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Adjective phrase (AP), adverb phrase (AdvP), adposition phrase (PP), noun phrase (NP), verb phrase (VP), etc. In terms of phrase structure rules , phrasal categories can occur to the left of the arrow while lexical categories cannot, e.g. NP → D N. Traditionally, a phrasal category should consist of two or more words, although conventions ...
The earliest attested disparagement of preposition stranding in English is datable to the 17th-century grammarian Joshua Poole, [3] but it became popular after 1672, when the poet John Dryden objected to Ben Jonson's 1611 phrase "the bodies that those souls were frighted from". Dryden did not explain why he thought the sentence should be ...
Though the prototypical prepositional phrase consists of a noun phrase complement following a preposition, prepositions can take a wider variety of complements than just noun phrases. [ 14 ] : 603–606 English prepositions can also take clauses , adjective phrases , adverb phrases , and other prepositional phrases as complements, though they ...
There are other cases where pied-piping is optional. In English, this occurs most notably when the fronted word is the object of a prepositional phrase. A formal register will pied-pipe the preposition, whereas more colloquial English prefers to leave the preposition in situ: a. She revealed her secret to Tom. b. To whom did she reveal her secret?
Prepositions in this section may also take other kinds of complements in addition to noun phrase complements. Prepositions marked with an asterisk can be used transitively or intransitively; that is, they can take noun phrase complements (e.g., he was in the house) or not (e.g., he was in).
A prepositional phrase can be used as a complement or post-modifier of a noun in a noun phrase, as in the man in the car, the start of the fight; as a complement of a verb or adjective, as in deal with the problem, proud of oneself; or generally as an adverb phrase (see above). English allows the use of "stranded" prepositions.
The modern French phrase is "à double sens". in lieu (of) "in place (of)"; partially translated from the existing French phrase au lieu (de). léger de main (legerdemain) "light of hand": sleight of hand, usually in the context of deception or the art of stage magic tricks. Meaningless in French; the equivalent is un tour de passe-passe ...
Some examples of the use of English prepositions are given below. In each case, the prepositional phrase appears in italics, the preposition within it appears in bold, and the preposition's complement is underlined. As demonstrated in some of the examples, more than one prepositional phrase may act as an adjunct to the same word.