Sentence

structure:
Functions
Instructor: Ta Le Minh Phuoc
 SUBJECT AND PREDICATE

In terms of function, a sentence could be divided into 2

parts:
+ Subject: a thing or a person that is being discussed,
described or dealt with à NP.
+ Predicate: gives information about the subject à VP.
 SUBJECT AND PREDICATE

“The subject of a sentence is a NP and which is

immediately dominated by S. The predicate is a
VP which is also immediately dominated by S”.
 SUBJECT AND PREDICATE

If the subject is a pronoun, it receives nominative

case.
Ex:
(1) He ate the cake.
(2) They are watching TV.
 DEPENDENCY AND FUNCTION

• In general, constituents have their functions in

respect of their sister constituents.
• Subject (NP) and predicate (VP) are sisters à they
are mutually dependent.
• An NP only functions as a subject in the presence of
a sister VP; and vice versa, a VP only functions as a
predicate in the presence of a sister NP. à two-way
dependency.
 Question test for subject

How to test whether a phrase is a subject à Turn the sentence into a question.

Example:

The man is wearing a hat.

à Is the man wearing a hat?

The phrase ‘the man’ can be re-located to another position à ‘the man’ can operate
as an independent constituent, therefore, it should be the subject.
 COMPLEMENTS VS. MODIFIERS

+ Complements complete the + Modifiers add extra

meaning of a phrase. information to a phrase. They
are optional.
+ Complements are basically
obligatory in the structure. + Modifiers could also be
However, in certain cases, they called ‘adjuncts’ or
may not appear in the ‘adverbials’.
structure.
+ A phrase can have as many
+ A phrase just selects a certain modifiers as it wants.
number of complements.
 COMPLEMENTS VS. MODIFIERS

Ex: (1) I ate a cup cake yesterday.

(Complement) (Modifier)

(2) A: What is John doing?

B: He’s teaching. (Ellipsis)

The verb ‘teach’ requires an object (complement) after it. But

A&B both know that John teaches English so the complement
‘English’ has been omitted in the saying ‘He’s teaching’.
HOW TO TEST WHETHER A PHRASE IS
A COMPLEMENT OF A MODIFIER?
Phrase-A + Phrase-B
We want to test whether Phrase-B is a complement or a
modifier of Phrase-A.
Test 1: Based on your instinct.

à This way is sometimes not correct.

HOW TO TEST WHETHER A PHRASE IS
A COMPLEMENT OF A MODIFIER?
Phrase-A + Phrase-B
We want to test whether Phrase-B is a complement or a
modifier of Phrase-A.
Test 2: Omit Phrase-B.

+ If Phrase-B is a complement of Phrase A, omitting Phrase-

B will make the structure ungrammatical.

+ If Phrase-B is a modifier of Phrase A, omitting Phrase-B

will not influence the grammaticality of the structure.
HOW TO TEST WHETHER A PHRASE IS
A COMPLEMENT OF A MODIFIER?
However, Test 2 is not always correct.
For example: As in ellipsis, the complement can be omitted if it
can be understood from the context.

A: What is Nam doing?

B: He’s eating (a bowl of soup).
HOW TO TEST WHETHER A PHRASE IS
A COMPLEMENT OF A MODIFIER?
Phrase-A + Phrase-B
We want to test whether Phrase-B is a complement or a
modifier of Phrase-A.
Test 3: Add Phrase-C between Phrase-A and Phrase-B.

+ If Phrase-B is a complement of Phrase A, the presence of

Phrase-C will make the structure sound very weird and
ungrammatical.

+ If Phrase-B is a modifier of Phrase A, the presence of

Phrase-C will not influence the grammaticality of the
structure.
HOW TO TEST WHETHER A PHRASE IS
A COMPLEMENT OF A MODIFIER?
For example: I eat a hamburger.
Test whether ‘a hamburger’ is a complement or a modifier of ‘eat’.

We add ‘very fast’ between ‘eat’ and ‘a hamburger’.

