Syntactic functions of adjectives

Syntactically adjectives may function both as 1) attributes and 2) predicatives, i.e. parts of the predicate. Here are the examples of the attributive use: She returned in the early morning. After careful consideration we accepted the offer. Trying to conceal her embarrassment she turned away her red face.

Sometimes adjectives used attributively may occur in postposition, i.e. after the noun they describe: This is the only possible answer. — This is the only answer possible. In some cases the postpositional use of adjectives is obligatory: I'll do everything possible to help you.

When used predicatively, adjectives are combined with link-verbs: be, feel, get, grow, look, seem, smell, taste, turn. For instance: / was early for work today. When driving he is always careful. They feel nervous. He looked happy. Honey tastes sweet. She turned red with embarrassment.

Such adjectives as long, high, wide, deep, etc. find themselves in predicative position together with nouns denoting periods of time and units for measuring height, length and so on. For example: The garden is 20 metres long and 15 metres wide. The well is 25 metres deep.

The most frequently recurrent link-verb is the verb to be which enters a considerable number of set expressions of adjective + preposition type: be ready for/with, be fond of, be late for, be jealous of, be happy about, be afraid of, be frightened of, be dependent on, be persistent in, be grateful to/for, be angry with, be certain about/of, be suspicious of, etc. The predicative function of the adjectival collocations is often supported by their synonymous verbal counterparts: be fond of— love, be grateful to/for — thank, be suspicious of— suspect of.

The predicative function may be performed by double comparative forms of adjectives in the elliptical (or predicatively incomplete sentences with missing verbal elements): The more expensive the hotel, the better the service. (=The more expensive the hotel is...) The warmer the weather the better I feel.

Note that qualitative adjectives perform their attributive and predicative functions on equal terms while relative adjectives tend to occur in the function of attribute more frequently than in that of predicative: In her silken garment she looked grand. The historic meeting between the two leaders marked the beginning of a new era.

Adjectives with the a- prefix like afire, afloat, agape, ajar, akin, etc. usually function predicatively: The house was aflame. The company somehow managed to keep afloat. The problem facing him is akin to that of ours.

However in some rare cases they may be used attri-butively: He got down to work afire with enthusiasm.

Adverb

7.1. Definition

Adverb as a part of speech includes words that describe circumstances in which an action takes place, and specify some characteristic features of an action, or a quality. For example, come tomorrow, to walk slowly, most interesting, very well. Thus adverbs add to or modify the meaning of a verb, an adjective, or another adverb, and therefore function mainly as adverbial modifiers in a sentence: I've just read a most interesting book. He speaks English very well. She was walking slowly. They won't come tomorrow.

7.2. Morphological structure of adverbs

According to their morphological structure adverbs are classified into 1) simple, 2) derivative, 3) compound, 4) complex.

Simple adverbs are devoid of affixes and consist of a root-stem: enough, back, here, there, then, quite, well, rather, too.

Derivative adverbs are formed by means of suffixes. The most productive adverb-forming suffix added to adjectives is -ly. For example: slowly, widely, beautifully, heavily, easily, lazily, differently, simply, etc.

There are also -ward/-wards suffixes: northward/ northwards, southward/southwards, earthward/earthwards, downward/downwards.

Compound adverbs are made up of two stems: anywhere, anyway, anyhow, sometimes, somehow, nowhere, clockwise, likewise, longwise.

Complex adverbs include prepositional phrases like at a loss, at work, by name, by chance, by train, in debt, in a hurry, in turn, etc. (See 2.4.1.4., 2.5.3., 2.6.3.)

7.3. Classes of adverbs

According to the meaning adverbs can be divided into 2 main classes: 1) adverbs that denote the quality of an action, or the manner in which an action is performed, such as well, kindly, by heart, in turn and so on; 2) adverbs that denote various circumstances in which an action takes place, such as today, tomorrow, now, before, already, etc.

7.5.7. Adverbs denoting the quality of an action

Adverbs denoting the quality of an action include words that answer the question how? They can be further divided into 3 groups. They are as follows: a) adverbs of manner, b)adverbs of degree or quantity, c) adverbs of frequency.

Adverbs of manner are largely words derived from qualitative adjectives. For example: kindly, quickly, lazily, heartily, slowly, willingly, badly, well, fluently, beautifully, etc. They may have degrees of comparison.

This group also comprises numerous preposition + noun set phrases like at a loss, by name, in a hurry, in the main and others presented in sections 2.4.1.4., 2.5.3., 2.6.3. Besides it includes set expressions of another type, such as at once, at last, at least, one by one, head over heels, etc.

Adverbs of degree or quantity denote the degree of a quality, expressed by adjectives and adverbs, or point out the extent to which an action is performed. They are the following: very, most, quite, almost, nearly, only, merely, entirely, altogether, totally, wholly, utterly, exceedingly, too, sufficiently, enough, little, much, partly, half, hardly, scarcely and so on.

Adverbs of frequency include words like often, frequently, seldom, rarely, sometimes, occasionally, usually, always, ever, never, daily, weekly, monthly, yearly, once, twice, firstly, secondly, finally, eventually, etc.

