The Prepositional Phrase

Recognize a prepositional phrase when you see one. At the minimum, a prepositional phrase will begin with a preposition and end with a noun, pronoun, gerund, or clause, the "object" of the preposition. The object of the preposition will often have one or more modifiers to describe it. These are the patterns for a prepositional phrase: preposition + noun, pronoun, gerund, or clause

preposition + modifier(s) + noun, pronoun, gerund, or clause

Here are some examples of the most basic prepositional phrase: At home At = preposition; home = noun. In time In = preposition; time = noun. From Richie From = preposition; Richie = noun. With me With = preposition; me = pronoun. By singing By = preposition; singing = gerund. About what we need About = preposition; what we need = noun clause. Most prepositional phrases are longer, like these: From my grandmother

From = preposition; my = modifier; grandmother = noun. Under the warm blanket Under = preposition; the, warm = modifiers; blanket = noun. In the weedy, overgrown garden In = preposition; the, weedy, overgrown = modifiers; garden = noun. Along the busy, six-lane highway Along = preposition; the, busy, six-lane = modifiers; highway = noun. Without excessively worrying Without = preposition; excessively = modifier; worrying = gerund. Understand what prepositional phrases do in a sentence. A prepositional phrase will function as an adjective or adverb. As an adjective, the prepositional phrase will answer the question Which one? Read these examples: The book on the bathroom floor is swollen from shower steam. Which book? The one on the bathroom floor! The sweet potatoes in the vegetable bin are green with mold. Which sweet potatoes? The ones forgotten in the vegetable bin! The note from Beverly confessed that she had eaten the leftover pizza. Which note? The one from Beverly! As an adverb, a prepositional phrase will answer questions such as How? When? or Where? Freddy is stiff from yesterday's long football practice. How did Freddy get stiff? From yesterday's long football practice! Before class, Josh begged his friends for a pencil. When did Josh do his begging? Before class!

Feeling brave, we tried the Dragon Breath Burritos at Tito's Taco Palace. Where did we eat the spicy food? At Tito's Taco Palace! Remember that a prepositional phrase will never contain the subject of a sentence. Sometimes a noun within the prepositional phrase seems the logical subject of a verb. Don't fall for that trick! You will never find a subject in a prepositional phrase. Look at this example: Neither of these cookbooks contains the recipe for Manhattan-style squid eyeball stew. Cookbooks do indeed contain recipes. In this sentence, however, cookbooks is part of the prepositional phrase of these cookbooks. Neitherwhatever a neither isis the subject for the verb contains. Neither is singular, so you need the singular form of the verb, contains. If you incorrectly identified cookbooks as the subject, you might write contain, the plural form, and thus commit a subject-verb agreement error. Some prepositionssuch as along with and in addition toindicate "more to come." They will make you think that you have a plural subject when in fact you don't. Don't fall for that trick either! Read this example: Tommy, along with the other students, breathed a sigh of relief when Mrs. Markham announced that she was postponing the due date for the research essay. Logically, more than one student is happy with the news. But Tommy is the only subject of the verb breathed. His classmates count in the real world, but in the sentence, they don't matter, locked as they are in the prepositional phrase.

The Absolute Phrase

Recognize an absolute phrase when you see one. An absolute phrase combines a noun and a participle with any accompanying modifiers or objects. The pattern looks like this: noun + participle + optional modifier(s) and/or object(s)

Here are some examples: Legs quivering Legs = noun; quivering = participle.

Her arms folded across her chest Arms = noun; folded = participle; her, across her chest = modifiers. Our fingers scraping the leftover frosting off the plates Fingers = noun; scraping = participle; frosting = direct object; our, the, leftover, off the plates = modifiers. Rather than modifying a specific word, an absolute phrase will describe the whole clause: Legs quivering, our old dog Gizmo dreamed of chasing squirrels. Her arms folded across her chest, Professor Hill warned the class about the penalties of plagiarism. We devoured Aunt Lenora's carrot cake, our fingers scraping the leftover frosting off the plates.

The Gerund Phrase

Recognize a gerund phrase when you see one. A gerund phrase will begin with a gerund, an ing word, and will include other modifiers and/or objects. Gerund phrases always function as nouns, so they will be subjects, subject complements, or objects in the sentence. Read these examples: Eating ice cream on a windy day can be a messy experience if you have long, untamed hair. Eating ice cream on a windy day = subject of the verb can be. A more disastrous activity for long-haired people is blowing giant bubble gum bubbles with the car windows down. Blowing giant bubble gum bubbles with the car windows down = subject complement of the verb is. Wild food adventures require getting your hair cut to a short, safe length. Getting your hair cut to a short, safe length = direct object of the verb require. Don't mistake a gerund phrase for a present participle phrase. Gerund and present participle phrases are easy to confuse because they both begin with an ing word. The difference is that a gerund phrase will always function as a noun while a present participle phrase describes another word in the sentence. Check out these examples:

