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GRAMMAR: SYNTAX THEORY

FUNCTION CATEGORY

SUBJECT NOUN (e.g. “love”)

PREDICATE NOUN PHRASE (e.g. “the love of my life”)
PRE-MODIFIER NOUN CLAUSE
POST-MODIFIER ADJECTIVE (e.g. “tall”)
HEAD (OF A PHRASE) ADJECTIVAL PHRASE (e.g. “very pretty”, “extremely
ADVERBIAL ADJUNCT tall”)
DIRECT OBJECT ADVERB (e.g. “slowly”)
INDIRECT OBJECT ADVERBIAL PHRASE (e.g. “very quickly”, “highly likely”)
REAL SUBJECT IN EXTRA POSITION ADVERBIAL CLAUSE
REAL OBJECT IN EXTRA POSITION PREPOSITION (e.g. “with”, “in”)
SUBJECTIVE COMPLEMENT OR PREDICATIVE PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE (e.g. “in the kitchen”)
OBJECTIVE COMPLEMENT RELATIVE CLAUSE
ARTICLE
DETERMINER (e.g. “my”, “your”, “this”, “that”)
PRONOUN
PAST PARTICIPLE / PRESENT PARTICIPLE
TO-INFINITIVAL CLAUSE

CLAUSES
While WORDS are the smallest units of meaning (“squirrel”) and PHRASES are small groups of words
intended to convey meaning (“the fast, red squirrel”), CLAUSES are the building blocks of English
sentences: groups of words that contain a SUBJECT (the NOUN or PRONOUN about which something is
being said, usually the doer of the action) and a VERB (a doing word).

Example:

• “The fast, red squirrel darted up a tree.”

A MAIN CLAUSE (MC) is a clause that contains a SUBJECT and an OBJECT. MC make sense on their own.

Example:

• “I like bananas.”  SIMPLE SENTENCE: 1 MC

• “I like bananas and I like grapes.”  COMPOUND SENTENCE: 2 MC JOINED BY CONNECTIVE

Sometimes a sentence is made up of two clauses: a MC and a SUBORDINATE (or DEPENDENT) CLAUSE,
which relies on the MC. A SUBORDINATE CLAUSE (SC) contains a SUBJECT and a VERB, but it needs to be
attached to a MC because it cannot make sense on its own.

Example:

• “I first met her in Paris where I lived as a small child.”  COMPLEX/MULTI-CLAUSE SENTENCE:
MC + CONNECTIVE + SC

CONNECTIVES that join clauses can be CONJUNCTIONS, PREPOSITIONS and ADVERBS. Examples of SC
include EMBEDDED CLAUSES and RELATIVE CLAUSES.

MC don't often have to come before SC in sentences.

Example:

• “After she picks me up, Mum is taking me to buy shoes.”

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NOUN PHRASES
A NOUN PHRASE (NP) is a phrase that has a NOUN (or INDEFINITE PRONOUN) as its HEAD or performs
the same grammatical FUNCTION as a NOUN. It’s akin to an ADJECTIVAL PHRASE (AP) where the head is
an ADJECTIVE or a PREPOSITIONAL PRHASE (PP) where the head is a PREPOSITION.

NP often function as verb SUBJECTS and OBJECTS, as PREDICATIVE EXPRESSIONS, as the

COMPLEMENTS of PREPOSITIONS and as ADJUNCT of the main clause PREDICATE.

Example:

• “The love of my life.”  PRE-MODIFIER + HEAD NOUN + POST-MODIFIER

NP can be identified by the possibility of PRONOUN SUBSTITUTION.

Example:

• “This sentence contains two noun phrases.” “It contains them.”

A typical NP consists of a NOUN (the HEAD of the phrase) together with zero or more DEPENDENTS of
various types: DETERMINERS (the, this, my, some, Jane’s); ATTRIBUTIVE ADJECTIVES (large, beautiful);
ADJECTIVE PHRASES and PARTICIPLE PHRASES (extremely large, hard as nails, made of wood, sitting on
the step); PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES (in the drawing room, of his aunt); ADNOMINAL ADVERBS and
ADVERBIALS (the man over there); RELATIVE CLAUSES (which we noticed); other CLAUSES serving as
COMPLEMENTS to the NOUN (the belief that God exists); INFINITIVE PHRASES (a desire to sing well, the
man to beat).

COMPOUND NOUN PHRASES

COMPOUND NP are composed of MORE THAN ONE HEAD NOUN, united by a COORDINATING
CONJUNCTION (CCONJ). CCONJ (E.g. OR, BUT, AND, SO) link elements of the SAME RANK.

Example:

• “She has three beautiful, bright little boys and a large house in London.”

NOUN CLAUSES
A NOUN CLAUSE (NC) is a NOMINAL CATEGORY. There is a NOMINAL notion in a NC, and this marks a
similarity with the NOUN PHRASE (NP). However, the NP and NC are different in that the NC is a more
COMPLEX STRUCTURE where in general there is a SUBJECT and a VERB. In the NP there is always a
NOUN which is the HEAD of the phrase (central element). It’s a different story with the NC: there is no
such HEAD, but there is a more complex structure with the SUBJECT and the VERB.

We can have a NC after REPORTING VERBS such as SAY, INFORM, ANNOUNCE, DENY, REPLY, SHOW,
THINK, etc.

Examples (Exercise said to Boost… – Paragraph 6-7-13):

• “Conventional medical wisdom had held (that) the human brain is static (…).”  NC
(FUNCTION: DO)

• “In April, Gage's group showed (that) mice kept in cages (...).”  NC (FUNCTION: DO)

• “Gage said he is not sure if the exercising mice with more new brain cell growth also are
smarter.”  CONTACT NC (FUNCTION: DO)

We can also have an INTERROGATIVE NC, which occur after verbs such as KNOW, DON’T KNOW,
WOULD LIKE TO KNOW, WANT TO FIND OUT, IT’S NOT CLEAR THAT, etc.
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Typically, NC function as an OBJECT or SUBJECT, but in total they can FUNCTION as: SUBJECT, DIRECT
OBJECT, INDIRECT OBJECT, OBJECT TO A PREPOSITION, SUBJECTIVE COMPLEMENT, OBJECTIVE
COMPLEMENT, IN APOSSITION TO A NOUN, AFTER AN ADJECTIVE (ADJECTIVE COMPLEMENT).

There are 4 TYPES of NC:

• THAT- NC

• IF/WHETHER… OR NOT- INTERROGATIVE NC

• WH- INTERROGATIVE NC

• NOMINAL- RC

CONJUNCTIONS – COORDINATING VS SUBORDINATING

CONJUNCTIONS are those little words or introductory words (also called linkers) that serve the function
of joining ideas or sentences or parts of sentences. We have to classify them into two: COORDINATING
CONJUNCTIONS (CCONJ) and SUBORDINATING CONJUNCTIONS (SCONJ).