Besides this group comprises a number of set expressions like as a rule, as usual, at first, in general, in the beginning, in the end, at last, etc.

7.3.1.1. Adverbs and adjectives

Not infrequently adverbs and adjectives turn out to be so closely related to each other as far as their function in a sentence is concerned that one finds it difficult to tell one from another. Here are some points to take into consideration.

a) Some adverbs of manner are homonymous with their corresponding adjectives, such as early, friendly, lively, late, hard, long, far. For example: She rises early. (Compare: She is an early riser.) We arrived home late. (Compare: We were late for the party.) He worked hard to

get a promotion. (Compare: He got a promotion because of his hard work.) Stay as long as you like. (Compare: She is staying with us for a long time.)

Note that sometimes, homonymous adverbs and adjectives differ in meanings: pretty as an adverb is an informal word for «very», pretty as an adjective is «attractive». Compare: I'm pretty sure you'll say yes. It's pretty cold today. — She was a pretty girl of sixteen. What a pretty little garden!

b)Some words have two adverbial forms, both are used to modify verbs: cheap — cheaply, close — closely, dear — dearly, direct — directly, late — lately, loud — loudly, pretty — prettily, right — rightly, slow — slowly, sure — surely, wrong — wrongly, wide — widely. The choice is generally a matter of usage with forms in -ly considered more formal, the shorter forms more emphatic: Buy cheap and sell dear. — He loves his wife dearly. The dresses were cheaply made. We live close to the church. They sat close together. — It was a closely guarded secret. Mail the order direct to me. — The clerk went directly home. Don't speak so loud. — The child called loudly to the lifeguard. Turn right at the crossroads. Did I do it right/wrong? He was standing right in the middle of the room. — You were rightly informed. We believe, rightly or wrongly that they have been badly treated. Go slow. — John drove so slowly that he was late.

Note that in some cases the homonymous forms differ in their meaning: late means «after the necessary or expected time», lately — «in the recent past»; pretty means «very», prettily — «nicely, attractively». He always works late. — He hasn 't been feeling well lately. This work

of yours is a pretty poor effort. — He was never expected to behave prettily.

c) Both adjectives and their corresponding adverbs such as firm — firmly, silent — silently, complete — completely, quiet — quietly, etc. function as modifiers: the modifier should be an adjective if it denotes the condition of the subject, but an adverb if it explains the action of the verb. Compare. We stand firm in our opinion. — We stand firmly by our decision. They stood silent as the ambulance passed. — They listened silently to the soloist. The house has been restored complete in every detail. — The house has been completely restored. The patient remained quiet. — He walked quietly around the room.

Such verbs as be, become, appear, seem, prove, turn out, get, grow, feel, look, smell, sound, taste, used as link-verbs take an adjective to denote the quality or the condition of the subject: The new secretary appears competent. The patient seems better today. She always looks cheerful. The flowers smell sweet. Susan felt bad about the delay.

The adjective bad and the corresponding adverb badly are both almost equally acceptable when following feel, although bad is usually preferred in formal writing. When preceded by look, smell, etc. the usual choice is bad. (See 3.4.)

d)There is also a special group of words in English formed with the prefix a-, such as afire, aflame, ajar, agog, aloof, alike, etc. which can be used as both adverbs and adjectives. Compare: He set the house afire. — He went on working afire with enthusiasm, (figurative use) — She treats all her children alike. — The two brothers are very much alike. (See 3.4.)

Such words as little, a little, few, a few, much may function as adjectives, pronouns and adverbs. Compare: We have a little milk and few eggs. I've got much work to do. (adjective) There is only a little left, (pronoun) Can stay a little longer? This picture is much admired, (adverb) See also 3.3.1.

7.3.1.2. Degrees of comparison of adverbs Adverbs of manner derived from qualitative adjectives usually form their degrees of comparison analytically, by adding more and most. For example: rarely — more rarely — most rarely, slowly — more slowly — most slowly, quickly — more quickly — most quickly, beautifully — more beautifully — most beautifully.

Some one-syllable adverbs homonymous with adjectives like long, wide, fast, hard, far, near, late form their degrees of comparison as the adjectives do: long — longer — longest, wide — wider — widest, hard — harder — hardest, etc. For example: I can't wait for you longer than half an hour. You must work harder to pass the examinations.

Some adverbs have irregular forms of comparison homonymous with the corresponding adjectives. For instance: well — better — best, badly — worse — worst, much — more — most, little — less — least. Besides, the adverbs far, near, late homonymous with the adjectives have suppletive forms of comparison: near — nearer — nearest, next, far — farther/further — farthest/furthest, late — later — latest. (See 3.3.1.)

7.5.2. Adverbs denoting circumstances

Adverbs denoting circumstances in which an action is performed are further divided into groups: a) adverbs of time, b)adverbs of place and direction, c) adverbs of cause and purpose.

Adverbs of time denote the time of an action, thus answering the question when? They are as follows: yesterday, today, tomorrow, soon, late, now, then, before, just, already, still, yet, shortly, hitherto.

