
other idiomatic verb constructions may be noted:
(a) VERB-ADJECTIVE COMBINATIONS
These are similar to phrasal verbs. Compare:
Meg put the cloth straig/u. Meg put the cat out.
The constructions may be copular, eg: break even, plead guilty, lie 1011- . Or
they may be complex-transitive with a direct object fllowing the verb (or
the adjective i f the object is long) eg: cut (their trip) short, \\'ork (the nail)
loose, rub (herself) dry (cf 1 6. 25 Note [c] ). Sometimes the idiom allows
additional elements, such as a modifer of the adjective (cut as short as
possible), an infnitive (play hard to get ), or a preposition (ride roughshod
over).
(b) VERB-VERB Cm.IBINA TIONS
In these idiomatic constructions the second verb is nonfnite, and may be
either an infnitive:
make do ll'ith, make (N) do, let (N) go, let (N) be
16. 1 1
Verb complementation 343
or a participle, with or without a following preposition:
put paid lo, gel rid of, hme done ll'ith. leave N standing, '(nu N
packing, knock N fying, get going
(c) VERBS WITH TWO PREPOSITIONS
These are a further variant on prepositional verbs:
It deieloped from a small club into a mass organization in three
years.
Simi larly: struggle ll'ith N.for N, compe1e ll'ith N.for N, apply to Nji1r N,
talk t o N abol// N. Normally either one or both prepositional phrases can
be omitted.
Verb complementation
Intransitive verbs
Where no complementation occurs, the verb has an INTRANSITIVE use.
Some verbs are always intransitive:
John has arrived. Your views do not maller.
Others can also be transitive with the same meaning and wi thout a
change in the subject-verb relationship:
He smokes (a pipe). She is reading (a book).
In some cases the i ntransitive verb acquires a more specifc meani ng: eg:
John drinks (heavil) ['drinks alcohol'].
Other intransitive verbs can also be transitive, but the semantic
connection between subject and verb is diferent:
The car stopped. She stopped the car.
NOTE I ntransitive verbs i nclude i ntransitive phras:I \'erbs. eg:fall out ['quarrel']. tf 6. 3.
Copular verbs
Subject complement
16. 12 A verb has COPULAR complementation when it is followed by a subject
complement or a predication adjunct ( cf 8. 1 4) and when this el ement
cannot be dropped without changing the meaning of the verb. Such verbs
are COPULAR (or l i nking) VERBS, the most common of which is the copul a
be.
Copular verbs fll into two main classes. according to whether the
subject complement has the role of current attribute or resulting attri bute
(c.f 1 0. 9):
NOTE
16. 13
NOTE
16. 14
344 Complementation of verbs and adjectives
CURRENT: The girl seemed very restless.
RESULTING: The girl became very restless.
The most common copular verbs are listed below. Those that are used
only with adjective phrases are fol l owed by '[A] ' :
CURRENT copulas: appear, be, feel, look, seem, smell [A], sound,
taste [A]
RESULTING copulas: become, get [A], go [A], grow [A], prove, tur
See also 1 0. 7 Note [a] .
[a] After certain copulas (appear, feel, look, seem, sound) , both AmE and BrE
prefer an infnitive construction with to be rather than simply a noun phrase:
It appears the only solution. It appears to be the only solution.
There is also a tendency with such copulas, especially in i nformal AmE, to prefer a
construction in which the verb is followed by like: It seems like the only solwion.
(b] Some copulas are severely restricted as to the words that may occur in their
complement. The restriction may be to certain adjectives or to a semantic set of
words. Here are some examples, with typical adjective complements: loom (large) ,
fall (silent) , plead (innocent), rest (assured) , run (wild) , spring (open). See also
1 0. 7 Note [b].
Complementation by adverbials
The principal copula that allows an adverbial as complementation is be.
The adverbials are mainly space adjuncts (eg: The kitchen is dol!'nstairs)
but time adjuncts are common with an eventive subject (eg: The party irill
be at nine) and other types of adj unct are possible too (eg: She is in good
health). Two other copula verbs that occur with space adj uncts (or
adj uncts metaphorically related to these) are get (eg: How did you get
lzere? ) and keep (eg: They kept out of trouble).
With i ntransitive verbs such as live, come, go, lie, remain, stand, and
stay, the adverbial is not always clearly obligatory. But the positional or
directional meaning of these verbs i s completed by the adverbials:
My aunt lives in Toronto.
They are staying nearby.
Come over /ere.
[a] The verbs seem, appear, look, sozmd,Jeel, smell, and taste may be complemented
by an adverbial clause beginning as i or as though: It seems as i the 1rea1her is
improving.
(b] Behave is complemented by a manner adverbial (He behaved badly) and /as! and
take by a duration adverbial ( The course lasted (for) three months).
Monotransitive verbs
Monotransitive verbs require a direct object, which may be a noun phrase,
a fnite clause, or a nonfnite clause. We i nclude in this category, for our
Verb complementauon D
present purposes, type prepositional verbs such as look al (c: 1 6. 5) and
type I phrasal-preositional verbs such as plll up with (c: 1 6. 9).
Noun phrase as direct object
16. 15 Direct objects are typically noun phrases that may become the subject of a
corresponding passive clause:
NOTE
16. 16
NOTE
Everybody understood the problem.
Tlze problem was understood (by everyone).
Some common examples of the numerous monotransitive verbs that may
be used in the passive: believe, bring, call. close, do, enjoy, feel, fnd, get,
hear, help, keep, know, lose, love, make, need, receive, remember, see, take,
use, win.
A few stative monotransitive verbs (some in particular senses) normally
do not allow the passive. These MDDLE VERBS include have, ft . suit,
resemble, equal, mean ( 'Oculist' means 'eye doctor ') , contain, hold ( The
hall holds over three hundred people), comprise, lack.
They have a large house. * A large house is had (by them).
There are also monotransitive phrasal verbs, eg: bring about, put of (cf 1 6.4).
These take a di rect object and can be used in the passive.
Noun phrase as prepositional object
The prepositional object of type I prepositional verbs (cf 1 6. 5) and type I
phrasal-prepositional verbs (cf 1 6.9) resembles the di rect object in
accepting the passive (though often with some awkwardness in style) and
in being elicited by a pronoun in questions:
The management paid fr his air fares.
His airfares were paid for by the management.
What did the management pay fr?
Your sister has checked up on me.
I have been checked up on by your sister.
Who(m) has your sister checked up on?
Another indication of the closeness of a prepositional object to a di rect object is
that when a prepositional verb is followed by d 1ha1-clause or a to-infnitive clause.
the preposition disappears and the preposi tional object merges with the di rect
object of the monotransitive pattern:
{
on the meeting.
They agreed ( 1ha1) they would meet.
to meet each other.
Yet the preposition that is omitted before d 1/a1-clause can reappear i n the
corresponding passive: That they should meez 11as agreed (on). This is so even i n
extraposition (cf 1 8.23), where the preposition immediately follows the passive
verb phrase:
It was agreed (on) that they should meet.
346 Complementation of verbs and adjectives
Complementation by a fnite clause
That-clause as object
16. 1 7 The conjunction that i n that-clauses functioning as object i s optional, as in
I hope (that) he arril'es soon; but when the clause i s made the passi ve
subject, the conjunction is obligatory ( lf I 5. 3). The normal passi ve
analogue has it and extraposi tion, that being again to some extent
optional:
Everybody hoped (that) she would sing.
That she would sing was hoped by everybody. (sti l ted)
It was hoped by everybody (that) she would sing.
We di stinguish four categories of verbs that are complemented by that
clauses: FACTUAL, SUASIVE, EMOTIVE, and HYPOTHESIS. Most verbs belong
to the frst two categories. The four categories are distinguished
semantically, but also by the types of verbs that appear in the that-clauses.
Factual verbs
16. 18 FACTUAL verbs are fllowed by a that-clause wi th an indicative verb:
They agreed that she Has misled.
There are two subtypes of fctual verbs. PUBLIC verbs consist of speech act
verbs i ntroducing i ndirect statements; PRIVATE verbs express i ntellectual
states and i ntellectual acts that are not observable.
Examples of public factual verbs: admit, agree, announce, argue, bet,
claim, complain, confess, declare, deny, explain, guarantee, insist, lllention,
object, predict, promise, reply, report, say, state, suggest, swear, \lI
write.
Examples of private factual verbs: believe, consider, decide, doubt,
expect, fear, feel, forget, guess, hear, hope, know, notice, presume, reali:e,
recognize, remember, see, suppose, think, understand.
Suasive verbs
16. 19 SUASIVE verbs are fol l owed by a that-clause either wi th putative should
(preferred i n BrE) or with the subjunctive ( c(I 4. I 3j). A third possibility. a
that-clause with an indicative verb. occurs, though more commonly in
BrE:
{should leave }
People are demanding that he leal'e the company.
leal'es (esp BrE)
A common alternative to the that-clause for some suasive verbs is an
i nfni tive clause:
.
d d
{the news to be suppressed.
They mten e
that the news (should) be suppressed.
(more formal)
Verb complementation 347
Examples of suasive verbs: agree, ask, command, decide, demand, insist,
intend, move, order, prefer, propose, recommend, request, suggest, urge.
Emotive and hypothesis verbs
16.20 EMOTI VE verbs are followed by a that-clause with either the indicative or
putative should:
I regret that she {worries about i t.
It surprises me that he should II`ul7]`about i t.
This group of verbs includes annoy, concer, marvel, rejoice, regret,
surprise, wonder, worry.
HYPOTHESIS verbs comprise wish, suppose ( i n the i mperative), and the
modal idiom \l'ould rather or i ts contraction 'd rather. They are fllowed
by a that-clause with the hypothetir:al past or the ivere-subj unctive.
I
.
h ( h ) h
{taught us.
w1s t at s e
were here.
Complementation by an extraposed subject that-clause
16.21 The that-clause in examples like seems (that) you are mistaken i s an
extraposed subject, not an object of the verb. It resembles other that
clauses in previous sections in that the conjunction is optional and the
clause i s obl igatory. The verb in the that-clause is indicative:
It appears (that) you have lost your temper.
Common verbs in this pattern include seelll, appear, and happen, and the
phrasal verbs come about ['happen'] and tum out ['transpire'].
Wh-clause as object
16.22 Many of the factual verbs which can take a that-clause as object can also
take a wh-interrogative clause (cf I 5.4).
I don't know i f we can get there in time.
Have you heard whether she's coming with us?
I doubt whether the fight has been booked.
The use of the 1rh-interrogative clause (which generally implies lack of
knowledge on the part of the speaker) is particularly common where the
superordinate clause is i nterrogative or negative. But verbs that them
selves express uncertainty, such as ask and doubt, occur wi thout this
nonassertive constrai nt.
Examples of verbs taki ng the wh-interrogative clause: ask, care, decide,
depend, doubt, explain, forget, hear, knmr. mind, notice, prme, reali:e,
remember, say, see, tell, think, wonder.
NOTE The list includes prepositional verbs where the preposition i s optionally omitted
befre a wh-cla use:
16.23
348 Complementation of verbs and adjectives
I inquired (Ub0ut ) whether the tickets were ready.
I haven't decided (011) which fl ight I will take.
Nonfnite clauses as direct object
We distinguish fve types ofnonfni te cl auses that function as direct object
i n monotransitive complementati on:
( 1) 11'/z-i nfni tive clause:
The Curies discovered hall' to isolate radioactive elements.
(2) subjectless infnitive clause:
Ruth prefers to go by bus.
(3) subjectless -ing participle clause:
They l i ke talking about their ll'ork.
(4) lo-infnitive clause with subject:
Charles wants you 10 stand for election.
(5) -ing participle clause with subject (cf 1 5. 1 0) :
I hate them/their gossiping about our colleagues.
When the nonfnite clause has no subject - as in ( I ), (2), and (3) - i ts
implied subject is usually identical with that of the superordinate clause.
The status of these clauses as di rect object is confrmed when they are
replaced by a coreferential pronoun it or that ; fr the example sentence in
( I ): The Curies discovered that. Another indication of their status is that
they can be made the fcus of a pseudo-cleft sentence (cf 1 8. 20): What
Rutlz prefers is to go by bus. The passive is usually not admissible (but cf:
How to isolate radioactire elements ll'as discovered by the Curies).
Many monotransitive verbs take more than one type of nonfni te
complementation. Common verbs are listed below fr the fve types:
( I ) decide, discuss, explain, forget, knoll' , lear, remember, say, see. tell,
think.
(2) ask, dislike, forget. hate, help, hope. lear, like, !ol'e, need. ofer.
prefer, promise, refuse, remember, try, 1rnt, wish.
. .
(3) and (5) (can 't) bear, dislike, enjo_r, forget, hate, (can 'I) help, like.
!o1e, (not) mind, miss, need, prefer, remember, (can 't) stand, stem. stop.
(4) (can't) bear, dislike, hate, like, lol'e, prefer, ll'ant, ll'ish.
Where both i nfni tive cl auses - (2) and (4) - and participle clauses - ( 3)
and (5) -are admitted, several fctors i nfuence t he choice. The i nfni tive i s
biased towards potentiality and is therefore fvoured i n hypothetical and
non factual contexts ( iVould _rou like to see my stamp collection?). whereas
the participle is favoured in fctual contexts (Brian loathed li1ing in the
country). For the three retrospective verbs forget, remember, and regret
t his potentiali ty/performance di sti nction is extended i nto the past:

. .

I
I
NOTE
16.24
16.25
Verb complementation J4U
remembered to
.
fll out the frm. [' f remembered that was to fi l l Gu|
the form and then di d so. ']
J remembered
.
fling out the frm. [" I remembered that I had fi l l ed
out the frm. ']
[a] Monotransitive prepositional verbs are found in al l fve types. The preposition
i s optionally omi tted i n ( I ) and obligatorily omi tted i n (2), cf 9. I :
( I ) I couldn' t decide (on) which bicycle to buy.
(2) She decided to buy a
b
icycle.
(3) She decided Ul! buying a bicycle.
(4) We longed for the lesson to end.
(5) Don't count UI! their helping you.
Phrasal verbs and phrasal-prepositional verbs are fund with types (3) and (5):
(3)
(5)
Sh
{took up
} d
. .
b" 1 e
l
nvmg a 1cvc e.
got UlIIIIf lo
-

I
{put of
} h
. .
k d
t e1r seei ng us.
oo orr to
-
[b] For the verbs deserve, need, and require in type (3), the implied object of the
participle is identical with the subject of the superordinate clause: Your shoes need
mending (cf Your shoes need to be mended).
Complex-transitive verbs
In COMPLEX-TRANSITIVE complementation. the two elements fl lowi ng the
complex-transitive verb have a subject-predicate relationship:
She considered her mother a sensible woman.
She considered her mother to be a sensible woman.
[ I ]
[2]
The rel ationship between the elements her mother and a sensible woman i n
[ I ] and [2] is equivalent to the same elements in the subordi nate fni te
clause in [3]:
She considered that her mother 1rs sensible woman. [3]
Yet the passive suggests that the two elements in [ I ] and [2] are not a single
consti t uent, since the frst element -as di rect object -is separated from the
second element and becomes the passive subject:
Her mother was considered (by her) '10 be) a sensible woman.
Direct object and object complement
In the clausal pattern SVOC (cf I 0. 1 ), the object complement i s an
adjective phrase or a noun phrase. The attribute role of the object
complement may be CURRENT, as in [ I ] and [2]. or RESULTING, as in [3] and
[4] (cf 1 0. 9 Note [a]):
350 Complementation of verbs and adjectives
The secretary left all the letters unopened.
I have often wished myself a millionaire.
The long walk made us all hungry.
The commi ttee has elected you its chairman.
The di rect object can be made the passive subject:
All the letters were left unopened (by the secretary).
[ l ]
[2]
[3]
[4]
[ l ]
Many verbs admi t both adjective phrases and noun phrases as object
complements. The most common verbs for this construction are listed
below. Those used only with adjective phrases are followed by '[A]' , and
those used only with noun phrases are followed by '[N] ' :
appoint [N], believe, call, choose [N], consider, declare, elect [N],fnd,
gel [A], like [A], make, name [N], prefer [A], think, want [A] .
NOTE [a] For some verbs, the object complement is optional; eg: elect in The commillee
has elected you (its chairman).
[b] Prepositional verbs, mainly with the preposition as, take a prepositional object
complement; eg: They described her as a genius; He took me for a fool. Sometimes
the preposition i s optional; eg: They elected me (as) their leader. Common
examples of these prepositional verbs follow, with those taking an optional
preposition listed frst: choose (as) , consider (as), elect (as) [, make (into) [N];
accept as, defne as, intend as [, mistake for, regard as, see as, take as/for, treat as,
use as.
[c] The SVOC patter includes a number of verb-adjective collocations; fr
example: boil (an egg) hard, buy [ cheap,freeze [N] hard, paint [ red/blue . . . ,
knock (someone) senseless. The adjectives open, loose, free, and clean are
particularly common: push [ open, shake [N] loose, set [free, wipe [N] clean.
[d] The object is generally postposed by extraposition i f i t is a that-clause, and an
anticipatory it then precedes the object complement:
I think it very odd that nobody is in.
The collocations make sure and make certain are followed by an object that-clause
wi thout anticipatory ir:
Please make sure that you enclose your birth certifcate.
Direct object and adjunct
16.26 In the SVOA pattern (cf 1 0. 1 ), the complex-transitive verb i s comple
mented by a di rect object fllowed by a predication adjunct. The adj uncts
are characteristically preposi tional phrases of di rection or metaphorical
extensions of the notion of direction:
I slipped the key into the lock.
Take your.hands out of your pockets.
May I see you to your seat ? ['escort you . . .']
They talked me illlo it. ['persuaded me . . . ' ]
He stood my argument on its head.
Verb complementation 35 1
Space position adjuncts also occur in this construction:
Always keep your eyes on the road when driving.
The attackers caught us off our guard.
The passive of thi s construction is exemplifed for this last sentence:
We were caught of our guard (by the attackers).
Adjuncts of other semantic types are less common, but they i nclude H
manner adjunct with treat (Her parents treated her badly).
Direct object and to-infnitive clause
16.27 Some of the verbs taking a di rect object and /a-i nfni ti ve clause i n
complex-transitive complementation correspond to the factual verbs that
take a that-clause with an indicative verb (cf 1 6. 1 8):
The pol ice reported the trafc to be heavy. (formal)
=The police reported that the trafc was heavy.
John believed the stranger to be a policeman. (frmal)
=John believed that the stranger was a policeman.
In such cases, the i nfni ti ve clause normally contains a verb used stati vely,
especially be. The fnite clause i s preferred i n normal usage, but the
i nfni tive clause provides a convenient passive frm:
The trafc was reported to be heavy.
Common fctual verbs: beliel'e, consider, expect,feel,fnd, know, suppose.
Nonfactual verbs i nclude verbs of intention, causation, modali ty, and
purpose:
They i ntended Maria to sing an aria.
The meeti ng elected her to be the next treasurer.
My contract allows me to take one month's leave.
Our teachers encouraged us to think fr ourselves.
Common nonfactual verbs: allmr, appoint. cause, compel, condemn, dare.
gel, help, intend, mean, permit, require.
NOTE [a] Some verbs in this construction occur only in the passive: rumour, say. 5tC
The feld marshal was said to be pl anning a new s1rategy.
Others occur chiefy in the passive: repute. think. The verb get is not found in the
passive.
[b] Examples of multi-word verbs in this patter are the prepositional verbs count
on, depend on, relon: the phrasal vrb make ow: and the phrasal-prepositional
verb keep on at.
Direct object and bare infnitive clause
16.28 Two small groups of verbs take this pattern of complex-transi ti ve
complementati on: three causative verbs (hare, let, make) and some
352 Complementation of verbs and adjectives
perceptual verbs of seeing and hearing (feel, hear, notice, ohsere,
overhear, see, l\'atch). In addition, lzelp and <esp BrE) knmv may occur
wi th the bare i nfni tive or the 10-inftnitive.
They lzad me repeal the message.
You shouldn't let your family inte1/ere aith our plans.
We must make the public take notice ofus.
Di d you notice anyone leave the house?
The crowd sall' Gray score two goals.
Sarah helped us (to) edit the script.
I have knol\'n John (to) give better speeches than t/at. <esp BrE)
The passive normally requires a lo-i nfni tive:
John must be made to take notice of us.
NOTE Certain verbs i n this pattern do not occur i n the passive: feel, have, let, a111ch.
There is an apparent passive in /et fa/l and let go ( They were let go/fall), but these
are fxed expressions. Only let has a passive of the i nfni tive clause (The( let
themselves be led all'ay). Corresponding passives of the infnitive clause with verbs
of perception require a copula, usually being ( The crowd watched lll'o goals being
scored}, cf 1 6.29; see also admits a passive construction formed with the -ed
participle without be ( Te cro11d saw two goals scored, cf1 6.30), which is the only
passive if the verb i s have (Tey had the message repeated) .
16.29
16.30
Direct object and -ig participle clause
Three small groups of verbs take this type of complex-transitive
complementati on: perceptual verbs, many of which also occur with the
bare i nfni tive, cf1 6. 28 (feel, !ear, notice, observe, overhear, perceil'e, see,
smell, spot, spy, watch), verbs of encounter (catch, discover, fnd, leave),
and the two causative verbs get and have. See also 4. 35.
This complementation pattern difers from the monotransitive pattern
(5) in 1 6. 23 in that the noun phrase fol l owi ng the superordinate verb
cannot take the geni tive case (cf 1 5. 1 0):
I saw him l yi ng on the beach.
*I saw his lying on the beach.
The passive with this pattern is regul ar:
We could hear the rain splashing on the roof
-The rain could be heard splashing on the roof
A teacher caught them smoking in the playground.
They were caught smoking in the playground (by a teacher).
Direct object and -cd participle clause
Three small groups of verbs occur with thi s type of complex-transitive
complementati on: perceptual verbs (see, hear, feel, watch), volitional
verbs (like, need. 1r111 ), and the two causative verbs get and /are:
Someone must have seen the car stolen.
I want this watch repaired immediately.
She had the car cleaned.
Ver complementation 3b3
For some verbs there are corresponding constructions with an i nfi ni t i n:
copular verb, generally be: I want this watch to be repaired immediatelr.
Si nce the participle clause is passive, the superordinate clause is ot
normally i n the passive: ?The car must hal'e been seen stolen.
Ditransitive verbs
Noun phrases as both indirect and direct object
16.31 Di transitive complementation in its basic form involves two object noun
phrases: an i ndi rect object, which is normally animate and positioned
frst, and a di rect object, which is normally inanimate:
16.32
He gave the girl a doll
s v
oi od
Most di transitive verbs can also be monotransitive. The i ndi rect object
can often be omi tted: Size may give (us) a large donation. With a few verbs
(eg: ask, pay, teach, tell, show) either object can be omi tted:
He taught us physics.
He taught us.
He taught physics.
Some di transitive verbs have two passive analogues, which we di sti nguish
as ' frst' and 'second' :
The girl was given a doll.
A doll was given the girl.
(FIRST PASSIVE]
[SECOl PASSIVE]
Of these two, the frst passive, in which the i ndi rect object becomes
subject, i s the more common. The preposi 1ional paraphrase is more usual .
as an alternati ve, than the second passive: doll irs given to the girl. We
l i st di transi tive verbs in 1 6. 32 together with their preposi ti onal
paraphrases.
Object and prepositional object
There are numerous di transitive verbs tha1 take a preposi tional object as
the second object (cf 1 6. 8):
We addressed our remarks to the children.
We reminded hi m ofthe agreement.
[ I ]
[2]
Di transitive verbs with prepositional objects normally have only the frst
passive:
Our remarks were addressed to the children.
He was reminded of the agreement.
[ l a]
[2a]
354 Complementation ol verbs and adjectives
Here are examples of di transitive preposi tional verbs:
accuse of
advise about
charge with
compare with
congratulate on
deprive of
explain to
inform of
interest in
introduce to
persuade of
prevent from
protect from
punish fr
sentence to
suspect of
thank fr
treat to
Som

verbs allow more than one preposition. The diferent possibili ties
provide a means of achieving diferent end-fcus (cf 1 8. 5):
Sidney provided Justin with a Danish apple pastry.
-Sidney provided a Danish apple pastry fr Justin.
Most di transitive verbs that take two noun phrases as objects can also
be paraphrased with a prepositional object equivalent to the indirect
object:
Robert read me a chapter.
-Robert read a chapter to me.
I gave Justin some of my shirts.
-I gave some of my shirts to Justin.
We l i st some common ditransitive verbs that allow both possibili ties.
Those i n list { I ) take the preposition to and those i n list (2) take the
preposition for:
{ I ) bring, deny, give, hand, lend, offer, owe, promise, read, send, show,
teach, throw
(2) fnd, make, order, save, spare
NOTE [a] A few di transitive preposi tional verbs (eg: pay, serve, tell ) take one of two
preposi tions. In one the prepositional object is equivalent to the i ndi rect object. in
the other to the di rect object:
Doris told David her version of the events.
-Doris told her version of the events David.
-Doris told Da\id abour her version o.f the e1ents.
A few other verbs (eg: enry. e:rrse, .forgire) have a preposi tional object
(i ntroduced by for) that is equirlent to the di rect object:
Matthew envied me my video-recorder.
-Matthew envied me/or my video-recorder.
[b] Ask takes the preposition of to i ntroduce a prepositional object that 1s
equivalent to the i ndirect object:
Robert asked Benjamin a favour.
-Robert asked a favour ofBenjamin.
1
6.33
Verb complemenlalion 355
[c] A few di transitive verbs do not have preposi tional paraphrases: allmr, charge .
.
fne, re.fuse.
[d] Sec 1 6. 8 Note for idiomatic combinations with preposi tional verbs such U5
make a mess /" and 1 6. 9 for di transitivc phrasal-prepositional verbs.
Indirect object and that-clause object
Some ditransitive verbs take as direct object a that-clause:
Natalie convinced Derek (that) she was right.
[ I ]
Only the frst passive i s acceptable:
Derek was convi nced (by Natalie) (that) she was right.
[ l a]
With some verbs, including convince, the indirect object cannot be
omitted.
If the that-clause i ntroduces an i ndirect statement, it contains an
indicative verb:
Ava told Jack that dinner was ready.
If it i ntroduces an i ndi rect directive (cf 1 4.20), there are several opti ons (cf
1 6. 1 9). the verb may be indicative or subjunctive, and often contains
putative should or another modal auxiliary:
A dozen students petitioned the college chef that he
provides
p
h
rovi
l
d
d
e
'
d
}
them with vegetarian meals. (frmal )
s ou prov1 e
might provide
The indirect directive construction is rare and formal in comparison with
the equivalent i nfni tive construction (cf 1 6. 36) : A dozen students
petitioned the college chef to provide them with vegetarian meals.
We l i st common verbs that take an indirect object and (a) a that-clause
object as i ndirect statement: advise, bet, convince, inform, persuade,
promise, remind, show, teach, tell, war, 1rrite: (b) a that-clause as i ndirect
di rective: ask, beg, command, instruct, order, persuade, tell.
Prepositional object and that-clause object
16.34 Some ditransitive prepositional verbs take a preposi tional object and a
that-clause:
Estelle mentioned (to me) that her daughter was getting married.
Phil i p recommended (to me) that I buy Harrods mal t whisky.
As shown by the parentheses, the prepositional phrase is optional. Some
of the di transitive verbs l isted in 1 6. 33 can be optionally fllowed by a
preposi ti on:
Jonathan wrote (to) me that he was going to a summer camp thi s
year.
356 Complementation of verbs and adjectives
Unlike the verbs in 1 6. 33, ditransitive prepositional verbs al l ow the
that-clause to become subject of a corresponding passive clause, more
acceptably with extraposition:
That David was innocent has been proved by Jonathan.
It has been proved (by Jonathan) that David was innocent.
We list examples where (a) the that-clause is an indirect statement, and
(b) i t is an indirect di rective: (a) admit, announce, complain, confess,
explain, mention, point out, prove, re111ark, report, say, write (to) ; (b) ask
(of), propose, recommend, suggest.
Indirect object and wh-clause object
16.35 The second object may be a fni te w/i-clause:
Martin asked me what time the meeting would end.
Wendy didn't tell me whether she had phoned earlier.
Besides ask and tell, the verbs used in this construction are those listed in
group (a) in 1 6. 33. A preposition, usually optional, may precede the
w/z-clause:
Would you remind me (about ) how we start the engine?
Some of the verbs also take a w/z-infnitive clause as second object:
She advised us what to wear fr the party.
Prepositional verbs also appear i n this pattern:
Could you please sllggest to me which museums to visit?
Indirect object and ta-infnitive clause object
16.36 This pattern is used with verbs that i ntroduce i ndi rect di rectives. Only the
i ndi rect object can be made subject of the corresponding passive
construction:
NOTE
I persuaded Mark to see a doctor.
Mark was persuaded to see a doctor.
( I ]
( l a]
The subject of the superordinate clause (J i n [ I ]) refers to the speaker of a
speech act, and the i ndi rect object refers to the addressee (Mark in [ ! ]) .
The implied subject of the infnitive clause is generally identified wi t h the
i ndi rect object ('I persuaded Mark that he should see a doctor').
Here is a list of common verbs used in this pattern: advise, ask, beg,
command, entreat ,forbid, implore, instrllct, invite, order, persuade, remind,
request, recommend, teach, tell, Z1rge.
[a] With some superordinate verbs, the i nfnitive clause may be replaced in rather
frmal style by a 1/a1-clause containing a modal or a subjunctive:
I persuaded Mark that he should see a doctor. [ l b]
16.37
Verb complementation 357
[b] The verb pro111ise is exceptional in that the implied subject of the i nfni tive
clause is the superordinate subjecL: I pro111ised Hmrrd lo take two shirtsj(1r his
father ('I promised Howard that I woul d take two shirts for his father').
Infinitival complementati on: monotransitive, ditransitive,
compl ex-transitive
We can now distinguish three s uperfi cially identical struct ures that
conform to the pattern N, V N2 to V N3, where N is a noun phrase and V
is a verb phrase. The three structures display three types of complemen
tation of the frst verb phrase: monotransitive (cf 1 6. 23), di transiti ve ( lf
1 6. 36), and complex-transitive (cf 1 6. 27).
MONOTRANSITIVE
0
The governors like al l parents to visit the school.
DITRANSITIVE
Oi

'
I persuaded Justin to write an essay.
' `
N2
N3
COMPLEX-TRANSITIVE
0 Co
,--
They expected Robert to win the race.
~ '
[ 1 J
(2]
(3]
In monotransitive complementati on. K: is within the infni tive clause
and functions as its subject. Accordingly. we fnd the following features
associated with this type of complementa:ion:
(a) The infni tive clause, including N2 can be replaced by a pronoun:
The governors l i ke all pare/l/s to risi1 rhe school, and the teachers like
that too.
(b) When preceded by for. the infnitive clause, including N _ can easily
be made the focus of a pseudo-clef consmction:
What the governors like is for all p.:.ents to risit the school.
(c) The object of the infnitiYe clause LC be made into its subject if the
clause is turned into the passiH:
358 Complementation of verbs and adjectives
The governors like the school to he visited by all parents.
(d) In a reduced construction, infnitival to is obligatorily retained:
The governors l i ke them to.
The goverors like them and We like them to are not synonymous.
(e) Existential there can function as subject of the infnitive clause:
We like there to be a full attendance.
In di transitive complementation, none of the features (a)-(e) apply,
since N2 functions as indi rect object within the superordinate clause and is
not a constituent of the infnitive clause:
*I persuaded that.
*What I persuaded was for Justin to write an essay.
*I persuaded the essay to be written by Justin.
The infnitive direct object clause can be omitted:
I persuaded Justin.
[2a]
[2b]
[2c]
[2d]
On the. other hand, the indirect object can be made passive subject of the
superordinate clause:
Justin was persuaded to write an essay. [2e]
Contrast, the unacceptability of:
*All parents were liked to visit the school.
A complex-transitive verb such as expect i n They expected Robert to win
the prize displays the same features as a monotransitive verb such as like,
except that (like ditransitive persuade) N2 is an object and can become the
passive subject of the superordinate clause:
Robert was expected to win the prize. [3a]
With expect, though not with all complex-transitive verbs, there are two
other possible passive constructions (the frst applicable also to mono
transitive complementation):
They expected the prize to be won by Robert.
The prize was expected to be won by Robert.
[3b]
[3c]
In [3c] there are passives in both the superordinate clause and the i nfni tive
clause.
Adjective complemenlallon 359
Adjective complementation
Adjective compl ementation by a prepositional phrase
J6.38 Like preposi tional verbs, adjectives often form a lexical unit with H
following preposition. The lexical bond is strongest with adjectives for
which, in a given sense, the complementation is obligatory; for exampl e.
averse to, bent 011, conscious of, fond of
Below \e give some examples of adjectives listed according to the
prepositions that accompany them. They include participial adjectives c
7. 5). It i s often possible for an adjective t o take a choice of prepositions,

s
in angry about, angry at, and angry with.
ABOUT:
AT:
FOR:
FROM:
OF:
ON/UPON:
TO:
WTH:
happy annoyed, reasonable, worried
alarmed, clever, good, hopeless
grateful, sorry
dif erent, distant, distinct, free
afraid, fond, full, tired
dependent, keen, based, set
close, due, grateful, similar, opposed
bored. friendly, happy, pleased
Adj ective complementation by a finite clause
16.39 Like that-clauses fl lowing a verb (cf 1 6. 1 7.f
f
), that-clauses following an
adjective may have an indicative verb, a subjunctive verb, or putative
should (cf 1 4. 1 3/). Three types are distinguished:
(a) The i ndicative is used with adjectives expressing degrees of certainty
or confdence (eg: aware, certain, confdent, sure):
We were confdent that Karen was still alive.
(b) The subjunctive or putative should is used with adjectives expressing
volition (eg: anxious, eager, irilling):
I am anxious that he {ould be } permitted to resign.
?1s
(c) The indicative or putative slwuldis used with emotive adjectives (eg:
angry, annoyed, glad, pleased, surprised). The indicative is chosen when
the that-clause is intended to refer to an event as an established fact. The
fl l owi ng pairs i l l ustrate the choices:
I
{(that) you have to lea\"e so early.
am sorry
(that) you should hare been (so) inconvenienced.
I
.
d
{(that) you didn 't call the doctor befre.
am surpnse
(that) anyone of your intelligence should swal!oll' a
lie like that.
360 Complementation of verbs and adjectives
Jn a superfcially similar construction, Lhe that-clause is an exlraposcd
subject. Three types of adjectives and the corresponding verb choices arc
again disti nguished, matching those given above:
(a) Jt is true that she is a vegetarian.
(b) It is essential that the ban
{ should) be
} l i fted tomorrow.
l
(c) It is strange that she
{is
/ I I b
} so late.
IOU L e
We list common examples of each type:
(a) certain, clear, likely, obvious, plain, possible, true, unlikely
(b) essential, important, impossible, necessary
(c) curiou
s
, disappointing, fortunate, odd, sad, surprising, unfortunate
NOTE Some adjectives lake a 11'/-clause (normally wilh an indicative verb) as
complementation. One type has an experiencer as subject and may be fllowed by
an optional preposition:
I was doubtful (as to) whether I should stay.
He is careful (about) what he does with his money.
Other examples: careful (about) , fussy (about ), unclear (about), uncertain (of),
unsure (of) .
In the second type the ir/-clause is an extraposed subject:
It was unclear what they would do.
It was not obvious how fr the moderization would go.
Adjective complementation by a toinfinitive clause
16.40 We distinguish seven kinds of construction in which an adjective is
fl l owed by a to-infnitive clause. They are exemplifed in the fl l owing
sentences, which are superfcially alike:
(i) Bob i s splendid to wai t.
(ii) Bob i s slow to react.
(i i i ) Bob i s son:r to hear i t.
(iv) Bob i s hesitant t o agree wi th you.
(v) Bob i s hard to convince.
(vi) The fod is ready to eat.
(vii) It i s importall/ to be accurate.
In types (i-iv) the subject of the main clause (Bob) is also the subject of the
i nfni tive clause. We can therefre always have a direct object i n the
i nfni ti ve clause if i ts verb is transitive. For example, i f we replace
i ntransi tive ll'ait by transitive build in (i), we can have: Bob is splendid to
build this house.
For types (v-vii), on the other hand, the subject of the i nfni tive is
unspecifed, although the context often makes clear which subject is
i ntended. In these types it i s possible to insert a subject preceded by for: eg
i n type (vi): The food is ready (for the children) to eat.
Type (i) has an analogue i n a construction i nvolving extraposition (cf
Adjective complementation 361
1 8. 23): ft is splendid ofBah to ll'ait. This type also permi ts a head ll|l
between t he adjective and the infniti ve: Bah mUt he a splendid CN?ft.11111111
to hme built this house. Adjectives in this type arc evaluative of human
behaviour. They i nclude carejiil, careless. cra:y, foolish, mad, nice, silly.
ll'ise, wrong.
. . . .
In type (ii), the sentence corresponds to one l which the adjective
becomes an adverb, while the i nfni tive becomes the fnite verb:
Bob is slow to react. Bob reacts slmrly.
I n another analogue, the adjective is followed by in and an -ing participle:
Bob is slow in reacting. Other adjectives in this small group are quick and
prompt.
. .
.
In type (iii), the head of the adjective phrase is an emotive adjective
(commonly a participial adjective), and the infnitive clause expresses
causati on:
I'm sorry

to have kept you waiting. [ I' m sorry because I have kept
you waiti ng']
I was excited to be there. ['To be there excited me']
Other adjectives in this type i nclude afraid, ashamed, disappoimed, glad,
happy, interested, relieved, surprised, worried.
. .
In type (iv), the head of the adjective phrase expresses voht1

n or a
modal meaning such as ability or possibility. Adjectives in this type
include able, anxious, certain, eager, inclined, keen, likely, ready, reluctant,
sure, unable, willing. Some of the most common adjectives in this type tend
to l i nk with the preceding copula be to frm a semi-auxiliary verb (cf3. l 8):
be able to, be willing to, be sure to.
In type (v), the subject of the sentence is identifed wi th the un
_
e

pressed
object of the i nfni tive clause, which must therefre have

trans1t1ve verb;
hence we could not have *Bob is hard to arrive. There .san analogous
construction in which the adjective is complement to an infnitive clause
acting as subject or extra posed subject (cf 1 8. 23):
To convince Bob is Iard. It is hard to conl'ince Bob.
Unless there is ell ipsis, we cannot omit the infi nitive clause, and so a
sentence l i ke The bread i rs hard to bake in no way implies The bread 1rs
Iard. Li ke types (vi) and (vii), type (v) peits/or + subject to be i nserted
at the begi nni ng of the infnitive clause: Those darts are all'kward (for a
beginner) to use. Other adjectives in this group include difcult, easy,
impossible, nice (i nformal ), pleasant.
.
In type (vi) too the subject of the main clause is identifed with the object
of the i nfni tive clause. But unlike type ( \). type (vi) has no analogous
construction with an infnitive clause subject:
The fod i s ready (fr you) to eat.
*To eat the fod is ready.
NOTE
16.41
362 Complementation of verbs and adjectives
We can generally omit the i nfni tive clause ( The food is readio ), and we c
substitute a passive i nfnitive clause without change ofmeaing ( Thefo
rs rea{J' to be eaten). Other adjectives in this type include aVailahll, fCe
s.

