6 The Structure of Noun Phrases

NPs consisting of single words, just a pronoun or just a name, count as full NPs in
themselves.

Determiners
The basic determiners are the articles (ART): the definite article – the – and the
NPs consisting of a pronoun or a name are non-branching NPs, while those with two
indefinite article – a(n). Any expression that occupies the same position in NP structure
immediate constituents have branching representations.
as an article counts as a determiner.
There is a small set of words which perform the same function as the articles:
Demonstratives (DEM): this, that, these, those
Certain quantifiers (Q): some, any, no, each, every, either, neither
Possessives (POSS): my, your, its, her, his, our, their, John’s

In the basic case, the two immediate constituents of NP are: DET and NOM as its sister
(Determiner and Nominal). DET determines NOM, which means DET always has
NOM as its sister.
All modifiers (sad) of the head noun (clowns) fall under NOM, which is a level of NP-
structure intermediate between the phrasal (NP) level (the sad clown) and the lexical
(N) level (clowns).
A possessive NP can itself be determined by another possessive NP:
NPs that contain just one word, without a DET, are considered as having a
[DET+NOM] structure, albeit one with an empty determiner. Only plural count nouns # the book’s cover
and mass nouns can take an empty determiner. # Hieronimo’s brother’s behaviour.
# Essays should be written in 3rd person.
# Most essays should be written in 3rd person.
# Smoke gets in my eyes.
# Some smoke gets in my eyes.

Pre-determiners
Determiners only co-occur with pre-determiners (PRE-DET), not with other
determiners (DET):
# all the men # both those trampolines # half Jim’s money
Expressions like double, treble, and so forth are also pre-determiners.
# Double that amount has been transferred.
# cf. You might need more than a year to double that amount.
# all men # both men.
+ All and both can be used alone before a noun as pre-determiners even though they
don’t precede determiners in these NPs. The determiner position itself is empty.
“All men” (= all DET men ) is both more indefinite and more general than “all the
men”. By contrast, “both the men” and “both men” differ neither in definiteness nor
generality.
+ Most determiners and all the pre-determiners can function as if they were pronouns:
# He’s always liked those. # Some believe in miracles. # Jo's is better. # All is ruined.
# Almost all was good except for the elevator system.
# Almost all of these (cases) are problematic.
# Almost all (of) these cases are easily treated with medications.
Pre-modifiers in NOM
■ 1 Quantifying adjectives
+ Much, many, few, and little are quantifying adjectives (QA). As adjectives, they come
under NOM in NPs. They should be treated as adjectives rather than determiners for the
following reasons:
(a) Like adjectives, they co-occur with and follow determiners (those many books, the
little butter, some few successes), including an empty determiner: many books (= DET
many books), much garlic (= DET much garlic).
(b) Like adjectives, they may function as subject-predicatives: His mistakes were many,
It wasn’t much, It was little enough.
(c) Like adjectives, they are gradable: very many books, too much garlic, so few ideas,
very little tact, where they are modified by DEG. The comparative and superlative
forms of many and much are more and most; of little, less and least; of few, fewer,
and fewest.
+ Numerals (the cardinal numerals one, two, three . . . and the ordinal numerals first,
second, third...) should also be treated as quantifying adjectives within NOM, since they
follow DET, including empty DET.
Quantifying adjectives (QAs) are head of AP. APs with a QA as head always precede
other APs in NOM. Here are phrase markers for “very many mistakes” and “the one
mistake”:
 by N:

# So many people have died. = So many have died.

# Too many people have died. = Too many have died. Post-modifiers
■ 2 Participle phrases (PartP) ■ 1 Prepositional Phrases
# the leering manager # a faded dream # a forgotten valley When a head N is post-modified by a PP, it is the sister to the noun within NOM.
Compare: # a very pleasing experience # They were very disturbed by the play

■ 3 Nouns

Nouns themselves may be pre-modifiers of nouns (chess piece, traffic light, roof
maintenance , carbon trader, computer game). The relation between a head noun and a
pre-modifying noun is much closer than that between the head noun and any other pre-
modifier.

Noun modifiers cannot be separated from the head noun, always coming last in a
sequence of pre-modifiers.

# all those dusty gorilla suits

# some expensive roof maintenance
*some roof expensive maintenance
The following 2 noun phrases do not have the same syntactic structure:
Such combinations are compound nouns, to be treated as compound words, dominated
# an expedition to the pub in the village at a mountain foot
# an expedition to the pub for more cherry brandy

■ 2 Adjective Phrases
# the chef responsible for the sauces
* the responsible for the sauces chef
* the chef very responsible
* the chef very responsible for the sauces.
■ 3 More on Adjective Phrases
+ A sequence of more than one AP are represented as under two or more NOMs.
# a red car # a new red car
NOM is a recursive category. In other words, NOM can have NOM as an immediate
# the very responsible men constituent. In fact, apart from noun modifiers, every modifier must be immediately
dominated by a NOM.
Some [large [greasy [uneaten fritters]]]
 The man in charge of maintenance

+ A few adjectives (present, absent, responsible, visible) can pre-modify or post-modify

the head noun in NOM.

# the present members (=current members)

# the members present (present AT some event)
# The man responsible for maintenance
# a responsible man (= capable of being trusted) # The man responsible
# the man responsible (= in charge: responsible FOR something) # The man in charge

APs as post-modifiers occupy the same position in the NOM structure as post-
modifying PPs. An AP in the post-modifying position might be treated as an ellipted AP
- “responsible for something”.

Exercises

Complete the phrase markers to the noun phrases below:

1. all [mine] (is yours.) 2. a/ few students b/ the few students

3. those two very charming atomic scientists
4. a teacher of English from Canada

6. that tall student of maths in the hat

? that [[[tall student] of maths] in the hat]

? that [tall [student of maths] in the hat]

5. …. the pub ….