Jamming too much clothing into a washing machine will result in disaster. Jamming too much clothing into a washing machine = gerund phrase, the subject of the verb will result. Jamming too much clothing into the washing machine, Aamir saved $1.25 but had to tolerate the curious stares of other laundry patrons as his machine bucked and rumbled with the heavy load. Jamming too much clothing into the washing machine = present participle phrase describing Aamir. Bernard hates buttering toast with a fork. Buttering toast with a fork = gerund phrase, the direct object of the verb hates. Buttering toast with a fork, Bernard vowed that he would finally wash the week's worth of dirty dishes piled in the sink. Buttering toast with a fork = present participle phrase describing Bernard. My dog's most annoying habit is hogging the middle of the bed. Hogging the middle of the bed = gerund phrase, the subject complement of the linking verb is. Last night I had to sleep on the couch because I found my dog Floyd hogging the middle of the bed. Hogging the middle of the bed = present participle phrase describing Floyd.

The Infinitive Phrase

Recognize an infinitive phrase when you see one. An infinitive phrase will begin with an infinitive [to + simple form of the verb]. It will include objects and/or modifiers. Here are some examples: To smash a spider To kick the ball past the dazed goalie To lick the grease from his shiny fingers despite the disapproving glances of his girlfriend Gloria Infinitive phrases can function as nouns, adjectives, or adverbs. Look at these examples:

To finish her shift without spilling another pizza into a customer's lap is Michelle's only goal tonight. To finish her shift without spilling another pizza into a customer's lap functions as a noun because it is the subject of the sentence. Lakesha hopes to win the approval of her mother by switching her major from fine arts to premed. To win the approval of her mother functions as a noun because it is the direct object for the verb hopes. The best way to survive Dr. Peterson's boring history lectures is a sharp pencil to stab in your thigh if you catch yourself drifting off. To survive Dr. Peterson's boring history lectures functions as an adjective because it modifies way. Kelvin, an aspiring comic book artist, is taking Anatomy and Physiology this semester to understand the interplay of muscle and bone in the human body. To understand the interplay of muscle and bone in the human body functions as an adverb because it explains why Kelvin is taking the class. Punctuate an infinitive phrase correctly. When an infinitive phrase introduces a main clause, separate the two sentence components with a comma. The pattern looks like this: infinitive phrase + , + main clause.

Read this example: To avoid burning another bag of popcorn, Brendan pressed his nose against the microwave door, sniffing suspiciously. When an infinitive phrase breaks the flow of a main clause, use a comma both before and after the interrupter. The pattern looks like this: start of main clause + , + interrupter + , + end of main clause.

Here is an example:

Those basketball shoes, to be perfectly honest, do not complement the suit you are planning to wear to the interview. When an infinitive phrase concludes a main clause, you need no punctuation to connect the two sentence parts. The pattern looks like this: main Clause + + infinitive phrase.

Check out this example: Janice and her friends went to the mall to flirt with the cute guys who congregate at the food court.

The Verb Phrase

Recognize a verb phrase when you see one. Every sentence must have a verb. To depict doable activities, writers use action verbs. To describe conditions, writers choose linking verbs. Sometimes an action or condition occurs just oncepow!and it's over. Read these two short sentences: Offering her license and registration, Selena sobbed in the driver's seat. Officer Carson was unmoved. Other times, the activity or condition continues over a long stretch of time, happens predictably, or occurs in relationship to other events. In these instances, a single-word verb like sobbed or was cannot accurately describe what happened, so writers use multipart verb phrases to communicate what they mean. As many as four words can comprise a verb phrase. A main or base verb indicates the type of action or condition, and auxiliaryor helpingverbs convey the other nuances that writers want to express. Read these three examples: The tires screeched as Selena mashed the accelerator. Selena is always disobeying the speed limit. Selena should have been driving with more care, for then she would not have gotten her third ticket this year.

In the first sentence, screeched and mashed, single-word verbs, describe the quick actions of both the tires and Selena. Since Selena has an inclination to speed, is disobeying [a two-word verb] communicates the frequency of her law breaking. The auxiliary verbs that comprise should have been driving [a four-word verb] and would have gotten [a three-word verb] express not only time relationships but also evaluation of Selena's actions. Realize that an adverb is not part of the verb phrase. Since a verb phrase might use up to four words, a short adverbsuch as also, never, or not might try to sneak in between the parts. When you find an adverb snuggled in a verb phrase, it is still an adverb, not part of the verb. Read these examples: For her birthday, Selena would also like a radar detector. Would like = verb; also = adverb. To avoid another speeding ticket, Selena will never again take her eyes off the road to fiddle with the radio. Will take = verb; never, again = adverbs. Despite the stern warning from Officer Carson, Selena has not lightened her foot on the accelerator. Has lightened = verb; not = adverb.