In type (vii) the i nfnitive clause is an extraposed subject:

To spray the trees every year is essential.
It is essential (for you) to spray the trees every year.
Adjeci ves in this type express volition, modality, or emotion (cf 1 6. 39).
They cludefotunate, important, possible, surprising, wrong.
[a] Some adjecties belong to types (iv) and (vi) (eg: available,ft,Jree, ready), so
that a sentence hke Tire lamb is ready to eat is ambiguous: either equivalent to The
lamb is ready to be ea1en (type vi) or The lamb is ready to eat somet/ing (type iv).
[b] In both type (v) and type (vi), the i nfnitive clause can end with a stranded
preposition: He is diclt to talk to: The paper is too fimsy to write on.
Adjective complementation by an -ing participle clause
An adjective may take an -ing participle clause as its complementation. In
some cases, a preposi tion optionally intervenes:
I'm busy (with) getting the house redecorated.
We'refortzmate (in) having Aunt Mary as a baby-sitter.
In other cases the preposition is obligatory:
We are used to not having a car.
I'm hopeless at keeping the garden tidy.
She's not capable of l ooki ng after herself.
Bi bl iographical note
On phrasal verbs and other types of multi-word verbs, see Aarts ( 1 989); Akimoto
( 1 983); Bolinger ( 1 971 ); Dixon ( 1 982b); Fraser ( 1 976); Lipka ( 1 972); Makkai
(1 972); Sroka ( 1 972).
On general aspects of verb classifcation and complementation, see Allerton
( 1 982); Andersson ( 1 985); Chomsky ( 1 965, Ch. 2); Fillmore ( 1 968, 1 977a, I 977b):
Halliday ( 1 967-68); Lyons ( 1 977, Ch. 1 2) .
On verb complementation by fni te clauses (especially by that-clauses). see
Behre ( 1 955); Kiparsky and Kiparsky ( 1 970).
On verb complementation by nonfni te construction, see Van Ek ( 1 966); Freed
( 1 979); Mair ( 1 990).
17.1
17.2
1 7 The noun phrase
In discussing nouns, determiners, and pronouns in Chapters 5 and 6, we
were of course dealing with the fundamentals of noun-phrase structure.
But we have deferred until this poi nt in the book our consideration of the
noun phrase itself so that other constituents common i n noun-phrase
structure (such as adjectives, adverbs, and clauses) had themselves been
individually explored. In other words, j ust as we have seen in Chapter 1 4
that the sentence may be indefnitely complex, so may the noun phrase.
This must be so, since sentences themselves can be reshaped so as to come
within noun-phrase structure. For example, the followi ng simple and
complex sentences [ l a-l e] can be re-expressed as one simple sentence [2]
with a very complex noun phrase as subject:
That girl is Angela Hunt. [ l a]
That girl is tall. [ l b]
That girl was standing in the corner. [ l e]
You waved to that girl when you entered. [ I d]
That girl became angry because you waved to her. [ l e]
That tall girl standing in the corner who became angry
because you 1ral'ed to her ll"hen you entered is Angela Hunt . [2]
Moreover, working back from [2], we could unhesitatingly reconstruct
any of the sentences [ l a-1 e] and i n fact we could not understand the noun
phrase subject of [2] unless we recognized its component parts as they are
set out in [ I ] .
Yet [2] has i ntroduced many changes. We have suppressed al l or part of
the verbs in [ l b] and [ l e] (diferent in tense and aspect); we have put the
complement tall of [I b] befre the noun girl ; we have replaced that girl of
[ l e] by who.
The purpose of the present chapter is to state the conditions governing
such changes.
In describing complex noun phrases. we distinguish three components:
(a) The head, around which the other components cluster and which
dictates concord and other kinds of congruence with the rest of the
sentence outside the noun phrase. Thus, we can have [ ! ], [2]. and [3] .
That tall girl standing in the corner . . . is . . .
Those tall girls sranding in the corner . . . are . . .
He addressed thar girl standing in rhe corner.
[ ! ]
[2]
[3]
364 The noun phrase
(b) The premodifcation, which comprises all the i tems placed before the
head - notably, determiners, adjectives, and nouns. Thus:
That tall girl
Some very expensive ofce furni ture
(c) The postmodication, comprising all the i tems placed after the head -
notably, prepositional phrases, nonfni te clauses, and relative clauses:
The chair by the wall
All the boys playing in the garden
A car which she bought recently
We shall also be concerned in this chapter wi th apposltwn, a
construction typically presenting noun phrases of i dentical reference, as
i n:
My dentist, Susan Williams, i s heavily overworked. (my dentist is
Susan Williams)
The authorities are worried by the problem of vandalism. (the
problem is vandalism)
Restrictive and nonrestrictive
17.3 Modifcation can be restrictive or nonrestrictive. That i s, the head can be
viewed as a member of a class which can be l i nguistically identifed only
through the modifcation that has been supplied (restrictive) . Or the head
can be viewed as unique or as a member of a class that has been
independently identifed (for example, i n a preceding sentence); any
modifcation given to such a head i s addi ti onal i nformation which i s not
essential for identi fying the head, and we call it nonrestrictive.
In example [2] of 1 7. 1 , the girl is only i dentifable as Angela Hunt
provided we understand that i t i s the particular gi rl who i s tall, who was
standing in the corer, and who became angry. Such modi fcation is
restrictive. By contrast. consider the fllowi ng:
Come and meet my famous mother.
Here, the modifcation famous i s understood as nonrestrictive. Agai n:
Angela Hunt, who is (over there) i n the corner, wants t o meet you.
Thi s sentence has a nonrestrictive relative clause since Angela Hunt' s
i denti ty i s independent of whether or not she is i n the corner, though the
i nfrmation on her present locati on may be useful enough. In these
examples, the modifcation is inherently nonrestrictive, si nce the heads in
Tomporary and permanenl J65
question - being treated as uni que - will not
I I l . . .
norma V al m1 t res t ri ct i on
But any head can be nonrestnct1vely modi fied:
.

The tall girl , who is a chemist, is Angel a Hunt .
Here the only i nformati on ofered to identify the girl I 1 I 1 1 I . . ' ,e,1 unt lh l 1c
allusi on to her tallness; the menti on of her work as 1 clie111 1

5t
.
11. . . . . . .
'
i s not o e
as an aid to 1dent1fcat1on but for add1t1onal i nterest .
.
Modifc
_
aion at i ts 'm
?
st restrictive' te

ds to come af"t cr t he head: t hat

1 s, our dec1s1on to use an i tem as a premod1fer (such as silly i n The .i

ill' hoi
got lost ) often refects our wish that it be taken for grant ed and l1

t |e
i nterpreted as a specifc identifer. Secondly, restrictive modi fcati on tends
to be given more prosodic emphasis than the head; nonrcsl ricl ivc
modifcation, on the other hand. tends to be unstressed in pre-head
position, while i n post-head position. its 'parenthetic' relation is endorsed
by being given a separate tone unit (2. 1 5), or - in wri ting - by being
enclosed by commas.
Temporary and permanent
17.4 There i s a second dichotomy that has some afni ties wi th the distinction
between restrictive and nonrestrictive but rather more wi th the contrast of
nonprogressive and progressive in predication (4.7f), and generic or
specifc reference i n determiners (5. 1 l j 5. 22f). Modifcation in noun
phrase structure may also be seen as permanent or temporary, such that
i tems placed i n premodifcation position are given the linguistic status of
permanent or at any rate characteristic features. Although this docs nol
mean that postmodifcation position is commi tted to either temporariness
or permanence, those adjectives which cannot premodify have a notably
temporary reference. Thus The man is ready would be understood as
having reference only to a speci fc time, and this corresponds lo the
nonoccurrence of *The r
e
ady man. On this basis. we see that timid and
afraid are contrasted in part accordi ng as the frst is seen as permanent. t he
second as temporary:
A man who is timid A timid man
A man who is afraid * An afraid man
Just as some modifers are too much identifed with temporary status lo
appear in pre-head position, so there can be modifcation constrained to
pre-head position because i t indicates permanent status. Compare
original in the original version and Her irork is quite original ; in the latter. i t
would permit adverbial indication of time span (\l, alll'ays, . . . ), as well
as use in premodifcati on.
17.5
366 The noun phrase
Postmodi fication
Explicitness
As we saw i n 1 7. 1 , premodifcation is in general to be i nterpreted (and
most frequently can only be i nterpreted) i n terms ofp
.
ostmodifction and
its greater explicitness. It will therefre be best to beg1

our
.
detailed study
of noun-phrase structure with the frms of postmod1fcat1on.
.
Explicitness in postmodifcation varies considerably, however. It 1s
greater in the fni te relative clause
The taxi which is waiting outside
than i n the non-fnite clause
The taxi waiting outside
from which the explicit tense (is?/was?) has disappeared, though this in
turn is more explicit than
The taxi outside
from which the verb indicating a specifi c action has also disappeared. We
are able (and usually must be able) to infer such fcts as te

se fom te
sentential context much as we infer the subject of nonfi mte adverbial
clauses ( 1 5. 34):
. {now is }
The taxi waiting outside
last night was
fr me.
Have you n.oticed the taxi outside?
Part of the relative clause's explicitness lies in the specifying power of
the relative pronoun. It is capable (a) of showing agreement wi tthe head,
and (b) of indicating its status as an element in the relative clause
structure.
Agreement is on the basis of a two-term 'gender' system, personal and
non-personal (5.45.f):
Joan, who . . .
London, which . . .
The boy/people who . . .
The fx/animals which . . .
The human being who . . .
The human body which . . .
The firy who . . .
The unicorn which . . .
It will be seen fom these examples that 'personality' is ascribed basically
to human beings but extends to creatures in the supernatural
"
o
:
Id
(angels, elves, etc) which are thought of as having human char

ctenst1cs
such as speech. It does not extend to the body or car

cter, 1

part or
whole, of a human being, living or dead, when this 1s considered a,
separate fom the entire person. Pet animals can be regarded as 'personal
(at least by their owners):
Rover, who was barking, frightened the children.
Poslmodlllc;tlon 367
On the other hand, human babies can be ' , . 1 ,
by their parents) as not having d 1
reg.in cd { t hough rUL| y perhaps
eve opcd personal i t y:
This is the baby ll'hich needs i nocul at i on.
Though ships may take the personal pronoun / ' ( S 46 N
relative pronoun is regularly non pesonl.
l _ _ |
ot c [c) ) , t he
Is she the shi p which is due to leave || . aa:.:t ' ' ' omorrow.
It is noteworthy that collective nouns ( 5.46) are us wi l l y , ,
t 1
I
, ,1 L as rcrso1 1a
when they have plural concord, nonpersonal when they |t . .
1 , c srgu ar:
Th
{commi ttee }{who ll'ere
( .
e
group which ll'as
f responsi ble for t his deLi sil . . .
Case i n the relative pronoun
17.6 Case is used to indicate the status of the relative pronoun in its clause.
There are two situations to consider. First, i f the pronoun is in a genitive
relation to a noun head, the pronoun can have the frm 11'/wse:
17.7
The woman whose daughter you met is Mrs Brown. [ I ]
(The woman is Mrs Brown; you met her daughter)
The house whose roof was damaged has now been repai red.
(2]
(The house has now been repaired, its roof was damaged)
In examples like [2] where the antecedent head is nonpersonal , there is
some tendency to avoid the use of1\hose ( by using, fr example, the roof of
which), presumably because many regard i t as the genitive only of the
personal who.
Secondly, with a personal antecedem. the relative pronoun can show
the distinction between who and 1r/om, depending on i ts role as subject of
the relative clause or as object or as prepositional complement:
The girl who spoke to him
The girl to whom he spoke
The girl who(m) he spoke to
The girl who(m) he met
(3]
(4]
(5]
(6]
It will be noticed that when the goYerning prepos1t1on precedes i ts
complement (cf 9. 2) as i n the rather frmal [4] , the choice of whom is
obligatory. When it does not, as in the more i nfrmal [5], or when the
relative pronoun is the object, as in [6]. t here is some choice between who
or whom, the latter bei ng prefrred in frmal written English and by some
speakers, the frmer being widely current i nfrmally.
Relative pronoun and adverbi al
The relative pronoun can be replaced by special adj unct frms for place.
time, and cause:
17.8
368 The noun phrase
That is the pl ace u'/zere he was born.
That is the period 11'/en he lived here.
That is the reason Hhy he spoke.
[ l ]
[2]
[3
]
There are considerable and complicated restrictions on th
e
se adj unct
forms, however. Many speakers fnd their use along with the correspond
ing antecedent somewhat tautologous - especially [3] and would prefer
the wh-clause without antecedent:
That is where he was born.
That is when he lived here.
That is why he spoke.
[ l a]
[
2
a]
[
3
a
]
If how is used, such clauses cannot in any case have an antecedent noun:
That is how he spoke.
[4]
Moreover, there are restrictions on the antecedent nouns that can occur in
[ I -3]. Wi th [3], reason is virtually alone, and with [ I ] and [2], it is also the
most general and abstract nouns of place and time that seem to be
preferred. Thus while
The ofce where he works . . . The day when he was born . . .
are acceptable to most users of English, others would prefer a prep
ositi onal phrase in each case:
Th f
{
at which . . . (frmal)
e L ce
which . . . at
The day
{
on
_
which . . . (frmal)
which . . . on
or one of the less explicit frms that we shal l now be considering ( The
ofce he works at, The day he was bor).
Restrictive relative clauses
Choice of relative pronoun
Though most of the examples in 1 7. 5.fhave been ofrestrictive clauses, it is
in the nonrestrictive relative clauses that the most explicit frms of relative
pronoun are typically used. In restrictive clauses, frequent use is made of a
general pronoun that which is independent of the personal or non personal
character of the antecedent and also of the function of the pronoun in the
relative clause:
The boy that is playing the piano . . , (or who) [ I ]
The table that stands i n the corner . . . ( or which) [2]
The boy that we met . . . (or who(m) ) [3]
The table that we admire . . . ( or which) [4]
The boy that the dog barked at . . . ( or at whom) [5]
The table that the boy crawled under . . . (or under wlich) [6]
Postmodillcallon .\l |
Provided the relative pronoun is not the subject of the relative clausc, t I
in [ I ] and [2], a further option exists in rel ative clause structure of havi "I '.
no rel at i ve pronoun at al l : the clause with zero' (0) relative pronoun. TI "
examples (3-6] could take this form:
The boy we met . . . (who(m), that)
The table we admire . . . (which, that)
The boy the dog barked at . . . (at whom, who(m)/that . . . at)
The tabl e the boy crawled under . . . (under which, which/that . . .
under)
Some choice exists in placing a preposition which has a wh-pronoun as i ts
complement ( 1 7. 6); there is no such choice with that and zero, where the
preposition must be postposed.
The choices are summarized i n the diagram:
who }
The
{
m
that remained
ta e

which
who(m)
Th
{
man that
}
{
I saw
e
table I glanced at
which
{
man at whom
} The
bi h" h
I glanced
ta e at w 1c
NOTE Choices are not onl y connected with relative fonnality. Some prepositions cannot
be postposed (*the meeting that I slept during). Who is often preferred to that when
i t is subject and when the antecedent i s personal (people who visit_ me); but that is
preferred to wlw(m) when it i s object, i n part perhaps to avoid the who/whom
choice (people that I visit ) . When the verb in the relative clause is be, the
complement pronoun must be that or zero (John is not the man he ll'as). This
example i l l ustrates one of the most favoured uses of zero: ie when the pronoun is
object or complement, the subject is pronominal , and the relative clause is short.
When the antecedent is l ong and complex. 11"/1-pronouns are preferred:
I have i nterests outside my daily professional work which give me great
pleasure.
17.9 Just as that and zero are avai l abl e when the relative pronoun is domi nated
by a preposi ti on, so they can be used when the relative pronoun is part ofa
pl ace, time, or cause adjunct. With place adjuncts, the preposi ti on must
usual l y be expressed:
This i s the garden (that) he sunbathes i n.
Thi s i s the uni versity (that) she works at .
Wi t h t he t i me adjuncts, however, omission of the preposi tion i s usual
whether the pronoun is that or zero:
NOTE
17.10
17. 1 1
370 The noun phrase
This is the time (that) she normally arrives (at).
Monday was the day (that) he left (on).
But when (less frequently and more frmally) the pr?noun is ll'hich, the
preposition must be expressed in these instances and 1 t would be usual to
make it precede the pronoun (cf 1 7. 7):
This is the time at which she normally arrives.
Monday was the day on which he left.
With cause and manner adj uncts, the usual pronoun is that or zero, and
there is no preposi tion:
This is the reason (that) she came.
This is the way (that) he did it.
With manner adjuncts, i t would not be abnormal to fnd which with a preposition
i n a more frmal style:
This is the way in which he di d it.
Quantified heads
Beside the noun phrase the girls that he knew, we may have ?ne in which
the head is made quantitatively indefnite with the predeterminer such, the
relative pronoun that being replaced by as:
.Such girls as he knew were at the party.
Compare: As many girls as he knew . . . \ further connection with
comparative sentences (cf 1 5. 36) can be seen .
More
} girls than he knew were at the party.
Fewer
Nonrestrictive relative clauses
The loose nonrestrictive relationship is ofen sem
.
antic
.
al l y indistinguih
abl e from coordination (with or without conJunct1on) or adverbial
subordination, as we indicate by paraphrase
.
s in the examples below. The
repertoire of pronouns is l imited to the wh-1tems:
{who i nvited him to a party.
Then he met Barbara,
and size invited hi m to a party.
{ who(m) I mentioned the other day.
Here is Ronald Walker
; I mentioned him the other day.
{which was enveloped i n fg.
He got l ost on Snowdon,
when it was enveloped in fg.
{which he was exploring.
He got lost on Snowdon,
while he was exploring it.
NOTE
17. 12
17. 13
Poetmodlllctl on 3 7 1
As a determiner, 1rhich appears i n nonrestri cti vc chu . , . t l
.
. 5Lb !l ure i nt rodtucd 11
adjuncts, but this is largely in formal style: .'
He emigrated in 1 840, at 11'/rich lime there was much lnrdslii' d
'
P an unrest .
CJ also for which purpose, in ll'hich ci1y, for 11"/zich reason, by which de rice.
Sentential relative clauses
One type of nonrestrictive clause has as i ts antecedent not a noun phrase
but a whole clause or sentence or even sequence of sentences. As with t he
clauses i n 1 7. 1 1 , the relationship frequently resembles coordi nati on, but
these cl auses are also very much like disjuncts (cf 8. 42, 1 5. 33). For
example:
H d
.
M H
. .
h
{surprises me.
e a mires rs ew1tt, wh1c
I fi d t
.
n s range.
CJ ' and this surprises me'; 'to my surprise.
Quite often, which is used in these clauses as a determiner of factive
nouns which represent the antecedent clause or sentence:
The train may have been held up, in which case we are wasting our
time.
Appositive clauses
The appositive clause resembles the relative clause in being capable of
i ntroduction by that, and in distinguishing between restrictive and
nonrestrictive. It difers i n that the particle that is not an element in the
clause structure (subject, object, etc) as it must be in a relative clause. It
difers al so i n that the head of the noun phrase must be an abstract noun
such as/act, proposition, reply, remark, answer, and the like. For example:
The belief that no one is infallible is well-founded.
I agree with the old saying that absence makes the heart gronfonder.
As with apposition generally (cf 1 7.27). we can l i nk the apposed uni ts with
be (where the copula typically has nuclear promi nence):
The belief is that no one is i nfal lible. ( . . . is . . . )
The ol d saying is that absence makes the heart grow fnder.
Or we may replace deverbal nouns l i ke belief by the corresponding verb
pl us object clause: He believes that 110 one is infallible.
It wi l l be noticed that these restricti\'e examples have the defi ni te article
before the head noun: this is normal but by no means invariable (except
with a few nouns referring to certainty. especial l y fact ):
A message that he 1rou!d be late arri\'ed by special delivery.
Pl ural heads are also rare with appositive postmod1fi cation and are
regarded as unacceptable, for example. with belief, fact, possibility.
NOTE
17.14
372 The noun phrase
Nonrestrictive appositive clauses can lcs esily resemble rel
_
ative cl aues sicc
irrespective of nonrestrictiveness they still invol ve the particle that, rn sh.irp
contrast with nonrestrictive relative clauses:
This fact, that that is obligatory, should be easy to remember. .
Postmodification by nonfi nite cl auses
-ing participle clauses
Postmodifcation of the noun phrase is possible with all
_
three o
_
f t
_
he
nonfnite clause types ( 1 4.4), and the correspondence between restrictive
relative and nonfnite clauses will be il l ustrated. For example:
.
1 1
{ write
wi
be writing
writes
The man who is writing
wrote
was wri ting
the obituaries is my friend.
The man writing the obituaries is my friend.
The latter will be i nterpreted, according to the context, as equivalent to
one or other of the frmer more explicit versions. So too:
A tile falling from a roof shattered i nto fragments at his feet. ('which
fell from a roof') .
At the station you will see a lady carrying a large umbrella. ('who wil
be carrying a l arge umbrella')
The student ll'riting on the board when you came in . . . ('who iras
writing . . . ')
But not al l -ing frms in nonfnite postmodifers correspond to progressve
frms in relative clauses. Stative verbs, which cannot have the progressive
in the fnite verb phrase, can appear in participial form:
He is tal ki ng to a girl resembling Joan. ('who resembles Joan not
' *who is resembling Joan')
It was a mixture consisting of oil and vinegar. (' that consisted . .

')
In al l instances, the antecedent head corresponds to the i m
p
licit subject of
the nonfnite verb clause; there is no nonfni te postmod1fer, therefore,
corresponding directly to the relative clause i n:
The obituary rlzat the man is writing wi l l be published tomorrow.
Instead, we must have recourse to the passive: being written by the man
( 1 7. 1 5).
17.15
17. 16
Postmodlllcellon by nonllnlle causes 373
- ed partici pl e clauses
Consider now the diferent versions of tl . f 1 1 .
le o owi ng:
{will be repaired
The only car that is (bei ng) repai red
} b tl .
. 4 1
was (being) repaired
y 1'1t mechanic 1s 111 1 11c.
The only car (being) repaired by that mechanic is mi ne.
Agai n, the l atter wil l be interpreted, accordi ng to l b .
c cont":l @g
equivalent to one of the former. Thus:
4
[ repaired ] [ next wcck
bein re aired
r
The only car ?
d
p
by that mechanic
now

repaire on Tuesdays . . .
Another example:
repaired before he left . . .
Any coins found on this site must be handed to the police.
(' that are found . . . ' or, more precisely, 'that may be found . . . )
The antecedent head is identical with the implicit subject of the -ed
postmodi fying clause as i t is with the -ing construction, but in this case the
participle concerned is as frmly l inked with the passive voice as that in the
-ing construction is l i nked with the active. Hence, with intransitive verbs,
there is no -ed postmodifer corresponding exactly to a relative clause:
The train irhich has arrived al platorm one is from York.
*The train arrived at platform one is fom York.
Infi nitive cl auses
The nonfni te clause in
The next train to arrive was fom York.
could, in a suitable context, have precisely the same meani ng as the
relative clause which arri1ed. But the subject of an infni tive clause need
not be the antecedent. It may be separate]\ introduced bv the /or-device
( 1 5. 9) or it may be entirely covert:
- = =
The man for John to consult is Wilson.
The man to consult is Wilson.
The l at ter nonfnite clause could be understood, according to context.
as '(The man) that you/he, etc, should consult' or ' t hat everyone should
consul t' . Still more elliptically, the infnitive clause may omit also an entire
adjunct phrase, as in:
The time (or you) to arrive is 8 p. m.
A good pl ace (or ler) to stay is the White Hart.
374 The noun phrase
Here a firly common alternative is to i ntroduce the relative pronoun and
retai n the infi nitive clause:
. . . time at whih to arrive .
. .
} (the subject obligatorily absent )
. . . place at whzch to stay . . .
Compare the way in which to do it beside the way to do it.
Final ly it should be noted that voice and mood are variable, the latter
covertly:
The time to arrive ( =at which you should arrive)
The case to be investigated ( = that wi l l or is to be investigated)
The money to buy fod ( =with which you (or they etc) may buy)
The procedure to be followed ( =which must or should or will be
followed)
Nonrestrictive postmodification
17.17 Postmodifcation with nonfnite clauses can also be nonrestrictive:
The apple tree, swaying gently in the breeze, had a good crop of fuit.
('which was swaying . . . ')
The substance, discovered almost by accident, has revolutionized
medicine. ('which was discovered . . .)
This scholar, to be seen daily in the British Museum, has devoted his
life to the history of science. ('who can be seen . . +)
These clauses can be moved to i ni tial position wi thout change of meaning,
but in that case they can no longer be expanded i nto fnite relative clauses.
Indeed, they have an implicit semantic range beyond that of a relative
clause (cf 1 5. 35). Thus the nonfnite clause in this example:
The woman, wearing such dark glasses, obviously could not see
clearly.
could be a reduction of a relative clause 'who was wearing . . . ' or of a
causal clause 'because she was wearing . . . ' or of a temporal clause such as
'whenever she wore . . . ' .
NOTE Cfthe semantic versatility noted in fnite nonrestrictive relative clauses, 1 7 . 1 1 .
Appositive postmodification
17. 18 Appositive postmodifcation i s fai rly common by means of infnitive
cl auses. A restrictive example:
The appeal to join the movement was well received.
This would correspond to the fnite t/zat people should join tle movement.
A corresponding nonrestrictive example:
This last appeal, to come and visit him, was never delivered.
17.19
Postmodlflcallon by prepositional phrases 375
There are cases of nonfnite postrodifcatt
'
h
+
f
. . . . on w ere no correspondi ng
mte appos1t10n exists:
Anattempt to leave early is against regul at ions .
( . . . that one should leave early . . . )
He lost the ability to use his hands.
T n all these examples, the construction obliges us to i nfer tl ( rt .
.
d f
.
) b
"
f h
.

1 o {
e mte su Ject o t e r nfmt1ve clause from the context But
.
b' = =
= .
a SU JCCt
may be exphc1tly i ntroduced by a prepos1t1onal device:
The appeal for Winifred to join . . .
Any attempt by Harold to leave . . .
Postmodification by prepositional phrases
Relation to more expl i ci t modifiers
A preposi tional phrase is by fr the commonest type ofpostmodifcation
in English: i t is three or fur ti mes more fequent than either fnite or
nonfni te cl ausal postmodifcati on. The full range of prepositions 1s
i nvolved:
The road to Lincoln
A tree by a stream
The house beyond the church
Two years before the war
A man from the electricity board
This book on grammar
including the complex prepositions (9. 3):
Action in case of fre Passengers on board the ship
and i ncl uding those having participial form:
A delay pending further inquiry
Among the prepositions less commonly used in postmodi fcati on we
should mention like in the sense 'resembling": 'The man like Jolzn is over
there'. But it is common and fully acceptable in the sense 'such as' :
A man like John woul d never do that.
Tt is natural to relate such prepositional postmodifcations to sentences
or relative clauses with be (' the man in the corner' 'the man (who) is in
the corner'), though in some instances more seems to be el l ipted than the
verb be. For example, we presumably need to regard
The university as a political forum
as related to a somewhat fller predication:
376 The noun phrase
. . . {acting }
1
.
t
.
1 The university is
d d
as a po I ica orum.
regar e
Again, although there is no problem with
The present for her birthday cost a great deal. (The present is fr her
birthday)
we cannot i nterpret so straightforwardly
The person for the job is Ani ta ( = the right person for the job . . . )
So too, it is not through be sentences that we must understand
The man with a red beard The guest with a funny hat
but rather through have sentences ('The man has a red beard'): l9. 1 4
Note [c] .
The of-genitive
17.20 It i s with have sentences that we must fnd the most obvious resemblance
when we turn to the commonest prepositional postmodifcation ofal l , the
of-phrase:
A man of courage The man has courage
But, as we saw i n 5.50, many relationships fnd expression through the of
genitive, and one that deserves brief consideration here is the apposi tive
rel ation ( 1 7 27) which i n fact resembles a be sentence:
The pleasure of your company Your company is a pleasure
Where the postmodifcation has an -ing clause, the subject may have to be
i nferred from the context or it may be identifed with a premodifer or the
head:
The hope of winning a prize ( X hoped that X would win a prize)
John 's hope of winning a prize ( =John hoped that he would . . . )
But a separate subject may be i ntroduced:
John's hope of Mary( 's) winning a prize ( =John hoped that Mary
would . . . )
On Mary versus jfar_ 's here, see 1 5. 1 0. Where the postmodifcation has a
deverbal noun, a specifed ' subject' must, of course, be genitive:
Bil l 's hope of Sarah 's arrival ( = Bil l hoped that Sarah would arrive)
Restrictive and nonrestrictive
17.21 Prepositional phrases may thus be nonappositive or appositive, and in
either function, they can be restrictive or nonrestrictive:
Postmoilicatlon by prepos111 1111 1
lhrnaoa '77
This book on grammar ( nonappositive, rest l, 1 1 ve)
This book, on grammar, (nonappositive, nonr
, . . 1 1. 1 1 . l . ` \ l \'C
The issue of student grants (appos1t1ve, restricti v1' )
The issue, of student grants, (appositive, nonrcst ri Il i ve)
But we must menti on some l imitations. The l ast example i s ra re and
.
. 1
d
. . . .
I d
.1 1 icr
awkwar : nonrestnct1ve appos1 t1ves wou more usual l y b
e \v'i t l . . . l OUt Q
prepos1t1on, as in
The issue, student grants,
It would thus have the primary fonn described in 1 7. 27. On the other
hand, if the ambiguous noun phrase
The issue(,) of student grants( . )
had i ts nonappositive meaning (objetive of: 'someone issued st udent
grants'), nonrestrictive function would be rare and unnatural , pl ainl y
suggesting an awkward afterthought.
Position and varied rel ationship
17.22 As with nonfi nite postmodifers when nonrestrictive, so with prepositio
nal phrases, the nonrestrictive function merges with adverbial expres
sions; compare [ l ] and [2]:
. {behi nd the fence } . .
The children
on the bus
Jeered at the soldiers.
which means 'Those children who were . . .

h h
.
l d
{behind the fence
}
.
d h I d
.
T e c 1 ren,
on the bus
, Jeere at t e so 1ers.
[ I ]
[
2
]
which means 'The children, who (by :he way) were . . .' or, on the other
hand, 'The children, now that they wee (safely . . . ) ' . It is rather this !alter
i mpl ication that becomes uppermos1 :,- the prepositional phrase is moved
i nto i ni tial positi on:
Behind the fence,
} h h' l
.
d h
.
0 h b
t e c ure= J eere at t e soldiers .
n t e us,
Again, the prepositional phrase ir: [he following is poised between
interpretation as nonrestrictive poSL=odifer and as adverbi al :
Money, i n aid of the refugees. ,,-:s collected from students and staff.
In the former i nterpretation, the roney collected was i n aid of the
refugees, whereas in the latter, the acr of collecting money was in aid of the
refugees, since i n this case the adverbial modifes the whole predication
just as it would in i ni tial position:
I n aid of the refugees, money as collected . . .
17.23
NOTE
378 The noun phrase
Nomi nal ization
We should not, however, exaggerate the di fference between the preposit
ional phrase as adverbial and the prepositi onal phrase as postmodi fer.
The second of these should rather be regarded as a special i nstance of the
first, depending fr its i nterpretation on our ability to relate it to a
sentence in which it is adjunct. In the fllowing, for i nstance,
(a) A quarrel broke out in the moring o ver pay.
both the prepositional phrases are i ntroduced as adjuncts. If we wish to
refer again to the quarrel, these adjuncts may now become postmodifers:
(b) The quarrel in the moring ruined their friendship.
(c) The quarrel over pay was the reason fr his resignation.
The relation of pcstmodifi er to adjunct may be even clearer i f, i nstead of
(a), (b), and (c), we take a sentence in which quarrel occurs as a verb:
(d) They quarrelled i n the morning over pay.
We can now see that there is a one-fr-one correspondence between the
verb quarrelled i n ( d) and the head of the subject noun phrase quarrel in
(a), (b), and (c); l ikewise between the adj uncts i n (d) and the postmodifers
in (b) and (c). It is when we have such a correspondence between clause
elements and noun-phrase constituents that we speak of such a noun
phrase as a nominalization. Further examples:
She refused to answer. Her refusal to answer
He writes well. (He is) a good writer
The reviewer severely criticized The reviewer 's severe
the book. criticism of the book
In relation to (d), we might also have in place of (b) and (c) respectively ' Their
quarreling in the moring ruined . . . ', Their quarreling over pay was . . . ' . On such
-ing clauses, see 1 5. 1 0; but we recognize a gradience from concrete count nouns in
-ing, through what is traditionally called 'gerund', to the purely participial fr in
a fni te verb phrase:
Some paintings of Brown's (ie some paintings that Brown owns) [ 1 ]
Brown's paintings of his daughter (ie pai ntings owned by Brown,
depicting his daughter but painted by someone else)
[2]
Brown's pai ntings of his daughter (ie they depict his daughter and
were painted by him)
[3]
The painting of Brown is as skilful as that of Gainsborough.
(ie Brown's (a) technique of painting or (b) action of painting) [4]
Brown's deft painting of his daughter is a delight to watch. (ie It is a
delight to watch while Brown deftly pai nts his daughter)
[5]
Brown's deftly painting his daughter i s a delight to watch. ( [4b]
and [5] i n meaning)
[6]
I dislike Browns painting his daughter. (ie I dislike either (a) the fct
or (b) the way Brown does i t)
[7]
17.24
Minor types of postmodlllcalion
I dislike Brown painting his daught
(
I h d B
er. -(7i
] )
watc e rown painting his daught
.
.
h
.
er.
(1e 11/her I I
as e painted or I watched the pro

Wal e 1ed Brown

cess of Brow ()
. .
daughter)
n
paint i ng hi s
Brown deftly painting hi s daughter i s a d r h
and [5])
e i g l Lo watch.
(
[
4b
]
Painting his daughter, Brown noticed that his ha d
.
while he was painting)
n was shaki ng. [ie
Brown painting his daughter that day I decided t
(
.
b
'
o go or a wal k
1 e ecause Brown was painting)
+
The
n
i an paint n

the girl s Brown. (ie who is painting)
The s1 l

ntly
p
a

nting man b Brown. (ie who is silently paintin )

Brown ls painting his daughter.
g
Mi nor types of postmodification
U
[ SJ
I'll
[ J llj
1 1 1 1
[ 1 2]
[ l Jj
[ 1 4]
[ 1 5]
We come now to some relatively minor types of postmodifi cation. These
are by (a)
,
adveb phases; (b) postposed adjectives (cf 7. 8); and (c)
postposed mode qualifiers. For example:
(a) The road back was dense with trafc.
(b) Something strange happened last night.
(c) Lobster Newburg i s difcult to prepare.
In (a) we
,
recognize
_
some such phrases as ' The road which leads back (to
London) , fom
'
h

ch all but the subject and an important adj unct have

een dropped. S1m1lary
_
' The way (which leads) in (to the auditorium)',
The people (who are s1ttg) just behind.
.
In (b), we have in fact two subtypes. The first has been i l l ustrated The
mdefimte pron
.
ou

s such as anybody, someone can be followed bunot

preceded by aaJect1ve modifi cation. The pronouns concerned are the anr
some-, no- senes (6. 21.f) plus one or two others (cf: what else, who ne:1t.
etc). But we are not fre

to postpose with indefi ni tes al l modifyi ne i tems
that can be preposed with ordinary noun heads:

A party ofcial is waiting. but 1101 *Somebody parry 1s

wai ting.
Even adjective
:
need generally to be 'permanent' and hence
equally for attnbutive and predicative use ( 1 7.4); thus:
el igible
Somebody timid rather than *Somebody afraid
)he
.
other subtype i n (b) consists chiefy of the spri nkl i ng ofnoun-plus
adJectlve phras
.
es (
n
delled on French) like blood royal, heir apparent.
These are of li
_
tle importance i n themselves, being infequently used
(though our ability to fm names like Hotel Jestic suggests that they
are more than mere fossils) and it i s likely that the native speaker feels
, .

