Questions tagged [modifiers]
Questions about modifiers.
269
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Adverbial phrases and adjective modification [closed]
“I went to the movies for the first time in a while.”
In this sentence, do the two prepositional phrases “for the first time” and “in a while” modify the verb went?
“I want the work on my desk ...
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4answers
66 views
What is being modified in a phrase like rock hard or water resistant?
“The water-resistant shoes are great for rainy days.”
“The table is rock hard.”
In these sentences, I know “water resistant” modifies shoes and rock hard modifies table. Does “hard” modify “rock” and ...
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21 views
Must summative and resumptive modifiers always correlate with a noun or noun phrase? Or can they restate/summarise a verb?
My question is relatively simple. Should a summative and resumptive modifier always relate back to a previously mentioned noun or noun phrase? We know that appositives rename a noun or noun phrase, so ...
2
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0answers
37 views
Does the dangling modifier thing apply?
I have a persistent question concerning grammar that I would really like your help on. It has been nagging me for a long time.
So, as we all know, if you start a sentence with -ing, the first word of ...
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1answer
32 views
Are adjectives and adverbs just collapsed version of adjuncts?
Modifiers for verbs/ nouns can come in 3 main types: adjectives, adverbs & adjuncts.
These all provide specific details about corresponding noun/ verbs e.g:
Manner, means (instrumental) - with, ...
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54 views
Word for collective followers of Sisyphus
I am looking for a single word to describe the group of followers of Sisyphus (or generally any Greek name ending in '-phus'). I am unsure of how to modify the word to achieve this.
Possible guesses: ...
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41 views
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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48 views
How can I tell if a prepositional phrase is a complement to a noun or a modifier? And how are these two different?
In the NP "mines in wartime", "in wartime" modifies the head "mines".
that nice tall man from Canada whom you met
"from Canada" modifies "man".
But ...
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45 views
Struggling to look at grammatical modifiers
I have a passion for English, and I am trying to improve my fluency day by day. Today, I am quite confused when my teacher, a non-native speaker of English, tells me that a sentence in my essay is ...
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2answers
61 views
"To comprehend x, it is necessary to understand y." Is this a dangling modifier?
Because I often think of sentences in the "we must"-form, as in:
"To comprehend x, we must first understand y."
when I write things that demand I do not write "we," I ...
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0answers
19 views
Can abbreviations be used as stand-alone adjectives when the abbreviated term couldn't?
I see by your name that you are probably ESL...
ESL stands for "English as a second language". In the above sentence, it is being used as a stand-alone adjective, but I'm not sure if that ...
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31 views
Multiple non-restrictive modifiers in one sentence
Consider the following sentence:
"I have not sent any further communication, since the email, to your office, so far."
Would both the phrases "since the email" and "to your ...
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0answers
24 views
Schoolchildren population or schoolchild population?
Although we are taught to use singular adjectives to modify nouns, "schoolchildren" population seems to be a more commonly heard and searched (Google) option than the true singular "...
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1answer
63 views
"I am happy because I am rich." Exactly which part does the subordinate clause modify?
"I am happy because I am rich."
Is it the adjective "happy" or the verb "am" or the entire predicate "am happy" that the subordinate clause "because I am ...
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1answer
74 views
Could someone deconstruct this sentence and explain where it is right or wrong grammatically?
The sentence is:
I'm of the fuck covid opinion.
A friend of mine stated it and I would like to know if someone could explain why it should or should not be written differently.
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1answer
94 views
declining reputation, worsening reputation
I am trying to write a two-word phrase. The second word is "reputation." The first word is a modifier; it will signal that a reputation is getting worse. "Worsening reputation" ...
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3answers
73 views
Word for "many" for mass nouns
I'm looking for a strong size modifier like "numerous", "countless", or "copious" that I can use to modify a mass noun. I know of plenty of options that involve several ...
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0answers
47 views
Compound modifier with adverb [duplicate]
In the phrase "highly trained support specialist" should a hyphen be used?
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1answer
75 views
Can't see a sentence correction
To work as a loan officer, an education in financial planning is required.
I don't see a grammar mistake in the above sentence, if there is any?
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2answers
40 views
placement of "only"
Example: I will buy fish only if I shop at the pier
Does the placement of the "only" make the sentence ambiguous so that multiple readings of this sentence is possible?
Which word is "...
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0answers
44 views
Why is "more complicated" typically not hyphenated as a compound modifier when before a noun?
In the phrase "employees for more complicated work," shouldn't "more complicated" be hyphenated as it comes before the noun it describes?
After much searching online, I am yet to ...
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0answers
23 views
Modifying nouns without relative pronouns or relative adverbs
Do those sentences below sound natural?
1.She’s got that hair the color of chestnut.(Modified by the objective)
2.I looked in the mirror the size of my two hands.(Modifies by the objective)
3.I saw ...
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2answers
442 views
Can I use an adjective as a modifier at the beginning of a sentence?
For instance,
Angry, I smashed his head into the wall
Or should it be
Angrily, I smashed his head into the wall
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2answers
49 views
Does a modifier before a conjunction like `and` apply to both the subjects of `and`?
Suppose I have the following sentence:
a work is classical by reason of its resistance to contemporaneity and supposed universality
How should one go about comprehending the bold part in it?
Which ...
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31 views
Modifying a whole list of nouns by attaching modifier to the first noun only
With sentences like:
I visited the parks in the area, museums, and shops.
We enjoyed dancing on our wedding day, chatting to guests, and listening to the band.
He spoke to all the boys in the ...
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3answers
60 views
What do adverbs modify and can it be ambiguous?
I have two questions, but first consider the following sentence:
Cutlery includes any hand implement used in preparing, serving, and especially eating food in Western culture.
Does adverb '...
