Questions tagged [attributive-nouns]
An attributive noun, also called a noun adjunct, refers to a noun placed before another noun to modify it, like "dog" in "dog catcher" and "dog food", "heart" in "heart surgery", "running" in "running shoes", "employee" in "employee compensation", and "Peter" in "Peter Principle". It is an alternative to a prepositional phrase, like "food for dogs" or "surgery of the heart". You can use a predicate test to distinguish a noun adjunct from an adjective.
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When using compound nouns, is the quantity of the first noun always ambiguous? [duplicate]
My understanding is that solution discussion is grammatically correct, whereas solutions discussion is not.
However, when looking at solution discussion, I cannot say if it is a discussion about one ...
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Which premodifier is correct: 'ethical' or 'ethics'?
The premodifiers 'ethics' and 'ethical' seem to be used interchangeably in the context of
'ethics review' / 'ethical review'
'ethics committee' / 'ethical committee'
'ethics approval' / 'ethical ...
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Video Magazine or Magazine Video
Although the titular term needs no more explanation, as in the Wikipedia, Video magazines are a series of online videos that follow the print magazine format in which the reader/viewer consumes an ...
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Which contexts warrant the use of prepositional phrases over stacked adjectives, and vice versa?
Are there good reasons to use, e.g., "customer relationship management solution" over "solution for customer relationship management"?
I understand that in certain contexts ...
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Someone's inheriting a castle: 'Castle heirs', 'Heirs of the Castle', or 'Heirs to the Castle'?
What is the correct way to describe people inheriting a castle? (American and British English)
Castle heirs
or
Heirs of the castle
or
Heirs to the castle
It's just a phrase I've heard, but I've ...
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Is it correct to say "violation list" or is it correct to say "violations list" [duplicate]
This question has general rules, but it leaves open the exception(s) list.
So my question here is specifically about "violation(s) list".
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"one/two/three-car households" vs "single/dual/triple-car households" (attributive forms)
Which way is more natural when it comes to numbers of things that people have or own? For example, the numbers of cars owned by households:
The rate of single/dual/triple-car households is increasing....
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Knowing it should be "Tag Manager" and not "Tags Manager", is it too bad to still name it "Tags Manager"? [duplicate]
Ok, so now that thanks to some of you I know the correct way to name a tool like this would be effectible "Tag Manager" and not "Tags Manager" due to "Tag" acts as an ...
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"China balloon" vs "Chinese balloon"?
Is the phrase "China balloon" grammatically correct?
I was under the impression that it must be "Chinese balloon", but I see the former used in mainstream news such as the ...
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-ing word as modifier of a noun: Verb or attributive/deverbal Noun?
Note: I sat on this question for quite some time, but after wracking my brain on it for quite a while, I finally caved and decided to ask it as a question.
When I say “dining room,” most people, I ...
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Object names as object's attributive nouns
Do names (e.g., proper nouns), when used as attributes for their referred objects, have the same stylistic constraints of use as other cases of attributive nouns? Specifically, the examples 5-8 are ...
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"They also need the Poland international striker to help sell shirts and add appeal for potential future sponsorship deals." -- why "Poland"?
"... Robert Lewandowski (238 goals in eight Bundesliga seasons) to replace Messi's goals, they also need the Poland international striker to help sell shirts and add appeal for potential future ...
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business and team trial users
I'm talking about business development of a software.
The software can be used by one individual. But it is better, in terms of business model, to have teams or companies who can install the software ...
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Differences between "machine learning" and "machine-learning" [duplicate]
I am currently editing a scientific text in which the term "machine learning" (ML) appears several times with a hyphen (i.e., "machine-learning") and several times without. Are ...
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I am looking for a word (a noun preferably but an adjective would suffice) that denotes a person that knowingly allows another to use them regularly
This is for a poetic endeavor.
The person allowing this is a people pleaser and lacking in self-esteem (obviously). They feel they are in love with the “user” and although aware that the “relationship”...
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Algorithm vs algorithmic
I encountered an expression Improve my algorithm skills. For me algorithm skills sounds unnatural and should be algorithmic skills or become better at algorithms. After short googling, I found few ...
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Is "in two-yearly intervals" a proper construction?
There's this construction, "x-yearly intervals", in a textbook I found.
The graph shows Europe's jay population from 1996-2004 at two-yearly intervals.
Shouldn't it be "two-year ...
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Attributive nouns in science [duplicate]
I see more and more articles in scientific journals, where attributive nouns use plural. To me they sound really strange and non-intuitive.
'materials science'
'materials design'
To me they should be '...
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Can an attributive noun add identity to a noun phrase? [closed]
I'm in the process of writing documentation. I'm making use of attributive nouns to describe business-specific concepts and entities.
There's one entity in particular which I'm currently referring to ...
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Is there a word that describes something that wasn't made for how it's being used? [duplicate]
In other words, what adjective could you use to describe something that is being used for a task it wasn't made for. An example might include using a plastic bottle of water to water a plant; yes it ...
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Using room twice
I have a game where an external character can use a room. There is a room known as “War Room”. When the character used the room, like any other, a log will be produced that states “Fred has used the ...
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Article after 'added' or 'implemented' in software changelogs [closed]
I'm writing a document describing what has been added or changed in a new version of a software app. Among the changes are new features allowing the users to do certain things.
(1) Is it correct to ...
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Does capitalisation change when a word moves from proper noun to adjective?
For the sake of this question I'll use the word Linux as an example, but I really want to ask about the principle generally.
The word Linux started as the name of an operating system kernel written by ...
