2. A NOUN PHRASE
• A noun phrase may function as the subject or object of
a clause.
• A noun phrase may consist of a single word (a noun or
pronoun) or a group of words.
• The most important noun in a noun phrase is called the
headword.
3. EXAMPLE OF NOUN PHRASES
(HEADWORD IN BRACKET)
My smart English (lecturer) was Austrian.
4. My smart English (lecturer) was Austrian.
Did you see what
happened to this noun?
It’s just been expanded!!!
5. My smart English (lecturer) was Austrian.
Let’s see that again.
The original single word ‘lecturer’ has been
expanded, and this gives us more information.
6. THE TERM NOUN PHRASE REFERS TO A GROUP OF
WORDS WHICH ACT LIKE A NOUN.
•Words can go before the noun
e.g. The great river
•and/or after the noun.
e.g. man of honor
They modify the meaning of the noun.
7. Determiners
e.g. a, the, that, my, your
Adjectives
e.g. little, blue, silly
Verbs
e.g. A buzzing bee
Nouns
e.g. The lemonade bottle
Nouns often have other
words in front of them.
8. Words which go after a
noun can modify it too,
e.g. a group of students
The girl with red hair was afraid
of flying. She was determined
to overcome this fear. Her
aunt in America had invited
her to stay and she wanted to
go. Fears like this can be
overcome, she decided.
See if you can spot
any in this passage.
Did you spot these?
9. NOUN PHRASE
FORMULA
• NOUN + NOUN
e.g. soup bowl
• DETERMINER + NOUN
e.g. a computer
• MODIFIER + NOUN
e.g. beautiful flower
• GERUND + NOUN
e.g. swimming pool
• VERB 3 + NOUN
e.g. hidden gems
10. If we want to use more than three MODIFIERS in one
noun phrase, we must pay attention to the order.
Mainly for modifiers in the form of adjectives.
The usual order of a noun phrase with adjectives:
Opinion – appearance – age – color
e.g. A beautiful middle twenty woman.
11. EXERCISE
Identify the noun phrase in the sentences below! (1-5)
1. My father buys a new shiny car.
2. I like a small Japanese house because it looks tranquil.
3. Wall climbing is an extremely dangerous sport and it needs special equipment.
4. After an accident, she cannot walk without a walking stick.
5. In the forbidden city, we can find a plethora of hidden treasure.
12. EXERCISE
Arrange these words into a good sentence! (1-5)
1. eyes – big – round
2. moment – challenging – a – really
3. hat – a – white – round – Parisian
4. next – door – guy – the – friendly
5. Italy – a – beautiful – made – jacket – in
13. LOVE ISN'T A PERFECT STATE OF CARING.
IT'S AN ACTIVE NOUN, LIKE 'STRUGGLE.'
[Fred Rogers]