17.25
380 The noun phrase
them to be very similar to compound nouns. Nevertheless, beside
lhis
subtype, there is a similar but much more general phenomenon. When
head is nonrestrictively modifed by a coordinated string of adjectives, it is
common to postpose them:
A man, timid and hesitant, approached the ofcial .
though the potential mobility of the string allows it to be detached for
the noun phrase al together (cf 1 7. 1 7). Even a restrictively modifyi ng
adjective can be postposed i fit is itself modifed (by an adverb capable of
bei ng an adjunct, not by the i ntensifer very: cf7. 9):
A man notoriously timid is unft for this task. (cf: *A man very timid)
But this is particularly common where the modi fcation is of a ' temporary'
nature ( 1 7.4). Thus beside The fnest available car, we have The fnest Ll
(currently) available.
With (c), we again encounter a French model : Lobster Nell'burg.
Though virtually confined to cuisine, i t is moderately productive within
these l i mi ts, perhaps especially in AmE. In BrE one finds veal paprika and
many others, but there is some resistance to t hi s type of postposition with
other than French lexical items, as in pate maison, sole bonne femme.
Though technically a prepositional phrase phenomenon, expressions
involving a la clearly belong here. It appears in culinary formations like
chicken a la king, and also (informally or fcetiously) to designate style:
Another play a la Beckett has appeared, though I forget who wrote it.
Mul tipl e modification
(a) A head may have more than one postmodification. Thus
The girl in the corner
can be brought together as
and The girl talking to Peter
The girl in the corner (and) tal king to Peter
Wi thout conjunction, there would usually be a hierarchy:
{[The girl (in the corner)] talking to Peter}
(b) A modifi cation may be applicable to more than one head. Thus
The girl in the corner and The boy in the corner
can be brought together by mul tiple-head rules which permit the
determiner to apply to both heads (cf 1 3.25):
The girl and boy i n the corner
17.26
Multiple modification 381
By bringing (a) and (b) together, we can produce complexes such as:
The girl and boy in the corner (andJ talking to Peter
(c) The head of a modifying phrase may i tsel f be modifed; thus
The girl i n the corner
may be brought together as
and The corner nearest the door
The girl i n the corner nearest the door
By bri nging (a), (b), and (c) together, we can frm
The girl and boy i n the corner nearest the door talking to Peter
But fastidious users of English would prefer to end with a relative clause
here (' . . . who are talking to Peter'), no doubt i n response to an instinct
that prompts the i ntroduction of explicitness at a point which is relatively
distant from the head.
Ambi guity and constraints on multiple modification
Frequently, careful ordering of constituents i n a noun phrase is essential
to communicate all (and only) one's intention. To take an obvious
example, the following pair difer i n meaning and are not mere stylistic
variants:
The man in black talking to the girl
The man tal ki ng to the girl in black
One of the chief reasons for preferring the ofphrase to the -s genitive is to
avoid discontinuity (with unwanted humour); thus:
The ears of the man in the deckchair
and not
*The man' s ears i n the deckchair
. On the other hand, the group genitive construction enables us to postpose
the ' s infection and avoid sequential (-phrases:
The man in the deckchair's ears
CJal so a teacher of music 's qualications. the principal of the college 's
appointment, a week or so's rest, an hour and a half's discussion.
A special type of mul tiple modification t hat requires careful ordering
occurs when the modi fying clause becomes itself embedded in a clause.
Consider the foll owing series:
Jane wi l l write a poem for you.
Tom hopes (that) Jane will write a poem for you.
I will read the poem (which) Tom hopes (that) Jane will write for you.
362 The noun phrase
In this last sentence, the relative pronoun (which) i s object in the italicized
relative clause. When, however, a relative pronoun is subject, the
conjunction that must be omitted:
A poem will be written for you.
Tom hopes (that) a poem will be written for you.
. . {hopes will } .
I will read the poem (wluch) Tom
*I I
.1- 1
be wnttenfor vou
wpes t wt w1
-
NOTE Even with simpler examples and the most careful ordering, we may fnd clarity and
acceptable grammar difcult to attain i n multiple modifcation. Beginning with
He liked the smiles of delight on al l the faces.
a noun phrase based on this sentence and having smiles as its head may be
ambiguous in one ordering:
The smiles of delight on all the faces that he liked
(was it the smiles or the faces that he li ked?), and grammatically awkward i n
another.
Apposition
17.27 Two or more noun phrases are in apposition when they have identity of
reference. The appositives may be juxtaposed as in [I] or separated as in
[2], wi thout formal expression of their relationship; or the apposition may
be i ndicated by a conjunction as in [3] and [4] or by frms such as that is
and namely as i n [5]. Particularly i n [4] and [5], we see that apposition often
i nvolves explanatory paaphrase.
A professional singer, someone trained in Paris, had been
engaged fr the concert. [l]
His birthday present l ay on the table, a book 011 ethics, the \\'ark
ofhis professor, [2]
My husband, and (my) co-author is di ssatisfed with the last
chapter. [3]
Linguistics or the study oflanguage attracts many students. [4]
The outcome, that is her re-election, was a complete surprise. [5]
As we have already seen in earlier sections, apposition can also be
expressed by that-clauses ( 1 7 . 1 3), by nonfnite clauses ( 1 7 . 1 8), and by
prepositional phrases ( 1 7 .20f).
In all the examples [ 1 -5] above, the apposition has been nonrestrictive,
but the relation can also be restrictive (cf 1 7 . 3). Compare:
He was examined by James Kelly, a doctor. [nonrestrictive]
He was examined by James Kelly the doctor. [restrictive]
NOTE
17.28
Premodlfl cauon
CJ also my friend Anna, the vear 2000 tl1e e1b 'k
d

- ' ' now'
T.
es1gnat1ons can be regarded as a special frm of rest
. .
.
I lles and
Doctor James Kelly, Lake Michigan.
nct1ve apposi t i on:
[a] Appositives need not be noun phrases: comp
.
. are.
Se is bigger than her brother, heal'ier, that is.
Sixthly and lastly, I reject the claim on ethical grounds.
He angered, nay infuriated, his audience.
[b] References to words, books, etc are often ex
. . .
::e:e', ' th god sip Venus', 'he play Rom!
r
1z:le
t
:
e
pfr:
hc
genenc i tem is absent concord is si n ular '
iy,
Romeo and Juliet ever been flme
,
d?'
g . geese is irregular'. ' Has
Premodification
Types of premodifying item
Holdng constant a lexical frame (his . . . cottage) and nonrestrictive
function, we have the fllowing range of premodifying items:
(a) ADJECTIVE
(b)
I visited his delightful cottage. (His cottage is delightful)
PARTICIPLE
I v,sted hs crumbling cottage. (His cottage is crumbling)
I v1s1ted his completed cottage. (His cottage has been completed)
(c) -S GENITIVE
I visited his jsherman 's cottaue (Cr T
fsherman)
_ . J he cottage belonged to a
It

hould
,
be noticed that i f we had used a more normal genitive exam le
(his uncle s cottage) we would have changed the relationship of his.
p
(d) NOUN
I visited his country cottage. (His cottage is in the country)
(e) ADVERBIAL
I vi si ted his far-away cottage. (His cottae is far away)
(f SENTENCE
(?) I visited his pop-dow11-for-the-1reekend cottage. (CJ His cottage i s
one that he can pop down to for the weekend)
384 The noun phrase
This last type is largely playful and i nformal. Somewhat more generally
used are noun phrases which can be interpreted either as having a sentence
as premodifer or as being object (usually of know) in an embedded noun
clause:
He asked I don 't know HOW many people.
Premodificalion by adjectives
17.29 A premodifying adjective, especially when it is the frst item after the
determiner, can itsel f be premodifed in the same way as it can in
predicative position (7. 32):
His really quite unbelievably delightful cottage
Some i ntensifers tend, however, to be avoided with premodifying
adjectives. Thus the predicative phrase in His cottage which is so beautiful
would seem a little afected in premodifcati on: His so beautiful cottage.
With indefnite determiners, so would be replaced by such (cf 7. 35):
A cottage which is so beautiful Such a beautiful cottage
Or else so plus adjective would be placed befre the determiner: So
beaUtifUl a cottage.
There is resistance also to transferring clause negation to a structure of
premodifcation, and this is possible only i n limited circumstances
(usually not pl us intensifer or negative afx):
. {very pleasant.
The dmner was not
1 t unp easan .
Th
{very pleasant }
d
.
e not
1
mner.
unp easant
NOTE On adjectives that cannot be used i n premodifcation, see 7.22. By contrast, there
are premodifying adjectives that cannot be related to clauses with a corresponding
predicative usage: cf7. I 7f
Premodificalion by participles
-ing partciples
17.30 Everything here depends on the potentiality of the participle to indicate a
permanent or characteristic feature. To a lesser extent, gradability
(especially as indicated through i ntensifcation by very) is involved.
Consider:
She has a very i nteresting mi nd.
Here interesting is full y adjectival (7. 5/) despite the direct relation to the
verb interest :
Promodlflcatlon 365
Her mind interests me very much.
But an item can be a premodifer and yet di sal l ow very:
A roaring bull (*very roaring)
And the converse can be true:
{reassuri ng. {reassuring }
The man was very shoced. ?He was a shoced
man.
surpnsed. surpnsed
This last example will i l l ustrate the crucial signi fcance of the 'perma
nence' characteristic; such participles can freely premodify nouns such as
look, smile:
{reassuring }
He greeted me with a very shoced expressi on.
surpnsed
The man himself cannot have shock or surprise attributed permanently to
hi m, but a particular look can of course be permanently associated with
such a value. So too we may speak of a smiling/ace rather than of a smiling
person. I t is thus necessary to realize that we are not here concerned with
particular participles so much as with their contextual meaning. A
wandering minstrel is one habitually giYen to wandering, but if we saw a
man wandering down the street, we could not ask:
*Who is the wandering man?
Again, someone who told good stories could be a (very) etertaining
person, but one could not say this of someone who happened, at the
moment of speaking, to be entertaining some friends with a good story.
17.31 The indefnite article fvours the habi tual or permanent, the defnite
article the specifc or temporary (cf 1 7. -l . Thus
?The approaching train is fom Liverpool.
i s strange (especially in BrE) but not
He was fightened by an approachi ng train.
where we are concerned perhaps with what is characteristic in ' approach
ing trains'. Similarly, ?The barking dog is my neighbour's, compared with
the quite normal I was wakened by a barking dog. On the other hand, after
an indefnite head has been postmodifed by an -ing clause, the -ing
participle can premodify the same head plus defnite article:
A proposal ofendi ng many members . . . _The ofendi ng
proposal . . .
In addition, the defnite article may be used generically (5.24) and hence
evoke the same generality and permanence as the indefnite:
17.32
17.33
386 The noun phrase
The begi nning student should be given every encouragement.
-ed participles
Much of what has been said of -ing participles applies to -ed participles
also, but there are additional complications. In the frst place, an -ed
participle can be active or passive, but as with postmodification ( 1 7 . 1 5)
the active is rarely used in premodifcation. Contrast
The immigrant who has arrived with *The arrived
i mmigrant
The vanished treasure ('The treasure which has vanished') and A retired
teacher are exceptional, but exceptions are somewhat more general when
an active participle is adverbially modifed:
The newly-arrived immigrant
Our recently-departed friend
Within the passive, we must distinguish the statal from the actional or true
passive (3.25); a statal example:
Some complicated machinery The machinery is complicated.
(*The machinery was complicated by the designer)
Here belong also born and some uses of hidden, married, troubled,
darkened, etc, but i n premodifcation they must either have 'permanent'
reference or be adverbially modifed: a married man, a newly-bor child, a
carefully-hidden spy. The last example il lustrates a noteworthy general
contrast between -ing and -ed participles. Beside the similarity in
postmodifcation between the fllowing:
A spy, carefully hidden i n the bushes, }
k t watch on the house.
A spy, carefully hiding in the bushes,
ep
the latter unlike the former resists premodifcati on:
*A carefully-hiding spy . . .
Most -ed participles are of the agential type and naturally onl y a few will
easily admi t the permanent reference that will permit premodifying use.
We may contrast:
The wanted man was last seen in Cambridge. (The man goes on
being wanted by the pol ice)
*The fund purse was returned to its owner. (The purse was found at
a particular moment)
But a lost purse is grammatical, because although a purse is no longer
regarded as 'found' after it has been retrieved, a purse wil l be regarded as
'lost' throughout the period of i ts disappearance. So too: the defeated
armv a broken vase a damaged car, its relieved owner. But not: *a sold car,
*th.nentioned artile, *a built house, *a described robber.
17.34
NOTE
17.35
Premodlllcatlon 387
But there are exceptions which suggest that the semantic and gsp__t[[l
factors are more complicated than here described. For example,
al tho
ugh
a sum of money can go on being needed. one does not normal l v sa v * .
needed money. Modifed by adverbs, of course, the starred -exai plcs
become acceptable: a recently(-)sold car. etc.
Final ly, some items in -ed are not participles at all but are directly
formed from nouns:
the vaulted roof, a futed pillar, a wooded hillside
But constraints occur (perhaps dictated merely by semantic redundanLy) ,
such that there is no *a powered engine, *a haired child, *a legged man,
though we have a diesel-powered engine, a red-haired child, a long-legged
man.
Premodification by genitives
A noun phrase like a fsherman's cottage is ambiguous: the cottage belongs
to a fsherman or belonged to a fsherman (or resembles the cottage of a
fsherman). As distinct from a delightful cottage or a completed cottage,
the determiner need not refer frward to the head: more usually, it refers
onl y to the genitive. If the latter, then any intermediate modifers between
the determiner and the genitive must also refer only to the geni tive. Thus
These French women's clothing
where these must predetermine the plural women's and the phrase must
mean 'the cl othing of these French women' and not 'the French clothing
of these women' which would require the order These women 's French
clothing. If the frmer ('the clothing of . . . ), then an i ntermediate modifier
wil l be interpreted as referring to the head. Thus
This French women's clothing
woul d mean ' this French clothing belonging to (or designed fr) women'.
Ambiguous instances are, however, common: an old man 's bicycle
(contrast: a man 's old bicycle) could mean "the bicycle belonging to an old
man' or ' an old bicycle designed fr a man' (or - in principle - even 'a
bicycle designed for an old man').
On genitive modifcation i n general, see 5.49f: on the group genitive. see 1 7.26.
Premodification by nouns
Noun premodifers are often so closely associated with the head as to be
regarded as compounded with it. In many cases, they appear to be in a
reduced-explicitness relation with prepositional postmodifers:
The question of partition The par' tition question
The door of the cupboard The cupboard 'door
A vi llage i n Sussex A Sussex ' vi llage
388 The noun phrase
But not all noun premodifers have prepositional-phrase analogues:
Bernard Miles was both actor and producer The actor-pro' duccr
Attention must be drawn to two important fatures in premodifcation by
nouns:
, .
( 1 ) Plural nouns usually become singular, even those that otherwise
have no singular frm (cf 5.44):
The leg of the trousers The ' trouser leg
But while sinlarization is normal i t is by no means universal (cf:
the arms rac-), especiall y with noun premodifi cation that is not
hardening into a fixed phrase or compound: The committee on
promotions The pro' motions committee.
(2) According to the relationship between the two nouns, the accent will
fll on the premodifer or the head; for example, An iron ' rod but A
' war story. The conditions under which the latter stress pattern is
adopted are by no means wholly clear but they are also connected
with the conventionalizing of a sequence in the direction of
compounding.
A notable constraint against making pos
i
modifying phrases into
premodifying nouns is the relative impermanence of the modifi cation in
question. Thus while The table in the corner will readily yield The corner
table, we cannot do the same with
The girl in the corer (spoke to me) * The corer girl . . .
We must insist again that this is not a property of the lexical item (in this
instance, corer) but of the semantic relati on; cf1 7. 4.
Multiple premodification
With single head
17.36 The three types of mul tiple modification specifed in 1 7. 25 apply to
premodifcation also. More than one premodifi er may be related to a
single head, with no grammatical l i mi t on the number:
His brilliant book -His last book His ( . . . ) book.
His last brilliant ( . . . ) book
This is, however, misleading in givi ng the impression that the mul tiple
modifers constitute an unordered and coordinate string. It usually
fllows a recursive process:
His book-. His bril l iant book- His [last (bri l l i ant book)]
We would here mean that, of several bri l l i ant books, we are speaking only
of his last one; by contrast
His book- His last book - His [bri l l iant (last book)]
17.37
Premodifica!lon 389
indicates that his last book was bri l l iant wi thout commi tment to whet her
any of his others were. I n some instances, however, we do i ndeed have
mul tiple modi fcations in which no priority among modi fiers need he
assumed; to these we may give separate prosodic emphasis or i ntroduce
commas i n writing:
His LAST BRiLLIANT BOOK ('his last and brilliant book' )
Or we may formally coordinate them. Thus there woul d be l i ttle di fference
between
Her frceful , lucid remarks and Her lucid (and) frceful
remarks.
When coordinated modifiers relate to properties that are normally
thought to confict, the coordinator will probably not be and:
His handsome but scarred face His scarred but handsome face
With multiple head
Modi fi cation may apply to more than one head (cf 1 3 . 25):
The new table } .
Th h
. The new table and chairs
e new c a1rs
The mul tiple head thus produced can now be subject to recursive or
coordinate modifi cation:
Th bi d h
. {The beautiful new table and chairs
e new ta e an c airs-
.
The new (but) ugly table and chairs
If we coordinated leared papers and books as in (He wrote) leamet!
papers and books, we would suggest that leared applies to both papers and
books. Ifi t should not, we can either reorder (books and leared papers) or
i ntroduce separate determiners (some learned papers and some books).
With modifed modifer
17.38 We have al ready seen two types of modifi cation with modifed modi fier:
His really quite unbe!iel'ab!_r deligh1ful cottage ( I 7.29)
These French women's clothing ( 1 7. 34)
In a third type, the noun premodifer can be itself premodifed by ei ther
adjective or a noun and, if the latter. this can i n turn be similarly
premodifi ed:
Th f f
. {The small ofce furniture
e o ce urmture - .
The tax ofce furmture l
r
-The property tax ofce furi ture
'
-The house property tax ofce furiture
It shoul d be noted, however, that if we were to i ntroduce an adject i ve i n
this last noun phrase, already clumsy and i mprobable, (i) i t would have to
17.39
NOTE
390 The noun phrase
come immediately after the determiner, and (ii) it would normally be
i nterpreted as relating directly to the headji1riture rather than to house,
the only other possibility:
The {pleasant [((house property) tax) ofce] furniture}
This is not to say, however, that obscurity cannot exist or that noun
premodifi ers can modify only the next fol l owing noun. Consider A new
giant size cardboard detergent carton, where size does not premodify
detergent but where the l i near structure is rather:
A (new {(giant size) [cardboard (detergent carton)]})
Other complexities i n premodification
A friendship between a boy and girl becomes A boy and girl friendship. A
committee dealing with appointments and promotions can readily be
described as The appointments and promotions committee, while one whose
busi ness is the allocation of fnance can be The allocation of fnance
committee.
A noun phrase in which there is noun premodifcation can be given the
denominal afx which puts it i nto the 'consisting of' class of adjectives
(7.26) while retaining the noun premodifer; hence, from party politics we
have (a) party political (broadcast).
Si milarly, a noun phrase having a denominal adjective may itself take a
denominal afx to become a premodifer in a roun phrase. For example,
beside cerebral palsy ( ='palsy' of the cerebrum), we have cerebral palsied
children which has the structure (cf 1 7. 33):
{[(cerebral palsy)ed] children} and not *[cerebral (palsied
children)]
Coordination gives rise to numerous difculties i n premodifcation. Beside the
relatively explicit children with impaired speech, we have the premodifed fonn
speech-impaired children. But since speech and hearing are so often joi ntly
impaired, we are involved in the need to have a corresponding premodifcation,
speech(-) and hearing(-) impaired children, clear enough in spoken English but
possibly requiring a clumsy double hyphenation to make i t clear i n writing.
Rel ative sequence of premodifiers
Denominal and nominal
17.40 The item that must come next befre the head is the type of denominal
adjective often meaning 'consisting of', 'involving', or 'relating to', and
this can be preceded by a wide range of premodifying items:
extravagant
th
{
pleasant
}
.
1 1
.
f
e
1
socca 1 e
on y
London
{
;ous }
l
"
.
/
a
po !flea
mere
United States
problem
17.41
NOTE
Premodification 391
.
Next closest to the head is the noun premodifer, al read ,
with London, cty, and United Sta1es in the foregoing exampls
c

1
;
1
::
d
nouns premod1fy, one which corresponds to the head as object t , , b 0
fol l ow one relating to material or agency:
o \ er wi l l
a
{detergent }{ container
cardboard carton
a cardboard detergent
{ con tai ner
carton
{ciga'rette }
my
'gas
lighter my ,gas ciga' rette lighter
1101 *my cigarette gas l ighter
Classes of adjectives
N
d
xt -efre a noun modifier, the most important class of i tems is the
a Ject1ve of provenance of style:
a Russian trade delegation Gothic church architecture
and preceding this type is the participle:
a carved Gothic doorway some interlocking Chi nese designs
Precedi ng the participle, we have adjectives of colour:
a black dividing l i ne a green carved idol
These are preeded by adjectives of age, together with the premodifers
and postmod1fers that these and other feely gradable adJ
.
ectives may
have:
an old blue dress
a really very elderlr trained nurse
a ve y h d
-
r young P ys1cs stu ent a large enough lecture room
ext co es the large class that we may call 'general', except that between
geneal
.
ancolour (and usually all other modifiers to the right) comes
the d1 mmutive unstressed use of little. Thus, not *an old little bi
ornament, but:
ue
a
gracious
typical
beautiful
peculiar
handsome
hideous
splendid
l i ttle
{old blue ornament
old carved Gothic doorway
See Fig 1 7. 41 which i l lustrates the relative positions of items
premodifcation.
i n
There are many qualifcations to the fregoing. The 'general' adjectives fr
example, are not placed randomly but comprise several subclasses. We wuld
prefer a small round table to ?a round smal table; several thick even slices to serera/
'
'
,.
17.42
392 The noun phrase
even thick slices; a ferce shaggy dog to a shaggy ferce dog; a tall angry 111w1
.
lo w1
angry tall man; a brief hostile glance lo a hostile brief glan
_
ce. Eval
_
uatve or
subjective adjectives frequently precede those that ae relatively ob1ecliv

or
measurable size often precedes shape; wi thi n size, height ofen preceds girth.
'General' ajectives are themselves preceded by semantically weak item like 11ice,
by non-predicable items like mere, by quanti fers, numerals, determiners, anu
associated closed-system items (5. 3
.
/.
Deter- general age colour par1i- Jl"Ol'L'll- /lOUll denom- !eacl
miners ciple a nee inal
the hectic social !ire
the extravagant London social l i fe
a crumbling church lower
a grey crumbling Gothic church tower
some intricate old interlocking Chinese designs
a small green carved jade idol
his heavy new moral responsibil-
ities
Fig 17.41 Examples of premodification sequence
Discontinuous modification
It i s not uncommon fr a noun phrase to be i nterrupted by other items of
clause structure. Note fr instance the time adjunct between the head and
postmodifer in the fllowing:
You' l l meet a man tomorrow carrying a heavy parcel.
There are more striking examples:
I had a nice glass ofbeer but in an ugly glass.
This is not as contradictory as i t may seem, since i t i s only i n the second
noun phrase t hat glass is premodifed by an adjective; i n t he frst, i t is
better to regard glass ofbeer as a complex uni t modifed as a whole
_
but
with glass being less a concrete noun than a uni t of measure. So t

o with a
weak cup of tea, and phrases of the frm kind/sort
.
of N w1ch tae
premodifers pl ai nly related to N rather than sort, both m semantics and m
concord:
A big all"kward sort of carton
?These big awkward kind of cartons
17.43 Disconti nuous modifcation more aptl y applies to examples l i ke the
fll owing (cf 7. 9):
i
f

.
Discontinuous modification 393
Comparable fcilities to ours
Di erent production fgures from those given earlier
The prepositional phrases here do not directly relate to the head (as they do
_
i n
'
oad
;
to
_
ndon, people from the 'il:age) but o
.
the prcmodi
f
yi ng
adjective: fac1 ht1es comparable to ours . fgures dij erent from those" .
Compare also The tall man that I saw with The.frst man that I saw ( ='The
man that I saw frst'); 'An attractive scheme fnancially' ( ='A scheme
which is
.
fnancially attractive'); cf 7. 32.
Most discontinuities, however, are brought about by interpolating a
parenthesis or the fni te verb of the sentence (where the noun phrase is
subject) between the head and the postmodifer; and the usual motive is to
correct a structural imbalance ( cf 1 8. 27/) as in ' The story is told that he was
once a boxer', or to achieve a more immediate clarity as i n:
The woman is by the DOOR, who sol d me the TicKets and tol d me the
pl ay doesn't begin til l THREE.
Bibliographi cal note
On postmodifcation, see Bresnan and Grimshaw ( 1 978); de Haan (I 987);
Downing ( 1 978); Elsness ( 1 982); Olofsson ( 1 981 ); Schachter ( 1 973); Sears ( 1 972);
Young ( 1 980).
On premodifcation, see Bache ( 1 978); Bolinger ( 1 967a); Johansson ( 1 980); Levi
( 1 978).
On the relation between modifers and heads. see Seppanen ( 1 978).
On the genitive and of-construction, see Dahl ( 1 971 ), Jahr S0rheim ( 1 980);
Lyons ( 1 986); Wieser ( 1 986).
On nomi nalization, see Chomsky ( 1 972); Colen ( 1 984); Kjellmer ( 1 980);
Vendler ( 1 968).
On apposition, see Austin ( 1 980); Meyer ( 1 987).
18.1
18.2
1 8 Theme, focus, and i nformati on
processi ng
Introduction
In the processing and receiving of information, whether written or
spoken, lexical choice and grammatical organization have an important
role. Consider these examples:
Will the new law help old people? [ l ]
The road wi l l ultimately be repaired. [2]
I' l l visit ther occasionally. [3]
The honeymoon couple returned to Edi nburgh in bright
sunshine today. [4]
In the fllowing variants, the truth value is fundamentally unchanged, but
the presentation is very diferent:
In your view, will the new l aw give old people the help they
need? [ l a]
It will be some time befre the road is repaired. [2a]
I don't think I can do more than pay them an occasional
visit.
[3a]
It was bright sunny weather that welcomed the honeymoon
couple back to Edinburgh today. [4a]
It is not merely that the variants are more verbose. In each case, an
i ntroduction has been provided which puts the utterance in a communica
tive context, as in [ l a] and [3a], or which highlights an aspect of the
utterance that is communicatively efective, as in [2a] and the journalistic
[4a]. Moreover, care has been taken in [ l a], [3a], and [4a] to make the
ending an appropriate climax. Befre we consider other modes of
informatiqn processing, we must l ook closely at the vital rol e of
i ntonation and other aspects of prosody.
Information and communicative dynami sm
coMMUNICA TIVE DYNAlns:1 refers to the variation in communicative value
as between diferent parts of an utterance. Consider the fllowing as the
answer to the question 'When shall we know what Mary is going to do?'
The subject, verb, and adjunct i n:
18.3
Information and communicative dynami sm 395
She will de / cide 'next WEEK I
are uttered with sequentially increasing prominence, with the S conveying
least information, the V rather more, and the A conveying most. namel y,
the information sought by the wh-element of the question 'When (shall we
know what Mary is going to do)?' A TO;E i:n (2. 1 5) is a stretch of speech
containing one intonation nucleus, and since each such nucleus serves to
highlight a piece of infrmation, it fllows that a tone uni t is coextensive
with an INFORMATION UNIT.
But although an information uni t highlights one item, this does not
mean that the rest of the unit is devoid of information. As in the present
example, the 'communicative dynamism' can range fom very low
(correspondi ng to weak stress, as with the subject she), through medium
(correspondi ng to nonnuclear stress, as with the verb phrase, will decide),
to very strong stress (corresponding to i ntonation nucleus, as with the
adverbial, next week). And, again as in this example, i t i
s
common -
though by no means necessary - for the range of such communicative
dynamism to i ncrease fom low to high in accordance with the l inear
progression of the information uni t. To put i t another (and better) way, it
is common to process the infrmation i n a message so as to achieve a
linear presentation fom low to high information value. We shall refer to
this as the principle of END-Focus.
Tone uni ts and grammar
Every sentence has at least one tone/infrmation unit, and i t is usual for
such a unit to be coextensive with a grammatical unit. Sometimes thi s is
the sentence itself, as in the example we have been considering:
She will de / cide ' next WEEK I
But fr more commonly, the tone unit corresponds to a grammatical uni t
within a sentence. This may be:
(a) An i ni tially placed optional adjunct (c/8. 1 5), other than closed-class
items:
/ After my ILLness I I / went to FRhCE I
Contrast:
/ Then I went to FRANCE I
(b) An i ni ti al ly or fnally placed disjunct or conjunct (cf 8.40, 43),
especial l y when realized by a polysyllabic item:
More / 6ver I the / chairman may not be wiLLing I
It wa
_
s dis / GRAcEfl I / FRANKiy I
(c) An initially pl aced vocative:
/ Doctor I I'm/ very ANXious I
396 Theme, locus, and information processing
Con trast:
I'm very ANXious ' Doctor I
(d) The subject, if this element is realized by a clause or a long noun
phrase, especially one with postmodifcation (cf l 7 :,
What we WANT I is plenty of RAIN I
The tal l ' lady by the DOOR 1 1 spoke to JOHN I
Contrast:
John ' spoke to the ' tal l ' l ady by the DOOR I
(e) A fonted object or complement (cf 1 8 . 1 4/):
Her WRITing I I fnd uninTELligible I
(f The coordinated clauses in a compound sentnce, especially when
the clauses have diferent subjects:
She WON the RAcE I and he was de LiGHTed I
They w ALKED I they sw AM I they played GOLF I
Contrast coordinated predicates and predications (cf 1 3 . 1 9):
He went out and 'slammed the DOOR I
I have seen them and ' ofered my HELP I
Given and new information
18.4 When we construct a message, i t is a courtesy to the receiver, as well as a
convenience for ourselves, to provide the poi nt of the message with
enough context for this point to be both clearly identifed and unambi
guously understood, as well as being placed in a normal linguistic
framework. To return to the question at the beginning of 1 8. 2:
When shall we know what Mary is going to do?
The answer might have been:
We'll know next 1reek.
Here the unitalicized portion replicates material from the question; so far
as the receiver is concerned, it is entirely GIVEN. But as well as providing
assurance that the answer is i ndeed attending to the question, i t serves as a
convenient i ntroduction to the actual poi nt _of the message, the ;EW
i nformation conveyed by next week. Of course, in this i nstance, the
message would have been adequately comprehensible if i t had been
confned to the new information al one:
Next week.
But in 1 8.2, the answer we considered was:
She will decide next week.
Thomo nnd fous J97
The i tal icized portion again prcsc t h
.
I

n s l c mai n 11
1
t 1e enti rely new i nformation but th

1
oi nt o t he message ond
d
.
I
. ,
,
c i n trot uct 1 on i . I .
.
1rect y given . Nonetheless, it serves as th
h \h obv1 ousl v nnd
.
c ncccss1

b

by contrast with the 'new' i nformation
i t i' s
1
.
' 1 Y ackground
nnd
rc auvcl y ' > v
'
size and the futurity expressed by will are i nd d
1 en The subj((
.
cc ent i rel y ,
replacmg we and know by size and decide (wi ll .
gi ven. and i n

\ consequentl y
commu11cat1ve dynamism; cf 1 8. 3), we oblige the r
.

.
i ncreased
.
ecc Vt: r lo i nfer th t r
as we might expect, we learn of her decision when i t i . d ,
'1 1


h
.
s l11d \ - the new
m ormat1on - m t e context ofth1s speci fc given infrmit1 0
.
' n - olot n]t
an adequate answer to the question.
\>
Theme and focus
18.5 There is commonly a one-to-one relation between 'given' in contrast to
'new' i nformation on the one hand, and 'theme' i n contrast to 'focus' on
the other. THEME is the name we give to the i ni tial part of any structure
when we consider it from an i nfrmational point of view. When it occurs
in i ts expected or 'unmarked' frm (but cf 1 8. 1 3), i ts di rect rel ation to
gi \en i nformation can be seen i nformally as announcing that the starting
pomt of the message is established and agreed. In this sense, the defni te
article is thematic in relation to a noun phrase such as the lecturer in
announcing that the identity has been established; but, comparably, i n the
noun phrase the lecturer's name, i t is the genitive premodifer the lecturer 's
that is thematic. More usually, however. we apply the term ' theme to the
frst element of a clause, such as the subject in The lecturer 's name wasn 't
announced. Consider now these three examples as 'messages' i n i sol ati on:
The lecturer
The lecturer's name
The lecturer's name wasn 't announced.
We should note a signifcant prosodic similarity between the uni tal icized
theme and the remainder of each structure. The theme's relative lack of
stress mimes i s saus as 'given' and therefre in no need of emphasis. By
cont:ast, the 1 tahc1zed portions are given greater prosodic promi nence
and It would be on these that the intonation nucleus woul d be pl aced if
they were uttered as messages:
(Who led the discussion?) The LEcTurer I
<what
,
did she want to know?) The j lecturer's NAME I
(D1dn t she know who was lecturing?) The j lecturer's ' name wasn't
anNOUNCED I
In other words, the new i nformation in each case is the 'fcus' of the
message, and just as we saw in 1 8.4 that i t seemed natural to place the new
i nformation after nrovirl i n< " rrt=r , .. - .. I.,, ; ,
l
f
l
;
i
l
;
i
j
l
|

t

'

;
E !
;
L
h
!'
;
398 Theme, locus, and Information processing
regard focus (identifed prosodically) as most naturally and normal ly
occurring at the end of the information uni t.
NOTE [a] Since the new information often needs to be stated more fully than the given
(that is, with a longer, 'heavier' struct ure), it is not unexpected that an
organization principle which may be called END-WEIGHT comes into operati on
along with the principle of end-focus. The principle of end-weight can be seen
operating in the following examples:
18.6
She visited him that very day.
She visited her best friend that very day.
She visited that very day an elderly and much beloved friend.
In this last example, even had the speaker/writer preferred to put the focus on the
time adjunct and to locate it in the unmarked fnal position, the weight
o
f the
object noun phrase makes it preferable to have the adjunct at iE(cf8. I I ) . An even
better position might have been /: ' That very day, she visited . . . '
[b] In contrast to 'given' and 'new', which are contextualy established and to that
extent 'extralinguistic', ' theme' and 'focus' are linguistically defned, i n 'erms of
position and prosody respectively. With 'theme' there is an attractive alternative
contrast, 'rheme', and the latter term (favoured by some l inguists) will be used
from time to time, especially in its adjectival form, 'rhematic', since it provides a
convenient way of referring to degrees of commun
k
ative dynamism. Some
linguists use the distinction 'topic'f'comment' for our 'theme'j'focus' or ' theme'/
'rheme' (and sometimes for our 'given'f'new'). Others speak of given i nformation
as 'old',
'
shared', or 'presupposed' information.
The relation between focus and new i nformation
New information can be anything from a syllable to a whole clause. If the
nucleus flls on t he last stressed syllable of the clause (according to the
unmarked end-focus principle), what is 'new' could, fr example, be the
entire clause, or the last element (eg complement) of the clause, or the
predication of the clause. In the fol l owi ng sentence, we mark the extent of
the new i nfrmation fr three possible uses of the same sentence:
Whole clause is 'new':
NEW
(What's on today?) We're going to the RACes. [ I )
Predication is 'new':
NEW
(What are we doing today?) We' re going to the RAces. [2)
Final adverbial is 'new':
NEW
(Where are we going today?) We're going to the RAces. [3)
The sentence as heard (and the same would of course apply to writing, cf
1 8 . l ) is neutral as to the three possible stretches of new i nformation
.
l

3
NOTE
18.7 .
Marked locus 399
i ndicated by our marki ng, si nce the '
.
0 1 1
ocus is at t he s1
. .
n Y t ie parenthesized questions (
.POt nl t n each LUhL.
h
more broadl y
t t e context) provide the clue as to h
pu ' our knowledge of
assumed as 'given' and how much i
'
s th
aw
much of th
e -.. .- i s
w
us new

.
en the nucleus occurs on a syllable earlier
.
tl .