CCONJ coordinate UNITS OF THE SAME RANK. That is to say, units that have the same level, the same
hierarchy, the same structure and the same weight in the sentence. They might be just words, or also
phrases and clauses. The typical coordinating conjunctions are: AND (ADDITION), OR (ALTERNATIVE),
BUT (CONTRAST or CONCESSION), SO (CONSEQUENCE). There are other conjunctions that might mean
the same or convey the same meaning but, if they are not exactly these words, instead of being
coordinating conjunctions they will be subordinating conjunctions.
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The word “coordinating” finishes in “-ing” because it’s a present participle, it’s the active part of the
adjective modifying the word “conjunction”. It’s a conjunction that coordinates elements. It’s not a
“coordinated” conjunction. The part that is “coordinated” is the phrase or sentence (or part of the
sentence) that comes before and after the coordinating conjunction.

AND – Examples:

• “I bought shoes and boots.”

• “I told you and Susan”

BUT – Examples:

• “I studied but I didn’t pass the exam.”

SCONJ introduce ADVERBIAL CLAUSES which are SUBORDINATED to the rest of the sentence (main
sentence). Some examples are: IF, UNLESS, PROVIDED THAT, ON CONDITION THAT (CONDITION); EVEN
THOUGH, ALTHOUGH, DESPITE, IN SPITE OF (CONCESSION); SO THAT (PURPOSE or RESULT); SO… THAT…
(SPLIT CONJUNCTION, always of RESULT); AS, BECAUSE, BECAUSE OF, OWING TO, FOR, SINCE (REASON);
AS, WHEN, AS SOON AS, WHILE, BEFORE, AFTER, ONCE (TIME).

ADJUNCTS
ADJUNCTS are OPTIONAL or STRUCTURALLY DISPENSABLE parts of a sentence, clause or phrase that, if
removed or discarded, will NOT structurally affect the remainder of the sentence.

Example:

• “John helped Bill in Central Park.”

ADVERBIAL ADJUNCTS
ADVERBIAL ADJUNCTS (AA) are sentence elements that often establish the CIRCUMSTANCES in which
the ACTION or STATE expressed by the VERB takes place, and it’s always in the PREDICATE.

Example:

• “Yesterday, Lorna saw the dog in the garden.”  AA OF TIME + AA OF PLACE

ADVERBIAL CLAUSES VS ADVERBIAL ADJUNCTS

ADVERBIAL CLAUSES (AC) are ADVERB EQUIVALENTS because they will say WHERE, WHEN, HOW, TO
WHAT EXTENT, WITH WHAT FREQUENCY, BY WHICH MEANS an ACTION took place. AC always modify a
VERB and they always occur in the PREDICATE. An AC is an equivalent to an adverb but it’s not an
adverb, it’s a COMPLEX STRUCTURE (longer and with more elements) and it’s always introduced by a
PARTICLE called SUBORDINATING CONJUNCTION (SCONJ). SCONJ introduce AC of TIME, REASON,
PURPOSE, RESULT, CONCESSION or CONTRAST. All AC are SUBORDINATED to the MAIN CLAUSE.

Examples:

• “When the teacher came in all the students shut up.”  AC of TIME

• “Although she studied hard, she couldn’t pass the exam.”  AC of CONCESSION

• “As the teacher was sick, she was absent from school.”  AC of REASON

AC are classified into at least NINE TYPES, being introduced by the following SCONJ:

1. TIME: after, as, before, now, once, since, till, until, when, while, as long as, as soon as, by the
time, every time, so long as.
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2. PLACE: where, wherever.

3. MANNER: as.

4. PURPOSE: lest, that, for fear, in order that, so that.

5. REASON OR CAUSE: as, because, inasmuch as, since, so, that, for.

6. RESULT: that, so that.

7. CONDITION: as if, if, in case, in so far as, provided (that), so long as, suppose, supposing, unless.

8. CONTRAST OR CONCESSION: although, as, even if, however, notwithstanding that, though.

9. DEGREE OR COMPARISON: as… as, more… than, less… than, like, as though.

An AC is a CATEGORY, which should not be confused with the FUNCTION ADVERBIAL ADJUNCT (AA). AC
ALWAYS FUNCTION AS AA.

An ADVERBIAL ADJUNCT is a FUNCTION and will always occur in the PREDICATE. AA do not necessarily
have to be AC, they may be simply ADVERBS (one word) or for example PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES.

Examples:

• “The exam took place in this room.”  AA of PLACE (CAT: PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE)

• “The exam took place in this room yesterday.”  AA of PLACE + AA of TIME

SO THAT – CLAUSES OF PURPOSE OR RESULT

SO THAT is a SCONJ made up of two words and it may introduce an AC of two types: PURPOSE or
RESULT (depending on other elements which will be present in the sentence).

Examples:

• “He bought a suit so that he would make a good impression at the interview.”  The presence
of the MODAL AUXILIARY indicates that it refers to PURPOSE: he did something in order that
something else would happen later

• “He bought a suit on Monday so that he made a good impression on the interview on
Wednesday and got the job.”  When we have a VERB IN THE PAST, it’s AMBIGUOUS, so we
need other elements. In this case, “got” gives us a clue that this in fact refers to RESULT

This conjunction may also occur with words in the middle: SO… THAT… This means that in this case we
are talking about a SPLIT CONJUNCTION. When this happens, it indicates that it refers to RESULT.

• “He is so fat that he doesn’t fit in a normal elevator.”  “is” is a COPULATIVE OR LINKING
VERB that will be followed by a SUBJECTIVE COMPLEMENT. “So fat” is an AP functioning as
SUBJECTIVE COMPLEMENT. “… that he doesn’t fit in a normal elevator” is an AC of RESULT

• “He is so intelligent that nobody else in the class can equal him.”  “…that nobody else in the
class can equal him” is an AC of RESULT

RELATIVE/ABRIDGED CLAUSES (= ADJECTIVAL CLAUSES)

RELATIVE CLAUSES (RC) act like an ADJECTIVE since they give INFORMATION about a NOUN
IMMEDIATELY PRECEDING. RC are a specific type of SUBORDINATED CLAUSE that ADAPT, DESCRIBE OR
MODIFY A NOUN (they’re “related” to it). RC are introduced by a RELATIVE PRONOUN such as
WHO/WHOM (people), WHOSE (people and sometimes things) THAT (people, places or things), or
WHICH (animals, places or things); or by a RELATIVE ADVERB such as WHERE, WHEN or WHY (BUT
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NEVER “WHAT”). “THAT” can only replace “WHO” or “WHICH”, but only in DEFINING RC. Because a RC
contains a group of words and not just one like an adjective it has to go after the noun, and it always
FUNCTIONS as a POST-MODIFIER to the noun.

A RC may be DEFINING or NON-DEFINING. A DEFINING RC gives information that is ESSENTIAL to

understand the meaning and the scope of the idea/noun that the RC is modifying, if it’s removed the
idea is not the same. When this information is not essential and IS ACCESSORY, ADJUNCT, AUXILIARY,
COMPLEMENTARY or SUPPLEMENTARY to the meaning of the noun, then we have a NON-DEFINING
RC. In general, it comes in between commas, dashes, brackets or parenthesis.