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1answer
40 views
participial phrase placement [duplicate]
In a grammar test I did, the following sentence was to be corrected:
"I first spotted the turtle playing tag in the yard."
It clearly contains a misplaced modifier. The correction suggested ...
2
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0answers
78 views
When a noun phrase can act as the post-modifier?
According to Oxford Learner's Grammar by John Eastwood [ISBN:0-19-437-597-8], page 187; it is possible for a noun phrase to act as a postmodifier of the head noun.
Example:
The weather that day was ...
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1answer
17 views
Is the comma needed in "additional, custom apps"?
I saw the phrase "additional, custom apps." Is the comma correct? Or would you delete the comma:
"... additional custom apps ..."
The whole sentence is a bit complex, so I'll give ...
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0answers
35 views
"the lady's thumb" or "lady's thumb"
According to the encyclopedical manner (and what COBUILD advises too), we should put an article, be it definite or indefinite, before the name of a plant.
A rose is a plant… The coconut tree is a ...
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0answers
91 views
'As a result of' Usage
As a result of seems to be quite a versatile phrase, and I can't entirely figure out the contexts in which it is used. This statement is apparently wrong:
Sound can travel through water for ...
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2answers
51 views
Adverbs in comparative clauses
I saw an anecdotal "rule" in a magazine stating that, if an adverb is used in a comparative clause, the '-ly' form of the adverb is preferable to a comparative form. Apparently however, if the adverb ...
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1answer
39 views
two groups of 10 male volunteers
The subjects were two groups of 10 male volunteers sealed into a mock spaceship for two simulated flights to Mars.
（source：https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-04/mdcf-mcf041117.php ）
I have ...
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53 views
Make sure you invite Jill herself(,) <too> [The syntactic function of 'too' and usage of comma]
The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language (Pages 438-9) has this:
An NP may contain more than one peripheral modifier, with multiple layers of embedding:
[8] i Make sure you invite [Jill herself ...
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1answer
37 views
Finding modifier in a sentence
Given sentence: Although she didn't have much work experience, she was offered the job.
Question: find the modifier. What type of modifier?
Here we have a dependent clause and an independent ...
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2answers
124 views
There aren't [ many / any / no ] young people in our apartment block. (It's 'many' but..... Why not 'any'?)
I have the above question in one of my classes but can't find a reason as to why the answer can't be 'There aren't any young people.... '
The only thing I can think of is if it something like you can'...
4
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1answer
234 views
What does "among whom" refer to?
From "Be Nice — You Won’t Finish Last" — By Sarah Maslin Nir
During the rosy years of elementary school, my inclination to share my
dolls and my knack with knock-knock jokes (“Who’s there?” “Tank....
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1answer
617 views
E.g. Be careful on the road. There's [ many / much / a lot of ] traffic at this time of day
I'm teaching students quantifiers and need a bit of help with this example.
There's much traffic at this time of day. Is this incorrect? My feeling is that it's grammatically correct but yes, does ...
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0answers
34 views
Present participle, gerund, or modifier
Which one of the following is right?
1) I am a doctor working in a hospital.
2) I am, a doctor, working in a hospital.
3) I am a doctor, working in a hospital.
Does "working" modify "doctor" in ...
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0answers
33 views
Which sentence structure is correct and why?
I have typed nearly all the sentences.
I nearly have typed all the sentences.
Also, do I need to add the preposition 'of' to the sentence? E.g. "I have nearly typed all of the sentences."
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1answer
93 views
"Undaunting faith and courage"--Is this usage correct?
I came across a sentence in a published book (A Light Kindled: The Story of Priscilla Mullins):
"His voice echoed the urgency of the situation, yet it was strengthened with the calm resolve that only ...
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1answer
96 views
I heard <Mona singing that song> <the song sung by Mona>. [parse]
(1) I heard Mona singing that song.
(2) I heard the song sung by Mona.
"Mona singing that song" and "the song sung by Mona" are objects, each of which can be parsed two ways: &...
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0answers
122 views
fused relative word (whatever, whoever) + the hell/on earth
The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language has presented five reasons for classifying ungoverned open exhaustive conditionals not as fused relatives but as open interrogatives, and the fourth ...
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0answers
49 views
Participial Phrase as Verb Modifier?
On the internet, I only read about participial phrases acting as noun modifiers.
But when I read various newspaper articles, it seems that participial phrases are also used as verb modifiers, or even ...
2
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0answers
120 views
Is the relative clause always an adjunct/modifier of the antecedent?
The first two sentences mean the same thing, and so do the last two.
(1) She's obviously the person to finish the job.
(1') She's obviously the person who should finish the job.
(2) She was the first ...
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28 views
Activist vs. Activism
What is the difference between "activist" and "activism" when they are used as modifiers? What is correct - "activist project" or "activism project"?
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1answer
70 views
past-participle–modifier placement [duplicate]
Consider the two sentences:
The number of the analyzed data sheets exceeds 1000.
The number of the data sheets analyzed exceeds 1000.
Which position of the past participle "analyzed" is ...
0
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1answer
83 views
Can a noun functioning as modifier of an NP fuse with the head?
In a section titled "Fused modifier-heads", A Student's Introduction to English Grammar says:
The modifiers which most readily fuse with the head include these:
• determinatives used in ...
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204 views
complement vs adjunct/modifier
In the following noun phrase, is the prepositional phrase from Lloyds complement or adjunct/modifier?
even all the preposterous salary from Lloyds that Bill gets
The Cambridge Grammar of The ...
3
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1answer
1k views
What's the difference between adjuncts and modifiers?
All types of adjuncts (my conclusion from wikipedia.org):
An adnominal adjunct is an adjunct modifying noun, i.e. it's dependent words in noun phrases (a good boy, the discussion before the game). ...