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Must attributive nouns always be singular in form? [duplicate]
I want to speak in English that I have a list with car names. Should I say "cars list" or "car list"?
What if I have more than one attributive noun. Should all be singular?
For ...
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Noun adjuncts or complements? [duplicate]
I asked a question regarding PP complements the other day and I believe I now have a better handle on that. But I am still scratching my head over this paragraph from CGEL:
Within the category of ...
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A correct use of the word "exchange"
Let's say I develop an internet site where producers can sell and consumers can buy flowers. I prefer to think of it as an exchange. From the point of view of native English speakers, which domain ...
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Can we use "depot" as an adjective? [closed]
Can we use depot in this form: depotted books or depot books?
(I’m not sure about the past participle of this word.)
Or should it be used only as a “place” where books are supposed to be
stored, a ...
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Can you say "paint price" instead of "painting price"?
Is this sentence ok as currently written?
The paint price is high.
I ask because the free online proofreading service from Grammarly, Inc. tries to change that sentence to The painting price is high,...
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How to refer to multiple entities that belong to multiple entities correctly?
So, for example, there are multiple books by multiple authors, and I want to talk about them. Is it correct to write "books authors"? Because "book authors" sounds like authors of ...
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What is the best way to write a plural of a plural? [duplicate]
What started out as programming has turned into a curious language/grammar question.
I'm writing a program and want to clearly specify a variable name. The variable will be a dictionary and each item ...
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month as an adjective [duplicate]
For the sentence, "I am going on a two month cruise", would "two month" be considered an adjective since it means two months long. Also, is the correct wording "two months&...
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Artifact or artifacts reduction [duplicate]
I need to explain to someone why it's grammatically incorrect to use "artifacts reduction" as opposed to "artifact reduction." Can anyone help with an explanation?
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Why the “which is” can be omitted?
I am writing a scientific paper. And I wrote the sentence as follows:
The nominal prepreg tow height is about 0.15~0.20mm, which is much larger than the Resolution Z-axis (0.011mm). Furthermore, the ...
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"Back to school" as an adjective or noun
What would be a good noun to call a person who deliberately, willfully makes a "back to school" trip to get a refresher on a subject (like geometry, calculus, biology)? Humorous nouns and ...
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Using "test" after TOEIC and TOEFL [duplicate]
Recently, I've seen a few examples of people writing either "I took the TOEIC test" or "I took the TOEFL test". They tend to be ESL students, so I don't want to be a grammar Nazi about it, but for my ...
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Nominal form or adjectival form?
Given that the adjectival form of wood is wooden, why has wood been used instead of wooden in the following sentence?
It is a spacious house with wood floor.
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A woman with two children came. Is "with two children" an attribute or an adverbial modifier?
I'm not sure what the phrase “with two children” is doing here. Is it describing "a woman" or "came" or this make sense both way.
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users´ needs or users needs
Which one of the following is right/ better. I am still not sure after thinking about it for quite a while now. I am talking about the needs of multiple users. The first option (s´) is used when ...
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Adjective VS Noun as an adjective
I am often confused when it comes to a noun that is often used as an attributive adjective, yet this noun has an adjective form and this adjective form is described as "relating to (the noun)" by any ...
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What grammatical role is "blood" playing in the phrase "blood red"?
"Blood red" can be both a noun and an adjective:
Blood red is my favourite colour. [noun]
The wall was blood red. [adjective]
The "blood" is optional in the sense it can be ...
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Attribute to describe about doing something smartly with clear direction [closed]
When I research about wolves, I found that they have a very interesting attribute: they always do things (hunting, "trekking", caring...) with a well-planned & clear direction/strategy and do ...
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What is the difference between rebellion attempt and attempted rebellion? [closed]
I want to understand if there is any difference between "rebellion attempt" and "attempted rebellion". The first is a noun-noun while the second is an adjective noun. I think both are ok, but I do ...
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Why are they 'nude photos'? [duplicate]
Recent news events in the US have resulted in many headlines about "nude photos of young women" and variations.
Obviously it's the women who are nude, not the photos, so why does this phrasing ...
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Is '"snapshotting" a correct word? [closed]
For example, as part of the information message of some computer script:
Snapshotting the file...
Can we write snapshotting instead of taking the snapshot? Is it still correct?
I've found an ...
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Is “U.S.” in “U.S.-China trade” a noun or adjective?
In the work I am writing, I am using “United States” for noun and “U.S.” for adjective. I was a bit confused whether the U.S. in the phrase U.S.-China trade is a noun or adjective. I didn’t get ...
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how to justify the "rough and tumble" used in this sentence?
Our clothing is designed to take the greater "rough and tumble" that they expect boys to give it.
This is clearly an attributive clause. What baffles me is that the "it" used in the end. If " rough ...
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Is an apostrophe needed in "children's discounts"? [duplicate]
I've written:
Special offer: For a limited period (to celebrate the launch of our
saunas in Chalet Harriet 1 & 2) we are offering our free children's
discounts on both chalets for 15th December ...
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A and B which, which stands for which?
There are numerous small animals like field mice and voles which you do not see.
In the above sentence, how do you determine if which modifies voles or field mice and voles?
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Question on attributive nouns/noun adjuncts
I am writing a review in English and I need to use the structure ‘eye movement changes’, ‘eye movement abnormalities’ with ‘eye movements’ in the form of a noun adjunct. Even in the title I would need ...
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Why is it incorrect to say/write "I want to know today weather" instead of "I want to know today's weather"? [closed]
"'s" indicates possesive case. Although it's absurd to say that "today" owns "weather", possesive case can indicate other relationships too. For example, in "Picasso's paintings" it means "by Picasso" ...
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