.
prmc1ple of end-focus however n h
ian that predi cted by the
'
'
0 sue opennes
f

possible:
s o I ntLrprtat i.-is
(Have you decided whether you're going to the ra ?)
NEW
ces.
C
Yes, we ARE going to the races.
This is an instance of 'marked' focus, to which we turn in 1 8. 7.
(4]
[a] In conversation, where the sentences (? ']
.
questions, it would be common of course
f
_
el

er repli

s to the corr
spondi ng
less only the new information to be uttered
.
ci I 8
p
t
s f J _' 6) to p

rm1 t more or
(3], [4], we could have:

.
or example, m place of (2],
Going to the RAces
To the RAces
We ARE
(b] The contrast i n the follo
"
ing i s worth remarking:
[2a]
[3a]
[4a]
Among those present were the Mayor and
{"'i.s(rz) Mrtin (5]
m1s(rz) MARtin
[6]
ln [6] the Mayor is accompanied b
h
. .
in [5] the woman h' 'f d
y a woman avmg a di ferent surname from his - is w1 e or aughter pe h h h

Mayor and the s

eaker implies that the

,
he
:
re

p
:
n

w
:
s
a

r
:
a
:
h
s
a

r
:.
m as the
!: s ke t
e following (especially with respect to items o;
s
psonal
clarifation:
p rase is normally treated as given, being added only for informal
She's buying a SCARF for herself.
Contrast:
She's b
_
uying her mother a birthday present but she's also bu
.
'
herSELF.
ymg a SCARF Of
Marked focus
The prin

le of end-fcus entails that we can confdently predict that a

reader wi l l i nterpret blue as the fcal i tem in the writte
n sentence:
I am painting my living room blue.
In other words, we are confcPMl t h"t i t ,,. \ ! + . 1 . _ _ _

\
i
i
I
NOTE
400 Theme, focus, and Information processing
I am I painting my ' l iving room BLUE I
[ I ]
The sentence has an increasing degree of communicative dynamism from
painting to blue. But as we have just seen in 1 8 . 6, all of the information in
this sentence may be new, and when we refect upon the sentence, we must
realize that i n fct no part is necessarily more obvious or predictable': than
another. This means that it is perfectly possible to make the sentence
i nfrmationally appropriate with the i ntonation nucleus (and hence the
i nfrmation focus) elsewhere:
r am I painting my Living room ' bl ue I
I am I painting MY ' living room ' bl ue I
I am I PAINting my ' living room ' bl ue I
I I AM ' painting my ' living room ' bl ue I
I i am ' painting my ' living room ' blue I
[2]
[3]
[4]
[5]
[6]
It is wher we move the focus from its predictable position as in [ I ] to
another position as in [2-6] that we speak of MARKED FOCUS.
The condition for marked focus arises when special emphasis is
required. Frequently such emphasis is needed fr the purposes of contrast
or correction. Thus it would be easy to i magine [2] as following someone
else's remark:
I am I painting my 'bathroom BLUE I
or question:
I Are you 'painting your ' kitchen BLUE I
Equally, [3] might follow on fom:
I John is 'painting his ' living room BLUE I
Again, [4] might fllow on from:
I've I changed my 'mind about PAPering I
So too, [5] might be a response to:
I Weren' t you i n' tending to ' paint your ' living room BLUE I
And [6] might fllow on from:
I So ' John is ' painting your ' living room BLUE I
But contrast, in the sense of replacing one presumed item by another, is
not the only occasion fr the special emphasi s of marked fcus. More
generally, i t is a matter of adj usting the fcus according to what is
presupposed i n a particular context.
[a] Since i n reading we assign end-fcus unless the context makes i t unambiguously
clear that the focus should be elsewhere, other devices than prosody are usefully
invoked where end-fcus would produce a misreading. For example, the cleft
sentence structure; cf 1 8 . 1 8.f But for some instances of marked focus, as in [3], [4],
18.8
Marked locus 10 1
and [5], considerable reworki ng 1 s
.
.
req ui red Th `
written versi on:
us i n pl ace of [ lj .
.
' U 111 1 gh1 have a
The li vi ng room l am pai nti ng blue is
fmy own. l
l
mi ne. J [ J I
[b] Examples [3], [5], and [6] above i llustrate t h
normally expected to fall on an open-class le
.

I
: act that . al though focus is
. d h
xrca l lem exec t'
. .
md c w ere a closed-class item requires special h r
i ons can readi ly he
( f 1 8
cmp as1s for .ont
.
.
purposes c . I I ). Even the articles mav ` th
rU5t1 vU or ot her
us ocuscd:
Are you I talki ng about THE ' Mrs , Rea2an I (or o l
name)?
n Y someone else of the same
A: Did you I see the po' l iceman concER:ED I
B: Well I I saw A po' l iceman I [pronounced /e1/]
Compare also:
I
I .,.should worry I [ =This shouldn't worry Y6u I J
NOW what does she want I
The feling of exasperation is expressed with the marked
adve b I
fcus and fonted
r i a more strongly than in the otherwis equivalent:
I What does she want NOW I
In certain ci rcumstances it is qui te normal t h
phrase as subject of a clase, in vi olation ofthen
ave the fo

us
.
on a noun
fequently because with the b'
d-fcus pnnc1ple. This is
, su ect concered the pred t
.
1
.
predictable and thus has low
. . ' .
1ca e is re at1vely
that the phenomenon in ques
;
i

o
.
mmu
m.
cat
t
ve dynami
sm. It is signifcant
where (if English structure permit
1
:
e
f
e
;:
y
)
associ

t
h
e
d with intransitives,
order VS cf 1 8 1 6 c
Y we mig t expect the element
. ompare:
The I TELephone's ' ringing I
The I SUN is ' shining I
The I KETtle's ' boiling I
A I visi tor called I
I Has your sister ' come ' home I
Predictability is easy to see with the frst rwo exam I -
.
analogously that d
.
P e. but It 1s arguable
a omest1c contexr the most b h"
a

nounce about kettles i s that they ar -oi l inP

o

v
10us t mg
_
t
.
o
wi thout 'calling' at one's house

and wh .
"
'
a \
.
1s1tor cannot
v
1 s1 t
interested in a person, than to

sk whet
:
r
;:
1

e for a caller,
But there are other fctors that may lead us to identifr b
.
.
:
t
amed i ndividua

(John, T!e Prsidenr ) or else a e
u
r
a
:t;
kettle)
s :enhty o
d
r
.
whose
d
ex1stence is
:
veil known (A visitor, The
, pre icate enotes rvp1cally a ve I
commonly associated activity (especial]\- ne t
ry genera or
positive
/
negative choice), such as the act

f appea

t
g
.
p
d

esents a
.
starkl
.
y
, 1sappeanng; or 1 t

|
l
i '
r
.
402 Theme, locus, and information processing
denotes demise or other misfortune, agam of a general nature. Some
examples:
The PREsident has 'died
My COAT is ' torn
The BAby's 'crying
co11trast :
contrast :
contrast :
Someone has oi r
My coat is FAWN
The baby's SMI Lingl
Emphasis may be given to an initial noun phrase (or indeed to any
norffnal item) by interposing a parenthesis with i ts own tone unit:
This in SHORT I is why I reFUSED I
The device is comparably valuable in writing, where this conjunct would
be separately punctuated and thus allow This to have more weight than it
otherwise would:
This, i n short, is why I refused.
NOTE Although we have associated thi s phenomenon with noun phrases as subjeLt, i t
arises more broadly with noun phrases i n construction with succeedi ng verb
phrases:
Joan has a PLANE to 'catch I
We have various PROBiems to ' solve
By contrast, where it i s less congruent with or less predictably associated with the
noun phrase, it i s the verb phrase that might be focused:
. . . texts to comPtTerize I
Similarly, within a noun phrase, if the head is more general and carries less
semantic weight and specifcity than the premodifer, it is the latter that may
sometimes be fcused:
She's a BRILiiant 'person I
(contrast : She's a brilliant o6ctor I )
Again, where the noun-phrase object i s of general reference, fcus may be moved
forward on to the head of the verb phrase:
You should always 'try to HELP a ' guy I
(contrast : You should always ' try to ' help a poLicEman I )
Compare also noun phrases of mere expletive or evaluative force:
I've been CHEATed by the dirty scoundrel.
18.9 The instances of marked focus in 1 8. 8 involved putting the focus earlier
than where it would occur in unmarked focus. But there are two further
types, (a) and (b), to be considered:
(a) First, the fcus can be moved to a point subsequent or immediately
prior to its expected position. This is sometimes because the unmarked
focus i s misleading, as it might be i n:
Who's the NOVel by I
NOTE
Merlod IOUR .fOJ
If there were any danger t hat th 1 "
.
1
.
C 1LUmi ght t

1 k
ex amp em contrast to the rel'ieil') t h
.
' c ne11

c emphat ic ( fr
"
h
'
c questi on woul I l ocus upon t e preposi ti on: ` *put Yi t h markc<l
Who's the ' novel BY I
Consider an exchange l i ke the fol lowing:
A: So what did you SA v?
B: There was nothing TO say.
It may seem vacuous to highlight the mere i nfnitive marke B
one ha d

d
r. ut on the
n , say 1s given an would thus be an inappropriate bea r
nucleus; on the other hand, there is a positive reason fr
1
er o
1
a
1 h
.
P acmg t 1Q
nuc eus on t e only part ofth1s verb phrase which represents the modal i ty.
Some further examples of marked fcus:
So we bought THIS ' house I (imtead of that one)
I Hand your ' ticket IN I (you're not allowed 10 keep ii )
(b) Secondly, we can have contrastive fcus at precisely the poi nt of
unmarked focus. In speech, such marked fcus may be realized with
additional stress or wider range of nucleus (cf 2. 1 5). In writing, the
comparable efect can often be conveyed only by expansion or a rather
elaborate paraphrase, but sometimes typographical devices are i nvoked
especially italics. In S H Perelman's Last Laugh ( 1 98 1 ), we fi nd th
following piece of dialogue:
'Was that how you became a rustler?"
'A rustler?' I repeated. 'Not a rustler. Miss Cronjager - a ll'restler.'
The word that requires marked contrastive focus fr corrective purposes
comes at the point where unmarked focus would occur. Perelman
presumably expects the italics to represent greater prominence than on the
original nucleus:
Was that how you became a Rl:stler I
A I Rustler I . . I Not a Rustler . . a " I WREstler I
Whre marked ocus is requi red on a preposition. it is sometimes possi bl e to
achieve the requi red meaning with end-focus by using a paraphrase. Thus besi de:
. . . apart from his LAZiness
we may have
. . . aPART from his ' laziness I
or:
. . . his ' laziness aPART I
With the adverbial particle in phrasal verbs. the same result is achieved merely by
movement:
18.10
18. 11
404 Theme, focus, and information processing
He's I bringing 'in the c\ses I He's bringing the 'cases iN I
This helps to explain why such particles arc in final position when the object is a
personal pronoun (l:f 1 6.4) or is a noun phrase of very general meaning:
She's I bringing it/the matter UP I
(L:f*Shc's I bringing ' up the MATtcr I )
J ust as marked focus fequently i nvol ves putting emphasis on an
unexpected part of a phrase, so also it may i nvolve unexpected emphasis
on part of a word or name. Normally we put the main stress on a person's
fmily name and not the frst name:
Dylan THOMas
But marked fcus may reverse this, sometimes in making a correcti on:
(By the poet Thomas, I meant)
DYLan 'Thomas - I not f:Dward ' Thomas
Conversely, compound nouns with normal fi rst-element stress can swi tch
to second-element stress with marked focus:
I j just ' wanted a ' couple of PiCTure hooks I and he started ' showing
me some 'picture BOOKS I
So also, in order to make a contrast, two words can be equally given
unusual accentuation:
They fought for DEMocracy but they've ended up with AUTocracy.
She suddenly changed the subject from EMigration to iMmigration.
Focus on the operator
One type of marked fcus that deserves separate treatment is focusing on
the operator, which often has the particular function of signalling contrast
between positive and negative meaning:
(A: Why haven't you had a bath?) B: I I HAVE had a ' bath I
(A: Look for your shoes
.
) B: I I AM l ooki ng for them I
She I PROMised I so she I MUST ' take him ' wi th her I
When the operator is positi
v
e. the meaning is 'Yes in contrast to No
'
;
when the operator is negative. the meaning is contrastive in the opposite
direction:
So you HAVEn't lost it l [' You thought you had']
When the fnite verb phrase is i n the simple present or past tense, and so
would not otherwise have an auxiliary verb to functi on as operator,
the
'dummy' operator do is introduced to bear the nuclear stress (cf 3. 1 1 ):
So you J oiD go to the 'concert this ' evening I [ie 'I thought you mi ght,
but . . .']
NOTE
18. 12
Mnrkod locus IOS
But I I DO think you'

d
, ,
re d good 'cook I [ic
.
on t ]
even 1 f vou 1 111 . 1 . .1gic
With a rise or fall-rise as int . .
. d
.
.
on<1t1 on nucl ` 1
m icatmg past or future often draws
.
L h, ocus on au, i l i -i r1
' cont rasti v ' tt
.
Lh
aspect rather than to the posi ti ve/negat
L l en l i on to the t ense or
ive polar ty:
He I owns - or DID own I - a I Rol lsR67ll
We've I sold OUT I but we I WILL be -- '
. .
mg more I
s
.
1 m!larly, the nucleus on auxiliaries such as lH!' I
signals a contrast between the supposed real "
t
:

and could ol"lin

afai rs thought desirable or likely:
U e o U ai rs, and a st ate nf
The o/ pinion ' polls MAY be ' ri ght I [ie " but I suspect t h '
ey re not ]
In courtesy enquiries about health and wellbei no wh
.
i nformation,bearing lexical i tems ro
h ere there ar
.
c effect no
. ' cus on I e opera tor cir .
.
emphasis:
' nes no special
How I ARE you ' these 'days I
Wel l , how / ARE you ' now, ' Mr 'Brown

t
_l ly stres,ed operators recive stress (especially nuclear stress), the efect
o a exc amatory emphasis to the whole sentence:
That WILL be nice! You DO look tired!
Di vi ded focus
;setime
t

happ

ns tha

we want to put nuclear focus upon two items i n
orma 1 0n umt An mtonation patt I
this i n BrE is the fal. I
.
ern part1cu arly associated wi th
-p us-nse contour (cf 2. 1 5). Compare the followin
.
He's / fairly CLEVer I
g
.
He's / FATR!y CLEVer I
[ I ]
[2]
The i mplications difer in two ways Semam , II , .
. . .
e
:
timate,
.
though cautiously worded.Whi Je `.
J l
pJ i

e
?Ol
t
l Ve
d1sparagmg, call ing in question the estimat
'
f I
y g "m" a

d
nally [ ! ] i bi
' 0 c everness. Infrmat10-
'
, s compat1 e with answeri ng a eneral i nqui ry ab t th
( What do you thi nk of Alec?') ,h J
-
[']
-
. , .
ou e person
cleverness has already been ri s
,
e(
'
1
]
-
.
1 mp
l
l l es tat the question of hi s
ec i s c e\er isn't he?') Wh h
DTVTDED FOCUS is realized by fall-plus-
.
h

.
.
. . ere sue

nse. t ere1 ore the i tem carr th
nse is made subsidiary to the other foe d
.

.
.
ymg e
information that is to some exte
'
.
se
.
it-. accepts
.
that it represents
. calls i ts status i n question.
nt g
l
\ en bu, (compatible with the rise)
Compare:

Will iam WORDSworth is my 'favourite POET I

This may be in reply to the question 'Who
.

.
contrary statement 'I understand that J h
l_ur (arunte poet' or to a
o n -:ts is ;our favourite poet
'
.
NOTE
18.13
406 Theme, focus, and information processing
But frequently the second focus conveys little more than courtesy; thus it
is used with fnal vocatives and formulaic subjuncts (8. 34):
What's the TiME, JOHN I At j TENti on, PLEASE I
Jn contrast to the fall-plus-rise, the rise-plus-fall contour is used to mark a di vided
fcus where the frst of the two focused items is made subsidiary to the second. We
can thus contrast the two types of divided fcus:
I
I
went to FRANCE i n ' ni neteen EIGHTY
I
[3]
I went to FRANCE in ' ni neteen EIGHTY [4]
[3] suggests a context in which there is discussion of what
_
I had
_
done in 1
.
980, t
.
his
part therefre being relatively given; [4] suggests one which the d1 scuss1on
concerns when I went to France, the rise again coinciding with the relatively given,
but this time preceding the relatively new i nstead of fllowing i t.
Marked theme
The two communicatively signifcant parts of an infrmation unit, the
theme and the focus, are typically as distinct as they can be: one is the
point of i ni tiation, and the other the point of completion. The theme of an
infrmation unit, coming frst, is more often 'given' infrmation than any
other part of it. Yet the two can coincide; for instance, when, as marked
focus, the nucleus_flls on the subject of a statement:
(Who gave you that magazine?) BiLL gave i t to me I [ I ]
This i s the extreme frm of MARKED THEME, and we can compare [2] which
has an unmarked theme (he) with mi ni mum prosodic prominence:
He gave me a magaziNE I
[2]
Clearly, theme and focus must coincide in one-word utterances,
whether these are questions, responses, or mi l i tary commands. For
example:
coffee I
THANKS I
Even so, many such short units have an i ni tial portion that
.
can be u

d as
thematic preparation. A striking instance of this i
:
found

n the m1 htary
order, ' Attention! ' The word is typically uttered with considerable
.
dra

vl
on the frst two syllables, and (ignoring the fact that the word ordmanly
has stress on the second syllable) with the fnal syllable given word stress
and the climactic nuclear fcus:
at j ten-TiON I
The theme carries considerable prosodic weight when it is an item that is
not (like subject or conjunction, fr example) normally at initial position
in a clause (c/8. 1 1 ). Consider the following exchange:
NOTE
18.14
Fronting 407
A: Are you going to i n' vi te JOHN I
B: Oh John I' ve al ' ready inviTed I
In B' s response, John is a marked theme, and the term will be used for any
such fonted i tem, whether or not i t carries (as such items commonly do)

marked focus (c/further 1 8 . 1 4).
The value of marked theme in infrmation processing can be seen i n
comparing t he following, where [3-5] have SVC order but [6] has CSV:
I John i s LAZ
Y I (but I think he will help me) [3]
AI ! though 'John is LAZ
Y I (I think he will help me) [4]
Al j though ' John is LAZY I

. . [5]
Lazy though John is I . . . [6]
In [3], lazy is new i nformation; there is no assumption on the speaker's
part that the listener knows. In [4], the fll-rise on lazy also implies that
the information is new; the rise part of the complex nucleus i s conditi oned
by the dependent status of the clause of which this is the focus. In [5] .
however, the simple rise on lazy is compatible both with the dependence of
the clause concerned and the impl ication that the hearer already shares the
speaker's view of John. In [6], making lazy a marked theme again i mplies
the givenness of the i nfrmation and additionally enables the speaker to
focus upon the operator (cf 1 8. 1 1 ) with consequent emphasis on its
posi tive polarity (cf 3 . 1 1 ). A further example: 'Serious as has become the
food shortage, worse news is to follow'; this embodies inversion of subject
and verb ( cf1 8. 1 6).
Common short adverbials i n i ni tial position are often given some thematic
marki ng.
Then he LEFT I
Longer and semantically weightier adverbials at I will be more heavily marked
themes or they may actually carry a nucleus:
Suddenly he LEFT I I sundenly I he LEFT I
Note that marked theme can be used to draw attention to contrasting pairs, and
this often i nvolves separate tone units:
vfhdi I i s splendid in hi s WAY I but Mozart's operas I I rel gard as ' pure
perFEcTion I
Fronting
Fronti ng is the term we apply to the achievement of marked theme by
moving i nto i nitial position an item which is otherwise unusual there. The
reason fr fronti ng may be to echo thematically what has been
contextually given:
NOTE
18. 15
408 Theme, focus, and information processing
(You should take up swimming for relaxation)
J RelaxAtion you 'call it I
Alternatively, the item fronted may be the one contextual l y most
demanded:
iLson his NAME is I
An J utter FOOL she ' made me ' feel
Fronting is very common both in speech and in conventional written
material, often serving the function of so arranging clause order that end
fcus flls on the most important part of the message as well as providing
di rect linkage with what has preceded:
That much the jury had thoroughly appreciated.
lfost ofthese problems a computer could take in its stride.
To this list may be added ten further items of importance.
The determiners that, this, and these in the above examples suggest that
the marked theme in such cases most often expresses given infrmation. It
is common to fi nd -ing participle predications fronted i n similar
information-processing circumstances:
Sitting at her desk in deep concentration was my sister Flora. She
looked as though she had spent a sleepless night.
(CJ subject-verb and subject-operator i nversion, 1 8 . 1 6f.)
[a] A fonted item, like a fronted 11"/z-element (cf I I . 9j), is sometimes an element
fom a subordinate clause:
"
Everything - or nearly ererything - that the Labour movement exists to stop
the Tories.from doing Labour will be asked to support the Cabinet i n doing.
The whole of the italicized part of this example is the object of a nonfnite clause,
itself a prepositional object within an i nfnitive clause within the main clause.
[b] Exceptionally, a part rather than the whole of a clause element may be fronted.
In the fllowing case, a prepositional phrase equivalent to a postmodifer of the
subject complement (but cf I 7.22) acts as theme: 'Of all the early exainples of
science fction, the fntastic stories of J ules Verne are the most remarkable."
A more striking type of fronting is found in the heightened language of
rather mannered rhetoric, including the strenuous colourflness of
journalistic writing. It is fequently employed to point a parallelism
between two parts ofa clause or between two related but contrasting pairs
of neighbouring clauses. The fonted parts may be prosodically marked as
marked theme or marked fcus, the l atter typically with divided focus (cf
1 8 . 1 2), and they may be grammatically any of a wide range of units:
H
.
f
{admired, }
h" l 1 . 1
1s ace not many
d f
w 1 e 11s c wracter
were enamoure o ,
.
NOTE
18.16
Fronting 409
still fewer could praise.
Traitor he has become
rd t
.

[ OJ
.
,
i a11or we sl l ' l l l 1 1 1
She might agree under pressur'"
.
. 11 .
v LQ 1 1 111 .
[ CJ
L. 11 1 ///11 sh .
They have promised to fi ni sh the
k . L
.
n

vc

Would.
{ i\ }
they wi l l .
or ' <1 nd/1111s/ 1t
. . . . .
[f>rcdknt i onJ
Wi th pred1cat1ons and pred1cat1on adJ"
uncts i f
f d

n rant posi ti on 1
n sub1ect-verb 1 nvers1on (cfl 8 . ! 6) ift he s ubi ect ' 1
L lc11
is ot 1\r th 1 11 .
pronoun:
personal
Into the stiing smoke we pl unged. [A S VJ
Into the stiing smoke pl unged the desperate mother. [A y SJ
In examples like the following, common in journalism the front

1- 1
d
'
, .
' 1 11 g o l 1C
pre 1cat10n seems largely determrned by the desire to give end-focus to the subject
at the same time using(as is normal) the early part of the sentence to 'set the scene
Addressing the demonstration was a quite elderly woman.
Shot by nationalist guerrillas were two entirely innocent tourists.
Even the cleft sentence, itself a grammatical fcus device (cf l 8. 1 8f) can be subjeCt
to fronti ng:
.
They hoped that Herbert Frost would be elected and Frost indeed it was that
topped the pol l .
Subject-verb inversion
The cla

se patterns SVC and SVA (cf J O. I ) have their obligatory third

element large measure because the Vi s commonly ofi tsel fso lacki na in
communicative dynamism:

SVC: Her oval face was especially remarkable.

SVC: The sound of the bell grew fai nt.
SVA : His beloved body lies in a distant grave.
[ I ]
[2]
[3]
In consequence, where information processing makes it desirable to front
the third element concerned, the result would tend to be bathetic or
misleading if normal SV order were preserved. In consequence. fronting
naturally carries with i t the inversion that puts S in fnal posi tion. an
d
i ndeed it is to achieve end-focus on the S t hat the fronting is generally
undertaken:

CVS: Especially remarkable was her oval fce.
CVS: Faint grew the sound of the bell.
A VS: In a distant grave lies his beloved body.
[I a]
[2a]
[3a]
These particul ar examples have a rather mannered tone (poetic in the case
of [2a] and [3a]), but the phenomenon is common enough in ordi nary
i nformal speech:
410 Theme, focus, and Information processing
Here's the milkman.
And there at last was the book I'd been looking for.
Down came the rain.
In the instances with herelthere + be, indeed, it is not simply a maller of
stylistic choice: there is a clear diference of meaning from the al ternatives
with SVA order. Although we must distinguish these from existential
there (cf 1 8. 3 1 ), there is in fact a close similarity. In contrast to A VS
, the
SVA order invites us not merely to put the nuclear focus upon the A but lo
see these adjuncts as referring to specific places. Compare:
{Here's the milkman - he's come at last.
The milkman is here - at the door: shall I get two pints?
{There's the book I want - I've been looking for i t all week.
The book is there - by the typewriter.
NOTE Subject-verb i nversion (as distinct from subject-operator inversion; cf 1 8. 1 7) with
fonted object chiefy represents direct speech (including speech that i s thought )
and usually the subject is not a personal pronoun:
'Please go away,' said one child. 'And don't come back,' pleaded another.
This i s something of a literary convention, and i n ordinary speech, VS would
usually be replaced by SV (cf 1 4. 1 7). More important are CVS, A VS, where the C
or A make comparative reference to somethi ng that has preceded:
Hi s answer was a disgrace and equally regrettable was hi s departure
immediately afterwards.
Subject-perator inversion
18.17 In addition to the inversion in questions, there are four common
circumstances in which the operator precedes the subject.
(a) First, we have elliptical clauses with initial so or the corresponding
negatives neither or nor (cf 1 2. 1 3 ):
John saw the accident and so did Mary.
[cf . . . and Mary did (so), too]
d
.
d h
.
d d
{neither }
d" d M John 1 n't see t e acc1 ent an
?
1 ary .
. nor
[cf . . . and Mary didn' t, either]
She was angry and so was I.
He won' t go and neither should you.
But i nversion is less common with certain modal auxiliaries (notably may,
might, ought ), and alternative substitute expressions with normal order
are preferred:
She might be ill and he might (be) too.
(b) Secondly, we have S-op inversion where a phrase of negative form
or meaning is fronted (cf I 0. 35f):
Clof eonloncoe 1 1 1
Least of all is it in our interest to open ncgot1 t"

i on5 now
At no time must this door be left unlocked.
=
He refused to apologize. Nor
.
would he offer any explanati on.
Scarcely had he started speakmg when heckling broke out.
(cf He had scarcely started speaking when heckling broke o u t. )
(c) Thirdly, we have S-op inversion i n comparative clauses when the s i s
not a personal pronoun:
Oil costs less than would atomic energy. (cf0i1 costs less than it di d).
She looks forward, as does her secretary, to the completion of the
building.
(d) Finally, S-op inversion occurs in subordinate clauses of condition
and concession (cf 1 5 . 1 9 Note [c]), especially i n rather formal usage:
Were we to withdraw our support, they would be j ustifi ably
indignant.
Should you change your plans, please let me know.
Even had she left a will, it is unlikely that the college would have
benefted.
NOTE If an initial negative item is the vehicle fr only a local negation (cf 1 0.40), no S-op
inversion is possible. Thus, with the sentence adjunct (c/8. 1 5) i n:
18. 18
Not without reason, Charles had fown into a rage.
=' He had fown into a rage and i t was not without reason'
Contrast, with predication adjunct (c/8. 1 4):
Not without reason had Charles fown into a rage.
=' He hadn't fown into a rage without reason'
Cl eft sentences
In 1 8. 1 4, we looked at examples of where heightened promi nence was
achieved with no other grammatical change involved beyond fronting.
For example:
His callousness I shall ignore.
[ I ]
We now turn to devices fr giving prominence by more elaborate
grammatical means, involving the division of the sentence into two
clauses, each with its own verb:
It is his callousness that I shall ignore.
What I shall ignore is his callousness.
The thing I shall ignore is his callousness.
His callousness is something I shall ignore.
[2]
[3]
[4
]
[5]
41 2 Theme, focus, and Information processing
By reason of the division, these constructions have been called 'cleft
sentences', though we shall di stinguish the CLEFT SENTENCE proper, as in
[2] , from the PSEUDO-CLEFT sentence represented most typically by [3] .
With the subject pronoun it as an empty theme, followed by the verb he,
the cleft sentence readily achieves focus on the fnal item; in efect, end
focus within an SVC clause:
It is his cALlousness.
For this reason, while very common in spoken Engl i sh, the construction is
particularly convenient in writing, since i t provides unerring guidance to
the reader in silently assigning appropriate prosody. But the cleft sentence
does not of itself indicate what the appropriate prosody i s. Essentially, the
cleft sentence indicates divided focus (cf 1 8. 1 2); and which of the two
focused items is dominant (ie new) will depend on the context:
A: You should J criticize his cA-Liousness I
B: J No, it is his cAL!ousness that I shall igJ NORE I
[callousness given, ignore new]
A: You should igJnore his disHONesty I
B: J No, it is his cALlousness that I shall igN6RE I
[callousness new, ignore given]
NOTE [a] Subject pronouns other than it sometimes occur:
(No,) that was the DOCTor I was speaking to.
Those are my FE you're treading on.
He was a real GENius that invented thi s.
In each of these, we could fnd divided fcus (cf 1 8. 1 2), with a ri si ng tone on
speaking, treading, and this.
[b] We need to remember that, especially in writing, an example like the fllowing
is ambiguous between a cleft sentence and an SVC where C i s a postmodifed noun
phrase:
It i s the dog that scared me.
In the relative-clause version, the S could be replaced by another pronoun (such as
this) and that coul d be replaced by 1r/zic/1. In cleft sentences, such alternatives are
not generally acceptable.
18. 19 The fexibility of the cleft-sentence device can be seen i n the ease with
which diferent parts can be highlighted. Consider the sentence:
John wore a white suit at the dance last night.
From this, four cleft sentences can be derived. In the following, we shall
assume that the aim i n each case is to make the second focus subsidiary as
relatively 'given' :
S as focus:
It was J i6HN {: } wore a ' whi te ' suit at the DANCE ' last ' night I
CleH aentoncea 1 1 3
od as focus:
Tt was a I whi te SUIT (tht t) 'J 1 ,
'
o 1 11 wore 1t tl
'
' ic DNC ' Inst ' nilht I
Alimc as focus:

Tt was J last NIGHT (that) ' John ' wore a

,
1 . w 1 1 lc su1 t ut the
l.ic I
Arasitian as focus:
It was at the I DANCE that ' John ' wore a ' white SUIT ' l . . .
Tt was the I DANCE (that) 'John ' wore a ' whi te SUIT U

,
i

h f
(informal)
,ist
rg
ht I
Two other clause elements can marginally act as the initial focus of U cl cr
sentence:
(a) informally Oi (otherwise repl aced by a prepositional phrase):
It was me he gave the book to.
It was to me that he gave the book
.
(b) Ca as focus: Tt's dark green that we've painted the kitchen.
There are severe restrictions (except informally in Irish English) on the use
ofC, in this function, especially with the \-erb be and especially C, realized
by an adjective phrase:
?It's very tall you are.
But, without these restrictions, C, can be generally acceptable:
It was a doctor that he eventually became.
NOTE [a] If the initial fcal item i s a personal pronoun. i t may i nfrmally be in the
objective case even though it is in fct a subject of the thatclause) and the usage is
hence widely condemned:
It was ?her that gave the signal.
[b] Though the verb frm i n the frst clause oi a cleft sentence i s usually simple
present or past, frms with modals are perfectly possible:
It may be his fther that you' re thi nki n; of.
It would have been at that time that she
-
went to live near Mannheim.
Where the verb of the second clause is presen:. th2t of the frst will be present:
It i s novels that Miss Wi l l iams enjoys reJding.
Where the second verb is past, the frst can be past:
.
I t was novel s that Miss Williams enjoyed as a pastime.
But the frst verb may be in the present where the persons concerned are sti l l l ivi ng
or the objects concerned sti l l fmiliar i n the participants' experience:
It is these very novels that Miss Williars enjoyed reading as a pastime.
[c] The cleft-sentence structure can be used i n questions, exclamations, and
subordinate clauses; we have italicized the frst fcal item:
18.20
414 Theme, locus, and Information processing
Was i t _for this that we suffered and toiled?
What a glorious bonfre i t was you made!
Pseudo-cleft sentences
The pseudo-cleft sentence is another device whereby, like the cleft
sentence proper, the construction can make explicit the division between
given and new parts of the communication. It is essentially an SVC
sentence with a nominal relative clause as subject or complement (cf
1 5. 7/) . It thus difers from the ordinary cleft sentence in being completely
accountable in terms of the categories of main clause and subordinate
clause discussed in Chapter 1 4. The following are virtually synonymous:
It's a good rest that you need most.
A good rest is what you need most.
The pseudo-cleft sentence occurs more typically, however, with the w/
clause as subject, since it can thus present a climax in the complement:
What you need most is a good rest.
Unlike the cleft sentence, it rather freely permits marked fcus to fll on
the predication:
What he's done is (to) spoil the whole thing.
Here we would expect an anticipatory (rising) focus on the do item, the
main fcus coming at normal end-focus position. Thus: . . . DONE . . .
THiNG'. When the verb in the wh-clause has progressive aspect, the
complement matches i t with an -ing clause:
What I'm doing is teaching him Japanese.
But in some respects, the pseudo-cleft sentence is more limited than the
cleft sentence proper. It is indeed only with what-clauses that we can make
a di rect comparison (or choice) between the two constructions. Clauses
with where and when are sometimes acceptable, but mainly when the 11"/
clause is subject complement:
Here is where the accident took place.
(In) Autumn is 1\'hen the countryside is most beautiful.
Clauses introduced by irho, whose, why, and how do not easily enter into
the pseudo-cleft sentence construction at all, and to compensate for these
restrictions, there are numerous ' paraphrases' of the pseudo-cleft
construction involving noun phrases of general reference in place of the
wh-item:
18.21
NOTE
Pootponoment 4 1 5
The person who spoke 1 0 vou 1
- must i ave been t he 111 .
Somebodi whose \\'ritina I 1 . .
,ragcr.
.
Ut 11111'< lb Ji l l .
The \I'll)' you should go i s vi a Chel tenham.
The reason we decided to retur was
{that
1 ,
because (i nformal ) J
he wn; i l l .
The cleft and pseudo-cleft types can cooccur. For exampl e:
What it was you asked for was a ticket to Brighio11. Did you HCUH
Birmingham?
Cfalso the f
?
l l owi ng (common i nformally) from Ivy Compton- Burett: ' What
seems to me 1 s, t hat we ought to be . . . careful' (Men a11d Wil'rs).
Postponement
One important communicative diference between the two types of cleft
construction is that while the cleft sentence with it is often used to put the
main fcus near thefi"ont of the sentence, the pseudo-cleft is chiefl y used to
postpone the focus to end position. In this respect i t is often in competition
with the passive. In [ 1 ] , focus is placed on the noun phrase the
manufacturers by means of the passive, and in [2] by means of a pseudo
cleft 'paraphrase':
The device was tested by the manufacturers. [ 1 ]
The people who tested the device were the manufacturers. [2]
It should be noted that [2] presupposes that the hearer knows that testing
has taken place; with [ l ] this is not so.
Given the importance of end-focus (cf 1 8. 2), it i s not surprising that
English has numerous resources to ensure the distribution of infrmation
according to our wishes. There are, for example, lexical and grammatical
devices which reverse the order of roles:
{An uncle, three cousins, and two brothers benefted.from the will.
The wi ll benefted an uncle, three cousins, and two brothers.
{An unidentifed blue liquid was in the bottle.
The bottle contained an unidentifed blue liqui d.
{A red sports car was behind the bus.
The bus was in front of a red sports car.
A special case of converseness i s the relation of reciprocity expressed by certain
terms such as similar to, di erent from, near (to) Jar from, opposite, marred to,
416 Theme, focus, and Information processing
where reversing the order of the participants preserves the essential meaning
wi thout any other change in the construction:
My house is opposite the hotel. = The hotel is opposite my house.
A more complex relation of converscness is i l l ustrated by:
The dealer sold the car to my friend.
My friend bought the car from the dealer.
Compare also rent to/rent from, lend (to) /borrow from, give (to )/recefre fom.
Voice and postponement
18.22 With transitive clauses, the passive voice provides a convenient way of
postponing the agentive subject by turning i into the agent i n a ?assive
construction (c/3.25). We thus reverse the active order of the agentive and
afected elements (cf I 0.9) where the agentive requires end-fcus:
A: Who makes these table mats?
....... /"
>
/
B: They are made by my sister-in-law.
A preference fr end-focus (in this instance, coinciding with end-weight)
can even override an aversion to passive constructions that are in
themselves rather awkward (cf 1 6. 8 Note):
The regulations were taken advantage ofy all the tramps and down
and-outs i n the country.
A fnite clause as subject is also readily avoided by switching fom the
active to the passive voice:
{ That he was prepared to go t o such lengths astonished me.
I was astonished that he was prepared to go to such lengths.
.
While the V element cannot be focused in the cleft-sentence construction,
such focus can be achieved with a transitive verb by the use of the passive,
provided that the agent can be ignored as given. Compare:
But our J scientists ' fnally SOLVED 'all ' these ' problems I
But J all ' these ' problems were ' fnally SOLVED I
The passive can also ensure a smooth crescendo of communicative
dynamism with ditransitive verbs by maki ng the indirect object thematic.
Compare:
They aJwarded Marion the PRIZE I
Marion was aJwarded the PR
I
ZE I
NOTE
18.23
NOTE
Poatponemenf 1 1 7
The passive of hm
e i s rarely used but when .
'
1 occurs. the verb J meaning usually absent from the active:
.in ngc11 t 1 n:
I wanted lo buy sherry but there was none lo be hat! .
Extraposition of a cl ausal subject
Postponement which involves the replacement of the post poned
1
. ,. .
d
c cn1cnl
by a substitute orm IS terme EXTRAPOSITION I t OJ1el
.
l [e
1
1
. . .

