CÚ PHÁP-HÌNH THÁI HỌC

PART II: THE SYNTAX OF ENGLISH

GRAMMATICAL FUNCTIONS
CHƯƠNG 7: PHRASE
 PART II THE SYNTAX OF ENGLISH
The term “syntax” is from the Ancient Greek
syùntaxis, a verbal noun which literally means
“arrangement” or setting out together”. Traditionally,
it refers to the branch of grammar dealing with the
ways in which words, with or without appropriate
inflections, are arranged to show connections of
meaning within the sentence. (Matthews, 1982)

Syntax is the study of the function of words and how

they are arranged into groups (constituents) and
sentences. (Pavey, 2010)
PART II THE SYNTAX OF ENGLISH

Syntax deals with how sentences are constructed.

(Rober D.Van Valin Jr.2001)
Syntax: the grammatical principles, units, and
relations involved in sentence structure.
(Jacobs, 1995)
• grammatical relations
• grammatical relations
• syntactic functions
• grammatical roles
 ANALYZING WORDS OR WORD GROUPS BY FORMS,
FUNCTIONS AND POSITIONS

Words can be combined into larger structures -

phrases, clauses, and sentences.
Words and word groups can be analyzed by
forms, functions, and positions.
 ANALYZING BY FORM

• FORMS:
• Words
• Noun
• Verb
• Adverb
• Adjective
• Preposition
• Conjunction
•Phrase
•Noun Phrase
•Verb Phrase
•Adverb Phrase
•Adjective Phrase
•Preposition Phrase
•Gerund Phrase
•Infinitive Phrase
•Present Participle Phrase
•Past Participle Phrase
•Absolute Phrase
• Clause
• Noun Clause
who , where, whether, that
• Adjective clause
relative pronouns: who, whom, which
modifier of a noun
• Adverb clause
subordinate conjunctions
modifier of a verb/ sentence
GRAMATICAL RELATIONS/ FUNCTIONS

Label of functions Meanings

 Subject of verb That which performs action o
verb
That which is described
That which is identified
That about which an assertio
is made
 Verb or predicator That which asserts an action o
state
may be described as
may be identified as
 Subject complement That which follows be or a
verb like become and
identifies the subject
 Direct object That which undergoes the
action of the verb
 Object complement That which completes the
direct object and describes or
identifies it.
 Object of preposition That which is related to
another word by a
preposition
 FUNCTIONS

 Complement of noun A word group that behaves like a direct

object of the verb corresponding to the
noun.
Example: His hope that she would win
was strong.

 Complement of A word group that directly follows and

adjective completes an adjective
I am glad that you came.
 Modifier That which modifies, limits, or adds to the
meaning of a word or word group. A
modifier can be or word or word group.
 Connector That which connects words and /or word
group. the connectors (by function) are the
coordinating conjunctions, prepositions,
and relatives.
GRAMMATICAL RELATIONS/FUNCTIONS

Subject S:
controls verb agreement.
+ the questions Who? What?
Who is near the window?
Tam (S) is near the window.
What is on the table?
The book (S) is on the table.

+ S – V agreement: the verb must agree with its

subject (singular, plural)
 Types of subject:

+ Real subject.
Ex: The boy is playing chess in class.
The dog chased the girl.
A portrait of the Queen as a young woman with a
faraway look in her eyes hung on the wall.
+ Formal subject : There; Here ; It.
The formal subject can be omitted and replaced
by the real one.
There is a book on the table.
=> A book is on the table.
It is very difficult to study English.
=> To study English is difficult.
Verb or predicator That which asserts an action
or state may be described
as may be identified as

Basketballs roll across the floor.

These clothes are too small for me.
Neither gray nor white is my favorite color. (singular)
Either Grandpa or my sisters are going to the park. (closest
subject is plural)
Direct object That which undergoes
What or Whom? the action of the verb

She read the grammar book.

Our neighbours are looking after the children.
Tam postponed mailing the letter.
You must do the best with what you have.
I don’t know what you are planning.
Indirect object That person or thing to
(to) whom? or for who main action is
The IO can be substituted performed
by a prepositional
phrase with to- following
the DO
She gave me the money.
He teaches us grammar.
Richard has promised me his spaghetti machine
Maria has been feeding the cat smoked salmon.
The obliging manager poured everyone a gigantic
glass of wine
Subject complement That which follows be or
a verb like become and
identifies the subject
it complements the verb,
but is related to the
subject of the sentence,
i.e., something that is
said about the subject
She is a happy girl.
She became a good friend of mine.
He got very depressed.
He died a poor man.
I feel relaxed.
Object complement That which completes the
direct object and
describes or identifies it.

