Phrases

PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES AND VERBALS!

Phrase

• A group of related words that functions as a single part of speech.
• Phrases do not have both a subject and a verb.

Prepositional Phrases

• Start with a preposition
• End with a noun or pronoun
• Indicate a relationship
• Often occur in a series
• Function as an adverb or adjective.

Prepositional Phrases

• Function as either adjectives or adverbs
• Adjective phrase: tells what kind? Or which one?
• Adverb phrase: tells when, where, why, how, or to what extent

Adjective Phrase

• Tells what kind? Or which one?
• It is used to modify a noun or pronoun

The girl with the long hair is a cheerleader. [which one(s)?]

Please give me the box of crackers.

[What kind?]

​

​

Let’s try a few: find the adjective phrase and tell which word it modifies. (from book, pg 175)

Dogs can be great friends to humans.

There are many small breeds of dogs.

The smallest type of canine is the Chihuahua.

One of the largest breeds in the American Kennel is the Irish wolfhound.

​

Some of these dogs are taller than their owners!

​

Adverb Phrase

• tells when, where, why, how, or to what extent
• It is used to modify a verb, an adjective, or an adverb.

​

Let’s try a few: Locate the adverb phrase and determine the word it modifies. (from pg 178)

• Since Monday we have been planning a picnic.

Since Monday we have been planning a picnic.

​

• On Saturday I awakened with happy anticipation.

On Saturday I awakened with happy anticipation.

​

• My brother drove me across town to the park.

My brother drove me across town to the park.

​

• Before noon my friends had arrived at the park.

Before noon my friends had arrived at the park.

What is a “misplaced modifier”

• Modifiers should always be placed as close as possible to the words they modify.
• If it is too far away, it can create confusion and misunderstanding.

On the field the crowd screamed for the players.

The crowd screamed for the players on the field.

The waitress told us about her work in the bathroom.

In the bathroom the waitress told us about her work.

​

Let’s fix these misplaced modifiers!

• The actors bowed to the audience in their costumes.
• ​
• We looked in the program for the names of the talented cast.
• ​
• From a blue glass, the villain took a long drink.
• ​
• With a scream the actor fell to the floor.
• ​
• We read about the play in the newspaper.
• ​

Now, let’s discuss:

APPOSITIVES

and

APPOSITIVE PHRASES!

An Appositive:

• A noun or a pronoun that identifies or explains another noun or pronoun in the sentence.
• Sometimes a noun or pronoun is followed immediately by another noun or pronoun that identifies or explains it.

THIS IS CALLED AN APPOSITIVE!

Examples of Appositives and Appositive Phrases

Appositive:

• My sister Erin works for the President.
• I love vacationing in my favorite city, Seattle.

Appositive Phrase: (a group of words that contains an appositive and its modifiers.)

• A great person, Ben is known for his kindness and good looks.
• My aunt and uncle, the Giovannis, own a store, the Empire shoe shop on Main Street.

​

Punctuation with Appositives and Appositive Phrases

• If an appositive contains information essential to the meaning of a sentence, no punctuation is needed.
• Information is considered essential if it identifies a person, place, or thing.
• The assistant principal Mr. Edwards has to leave early today.
• If an appositive or an appositive phrase contains nonessential information, a comma or commas should be used to separate it from the rest of the sentence. Information is nonessential if it can be removed without changing the basic meaning of the sentence.
• Mr. Edwards, the assistant principal, has to leave early today.

Now, for Practice:

• 1-15 on 182. (Odds only)
• 1-5 on 184 (Odds only)
• Then, read/study “Verbals and Verbal Phrases on pages 186-207.

Prepositional Phrases

• Function as either adjectives or adverbs
• Adjective phrase: tells what kind? Or which one?
• Adverb phrase: tells when, where, why, how, or to what extent

Now we will move on to:

​

VERBALS AND VERBAL PHRASES!

What is a verbal?

• A verbal is a verb form, but it is used as another part of speech.
• Verbals include:
• Participles
• Gerunds
• Infinitives

The first kind of verbal=participle

• A participle is a verb form that is used as an adjective.
• To find a participle, you will ask the same questions you ask to find an adjective.
• Which one?
• What kind?

