Phrases Prepositional, Infinitive, Gerund, Participial, and Appositive

Phrases  PHRASE: A phrase is a group of related words that does not include a subject and verb

Prepositional Phrases aboutbehindfromontoward abovebelowinon top ofunder acrossbeneathin front ofontounderneath afterbesideinsideout ofuntil againstbetweeninstead ofoutsideup alongbyintooverupon amongdownlikepastwith aroundduringnearsincewithin atexceptofthroughwithout beforeforoffto  A Preposition is a word that relates a noun or pronoun to another word in a sentence.  Ex: The dog sat under the tree.

Prepositional Phrases  A Prepositional Phrase begins with a preposition and ends with its object (a noun or pronoun).  A prepositional phrase can function as an adjective when it modifies a noun. Ex: The girl with green eyes is my sister.  A prepositional phrase can function as an adverb when it modifies a verb. Ex: The car raced down the street.

Prepositional phrases  Examples:  My plane departed from Sea-Tac Airport.  I had to run through the concourse in order to be on time.  I could see the blue jay hiding among the branches.  The magazine arrived in the post office box.  The pencil fell below her desk.  Prepositional phrases can show spatial connections, time, and amount.

Prepositional phrases  Examples:  My plane departed from Sea-Tac Airport.  I had to run through the concourse in order to be on time.  I could see the blue jay hiding among the branches.  The magazine arrived in the post office box.  The pencil fell below her desk.  Prepositional phrases can show spatial connections, time, and amount.

Infinitives  An infinitive is a verbal consisting of the word to plus a verb (in its simplest "stem" form) and functioning as a noun, adjective, or adverb.  Examples:  To wait seemed foolish when decisive action was required. (noun)  Everyone wanted to go. (noun)  His ambition is to fly. (adjective)  He lacked the strength to resist. (adjective)  We must study to learn. (adverb)

Infinitives vs. Prepositional Phrases  Be sure not to confuse an infinitive--a verbal consisting of to plus a verb--with a prepositional phrase beginning with to, which consists of to plus a noun or pronoun and any modifiers.  Infinitives: to fly, to draw, to become, to enter, to stand, to catch, to belong  Prepositional Phrases: to him, to the committee, to my house, to the pretty mountains, to us, to this address

Infinitive Phrases  An infinitive consists of “to” (usually) and the basic form of a verb, and can act as a noun, adjective, or an adverb –to travel, to be, to explain, to practice  BUT an infinitive phrase consists of an infinitive and any modifiers or compliments the infinitive has –to hit a curveball solidly, to study marine biology, to write the essay

Infinitive Phrases  We intended to leave early. (adverb)  I have a paper to write before class. (adjective)  Phil agreed to give me a ride. (adverb)  They asked me to bring some food. (adverb)  Everyone wanted Carol to be the captain of the team. (adjective)  To buy a basket of flowers, John had to spend his last dollar. (adjective)

Exercises on Infinitives  Find the infinitive phrase in each sentence, adding any punctuation as needed. 1. I want to go. 2. I want you to go home. 3. We want to see the play. 4. To see a shooting star is good luck. 5. To fight against those odds would be ridiculous.

Exercises on Infinitives  Find the infinitive phrase in each sentence, adding any punctuation as needed. 1. I want to go. (noun) 2. I want you to go home. (adjective) 3. We want to see the play. (noun) 4. To see a shooting star, is good luck. (noun) 5. To fight against those odds, would be ridiculous. (noun)

Gerunds  A gerund is a verbal that always ends in - ing and functions as a noun. –Running is my favorite hobby. –The writing kept her up all night.  Gerunds can be replaced with “it” or “that” since they function as nouns.

Syntax of Gerund Phrases  A gerund phrase consists of the gerund and any other modifiers or complements the gerund has.  Finding a needle in a haystack would be easier than what we're trying to do. –(It) would be hard to do.  Jeff got in trouble for lying to his parents.  You might get in trouble for faking an illness to avoid work.  Being the boss made Jeff feel uneasy.

Punctuating Gerund Phrases Punctuation  A gerund virtually never requires any punctuation with it.  Because it functions as a noun, you don’t separate it from the rest of the sentence.

Gerund Practice  Find the gerunds/gerund phrases in the following sentences.  1. Swimming keeps me in shape. 2. Swimming in your pool is always fun. 3. Telling your father was a mistake. 4. The college recommends sending applications early. 5. He won the game by scoring during the overtime period. 6. Her most important achievement was winning the national championship. 7. Going to work today took all my energy. 8. Fighting for a losing cause made them depressed.