She called me a psycho

I consider it unnecessary
I find it inappropriate
The OC becomes the SC in passive
sentences
She painted her room green. (Painted room
what? Answer: green)
s verb d.o objective complement
Object of preposition That which is related to
another word by a
preposition

She is laughed at the boys

On the table
Complement of noun A word group that
behaves like a direct
object of the verb
corresponding to the
noun.
.
Example:
His hope that she would win was strong.
idea, proof, fact, hypothesis, possibility,
claim, notion, dream.
The idea that frogs eat spaghetti is really
amazing.
The proof that the earth revolves around
the sun is clear.
The claim that Cheryl might ditch Mike
might be true.
Complement of adjective A word group that
directly follows and
completes an adjective
I am glad that you came.
.

Ex: I
am hopeful that you’ll pass the
exam.
Complement of V (CoV) Predicator

Predicator Complement (PC):This category is a

miscellaneous type of complement that does not fit
well in any of the types above. the simplest case is a
DO that cannot become the subject of the passive
sentence.

This car costs £16,000.

He resembles his father.
It took me two hours to prepare dinner.
Verb+ DO+PREDICATOR COMPLEMENT
(PC)
Cost, charge + N/NP/NC (Nominal group)
Remind +N/NP/NC+ PP
Convince +NG+ that clause
Advise + NG+WH –clause
Encourage +NG+ to infinitive clause
Make +NG +infinitive clause
It cost John an effort
He reminds her of the time
She assured that she cared
She asked me where the library was
MODIFIERS OF VERBS

WHEN?
WHERE?
HOW?
WHY?
MODIFIERS OF SENTENCES
Modifiers of sentences

BEFORE THE MAIN CLAUSE

Adverb clause
To infinitive
Present participle phrase
Past participle phrase
PHRASE
• A phrase is a group of words which forms a
grammatical unit. It consists of a head word and all
the words clustering around the head word.
• Example: A very big black dog sleeping soundly
in a corner of the room

• A phrase does not contain a finite verb. There are

five main kinds of phrases: noun phrase, verb
phrase, adjective phrase, adverb phrase, and
preposition phrase.
PHRASE
•Noun Phrase
•Verb Phrase
•Adverb Phrase
•Adjective Phrase
•Preposition Phrase
•Gerund Phrase
•Infinitive Phrase
•Present Participle Phrase
•Past Participle Phrase
•Absolute Phrase
1. Noun Phrase (NP)

a noun phrase has a noun as its Head.

[NP the children]
[NP happy children]
[NP the happy children]
the post-Head string in a NP can be indefinitely
long:
[NP the dog that chased the cat that killed the mouse
that ate the cheese that was made from the milk that
came from the cow that...]
Numerals can be the Head of an NP:
[NP Two of my guests] have arrived.
[NP The first to arrive] was John .
The general structure of the noun phrase is the
following:
(predeterminer)* (determiner)* (postdeterminer)*
(premodifier)* HEAD (postmodifier)*
Ex: All the many very beautiful girls with hats at
the party
Predeterminers: all, double, half, twice, both,
many, such, what
Determiners: articles, demonstrative and
possessive pronouns.
Postdeterminers: numbers, many, other, last, few,
more, own, etc.
Premodifiers:

an adjective phrase: 'very beautiful girls'

a noun phrase: 'traffic jam', 'speed limit'
a classifying genitive: 'a dog's life', 'a men's shop'
an adverb phrase: 'a through road', 'the then
chairman'
Postmodifiers:

an adjective phrase: 'people concerned', 'book

hard to come by', 'a car faster than yours', 'a plan
less ambitious than we expected', 'a cave so dark
that...'
an adverb phrase: 'the way down', 'the road
ahead', 'the man outside'
a prepositional phrase: 'the city of Rome', 'the edge
of the desk', 'the day before yesterday', 'the house
opposite yours'
a noun phrase: 'girls your age', 'a car that colour',
'a hat this size'
a relative clause: 'the book that I told you about'
Noun complement:

our hesitation whether we should go or not

the fact that he is a gentleman
the news that he had been fired
FUNCTIONS

A noun phrase can function as a (an)

