As we know that in an English language how important is the arrangement of words to make a meaningful and complete sentence .
Change in order of words changes the complete meaning of the sentence and differs it .
Similarly incomplete sentences are also unable to convey the actual meaning of the sentences .
Let’s have a look on the examples below :
(a) Reema lives in Mumbai .
(b)It was a moment of great beauty .
Here , we see that the above examples are of sentences since they make complete sense , whereas the highlighted words makes sense but not complete sense.
What are Phrases ?
The group of words which makes sense but not complete sense and do not have finite verbs are called phrases.
In the above example (a) Reema is the subject and Mumbai is the object and makes complete sense by itself.
However , the group of words in Mumbai does not have any subject or verb and does not make complete sense .This indicates that in Mumbai is a phrase.
Types of Phrases :
- Noun phrase
- Adverb phrase
- Adjective phrase
1) Noun phrases :
A phrase which functions as a noun in a sentence is called a Noun phrase.
Read the following sentences for understanding Noun phrases in depth :
- They like to watch good matches.
- To help needy is a good deed.
In sentence (1) the phrase to watch good matches answers the question : ‘ They like what?’ It acts as the object of the verb ‘ like ‘ .It acts as a noun.
In sentence (2) the phrase To help needy answer the question : ‘what is good?’ it acts as the subject of the verb ‘ is ‘ .It acts like a noun.
As we know that only a noun or a pronoun can act as a subject or an object in a sentence since all these phrases are acting as nouns therefore we call them noun phrases.
2) Adverb Phrases
A phrase which performs the function of an adverb in a sentence is called and Adverb phrase.
Let us consider the following examples for more understanding of Adverb Phrases :
(a) she walked in a slow manner .
(b) Reema walked slowly .
In the example
(a) , ‘ in a slow manner ‘ is an describing walked .
(b), ‘ slowly ‘ is an adverb describing the verb walked.
As adverb describes a verb , and ‘in a slow manner’ and ‘slowly’ both are adverbs and describing the verb ‘ walked ‘. Therefore we can call the phrase an Adverb phrase .
Types of Adverb Phrases :
1) Adverb phrase of Manner : It shows how a thing is done.
For example :
(a) Rhea worked in an intelligent manner .
2) Adverb Phrases of place : It shows the place where an action occurred .
For example:
(a) He peeped in the garden for the kitten.
3) Adverb phrases of time : It shows the time when an action occurred.
For example :
(a) I was not aware about her character on those days.
3) Adjective phrases
A phrase which performs the role of an adjective is called an adjective phrase .
Here are the some examples of Adjective phrase :
(a) Ramesh bought a diamond ring .
(b) Ramesh bought a ring made of diamond .
In example (a) , ‘made of diamond’ is an adjective phrase describing the noun ‘ ring ‘.
(b) , ‘diamond’ is an adjective describing the noun ‘ring’ .
Since it is performing the function of an adjective , we call the phrase an adjective phrase .
Note : An adjective phrase must be placed close to the nouns they describe. Otherwise, the meaning of the sentence changes .
Refer following examples for better understanding :
Reena borrowed a car from Rajan with new tyres.
Reena borrowed a car , with new tyres , from Aman .
Some adjectives and equivalent adjective phrases are as follows :
| Adjective | Adjective phrase |
| 1) a chinese product | a product made in china |
| 2) a wooden wall | a wall made of wood |
| 3) an experienced employee | an employee with experience |