Gerund Practice  Find the gerunds/gerund phrases in the following sentences.  1. Swimming keeps me in shape. 2. Swimming in your pool is always fun. 3. Telling your father was a mistake. 4. The college recommends sending applications early. 5. He won the game by scoring during the overtime period. 6. Her most important achievement was winning the national championship. 7. Going to work today took all my energy. 8. Fighting for a losing cause made them depressed.

Participles  A participle is a verbal that is used as an adjective and most often ends in -ing or -ed. Or any other past tense verb ending in -en, -d, -t, or - n, as in the words asked, eaten, saved, dealt, and seen.  The crying baby had a wet diaper.  Shaken, he walked away from the wrecked car.  The burning log fell off the fire.  Smiling, she hugged the panting dog.

Participial Phrases  The dancing bear entertained the crowd.  The beaten man hobbled into the hospital.  The grilled salmon and baked potatoes were delicious.

Participial Phrases  Participial phrases: Phrases beginning with a participle, followed by its objects and modifiers. Participial phrases are used as adjectives.  Removing his coat, Jack rushed to the river. –Removing his coat describes Jack.  Delores noticed her cousin walking along the shoreline. –Walking along the shoreline describes cousin.

Punctuating Participial Phrases  When a participial phrase begins a sentence, a comma should be placed after the phrase. –Arriving at the store, I found that it was closed. –Washing and polishing the car, Frank developed sore muscles.  If the participle or participial phrase comes in the middle of a sentence, it should be set off with commas only if the information is not essential to the meaning of the sentence. –Sid, watching an old movie, drifted in and out of sleep. –The church, destroyed by a fire, was never rebuilt.  Note that if the participial phrase is essential to the meaning of the sentence, no commas should be used: –The student earning the highest grade point average will receive a special award. –The guy wearing the chicken costume is my cousin.

Exercise on Participles: 1. Getting up at five, we got an early start. 2. Facing college standards, the students realized that they hadn't worked hard enough in high school. 3. Statistics reported by the National Education Association revealed that seventy percent of American colleges offer remedial English classes emphasizing composition. 4. The overloaded car gathered speed slowly. 5. Gathering my courage, I asked for a temporary loan. 6. Starting out as an army officer, Karen's father was frequently transferred. 7. Mrs. Sears, showing more bravery than wisdom, invited thirty boys and girls to a party. 8. The student left in charge of the class was unable to keep order. 9. Applicants must investigate various colleges learning as much as possible about them before applying for admission. 10. The crying boy angered by the bully began to fight.

Exercise on Participles: 1. Getting up at five, we got an early start. 2. Facing college standards, the students realized that they hadn't worked hard enough in high school. 3. Statistics reported by the National Education Association revealed that seventy percent of American colleges offer remedial English classes emphasizing composition. 4. The overloaded car gathered speed slowly. 5. Gathering my courage, I asked for a temporary loan. 6. Starting out as an army officer, Karen's father was frequently transferred. 7. Mrs. Sears, showing more bravery than wisdom, invited thirty boys and girls to a party. 8. The student left in charge of the class was unable to keep order. 9. Applicants must investigate various colleges, learning as much as possible about them before applying for admission. 10. The crying boy, angered by the bully, began to fight.

Appositives  An appositive is a noun or pronoun -- often with modifiers -- set beside another noun or pronoun to explain or identify it.

Examples of Appositives

Appositives An appositive phrase usually follows the word it explains or identifies, but it may also precede it.

Punctuating Appositives In some cases, the noun being explained is too general without the appositive; the information is essential to the meaning of the sentence. When this is the case, do not place commas around the appositive; just leave it alone. If the sentence would be clear and complete without the appositive, then commas are necessary; place one before and one after the appositive.

Punctuating Appositives

Exercises  1. My son, the policeman, will be visiting us next week. 2. The captain ordered the ship's carpenters to assemble the shallop, a large rowboat. 3. Walter, the playboy and writer, is very attached to his mother, Mrs. Hammon. 4. The actor Paul Newman directed only one picture. 5. Elizabeth Teague, a sweet and lovable girl, grew up to be a mentally troubled woman.

A Brief Recap  Prepositional phrases: begin with a preposition. –The bunny ran through the log.  Infinitive phrases: begin with “to+verb” –She knew she had to study for the test.  Gerund phrases: start with –ing words and can be replaced with “it.” –Eating ice cream is my favorite activity.

Recap (continued)  Participial phrases: begin with words ending in –ing, -ed, or any other past tense ending; they describe a noun –Awakened by the vacuum, the baby began to cry.  Appositive phrases: make “positive” you understand another noun, rename -Mrs. Richards, my favorite teacher, is nice.