18870726
Adjective phrase
- The adjective phrase (AP) can be expanded
in several different ways (table 7.2)
- The category of degree adverbs includes
words which are traditionally defined as
adverbs, since they modify both adjectives
and adverbs
- “General adverbs” degree words cannot be
modified by other adverbs.
- Degree words express a quality, intensity, or
degree of the following adjective or adverb; in
other words, they function, like determiners,
as specifiers of the head.
- The elements preceding the A are modifiers
or specifiers, but the PP following bears a
different relationship to the A.
- Note that the PP does not express a quality
or degree of the A but rather “completes” it;
the A serves as governor of the PP.
- the sequence [Deg Adv] constitutes an
adverb phrase.
- We must also recognize in our rule that
Deg can modify A directly.
- We must also recognize in our rule that
Deg can modify A directly.
- the sequence [Deg Adv] constitutes an
adverb phrase.
- Note that the PP does not express a quality
or degree of the A but rather “completes” it;
the A serves as governor of the PP.
- The elements preceding the A are modifiers
or specifiers, but the PP following bears a
different relationship to the A.
- Degree words express a quality, intensity, or
degree of the following adjective or adverb; in
other words, they function, like determiners,
as specifiers of the head.
- “General adverbs” degree words cannot be
modified by other adverbs.
- The category of degree adverbs includes
words which are traditionally defined as
adverbs, since they modify both adjectives
and adverbs
- We have seen above that the AP is introduced
in our phrase structure rules under N–,
functioning as modifier of the noun
- If an adjective has a complement, it can only occur
in predicative position in English (the lake is near to
me but not *the near to me lake) unless it is
compounded (twenty-year-old house).
- It is quite common for more than one
adjective to occur as modifier of the N, as
in the long, blue, silken scarf.
- Moreover, each of the adjectives can be
modified by Deg or AdvP, as in the very
long, quite pale blue, silken scarf.
- To account for this possibility, we must introduce a
modification to our rule for NP which permits more
than one AP in a single NP. One way to do so would
simply be to allow for multiple APs in a “flat”
structure
- Note that changing the order of the
adjectives produces unnatural phrases
- In order to account for this
structure, our rule for N– must be
rewritten as follows:
- In order to account for this
structure, our rule for N– must be
rewritten as follows:
- Note that changing the order of the
adjectives produces unnatural phrases
- To account for this possibility, we must introduce a
modification to our rule for NP which permits more
than one AP in a single NP. One way to do so would
simply be to allow for multiple APs in a “flat”
structure
- Moreover, each of the adjectives can be
modified by Deg or AdvP, as in the very
long, quite pale blue, silken scarf.
- It is quite common for more than one
adjective to occur as modifier of the N, as
in the long, blue, silken scarf.
- If an adjective has a complement, it can only occur
in predicative position in English (the lake is near to
me but not *the near to me lake) unless it is
compounded (twenty-year-old house).
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