*If a verb form answers one of these questions, IT IS A PARTICIPLE!

Examples of participles:

• The starving hikers gobbled up Mom’s baked ham.
• The teddy bear, worn and frayed, lay beside the sleeping child.

There are two types of participles:

• Present participles
• End in -ing
• Past participles
• Usually end in –ed, but some have irregular endings, such as –n, -t, or –en

Present participles: starving, sleeping, missing

Past participles: baked, frayed,

worn, bent, fallen

Examples of present and past participles:

• Everyone enjoyed the smell of burning leaves.
• The defrosted hamburgers are ready to cook.
• No one answered the ringing bell.
• The meeting, noisy and disorganized, was a waste of time.
• The speeding car almost crashed.

Participle or verb?

• Because a participle is a verb form, you must be careful not to confuse it with the main verb in a verb phrase. To be the verb of a sentence a participle must have a helping verb

Participle: The injured bird lay still.

Verb: Sandra was not injured in

the accident.

Can we distinguish between participles and verbs?

• The talking doll was one of Thomas Edison’s many clever inventions.
• Talking=participle
• The strawberries were frozen last summer.
• Frozen=verb
• The dog buried its bone in the backyard.
• Buried=verb
• Our reserved seats at the restaurant were by a window.
• Reserved=participle
• The discarded toy was soon missed.
• Discarded=participle

Participial Phrases

• Because a participle is a verb form it can have modifiers or complements. A participle plus any modifiers or complements form a participial phrase.
• A participial phrase= a participle with its modifiers and complements—all working together as an adjective.

Examples:

Flying low, the plane circled the airport

​

The elm growing in our yard, is 20 years old.

​

The grand prize will go to the person giving the right answer.

​

Quickly raising his hand, Joe was called on first.

Practice: Make a table--1) find the participle phrase 2) write the participle then 3) write the word it modifies.

• Living off the coast of Japan, the largest crabs in the world stand 3 feet high and weigh 30 pounds.
• Bloodhounds, often used in detective work, can detect a ten-day-old scent.
• Swimming rapidly, John traveled 292 miles down the Mississippi River in 90 hours.
• The highest wind velocity recorded in the United States was 231 miles per hour.

Check yourself:

• Living off the coast of Japan, the largest crabs in the world stand 3 feet high and weigh 3o pounds.
• Bloodhounds, often used in detective work, can detect a ten-day-old scent.
• Swimming rapidly, John traveled 292 miles down the Mississippi River in 90 hours.
• The highest wind velocity recorded in the United States was 231 miles per hour.

Punctuation with participial phrases:

• A participial phrase that comes at the beginning of a sentence is always followed by a comma.
• But, if the participial phrase comes in the middle or at the end of a sentence it may or may not need a comma.
• If the phrase is essential, no commas are needed
• If the phrase is nonessential, commas are needed to separate it from the rest of the sentence.
• A participial phrase is nonessential if it can be removed without changing the meaning of the sentence.

Let’s compare:

• Essential:

The painting hanging near the door is Lee’s. [commas are not used because the participial phrase is needed to identify which painting is Lee’s.]

• Nonessential:

My down vest, given to me as a present, keeps me toasty warm. [Commas are used because the participial phrase could be removed from the sentence without changing its meaning.]

For practice/homework:

• Complete 1-20 on pages 190-191
• Read about Gerunds and Infinitives on pages 193-205

Quick Review

• Participles: verbs that act as adjectives
• Participle Phrases: two or words including a participle that act as an adjective

Punctuation with participial phrases:

• A participial phrase that comes at the beginning of a sentence is always followed by a comma.
• But, if the participial phrase comes in the middle or at the end of a sentence it may or may not need a comma.
• If the phrase is essential, no commas are needed
• If the phrase is nonessential, commas are needed to separate it from the rest of the sentence.
• A participial phrase is nonessential if it can be removed without changing the meaning of the sentence.