Example of DRC (Battle of the Sexes – Line 86):

• “I know women who are desperate to have a son.”

SUBJECT RC

The RELATIVE PRONOUN takes the place of the SUBJECT of the RC. It’s followed by a VERB, which
agrees with the noun that the clause modifies. In these cases, we CANNOT OMIT the RP.

Examples:

• “J. K. Rowling is the author. She wrote the Harry Potter books.”  “J. K. Rowling is the author
who wrote the Harry Potter books.”

• “The man who came to visit yesterday is my uncle Tom.”

• “Game of Thrones, which is a popular series, is based on a book.”

• “Our favorite candidate, who carried out an excellent campaign, has decided to leave the race.”

OBJECT RC

The RELATIVE PRONOUN takes the place of the OBJECT of the RC. It's followed by a SUBJECT + a VERB,
which agrees with the subject. In these cases, we CAN OMIT the RP.

Examples:

• “She is the author. I have interviewed her.”  “She is the author that I have interviewed.”

• “The film which your brother recommended to me was boring.”

• “That actor whom you admire so much is coming to Argentina.”

• “I’ve found the keys that I’ve been looking for.”

REDUCED RC + CONTACT RC

Sometimes the RC doesn’t start with a RP because it has been REDUCED. In order to REDUCE a RC, we
need to DROP OR ELIMINATE THE RP and transform the verb into a NON-FINITE FORM OF THE VERB
(no matter the tense: ACTIVE VOICE  PRESENT PARTICIPLE / PASSIVE VOICE  PAST PARTICIPLE) or
make it VERBLESS. A REDUCED RC is not just a clause in which you just drop the RP, that is called a
CONTACT RC. In this case you can drop the RP because after it comes another PRONOUN or NOUN.

Example of REDUCED NDRC (Battle of the Sexes – Line 5):

• “She and her husband, (who is called/whose name is) Oliver, flew to Naples, where she will
become pregnant.”

Example of CONTACT RC:

• “The man (that/who) I saw yesterday was not wearing gloves.”

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• “The pen (that/which) I wrote the letter with.”

Can a DRC also be reduced? Yes. The two typical ways are:

1) Deleting the RP and changing the verb to a GERUND or a NON-CONJUGATED FORM OF THE VERB:

• “People living in Bs. As. are obliged to stay at home because of the virus.”  REDUCED DRC

The original sentence was:

• “People who live in Bs. As. (…).”

2) Dropping the RP and the FIRST PART OF THE VERB “TO BE”:

• “The report written by my secretary will be sent by mail.”

The original sentence was:

• “The report which was written (…).”

There are also SENTENTIAL RC as a SUBTYPE of NDRC (often after a comma) that we can add at the end
of a sentence to make a comment about the information in the MC. In this case what it’s being modified
is NOT THE NOUN immediately preceding, but the SENTENCE, IDEA or WHOLE CONCEPT:

• “Julia had an accident, which resulted in her breaking an arm.”  NDRC

• “Julia broke her arm and her leg in a terrible accident, which obliged her to stay at home for
two months.”  SENTENTIAL RC

RC can also be introduced by a PREPOSITION (FOR WHICH, FOR WHOM, WITH WHICH):

• “A pen is an instrument with which you write something.”

• “The person for whom the letter was written is unknown.”

These sentences are VERY FORMAL. In order to make them more informal we can remove the
preposition from the front position and put it at the end after the RC finishes:

• “The pen which I wrote the letter with was lost.”

REDUCED CLAUSES
A REDUCED CLAUSE is one in which the CONNECTOR (SUBORDINATING CONJUNCTION), the SUBJECT
and part of the PREDICATE are MISSING. Sometimes the CONNECTOR may be retained.

• NON-FINITE: a NON-FINITE or NON-CONJUGATED form of the VERB is the MAIN ELEMENT

(INFINITIVE, GERUND, PRESENT AND PAST PARTICIPLES).

• VERBLESS: ANY CONSTRUCTION OTHER than non-finite forms of the verb is the MAIN
ELEMENT.

There can be REDUCED NC, REDUCED RC and REDUCED AC.

REDUCED NC

These can only be NON-FINITE.

An INFINITIVE:

• “The best thing would be to tell everybody.”

• “It’s very kind of you to help me.”

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• “I don’t know what to do.”

A GERUND:

• “Trying again is useless.”

• “My talking to her was all in vain.”

REDUCED RC

These can be NON-FINITE or VERBLESS.

NON-FINITE

An INFINITIVE:

• “The man to consult is Wilson.”

• “The time to arrive is 7.”

A PRESENT PARTICIPLE:

• “The girl sitting at the back is Mary.”

• “Anyone wishing to leave early may do so.”

A PAST PARTICIPLE:

• “The goods ordered last month have just arrived.”

• “He dropped to the ground like a man shot.”

VERBLESS

A PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE:

• “The girl in black is Mary.”

An ADVERBIAL PHRASE:

• “The students here want to have a break.”

An ADJECTIVE:

• “The only person visible was a policeman.”

• “That was the only explanation possible.”

REDUCED AC

NON-FINITE

An INFINITIVE:

• “I’m here to learn English.”

A PRESENT PARTICIPLE:

• “Turning to the left you’ll find the chemist’s you’re looking for.”

• “He wrote his best novel while working on a freighter.”

A PAST PARTICIPLE:

• “Confused, the man left the room.”

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• “Once published, the book caused remarkable stir.”

• “When(ever) known, such facts have been reported.”

VERBLESS

An ADJECTIVE:

• “Afraid of what the teacher might say, the student remained silent.”

• “Hand in tomorrow, if possible.”

A PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE:

• “In pain, Alice could not sleep.”

• “If in doubt, ask me.”

A NOUN PHRASE:

• “A young unexperienced teacher, she felt like running away.”

• “Though a young man, he managed allright.”

PRESENT/PAST PARTICIPLE – ADJECTIVES VS ADJECTIVAL EQUIVALENTS

An ADJECTIVE is a word that precedes a NOUN and MODIFIES it, but there are also other words that can
convey information about a noun. That is the case of the PRESENT PARTICIPLE and also the PAST
PARTICIPLE. A PRESENT PARTICIPLE is a word that finishes in “-ING”, which can lead to it being
associated with a GERUND, but a PRESENT PARTICIPLE is an ADJECTIVAL EQUIVALENT while a GERUND
is a NOMINAL OR NOUN EQUIVALENT. The PRESENT PARTICIPLE can function as an ADJECTIVE,
modifying or saying something about a noun. The PAST PARTICIPLE can also function as an ADJECTIVE.

