Definition of a Phrase
According to the Cambridge Dictionary, a phrase is defined as “a group of words that is part of, rather
than the whole of a sentence.” The Collins Dictionary defines a phrase as “a short group of words
that people often use as a way of saying something.
What is a phrase?
A phrase is a group of words that forms a grammatical component. It can be used to
communicate something. It is a part of a sentence and cannot stand on its own. Phrases
provide more information about whatever the sentence is speaking about.
Noun Phrase
A noun phrase is a group of words that have a noun or pronoun. It is used to modify the noun.
In other words, it can be said that a noun phrase can function as a subject, an object or a
complement in a sentence.
For example:
My brother’s friend had come to visit him. (Used as a subject)
Scented candles are my favourite. (Used as a subject)
The students were asked to find the buried treasure. (Used as an object)
Adjective Phrase
An adjective phrase or an adjectival phrase is a group of words that consists of an adjective. It
can be used to complement it. It provides more information about the noun or pronoun in a
sentence. In other words, it can be said that it functions just like an adjective in a sentence.
For example:
Annu has silky, smooth hair.
People, living in large cities, often find it difficult to reach in time.
The team that made it to the final was congratulated in front of the whole school.
Adverb Phrase
An adverb phrase or an adverbial phrase is a group of words that includes an adverb and other
modifiers. It performs all the functions of an adverb. It can be placed in any part of the
sentence, with respect to the part of speech they modify.
For example:
We are planning to finish our group project by the end of May.
Later this evening, my cousins and I have planned to go to the park.
They saw some abandoned puppies at the corner of the street.
Verb Phrase
A verb phrase can be used just like a verb. It consists of a main verb and an auxiliary verb.
For example:
Students are practising hard in order to participate in the state tournament.
Aaron has been writing multiplication tables for three hours.
The dogs have been barking continuously.
A gerund phrase can be said to be a phrase consisting of a gerund, its objects and other
modifiers. According to the Cambridge Dictionary, a gerund is defined as “a word ending in “-
ing” that is made from a verb and used like a noun”, and “a noun in the form of the present
participle of a verb
Going on trips is my favourite thing to do.
Listening to some old songs can be a very relaxing activity.
1. Living on the island has helped me in many ways. – Subject
2. All of us were focused on taking good, candid photographs. – Object
3. We like hiking in the mountains. – Object
4. Listening to these podcasts has given me a completely different outlook on life. – Subject
A gerund, as you should have already learnt, is a word formed by the addition of an ‘ing’ to
the end of the main/root verb and takes the place of a noun in the sentence in which it is
used. Likewise, a gerund phrase can also be seen to perform the role of a noun in a sentence.
Gerund phrases take the place of nouns in a sentence.
They act as the subject or object of a sentence.
A gerund phrase should begin with a gerund, and in most cases, it is followed by a
preposition and a noun. There are other modifiers and determiners that can be used to
form a gerund phrase.
Even if the gerund has a plural noun, the gerund phrase is singular, so you will need to
use the singular form of the verbs.
Gerund phrases can be positioned at the beginning or end of the sentence.
What is an appositive phrase?
An appositive phrase refers to a noun phrase placed adjacent to the noun it modifies. In other
words, an appositive phrase can be said to be the phrase that complements the noun in the
sentence.
An appositive phrase is placed right before or after the noun that it modifies.
There can be more than one appositive phrase in a sentence.
Appositive phrases can describe multiple nouns, the subject and the object in the
sentence.
Use a comma after the appositive phrase if the phrase comes before the noun and
before the appositive phrase, if the noun comes first. However, in some cases, when
you tend to use a restrictive phrase, you need not use a comma.
In case the appositive phrase comes in between the sentence, place it within a pair of
commas.
1. Akela, the leader of the pack, was killed by Shere Khan, the tiger.
2. Mowgli, the man-cub, was found by Bhageera, the panther.
3. I met Mamta, Manju’s friend, at the mall yesterday.
4. Coimbatore, a city in Tamil Nadu, is considered as the Manchester of the South.
5. Have you read the works of William Shakespeare, the Bard of Avon?
What is a participle phrase?
A participle phrase is a group of words including a participle. Participle phrases can be made
up of either of the two types of participles – the present participle and the past participle.
Participle phrases act just like an adjective, an adverb or an adjective phrase in a sentence.
A participle phrase can be placed in the beginning, middle or end of the sentence
depending on their priority and function.
If the participle phrase functions like an adjective describing or providing more
information about the subject or object, then it can be placed in the beginning, middle or end
of the sentence.
When placed in the beginning of the sentence, a comma should be placed
immediately after the phrase followed by the subject which it qualifies.
Captain M. S. Dhoni, known for his excellent strategies and cool attitude, has always been
a role model for youngsters who aspire to become a part of the future Indian cricket team.
6. Jibin sat on the couch watching movies the whole day.
7. Having known Seetha for years, Devi understood her emotions and mood swings very
well.
What is an infinitive phrase?
An infinitive phrase is a group of words that start with an infinitive followed by other
modifiers including nouns, pronouns, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions and conjunctions. Just
like an infinitive, the infinitive phrase can perform the functions of an adverb, an adjective
and a noun.
What are the functions of an infinitive phrase?
An infinitive phrase can function as a noun that plays the role of a subject or object in a
sentence, an adverb and an adjective.
Q4
Give some examples of infinitive phrases.
Here are a few examples of infinitive phrases for your reference.
The main aim of the induction programme was to get to know each other.
Anju and I decided to bring some snacks to eat on the train.
Nitasha knew she had to study the whole night to score good marks.
Prepositional Phrase
A prepositional phrase consists of a preposition and an object. It works just like an adjective
or an adverb. It relates the subject and the verb in a sentence. It is used to modify the nouns
and verbs in a particular sentence.
For example:
It was too hard for me to concentrate with the kids jumping around.
The jewellery boxes were kept inside the cupboard.
On the way to New York, we caught sight of the famous Niagara falls.
Now, find out if you have identified the phrases correctly.
1. Danny was playing video games on his phone. – Verb phrase, Prepositional phrase
2. Nandhu, Vishnu and Arjun like going on road trips. – Noun phrase
3. The girl, in the black dress, is my colleague. – Adjective phrase
4. We found an unowned vehicle parked in front of our house. – Noun phrase,
Prepositional phrase
5. The savouries that were served today were extremely sweet. – Adverb Phrase
6. That little boy is my friend’s son. – Noun phrase, Noun phrase
7. Xavier found a white, furry bunny in their backyard. – Adjective phrase,
Prepositional phrase
8. The plant in the right corner of the garden finally bloomed. – Prepositional
phrase
9. Bangalore seems to be a busy, crowded and advanced city. – Adjective phrase
10. The security guard was unusually kind to all the employees today. – Adverb
phrase