Let’s compare:

• Essential:

The painting hanging near the door is Lee’s. [commas are not used because the participial phrase is needed to identify which painting is Lee’s.]

• Nonessential:

My down vest, given to me as a present, keeps me toasty warm. [Commas are used because the participial phrase could be removed from the sentence without changing its meaning.]

Next, we need to talk about GERUNDS . . .

• A gerund is a verbal that is used as a noun.

​

• Therefore, it would be wise to first review the FIVE FUNCTIONS OF A NOUN

The Five Functions of Nouns:

1. As a subject
2. As an object of a preposition
3. As a predicate nominative
4. As a direct object
5. As an indirect object

As a Subject:

• A noun showing who or what is doing the action of the verb. Or who or what the verb is about
• Examples:
• By next week, we will have collected all the money we need
• My bike has had the same tires for six years.
• Lance is always punctual.

As the Object of the Preposition:

• A noun that follows a preposition and works with the preposition and any possible adjectives to make a prepositional phrase.
• A noun cannot be both the object of the preposition and the direct or indirect object.
• Examples:
• Earlier in the year, we were confused about verbs.
• Without further explanation, we might never understand the object of the preposition.

Predicate Nominative:

• A noun that follows a linking verb and renames the subject. It must always be a noun.
• Examples:
• Tuesday is my birthday.
• The result was a declaration of war.
• He is one of the members.

Notice: the predicate nominative is never the object of a preposition.

Direct Object

• A noun that receives the action of the verb or names the result of that action.
• A direct object must:
• Be a noun
• Follow an action verb

Examples:

Steinbeck understood farmers in Oklahoma during the Depression.

My friend has a bug collection.

They sent me on a wild goose chase.

Indirect object:

• A noun that comes before the direct object and
• Tells: to whom or what OR for whom or what the action of the verb is done.
• Comes after an action verb
• There can never be an indirect object without a direct object.
• The indirect object is never in a prepositional phrase.
• Examples:
• My mother wrote me a check for the bill
• I sent my sister a birthday present.
• Dad gave the car a coat of wax.

So why is that all important when studying Gerunds?

• Gerunds are verb forms that are used as nouns.
• It can be used in all the ways a noun can be used

SUB Singing is my best talent

DO Do you like Skiing?

IO His trimmer waistline gave his dieting a big boost.

O of P I can’t stop her from speaking.

PN My favorite pastime is reading.

Let’s find the gerunds!

• Swimming is one of the best forms of exercise.
• ​
• She has just finished a course in typing.
• ​
• Please stop that yelling.
• ​

Let’s find the gerunds!

• Swimming is one of the best forms of exercise.
• Swimming--subject
• She has just finished a course in typing.
• Object of preposition
• Please stop that yelling.
• Yelling—direct object

Gerund phrase

• Like a participle, a gerund can be combined with modifiers or a complement to form a gerund phrase.
• A gerund phrase is a gerund with its modifiers and complements—all working together as a noun.

Find the gerund phrase:

• Galileo made his first telescope by placing a lens at each end of the organ pipe.

​

• Sinking 499 free throws in a row is Harold’s claim to fame.

​

• A snail can cross the edge of the sharpest razor without cutting itself.

​

• The ancient Egyptians avoided killing any sacred animal.
• ​

Find the gerund phrase:

• Galileo made his first telescope by placing a lens at each end of the organ pipe.
• Galileo made his first telescope by placing a lens at each end of the organ pipe.

​

• Sinking 499 free throws in a row is Harold’s claim to fame.
• Sinking 499 free throws in a row is Harold’s claim to fame.

​

• A snail can cross the edge of the sharpest razor without cutting itself.
• A snail can cross the edge of the sharpest razor without cutting itself.

​

• The ancient Egyptians avoided killing any sacred animal.
• The ancient Egyptians avoided killing any sacred animal.

Next, we need to talk about GERUNDS . . .

• A gerund is a verbal that is used as a noun.

​

• Therefore, it would be wise to first review the FIVE FUNCTIONS OF A NOUN

The Five Functions of Nouns:

• As a subject
• As an object of a preposition
• As a predicate nominative
• As a direct object
• As an indirect object

So why is that all important when studying Gerunds?