Examples:

• “This is an interesting class.” (PRESENT PARTICIPLE functioning as ADJECTIVE)

• “An amazing book.” (PRESENT PARTICIPLE functioning as ADJECTIVE)

• “A surprising performance.” (PRESENT PARTICIPLE functioning as ADJECTIVE)

• “The difference was striking.” (PRESENT PARTICIPLE functioning as ADJECTIVE)

• “A bored student.” (PAST PARTICIPLE functioning as ADJECTIVE)

• “An interested teacher” (PAST PARTICIPLE functioning as ADJECTIVE)

• “A tired teacher” (PAST PARTICIPLE functioning as ADJECTIVE)

TRANSITIVE AND INTRANSITIVE VERBS

All VERBS can be classified into TRANSITIVE (TV) or INTRANSITIVE (IV) according to whether they take or
not an OBJECT. If the verb is INTRANSITIVE there are NO OBJECTS, although there may be ADVERBS. If
the verb is TRANSITIVE, there is AT LEAST ONE OBJECT. There may be TWO OBJECTS: a DIRECT OBJECT
and an INDIRECT OBJECT. A verb followed by a DIRECT OBJECT will be TRANSITIVE of COMPLETE
PREDICATION. A verb which doesn’t take an OBJECT and takes ADVERBIAL ADJUNCTS is INTRANSITIVE of
COMPLETE PREDICATION (although TV can also take AA). CAREFUL! —If we have a verb that is not
followed by anything, it may be a verb in the PASSIVE VOICE instead of an IV (originally the verb was
transitive in the active voice). All verbs that can be turned into PASSIVE VOICE are TV.
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Examples:

• “I bought.”  WHAT? THE SENTENCE IS INCOMPLETE

• “Fish swim.”  IVCP

• “He is sleeping.”  IVCP

• “The enriched mice in previous studies performed better on learning tests.”  IVIP + AA

• “He cut his finger.”  TVCP + DO

• “He painted the door.”  TVCP + DO

• “I sent him a letter.”  TVCP + IO + DO

• “He told us the most fantastic stories.”  TVCP + IO + DO

TRANSITIVE VERBS OF COMPLETE AND INCOMPLETE PREDICATION

TRANSITIVE VERBS OF COMPLETE PREDICATION (TVCP) don’t require any extra word or words to be
added to them aside from the DIRECT OBJECT to make the predication complete.

TRANSITIVE VERBS OF INCOMPLETE PREDICATION (TVIP) take ONE OBJECT only, but still require some
WORD OR WORDS to make the predication complete. The additional word or words by which the
predication is made complete are called the OBJECTIVE COMPLEMENT (OBJCP).

Examples:

• “He put the school into good order.”  TV + DO + COMPLEMENT

• “His worries drove him mad.”  TV + DO + COMPLEMENT

• “They made him laugh.”  TV + DO + COMPLEMENT

There is no sense in saying “He put the school.”, “His worries drove him.” and “They made him.” Hence
each verb must have a complement.

The OBJCP may be in seven different forms: NOUN, ADJECTIVE, PARTICIPLE, PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE,
TO-INF CLAUSE, ADVERB, NOUN CLAUSE.

Examples:

• “They made him king.”  NOUN

• “The judge set the prisoner free.”  ADJECTIVE

• “They found her still weeping.”  PRESENT PARTICIPLE

• “This plot filled us all with terror.”  PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE

• “The judge sentenced the prisoner to be hanged.”  TO-INF CLAUSE

• “They found the man asleep.”  ADVERB

• “We have made him what he is.”  NOUN CLAUSE

INTRANSITIVE VERBS OF COMPLETE AND INCOMPLETE PREDICATION

INTRANSITIVE VERBS OF COMPLETE PREDICATION (IVCP) is the name given to any INTRANSITIVE VERB
which makes COMPLETE SENSE BY ITSELF and does not require any word or words to be added to it for
this purpose.
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Examples:

• “Rivers flow.”

• “Winds blow.”

• “Horses run.”

• “Birds fly.”

• “All animals die.”

INTRANSITIVE VERBS OF INCOMPLETE PREDICATION (IVIP) is the name given to those INTRANSITIVE
VERBS which do not make complete sense by themselves but require a COMPLEMENT to supply what
the verb has left unsaid. The COMPLEMENT to INTRANSITIVE VERBS may be in the same kinds of form as
the COMPLEMENT to TRANSITIVE VERBS but, in this case, they are SUBJECTIVE COMPLEMENTS.

Examples:

• “A horse is a four-legged animal.”  NOUN PHRASE

• “That beggar turned out a thief.”  NOUN PHRASE

• “The man has fallen sick.”  ADJECTIVE

• “The dog went mad.”  ADJECTIVE

• “The man appears pleased.”  PAST PARTICIPLE

• “The stag continued running and jumping.”  PRESENT PARTICIPLE

• “Your coat is of many colours.”  PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE

• “That book proved of no use.”  PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE

• “The flower seems to be fading.”  TO-INF CLAUSE

• “You appear to have forgotten me.”  TO-INF CLAUSE

THE INDIRECT OBJECT (IO)

An INDIRECT OBJECT (IO) occurs after a TRANSITIVE VERB but there is something very important when
we discuss the IO. The one prerequisite to have an IO is that WE MUST HAVE A DO in order for the IO to
occur. We’ll never have an IO unless we have a DO (when in doubt, it’s a DO). We need an IO to have a
DITRANSITIVE VERB (DV). A DV takes two OBJECTS, a DO and an IO.

Examples (verbs of GIVING + COMMUNICATION):

• “Give me my book.”  DV: TV + IO + DO (CAT: NP)

• “I will buy a flower to any girl I like.”  DV: TV + DO + IO (CAT: PP)

• “Give the doctor your medical record.”  DV: TV + IO (CAT: NP) + DO (CAT: NP)

• “I brought you the flower for Susan.”  DV: TV + IO + DO + IO (INTENDED RECIPIENT)

• “The president informed the citizens that the quarantine is gonna end soon.”  DV: TV + IO +
DO (CAT: NC)

• “I said to all the people standing that they should sit down immediately.”  DV: TV +
IO (CAT: PP) + DO
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INTENDED RECIPIENTS are a special type of IO and they are always introduced by FOR. When we have
an INTENDED RECIPIENT, it doesn’t necessarily mean that we need to have two IO.

There might be instances in which we have verbs that usually take TWO OBJECTS, but there’s only ONE
and it seems to be an IO. These are sentences where the DO has been OMITTED because it’s OBVIOUS.

Example:

• “Susan wrote to me.”  DV: TV + (OMITTED DO) + IO

The CATEGORY of the IO can change if we change its order in the sentence.

Example:

• “I give you the book.”  CAT. OF IO: PRONOUN

• “I give the book to you.”  CAT. OF IO: PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE

VERBS of LATIN ORIGIN oblige us to use the PREPOSITION TO, even if the IO is NEXT TO THE VERB (e.g.:
dictate, devote, suggest, propose).