M. Premodifier. Ex: The town hall clock
Postmodifier. Ex: The newspaper, daily Tuoi
Tre
Ex: The beautiful flowers are sent to the mothers
Ex: I have just bought a new dress.
Ex: I bought my best friend a new shirt.
Ex: I put the pen on the oval table.
Ex: She was the best student.
Ex: We voted him the committee chairman.
A noun phrase can function as a (an)
M. Premodifier. Ex: The town hall clock
Postmodifier. Ex: The newspaper, daily Tuoi
Tre
S. Ex: The beautiful flowers are sent to the mothers
O.DO. Ex: I have just bought a new dress.
IO. Ex: I bought my best friend a new shirt.
OP. Ex: I put the pen on the oval table.
C.
SC. Ex: She was the best student.
OC. Ex: We voted him the committee chairman.
FUNCTIONS OF NP

A noun phrase can function as a

Modifier.
Adjectival modifier.
Ex: The high heel shoes were broken.
Adverbial modifier.
Ex: That day something unusual happened.
2. VERB PHRASE
• Head word: Lexical verb
• Words & word groups
Auxiliaries, modifiers, complement
• Ex: Tam has been living in this city for more than
10 years
• Ex: Mai has been learning English for 3 years.

Complements include direct object, indirect

object, object complement, and subject
complement.
 VERB PHRASE

Verb phrases can come in a variety of shapes.

V alone Ann cried
V+ NP Ann made a cake.
V+ NP+PP Ann put the pen on the table.
V+AP Ann is happy.
V+ AP+ PP Ann seems friendly to us.
V+ NP +NP Ann sent her friend a letter.
V+ Q Ann’s complaints were many.
 VERB PHRASE

• FINITE AND NON-FINITE VERB PHRASE

A finite verb phrase is one that can be the main verb of
a sentence.
A non-finite verb phrase is an infinitive, gerund or
participle.
2.2.1. Infinitive phrase
HEAD WORD : Infinitive
FUNCTIONS:
An infinitive phrase can function as a (an)
S. Ex: To live is to struggle.
SC. Ex: To live is to struggle.
DO. Ex: I want to stay with you.
Adjectival M. Ex: That day was the day to
remember.
Adverbial M. Ex: I learn English to get a good job.
2.2.2. Gerund phrase
HEAD WORD: gerund
FUNCTIONS :
A gerund phrase can function as a (an)
S. Ex: Swimming is my hobby.
DO. Ex: I like swimming.
IO. Ex: I gave swimming all my time.
OP. Ex: Before swimming, don’t eat too much.
SC. Ex: My hobby is swimming.
OC. Ex: I consider living this way being in
prison.
2.2.3. Present Participle Phrase
HEAD WORD: present participle
FUNCTIONS:
Adjectival M: The boy sitting near the windows is
my brother.
Adverbial M: She arrived smiling happily. (Verb
M)
Smiling happily, she said that she
passed the exams.
(Sentence M)
2.2.4. Past Participle Phrase
HEAD WORD: Past Participle
FUNCTIONS:
Adjectival M. The child punished by his father run
away from home.
Adverbial M. Delayed by the weather, the train
arrived two hours late.
Frightened, he left the room.
Verb M. He came back, broken by loneliness.
2.2.5. Absolute Phrase
An absolute phrase has all the elements of a clause,
but the verb is non- finite.
Ex: The boy having finished his homework, the
father took him to see a doctor.
Everything considered, they cancelled the trip.
3. ADJECTIVE PHRASE

An AP consists of an adjective, which may be

preceded by a ‘degree’ word, like very, somewhat.
HEAD WORD: adjective
FUNCTIONS:
A noun M.
Ex: She is a very beautiful girl.
SC. Ex: She is very beautiful.
OC. Ex: I found her very helpful.
 4. ADVERB PHRASE

An AdvP consists of an adverb preceded by one or

more ‘degree’ words.

Ex: He was received rather less enthusiastically.

5. PREPOSITION PHRASE
A PPconsists of a preposition followed by a noun
phrase called object of preposition.
HEAD WORD: Preposition
FUNCTIONS:
A preposition phrase can function as a (an)
S. Ex: On the beach is better than at home.
SC. Ex: Our happy time is after dinner,
OP. Ex: The view from above the shore is
magnificent.
PREPOSITION PHRASE
Adjectival M. Ex: The boy near the door is my
brother.
Adverbial M. Ex: She is living near the school.
Complement of Adj. Ex: I am terribly bad at
mathematics.
KEY POINTS:

• GRAMMATICAL FUNCTIONS: S, DO, IO, OP, SC,

OC, C of N, C of Aj, M
• PHRASE: NP, VP, AdjP, AdvP, PP and others