English Syntax: Structure of Modification

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Structure of Modification

Adverb and Function Word As Head

1.      Adverb as Head

When adverbs appear as heads of structure of modification, they may be modified by qualifiers, other adverbs, nouns, or prepositional phrases. For example:

·         Qualifiers                         : very easily, rather slowly, happily enough

·         Adverbs                           : unusually eagerly, far away, sometimes below

·         Nouns                               : a foot away, that easily, some way up

·         Prepositional phrases        : away for a week, behind in this week, outside in the cold

As illustrated in the example, the first three of them, Qualifiers, Adverbs, and Nouns precede the Head that come before it (except the qualifiers indeed and enough). While prepositional phrases follow the Head that come after it.

2.      Function word as Head

Function words can also appear as Heads. The example of this is taken from the use of qualifiers in its complex combination in structure of modification which the last qualifier is as a Head. For instance,

The first example shows three qualifiers, are very, much, and more. As stated before that the Head is on the last qualifier, so “more” is the Head in this structure of modification.

·        Prepositions as Head

Prepositions may function as a Head of structure of modification; when they do, the modifiers are either qualifiers, adverbs, or certain nouns. For example,

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When such modifiers follow the prepositional phrases, the head of the structure is not just the preposition but the whole phrase.

Noun-determiners may be modified by qualifier, adverbs, or even prepositional phrases, as in the following example:

The last of these is actually ambiguous; it may be analyzed in either the following ways:

In (a), the phrase than enough modifies more, and the whole structure more than enough serves as a noun determiner with the noun money.

In (b), on the other hand, more is a function-noun, modified by the phrase than enough money with enough serving as noun-determiner with money.

There is a difference of structural meaning here, which may be quite significant. Compare:

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Meaning (b) would often be indicated in speech by a double-bar (rising) juncture after more.