Besides to this group belong some set expressions like at present, in the past, by day, at night, in the beginning, in the end, from morning till night, etc.

Adverbs of place and direction indicate the place of the action or its direction, thus answering the question where? They are as follows: inside, outside, here, there, southward, northward, homeward, ashore, around, where, somewhere, nowhere, everywhere.

This group includes also such set expressions as back and forth, to and from, hither and thither, up and down, etc.

Adverbs of cause, purpose and consequence include why, therefore, consequently, finally, eventually, accordingly, as well as set expressions like in consequence, as a result.

7.4. Prepositional adverbs (ADDITIONAL INFO)

Prepositional adverbs (or adverbial prepositions), namely about, around, down, in, off, on, out, over, up, andso on form a special class of words which may function both as units of full meaning or adverbs, and syncategore-matically, i.e. as prepositions. The double nature of prepositional adverbs is accounted for by their position in a sentence.

When the prepositional adverb functions as a preposition it is syntactically connected with both the preceding verb and the following noun. As an auxiliary word it is unstressed. For example: Get in the car, and we'll go for a drive.

When the prepositional adverb performs an adverbial function it is syntactically linked to and modifies the preceding verb. As a word of full meaning the prepositional adverb is always stressed. For example: I'll hold the car door open for you while you get in.

Examine the following pairs of sentences:

1. / looked round the station but couldn't see my friend anywhere.

2. / looked round but couldn't find my friend anywhere.

1. The boy climbed the wall and then jumped off it.

2. The boy climbed the wall and then jumped off.

1. The child was not tall enough to look over the wall.

2. The boy pulled himself to the top of the wall and looked over.

1. It is so difficult to deal with frer.

2. She is so difficult to deal with.

1. They have sent for the doctor.

2. The doctor has been sent for.

1. The country depends on its tourist trade.

2. What does the economy of the country depend on?

In the first sentences of each pair prepositional adverbs are used as prepositions while in the second sentences they function as adverbs.

Prepositional adverbs in the prepositional function regularly reproduced with a particular verb form prepositional verbs: abstain from, comment on, depend on, deal with, rely on, etc. Some verbs may associate with a number of prepositional adverbs and thus reveal their polysemantic character. For example: look at, look for, look after, look into, agree to, agree on, agree with, listen to, listen for, and so on.

Prepositional adverbs used syncategorematically find themselves in a fixed syntactic position: they always precede an object. For example: She was looking for the lost books. I often listen to classical music. Phrases like She was looking the lost books for and I often listen classical music to are ungrammatical. (Compare with the patterns in which for and to are used as adverbs: What is she looking for? What kind of music do you often listen to?)

Combinations of verbs with prepositional adverbs in the adverbial function regularly reproduced in speech and functioning as equivalents of one word are usually termed phrasal verbs: bring up (educate), call up (shout), find out (discover) carry out (perform), put on (dress), etc. Their second component is a word in its own right and its position in a sentence may sometimes vary. For example: He put on his coat. — He put his coat on. The case is full, I can't pack in any more clothes. — I can't pack any more clothes in.

In most of phrasal verbs both verbs and prepositional adverbs no longer preserve their literal meanings, and thus the meaning of the whole is different from the meanings of the separate words, i.e. idiomatic. For example: She made up her face, (used cosmetics) You can just make out the farm in the distance, (see clearly) The washing machine seems to have broken down again, (failed to work) The boy took in all those present, (deceived) When in doubt look up the word in a dictionary, (search for) Where can we put up tonight? (find food and lodging)

Some idiomatic phrasal verbs have their non-idiomatic counterparts in which both the verb and the prepositional adverb are used in their direct meanings. Compare: The boat is taking in water. I was buried in my book; when I looked up. he had gone. Put up your hand if you know the answer. (See also 6.2.)

7.5. Interrogative and connective adverbs

There are 2 more groups of adverbs that stand aside: interrogative and connective adverbs. The interrogative adverbs are used to introduce special questions: where, when, why, how. For example: Where and when were you born? Why didn't you come yesterday? How can I get to the town centre?

The same adverbs used in a complex sentence to connect its clauses are called connective adverbs. Besides their auxiliary function, as words in their own right, they perform an independent syntactic function in a clause they introduce.

Connective adverbs are subdivided into relative and conjunctive.

Relative adverbs where, when and sometimes why introduce attributive clauses. For example: This is the building where_I_work. (Where is adverbial modifier of place.) I remember the day when he left. (When is adverbial modifier of time.) Is there any reason why you can't come? (Why is adverbial modifier of cause.)

Conjunctive adverbs how and why introduce subject, predicative and object clauses: How he got in here is still a mystery for me. (Subject clause, how is adverbial modifier of manner.) This is why she did it. (Predicative clause.) / can't see why it shouldn't work. (Object clause, why is adverbial modifier of cause.)

When an adverb introduces an adverbial clause, it turns into the conjunction proper, i.e. a syncategorematic word that is used only to connect parts of a complex sentence and thus cannot be regarded as part of sentence: Things were different when I was a child. Crossing the street he at once saw her where he had left her.
Date: 2016-03-03; view: 4174

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