IO necessarily introduced by the PREPOSITION TO:

• WHEN THE IO COMES AFTER THE DO

• VERBS OF LATIN ORIGIN: admit, affirm, announce, ascribe, attribute, communicate, confess,
convey, devote, dedicate, dictate, explain, expose, indicate, propose, prove, refer, reveal,
suggest, transmit.

SUBJECTIVE COMPLEMENT OR PREDICATIVE

SUBJECTIVE COMPLEMENTS (SUBCP) or PREDICATIVES typically come AFTER COPULATIVE VERBS (verbs
followed by a complement -NOUN/NP/NC, ADJ/AP, ADV- which can be “equated” to the subject of the
sentence)  E.G.: VERB “TO BE”; VERBS OF PERCEPTION LIKE “SMELL”, “TASTE”, “FEEL”, “SEEM”,
“APPEAR”; INCHOATIVE VERBS LIKE “BECOME”, “GET”, “GROW”; VERBS LIKE “LIE”, “REMAIN”, “STAY”.

SUBCP is a FUNCTION that we find in the PREDICATE. It’s SUBJECTIVE because it refers to the SUBJECT.
In general, the SUBCP is an ADJECTIVE (but NOT always). The typical VERB that takes SUBCP is “TO BE”
(IV). All the VERBS that take SUBCP are INTRANSITIVE VERBS OF INCOMPLETE PREDICATION (IVIP: they
require a WORD or PHRASE to COMPLETE THE PREDICATE and make sense of the sentence. In turn,
INTRANSITIVE VERBS of COMPLETE PREDICATION [IVCP] either take NOTHING or take AA). Another
possibility: SUBCP as a byproduct of a PASSIVE VOICE construction/transformation (which are NOT IVIP).

Examples:

• “She is tall.”  VERB + SUBCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “She is nice.”  VERB + SUBCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “She is charming.”  VERB + SUBCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “She is pleasant.”  VERB + SUBCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “She is a good teacher.”  VERB + SUBCP (CAT: NP)

• “She is a nice woman.”  VERB + SUBCP (CAT: NP)

• “He is a tall man.”  VERB + SUBCP (CAT: NP)

• “She is a beautiful person.”  VERB + SUBCP (CAT: NP)

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• “She is here.”  VERB + SUBCP (CAT: ADVERB)

• “The exam is there.”  VERB + SUBCP (CAT: ADVERB)

• “The exam is upstairs.”  VERB + SUBCP (CAT: ADVERB)

• “The exam is in classroom 2 or 3.”  VERB + SUBCP (CAT: PP)

• “The exam is tomorrow.”  VERB + SUBCP (CAT: ADVERB)

• “The exam was yesterday.”  VERB + SUBCP (CAT: ADVERB)

• “She seems/appears nice.”  VERB + SUBCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “He seems/appears kind.”  VERB + SUBCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “He seems an introvert.”  VERB + SUBCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “The teacher seems worried.”  VERB + SUBCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “My mother appears overwhelmed”  VERB + SUBCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “The sub tastes delicious.”  VERB + SUBCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “This tea tastes awful.”  VERB + SUBCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “It smells awful.”  VERB + SUBCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “It feels hard/tender/soft.”  VERB + SUBCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “She stayed quiet after I explained subjective complement.”  VERB + SUBCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

CAREFUL!  “FEEL” = “THINK/BELIEVE” is a TV and it’s followed by a DO (verb of COGNITION).

INCHOATIVE VERBS (INCHV) also take SUBCP. INCHV are verbs that denote a CHANGE or TRANSITION.
The typical or most representative of them all is the verb “GET”. Others are “BECOME”, “GROW”,
“TURN”, “COME”, “GO”, “RUN”.

Examples:

• “It’s getting cold/dark.”  INCHV + SUBCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “She’s getting better/worse.”  INCHV + SUBCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “She’s growing/becoming old.”  INCHV + SUBCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “She became/turned/got a traitor/a liar.”  INCHV + SUBCP (CAT: NP)

• “He is getting richer and richer.”  INCHV + SUBCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “My dream is coming true.”  INCHV + SUBCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “She went mad.”  INCHV + SUBCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “I ran short of sugar/money.”  INCHV + SUBCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

CAREFUL!  NOT always “GET” is an INCHV/IVIP that takes SUBCP.

Examples:

• “I got there early.”  Here “GET” means “ARRIVE” and it’s an IVCP

• “I got the tickets.”  Here “GET” is a TVCP

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CAREFUL!  “GROW UP” is NOT an INCHV, but an IVCP (PHRASAL VERB).

The typical CATEGORIES that FUNCTION as SUBCP are: ADJECTIVE or AP, NP. We can also have a NC.

Examples:

• “The problem is that you are not attending classes regularly.”  VERB + SUBCP (CAT: NC)

• “The problem is (that) …”  VERB + SUBCP (CAT: CONTACT NC)

EXAMPLES FOR CLASS:

GO  “She goes crazy every time she sees them.”  INCHV + SUBCP (CAT: ADJ) + AC OF TIME

GET  “The weather got so cloudy that they cancelled the trip.”  INCHV + SUBCP (CAT: AP) + AC OF RESULT

BECOME  “My neighbor is becoming nicer as I get to know her more.”  INCHV + SUBCP (CAT: ADJ) + AC OF TIME

GROW  “His limbs grew numb because of the cold.”  INCHV + SUBCP (CAT: ADJ) + AC OF REASON/CAUSE

TURN  “Her face turned red when she talked to him.”  INCHV + SUBCP (CAT: ADJ) + AC OF TIME

FALL  “The audience fell silent as the show began.”  INCHV + SUBCP (CAT: ADJ) + AC OF TIME

MIDDLE VERBS
MIDDLE VERBS are a very special type of verb. They are TRANSITIVE VERBS and like all TV they take a
DO, but there’s something peculiar about them: they differentiate themselves from other TV in that
they CANNOT BE TURNED INTO THE PASSIVE. This is because they are very specific verbs which have
never been used in the passive and if we tried to do so it would sound a little awkward or uncommon.

CAREFUL!  They are NOT just verbs that cannot be turned into the PASSIVE, because there are IV that
cannot be turned into the PASSIVE as well.

Examples:

• TO HAVE: “I have three kids.”

• TO LACK: “I lack common sense.”

• TO SUIT: “This sweater suits you well.”

• TO FIT: “This sweater fits you.”

• TO MARRY: “Paul married Lucy four years ago.”

• TO RESEMBLE: “John resembles his father.”

• TO HOLD: “The auditorium holds 5,000 people.”

LIE VS LAY
The verb “TO LIE” (to be in a horizontal position or recline, to be spread out, to be found or situated) is
INTRANSITIVE and IRREGULAR (LIE/LAY/LAIN), and we generally use it in the CONTINUOUS FORM.

Example:

• “As the police arrived, the victim was lying on the floor.”

The verb “TO LIE” (not to tell the truth) is INTRANSITIVE and REGULAR (LIE/LIED/LIED).

Example:

• “You lied to me.”

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The verb “TO LAY” (put -sth not material-, set, place) is TRANSITIVE and REGULAR (LAY/LAID/LAID), so it
will always be followed by a DO.