à * I eat very fast a hamburger.
The structure is ungrammatical (we use the symbol * to indicate
this).
à ‘a hamburger’ is a complement of the verb ‘eat’. To be specific,
’a hamburger’ is the object of the verb ‘eat’.
HOW TO TEST WHETHER A PHRASE IS
A COMPLEMENT OF A MODIFIER?
For example: I slept on the sofa.
Test whether ‘on the sofa’ is a complement or a modifier of ‘slept’.
We add ‘quietly’ between ‘slept’ and “on the sofa’.
à I slept quietly on the sofa.
The structure is still grammatical.
à ‘on the sofa’ is a modifier of the verb ‘slept’.
HOW TO TEST WHETHER A PHRASE IS
A COMPLEMENT OF AN ADJUNCT?
However, Test 3 is not always correct.
For example: Please read carefully what I have written.
‘What I have written’ is a complement of the verb ‘read’.
Practice 1: Decide whether each of the following underlined
phrases is a complement (C) or a modifier (M).

1/ I withdrew money from the bank last night.

2/ I went to school on weekdays.
3/ I put a book on the table.
4/ I cut the cake with a knife.
5/ I sent him a letter.
6/ John arrived at the airport on time.
 Modifiers and head: relationship

- In a phrase, the head and its modifiers form a one-way

dependency.
Ex: (1) She is NP[a beautiful woman].
(2) She is NP[a beautiful woman].
(3) *She is NP[ a beautiful woman].
 Complements and head: relationship

- In a phrase, the head and its complements form a two-way

dependency.
Ex: (1) a book PP[about Syntax].
(2) *a book PP[about Syntax].
(3) *a book PP[about Syntax].

The presence of the NP “Syntax” is required to complete the

meaning of the PP “about Syntax” and vice versa.
COMPLEMENTS AND MODIFIERS OF
VERB PHRASES
VP complements: Noun phrases (NPs)

+ NPs can be complements of VPs.

+ In this case, NPs come after head verbs.
Ex: He killed his wife.
My boss sent me an email.
VP complements: Prepositional phrases (PPs)

+ PPs can be complements of VPs.

+ In this case, PPs come after head
verbs.
Ex: John complains about the service.
She depends on him financially.
VP complements: Adjective phrases (APs)

+ APs can be complements of VPs.

Ex: He painted the house blue.

 VP complements: That-clauses

+ That-clauses can be complements of VPs.

Ex: I knew that he’s gone

Do you think that they forgot to pay?
 VP modifiers: Noun phrases (NPs)

+ Some NPs can modify VPs.

+ In this case, NPs come after head verbs.
Ex: He goes to church every week.
I am going to graduate next year.
I will see you tomorrow.
 VP modifiers: Adverbial phrases (ADVPs)

+ ADVPs typically modify VPs.

+ In this case, ADVPs come before or after the
head verbs.
Ex: He always drinks a cup of tea.
She went to bed early.
VP modifiers: Prepositional phrases (PPs)

+ PPs can modify VPs.

+ In this case, PPs come after head verbs.
Ex: John wakes up at 7 a.m.
Mary had dinner at a luxury restaurant.
 VP modifiers: Adverbial clauses

+ Adverbial clauses are treated as modifiers in

verb phrases.
Ex: I will wait until the manager arrives.
I was watching TV while my mother was
preparing dinner.
COMPLEMENTS AND MODIFIERS OF
NOUN PHRASES
 NP complements: Noun phrases (NPs)

+ A NP can be a complement for another NP à a

compound noun.
+ NPs derive from the structure of VPs.
Ex: to study Syntax à a Syntax student
to import a car à a car importer
to publish a book à ???
NP complements: Prepositional phrases (PPs)

+ A PP can be a complement for a NP

+ NPs derive from the structure of VPs.

Ex: to argue about Syntax à an argument about Syntax

to travel to Australia à a travel to Australia
to apply for a job à ???

+ Sometimes, it is not necessary that NPs derive from the

structure of VPs.
Ex: an impact on the society
an influence on the economy
NP complements: Prepositional phrases (PPs)

+ The structure of Partitives:

Ex: a piece of advice
a drop of water
a pair of scissors
à The PPs above are also complements.
 NP complements: That-clauses

+ That-clauses are also consider as complements of NPs. In

this case, the that-clause indicates the content of the head
noun.

