What is a Phrase?
A phrase, in a sentence, is a group of related words that complement the structure of sentence.
A phrase is always an important part of a sentence. A phrase cannot stand alone as it does not contain a subject and a verb. Hence, a phrase (as alone) does not give a complete idea. It is used to complement the overall structure of a sentence.
It usually consists of articles, preposition or noun. e.g. on a table, at the door, in a box, on the roof.
Examples:
- She is standing on the roof.
- The cat is sleeping under the table.
- She is drawing a map on the wall.
- Someone is waiting at the door.
- The kid sat beside her mother.
- Students are looking at the black-board.
- The dog is barking at a stranger.
- The girl, in the brown shirt, won the debate.
- The students, at the hall, were making a noise.
A phrase is an important part of a sentence. A phrase acts as a noun, an adjective or an adverb in a sentence. Hence, a phrase can also be defined as a group of related words (lacking a subject and a verb) that acts a single part of speech in a sentence.
- Read the following examples:
She wrote an interesting story. (as a noun: object)
- One of my friends has gone America. (as a noun: subject)
- The girl in the white shirt won the competition. (as adjective modifying the noun: girl)
- He gave me a cup full of tea. (as adjective modifying the noun: cup)
- She came back in a short while. (as adverb modifying the verb: come)
- He welcomed the guests in a cordial way. (as adverb modifying the verb: welcome)
Depending upon its function in a sentence, the phrases are divided into many types such as: Noun phrase, Verb Phrase, Adjective Phrase, Adverb Phrase, Appositive Phrase, Infinite Phrase and Gerund Phrase.