Examples:

• “To lay the table.”

• “To lay emphasis on something.”

RISE VS RAISE VS ARISE VS ARAISE VS AROUSE

The verb “TO RISE” (to move upwards; to assume an upright position especially from lying, kneeling, or
sitting) is INTRANSITIVE and IRREGULAR (RISE/ROSE/RISEN).

Examples:

• “At 6 a.m. we watched the sun rise.”

• “She rose from her chair to welcome us.”

The verb “TO RAISE” (to lift something to a higher position; to cause something to increase or become
bigger, better, higher, etc.; to cause to exist) is TRANSITIVE and REGULAR (RAISE/RAISED/RAISED).

Examples:

• “Would all those in favour please raise their hands?”

• “The government plan to raise taxes.”

• “This discussion has raised many important issues/problems.”

The verb “TO ARISE” (to come into existence or begin to be noticed; to happen; to get out of bed) is
INTRANSITIVE and IRREGULAR (ARISE/AROSE/ARISEN).

Examples:

• “Problems arise when kids leave school.”

• “Should the opportunity arise, I'd love to go to China.”

• “We arose early on Saturday morning.”

The verb “TO ARAISE” (obsolete: to raise, especially from the dead) is TRANSITIVE and REGULAR
(ARAISE/ARAISED/ARAISED).

Example:

• “From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto
Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and
be araised again the third day.”

The verb “TO AROUSE” (to cause someone to have a particular feeling) is TRANSITIVE and REGULAR
(AROUSE/AROUSED/AROUSED).

Examples:

• “It’s a subject that has aroused a lot of interest.”

• “Our suspicions were first aroused when we heard a muffled scream.”

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DO VS MAKE
DO: Improve the condition of sth already existing.

• You do research.

• You do physical activities.

• You do mental activities.

• You do (up) your room (clean, tidy up).

• You do household chores.

Set expressions: Do your best.

MAKE: Create sth which has not existed before; bring sth new into existence + expressions connected
with business/money.

• You make a chair/table.

• You make a cake.

• You make a profit.

• You make a good salary.

• You make (both) ends meet.

• You make money.

• You make a phone call.

• You make an inquiry.

• You make a mistake.

• You make a presentation.

Set expressions: Make an effort.

PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES
A PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE (PP) is a group of words consisting of a PREPOSITION, its OBJECT, and any
WORDS THAT MODIFY THE OBJECT. Most of the time, a PP modifies a VERB or a NOUN.

At a minimum, a PP consists of one preposition and the object it governs. The OBJECT can be a NOUN, a
GERUND (a verb form ending in “-ing” that acts as a noun), or a CLAUSE.

Some of the most common prepositions that begin prepositional phrases are TO, OF, ABOUT, AT,
BEFORE, AFTER, BY, BEHIND, DURING, FOR, FROM, IN, OVER, UNDER, and WITH.

Examples:

• “He arrived in time.”

• “Is she really going out with that guy?”

ANTICIPATORY “IT”—SUBJECT
Although “IT” is a pronoun, it doesn’t always function as a pronoun replacing an object that was
mentioned before. Sometimes what it does is ANTICIPATE something that will come later, like the REAL
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SUBJECT of the sentence when it’s too long (this is called REAL SUBJECT IN EXTRA POSITION and it’s the
FUNCTION). The REAL SUBJECT can be a TO-INFINITIVAL CLAUSE, an -ING/GERUNDIAL PHRASE or a
NOUN CLAUSE. ANTICIPATORY “IT” can NEVER anticipate a NOUN PHRASE.

IT + VERB + SUBCP + RSEP

ANTICIPATORY “IT” is a notion that we use when the SUBJECT of the sentence is TOO LONG (to comply
with the principle of “end-weight”: short subject/long predicate). In order to strike a balance between
the length of the SUBJECT and the length of the PREDICATE we borrow a word in order to anticipate the
REAL SUBJECT that will come later in the sentence (REAL SUBJECT IN EXTRA POSITION). The word we
borrow is “IT” and it’s DEVOID OF ANY MEANING.

Examples:

• “To eat spaghetti with a fork is difficult.”  IMBALANCED

• “It is difficult to eat spaghetti with a fork.”  BALANCED

• “To meet you yesterday was nice.”  IMBALANCED

• “It was nice to meet you yesterday.”  BALANCED

• “It was a great pleasure to meet you yesterday.”

We must pay attention to the CATEGORY of the REAL SUBJECT, which must belong to one of the
following: NOUN CLAUSE, TO-INF CLAUSE, -ING/GERUNDIAL CLAUSE. It’s a very common mistake to use
a NOUN PHRASE, but this is GRAMMATICALY INCORRECT (NP can NEVER be anticipated by “IT”).

Examples:

• “It’s nice the way she treated me.”  INCORRECT (RSEP: NOUN PHRASE)

• “It was nice to meet you.”  CORRECT (RSEP: TO-INFINITIVE)

• “It was nice seeing you again after all these years.”  CORRECT (RSEP: -ING/GERUND)

• “It was a mistake that she should go alone.” CORRECT (RSEP: NOUN CLAUSE)

CAREFUL!  ANTICIPATORY “IT” should NOT be confused with EMPHATIC “IT”/CLEFT-SENTENCE,

IMPERSONAL PASSIVE “IT” nor “IT” used as a PRONOUN.

ANTICIPATORY “THERE”—SUBJECT
“THERE” can ANTICIPATE a NOUN/NOUN PHRASE or an GERUNDIAL PHRASE/CLAUSE (exceptionally).

Examples:

• “There is a book on the table.”

• “There are many churches there.”

• “There are three windows in this room.”

• “There’s no use denying the fact that this government is very inefficient.”

• “There’s no getting over it.”

• “There’s much talking about vaccines coming into Argentina.”

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FORMS OF EMPHASIS—EMPHATIC “IT”/CLEFT-SENTENCE

We apply the “IT-IS” emphatic transformation in order to derive the EMPHATIC or CLEFT SENTENCES.
This construction gives THEMATIC AND FOCAL PROMINENCE TO A PARTICULAR ELEMENT OF THE
CLAUSE. The sentence is called a CLEFT SENTENCE because it divides a single clause into TWO SEPARATE
SECTIONS, each with its own verb. CLEFT SENTENCES usually begin with the EMPTY PRONOUN “IT”
followed by the VERB “TO BE”, then comes the element on which the FOCUS falls.

IT + VERB “TO BE” + FOCUS + NC

Examples:

• “It is the wife that decides.”  From: “The wife decides.”

• “It was the colonel I was looking for.”  From: “I was looking for the colonel.”

• “It is you that must suffer for it.”  From: “You must suffer for it.”

We can emphasize ANY PART OF THE SENTENCE.

Examples:

From: “John went to the cinema yesterday.”