lllO:;t
exclusrve
_
l

on
_
subordmate n

mmal causes. The

n
ost i mport ant type <Jf
extrapos1tron 1s that of a subject realrzed by a fni te or nonfi ni te cluse .
The subject i s moved to the end of the sentence, and the normal subject
position is fll ed by the anticipatory pronoun it. The resulting sentence
thus contains two subjects, which we may identify as the POSTPONED
SUBJECT (the one which is notionally the subject of the sentence) and t he
ANTICIPATORY SUBJECT (it ). Thus i n place of [ l ] we have (2]:
To hear him say that surprised me.
I surprised me to hear him say that.
( I ]
(2]
The pattern of (2] is in fct fr more usual than that of ( l ] (c/Note [a]) .
Examples i n terms of the major clause types ( 1 0. 1 ):
Type SVC:
Type SVA :
Type SV:
Type SVO :
Type SVOC:
Type SVpass:
Type SVpassC:
I t is a pleasure to teach her.
It was on the news that income tax is to be 101rered.
It doesn't matter what you do.
It surprised me to hear him say that.
It makes her happy to see others enjoying themselves.
It is said that she wanted to go int o politics.
It was considered impossible for anyone to escape.
[a] For certain constructions which have all the appearance of clausal extraposi
tion (ft seems/appears/happened/chanced/etc), the corresponding nonextraposed
versi on does not occur. For example, there i s no sentence * That el'erything is fne
seems to correspond with It seems that everything is fne, nor do we fnd * Thai she
wanted to go into politics is said. In such cases, we may say that the extraposi ri on i s
obligatory. Wi th be, thi s type of extraposition i s used fr expressions of possi bi l i ty
and (especially) for refective questions:
It may be that she no l onger trusts you.
Could i t be that you left the keys in your ofce:
Other characteristics of the verbs entering i nto this category are presented in 1 8
.
25
.
[b] Unlike fni te clauses, -ing clauses occur very naturaily i n ordi nary subject
posi ti on:
Teaching her to dril'e turned out to be qui te enjoyable.
Extraposed -ing clauses are uncommon outside i nformal speech, and they often
seem to be untidy afterthoughts:
It turned out to be qui te enjoyable(,) teaching her to drfre.
18.24
18.25
4 1 8 Theme, locus, and Information processing
Extraposition of a clausal object
When the object is an -ing clause in SVOC and SVOA clause types, it can
undergo extraposition; when it is a ta-infnitive clause or a that-clause_ it
must do so:
svoc
SVOA
You must fnd it exciting working here.
CJ: You must fnd working here exciting.
Working here is exciting.
I made it my objective to settle the matter.
CJ *I made to settle the matter my prime objective.
To settle the matter was my prime objective.
But : I made settling the matter my prime objective.
*I made it my prime objective settling the matter.
I owe it to you that the jury acquitted me.
CJ: *I owe that the jury acquitted me to you.
Contrast : I owe my acquittal to you.
[with corresponding nominalization]
Something put it into his head that she was a spy.
CJ: *Something put that she was a spy into hi s head.
Something put the idea of her being a spy into hi s head.
The construction type She's a pleasure to teach
In a sentence of type SVC where the extraposed clause of 1 8. 23 has an
object or prepositional complement, the noun phrase concerned can
sometimes be fonted to become the theme in pl ace of it. For example:
To teach Elizabeth is a pleasure.
It is a pleasure to teach Elizabeth. (cf 1 8. 23)
Elizabeth is a pleasure to teach.
Compare also:
It's impossible to deal with Bill.
Bill is impossible to deal with.
It's easy/difcult to beat them.
They re easy/difcult to beat.
It's fun (fr us) to be with Margaret.
Margaret is fun (fr us) to be with.
There is a similar construction with be sure, be certain, seem, appear, be
said, be known, etc, except that in these cases the corresponding
construction with anticipatory it requires a that-clause, and i t is the subject
of the extraposed clause that is fonted:
It's certain that we'll forget the address.
We're certain to frget the address.
It seems that you've made a mistake.
NOTE
18.26
NOTE
Postponement 4 1 9
You seem to have made a mi stake.
It is known that he's a coward
.
He's known to be a coward.
A combination of the
.
moement explained in I 8. 23
.fpcrmits a valuable range or
sentence frms fr adjusting the development of communicative dynami sm and
the assignment of end-fcus as desired. Thus along with the canonical s 1

c
sentence:
To pour cream out of this jug is difcult.
we have three further possibilit;.s. First. \\ith ordinary it extra position:
It is difcult to pour cream out of this jug.
The two other possibilities are:
This j jug is oiFcult to pour CREAM out ofj
I Cream is DiFfcult to pour out of this JUG I
The frmer implies difculties with the jug (perhaps its spout is too narrow); the
latter implies difculties with cream (perhaps it is too thick).
Postponement of object in SVOC and SVOA clauses
When the object is a l ong and complex phrase, fnal placement for end
fcus or end-weight is possible in SVOC and SVOA clause types. This
does not involve an it-substitution.
(a) Shift fom SVOdCa order to SVC00d order:
They pronounced guilty every one ofthe accused.
He had called an idiot the man on irhosejudgment he now had to rely.
(b) Shift from SVOdA to SVAOd:
I confessed to him all my l\'orse defects.
We heard from hi s own lips the story ofhow he had been stranded for
days without food.
She dragged (right) in(side) the tiro heavy boxes ofchemicals.
[a] The fct that we are disturbing the normal order in such clauses is i ndicated by a
tendency to adopt a di ferent intonation patrern. Thus the movement forward of
the C or A is usually accompanied by the assignment to i t ofa marked (subsi di ary)
focus (cf 1 8 . 1 2); compare:
She
I
pulled to ' one siDE the ' heavy d-Rtain
I
She pulled the ' heavy ' curtain to ' one SIDE
[b] In ditransitive complementation (cf 1 6. 31
.
f), the indi rect object precedes the
direct object:
I
{her ' brother } , -
I She gave
him
a S!Gnet nng [ I ]
Thus whether or not the O; i s pronominalized. the implication i s that i t carries less
communicative dynamism (is relatively "given') as compared with the Od. Where
18.27
420 Theme, focus, and information processing
the converse is true, the 0, is replaced by a prepositional phrase and placed artcr
Ou:
She I gave a 'signet ring lo her BR6rner I [2]
But there is a third possibility; the prepositional paraphrase of the O, can itsel f
precede the Ou:
She \ gave lo her BROTHer a siGnel ' ring I [
3]
The Ou i n [3] has the same rhemalic force as i n [ I ] but the O; has been replaced by a
form that raises i ts communicative dynamism above that of the O; in [ I ] though
still below that of the paraphrase in [2].
Disconti nuous noun phrases
Sometimes to achieve end-focus or end-weight, only part of an element is
postponed. The most commonly afected part is the postmodifcation of a
noun phrase (cfl 7. 42/), and the units most readily postponed are nominal
(i n this case appositive) clauses.
A rumour circulated widely that he was secretly engaged to the
President 's daughter. (CJ: 'A rumour that he was secretly engaged
to the President 's daughter circulated widely.
'
)
However, other postmodifying clauses, and even phrases, can be so
postponed:
The time had come to decorate the house for Christmas.
That loaf was stale that you sold me.
A steering committee had been frmed, consisting of Messrs Ogaiva,
Schultz, and Robinson.
Discontinuity often results, too, fom the postponement of postmodifying
phrases of exception (c/9. 1 5):
Al ofus were frightened except the captain.
The discontinuous noun phrase can be a complement or object:
What business is it ofyours? ( Cf It is no business of yours')
We heard the story forhis own lips of how he was stranded/or days
1rithout food.
I met a man this morning carrying an injured child.
But we may speak analogously of i nternal discontinuities: that is, where
there is movement of parts of a noun phrase to achieve end-focus, without
the i ntervention of material not frming part of the noun phrase as a
whole. In the nominalizations of [ l ] below, we see how the parts in
quotation marks corresponding to the original clause elements can be
moved to afect the internal communicative dynamism:
Lovell discovered the new star i n 1 960.
Lovell's discovery of the new star in 1 960 . . .
SVOA [ I ]
'SVOA' [2]
NOTE
1 8.28
Postponomenl 4 2 1
The discovery by Lovell i n 1 960 or tl
. ie new st ar
The discovery of the new st ar i n 1 960 b Lo
g
(?)Lovell's 1 960 new star discovery .

.
Y vei l + g g
' VSAO' [ })
' VOAS [ .)
' SAOV' [ 5]
[a] In apposition, the emphatic refexive pronoun (/ 111111<'1[ etc) nit)' ,
.
position:
- ` ' ary 1 11
The driver himSELF told me.
The driver told me hi msiLF.
Did you yoursELF paint the portrait?
Did you paint the portrait yourSELF?
As the emphatic refexive pronoun fequently bears nuclear stress, the postpone
ment is necessary i f the sentence is to have end-focus. Such postponement is
pos

ible, however, only i f the noun phrase i n apposition with the pronoun i s the
subject:
I showed Ian the letter mysel.
*I showed Ian the letter himsel.
(But cf: 'I showed Ian himsel the letter')
[b] With some other cases of pronominal apposi tion, we may prefer to postpone
the second element to a position immediately following the operator rather than to
the end of the sentence. This i s especially true \ith al, both, each (cf 6.24). For
example:
The advisers had al been carefully selected.
Other di scontinuities
Some degree of discontinuity is the rule rather than the exception in
sentences containing comparative clauses. though where the comp
element (cf 1 5. 36}) is a degree adverbial, examples without discontinuity
are firly easy to fnd. Compare the fllowing:
He has worked fr the handicapped more than anr other
politician (has) .
.
[ I ]
He has worked more fr the handicapped than anr other
politician (has) .
=
[ l a]
She is earning higher wages than I are , average. [2]
She is earning higher-than-average wages. [2a]
Beside a norm with minimum disconrinuiry as in [3], however, the
correlative item can be moved to fi nal position as in [3a] if this is
i nformationally desirable.
He is more skilled than his brother ! is; in matters of fi KNCE. [3]
He is I more ' skilled in ' matters of mance I than his
\ BROTHer (is) I [3a]
.
Some adjectives that take complementation (cf 7.9, 1 6. 38.) can
simultaneously function as premodifiers. Compare:
NOTE
18.29
422 Theme, focus, and Information processing
(a) TI
.
1
. {dif erent from l'Ours.
11 s resu t 1s = =

surlar to hers.
(b) Th
"
. {diferent result from yours.
is is a
similar result lo hers.
In cases l i ke (b), discontinuity is fel t to be quite normal. So also:
She works in the opposile room lo !his.
It is a timid dog wilh sf rangers.
[a] Similarity with prepositional phrases postmodifying a head can produce
ambiguity, as i n:
They made an embarrassing protest t o t he authorities.
In such i nstances, revision is essential to make i t clear which of the two possible
meanings i s intended:
They made a protest that was embarrassing to the authorities. [ I ]
[ie 'Their protest embarrassed the authorities']
They made a protest to the authorities that was embarrassing. [2]
[ie 'They protested to the authorities in a way that was
(generally) embarrassing']
[b] Wi thi n adjective complementation and prepositional phrases, discontinuity is
possible, especially by the insertion of degree adverbials:
They were fond to some extent ofBrecht 's early work.
It was di erent in many respects from what she had expected.
He worked hard, ll'ithoul fr the most part any reward.
The commonest
p
repositional phrase discontinuities are of the type:
Which group shall we put him in?
Note also the i nterruption of a verb phrase by the insertion of adverbials at M; cf
8. 1 1 . I n writing, i t is often convenient to use an adverbial along with the emphatic
operator where prosodic prominence would have sufced in speech:
They did indeed.fnd a solution. They FOUND a solution I
Structural compensation
From the structure of most clauses, we develop the expectation that the V
element wi l l be at a transition poi nt between a thematic l ow communica
tive dynamism and a fcal high:
Jill will de'cide next wEEK I
The boy ' broke the wiNdow
My friend be'came ANgry I
This has the efect of making
-
the simplest realizati on of the SV clause type
sound oddl y incomplete:
Mary SANG I My friend COOKED I
18.30
Exlstontlal sentences 423
It is more usual to fnd such sentences au gmcntcd by an adjunct (c(S . I J/f
Mary sang fr hours. My fiend cook d
. .
. .
c cnt hus1 ast 1 cal l v.
Al ternatively, we make i ntransi tive verbs bipart " t .
, -
w


b
1 c, an <1 ux1 l nr)' s
a trans1t1011 etween theme and fcus:
^ crv1 1 1 g as
Mary was siNGing I My friend would c<oK I
Such rephrasing is obviously context-dependent it 1's n t f
.
o o ten ! or
example, that a verb phrase might equally well be pro
. '
. gress1vc or
nonprogress1ve. Other means have therefre had t o be dev

' d 1-
' h"
,
h
.
1sc or
stretc mg t e predicate mto a multi-word structure. One of the most
generally serviceable (though i t tends to be rather i nfrmal in tone)
t
I h
.

lS O
rep ae t
.
e mtrans1
.
t1ve vrb by a transitive one of very general meani ng,
and give 1t as event1ve object a nominalization of the intransitive i tem (l/
I 0. 1 6, 1 7. 23). The general verbs do, make, give, have, lake are widely used
in this constructi on:
{My fiend cooked.
My friend did the cooking.
{He ate.
He had a meal.
{She replied (briefy).
She made a (brief reply.
{They strolled.
They took a stroll .
{Mary shrieked.
Mary gave a shriek.
So also solve jnd a solution; agreereach (or come IO) an agreement ;
applysubmil an application; suggest offer (or make) a suggeslion;
permil gr an/ (or give) permission; a/tend pay attention, etc.
Exi stenti al sentences
We have seen in 1 8. 4 that a sentence usually begins with reference to
'given' information and proceeds to provide 'new' infrmation. But there
are many occasions when we must make statements whose content does
not fl l neatly into these two categories:
A I car is ' blocking my WAY [ I ]
Many ' students are in fi ' nancial TOUBie I [2]
I Quite a ' few 'species of ' animal s are in ' danger of exTiNction I [3]
424 Theme, focus, and Information processing
These sentences may oblige the recipient to i nterpret a theme as enti rely
new and unconnected with anything previously introduced. In such
circumstances, it i s convenient to have devices fr providing some ki nd of
dummy theme which will enable the originator to i ndicate the 'new' status
ofa whole clause, i ncluding i ts subject. Thus in place of [ ! ], [2], and [3], we
might have:
There i s
}
{a car blocking
}
.

D
]
k
. my WAY
I have a CAR oc mg
There are }{many srudents in fnancial TROUBie
We have quite a ' few ' species of ANimals i n
One fnds danger of exTiNCTtion
[ l a]
[2a]
[3a]
In servi ng to bri ng the existence ofan entire proposition to the attenti on of
the hearer, the resultant constructions are known as 'existential
sentences', by fr the commonest being the type i ntroduced by unstressed
there, accompanied by the simple present or past of be.
NOTE [a] Many other constructions than those illustrated above are i nvoked to serve the
same purpose; for example, it with the proposition as extra posed subject (cf 1 8.23):
It i s a fact that
}
. .
I h b
.
d h
many students are m fnancial trouble.
t as to e sm t at .
Alternatively again, the proposition can be made a clausal object:
One fnds that
}
We must recognize that many students are in fnancial trouble.
I have to say that .
[b] Block language (cf 1 1 .22) ofen consists of verbless sentences that can be
regarded as existential:
DANGER!
MEN AT WORK OVERHEAD
Note that there are two types of negative di rectives and slogans:
No way out = 'There is . . . '
No discrimination = 'There must be . . . '
Existenti al there
Correspondence with basic clause patterns
18.31 There is a regular correspondence between existential sentences with
there+ be and clauses of equivalent meaning as specifed i ri terms of the
basic cl ause patterns (cf I 0. 1 ), provided that the clause concerned has
an indefnite subject (but c/Note [c]); and
a frm of the verb be in i ts verb phrase.
Allowing fr these two requirements, we may relate basic clauses to
existential frms such that [2] corresponds to [ I ] :
NOTE
Exlstonllel eentoncee 425
subject ( + auxi li 0ri es) Oc prcd |
. . .
!C i on
there 0uI S) O SuDC d' . .
[
I )
re |C.l |IO!1
[ 2)
The subject of the original clause m0y D0called t h , .
the there-sentence, so as to distinguish it from tl
c
.
no
1
ti onal ' SuD]C| of
.
,
.
lere l |SC f Which f
.
purposes IS the grammatical' subject (cf 1 8. 32) . E .
'
1 .
or most
1
t
.
h h
. .
xamp cs of l hc sever
c ause ypes wi t t e existential correspondences are given Del ow:
1
Type SVC
Somethi ng must be wrong.
There must be something wrong.
Type SVA
Was anyone in the vici ni ty?
Was there anyone in the vicini ty?
Type SV
No one was waiting.
There was no one waiting.
Type SVO
Plenty of people are getting promotion.
There are plenty of people getting promotion.
Type SVOC
Two bulldozers have been knocking the place fat.
There have been two bulldozers knocking the place fat.
Type SVOA
A girl is putti ng the kettle on.
There's a gi rl putting the kettle on.
Type SVOO
Somethi ng i s causing my friend di stress.
There's something causing my fiend distress.
Passive versions of the correspondences are also to be noted:
Type SVpass
A whole box was stolen.
There was a whole box stolen.
Type SVpass C
No chi ldren will be left hungry.
There'll be no children left hungry.
[a] Te notional subject can be postponed (cf 1 8.2 1 ) if it i s required to have fcal
prommence:
t
l
18.32
NOTE
426 Theme, locus, and Information processing
There was i n the vicinity a helpful doctor.
[b) Especially i n informal usage, there is an existential sentence with ari -ed clause
following the noun phrase:
There's a book gone from my desk.
[c] Existential sentences need not have an indefnite noun phrase
_
as 'notinal
subject'. In B's reply below, a defnite noun phrase coneys new mforma
_
l! on
.
providing a specifc (and hence defnite) instance ofsomethmg contextually given.
A: Have we any loose cash in the house?
B: Well, there's the money in the box over there.
The status of existential there as subject
The there of existential sentences di fers from there s an i ntoductory
adverb in lacking stress, i n carrying none of the loc
_
at1ve mean
.
mg of the
place adj unct there, and in behavig i n most ways like the subJet of the
clause, doubtless refecting the structural dislocation from the basic clause
types:
.
(i) It fl lows the operator in yes-no and tag quest10ns:
Is there any more soup?
There haven't been any phone calls, have there?
(ii) It can act as subject in infnitive and -ing clauses:
I don' t want there to be any misunderstandings.
He was disappointed at there being so little to do.
There having been trouble over this in the past, I want to treat the
matter cautiously.
[a] The absence oflocative meanig i
_
s i ndicated by the cceptability of existential
sentences where here cooccurs w!lh introductory there.
There's a screwdriver here.
By contrast, adjunct there with inversion (cf 1 8 . 1 6), as in 'There's the girl', woul d
be contradictory with an added here:
*There's the screwdriver here! (But cfl "THERE'S the SCREWdriver 1 -1 Right
"HERE I )
[b] Especially i nformally, there is treated li ke a singular subject where the
'notional' subject is plural:
There's some letters here for you to read.
[c] Apart from sentences related to basic clause types in the mannr described n
1 8 3 1 we have to consider various other types of sentence mtoduced Y
ex.ste
,
ntial there. Among them is the ' bare' existe
_
ntial (sometimes all
'ontological') sentence, which simply postulates the existence of some entity
entities:
18.33
NOTE
Exialontl ol oonlencoe 421
There was a moment's silence.
ls there any other business? [as spoken r
1 rom t 1c cln"
1 meeting]
' 1 r at l 1c end of n
Such sentences arc perhaps lo be explained as cases in wh' h 1
omitted as understood:
i c t ic fnal clement i
There was a moment's silence (in the room).
Existential sentences with relative cl auses
An additional type of existential sentence consists of there + he + noun
phrase + relative clause, and resembles the cleft sentence (cf 1 8 . 1 8,
example [2]) in its rhetorical motivation. Such sentences can be related to
sentences of orthodox clause types without the two restrictions mentioned
i n 1 8.3 1 ; the verb need not be a form of be, and although there must be an
i ndefni te element, i t need not be the subject:
Two students would like to see you.
There are two students (that/who) would like to see you.
It is i nteresting that the relative pronoun can be omitted (especially in
informal usage) even when i t is subject of the relative clause. This is
something not permissible according to the normal rule fr relative clause
frmation (cfl 7. 8) and is a sign of the special status within the main clause
of the annex clause here, as in cleft sentences.
As with cleft sentences, too, we can have diferent tenses in the two parts
of the sentence. Compare:
Some planets were discovered by the ancients.
There are some planets that were discovered by the ancients.
The existential-with-relative construction is particularly common as a
means of emphasizing a negative (c/Notes below):
I can do nothing about it.
There's nothing I can do about i t.
[a] We can negate either part or both parts: compare:
There was a student who didn't pass the exam.
There wasn't a student who passed the exam.
There wasn't a student who di dn' t pass the exam.
[ =one filed]
[ =all failed]
[ =all passed]
[b) A further common existential sentence pattern, there + be + noun phrase
+ to+ i nfnitive clause, is problematic to the extent that i t cannot be directly
related to the basic clause types of J O. I :
There was n o one fr us to talk to.
There's (always) plenty of housework to do.
[c] Note also the rather restricted use of -ing clauses (cf 1 5. I 0), as i n:
There's no telling what Janet will do next.
18.34
18.35
428 Theme, locus, and Information processing
Existential sentences with verbs other than be
The ' presentative' role of the existential sentenc

seems e

pecially clear in
a rather less common, more li terary type in which there 1s followed by a
verb other than be. For example:
There rose in his imagination grand visions of a world empire
.
There exist a number of similar medieval crosses in various parts or
the country.
There may come a time when the Western Nations will be less
fortunate.
Not long after this, there occurred quite a sudden shift in public
taste.
This construction, which may be related to other sentence forms ;,the
simple correspondence s + v there + v + s (where s_ is us

ally indef
nite), is equivalent in efect and style to subject-verb mv

rs10n ater an
ini tial adverbial (cf 1 8. 1 6, 1 8. 35). Grammatically, there

s a subJe
.
ct (cf
1 8 .32) with operator inversion when the statement pattern is tu
.
rn

d into
question, eg: Will there come a time . . . ? Did there occur a shift 111 pubhc
taste?
The present construction requires that the verb be i ntransitive and of
firly general presentative meaning: verbs of motion (arrive,

nter, pa

s,
come, etc), of inception (emerge, spring up, etc), and of stance (hve, remam,
stand, lie? etc); but cf 1 8. 35. The normal basic sentence pattern concerned
i s SVA :
A shift occurred i n public taste.
"here occurred a shift in public taste.
Existential sentences with initial space adjuncts
Let us look now at an example that pairs a verb of stance with the usual
ex
.
istential verb be:
In the garden there {:
d
} a sundi al . [ I ]
Since the place adverbial. Jn the garden, provides i n itself the cond
.
ition
enabling us to position the subject after the verb (cf 1 8. 1 6) , there is no
grammatical requirement fr there to be present:
In the garden {
was
d
} a sundial.
[2]
stoo
It should be noted that the range of verb-phrase frms with this type of
ordering is considerably wider than was specifed i n 1 8. 34. Nor need the S
be indefnite. Comt_are:
Into the back of his stationary car had collided a massive
goods vehicle. [3]

I
18.36
Eletonllol auntuncoa d29
In the garden lay
, ( fast . . 1
.
.is eer).
I old lady .)
Indeed, the va ria nt with as in [ I ] is much less lik I
[
[
?
d h
.
=
e Y i n 3] or [4J t ha
_] , an t 1 s s

ems to correlate w1th the less presentalivc' vcrb hn .

' 11 1 11
and the defni teness of the noun phrase in [4]. We might
.
f1 1 5
.
c I ll [ 3]
. .
surrna nzc t he
diference between [ l ] and [2] by say1 rn that the latter witli t / . . .

_
OU I lt'rc, I S
motivated by the wish to achieve end-focus. while the con
.
1
+
.
L

s ruct i on
as m [ I ] has the more general presentati\e function; cf 1 8. 34.
The haveexistenti al device
There is a type of existential sentence in which the thematic posi tion is not
occupied by a mere ' dummy' element but by a noun-phrase subject
preceding the verb have (or, esp in BrE, hare got ). Compare:
Two buttons are missing on my jacket.
There are two buttons missing on my jacket.
My jacket has two buttons missing.
I have two buttons missing on my jacket.
[ I ]
[2]
[3]
[4]
We are concerned here with the last two of these examples, and we can see
that the thematic noun phrase can vary sharply in its relation to the rest of
the sentence. Indeed, beyond saying that it has considerable involvement
i n the existential proposition, we cannot specify what that i nvol
v
ement
will be. Thus in
The porter has a taxi ready (fr you). [5]
there is a strong implication that the subject has an agentive role. whereas
i n
You have a taxi ready. [6]
it is just as strongly implied that it has a recipient role. Calling it afected'
seems perhaps to state the invol vement \\i th a degree of general ity that
satisfactorily accounts for most cases. Compare:
{
A rluable watch was stolen (from belonging to
-
my fri end)
.
[ 7]
lfy friend had a valuable watch stolen. [8]
{
There are several oak trees in the(ir) garden.
They have several oak trees i n the(irJ garden.
{
A brother of mine works i n Chicago.
I have a brother working i n Chicago.
[9]
[ 1 0]
[ 1 1 ]
[ 1 2]
Turning from the role to the identity of the thematic element, we see from
the examples throughout thi s section that it is often pro\ided (i f
optionally) in the corresponding nonexistential sentence: jacket in [ l ] in
relation to [3], my in [ l ] in relation to [4]. you in [5] in relation to [6]. m_
NOTE
18.37
430 Theme, locus, and Information processing
friend in [7] in relation to [8] , their in [9] in relation to [ I OJ, and mine in [ 1 1 ]
i n relation t o [ 1 2] .
[a] In have-existenlials, the 'notional' subject (ie lhe subject of the corresponding
basic clause type) can freely be defnite:
John's friend is helping him.
John has his fiend helping him.
By contrast: 'There is a friend helping hi m' but *'There i s John 'sfriend helping
hi m' .
[b] Correspondi ng to there-sentences of the same character

cf 1 8. 33), the
fl l owi ng illustrate have-sentences contai ni ng relative and nonfmte clauses:
{There's something (that) I've been maning to tell you.
I've something (that) I've been meanmg to tell you.
{There i s a guest staying with her.
She has a guest staying with her.
[c] Existential clauses can also be nonfnite or verbless; for example:
There soon being a taxi available,
(His) Soon having a taxi available, Dr Lowe caught his train.
With a taxi soon available,
Emotive emphasi s
Apart from the emphasis given by i nformation focusin
.
g, the l a

guage
provides means of giving a unit purely emotive emphas1

. They mc!ude
exclamations (cf 1 1 . 20), the persuasive do i n imperatives (cf 1 1 . 1 9),
interjections (cf J 1 .22 Note [c]), expletives and intensifers (cf 7. 1 8, 7. 32.f,
8 .35
.
ff), including the general clause emphasizers such as actualy, really
and indeed. Here we mention two particularly common strategies.
(a) Emphatic operators
Consider the diference between pairs l i ke the following:
{I' m J soRry I }
I J AM ' sorry j
{You J l ook PALE this ' morning I }
You J oo ' h

ok ' pale this ' morningj

{ J Mary wi l l be PLEASED I }
J ary WILL be ' pleased I
{I TOLD you I }
I J di d TELL you I
[ l ]
[2]
[3]
[4]
18.38
Rolnlorcoment 431
The second utterance i n each case resembl
.
stressed items discussed in 1 8. 1 1 . But a
cs pros

dical ly th
e operat or
s we sec wi th
[4] I
though emphasized, need not carry the n uclea ,.
, t le operat ors
h
.
r 1 orcc. More

*
t ey are not necessanly contrastive. It is not that
11 port an t ly,
I [
any one has 11npl " d t
am not sorry I ] or that Mary won't be pleased [J] R
ic t i at
(
.
t I h

dt hcr the spc ik
m a s Y e t at 1s sometimes flt to be rather gushing d
J ' er
.

an ext ravagr nt )
conveymg a personal concern or (as in [4]) even reproach 0 t 1
1
s
.
th" I
.
r pe u ancc J t 1 s
m 1s ast connection that the 1vill/1rould of ' insistence' ( f 4 1

1.
regularly stressed:
c + =7)
He I WOULD go and make a 'MESS of it I
(b) Noncorrelative so and such
In fmiliar speech of a rather extravagant style, the determiner such and
the averb so are stressed so as to give exclamatory frce to a statement
question, or directive. In this usage, there is no accompanying correlativ
clause or phrase (cf 1 5.42):
She was wearing 'such a lovely DRESS I
I'm so afaid they
'
l l get LOST I
In consequence, so and such become equivalent to how and what m
exclamations (cf 1 1 .20):
They were so cross! How cross they were!
I
Rei nforcement
Reinfrcement is a feature of colloquial style whereby some item is
repeated fr purposes of emphasis, focus, or thematic arrangement. Its
simplest form is merely the reiteration (with heavy stressing) o
f
a word or
phrase:
lt'sfar, far too expensive.
I agree with every word you've said - erery single l l"ord.
In very oose and infrmal speech, a reinfrcing or recapitulatory
pronoun is sometimes inserted within a clause where it stands 'proxy' fr
an initial noun phrase:
This man I was telling you about - well, he used to live next door to
me.
The book I lent you - have you read it yet?
These two examples show a complete noun phrase being disjoined fom
the grammar of the sentence, its role (as subject and object respectively)
grammatically perfrmed by subsequent pronouns. But i n being t hus
*+
-
432 Thee, focus, and Information processing
fronted, as marked themes (cf 1 8. 1 3 ), the disjoi ned noun phrases clearly
set out the ' poi nt of departure' fr the utterance as a whole. This is a device
that may be a convenience al ike to hearer (in recei ving an early statement
of a complex item) and speaker (in not having t o incorporate such an item
in the grammatical organization of his utterance).
I n contrast to such fronting of i tems, an ampl ifi catory phrase may be
i nformally added after the completion of a clause st ructure which contains
a corefrential pronoun:
They 're al l the same, these politicians.
I wouldn' t trust him for a moment, your brother-in-law.
Such utterances are usually spoken with divided focus (cf I 8. I 2), with a
rise on the 'tag' confi rming its relatively 'given' status:
They're I al l the SAME, these poliTicians I
The tag can be inserted parenthetically, and need not be fnal :
He's got a good future, your brother, i f he perseveres.
NOTE [a] An even more i nfrmal type of tag comprise
.
s a subject and operator:
That was a lark, that was!
He likes a drink now and then, Jim does.
She's a good player, Ann (is).
In some dialects of English (especially Northern BrE), the operator may precede
the subject:
She's a good player, is Ann.
[b] Postposed nonfnite clauses, of the kind discussed i n 1 8.24, sometimes closely
resemble amplifcatory tags; contrast:
It was tough getting the job fnished on time.
1 tough . . . . . . TIME I l
It was tough, getting beaten in the last match.
[ I TOUGH I I . . . . . . MATCH I J
[c] Expletives (in the broadest sense) provide a common mode of amplifcation i n
extremely informal speech, serving as a rhetorical transition between theme and an
emotionally col oured focus:
I I told them to ' darned ' well Listen I
Expletives can also amplify the theme in 11'/-questions: 'How on earth did you lose
it?'
Bi bl iographi cal note
On i nfration processi ng in relation to given and new, see Allerton ( 1 980); Chafe
( 1 976); Dahl ( 1 974); Halliday ( 1 967-68); Kuna ( l 976b); Li ( 1 976); Taglicht
( 1 984).
Reinforcement 433
On functional sentence perspective, see Danes ( 1 974)
( 1 972).
. Firbas ( 1 986): Kuno
On COl
.
nmuicative dynamism, see Firbas ( 1 979).
On existential constructions, see Brcivik ( 1 983
); Erdmann
( 1 975); Lakof ( 1 987): Milsark ( 1 979).
( 1 976); Jenkins
On i nversio,
.
see Jacobsson ( 1 986); Penhallurick ( 1 984).
On extrapos1 l10n and other aspects of orderi ne sec Enkvist ( 1 987) E d
( I ); Hartvigson and Jkobse ( 1 974); Rudank ( 1 982).
' r mann
grami:iar and style In relat10n t o prosodic features, see Andre ( 1 974) Bl ld ( 1 979,; Bolinger ( l 972b); Brazil ( 1 985); Chafe ( 1 976); Crystal ( 1 969 98
,
0) Enkv1 st ( 1 980); Faber ( 1 987); Halliday ( 1 967).
*
Other relevant studies i nclude: Biber ( 1 988)" Bolinger ( l 977)
B t R b
( 1 986 b)

L k f
' ' ur on- o crts
a, , a o ( 1 987); Lyons ( 1 977); Mathesius ( 1 975); Schmerling ( 1 976).
19. 1
1 9 From sentence to text
General
We apply the term 'text' to a stretch of language which makes coherent
sense i n the context of its use. It may be spoken or written; i t may be as
long as a book or as short as a cry fr help. Linguistic frm is important
but i s not of itself sufcient to give a stretch oflanguage the status of a text.
For example, a road-sign reading
Dangerous Corner
is an adequate text though comprising only a short noun phrase. It is
understood as an existential statement ( 1 8.30), paraphraseable as
something like 'There is a dangerous corner near by', with such block
language features ( 1 1 .22) as zero article that are expected i n notices of this
ki nd. By contrast, a sign at the roadside with the same grammatical
structure but reading
Critical Remark
is not an adequate text, because although we recognize the structure and
understand the words, the phrase can communicate nothing to us as we
drive by, and is thus meaningless.
In earlier chapters, as is normal i n grammars, we have exemplifed our
statements by way of printed sentences which have made an implicit
double demand on readers. First, we have assumed that the examples
would be read as if they were heard, mentally given by each reader
appropriate features of stress and intonation. Second, we have assumed
that readers would imagine fr each example an appropriate context in
which i t could have a plausible textual role.
19.2 In the present chapter, we take the formation of phrases, clauses, and
sentences for granted, and we look at the way they are deployed in the
formation of texts. This is of course far from being a matter of grammar
alone. It is primarily by the choice of vocabulary that language connects
us with the world beyond language, as we saw in comparing the examples
'Dangerous Corner' and 'Critical Remark' i n 1 9. 1 . Moreover, lexical
choice is used constantly to shape the i nternal cohesion of texts. Note the
use of the hyperrymically related family, children, parents and fruit, apple,
Granny Smiths in the following:
I like my family to eat lots of fruit, and Granny Smiths are especially
popular because this apple has a juicy crispness much enjoyed by
the children and their parents alike.
I
l

l

I
19.3
Place and time relaters 435
Nonetheless, since this book is d
d
as t f
evote to grammar pee s o text construction oth h
' we must exclude al l
concomi tant prosody and
er
:
an grammatical features and thei r
p
punctuation

rts
)
of a text may cohere withou.frmal nect10n :
linkage (asyndelic con-
I' in a state of shock. Jack's mother has just died.
Alterna

1 vely, conjunctions or other

connection explicit:
formal features may make the
Jack's mother has just died and (so) I'm
.
m a state of shock
Frequently the rheme ofa clause ( 1 8
.
.
.
a thematic pro-form an exa I f
-) is represented m what follows by
'
mp e o such thematic connection

I'
. .
ve Just read your new book It'
.
.

s very i nteresting
But pro-frms can als b d
.
, .
o e use to show rhematic connection:
I ve j ust read your new book. Have you seen mine?
Pl ace and time rel ators
Textual structure requires frm orien
. .
Consider the followino exa I
tat1on m respect to place and ti me
" mp e:

Years ago, I Ii ved fr a time in the Far E
at a naval base. I've been b k h
ast, where my fther worked
b
ac t ere once to lo k t ut that was after the base had closed.
o a our old home
+- - B - -->
C

+- - - - - - - - - - - n - - - - - - - - - - -
Fig 19.3
In relation to the i mplicit here and now of
refers to one other l ocat

.
the speaker and hearer the text
. i on m space and t th ,
.
7
Takmg A in Fig 1 9 3 as 'h
d
wo o er locat1ons' in time

ere an now' w
1

remote place where fr som I
'
.
e are impe led to imagine a
had existed a naval base W
e
?
t
n
h

un
h
spec1fed span in the past (D), there

1 m t at per" d c unsp

c1fed span B, the speaker had live

io ' or a shorter but also
D, a time C is mentioned and na f I
d there. Between A and the end of
It is noteworthy that the
tem
e
"
e

t
_
.
a
::
i
'
out duration.
19.4
436 From sentence to text
though no dates or precise places are given: the ' Far East' is far only from
(say) Britain and is east only in relation to somewhere that lies to the west
of it; the time is 'long ago' only in relation to ' now' - it was itsel f ' now'
when the speaker lived in the Far East.
Pl ace relators
Certain spatial relations are frmly linked to grammatical expressions
which are heavily exploited in textual structure. Thus an opening question
or statement will normally involve reference to location in space (as well as
i n time):
Where are you going tonight?
[ I ]
I t's ages since I was over there.
[2]
On Tuesday evening, I was at the front door talking to a caller.
Suddenly we heard a crash and two cars collided just
opposite. We hurried across to see if we could help. One
driver was scrambling out, bleeding profusely, and my visitor
helped him over to the iavement. Then along came some
people, running up the street. I dashed back in and phoned for
help. When I went out again, the other driver was trying to
move her car down the road a little and in to the side. [3]
In all three examples, spatial reference is essential, as well as orientation to
the participants' here (cfl 9.3): where in [I] entails a here fom which to set
out; over there i n [2] entails 'in contrast to here'. But let us look more
cl osely at the part played by spatial reference in [3], both in respect to
orientation and to the structure of the narrative.
Even totally out of context, the institutionalized phrase at the front door
would be understood as refrring to the main entrance of someone's
home, whether this was a house or a small apartment. - Likewise, just
opposite is at O!Ce understood as just opposite to where the speaker and his
visitor were standing. A road is implied by the car crash and i n this context
across means 'across th_e i ntervening space (of footpath and street)'. The
back in signifes a retur across this intervening space and into the
speaker's home. The two i nstances of out are of sharply di ferent
reference: the frst refers implicitly to emergence fom the car, the second
to re-emergence from the speaker's home (thus correlating with the earlier
back in). The contrasting phrases up (the street ) and down (the road) are
interesting in making spatial reference not necessarily in terms of relative
elevation (though this is not excluded). The immediate contrast is in terms
of orientation again: up indicating an approach towards the speaker (and
his home), down indicating the converse (cf 9. 7). The cl uster of spatial
refrences provides a continuous set of coordinates in relation to a base
(the speaker's home, though this is merely a pragmatic implication) as well
as a coherent account of the movements i nvolved in the narrative.
NOTE
19.5
NOTE
19.6
Place and time rel aters 437
In a text where i t was known that a physical slope was involved d
str

t ) would be usd wi th respect to this absolute and objective p-yfjal

o
;t
(the
an i t w?uld outweigh personal orientation. The latter could then be expresse:
e,
alternative means: 'She ll'ent ( awa}') up the street
.
.
'The d h
y
c
Y came own t e street'
ontrast alo 'They hurried up Fifth Avenue

(ie away from 'downtown
;
Manhattan), They sauntered down Fi fth Avenue' (ie towards do t
Manhattan); 'They walked along Fifth Avenue' (neutral as to di rection)
n own
Ellipses and pro-frms
Where place relators operate in text structure, ellipsis is often involved (cf
1 2. 1 9):
He exa?i

ed the car. The/roll/ was slightly damaged.