Ex: (1) the news that over 100 people in Vietnam have
contracted Corona virus.
(2) the idea that humans can live under water.
 NP modifiers: Adjective phrases (APs)

+ APs typically modify NPs.

+ APs come before or after head nouns.
Ex: a mountainous area
a good-looking man
the person responsible for the task
 NP modifiers: Adjective phrases (APs)

+ Quantifying adjectives (QAs) are also treated as

modifiers.
+ QAs include:
1. Much, many, few, little
2. Cardinal numbers: one, two, ten, etc.
3. Ordinal numbers: first, second, tenth, etc.

Ex: Many books, two birds, the first person

 Challenge 1

An English teacher

1/ This is an ambiguous noun phrase. How many

ways of interpretations are there? Please specify.

2/ For each interpretation, what is the category and

function of the phrase ‘English’?
NP modifiers: Prepositional phrases (PPs)

+ PPs can modify NPs.

Ex: a house on the hill
the man from England
 Challenge 2

The president of the USA

‘Of the USA’ à Is it a complement or a modifier of

‘the president’?
Please explain your answer and use tests to prove
your answer.
 Challenge 3

(1) The owner of the house.

(2) The music of our day.

Identify whether each of the two of-phrases in (1) and

(2) is a complement or a modifier .Please explain your
answer.
 Challenge 3

(1) The owner of the house.

(2) The music of our day.

+ ‘Of the house’ should be a complement à Because it
derives from the verbal structure “to own a house’.
+ ‘Of our day’ should be a modifier à Because it adds
information about time, we can replace it by ‘in our day’.
 NP modifiers: Noun phrases (NPs)

+ An NP can modify another NP à a compound noun.

Ex: a city girl (= a girl who is living in a city)

a high-school student (= a student who is studying at a high
school)
 Challenge 4

(1) A chemistry student

(2) A Saigon student

What is the difference between ‘chemistry’ and

‘Saigon’ in each noun phrase in terms of function?
Please explain your answer.
NP modifiers: Adjective clauses/Relative clauses

+ Adjective clauses/relative clauses are

considered as modifiers.
Ex:
I have a house, which is located in Ho
Chi Minh city.

the girl whom you met.

 Challenge 5

(1) The idea that humans can live on Mars.

(2) The idea that he gave us.

What is the difference between the two that-clauses

in each noun phrase in terms of function? Please
explain your answer.
COMPLEMENTS AND MODIFIERS OF
PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES
 PP complements: Noun phrases (NPs)

+ NPs are typically complements of PPs.

Ex: besides the river

in front of the house (Complex preposition)
 PP modifiers: Adverbial phrases (ADVPs)

+ ADVPs can modify PPs.

Ex: very near my house

quite far from the city
 PP modifiers: Resultative clauses

+ In the structure “So P + that….”

Ex: She lives so far from the company that she has
to drive to work.
COMPLEMENTS AND MODIFIERS OF
ADJECTIVE PHRASES
AP complements: Prepositional phrases (PPs)

+ PPs can be complements of APs.

Ex: responsible for the job

scared of spiders
 AP complements: That-clauses

+ That-clauses can be complements of

APs.

Ex: afraid that I may be late for school

sure that he ate the cake
AP modifiers: Adverbial phrases (ADVPs)

+ ADVPs typically modify APs.

Ex: very dangerous
quite good
 AP modifiers: Resultative clauses

+ In the structure “So ADJ + that….”

Ex: She was so tired that she went

straight to sleep.
Tom is so happy that he smiles all
the time.
COMPLEMENTS AND MODIFIERS OF
ADVERBIAL PHRASES
ADVP complements: Prepositional phrases (PPs)

+ PPs can be complements of ADVP à

deriving from the APs.

Ex: He lives independently of his family

The Faculty operates separately from
the University
ADVP modifiers: Adverbial phrases (ADVPs)

+ An ADVP can modify another ADVP.

Ex: very well

quite fluently
 ADVP modifiers: Resultative clauses

+ In the structure “So ADV + that….”

Ex: She walked so carelessly that she fall

over the ground.
John talked so fast that no one could
understand.