• “It was John that went to the cinema yesterday.”  FOCUS: SUBJECT

• “It was to the cinema that John went yesterday.”  FOCUS: AA OF PLACE

• “It was yesterday that John went to the cinema.”  FOCUS: AA OF TIME

From: “John wore his best suit to the dance last night.”

• “It was John who wore his best suit to the dance last night.”  FOCUS: SUBJECT

• “It was his best suit that John wore to the dance last night.”  FOCUS: DO

• “It was last night (that) John wore his best suit to the dance.”  FOCUS: AA OF TIME

• “It was to the dance that John wore his best suit last night.”  FOCUS: AA OF PLACE

FORMS OF EMPHASIS—EMPHATIC “WHAT”/PSEUDO CLEFT SENTENCE

PSEUDO-CLEFT SENTENCES (also called WH-CLEFTS) are SIMILAR IN FUNCTION TO CLEFT SENTENCES,
but they are formed with the pronoun WHAT (= the thing(s) that/which). The emphasis in a pseudo-cleft
sentence is on the phrase after the WHAT-CLAUSE + “TO BE”.

WHAT- CLAUSE + VERB “TO BE” + FOCUS

Examples:

• “What you need is a good sleep.”

• “What I didn't like was the end of the movie.”

• “What changed his mind was a book he'd read.”

If we want to refer to a PERSON, we say “The person/people who/that”:

• “The people who/that I met were members of the delegation.”

If we want to emphasize an ACTION, the verb after “to be” usually takes the form that corresponds to
the form used in the what-clause:
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• “What you should do is write a letter to the manager.”

• “What I need to do is get some rest.”

• “What they were doing was arguing about which train to take.”

• “What I can do is call for a taxi.”

In the following examples, the verb after “to be” takes the form that the verb in the what-clause is
normally followed by:

• “What I want is to sleep.”

• “What he can't stand is getting up early.”

In the past simple and present perfect, we can use the following patterns:

• “What I did in the end was (to) go home.”

• “What I have done is (to) write a letter to the editor.”

IMPERSONAL PASSIVE “IT”

The IMPERSONAL PASSIVE CONSTRUCTION “It is said/reported/etc. that…” is a common way of
reporting what is said by PEOPLE or by an UNSPECIFIED GROUP OF PEOPLE.

IT + PASSIVE VERB (“TO BE” + PAST PARTICIPLE) + NC (THAT- CLAUSE)

Examples:

• “It is said that children are afraid of ghosts.”  From Active Sentence: “People say that
children are afraid of ghosts.”

• “It is reported that the defense minister is to resign.”

STRUCTURES—PARALLEL INCREASE
THE + (COMPARATIVE)… THE + (COMPARATIVE)

Examples:

• “The more I study, the more I know.”

• “The more I know, the more I forget.”

• “The more I forget, the less I know.”

• “The more you study, the fewer chances you’ll have of failing.”

• “The earlier you start, the sooner you’ll finish.”

• “The more time you devote, the less effort you will make the day of the exam.”

Sometimes the SUBJECT and the VERB “TO BE” are OMITTED.

Examples:

• “The sooner, the better.”

• “The less said about it, the better.”

• “The quicker the runner, the sooner his arrival.”

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OBJECTIVE COMPLEMENT
TVIP + DO + OBJCP  Typical order (in exceptional circumstances, there can be a reversal of order).

The OBJECTIVE COMPLEMENT (OBJCP) is a FUNCTION that is used to refer or say something about the
DIRECT OBJECT. We will have an OBJCP as long as we have a DO. The OBJCP will be used with
TRANSITIVE VERBS OF INCOMPLETE PREDICATION (TVIP). The meaning of these verbs will not be
completed until we give extra information about the DO. The same verb can be TVCP but, in another
context, it can also be TVIP.

Examples:

• “I like coffee.”  TVCP + DO

• “I like my coffee strong.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP

CAREFUL!  At times, OBJCP can be confused with ADVERBS.  In 2º example above, the OBJCP does
not respond to “How” I like my coffee (in that case, it would be an adverb. E.g.: “I like my coffee a lot.”),
it just says something about the coffee.

Examples:

• “I imagine that she is beautiful.”  TVCP + DO

• “I imagine her to be beautiful.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: TO-INF CLAUSE)

TYPICAL CATEGORIES THAT FUNCTION AS OBJCP

• ADJECTIVE

• NOUN PHRASE

• TO-INF CLAUSE

Examples:

• “I made a delicious soup.”  TVCP + DO

• “I made a soup delicious.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “I found the box empty.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “He likes his coffee strong.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “I want the report ready.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “I wish him dead.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: PAST PARTICIPLE)

• “In autumn, the cold weather tans the leaves yellow.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “Her attitude made me angry.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “Make it a little longer.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: ADJECTIVAL PHRASE)

• “I painted the door green.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “I will have my hair cut next Saturday.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: PAST PARTICIPLE) + AA OF
TIME (CAT: NOUN PHRASE)

• “I had my car washed.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: PAST PARTICIPLE)

• “I believe it to be a mistake.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: TO-INF CLAUSE)

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• “I know you better than that.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: ADJECTIVAL PHRASE IN THE
COMPARATIVE)

• “I won’t allow you to do it.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: TO-INF CLAUSE)

• “Help me finish the job.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: BARE-INF CLAUSE)

• “I don’t want anybody to know.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: TO-INF CLAUSE)

• “I saw him cross the street.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: BARE-INF CLAUSE)

• “I saw him crossing the street.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: PARTICIPLE PHRASE)

• “Let me go.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: BARE-INF CLAUSE)

• “I smell something burning.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: PRESENT PARTICIPLE)

• “I found him working.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: PRESENT PARTICIPLE)

• “Keep the ball rolling.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: PRESENT PARTICIPLE)

• “They named the baby John.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: NOUN)

• “They appointed him General Manager.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: NOUN PHRASE)

• “They designated my father Vice President of the Company.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT:
NOUN PHRASE)

• “I left her in tears.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE)

• “I consider that cheating.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: GERUND)

• “I call that cheating.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: GERUND)

• “My father made the company what it is today.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: INT-NOUN
CLAUSE)

• “I want the report finished by 7.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: PAST PARTICIPLE) + AA OF TIME

• “I will have my hair washed.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: PAST PARTICIPLE)

• “Call it what you will.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: INT-NOUN CLAUSE)

• “I hammered the nail flat.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “I pushed the door open.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

• “I saw the thief running away.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: PARTICIPLE PHRASE)

• “I saw the thief run away.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: BARE-INF CLAUSE)

• “I encouraged him to go.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: TO-INF CLAUSE)

• “He made me laugh/cry/etc.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: BARE-INF CLAUSE)

• “The movie made me what I am today.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: INT-NOUN CLAUSE)

• “I called him last week.”  TVCP + DO + AA OF TIME (CAT: NOUN PHRASE)

• “I called him out loud.”  TVCP + DO + AA OF MANNER (CAT: ADVERBIAL PHRASE)

• “I called him a loser.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: NOUN PHRASE)

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• “I called him stupid.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE)

TYPES OF VERBS THAT CAN TAKE OBJCP

• VERBS OF VOLITION: like, want.