• Gerunds are verb forms that are used as nouns.
• It can be used in all the ways a noun can be used

SUB Singing is my best talent

DO Do you like Skiing?

IO His trimmer waistline gave his dieting a big boost.

O of P I can’t stop her from speaking.

PN My favorite pastime is reading.

Let’s find the gerunds!

• Swimming is one of the best forms of exercise.
• ​
• She has just finished a course in typing.
• ​
• Please stop that yelling.
• ​

Let’s find the gerunds!

• Swimming is one of the best forms of exercise.
• Swimming--subject
• She has just finished a course in typing.
• Object of preposition
• Please stop that yelling.
• Yelling—direct object

Gerund phrase

• Like a participle, a gerund can be combined with modifiers or a complement to form a gerund phrase.
• A gerund phrase is a gerund with its modifiers and complements—all working together as a noun.

Find the gerund phrase:

• Galileo made his first telescope by placing a lens at each end of the organ pipe.

​

• Sinking 499 free throws in a row is Harold’s claim to fame.

​

• A snail can cross the edge of the sharpest razor without cutting itself.

​

• The ancient Egyptians avoided killing any sacred animal.
• ​

Find the gerund phrase:

• Galileo made his first telescope by placing a lens at each end of the organ pipe.
• Galileo made his first telescope by placing a lens at each end of the organ pipe.

​

• Sinking 499 free throws in a row is Harold’s claim to fame.
• Sinking 499 free throws in a row is Harold’s claim to fame.

​

• A snail can cross the edge of the sharpest razor without cutting itself.
• A snail can cross the edge of the sharpest razor without cutting itself.

​

• The ancient Egyptians avoided killing any sacred animal.
• The ancient Egyptians avoided killing any sacred animal.

Great Work! For practice:

Participles

• Complete 1-15 on pages 190-191 (Odds)

​

Gerunds

• Complete 1-15 on page L196. (Odds)

Now, we are ready to study the last type of Verbal . . .

​

Infinitives

Infinitive

• A verb form that usually begins with to. It is used as a noun, an adjective, or an adverb.
• Infinitives look different than other verbals (participles or gerunds) because they usually begin with the word “to”

Infinitives

• Can be used in almost all the ways a noun can be used, but an infinitive can also be used as an adjective or an adverb.
• An adjective modifies a noun or pronoun.
• An adverb modifies a verb, an adjective, or another adverb.

Examples:

• Noun:
• To succeed was his only goal.

​

• Adjective:
• That is the big question to answer.
• The book to read is a mystery.
• Adverb:
• She was eager to study.
• She ran to catch the bus.

Let’s find the infinitives and then label them as nouns, adjectives, or adverbs.

• Do you know the name of the person to see?

​

• The best way to go would be on Route 66.

​

• Your teacher will give you the topic to research.

​

• To relax is difficult for some people.

​

• The items to sell are on the table.

​

• The crossword puzzle is easy to do.

​

• Tom is planning to return.

​

Infinitive or Prepositional Phrase?

• Because an infinitive usually begins with the word to, it is sometimes confused with a prepositional phrase.
• Just remember that an infinitive is to plus a verb form. A prepositional phrase is to plus a noun or pronoun.
• Infinitive: I’m finally learning to drive. (ends with the verb for drive)
• Prep phrase: I’ll take this duffel bag to camp. (ends with the noun camp.)

Let’s try a few. Which are infinitives and which are prep. phrases?

• Now I would like to speak.

​

• Should we take the dog to Tennessee with us?

​

• What do you want to say?

​

• The oboe is considered the hardest woodwind instrument to master.

​

• Let’s walk to school today.

​

Infinitive Phrases:

• An infinitive with its modifiers and complements—all working together as a noun, an adjective, or an adverb.
• Please look at pg 201 in your book to see some examples of how infinitive phrases can be used.
• Also notice that often the “to” is omitted with verbs like: dare, feel, hear, help, let, need, see, watch.

��Let’s complete the exercises on page 202-203!

1 - 20 odds