The buildmg was heavily guarded by police. The windows
[ I ]
{on the top storey}
at the top
were covered with boards. [2]
The elipted items in [ I ] and [2] are of the car and of the buildin
respectively. Often the ellipted items are not in the previous context b
are unde
_
st

od fom the situational context (either accompanyin te

communication or established by the communication):
The trafc lights eventually changed. She walked across quickly. [3]
Across here implies the road or
_
some similar noun phrase (c/9. 7, 1 9.4).
A
.
few place adverbs do not mvolve ellipsis: here. there elsewhere the
T
re
h
lat1ve where, and (in formal contexts) hence, theiz
;
e, hitler and thiher
ey are pro-forms:
g
The school laboratory reeked of ammonia. Here, during the
frst week of the term, an unusual experiment had beer
conducted. [4]
All my fiends have been to Paris at least once. I am going
there next summer fr the frst ti" me . [5]
Her

i n [4] is a substitute fr in the school laboratorr and there in [5] "
Pans.
+
or to
I se
.
tencs l i ke Stand tzere and Here i t is, t he pro-forms may refer directly t o the
s1
.
ua IOa contexts wi thout any linguistic mention of location bt with
onentatwn to the speaker:
'
I' m glad to welcome you here, especially since at the last meeting
I could not be there.

Pla

e re)

tors oft

n comprise two components. Most commonly these are

a d1 m

ns10n or dtrection indicator pl us a location indicator (cf9 4) Th

att; is

su

l ly

n op
_
en-class noun (or proper noun), but its locatinl us
Is
l
o
E
en mstttut1onalized, maki ng the whole expression quasi-grammati-
ca . xamples:
.
NOTE
438 From sentence to text
at the window
on the ceiling
in the air
at the seaside
in town
of work
on board
on the way
Another common type of pairing is a distance indicator pl us a dimension
indicator; fr example:
(not) fr }
{I n
out
of
away
fom
nearer +
{i n
to + noun phrase
further +
frther
higher( er) + up
Jow(er) + down
close +
{by
to + noun phrase
The partially antonymous home and abroad, ashore and on board are
exceptional i n combi ni ng the dimension and location fctors:
, {going
} After being out fr a couple of hours, I m now
t
.
s ayi ng
home for the eveni ng. [reference to personal residence]. [ I ]
{living }
After beng abroad, I like to
{

me
} home ( ='my
going
:
.
own country') for a year or so. .
[2]
Locational connections in relation t o coherence are not merely a necessary feature
of individual texts. It i s customary i n
n
ewspapers to group the otherwise separate
news-item texts on a regional basis. So too in radio broadcasts, a place relator may
serve to give some kind of coherence to otherwise unrelated stories. For example:
They are worried that another strike could break out i n the United States
similar to the one that afected Canada's economy so seriously two years
ago.
iN cANada news is coming in of a plane accident near Toronto. The
aircraft, a privately owned four-seater . . .
The textual j ustifi cation for iN is that a main focus on Canada would be misleading
since Canada is i n some sense already 'given'.
Time relators
19.7 Like space, time has i ts lexically specifc and labelled 'areas' and
'locations'. Al org with open-class nouns, some of them - like pl aces - are
treated as proper nouns: century, decade, year, 1989, January, week, day,
Thursday, evening, etc. Again like units of space, these n
?
ns have
.
an
i nstitutionalized and hence quasi-grammatical \se. I n add1 t1 on to bei ng
elements i n clause structure, they lend themselv
e
s to the connections and
transitions of textual structure:
Place and limo rol ators
I've been working on this problem al rear and I
1.
. - must i nd 1
solution before January when I' m due to go abroad Jr
'
month or so.
U
439
[ I ]
Nouns of more general meaning are sti ll more frmly harnessed for
grammatical use:
I 've been working a long time.
I' m going abroad/or a while.
She hasn't visited me for ages.
[2]
[3]
[4]
I n addition, therefre, to closed-class items l i ke aftenlrds, we take
account here of numerous open-class words which, though with clear
lexical meaning, are largely used in the constant process of keeping track
of the many and complex references that are necessary for cohere

t text.
Since time passes rrespective of location (which need not change),
temporal cues to periods, and to references before, after, within, and during
these periods, are more inherently essential than locational cues.
Once a time reference has been established, certain temporal adjectives
and adverbs may order subsequent i nfrmation in relation to the time
reference.
Temporal ordering
19.8 (i) Temporal ordering previous to a given time reference:
ADJECTIVES
earlier, former, preceding, previous, prior
For example:
He handed i n a good essay. His previous essays (ie 'those done
earlier') were all poor.
ADVERBIALS
already, as yet, before, beforehand, earlier. frst, formerly, hitherto
(formal), previously, so far, yet ; and phrases with pro-frms:
before that, before this, before now, before then, by noll' , br then,
until now, until then, up to now, up to then
.
For example:
I shall explain to you what happened. But frst I must give you a cup
of tea.
First is to be i nterpreted here as 'befre I explain to you what happened' .
19.9 (ii) Temporal ordering simultaneous with a given time reference:
ADJECTIVES
coexisting (frmal ), coinciding (frmal ), concurrent (formal),
contemporary, contemporaneous (formal ), simultaneous
NOTE
19. 10
440 From sentence to text
For example:
The death of the President was reported this afternoon on Cairo
rdio. A simultaneous announcement was broadcast from
Baghdad.
Here simultaneous means 'simultaneous with the report of the death of the
President on Cairo radio'.
ADVERBrALS
at tlzis point, concurrently (formal ), contemporaneously (formal ),
here; in the interim (formal ), meantime, meanwhile, in the
meantime, in the meanwhile, now, presently, simultaneously, then,
throughout, and the relative when
For example:
Several of the conspirators have been arrested but their leader is as
yet unknown. Meanwhile the police are continuing their investi
gation i nto the political sympathies of the group.
Here meanwhile means ' from the time of the arrests up to the present' .
[a] The use of presently for time relationship (ii), wi th the
_
meaning ' now', ' at
present@ is very common in AmE. In BrE, presently 1s more commonly
synonymous with soon.
[b] An example of here as time i ndicator.
I've now been lecturing fr over an hour. I' ll stop here since you all look
tired.
(iii) Temporal orderinsubsequent to a given time reference:
ADJECTIVES
ensuing (formal), following, later, next, subsequent (formal ),
succeeding (formal ), supervening (formal )
For example:
I left hi m at 10 p. m. and he was almost asleep. But at some later hour
he must have lit a cigarette.
Here later mi ght mean 1 1 p. m. but equally 4 a. m. , a time otherwise called
'the early hours of the morning'.
ADVERIALS
after, afterwards, (all) at once,fnally, immediately, last, later, next,
since, subsequently (formal ), suddenly, then; and the phrases after
that, after this, on the morrow ['the day after']
NOTE
19. 11
Tenoo, aspect, end narrative otructure 44 1
For example:
The manager went to a board meeti ng ll
. .
to catch train to London.
11 5 morni ng. He Wus tliltl due
The ordinals constitute a temporal series of adjectivcs}inr . .
/ ` ' I /Hr tliircl
1 I
nexl as a substitute fr any of the middle terms When movi ng u
'
tl
"_ Y I i
. P ic series 1111d
fnal or last as a substi tute fr the term marking the end of the q[
r

1
s .
T
I l
. . . . ' 1crc @
correspondi ng senes of conjuncts wi th frs/ (also al frs! and J "S co I = =
1
mmon y_
,rstly) as the beg1 mng of the set; secondly\ ete; l| then, later a}ienl'ard
s
,
;s
i nterchangeable mi ddle terms; and fnally, lastly, or eventually as markers of the
end of the set (cf general ordinals, 5. 1 0).
Tense, aspect, and narrative structure
As a further indication of the importance of time in language, all fnite
clauses (and many nonfni te ones) carry a discrete indication of tense and
aspect. Al though the contrasts involved are severely l imited in compari
son with adverbial distinctions, they contribute to the textual cohesion
and progression. Compare the diferent implications in the second part of
what follows:
She told me all about the operation on her hi p.
It seemed to have been a success.
It seems to have been a success.
[ I ]
[2]
In [ l ], in accordance with our expectations with respect to sequence of
tenses and backs hi ft ( cf1 4. 1 8), t he past ties t he second part to the first, and
thus, like this, derives its authority from the woman concerned: 'It seemed
to her . . .'; that is, 'Size was of the opinion that the operation had been
successfl ' . The possibility of repudiation is therefore open: ' Unfortuna
tely, this is not so'. I n [2], by contrast, the present disjoins the second part
and may imply an orientation to the 'I' narrator: rt seems to me . . . ', ' Jam
- of the opinion . . .
Al ternation of past and present in this way is a regular mode of
switching reference from the ' then' of t he narrati\'e reference to t he ' now
of both the narrator and the hearer or reader (some i tems like parenthetic
you see being confned to this ' now') :
As a child, I lived in Singapore. It's very hot there, you knoll' ,
and I never owned an overcoat. I remember being puzzled at
picture books showing European children wrapped up in
heavy coats and scarves. I believe I thought i t al l as exotic as
children here think about spacemen's cl othing, you see. [3]
Consider the instances of past tense i n this text: /ired, owned, tlzouglz t. Not
merely are these verbs morphologically identical: the text actually
represents the past as being referentially identical. All the verbs refer back
to a stretch of time d uring which these things were true. CJFig 1 9. 1 1 .
19.12
NOTE
I
442 From sentence lo text
+
- - - - - - - - - -Then - Now

___

is lived
(never) owned
thought
know
remember, etc
Fig 19. 1 1
But past tenses need refer neither to the same time

or to

tretches o f time.
With verbs which connote discrete actions, a narrative stnng of past tenses
will be i nterpreted as referring to a sequence of events iconically
represented by the sequence of verbs. Consider for example:
Do you want to hear about my adventures last Thursday? I got
up at six, had some cofee, kissed my wife goodbye, and
_
set off
fr Rome. I took a taxi and then the underground, arrived at
Heathrow, started to check i n my case, patted my pocket and
found- no ticket, no passport. Picked up my case, caught the
underground, got another taxi, arrived at my font door,
rushed in, and of course gave my poor wife the shock of her
life. [ l ]
This calls fr a very diferent diagram, as shown in Fig 1 9. 1 2.
Now
============-T_h_ur _sc _a_y
-
-
-
-_-_-_-_--+ -\


Fig 19. 1 2
Do
you
want
... ?
[a] While a sequence of past tenses implies sequential events if the lxical meani_ng
of the verb makes this plausible as i n [2], a sequence of past verbs with progressive
aspect (cf 4. 1 0) can imply simultaneity, as in [3]:
Rene raged with anger. Janet went out for the evening.
.
[2]
Rene was raging wi th anger. Janet was going out for the evening.
[3]
[b] Use of the past perfect (c/4.9) can enable us to reverse the order of sentences i n a
text. Note the way in which 'Time One' [Ti ] precedes Ti in [4], where Ti precedes
Ti in [5]:
There was a sudden violent noise outside [Ti ]. John telephoned the
police [Ti].
[4]
19. 13
Tense, aspect, and narrative structure
John telephoned the poli ce [Ti] TI , , 1 .
+ 1LIL i.1d been ' l u J I I
noise outside [T ] .
s l l en v10 cnt
J
[ 5 )
Note also the use of present perfect with simple .
` . + part of 1 9. 2.
present , .s i l l ustrated I n the lat ter
Tense complexity in narrative
More usually, however, texts comprise much greitcr t"
.
'
mc-re1 erence
complexity than the examples i n 1 9. l lfshow. They wi l l h vc m
t .

+ Ure ol
state verbs and 1screte

act1on verbs; the narrative wi l l weave back wards and frwards,

:
1th a mi xture of tenses and aspects, of fi nite and non fi ni te cI
_
ause
_
s, enablmg the narrator to depart fom the l i near sequence or h1stoncal order so as both t o vary t he presentati on and to achieve diferent (eg dramatic) efects:
I was readi ng Chaucer's Troilus the other night, and it
suddenly occurred to me to wonder what Chaucer
{expects }
expected
us to make of the fact that Criseyde {

:
}
been widowed,
whereas Troilus {

:
}
never even been in love. Surely
this is signifcant, yet I had never thought of it before.
( l ]
Chaucer's
time
before
the other
night

1
u
1
C
>
1
t
L
L
I
s
u
Fig 19. 13a
now
\
had never thought
was reading
Chaucer expects
Here we have the additional complication ofa narrative about a narrative
within a narrative (see Fig l 9. l 3a). The account of the narrator's readi ng
and refection i s i tself of some complexity: wi thi n a period in the past, a
durative activity (reading) is represented as being interrupted by a sudden
thought. But the thought had signifcance not merely at the time of
thi nki ng i t nor merely duri ng the rest of the reading period; i t is
represented as bei ng permanently signifcant. The appeal to the hearer
('Surely . . . ') does not connote that is refers only to the no11 of the speaker
and hearer; there is no room fr some such ad,erbial as at prese/lf :
' '
NOTE
19. 14
444 From sentence lo text
*Surely this is at present signifcant.
The narrator i s here using the present tense of timeless reference (c:4. 3 ). I t
i s the potentiali ty for such a use of the present that made us give the two
possibilities, 'Chaucer expects' and 'Chaucer expected' .
_
The latter takes
the historical view: a comment on the poet as he wrote i n the fourteenth
century. The former treats the Chaucer canon as timeless, permanently
existing.
The fctional
'Now'
(Troilus , Book I)
A ---
l
"B
Fig 19.13b
An analogous choice exists in referring to the fctional narrative of
Chaucer's poem. In Fig 1 9. 1 3b, 'A' represents the (unknown) period
during which Criseyde has been a widow befre the poem begins; ' B'
represents the longer period (in efect, Troi lus's whol e life) duri ng which
Troilus has never been in love. It will be noticed that in this commentary
we have adopted the ' timeless' view of the fction ('When the poem begins,
Criseyde has been a widow fr some time'). In the original example [ I ] , the
past vari ant was also given, implying a retelling of the story_ ('When
Troilus frst saw Criseyde, she had been a widow fr some time').
Narrative i ntroductions like 'They tel l me that . . . ' ' I hear/gather/understand
that . . .' i mpose no constraints upon the tenses to fllow.
Special uses of present and past
We have seen that the present tense can cooccur i n textual structure wi th
two di sti nct types of time references: ordinary 'state present' and uni versal
'state present' ('timeless'; cf4. 3):
I think she had undergone an operation befre I met her. [ l ]
Troi l us is totally fncy-fee until he sees Criseyde. [2]
A third type of present, 'habitual' (cf 4. 3), is common i n ordinary
narrative, and i t can readily cooccur with past tenses:
I had frgotten that they dine very early and I arrived at an
awkward moment fr both them and me. [3]
But there is a further use of the present tense: the so-called ' hi storic
present' (cf 4.4). As well as occurring in rather mannered and formal prose
I
I
J
NOTE
1 9. 15
Determiners, pro-forms, and ellipsis 445
of an
_
old-fashioned tone, it is common in colloquial spoken narrative,
especially at points of particular excitement. The time reference i s
unequi vocally past. For example:
It was on the Merritt Parkway j ust south of New Haven. I was
driving along, half asleep, my mind miles away, and suddenly
there was a screeching of brakes and I catch sight ofa car that
had been overtaking me apparently. Well, he doesn' t.
'
He
pul l s in behind me i nstead, and it's then that r notice a police
car parked on. the side.
[4]
[a] In nonstandard speech, the reporting verb in narrative is often in the historic
present:
'Where did you put my coat?' he says. 'I never touched it,' I says. [5]
[b] As well as being able to use the present tense to refer to the past, we can conversely use the past to refer to a narrator's 'now', exploiting that frm of backshift that is referred to as fee di rect and indirect speech (cf 1 4. 22). Textual cohesion and congruity of reference are maintained by careful consistency of tense
and aspect usage, present replaced by past, past by past perfect, even i n the prolonged absence of reminders to the hearer/reader i n the frm ofreporting verbs
('He refected . . .', 'She said . . .'). For example:
He was suddenly afrai d. What on earth was he to do now? How
coul d he have been so silly as not to tell Sheila he'd frgotten


Determi ners, pro-forms, and el l ipsis
Let us consi der the following independent sentences:
An argument over uni lateral disarmament broke out between
them.
An argument over uni l ateral di sarmament fnal l y put an end
to their friendship.
[I ]
[2]
If we wi shed to make these sentences i nto a textual whole, there would be
numerous possibili ties, even keeping the frst part unchanged:
. . . between them.
{
s
}
argume
_
nt fally put an end to
[3]
That
their friendship.
{
The }
d
'
. 1spute . . . between them. This {
}
fnally put . . .
That
controversy
. . . between them. {i

s }{:er } fi nally put . . .

That afair
. . . between them - an argument that fnally put . . .
. . . between them, which fnally put . . .
[4]
[5]
[6]
f71
19. 16
446 From sentence lo text
{this
(
. . . between them, and
that
f fnally put . . . [8]
. . . between them, and it fnally put . . . [9]
. . . between them and fnally put an end to their friendship. [ 1 0]
All these versions have two things in common. They abbreviate the second
part and they connect it with the frst part.
In some ways the most straightforward is [6], where a simple and di rect
shorteni ng of the frst subject phrase is used apposi tively; cf1 7. 27. There is
something si mi l ar in [3], where reduction retains the original head-word of
the noun-phrase argument, but here the coreference wi th the precedi ng
subject i s i ndi cated not by apposition but by the anaphoric determi ners
the, this, or that ; cf5. 3f In [4] and [5] coreference is again carried by deixis,
but i n [4] the original noun phrase i s not merely abbreviated but i ts head
word i s replaced by a semantic paraphrase. In [5], on the other hand, the
head-word i s replaced by a quasi-pronomi nal noun of very general
meaning. In [8], anaphoric deixis again poi nts to the coreference, as in [4]
and [5, but this time wi th the head-word replaced by zero; the
demonstrative this or that i s used pronominally; cf6. l 9f In [9] _ the vaguest
possible pronoun (it ) i s used, while in [7] a relative pronoun replaces the
earlier noun-phrase subject (cf 1 7. 1 1 ) . Finally, i n [ 1 0] , there i s total
omission of the second subject (cf 1 3 . 1 9).
All eight of [3-1 0] provide satisfactory coherence of the two parts. It i s
perhaps cl osest i n [ 1 0], but only at the cost of muting the separate
signifcance of the second part - i n contrast to [3] and [4], for example,
which insist on our considering the beginning of the argument, on the one
hand, as well as its result on the other hand.
Discourse reference: clausal
Common signals fr sentence or clause reference include:
anaphoric and cataphoric: here, it, this
anaphoric only: that, the foregoing (formal)
cataphoric only: as follows, the following, thus (formal)
Anaphori c examples:
Many years ago their wives quarrelled over some tri vi al matter,
now long frgotten. But one word led to another and the
quarrel developed into a permanent rupture between them.
That i s why the two men never visit each other's houses. [ l ]
Some students never improve. They get no advice and therefre
they keep repeati ng the same mistakes. It i s a terrible shame. [2]
Students want to be shown connections between fcts instead
of spendi ng thei r time memorizing dates and frmulas.
Reflecting this, the university i s moving away from l arge
survey courses and breaking down academic fences in order
to show .subjects relating to one another. [3]
NOTE
I
Detorminors, pro-forms, and el l i psi s 1
Cataphoric eAamplLs.
This should interest you i f you' , .
.
11 k

l st1 ccn L b
world heavyweight champions!
. _ _
ox1 ng. The
eh
. ll p is goi ng lo b . I I ' .
icago next June, so you should b ,
.
bi
\ 1 1 11

.
\ ,1 L to watch "t I
"
.
Here 1s the news. A di plomat was ki di d 1
lC,
L d [ d
.
i,1 ppc ast nght i n
on on . . . ra L announcement)
It never should have happened He went oti t
.
d 1 f

l1 c I the
baby unattended.
My arguments are as follows . . .
[4)
[ 5)
[ 6)
[ 7]
In some instances, we can replace the reference signal by a co d"
.
C rrcs
pon l ng
that-clause. For example, that m [ l ] could be said to refier to a r/ I
. . .
wt-c ause
which corresponds to the i mmediately precedi ng clause:
. . . That the quarrel developed into a permanent rupture
between them is why the two men . . .
[ l a]
In [2], on the other hand, it could be said to stand for the whole of the two
p:ecedi ng sen
_
tences. I
_
n [5], here could refer forward to a following
discourse of mdetermmate length, and this i s usual with cataphori c
signals.
[a] A
_
bove and below are used fr discourse reference to refer to (written) uni ts of
varymg length, but not necessarily to immediately neighbourino parts of the
discourse:

+ . . the arguments given below [perhaps referring to several sentences]

. . . the question mentioned above
The above but not * the below can be used as a noun phrase:
The above illustrates what we mean by . . .
[b] The nonrestrictive relative clause, with a previous clause or sentence as the
antecedent ?f i ntrod uctory which
(
cf I 7. 1 2), i s sometimes made i nto a separate
orthographic sentence. Which is then an anaphoric signal equival ent to ( and)
that :
She's borroned a history book. Which suggests her teacher is havi ng some
infuence on her.
-
[c] In some (especially disapproving or ironic) contexts, that can be used
cataphorically:
THATS what I like to SEE: a chap who enjoys his work.
Otherwise, that i s used anaphorically.
[d] In i nfrmal spoken English, what can have cataphoric reference when i t i s the
direct object of know in a question, or guess in a di rective, or tell i n a statement:
(Do you) Know WHAT? }
Guess WHAT.
He won't pay up.
(J'l]) Tell NOll WHAT" 1`x= rvnrt:o +! !~-~l
19. 17
448 From sentence to text
[e] In legal English the said, the ( a)foremenlioned, and the aforesaid are usd fr
anaphoric reference, the last two both as a premodifer (' the aforementioned
provisions') and as a noun phrase. I n the latter function, they would normally refer
to a previous noun phrase with personal reference.
Formulaic utterance
While deicti reference and elli pted matter must, from a grammatical
viewpoi nt, be recoverable (cf 1 2.2), discourse permits a ood deal of
vagueness. This i s especially common i n i nfrmal conversation, not least
in the semi-formulaic responses to expressions of thanks, apology,
i nqui ry, and the l i ke. Consider how difcult i t woul d be to specify the
precise references or the exact elli pses i n the followi ng responses:
A: Thank you very much.
B: Not at all.
}
Not a bit.
Don't mention it.
You're WLcome. (esp AmE)
A: I' m terribly sorry.
B: Not at all. }
Not a bit.
It's nothing.
[ l ]
[2]
A

w
{
o
f ;;::
d
A
:
oo
}
mi ng and tak
}
i

g
::
,
::
ion?
[J]
Ri?HT

} (esp BrE)
(informal)
WLL DO
A: Would you mind my asking if you've ever taken drugs,
Mr Hoover?
B: Absolutely NOT. [4]
A: You woul dn' t know a fortune-teller around here,
I suppose?
B:
{TRY m
,
e.
Try ME.
[5]
[6]
In [5] the i mplication is that B knows one ('Try asking i f l know one' ); i n
[6], B i s saying that he hi mself can tell fortunes. In [4], onl y the
_
context
coul d clarify whether B is saying that he 'absolutely (does) not (mmd)', or
that it is 'absol utely not' true that he has taken drugs. In [3], the frmulaic
response Will do! i s a conventional way of saying ' I will do as you request',
and B has i nterpreted (correctly, of course) A's polite i nquiry as a request.
In [ l ] and [2], the reference of it, in Don't mention it, It 's nothing, !s
doubtless anaphoric in some way. But in the first l i ne of[7], it is cataphonc
i f almost equally vague in i ts reference; the i nitial imperative by B is l ittle
NOTE
19. 18
Delerminers, pro-forms, ond elli psis 419
more than an i nformal attenti on-requeht i ng 1 I .
=
. . .
" gn, . .i more severe form ol
which includes a cataphonc here:
A: By the way, Cynthi a. I t's awful of me, I know. But woul d
you be able to l ook after my dog whil e I ' m away nex t
week?
B: (Now look) (Here), this is the third time you've left mL
wi th your dog.
[ 7]
Wi thi n sentence sequences that are strictly ali ke from a grammat iLal roi nt
of view, a discourse pronoun can have sharply di fferent reference:
She hoped he would not mention her unfrtunate marriage.
This would be very COURTeous ofhi mi n a wiy,
[S]
It } {COURTeous of hi m.
That of course. [Sa]
In [8], the reference i s to the predication incl uding the negative (' Hi s not
mentioning the marriage would be courteous'). In [Sa], the reference
excludes the negative ('His mentioning the marriage would be courteous').
It i s only the pragmatic i mplications of the hedging adverbial in a way and
the concessive ofcourse that leads us to this i nterpretati on.
An i nteresting use of eataphorie it i n textual structure i s i n the cleft sentence device
(cf 1 8 . 1 8
.
ff:
It was at 9. 1 5 this morning that the goverment proclaimed a state
of emergency. [9J
I t was on their way fom the airport that Gillian dropped the
bombshell. In careflly casual tones, she asked him i f he would
agree to a divorce. (I OJ
In [9J, it is unl ikely that the narrator wishes to highlight the time adjunct: rather,
the textual device is poi nti ng to the climax at the end of the sentence. In (I OJ, the
same applies, but wi th a doubl e cataphora: the bombshel whi ch ends the frst
sentence is climactically explained i n t he sentence that foll ows.
Discourse reference: noun phrases
Certain determiners are used to signal that a noun phrase is referentially
equivalent to a previous noun phrase (cf 5 -:
the thi s-these that-those
Such noun phrases may be discourse abs tractions, and the heads may
ei ther be i denti cal as i n [ l ] or nomi nalizations (l 7. 23J that add lexical
variation as in [2]:
She set up a hypothesis that chemotherapy destroyed the wi l l to
live as well as the unwanted cells. This hypo1hesis attracted
the attention of . . . [ l ]
Deconstructionism holds that knowledge about literature i s
NOTE
19. 19
450 From sentence l o text
strictly unattainable . . . This doclrine is puzzling in several
respects. [2]
I t is not always certai n, however, when such a reference is to a previous
noun phrase or is a nominalization of a wider, clausally expressed
proposition. The text from which [2] is quoted is a case in poi nt. As
presented in the abbreviated form of [2], doctrine seems to refer back
unambiguously to deconslruclionism and be a lexical variant of it. But in
the original, there are several li nes where we have i ndicated the
curtailment, and these include the following:
We must therefore abandon the old-fshioned quest to discover
what a given author was trying to communicate. [2a]
The reference of !his doctrine must therefre i nclude, not merely the
specifc abstract deconstructionism, but the speculated consequence which
the author went on to state. A fuller version might therefre read:
This doctrine ofdeconstructionism and the need to abandon the
old-ashioned quest . . . i s puzzling in several respects. [2b]
When such is used, the intention is often to indicate disapproval (which
may be sympathetic):
We visi ted the Browns yesterday and heard their complaints
about the condition of the house they live i n. I never heard
such a sorry tale. [3)
. . . such a rigmarole. [3a]
. . . of such wretchedness. [3b]
In [3] and [3a], the reference is primarily to the complaints, [3a] lexically
i ndicating impatience rather than sympathy; in [3b] the reference i s rather
to the condition, with an implication of the speaker' s sympathy.
Use of the former and the latter i s largely confned to (rather frmal) noun-phrase
reference:
They were fll of resentment because no one came to visit them and also
because their roof was leaking. I helped them over the latter [ie about the
roof] and promised to let some friends know about the former [ie the
complai nt about neglect].
For broader reference, both phrases might be expanded to include a noun head:
I helped them over the /al/er issue and promised to let some fiends know
about the former problem.
So and that can have anaphoric reference when they are i ntensifers
premodifyi ng an adjective (that so used is i nfrmal and often cri ticized):
There were two thousand people i n the theatre. I di dn't
I

l
l
I
19.20
Determiners, pro-forms, and ellipsis 451
expect i t to be {
so
} ful l .
1ha1
f had a rerrible headache yesterday and had to take some
aspiri ns. f'm not feeling {
so
} bad today.
lh{
We took them to a circus, and then to a zoo, and gave them
lots of ice-cream and chocolate. They haven't had {
so
}
that
good a time for years.
[ ! ]
[2]
[3]
Such is us

d more commonly than so or that when (as in [3]) the adjective

accompanies a noun phrase, but such is fllowed by normal noun-phrase
order:
. . . They haven't had such a good time fr years.
[3a]
:ote
.
the di ferent i mplications when this, that, and so are used as
ntens1fers; tl

is ha present orientation, that past orientation (both being

mformal), whi ie so is neutral both temporarily and stylistically. Compare:
Did you expect {:/ }many people?
Pernal pronouns
As explained in 6. 1 0, we has several possible noun-phrase references. In
discourse, we are concerned chiefy with the 'inclusive' we (as in the
present sentence), and wi th the 'exclusive' we as i n:
Wi ll you stay here while we go fr a policeman?
[ I ]
In formal writing, and fequently indeed i n the present book we
'inclui ve' and we 'exclusive' can cooccur. The frmer accompanies erbs
1mplymg shared knowledge (understand, see, appreciate, etc), the latter
verbs
_
of communication (say, state, write, etc). It would be possible to use
both m the same sentence, though this would usually be avoided:
We see now why we expressed reservations earlier. [2)
!n [2],
_
the second 11e is exclusive, the frst inclusive or even (as often)
mdefmte and roughly equivalent to a more frmal one or the reader.
The i ndefni te use of you and the you of direct 2nd person address (cf
6
:
1 2) can also cooccur. In [3], the frst you is indefni te, the second makes
di rect address:
In furteenth-century England, you had a very poor chance
of being taught to read, you see. [3]
Unli
1
ke te two ses of 1
:
e, owever, you is rather rare in formal writi ng
and the mdefmte use 1s VIrtually excluded. The same applies to the
NOTE
19.21
452 From sentence to text
indefi nite use of they; in formal styles, they in [4] would refer only to the
council authorities, where informally i t is more plausible with indefnite
reference:
J intend to ask the council authorities why they are digging
up the road again.
[4]
Jn place of the i nformal indefnite you, there is one, but it can be used only
spari ngly without making a piece of writing (or even more so a spken
utterance) sound intolerably pompous. This i s perhaps especially
constraining in BrE, which lacks in general the fcility (now in any case
frowned on for social reasons) of replacing one by he in second and
subsequent use:
One cannot control one's temper easily i f one i s discussing a
matter over which one has feel i ngs of guilt or great personal
involvement. (esp BrE) [5]
In [5], we could have in AmE: One . . . his . . . he . . . he . . . Other indefi nite prono

s
such as ayone, everybody can be fllowed by he in both AmE and BrE, but this 1s
vulnerable to the objection of seeming to have a male orientation, while the use of
they to refr back to these indefinites i s open to the objection of seeming
ungrammatical i n the switch fom singular to plural. It is therefre l argely
confned to spoken (esp infrmal) usage.
Comparson
Signals of comparison and contrast play a fequent part in providing
textual coherence. Most can be regarded as involving ellipsis (cf 1 2. 1 4 ) .
The most obvious comparison signal i s fund in adjectives and advrbs,
whether in the infected frms or in the periphrastic forms with more,
most, a, less, least (cf7. 39). If the basis of comparison (cf 1 5. 36) is not
made explicit i n the clause, i t must be i nferred fom the previous context:
John took four hours to reach London. Bill, on the other
hand, was driving more slowly. [ l ]
Mary used t o listen t o records most of the time. Sally was a
more serious student. [2]
There were ten boys in the group. Bob was by fr the best. [3]
Barbara dances beautifully. Jack dances no less well. [4]
Gwen always hands in a well-constructed and i ntelligent paper.
I'm afraid Joan doesn't expend as much efort and time on
her papers. [5]
We can demonstrate the anaphoric reference by supplying the basis of
comparison:
. . . more slowly than John (drove) .
. . . a more serious student than Mary (was) .
. . . the best (of the ten boys) (in the group).
. . . no less well than Barbara (dances).
[ l a]
[2a]
[3a]
[4a]
NOTE
19.22
The textual role of adverbials 453
. . . as much effort and time on her papers as Glen (expends
011 her papers) . [5a]
So too with expressions of similarity or diference; these may i nvol ve the
use of equative and anti thetic conjuncts (cf S.44). For example:
Mrs White was the victim of a confdence trick. Bil l was
cheated
{

ery di erently. }
m the same way.
[6]
Tom gets ten dol lars a week for pocket money. Bob receives
a similar amount. [7]
Mrs Hayakawa complained that the roof leaked and the
windows ftted badly, so that the place was feezing cold. Her
husband complained likewise.
Jim behaved hi mself at the party. However, the other boy
had to be sent home.
Fred di dn' t like the car. He asked to see a di erent one.
We can display the basis of similarity or diference:
. . . very di ferently from the way in which Mrs White}
was (cheated) .
. . . in the same way as Mrs White (was (cheated) ).
. . . an amount si mil ar t o what Tom receives.
. . . complained about the same things as Mrs Hayakawa
(complained about).
. . . the boy other than Jim . . .
. . . see one diferent from the car he didn't like.
[S]
[9]
[ 1 OJ
[6a]
[7a]
[Sa]
[9a]
[ I Oa]
Expressions involving respective(ly), mutual(ly), converse(ly), opposite (-ly i s
rare), etc, efect considerable neatness and economy i n discourse:
Brahms and Verdi wrote orchestral and operatic music, respectively.
The chairman and the guest speaker expressed their mutual admirati on.
Mary told Harry that she never wanted to see him agai n. He reciprocated,
but wi th even greater bi tterness.
I thought that Oregon had a greater rainfll than British Columbia but
Caroline says 1he opposi1e.
'
The textual role of adverbials
In 1 9. 1 7 we saw in exampl e [Sa] the communicative impact of the inserted
adverbials in a way and of course. While the basic functions of adverbial s
are set out i n Chapter S, we need here to emphasize their dual role i n
textual structure: i nterpreting the text to the hearer/reader (eg in
encouraging a particul ar atti tude), and expressing the relevant connection
454 From sentence lo text
between one part of a text and another. The frmer is achieved primarily
by subjuncts and disjuncts (cf 8. 3/, 8.40.l, the latter by conj uncts (cf
8.43}. Consider the following:
{months
} d h
.
f
.
k My dog is fourteen old an 4 e 1s very ns y.
years
[ l ]
Given the appropriate general knowledge, the choice of months or years
wil l determine the aptness of adverbials that might be added at the
insertion sign: of co11rse or naturally on the one hand; yet, still, s11rprisingly
enough on the other. A further example.
{is an entomol ogist. }
My next-door neighbour is a travelling salesman.
works for an oil company.
. He knows more about treating mosquito bites than
anyone I've ever met. [2]
The second sentence of [2] might be preceded by Not surprisingly, but this
would seem appropriate only i f we knew what an entomologist was, or i f
we connected travelling salesmen or oi l executives with experience of
mosquito-ridden areas. Preceding the second sentence wi th All tlze same or
Nonetheless would obviously have very diferent implications.
But te postulated insertions i n [I] and [2] would serve not only to nudge
the hearer in the direction of adopting a particular attitude or to let the
hearer know something of the speaker's attitude: they would also indicate
the nature of the connection between the two parts of each text. Without
the adverbials, each text is presented as ofering two pieces of information;
in this spirit, the second parts might have read respectively:
. . . and he sleeps in the kitchen. [ l a]
. . . He got married last week to a former girlfiend of mine. [2a]
In other words, the connection is thematic only, in the sense of 1 9. 2. Wi th
the adverbials inserted, the second part of each text is shown to be (as the
original versions might chance to be interpreted as being) specifcally
related to the preceding rheme, either as a natural consequence or as a
surprising paradox.
NOTE Since of course can hi nt at incongruity (concessi on: 'admittedly') i nstead of
expressing congruity, [ I ] might still be a well-formed text as:
My dog i s fourteen years old and of course he is very frisky (still)
(, though I think he's beginni ng to show his age). [ l b]
This us of of course commonly expresses superfcial agreement wi th what has
preceded, while at the same time hi nting at a more fundamental disagreement. For
example:
The treasurer is of course absolutely right to draw attention to the
error in my presentation. On the other hand, I wonder whether he is not
19.23
NOTE
I
The le1ua1 rolo of odvorbloln
using this lapse of mine to prevent diseussio
r
. involved.
n lhc seri ous issue
45
Other adverbials that can convey such implications includ I
.
[J)
I h
c ll< lllt//ecl/1 ' I
ou !less, wuleniahly, wulouhtedly. Of these, doub1/ess is pi t"
1 ' "rtw11 )",
' r 1 cu .trl y barbed.
Responses in dialogue often begin wi th an ad\erbial which 1" nd
'
. .
d
. . . . Ic.i tcs the 1 rection of transition between what has J ust been said and wl1at . b
b
. . . . I s .1 out
t o e said. On transitional conjuncts, cf 8.44. For example:
A: That man speaks extremely good Engl i sh.
. {[ l ] Well,
} B:
[2] Yet
he comes from a village in Mongolia.
In one sense, the content ofB's response is identical whether i t begins as [ l ]
or [2]. It presents an additional fct about the man, and without the
adverbial, B's response would have only a thematic link with A' s
s

at
:
ment. With either of the adverbials i nserted, however, B is making a
s

gmfca

t commen

not merely on the man but on the propensity of
villagers m Mongoha to speak good English. If he begins wi th Well he
i

plies that
_
i t is an established fact ( Well, of course! ) that Mongolian
villages provide excellent bases for learning English. Ifhe begins with Yet
he implies that the man's good command of English was despite hi
Mongolian upbringing.
[a] The use of well i s itself context-dependent, however. It would be perfectly
plausible to use well in [ !] as a very diferent transition ( Well, 110\\'f )
.
so as to
connote 'Well, I' ll tell you something surprising: he actually comes from a village
in Mongolia'. Such an antithetic-oncessive transition (cf 8.44) i s implicit i n the
frequent note of reservation struck by the use of \\'ell. Consider a converse
exchange of remarks on the same subject:
A: That man is from Mongolia.
{[ l a] Well, }
B
:
[2a] Yet
he speaks extremely good English.
Here, both [ l a] and [2a] would connote 'Despite that . . . ' . There i s i n fact no one
word adverbial to express the relationship of the original [ I ] at [ l a]; we would have
to resort to a fully clausal expression, as i n:
So that explains why
} h k
Now I understand why
e spea s