• CAUSATIVE HAVE OR GET

• COGNITIVE VERBS: know, believe, consider, regard as (“as” must be analyzed as part of the
verb).

• VERBS EXPRESSING RESULT: hammer, paint, leave.

• VERBS OF NAMING AND CALLING: appoint, call, designate.

• VERBS OF PERCEPTION: see, smell.

• OTHER VERBS THAT DON’T FIT ANY GROUP: encourage, allow, make, let, help, keep, find, lead,
induce, force.

The relation that exists between the DIRECT OBJECT and the OBJECTIVE COMPLEMENT is similar to that
of the SUBJECT and the SUBJECTIVE COMPLEMENT.

Examples:

• “Something is burning.”  IVIP + SUBCP

• “I smell something burning.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP

In cases where we have OBJCP in the ACTIVE VOICE, it turns into SUBCP when turned into the PASSIVE.

Examples:

• “I found him dead.”  ACTIVE VOICE + DO + OBJCP

• “He was found dead.”  PASSIVE VOICE + SUBCP

ANTICIPATORY “IT”—OBJECT
“IT” doesn’t always function as a pronoun replacing an object that was mentioned before. Sometimes
what it does is ANTICIPATE something that will come later, like the REAL OBJECT of the sentence when
it’s too long (this is called REAL OBJECT IN EXTRA POSITION -ROEP- and it’s the FUNCTION).

The ROEP can belong to any of the SAME 3 CATEGORIES that can be anticipated with ANTICIPATORY
“IT”—SUBJECT: TO-INFINITIVAL CLAUSE, -ING/GERUNDIAL PHRASE or NOUN CLAUSE.

ANTICIPATORY “IT” can NEVER anticipate a NOUN PHRASE.

Examples:

• “I believe it to be a mistake.”  DO (REPLACEMENT PRONOUN) + OBJCP (CAT: TO-INF CLAUSE)

• “I believe it to be a mistake what you did yesterday.”  DO (ANTICIPATORY “IT”—OBJECT) +

OBJCP (CAT: TO-INF CLAUSE) + ROEP (CAT: NOUN CLAUSE)

• “I consider it a mistake.”  TVIP + DO + OBJCP (CAT: NOUN PHRASE)

• “I consider that it is a mistake.” TVCP + DO (CAT: NOUN CLAUSE)

• “I consider it a mistake to cheat in an exam.”  DO + OBJCP (CAT: NOUN PHRASE) + ROEP

(CAT: TO-INF CLAUSE)
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Is it mandatory to use ANTICIPATORY “IT”—OBJECT whenever we have a long DO? NO. ANTICIPATORY
“IT”—OBJECT is one way of getting away with it IF the category is one of the 3 previously mentioned. If
it’s not, we simply REVERSE THE ORDER of the DO and the OBJCP.

Examples:

• “I made successful the company that my grandparents founded and sustained for a decade.” 
OBJCP (CAT: ADJECTIVE) + DO (CAT: NOUN PHRASE)

• “My parents made true/possible my dream of travelling to Disneyland all together.”  OBJCP
(CAT: ADJECTIVE) + DO (CAT: NOUN PHRASE)

• “I consider a mistake to cheat in an exam.”  INCORRECT (It should be “I consider it a mistake

to cheat in an exam.”. ANTICIPATORY “IT” is MANDATORY here, because the CATEGORY of
the DO mandates the presence of the “IT”)

The typical order is TVIP + DO + OBJCP, which can be changed/reversed in 2 ways:

• TVIP + OBJCP + DO (CAT: NOUN PHRASE)

• TVIP + IT + OBJCP + DO (CAT: NOUN CLAUSE/TO-INF CLAUSE/GERUND)

NOUN CLAUSE IN APPOSITION

A NC IN APPOSITION looks similar to a RC, but it’s different. A NC IN APPOSITION EXPLAINS OR DEFINES
AN ABSTRACT NOUN IMMEDIATELY PRECEDING. A NC IN APPOSITION is a type of NC, while a RC is a
type of ADJECTIVAL CLAUSE.

APPOSITION: Two or more NP (or NOUN EQUIVALENTS) are said to be in APPOSITION when they are
identical in reference or else the reference of one is included in the reference of the other.

ABSTRACT NOUNS: idea, belief, notion, misconception, theory, assumption, myth, fact, notion (among
others).

Examples:

• “The idea that you gave me is brilliant.”  THE SUBJECT INCLUDES A RC (it gives extra
information about the noun immediately preceding, but it doesn’t define or explain it)

• “The idea that we should all go together is brilliant.”  THE SUBJECT INCLUDES A NC IN
APPOSITION

• “The idea that you gave me that we should all go together is brilliant.”  THE SUBJECT
INCLUDES BOTH A RC AND A NC IN APPOSITION

ABSOLUTE CONSTRUCTION
ABCON + COMMA + MC / MC + COMMA + ABCON

The ABSOLUTE CONSTRUCTION (ABCON) is a PARTICIPLE PHRASE that has its own EXPRESSED SUBJECT.
It’s a FORMAL STRUCTURE used in written productions.

We use 2 SUBJECTS, each one with its OWN VERB. One SUBJECT includes a NON-FINITE FORM OF THE
VERB OR PAST PARTICIPLE (ABCON), while the other includes a CONJUGATED FORM OF THE VERB (MAIN
CLAUSE). The ABCON never starts with -ING. If it does, it’s wrong and we have a DANGLING PARTICIPLE.

Examples:

• “The elevator being out of order, conference attendees had to use the stairs.”  ABCON
(SUBJECT 1 + NON-FINITE FORM OF THE VERB) + MC (SUBJECT 2 + REST OF ELEMENTS)
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• “The report being finished, the secretary left the office.”  ABCON (SUBJECT 1 + NON-FINITE
FORM OF THE VERB) + MC (SUBJECT 2 + REST OF ELEMENTS)

• “Feeling tired, the teacher left earlier.”  NO ABCON (THE SUBJECT IS THE SAME)

• “This duty completed, he had a leave.”  ABCON (SUBJECT 1 + PAST PARTICIPLE) + MC

(SUBJECT 2 + REST OF ELEMENTS)

The ORDER of the elements can be REVERSED:

• “I won’t accept no for an answer, your condition being at risk.”  MC (SUBJECT 2 + REST OF
ELEMENTS) + ABCON (SUBJECT 1 + NON-FINITE FORM OF THE VERB)

The ABSOLUTE CONSTRUCTION, if paraphrased, usually turns into an AC OF REASON/TIME:

• “As the elevator was out of order, the conference attendees had to use the stairs.”  AC OF
REASON + MC

• “As the secretary finished the report, she left the office.”  AC OF REASON + MC

• “Once the report was finished, the secretary left the office.”  AC OF TIME + MC

• “I won’t accept no for an answer, as your condition is at risk.”  MC + AC OF REASON