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31/05/2023

EDUCATION CORNER

With Macdonald Thom

PHRASES 3

Verbal Phrases
Phrases are grouped into two: prepositional phrases and verbal phrases. We looked
at prepositional phrases.

‘English Grammar for Schools’ provides details of all the phrases.
For verbal phrases, the book says it is a group of related words which contains a
participle, a gerund or an infinitive.

Infinitive phrases
These are phrases which contain infinitives. They can be used as noun phrases,
adjectives or adverbs.
Examples:
i. To pass examinations is our goal. (infinitive phrase, used as noun phrase,
subject of the verb ‘is’)
ii. Tamanda wants to become an accountant. (infinitive phrase, used as noun
phrase, object of the verb ‘wants’
iii. His ambition, to become a successful businessman, has been fulfilled
(infinitive phrase, used as noun phrase, in apposition to noun ‘ambition’)
iv. His plan to cheat us failed (infinitive phrase, used as adjectival phrase,
qualifying the noun ‘plan’)
v. Chimwemwe went to England to study Linguistics (Infinitive phrase, used
as adverb phrase, modifying the verb ‘went’

Participle phrases
A participle phrase is a group of related words which contains a participle. Participle
phrases can be used as adjectival phrases.
Examples:
i. The man looking at us is dangerous (qualifies the noun ‘man’)
ii. Singing happily, Ebenezer arrived home (qualifies the noun ‘Ebenezer)
iii. The visitor brought by the driver is drunk (qualifies the noun ‘visitor’)
Gerund phrases

A gerund phrase is a group of related words that contains a gerund. It can be used
as a noun and as an adjective.
Examples:
i. Watching football matches is becoming dangerous these days. (Gerund
phrase used as noun phrase, subject of the verb ‘is’)
ii. Some people still enjoy watching football (gerund phrase used as noun
phrase, object of the verb ‘enjoy’)
iii. Peace in watching football (is good gerund phrase used as noun phrase as
an adjectival phrase, qualifying the noun ‘peace’)

Task
Underline and name infinitive, participle and gerund phrases in the following
sentences. In each case, state their function:
1. To win a prize is the most important thing.
2. The signing of the document was an important occasion.
3. Running to her mother, the little girl began to cry.
4. Your offer to help me is most welcome.
5. Careful reading is required.
6. His hobby is hunting rabbits.
7. To worry about exams is natural.
8. I enjoyed spending my holiday with my mother.
9. Does she want to talk to me?
10. He enjoys playing football.

Responses to Task A s on Phrases 1.
Task A.
1. The girl across the road is my sister. (qualifies noun ‘girl’)
2. The house near the market is mine. (qualifies noun
3. The accident in the busy street was quite serious. (qualifies noun ‘accident’)
4. Please plant some flowers in the beds. (qualifies noun ‘flowers’)
5. The woman with a basket is going to the market. (qualifies noun ‘woman’)
6. He is a person of great personality. (qualifies noun ‘person’)
7. The book on the table belongs to my son. (qualifies noun ‘book’)
8. The actor on stage looks nervous. (qualifies noun ‘actor’)
9. The girl behind the pastor is my daughter. (qualifies noun ‘girl’)
10. The prisoner was locked in a room with small windows. (qualifies noun
‘room’)

Reference: English Grammar for Schools

26/04/2023

EDUCATION CORNER
With Macdonald Thom

PHRASES
A phrase is a group of related words which does not include a finite verb.

Examples:
i. The boy in the house is sick.
ii. He was hit along the street.
iii. She swam across the river.

There are two types of phrases:
1. Prepositional phrases
2. Verbal phrases

Prepositional phrases
A prepositional phrase is a group of words which begins with a preposition and ends
with a noun or a pronoun, but does not include a finite verb.
It usually does the work of an adjective or an adverb. When it does the work of an
adjective it is called an adjectival phrase and when it does the work of an adverb it
is call an adverbial phrase.

a. Adjectival phrases

Adjectival phrases qualify nouns in sentences.
Examples:
i. The uniform for the dance was bought in Blantyre. (the phrase ‘for the
dance’ qualifies the noun ‘uniform’)
ii. She is a woman of great respect. (The underlined phrase qualifies the
noun ‘woman’)
iii. We spent a night at a lodge near the stadium. (The underlined phrase
qualifies the noun ‘lodge’)
iv. The bicycle with two mirrors is mine (the underlined phrase qualifies the
noun ‘bicycle’)
v. The hut with a leaking roof was demolished. (The underlined phrase
qualifies the noun ‘hut’)

Task A

In the following sentences, underline adjectival phrases and say which noun each
qualifies:
1. The girl across the road is my sister.
2. The house near the market is mine.
3. The accident in the busy street was quite serious.
4. Please plant some flowers in the beds.
5. The woman with a basket is going to the market.
6. He is a person of great personality.
7. The book on the table belongs to my son.
8. The actor on stage looks nervous.
9. The girl behind the pastor is my daughter.
10. The prisoner was locked in a room with small windows.

b. Adverbial phrases

An adverbial phrase is a group of related words, without a finite verb, which does
the work of an adverb. Adverbial phrases are also classified depending on what type
of adverbs they are functioning like.
Therefore, we can have adverbial phrase of time, manner, place etc

Examples
i. The book is under the table. (adverbial phrase of place, modifies the verb
‘is’)
ii. The birds perched in the maize field. (adverbial phrase of place, modifies
the verb ‘perched’)
iii. The accident occurred on a lonely road (adverbial phrase of place,
modifies the verb ‘occurred’)
iv. The bus will arrive in the afternoon. (adverbial phrase of time, modifies
the verb ‘will arrive’)
v. She left the house in a hurry (adverbial phrase of manner, modifies the
verb ‘left’).

Task B

In the following sentences, underline adverbial phrases, say what kind each is and
name the verb it modifies.

1. Zikomo did the work with great thoroughness.
2. We will visit them during the week.
3. Rain fell throughout the night.
4. He drove the car at a great speed.
5. I left the key on top of the table.
6. He arrived in the early hours of the morning.
7. Do you come from this district?
8. The cat is hiding under the table.
9. There is a river near the school.
10. After a long wait, we got into the market.

Reference:
English Grammar for Schools