[b] Elliptical responses (cf 1 9. 1 7) often contain an obligatory connective; for
example (where in [4] i ntonation enables us to dispense with the use of an
adverbial):
A
- {Have a good weekend!

How nice to see you again!
B
: {:ou T?o!
AND YOU!
[3]
[4]
1 9.24
19.25
456 From sentence to text
Adverbials as structural i ndicators
Basic relational structures depend rather heavily on adverbial pointers,
especially when any great degree of complexity is i nvolved.
(a) General to particular: Any of the fllowing would useful ly assist the
rel ationship at the insert mark in [ I ]:
fr example thus even indeed
Many of the audience became openly hostile. " My uncle
wrote a letter to the management next day. [ I ]
(b) Progression: According as the progression i s locati onal , temporal,
or logical, adverbials both help to i ndicate the di rection and mark the
successive stages. For example:
First boil the rice i n well-salted water; drain it immediately.
N;xt, warm the l ightly buttered base ofa smal l pie-dish. You
may now put the rice i n the di sh. Then add the cheese, tomato,
and onion. The pie is at last ready to be put in the oven. [2]
(c) Compatibility: It is frequently important to mark the match or
mismatch between two parts ofa text. Consider the presence or absence of
(fr example) so too i n [3]:
The ordinary saw is not easy to use. " A pl ane demands
years of careful practice. [3]
Si milarly, a contrastive conjunct (cf 8 .44) such as on the other hand in the
variant [3a] :
The ordinary saw is not easy to use. " A hammer i s
something that any novice can handl e. [3a]
Diferent discourse strategies wi l l li kewise call fr diferent adverbial
indicators. A 'step' technique is simplest, foll owing as it does a progressive
relation as in [2], 1 9.24. Wi th a 'chain' mode, however, it i s particularly
helpful to point to the existence and direction of transitions i n the
structure. Thus (using adverbial l i nkage more densely than is usual or
desirable):
Hamlet poignantly represents the indecisions that plague us al l .
Admitledly, indecision is not the worst of our i l l s. Indeed, in
some ways decisiveness can be more damaging. At any rate,
many people have come to grief that way . . . [ I ]
In a text of 'stack'-like structure, the ' l ayers' may call fr enumeration
(frst, at the outset, fmdamentally : secondly, next, . . . ; still m

re
importantly . . . ), but it is especially desirable to draw the hearer's attention
to what i s to be regarded as the most crucial point: thus, all in all,jnally,
last but by no means least (though this alliterative conjunct is too
t
'-
19.26
Coordination and subordi nati on 457
hackneyed fr a resounding climax), in conclusion, and many others.
A 'balance' strategy, like the chain, requires adverbial pointers both to
assist the sense of rhetorical balance and to ensure that the author's
presuppositions match those of the audience. Consider the fllowing:
I am al ways thrilled at the prospect of having a mid-winter
break i n Switzerland. " The weather is often quite warm . . . [2]
I t might not be at al l clear whether the second sentence of [2] contri buted
to the pleasure (vision of deckchairs) or was a counterbalancing
unwelcome aspect (poor weather fr skiing); in other words, we have l ef
inadeq
.
uate indication of compatibility. For the balance strategy, we need
to i nsert at the marked place some such indicator as granted, admitledly,
true, ofcourse, even so, etc. Most fequently, the balanced movement is
indicated by the i tems on tlze one hand, on the other (hand), but there i s
usually a goal resembl ing that of the 'stack' and so demanding a fnal
summative such as all in all (cf 8.44).
Coordi nation and subordination
In 1 9.2 we poi nted out that two utterances gave the impression of being
textually related, even when j uxtaposed without any frmal indicator of
connection. Asyndetic relation of this kind, moreover, raises the
expectation that the second utterance followed the frst as an iconic
representation of being sequential i n time or consequential in reasoni ng
and often both, as i n:
He ate too much fr di nner. He was i l l the next day.
[ l ]
A simple coordination (cf 1 3 . 1 7) of the two not only l i nks them more
frmly (since more frmally); i t can also enable us to show that a third
utterance in the sequence is less closely l inked to the second than the
second is to the frst; and, further, that the frst and second frm a sub
uni ty which as a whole has a relation to the third:
He ate too much fr di nner and he was ill the next day. He
decided to be less greedy in future.
[2]
But since a resul t or conclusion seems in some sense more important than
the fctors leading to the result or conclusion, it is natural to seek a
l i nguistic emblem of this hierarchical relation by subordinating onepart
to the other i nstead of coordinating the one with the other:
Because he ate too much fr di nner, he was i l l the next day. [3]
In [3], we have not merely made the frst part of [ l] the explicit reason fr
the second (Bee_ ause), we have grammatically expressed the connection by
19.27
19.28
458 From sentence to text
maki ng a totally new unit where the second part is the main clause of a
complex sentence in which the original first part is reduced to the role of
adjunct (lf 8. 1 3).
English has four monosyllabic connective items which semantically
belong together as constituting a symmetry of two related subsystems:
and: what precedes is congruent
but: what precedes is incongruent (cf 1 3 . 1 3)
so: what fl l ows is a consequence
for: what follows is a reason (ie what precedes is a consequence)
For example:
The rain has stopped, and she's gone for a walk.
The rai n hasn' t stopped, but she's gone fr a wal k.
The rain has stopped, so she's gone for a wal k.
She's gone for a walk, for the rain has stopped.
[ l ]
[2]
[3]
[4]
This l ast is rather unnatural since the conjoins are so short. In any case, the
symmetry is imperfct i n several respects. In [ I ], [2], and [4], we have
conjunctions (cf *and but, *and for); in [3], we have a conjunct (cf" and so).
Moreover, and and but are distributionally distinct, and demanding in
some respects greater structural similarity between the coordinated parts.
Compare:
?*The rain has stopped and let's go fr a walk.
The rain hasn't stopped but let's go fr a wal k.
[5]
[6]
In this respect, al though we normally thi nk of and and but as closely
related converses, the converse of but is i n fact so:
The rain has stopped (and) so let's go fr a walk.
Most sigrifcantly (from the viewpoint of text cohesion), the symmetry is
imperfect i n t hat /or is a much less frequently used connective than the
other three: textual structure is resistant to stating a consequence i n
advance of t h
e
condition. In the event of this order being desirable, it is
more usual to make the condition structurally subordinate to (rather than
coordinate with) the consequence:
Sh
,
f lk
. the ram has stopped.
{because } .
e s gone or a wa , smce
the rain having (at last) stopped.
Even so, the prior condition would often be stated frst:
Since the rain has stopped, she's gone for a walk.
Pairs and triads
[7]
[8]
One of the ways in which coordination is exploited in textual structure is
to assist the desire fr parallelism and balance. For example:
NOTE
Coordination and subordination 459
These terrorists have destroyed their credibi l i ty. They resisted
arrest and
.
then they gave themselves up. They went on a
hunger stnke and then they started taki ng fod. Some of
them claim that they are all nati onalists and some of them
claim that they are all opposed to nati onalism.
( 1 ]
We note that the last three sentences i n [ l ]. each with clauses coordi nated
by and, frm a triad, a rhetorical pattern that seems to be widely attractive.
Coordination achieves the seemingly impossible task of giving three units
equal status and yet of making the third climactic; for example:
She cleaned the room, (she) made a birthday cake, and (she)
fnished preparing a lecture. [2]
But the climax of the third part may express a poi nt which is strongl y
counter-consequential and concessive:
She works ten hours a day i n the clinic, she spends ages
helping hi m with his thesis, and he calls her l azy! [3]
The balanced uni ts, whether in pairs or threes, may of course be
coordi nated subordinate clauses:
Because you're tired, because you're lonely, and because you're
depressed, I want to insist on your coming to stay with us for
a week or so. [4]
Subordinate coordi nation, however, is especially associated with al terna
tives rather than accretions. For this reason, pairing is very common since
this gives the convenient impression of a total or very general polarization:
He doesn't know whether his wif i s unhappy because the
baby died or whether she's just no longer i n love with him. [5]
When you're l onely or when you're unhappy fr other
reasons, listening to music can be a great consolation. [6]
Questions too can be l i nked to frm a satisfyingly coherent sequence:
Did he jump or was he pushed? [7]
Will they arrive on time, will they listen carefully, and will
they enjoy our performance? [8]
[a] Of course, i n ordi nary unambi tious writing and i n familiar speech, coordina
tion is used wi thout striving for the balanced efects on which we have been
concentrati ng i n this section. But the momentum and implications of sequence,
the relative cohesion of explicit coordination, and the contrasting entailments of
the chief coordi nating conjunctions are inherent i n even the least self-conscious
discourse.
[b] Informal conversation i s characterized by an overtly uncompleted pai ri ng,
especially through unfnished but-coordinations. These often occur where one
speaker i s efectively i nvi ti ng another participant to speak. It can give a pleasantly
apol ogetic and self-efacing tone:
460 From sentence to text
A: My wire's not been reeling too well. She's seen the doctor, though,
and he's told her it's nothing serious. But (er) [trails of i nto silence]
B: I'm sorry to hear about this. [9]
A's speech might equally have ended: ' But l don' t know . . . ' or ' But don' t let's talk
about our little problems' or 'But how's the book going?' These all have in
common: 'Biii : let's change the subject.'
[c] Only and, or, and asyndeton can be used to rorm triads.
Contrasting coordination and subordination
19.29 In several of the examples provided in 1 9.28, coordination has been used
along with subordination. This is in fact textually representative.
Al though from the viewpoint of grammar these two types of clause
relation are thought of as al ternatives, and although coordination is a fr
more frequently occurring form of cohesive device, i t is normal to fnd
both types i n any text of a few l ines (or a few seconds) i n extent. I t is
particularly rare to fnd a text with subordi nation but without coordi
nati on.
It is the fexible use of both devices that endows a text with variety of
expressi_on on the one hand, and with a well-ordered presentation of
i nfrmation on the other. The combination also enables one to achieve a
high degree of complexity within a single, unifed whole. For example:
Al though I know it's a bit l ate to call, seeing your light still on
and needing to get your advice i f you'd be willing to help me,
I parked the car as soon as I could find a place and ventured
to come straight up without ringing the bell because, believe
me, I di dn' t want to add waking your baby to the other
inconveniences I'm causing you. [ I ]
Taking nonfni te as well as fnite clauses into account, there are nearly
twenty clauses i n this example, which, without any pretensions to
elegance, is grammatically well formed as well as being textually coherent.
And whi l e it is often thought that a single sentence of such complexity
belongs only to the most frmal styles of written English, the example [ l ] is
in fct only slightly edi ted from the transcribed form of an actual spoken
utterance in informal conversation. Again, it is sometimes put as a
generalization that nonfnite clauses are characteristic of formal texts,
fnite clauses of less formal ones. There is some truth i n this so fr as -ing
adverbial clauses are concerned, especially those with subject, and
especial ly passive clauses with subject:
The rain having (at last) stopped, she's gone fr a walk. [2]
The play now having been reviewed, no one can i gnore i t . [3]
Having now seen the play mysel, I agree that it is rather weak. [4]
Contrast:
Since the rain has stopped, she's gone fr a walk. [2a]
Now that the play has been reviewed, no one can ignore it. [3a]
Prosody and punctuation 461
Now that I have seen the play myel T agree that it is rather
weak. [4a]
But it is not true for nominal -ing clauses:
Finding you at home is a great surprise.
He didn' t mind waiting for them in the rain.
In fct [5] and [6] are decidedly Jess formal than:
[5]
[6]
That I (should) fnd yozrat home is a great surprise. [5a]
He didn't mind that he waited [11'as ll'aiting, had to wait] for
them in the rain. [6a]
NOTE With to-i nfnitive clauses, the fni te verb correspondences (to the extent that they
exist) are almost always more frmal i n tone. For example:
19.30
To close the doors, just press the green button. [7]
In order that you may close the doors, merely press the green button. [7a]
Again, there are verbless clauses that can occur in the most natural and i nfrmal
usage:
When in doubt, you should consult a doctor.
Though decidedly scared, I kept my voice steady.
He hadn' t much money, i any.
Prosody and punctuati on
Consider the written sequence:
I smiled at the supervisor and she greeted me. [ l ]
It would be possible t o utter this with two markedly diferent prosodic
realizations, refecting diferent i nterpretations and diferent bases of
linkage:
. . . and she GREETed me
. . . and SHE greeted ME
[ l a]
[ l b]
I n [ l a], there is lexical contrast between the two parts; a verbal greeting is
indicated: something actually heard in contrast to the silent smil e in the
frst part of the text. In [ l b] , greeted is merely a lexical vari ant of smiled:
the smile was a greeting and there was some kind of greeting in response.
This is prosodically indicated by greeted having no intonational promi
nence; it i s 'given' informationally (cf 1 8 .4), whereas in [ l a] greeted is
contrastive and 'new', as i s indicated by the intonational nucleus. In [I b]
what is new is neither the participants nor the verbal action but onl y the
reciprocation; the roles are reversed and hence the subject and object
pronou
n
s are i ntonational l v hi ahl i ohtPr , , . h --' ' --- - "' "
; 1
! I
I
I
462 From sentence to text
( I b] are equally dependent in thei r di ferent ways on the preceding parts to
which they are l i nked.
Whi le there i s a di rect relation between speech and writing, as also
(broadly) between prosodic features of speech and the punctuation
devices of wri ting, the former must be given precedence i n each case. In
fct, as we see from ( l ] above, i t is impossible to understand a written text
unti l we assign to it a prosody - silently or aloud.
Si nce such prosodic features as stress, rhythm, and i ntonation have to
do with i nformation processing (c/2. 1 3. 1 8. 3./f), i t fllows that prosody
is a vitally i mportant factor i n textual coherence.
The i ndependence of prosody
19.31 The central place of prosodic features i s emphasized throughout this
book, and i n the present chapter they are best i l l ustrated along . with the
grammatical features they accompany. But we should note that prosodic
variables are to some extent quite independent of the particular words
used - and i ndeed no actual words need be used.
It is a characteristic of even the most one-sided conversation that the
speaker expects a response, though thi s may be realized only prosodically,
without insti tutional 'words':
A: So I told him that it was none of his business and that I
would do as I pleased.
B:
I
M l
[ I ]
A: After all, it's not as i f l still owed hi m money.
B
: j M
I
]
A: I repaid hi m that money I borrowed - well, nearly all of i t,
so I' m no l onger under any obligation to hi m.
B: I ' I
[3J
In [ I ], B is assuring A with hi s falling tone (cf 2. 1 5) that he follows (and
perhaps agrees with) what A i s sayi ng. In [2], however, the ri si ng tone
i ndicates surprise or a question or some form of challenge; i t i s apparently
enough to di vert A from his thread of discourse to tell B about the l oan
repayment. In [3], B' s fall-rise i ndi cates understanding, but with only
qual ifed assent, and A's next utterance mi ght well go furt?er nto the
morali ty of the posi ti on as he sees i t. Al l three of B' s contri buti ons are
textually i mportant and in some circumstances their absence would bring
the discourse to a halt: A would be puzzled, or he mi ght be ofended, at B's
silence. On the telephone, he would have i nterrupted hi mself to ask ' Are
you sti ll there?' or 'Can you hear me all right?'
19.32 Irrespecti ve of response-dependence (and in radio di scourse, no respon

e
is usually possible), a speaker prosodically empathizes with the hea
:
er m
numerous ways. Pauses are helpfully i ntroduced after completmg a
signifcant i nfrmation unit; this i ndicates the end of what may be calle
_
d a
prosodic 'paragraph', and such a termination w.il l be marked by bemg
19.33
Prosody and punctuation 463
given a special l y l ong curve to an i ntonation nucleus (usually a fall). Or a
pause may be i ntroduced i mmediately befre a lexical i tem which the
speaker feels may be unfami l i ar or which he wishes to be heard clearly:
The l i brary has hundreds of extremely valuable books
including several [pause] incuNABula. ( I ]
By contrast h e may tactfully i ncrease the tempo over parts o f his discourse
that he expects will be particularly familiar or which he modestly wishes to
be treated as rather uni mportant. As with B in [3] of 1 9. 3 1 , a speaker will
use a fll-rise to hint at reservation and uncertai nty, so that a contrast
would be heard with the all-embracing summative conjunct (c/8. 44) i n:
On the WHOLE my childhood was a happy one.
On the WHOLE my childhood was a happy one.
[2]
[3]
In [2] we have a confi dent statement, in [3] it is hedged with some doubt. A
rising tone wi ll especially be heard, however, to indicate clearly that
something i s to follow: a mai n clause, a further i tem i n a list, and the li ke. It
will also be used i n di rect appeals for the listener's cooperation and
understanding, in such cases the rise being rather narrow i n range and
each appeal having lower promi nence than the surrounding text . For
example:
I had no idea where she had gone, you SEE - and I could
hardly wait there all ni ght, M [4]
One fnal general poi nt may be made. We saw in 1 9.3 1 that prosodic
features could be used without actual words. In a similar way, prosody
enables us to di spense with words that would be necessary fr clarity in a
written version of the same text. The two following utterances are
obviously very di ferent:
And so it's j ust possible that she's i l l .
And so she may be actually i l l .
[5]
[6]
A single string of fewer words could convey the di ference by assi gni ng
di ferent prosody:
And so she MAY be i ll
And so she may be ILL
Punctuation
The paragraph
(Sa]
[6a]
Al though in this book we repeatedly emphasize the primacy of speech
over writing, and of prosody over punctuation, we have to recognize that
many types of text take shape frst on paper and have their normal
realization i n graphic form. Punctuation thus has a greater i nterest fr the
st udy of texts than fr li ngui sti cs as a whole, where i t can be generally
19.34
464 From sentence lo text
looked upon as a rather i nadequate substi tute for the range of
phonol ogically realized prosodic features at our disposal.
In considering the grammatical system of English, we think i n terms of
such uni ts as sentence, clause, and phrase. From a textual viewpoi nt,
however, such distinctions are not particularly relevant: the di ference
between sentence and clause, fr example. What i s more signifcant is that
there are textual uni ts that cannot be recognized at all i n grammar, and
only the smallest of them can be recognized prosodically as uni ts. Written
texts may be i n volumes, parts, chapters, sections: and few are so short as
not to comprise more than one paragraph (itself a unit only uncertainly
matched in prosodic terms).
A paragraph has on the one hand a relatively strong sense of i nternal
coherence, and on the other a relatively loose l i nkage wi t h the textual
material befre and afer it. Consider the following fragment of text:
. . . and that was how I came to have some weeks observing the
behaviour of their eight-year-old son. He broke eggs on the
carpet. He twisted his ki tten's tail till it mewed i n anguish. He put
garbage i n hi s parents' bed and burned holes i n hi s sister's clothes.
(i ) He was extraordi narily [atiective] . (ii) Hi s parents i ntended to
send him to a special school . . .
Accordi ng to the adjective we supply at the bracketed segment, either (i)
or (ii) could be a ftti ng place to begin a new paragraph.
If the adjective i s wicked, naughty, ill-behaved, we mi ght well start a new
paragraph at (ii). The precedi ng part would have had a stack-like
structure and the sentence 'He was extraordinarily ill-behaved' would
ftti ngly round i t of with a rather self-evident conclusi on.
I f, on the other hand, the adjecti ve i s intelligent, gited, musical, or some
other i tem not suggested by the account of his behaviour, then (i) would be
a ftti ng - one might say essential - poi nt at which to begin a new
parag