The Participle Phrase

Recognize a participle phrase when you see one. A participle phrase will begin with a present or past participle. If the participle is present, it will dependably end in ing. Likewise, a regular past participle will end in a consistent ed. Irregular past participles, unfortunately, conclude in all kinds of ways [although this list will help]. Since all phrases require two or more words, a participle phrase will often include objects and/or modifiers that complete the thought. Here are some examples: Crunching caramel corn for the entire movie Washed with soap and water Stuck in the back of the closet behind the obsolete computer

Participle phrases always function as adjectives, adding description to the sentence. Read these examples: The horse trotting up to the fence hopes that you have an apple or carrot. Trotting up to the fence modifies the noun horse. The water drained slowly in the pipe clogged with dog hair. Clogged with dog hair modifies the noun pipe. Eaten by mosquitoes, we wished that we had made hotel, not campsite, reservations. Eaten by mosquitoes modifies the pronoun we. Don't mistake a present participle phrase for a gerund phrase. Gerund and present participle phrases are easy to confuse because they both begin with an ing word. The difference is the function that they provide in the sentence. A gerund phrase will always behave as a noun while a present participle phrase will act as an adjective. Check out these examples: Walking on the beach, Delores dodged jellyfish that had washed ashore. Walking on the beach = present participle phrase describing the noun Delores. Walking on the beach is painful if jellyfish have washed ashore. Walking on the beach = gerund phrase, the subject of the verb is. Waking to the buzz of the alarm clock, Freddie cursed the arrival of another Monday. Waking to the buzz of the alarm clock = present participle phrase describing the noun Freddie. Freddie hates waking to the buzz of the alarm clock. Waking to the buzz of the alarm clock = gerund phrase, the direct object of the verb hates. After a long day at school and work, LaShae found her roommate Ben eating the last of the leftover pizza. Eating the last of the leftover pizza = present participle phrase describing the noun Ben. Ben's rudest habit is eating the last of the leftover pizza.

Eating the last of the leftover pizza = gerund phrase, the subject complement of the linking verb is. Punctuate a participle phrase correctly. When a participle phrase introduces a main clause, separate the two sentence components with a comma. The pattern looks like this: participle phrase + , + main clause.

Read this example: Glazed with barbecue sauce, the rack of ribs lay nestled next to a pile of sweet coleslaw. When a participle phrase concludes a main clause and is describing the word right in front of it, you need no punctuation to connect the two sentence parts. The pattern looks like this: main clause + + participle phrase.

Check out this example: Mariah risked petting the pit bull wagging its stub tail. But when a participle phrase concludes a main clause and modifies a word farther up in the sentence, you will need a comma. The pattern looks like this: main clause + , + participle phrase.

Check out this example: Cooper enjoyed dinner at Audrey's house, agreeing to a large slice of cherry pie even though he was full to the point of bursting. Don't misplace or dangle your participle phrases. Participle phrases are the most common modifier to misplace or dangle. In clear, logical sentences, you will find modifiers right next to the words they describe. Shouting with happiness, William celebrated his chance to interview at SunTrust. Notice that the participle phrase sits right in front of William, the one doing the shouting. If too much distance separates a modifier and its target, the modifier is misplaced.

Draped neatly on a hanger, William borrowed Grandpa's old suit to wear to the interview. The suit, not William, is on the hanger! The modifier must come closer to the word it is meant to describe: For the interview, William borrowed Grandpa's old suit, which was draped neatly on a hanger. If the sentence fails to include a target, the modifier is dangling. Straightening his tie and smoothing his hair, the appointment time for the interview had finally arrived. We assume William is about to interview, but where is he in the sentence? We need a target for the participle phrase straightening his tie and smoothing his hair. Straightening his tie and smoothing his hair, William was relieved that the appointment time for the interview had finally arrived.

The Noun Phrase

Recognize a noun phrase when you see one. A noun phrase includes a nouna person, place, or thingand the modifiers which distinguish it. You can find the noun dog in a sentence, for example, but you don't know which canine the writer means until you consider the entire noun phrase: that dog, Aunt Audrey's dog, the dog on the sofa, the neighbor's dog that chases our cat, the dog digging in the new flower bed. Modifiers can come before or after the noun. Ones that come before might include articles, possessive nouns, possessive pronouns, adjectives, and/or participles. Articles: a dog, the dog Possessive nouns: Aunt Audrey's dog, the neighbor's dog, the police officer's dog Possessive pronouns: our dog, her dog, their dog Adjectives: that dog, the big dog, the spotted dog Participles: the drooling dog, the barking dog, the well trained dog Modifiers that come after the noun might include prepositional phrases, adjective clauses, participle phrases, and/or infinitives.

Prepositional phrases: a dog on the loose, the dog in the front seat, the dog behind the fence Adjective clauses: the dog that chases cats, the dog that looks lost, the dog that won the championship Participle phrases: the dog whining for a treat, the dog clipped at the grooming salon, the dog walked daily Infinitives: the dog to catch, the dog to train, the dog to adopt Less frequently, a noun phrase will have a pronoun as its basea word like we, everybody, etc.and the modifiers which distinguish it. Read these examples: We who were green with envy We = subject pronoun; who were green with envy = modifier. Someone intelligent Someone = indefinite pronoun; intelligent = modifier. No one important No one = indefinite pronoun; important = modifier.