aph. This would r

veal a totally diferent aspect of the boy, and the

text mi ght go on to describe the special school at which his i ntelligence or
other positive gifts could be sui tably developed.
The sentence
In an analogous way, the decision to di\ide a paragraph i nto orthographic
sentences depends on how the writer wishes these smaller sections of the
text to be seen i n relation to each other: i nti mately l i nked as thouoh
naturally i ndissociable (no punctua tion); closely associated but separe
(comma or semicolon, accordi ng to degree); relatively separate (poi nted
as i ndependent sentences). Compare the di ferent implicati ons o
f
the
fllowing:
I saw Mi riam and Walter.
I saw Mi riam, and Walter.
I saw Mi ri am - and Walter!
I saw Mi riam. And Walter.
[ I ]
[2]
(3]
[4]
19.35
The part played by questions 465
In [ I ] , the normal and expected form, i t seems to be suggested that Mi riam
and Walter are a couple who regularly appear together. This i s not so in
[2-4] , where the punctuation may carry vari ous impl ications according to
the larger context. I n [2], the two persons are being l isted; in [3], the si ght of
Walter i n addi ti on to Mi riam is given special and dramatic signifcance; i n
[4] , Walter seems to be mentioned as an afterthought. But the suggested
motivations for (3] and (4] might be expressed by either of the punctuati on
forms according to the taste of the wri ter or his belief i n their
communicative i mpact on the reader. Si nce punctuation is subject to fai rly
rigorous conventi on, many writers hesi tate to show i ndi vi dual i ty,
originality, or rhetorical efects by this means. Instead they will select
grammatical constructions and carefully selected lexical i tems which they
hope may achieve efects that i n speech would be without difcul ty
i ndicated by prosodic features. Punctuation choices are made (along wi th
grammatical and lexical ones) in the hope of providing the reader wi th the
cues necessary fr assigni ng the prosody that the writer would himself
have used i n utteri ng the text aloud.
But as readers we have an obligation too. In listening to a spoken text,
we automatically respond to the prosodic features that help to mould i ts
structure. When we read, we have to create those prosodic features from
the visual pri nt. Stumbling as we read is a common experience: the further
context then tells us of an earlier misinterpretation and we have to go back
and reread a portion of the text, redistributing our imagined i nternal
stresses and nuclei . Sometimes the fault i s in the i neptness of the writer,
but often it lies in our lack of sympathetic alertness to the textual structure
in font of us.
The part pl ayed by questi ons
There i s a sense i n which i t is true to say ' I can" t tell you anythi ng till you' ve
asked me something' . In other words, what we choose to talk about
depends crucially on what we t hi nk our hearer does not know but wants t o
know. Even conversations i n which a participant keenly wishes t o talk and
i nfrm (rather t han listen and be i nfrmed) wi l l frequently begin with a
question. For example, as a conversati on-ini ti al gambit:
Have you heard about Mr Malloy? ( l ]
The questioner wi ll be alert to the reply in two quite separate respects:
whether his companion has heard about Mr Malloy. and whether he
seems to want to hear. Only i f the questioner i s satisfed on both counts,
will he launch forth -and even so, wi thout prompting by questions i n the
course of his account (' What was the weather like?' 'When did you hear
this?' 'Why di dn' t Rita Malloy . . . ?'). the sneahr wnnlrl rnnn f.ltor
466 From sentence lo text
fearing that he has l ost his companion's interest or not knowing which
aspects of the narrative to develop and which to ignore.
In the absence of questions from a companion, a speaker may insert
them fr himsel f and in written materials, the author has no opti on. The
motive is partly i nformation processing (cf l 9.40f), that is, providing a
fcus closely similar to that attained by the pseudo-cl eft (cf 1 8.20).
Compare:
What was he doi ng? He was trying to change a fuse. (2]
What was he doing but trying to change a fuse. (2a]
What he was doing was trying to change a fuse. (2b]
But in part the inserted question is to enliven and dramatize a narrative by
supplying a query which the speaker thinks must be in his compani on's
mind - or which he thinks ought to be:
And that son of hers continues to be a big worry. And how do I
know? She was in tears the o
'
ther day-with a photo of him i n
her hand. She didn't t hi nk I saw t he photo but I di d. (3]
NOTE [a] A question i n discourse is often directed less to the hearer than to the speaker,
though in seeming to refect the speaker's self-questioning as to how he should
proceed, i t equally directs the hearer's mind both to this point and to the
tentativeness and spontaneity with which i t i s being made. For example:
Te horses seemed strangely disturbed as we groomed them that
morning. How shal I put it? It was as though they were aware that
Mary and I had quarrelled.
[4]
[b] Questions i n dialogue may be uttered merely to elicit matter that was
imperfetly heard or understood:
' ' h I WAT s t at. } ("
1)
,
? morma
SRry.
I beg your PARdon?
Questions as di rectives
19.36 Questions, direct and indirect, have an important role in discourse as
polite equivalents of requests. On entering someone's room, a visitor wi l l
begin wi th such a question even i f he is a fairly close fiend:
Is this an awkward moment to see you about something?
Am I disturbing you?
Got a second? (informal )
I wonder i f I coul d tal k to you fr a minute.
These openi ng gambits woul d prefce discourse itself. But question frms
may equal ly prefce physical actio11 by the speaker or
s
eek i t fom the
hearer:
19.37
The part played by questions 467
Would you mi nd if I closed the window?
Would you excuse me a moment? I must fnd a telephone.
Do you thi nk you could lock the door when you leave?
Why don' t you come and have dinner with me tonight?
Unlike questions seeking information, these can be coordinated
(especially in AmE) with statements and combine a request with an
expression of i ntention:
Why don't I go on ahead and you (can) come when you're ready?
Why don' t you get a taxi and I'll be out in a minute?
In the conventional language of formal meetings, procedure is often
couched in elaborately interrogative strctures, each widely recognized as
a formula disguising a statement:
But may we not ask ourselves whether this is an appropriate time to
raise taxes? [ =' I am opposed to raising taxes now']
I wonder if we might now turn to the next item. [ = 'The present
discussion is closed']
Am I alone in thinking the motion is out of order?
Rhetorical questions
The rhetorical question has i n common with the frmulaic questions
discussed i n 1 9. 3_6 the fct that the answer is a fregone conclusi on:
She said she had been t oo i l l to come t o work that day, and
certainly she sounded pretty groggy on the phone. Anyway,
who was I to argue? [ ='I wasn't in a position to doubt her
word'] [ I ]
The prisoners were grumbling about their cold cell s and poor
fod. Who could blame t hem? [ ="No one could blame
them'] (2]
As we see fom these examples, the rhetorical question is by no means
confned to the highl y wrought prose of formal speeches of persuasion
that we may thi nk of in connection with ' rhetoric'. Indeed, the tag
question so common i n the most i nfrmal speech is strictly similar to the
rhetorical question i n its communicative efect, since i t essentially seeks
confrmation of what the speaker has explicitly assumed (by the precedi ng
declarati ve) to be agreed truth:
It's a glorious day, isn't it ? [3]
Joan Sutherland was the best coloratura singer of her
generation, wasn't she ? [4]
Compare:
When have we had a better col oratura singer than Joan
Sutherland? [4a]
NOTE
1 9.38
468 From sentence to text
Such a use of lags occurs in very informal speech (especially BrE and chiefly
nonslandard) where the hearer cannot possibly be expected lo know the answer or
lo Lake i l for granted, but where the speaker seeks by such use of the question frm
lo i mply lhal the answer ought lo be self-evident. These tags have a fal l i ng lone on
the operator:
Well, I couldn't hear the phone, could I? I L's i n the next room and the
door was shut. Besides, I was fast asleep, wasn' t I? But I can't expect
you to think of things from my angle, can I ? [5]
Parti ci pant involvement
Whether this is made explicit or not, every text is addressed by someone
(T) to someone else ('you'). In many cases, the relation of both
participants is quite explicit:
I tell you i t' s true! [ I ]
But equally both can be merely implicit:
Good luck! [ ='! wish you good luck'] [2]
In very formal communications, where the precise identity of the
addressee i s unknown and where the originator i s maki ng the communica
tion on behal f of an organization, the participants may be referred to in
the 3rd person:
The management regret(s) any inconvenience to clients during
repair work to the premises. [3]
In a si mi l ar tone and often fr similar reasons, mention of one or both of
the participants is avoided al together:
The management regrets any inconvenience during repair
work to the premises. [3a]
Any inconvenience to clients is regretted during . . . [3b]
Any i nconvenience is regretted during . . . [3c]
In some texts, both participants are referred to simul taneously by means
of the incl usive lle (c/6. 1 0, 1 9.20):
So now we know why there was no trafc coming towards us on
this road. Well, since the road is obviously blocked, we'll
have to turn back and fnd a side road somewhere. [4]
I n much discourse, neither the addressee nor the authority for
i nfrmation seems necessary:
Julian is going to Detroit next week. In fct, if he l i kes it and
fnds a job, he may decide to stay there. His wife, of course,
comes from that part of Michigan. [5]
NOTE
19.39
Participant Involvement 469
We notice, however, that in the use of the adverbial ofcourse the speaker/
writer is appealing to the addressee's shared knowledge. Nor would it be
unusual in such a text for the author to make explici t his relation to the
information conveyed:
Jul i an, I gather, is going to Detroit next week. In fct, if he l ikes
it and fnds a job, he tells me he mav decide . . . [5a]
Even in a signed letter, some amplifcation of identity may be necessary if
the writer feels it necessary to specify his role:
As a Camden resident and also as a quali fed accountant, I
write to i nform you of an error in the recently published
expenditure fgures of your Council . . . [6]
On the telephone, identifcation of both speaker and addressee usual l y
prefces discourse:
Hel l o. Is that Peter? Marjorie here. What? Oh sorry! -Marjorie
Wong, your wife's assistant. Is Valerie there? [7]
Hel l o. Am I speaking to the Controller? This is the Works
Department. We are having to cut of your electricity supply
fr an hour or so . . . [8]
The addressee may equally need to have his role specifed in the particular context:
you may be friend, wife, mother, doctor, neighbour, according to who i s in
communication and on what occasion:
I wonder i fI can ask you -as a fiend rather than as my aoctor-i fyou
thi nk I ought to give up smoking. I know that you discourage your
chi ldren - but is this as a mother or as a doctor or because you know it
afects your husband' s breathing?
Speaker/hearer contact
[9]
But i n addition to establishing identity of participants and to i ndicati ng
authority for content, textual structure tends to be punctuated by periodic
references to both participants. The hearer i s addressed by name, not fr
clarity but out of courtesy and friendliness. The speaker may repeatedly
refer to hi mself, often successfully giving thereby an impression of
courtesy and modesty rather than of egocentricity:
I'd like you to know . . . I think . . . I hear . . . I seem to
remember . . . it occurs to me . . . I mean . . . [ ! ]
A communication from a body or organization may sel f-refr simil arl y:
Your union ofcials suggest . . . we acknowledge . . . we
claim . . . we hope . . . [2]
Di rect allusions and appeals to the addressee are especial l y characteristic
of speech, i nfrmally with interspersed comment clauses, you see, you
know, get it?, do you follow me?, res?. ri? : morf fnnnl l v no "n" ,.,nll
470 From sentence to text
know, as you may knoll, i I make myself clear (to you) , i you 1il! pardon
tlze al!usion.
Addressee involvement obviously serves two related functions, often
distinguished by intonation. On the one hand, the speaker wants
assurnce that the addressee is fllowing the communication in all its
detail and allusion; in this spirit, the involvement is essentially i nterroga
tive (cj 1 9. 35) and the inserted items have a rising nucleus:
I'm writing my own software, you SEE. [3]
On the other hand, the inserts may be assurances to the addressee that he is
not being underestimated and that it is highly probable that he knows the
fcts already. In this case, they have a fl l ing nucleus or are uttered with
low promi nence carrying no nucleus at all:
I she has reMARried you know I [4]
Individuals difer in the extent to which they i ntersperse terms of
address i n discourse. In letters, they are used al most sol el y in the i nitial
salutation: Dear Mrs Robinson, Dear Fred; but between i nti mates, items
like drling commonly accompany sentences throughout, as they would
do i n the corresponding speech. Letters to strangers can freely begin Dear
Sir (less freely Dear Madam), and in frmal style they may end I remain,
Sir, Yours faithfully. A general letter may begin Gentlemen (rather than
?Dear Gentlemen), or Dear Sirs, or Ladies and Gentlemen.
In speech, it is normal to address a group as Ladies and Gentlemen; a
group of men as Gentlemen (or, i n mi l i tary and analogous usage, as lfen,
though this would hardly be text-i ni tial). At a formally constituted
meeting, it i s equally normal for i ndividuals to be addressed as Sir, to or
from the chair, less comfortably as Madam. But in chance encounters with
strangers, severe constraints are fel r over terms of address, especially in
BrE. A request such as I wonder i you could direct me to Pitt Street? would
i n AmE (and especially in Southern AmE), be accompanied very widely
by Sir or Ma'am, i rrespective of the speaker's sex or an adult addressee's
age. In BrE, Sir would be rather rare, and would be used chiefy by
younger men addressing older men: it would al most never be used by
women. Madam, though the only ful l y acceptable form of address to a
woman, is fel t to be inappropriare i n most informal circumstances
(though it is used in addressing customers, clients, etc). In general, women
can use neither Sir nor lfadam except where the speaker is in a
recognizably serving role, though women students will occasionally
address a male teacher as Sir.
NOTE (a] A younger woman is sometimes addressed by men as Miss, but this is widely
regarded as nonstandard or fel t to be demeaning to the person addressed. In
nonstandard use, Lady, Jfister, and Missus occur freely i n men's speech; and lady
also has an ironic use which i s not uneducated but infrmal (and ad
d
ressed to a
woman who is not a stranger):
Information processing 471
Oh, you can' t use that argument, lady.
Man is also used to acquaintances (esp in AmE), but more famili arly than the
fregoing use of lady.
(b] Just as a speaker i nvolves the addressee with insertions l i ke right?, you k11m1', so
the addressee reassures the speaker with similar short comments: Oh I see, Yes J
knoll', Right.
(c] The inserts for involvement and authority sometimes occur with prosodic
prominence. There is, fr example, a triumphant or retri butive you see, as in the
following (uttered with a wide range of pitch, i n contrast to that normal in
comment clauses):
So I was RiGHT I you "SEE I
Compare also:
Sh h
, .
d
{I thi nk .}
e as reMARne 1
THINK
Here, the frst variant is little more than a conventional reluctance to seem
dogmatic, but the second is meant to express serious reservations about the truth
of what has preceded. Note also:
He tries, but YOU KNOW, there are real problems. [ ='I scarcely need to
remind you']
I nformation processing
19.40 It is appropriate to treat this aspect of grammatical organizati on l ast,
since, bei ng more centrally signifcant than any orher, i nfrmati on
processing has already to no smal l degree been seen as the motivation
behind other specifc features of grammar discussed elsewhere. It is
paramount in the use of coordi nation and subordination (cfl 9. 26.f), and
it was specifcally mentioned in the treatment of questions (cf 1 9. 35).
Consider a sequence like the following:
Our economic troubles conti nue to resist solution. We have
tried subsidizing our weaker industries. We have experi
mented with import controls. We have on occasion resorted
to the drastic device of deval uation. To no avail. How then
are we to proceed? The answer lies in higher productivity and
better products. [ I ]
The italicized question i s pivotal i n this text. It contains the conj unct then
with anaphoric reference: the remedies al ready tried, which have been of
' no avail', are put behind us. The question both poi nts frward (and t hi s i
s
lexically matched by 'The answer' which fllows) and prepares us fr a
climactic alternative strategy. A similar anticipation of the informati on
focus would have been:
NOTE
472 From sentence lo text
. . . To no avai l . The way f onrrd is to seek higher . . . [ I a]
The essence of such anticipation is to indicate in general terms what is to
fl l ow (we are going to ' proceed' , there is a 'way frward') and hence both
to prepare the hearer/reader and to arouse his i nterest. Note the
comparable function of the ital icized irhere-clause in the next example:
Robert Adam was in many respects typical of British architects
of the eighteenth century. Like Inigo Jones and Lord
Burlington, he drew eagerly on the inspiration both of the
Renaissance and of Antiqui ty. He shared the enthusiasm of
his contemporaries fr collecting classical marbles. He was
far from being alone in undertaking venturesome travel i n
the Mediterranean and in gazing with wonder at vase
fagments and at sundrenched monuments. He was quintes
sentially a member of the Neo-classical movement. Where le
stands apart is in his refusal to regard Antiquity as i nviolable.
It was an i nspiration fr new work, not a model fr i mitation. [2]
The major part of the paragraph is i l l ustrative of the claim that Adam was
typical of his time. The writer has one piece of counter-evidence, and he
could have expressed this by the mere use of adversative but :
. . . a member of the Neo-classical movement. But he refused to
regard . . . [2a]
This would have made the point for an alert reader, though the
exceptional feature would have been expressed rather tamely. The fact
that we had come to an excepti on could have been more insistently
expressed for the less alert reader by a further alternative:
. . . a member of the Neo-classical movement. But there i s one
respect in which he stands apart: he refused to regard . . . [2b]
The writer, might, however, have arrived at a compromise between [2b],
and (2], as fl l ows:
. . . a member of the Neo-cl assical movement. But he stands
apart in his refusal to regard . . . [2c]
Infrmationally, [2c] is a subtle improvement over (2b] in seeming to assume (by
the nominalization, his refusal ) a signifcant i tem of shared knowledge. The writer
credits his reader with being aware that Adam had this degree of creative
independence. fn fct, the original version [2] shows the writer going one better
than this. He not merely achieves the objective of warning the reader that we have
come to one respect in which Adam 'stands apart'; use of the pseudo-cleft ( 1 8.20)
enables him also to imply that the reader was well-informed enough to know that
there was such a standing apart (as well as that Adam did not ' regard Antiquity as
inviolable'), and that i n consequence we have now simply arrived at the point of
restating it. In presenting what may well be new i nfrmation as though i t were
given (cf 1 8.4), the writer treats his reader with fattering respect as well as enabling
himself to make the main point with great force and economy.
I >
Information processing 473
19. 41 The highlight i ng of the main i nfrmation is associated with i ntonation
nucleus, but i n wri ting we have to plan carefully if we arc to guide our
reader so as to assign the fcus in the way we i ntend.
19.42
Imagine an argument conducted by correspondence, where Mrs A has
written to say that she denies any responsibi l i ty fr a certain probl em.
After a week or so, she gets a reply from Mr 8:
Let me set out the case as I see it and try to show you that the
problem has somethi ng to do with you. [ l ]
Mrs A will probably read the last phrase as having the normal end-focus
( 1 8. 5):
. . . the I problem has something to do with YOU I [ l a]
But Mr B's words are in fct a paraphrase of a remark in Mrs A's own
letter: they are 'given' i nfrmation; all that is new is the positive (assertion)
i n place of Mrs A' s original negative (denial). Thus 8 has meant i t to be
read as:
. . . the I problem HAS something to do with you I [ I b]
The required shift away fom the normal (but here unwanted) end-fcus
could have been achieved i n the frst place by some such device as
emphatic do or an i nserted subj unct (or both), thus drawing attention to
the new polarity:
. . . the problem does (indeed) have something to do with you. (2]
which Mrs A woul d promptly have read with the required prosody:
{does i nDEED } .
. . . the I problem , have somethmg
DOES
to do with you. I
Information and sequence
[2a]
Much of what we have been saying in this book about the processing of
i nfrmation concerns sequence. The order of presentation is clearly vital ,
whether we are concerned with premodifying adjectives, a group of noun
phrases, a pair of independent clauses. a sequence comprising a matrix
clause and a subordi nate clause, or of course the elements within a singl e
clause. e have choices such as:
{an i ntricate and arduous task
an arduous and i ntricate task
{the cold night and the difcult journey
the difcul t journey and the cold night
{They cheered and they sang.
They sang and they cheered.
{I saw the broken window when I arrived home.
When I arrived home, I saw the broken window.
[I a]
[ I b]
[2a]
[2b]
[3a]
[3b]
[4a]
(4b]
NOTE
474 From sentence to text
Our memories of past crises were being added to our
{ uncerlainties fr the future.
To our uncertainties fr the future were being added our
memories of past crises.
[5a]
[5b]
More is involved here than sequence, of course. As well as deciding on a
pai r (or longer set) of units, we have to decide on the actual choice of
lexical items. Are they to be near-synonyms or are they to be i n sharp
contrast? In either case, should they prosodically resemble each other (eg
by alliterting, having the same number of syllables, the same stress
pattern; eg: arduous and intricate), or should they difer in these respects
(eg: tough and intricate)? Formal similarity often conveys a sense both of
euphony and of a harmony between substance and meaning; formal
dissimilarity, on the other hand, can convey a sense of richness and
variety. Considerations of euphony enter also i nto the question of
sequencing, but for the most part, both in the selection of items and in
their placement, we are concerned with 'the right words in the right place'.
Whatever is placed frst will seem relatively introductory and 'scene
setting'. Clearly, preparing our hearer or reader fr what is to fllow is of
the greatest i mportance ifthe following part is to have the proper i mpact.
The converse of this is that whatever is placed last will be expected to be
relatively consequential, of greater importance, and possibly cl imactic. So
in choosing between [ l a] and [I b], our decision may depend on whether we
wish to convey that the task was arduous because it was intricate; intricate
and above al arduous; arduous in being intricate; arduous and further
more intricate. In choosing between [3a] and [3b], we may wish to imply
one or other chronological sequence: that they did one thing befre the
other. But i f the two actions are but diferent aspects of the
s
ame
celebratory behaviour, we have decisions to make on similar principles to
those concerning us in [ l a] and [ l b], [2a] and [2b]. With [4a] and [4b],
however, the order will probably be contextually determined: one or
other, the arrival or the seeing, wi l l be relatively 'given' (that i s, the hearer/
reader will already have been told or been led to expect that the subject
went home or that a window had been broken), and whichever i s in
consequence the reiatively 'new' item will be placed in fnal position if a
feeble anticlimactic 'tail' is to be avoided. So again with [5a] and [5b]: the
former wil l be preferred if the preceding part of the text has been dealing
with 'past crises' and the intention is to go on to some discussion of the
future; if the converse holds, [5b] will be selected.
Some matters of sequence are determined by courtesy, convention, or idiom. In
frmal circumstances, women are named in address befre men, and the speaker is
mentioned last:
Ladies and gentlemen! It gives me great pleasure . . .
Hary and I were dismayed.
Information processing 475
In 3rd person mention, however, sequence can freely depend upon the speakcrs
decision:
Joan and Peter
}
.
1 1 b
.
Peter and Joan
WI e coming . .
saw ots o . I
I
f
{boys and girls.
girls and boys.
On the other hand, we have a conventional mention of males frst i n ( 1he) men and
women, he and she, Mr and 1'rs (Jones) . Numerous other sequences are
idiomatically fxed (as in give and wke, pots and pans, knife and fork, ( Do you take)
milk and sugar?) Doubtless these have become fxed historically in response to the
operation of prosodic or semantic pressures, but there are also principles l i ke
'Short before l ong' and 'General setting befre specifc object'. CJon binomials,
1 3.26 Note.
Bi bliographical note
For general treatments and theoretical discussion of discourse and textual
structure, see Beaugrande and Dressler ( 1 98 1 ); Brown and Yule ( I 983); Cole and
Morgan ( 1 975); D' Angelo ( 1 975); Dijk ( 1 977, 1 987); Grice ( 1 975); Hal liday
(I 978); Halliday and Hasan (I 976); Hoey ( 1 983); Nash ( 1 980); Quirk ( 1 986):
Stubbs ( 1 983); Winter (I 982); Winterowd ( 1 975).
On specifc aspects of discourse, see Altenberg ( 1 986); Biber ( 1 986, 1 988);
Bubl i tz ( 1 980, 1 988); Crystal ( 1 980); Edmondson ( 1 98 1 ); Fleischmann ( 1 985);
Motsch ( 1 987); Norrick ( 1 987); Schenkein ( 1 978); Svartvik ( 1 980); Wierzbicka
( 1 986).
Other relevant studies include: Brazil ( 1 985); Chafe ( 1 976); Condon ( 1 986);
Firbas ( 1 979); Hawkins ( 1 978); Kempson ( 1 977); Li ( 1 976); Mann and Thompson
( 1 986); Quirk and Stein ( 1 990); Schifrin ( 1 98 I ): Sinclair ( 1 980); Stenstrom ( 1 984);
Yee ( 1 975).
i '
:l
484 Bibliography
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mcnl
'
, English Studies 60, 42-48
Sorensn, K. ( 1 985) 'The Distributive Pl ural and
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Sroka. K.A. ( 1 972) The Syntax of Eng/is/1 Phrasal
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Stein, G. ( 1 976) 'The I mperative in English',
Anglo-American For11111 5, 83-1 05
Stein, G. ( 1 979) Studies in the Function of tl1e
P ive, Tibingen: Narr
Stenstrom, A.-B. ( 1 984) Questions and Responses
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Libc
Stevensn, R. J. and M. Vitkovitch (1 986) 'The
Comprche.nsion of Anaphoric Relations', Lan
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Stockwell, R. P., P. Schachter, and B. Hall Partee
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Greenbaum, Leech, and Svartvik ( 1 980),
1 67-177
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Takami, K. (1985) 'Defnite NP Anaphora and
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269-303
Talmy, L. ( 1 978) 'Relations between Subordina
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(1 978), 487-51 3
Tedeschi, P. and A. Zaenen (1 981 ) (edd) Syntax
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Tottie, G. ( 1 977) Fu:=y Negation in English and
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Ungcrcr, F. ( 1 988) Syntax der englischen Ad1er
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.
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502-51 3
I ndex
References arc t o section numbers and section
notes ('n').
Cross-reference is indicated by an arrow.
A -adverbial
a- article (indefnite)
a-words 7.3
absolute clause 1 5.34
absolute comparison 7.39
abstract adjectival head 7. 1 3
abstract noun 5. 1 , 21 ; 1 7.23
accent (prosodic) -stress
accent (regional) 1 . 1 2
acceptability 1 . 1 6
accidence-> i nfection
accusative- case
active/passive 3.25f; 1 8.22
address- vocative
adjective 2.6;7. 1 -26, 32, 38-45; 1 6.38-41 ; 1 7.29
adjunct 8. 1 3-3 1 ; I 0.6; 1 6. 1 3, 26; see also
adverbial
adverb 2.6; 7.2/, 20, 27, 31 -40, 4f; 8. I O
and other word classes 7.2/, 28-30
particle 1 6.2-, 7, 9
phrase 2.4; 8. 1 0, 33
adverbial 2.3; 8 passim; 1 0. 1 -4, 6f; 1 5. 1 3-35;
1 9.22-25
affected role l 0.9f
agent
adverbial 8.28
animate/inanimate 9. 1 3
agentive role 3.25f; 9. 1 3; I 0.9; 1 8. 35
agreement _, concord
all 5.8; 6.24
AmE->American English
American English I . I D
amplifer 7. 1 8; 8. 37
an- article (indefni te)
analysis, multiple I 0. 7n; 1 6. 5
anaphora 5. 1 4; 6.8/, 1 9; 1 2.2, 1 8; 1 9. 1 6, 1 9
and->apposition; concord; coordination
animal s- gender
animate->agent, gender
antecedent 1 2. 3; see also anaphora, cataphora
anticipatory subject->it
antithetic conjunct 8.44
any 5.6; 6.25-27; 1 0. 37
apostrophe->contraction; genitive
appended -clause; coordination
apposition 1 0.22; 1 7.27
article
defnite 5. 1 1-14, 28f
indefnite 5. I 5f
zero 5. 1 7-2 1
us 9.3n; 1 5.29/, 36f; 1 7. 1 0; 1 9. 21
aspect 4. 7-12; 1 7. 1 4; 1 9. 1 1 -1 4
assertive and nonassertive frms 2. 1 1 : 6.2'
1 0. 37
asyndetic coordination 1 3. 1 ; 1 9.2, 26
attachment rule 15 .34
attitude- varieties of English
attitudinal disjunct-content disjunct
attitudinal past 4.6, 9
attraction -concord
attribute 1 0.9; 1 6. 1 2, 25
attributive-adjective
a ux -auxiliary
auxiliary 3. 1 1 -1 8; 4 passim; 1 0.41 ; 1 4. 21
backshifting 1 4. 1 8
backward span-duration
bare existential I 8.32n
bare infnitive- infnitive
basis->comparison
be 3. 1 3; 1 8. 1 8-20, 30 33
being, verbs of 4. 1 1
benefctive->object (indi rect)
binomials I 3.26n
block language 1 1 .22
bodily sensation. verbs of 4. 1 1
bo1'1 5.8; 6.24
BrE-British English
British English I . I 0
bw 9. 1 5; 1 5.25: see a/so coordination
c.-complement
calling- vocati ve
can 3. 1 I f, 1 6; 4.22: 1 0. 41
Canadian English I. I 0
cardinal numerals 6.28n
careful _frmal
Caribbean English I . I I
case 5.48-55; 6.6/
cataphora 5. 1 4; 6.8/, 1 9; 1 2.2, 1 8; l 9. 1 6f
catenative 3. I 8n
causative I 0. 1 On: 1 6.27-29
486 Index
cause 8.6; 1 5.26
cause and purpose 9 . 1 2
causer, external I 0. I 0
central -. pronoun
circumstance 1 5.26
citation I 7. 26n
clause 2. 4; I 0. 1-4; I 4. 1/
appended 1 2. 23
coordinate 1 3. I S
elements 2. 3; S . I , 1 3; 1 0.5-I S
elliptical 1 2.20-23
fnite 1 4. 3; 1 6. 1 7-22, 33-35, 39; 1 7. 5-1 3
nonfnite 1 4.3-5; 1 5.34/; 1 6.23, 27-30, 36/
40/; 1 7. 1 4-I S
subordinate 1 4. 1/
verbless 14. 3, 6; 1 5. 1 2, 34/
cleft sentence I S . I S/
pseudo- I S .20
closed class 2.6
closed condition-.condition
code--operator
cognate object 1 0. 1 5
cognition, verbs o f 4. 1 1 ; J O. I I ; 1 4, I Sn; 1 6. I S
coherence/cohesion 1 9.2
collective noun 5.43-45; 1 0. 21
colloquial --infrmal
colour adjectives 7.26; 1 3.26; 1 7.41
combinatory coordination 1 3.22, 25
command--directive
comment I S. Sn
comment clause 1 5. 32
common case-case
common gender-- gender
communication, verbs of 4.4; S. 41
communicative dynamism I S.2
comp-element --comparative clauses
comparative clauses 1 5.36-42; 1 7. 1 0
comparison clauses 1 5.29; 1 9. 21
comparison of adjective and adverbs 7.39-44
compatibility 1 9.24
complement 2.3; 1 0. 5, 1 0; 1 6. 1 2, 25
prepositional 9. 1
complementation of adjectives 1 6. 3S-4 1
complementation of verbs 1 6.2-37
complex transitive 1 6.24-30, 37
concession S.6, 30, 44; 9. 1 5; 1 5.21
concord 5.45; I O. I 9-2S
concrete noun 5. 1
condition S. 6, 41 ; 1 5. 1 7-20
conditional-concessive clause 1 5. 22/
conducive question 1 1 .4-7, 1 2/
conjoin(t)--coordi nati on
conjunct S.43-45; 1 9.24[
conjunction 2.6; 1 3. 1 -1 6; 14. 7-9
content disjunct S.42
context 1 9. 1/
contingency 7. I 5; S.6; I 5. 1 5n
continuous -.aspect
contracti on 3 . 1 I n, 1 3-1 6
contrast S.44; I 5.24; 1 9.24[
coordination 1 3. 1 -I O; 1 9.26-29
coordinator-conjunction
copula 1 0.3; I 6. 1 2/
co reference 1 2. 3; I 9. I 5
correlative S.45; 1 3. 1 4[; 1 4. S; 1 5.29n, 30, 42
could 3. 1 If, 1 6; 4.22, 30-32, 34; I 0.41 ; 1 4. 21
countability 5. If, 1 7, 2 I , 35-44
courtesy subjunct S.34
current attribute 1 0.9; 1 6. 1 2, 25
dangling participle I 5.34
dare 3. 1 7
dative-. case
declarative sentence I I . I
deferred preposition 9.2; 1 1 . 9; I 7.S
defning_, restrictive/nonrestrictive meaning
defnite- article
degree S.9
deictic 6.20
deletion--ellipsis
demonstrative 5.4; 6. 1 9/; 1 9. 1 5/, I S
denial I 0. 39n
denominal adjective 7.21 , 26; 1 7.40/
deontic 4.21 n
dependent->clause
descriptive genitive-case
destination- goal
determiner 5. 3-34; 1 9. 1 5, I S
deverbal noun I 7.23
dialect 1 . 7
dialogue 1 9. 3 1 f
dimension 9.4
di rect object-object
direct speech 1 4. 1 7-22
di rection S. 1 6-I S; 9.5
di rective I I . I , 1 5-1 9; 1 9. 36
discontinuous construction 7. Sn, 9; 1 7.42/;
1 8. 17/
discourse S.43/; I I passim; I 9 passim
disjunct S.40-42; I S.3; 1 9.22-25
distance S. 1 6-I S
di transitive I 0.3; I 6.3 1 -37
do 3. 1 5; 1 1 . 1 9; 1 2.6-S, 1 2f; I S. 37
double genitive 5. 55
double negative I 0.37n, 41 n
downtoner 7. I S; S. 37
dual gender 5.45/
dual number 5.35n; 6.21
dummy operator 3. 1 1
duration 4. 1 0-1 2; S. 3, 21} 9. ! 0f
" /.

dynamic 2.S; 4.2, I I ; 7.23
dynamism, communicative I S.2
E (position) S. I I
each 5.5; 6.22-4, 27/
echo q ucstion 1 1 . I 4
-ed participle 3.2/, 9, 20; 14.4; 1 5.34/; 1 6.30;
1 7. 1 5, 32/
efTcct-cause
effected object I 0. 1 5
either 5.5; 6.25-27; 1 3 . 1 4
clement 2. 3; S. I , 1 3; I O. I , 4-7
ellipsis 1 2. 1 4-23; 1 9.5, 1 5-1 7
emotive adjective 1 4. 14; 1 6.39/
emphasis I S. 6-1 3
emotive I S.36f
emphasizer 7. I S; S.36
cnclitic 1 0. 33
end-fcus I S.5/
end position S. 1 1
end-weight I S. 5n
enumerative conjunct S.44
epistemic 4.2 1 n
eventive role 1 0. 1 3, 1 6
every 5.5; 6.22/, 25
exception 9. 1 5; 1 5.25
exclamation 7. 1 6; I I . I , 1 2, 20; 1 5. 6
exclusive we 6. I O; 1 9.20
existential I S.30-36
experiencer I 0. 1 1
explicitness 1 7. 5
extraposition I S.23/
extrinsic 4.21
familiar- i nfrmal
Jew 5. 1 0; 6.26/
fnal position S. 1 1 ; I S.2-5
fnite 3. 3, 1 9; see also clause
fcus I S. 5-1 2
fcusing subjunct S.3Sf
for 1 3. 3; see also rnnjunction, preposition
frmulaic subjunctive 3.24; 1 1 .2 1
fractions 6.28n
frequency s. 23/
fronting I S. 1 4/
function words 2.6
future 4. 1 3-20
gapping 1 3.29
gender 5.45-47; 6.4
generic 5.22-24
genitive 5.4S-55; 6.6, 1 6; 1 7.26, 34
gerund 1 5. I On; I 7.23n
get 3.25n; 1 0.2
given/new I S.4
goal 8.2, I 7/; 9-4(
gradability 7. 1
gradicnce I 0. 7n; 1 3.3
grammar 1 .2-5
grammatical _, acceptable
grammatical words 2. 6
group genitive- genitive
habitual 4.3
hme 3. 14; 1 8. 36
Hiberno-English I. I l
historic present 4.4; 1 9. 1 4
human_, gender
hypercorrcct 1 . 5
hypernym 1 9.2
Index 487
hypothetical meaning 3.24; 4.3 1 ; 14. 1 2/; 1 6.20,
23
I (position) 8. I I
imperative 3.3; I I . I ; 1 5-1 9
inanimate- gender
inclusive we 6. I O; 1 9.20
indefnite--article; pronoun
independent--clause
indicative 3. 1 9
i ndi rect object--object
indirect speech 14. 1 7-22
i nferential conjunct 8.44
i nfni tive 3. 3, 20/; S . l I n; 14.4[; 1 5.9, 1 1 , 34, 41/;
1 6.23, 27/, 36/; 1 7. 1 6-1 8
infection 3.2, 4-9; 5.48; 6.2/, 6f; 7. 1 , 39-44
infrmal 1 . 1 5
i nfrmation processi ng I S passim; 1 9.40-42
-ingparticiple 3.3/ 20; 14.4; 1 5.34[; 1 6.23, 29, 4 1 ;
1 7. 1 4, 30/
inherent--adjective
initial position 8. 1 1
i ni tiator 7.29
instrumental S.4, 28; 9. 1 3: 1 0. 1 0
i ntellectual s!ate-cognition
i ntensifcation 7. 1 8, 32-35; 8.37; see also
emphasis
intention 4.27
i nterjection I I .22n
interrogative I I . I ; see also pronoun; question
intonation 2. I 5; I 8. 3-14: 1 9.30-32
i ntransitive I 0.3; 1 6. 1 1
intrinsic 4. 21
inversion 3. 1 I ; 1 1 . 3; I O; 1 8. 1 4-1 7
Irish English I . I I
irregular comparison 7.41 . 44
irregular pl urals 5. 37-42
irregular verbs 3.2, 9/
it 6.9; 1 0. 14; 1 8. I S, 23/; 1 9. 1 7
item subjunct 8.35
488 Index
La ! I ans Scots I . ! I
language names 5. 3(; 7. 1 2
let( 't) 1 1 . 17/
lexical connetion 1 9.2
like 1 5.29
Ii mi ting- restrictive/nonrestrictive meaning
linking verb-copula
listing conjunct 8.44
li11/e 5. 1 0; 6.26/
locative 9.4-7; 1 0. 1 3, 1 5
M (position) 8. 1 1
main-claus
mandative subjunctive 3.24
manner 8.4, 27; 9. 14n; 1 5.29
marked/unmarked 2. 7; 7.45; 1 0. l 9n
mass- countability
matrx-+clause
may 3. 1 lf 16; 4.23, 34; 1 0.41
means 8.4, 28; 9. 1 3
measure 6.26/; 7.45; 8. 1 6, 2 1/; 9. 1 0/; 1 0.7n
medial positon 8. 1 1
medium 1 . 14
mental slate-+cognition
metalinguistic comment 8. 41
middle verb 1 0.7n
might 3. 1 lf, 1 6; 4.23, 29, 3 1/, 34; 1 0. 41 ; 14. 21
modal-+ auxiliary
modality 4.21 ; 8.7, 36
modifcation 6. 1 1 ; 7.7-9, 1 7-21 , 26, 32-36; 9. 1 6;
17 passim
momentary verbs 4. 1 1 , 35
monotransitive 1 0.3; 1 6. 1 4-23
motion 9.7
multiple analysis 1 0. 7n; 1 6.5
multiple moifcation 1 7.25/, 36--3
multiplier 5.9
multi-word \'erb 1 6.2-1 0
must 3. l lf, 16; 4.24. 26, 29, 34; 1 0.41 ; 1 4. 21
name 5.25-34
narrow orientation subjunct 8.35-39
necessity 4.21 , 24, 34
need 3. 1 7; 4.25
negation 2.10; l 0. 33--1 ; 1 1 .5, 1 8; 14.23
neither 5.5; 6.25-27; 1 3. 1 4(
new/given 18.4
' New Zealand English I . I I
nominal expression 1 2.5; l 3.25n; see also noun
nominal clause 1 5.2-1 2
nominal relative clause 1 5.7/
nominalization 1 7 .23
nominative- case
nonassertive-+assertive
noncount-countability
nonfnite 3.3, I (; 4.35; see also clause
nonrestrictivc- restrictive
nonstandard 1 . 8
11nr-concord; coordination
1101-ncgalion
noun 2.6; 5. 1 , 25-55
clause-nominal clause
phrase 17 passim; see a/so nominal expression
-11 't-+negation
nucleus 2. 1 5
number 3. 3, 1 3; 5.35-4; 6.5; 1 0. 1 9-26, 28
numeral 6.28n
0-+object
object 2.3; 1 0.3, 5, 7, 9, 1 5-1 7; 1 6. 14-20, 22-37
objective- case
obligation 4. 21 , 24-26, 34
obligatory element 8. 1 3; 1 0. 1 , 3-7
ofand the genitive- genitive
omission-+ellipsis
one 6. l 2, 22/, 28; 1 2.5
onset 2. 1 5
open class 2.6
open condition-condition
operator 2. 1 0; 3. 1 1
opinion, verbs expressing 1 4.23
optative 3.24; 1 1 . 21
or-+apposition; concord; coordination
order-extraposition; fronting; inversion;
position
ordinal numerals 6.28n
ought 3. 1 7; 4.26, 29, 34; 1 0. 41 ; 1 4. 21
pairs and triads 1 3.27n; 1 9.28
paragraph 1 9.33
parenthetic 1 5.32
part of speech-+ word class
participant relations 1 9. 38/
participant roles 1 0. 8-1 8
participial adjective 7.5-6; 1 7 .30-33
participle-+ -ed; -ing
particle 1 6. 2
partitive 5. 2; 6.25-28
passage 9.7
passive 3.25/; 1 8.22
past-+ tense
patient-+ affected
pendant participle 1 5. 34
perception, verbs of 4. 1 1 ; 1 6.28/
perfect - aspect
performative verbs 4.3
permanent vs temporary 1 7.4
permission 4. 21-23, 29, 32, 34
person 3. 3, 1 3; 6. 3; see also concord; gender
personal pronoun-+pronoun
phrasal prq1ositional verb 1 6.2, 9
phrasal verb 1 6. 2A. 7, 1 6
phrase 2.4
ritch 2. 1 5
rlacc 7.36; 8. 1 6- 1 8; 9. /; 1 5. 1 6; 1 9.3-6; see also
space
rlace names 5.32-34
plurcrfect 4.9
rlural-+number
polysyndetic coordination 1 3. l
position, meaning 7.36/; 8. 1 6; 9.5/
rosition of adjectives 7.7-9, 1 7-22
in sequence 7.26; 1 7. 40/
position of modifying adverbs 7.32-36
position of adverbials 8. 1 1
i n sequence 8. 1 8, 26, 3 1
positioncr subject I 0. 1 2
possessive-+ pronoun; genitive
possibility 4.21 -23, 29/, 32, 34
postdeterminer 5. 1 0
postmodifca tion- modifcation
postponement 1 8. 21 -28
predeterminer 5. 7-9
predicate 2.2; 1 2.7/, 1 2, 20; 1 3. 1 9/
predication 2. 10; 8. 1 4; 1 2.7/, 1 2, 20; 1 3. 1 9/;
1 8. 1 5, 20
prediction 4.21 , 27-30, 34
preference 1 5.3 1
premodifcation-+modifcation
preposition 2.6; 9 passim
prepositional phrase 8. 1 0; 9 passim
prepositional verb 1 6.2, 5-8, 1 6, 32, 34
prescriptivism l . 5
present - tense
primary verb 3. l, l 3-1 5
principal parts of verb 3. 9/
private and public verbs 1 6. 1 8
process adverbials 8.4, 27/
process verbs 4. 1 1
pro-forms 2.9; 6 passim; 1 2. 1 -1 3; 1 9. 5, 1 5, 20
progressi ve-+aspect
pronoun 2.6; 6 passim; 1 9. 1 5, 20
central 6.2
indefnite 6.21-28
interrogative 6. 1 8
possessive 6. 1 6
refexive 6. 1 3-1 5
relative 6. 1 7; 1 7 .5-9
see also demonstrative; determiner
prop- it
proper nouns 5. 1 , 25-34
proportional clause 1 5. 30
prosody 2. 1 2-1 5; 1 8.3-1 3; 1 9.30-32, 41
provenance adjectives 7 .24
proximity-+ concord
rscudo-cleft 1 8.20
rscudo-coordi nation I J. 31
rublic and rrivatc verbs 1 6. 1 8
runctual verbs 4. 1 1
runctuation 1 9.30, 33f
rurpose 8. 6, 30; 9. 12; 1 5.27
rutative meaning I 5.27f
putative should 1 4. 1 4
quality/quantity 5.2; 6.25-28
quasi-coordination 1 3.32
Index 489
question 2. 1 0; 1 1 . 1-14; 1 4.20; 1 5.4(; 1 6.22:
19. 35-37
reaction signal 7.29; 8.34n, 36n; 1 9.23, 28
reason 8.6, 30; 9. 1 2; 1 5.26
Received Pronunciation l . 1 2
recipient role 9. 1 2; 1 0.9, l l
reciprocal pronoun use 6.28n
recoverability 1 2.2, 1 6-18; 1 4.5/; 1 5. 34(; 1 7. 14-
1 6; 1 9.5, 1 5/, 21
refexive-pronoun
regional English 1 .7
reinforcement 1 8. 38
relative clause 1 7. 1 -1 7
relative pronoun 6. 1 7; 1 7.5-9
repetition 1 3. 3 l ; 1 8.38
replacive conjunct 8.44
reported speech 1 4. 1 7-22
reporting clause 1 4. 1 7
respect 8.5, 29; 9 . 1 5
restrictive item 7. 1 9; 8.7, 38/
restrictivC,nonrestrictive meaning 7. l 7n; 17 . 3,
5-1 3
result 8.6; 1 6.28
resultant role 1 0. 1 5
resulting attribute 1 0.9; 1 6. 1 2
retrospective verbs 1 6.23
rheme I S.Sn
rhetorical conditional clause 1 5.20
rhetorical question 1 1 . 1 3; 19. 37
rhythm 2. 1 4
root modality 4.2l n
rules o f grammar 1 . 3-5
S-+subject
scope- negation
Scots English l. l l
segregatory coordination 1 3. 22-25
semi-auxiliary 3. 1 8
sentence 2.2; see also clause
sentential relative clause 1 5. 33; 1 7. 1 2
sequence-position
shal 3. 1 lf. 1 6; 4.28-30, 34; 1 0.41
should 3. l lf. 1 6; 4.26, 29f. 33/; 10.41 ; 14. 1 4, 21
490 Index
similarity clause 1 5.29
singular-- number
social variation 1 . 8
.rn 7.28, 39; 8.44; 1 2. 7-13; 1 3. 7, 25n; 1 5. 27/, 30,
37n, 42; 1 9. 1 9, 27
some 5.6, 6.25-27; 1 0.37
source 8.2, 1 6/; 9.4f
South African English I . I I
space 8.2, 1 6-1 8; 9.4-7; I0.6, 1 5; see also place
span .duration
specifc reference 5. 1 1-21
split infnitive 8. 1 1 n
stance verbs 4. 1 1
Standard English 1 . 8-12
statal passive 3.25n
state-aspect; tense
stative 2.8; 4.2, 1 1 ; 7.23
stimulus preposition 9. 1 3
stranding .deferred
stress 2. 1 3
structural compensation 1 8.29
structure words 2.6
style disjunct 8.40/
suasive verbs 1 6. 1 9
subject 2.3; IO. 7 , 9-14
subjective-case
subjunct 8.32-39
subjunctive 3.23/; 14. 1 3
subordination 14. l -I O; 1 9.26-29
subordinator--conjunction

substitution -pro-form
sch 5. 7n; 1 5.42; 1 7. I O
summative conjunct 8.44
superlative (.39-44
superordinate 1 4. 1
supplementive clause 1 5.35
syndetic coordination 1 3. l
tag 1 1 . 6; 1 8. 38
. temporal-- time
temporary vs permanent 1 7.4
tense 4. 1 , 3-6, 1 3-20, 29-30; 1 9. 1 1 -14; see ol.rn
time
text 1 9. 1
1/ie--article (defnite)
theme 1 8. 5
time 7. 36/; 8. 3, 1 9-26, 35; 9. 9-1 1 ; 1 0. 1 3; 1 5. 1 4/;
1 6. 1 3; 1 9.7-14; see also tense
tone unit 2. 1 5; 1 8. 3
topic/comment 1 8.5n
transferred negation 1 4.23
transition verbs 4. 1 1
transitional conjuncts 8.44
transitive I 0. 3; 1 6. 1 4-37
triads 19 .28
unattached participle 1 5.34
uncountable --Coun ta bili ty
universal --pronoun (indefnite)
unmarked-- marked
unreal --condition
used to 3 . 1 7
V-verb
varieties of English I. 6-1 5
verb 2.6; 3. 1 -3, 9/, 1 9-22; 1 0.2/
verbless ->cl a use
viewpoint subjunct 8. 33
vocative I 0. 3 1/; 1 8.3; 1 9.39
voice 3.25/; 1 8.22
volition 4.21 , 27-29, 32, 34
lle 6. I O; 1 9.20
wide orientation subjunct 8. 33/
will 3. l lf 1 6; 4. 1 4, 1 8, 21 , 27, 29/, 32, 34; 1 0.41
word classes 2.6
ll'Ollld 3. 1 J/ 1 6; 4.21 , 27, 29-34; I 0.41 ; 1 4. 21
zero-article; nominal clause; relative clause