7 16 P r e p o s i t i o n s a n d prepositional phrases

10
[C]There is no prepositional adverb corresponding to contrary to (cf 9.10). But note the similar
use of the reduced expression to the contrary.
The simple sentence
( contrary to mirle.
His vote was to the corttrary.
Compare also the conjunct adverbial (8.137):
On the contrary, what l said was this year, not next. 10.1-4 Clause patterns
To the contrary .l Simple and multiple sentences
.2 Clause structures
.3 Multiple class membership of verbs
.4 Verb complementation
Bibliographical n o t e
A general analytical bibliography of prepositionscan be found in Guimier (1981).
Theoretical treatments of the roles of prepositions are provided by Bennett (1975); Bugarski 10.5-16 Syntactic functions of clause elements 723
(1969); Fillmore (1969); Rosenbaum (1967a); Vestergaard (1977). .6 Subject 724
Studies of other aspects of English prepositionscan be found, for example, in Christophersen .7 Object: direct and indirect 726
(1979); Hi11 (1968); Jacobsson (1977a); Lee (1969); Leech (1969a); Lindkvist (1950, 1972,1976,
.,,-,
147Rh. -
,Poutsma ~ .
11926-29). Part 11.2; Quirk and Mulholland (1964); Ssrensen (1979a, 1979b); .8 Complement: subject and object 728
Turner (1972); Zandvoort and Doodkorte (1962). .9-10 Adverbial 729
Frequencies have been taken from Hotland and Johansson (1982). .l0 Obligatory adverbials: subject-related and object-related
adverbials
.11-16 Gradience and multiple analysis
.l1 Prepositional phrases and adverbs as complement
.l2 Particles and clause types
.l3 Extent and measure phrases: object or adverbial
.l4 Middle verbs
.l5 Adverbial forms as subject
.l6 Subject complement or verbless clause

10.17 Order of clause elements

Semahtic roles of clause elements

Participatlts
Agentive, affected, and recipient roles
Attribute
Subject as external causer, instrument, and affected
Recipient subject
Positioner subject
Locative, temporal, and eventive subjects
Prop it subject
Locative object
Resultant object
Cognate object
Eventive object
Instrumental object
Affected indirect object
Summary

10.34-45 Subject-verb concord

.34 General rule
 Clause p a t t e r n s 719

Principles of grammatical concord, notional concord, Clause patterns

and proximity
Collectivenouns and notional concord Simple and multiple sentences
Coordinated subject 10.1 Sentences are either SIMPLE or MULTIPLE. A simple sentence consists of a
Coordination with and single independent clause. A multiple sentence contains one or more clauses
as its immediate constituents. Multiple sentences are either COMPOUND or
Coordination within a singular subject
COMPLEX. In a compound sentence the immediate constituents are two or
Coordinative apposition more COORDINATE clauses. In a complex sentence one or more of its elements,
Quasi-coordination such as direct object or adverbial, are realized by a SUBORDINATE clause (cf
Coordination with or and nor further 14.If).
Indefinite expressions as subject Elements such as subject and verb are constituents of sentences and also
Concord of person of clauses within sentences.We shall speakof CLAUSES and CLAUSE STRUCTURE
Summary whenever what we say applies both to sentences and to the clauses of which
sentences are composed. Thus a complex sentence with one subordinate
10.46-50 Other types of concord clause can be analysed twice over, once for the sentence as a whole and once
.46 Subject-complementand object-complement concord for the subordinate clause included within the sentence:
.47 Distributive number
.48-50 Pronoun reference

10.51 Semantic restrictions

10.52-53 Vocatives
.53 Forms of vocatives

Negation
Types of negation subordinate clause
Clause negation I 1
Clause negation through verb negation sentence
Contracted forms of negator and auxiliaries Fig 10.1 Sentence a n d clause elements
Syntactic features of clause negation
Clause negation other than through verb negation In the present chapter we are primarily concerned with simple sentences.
I Words negative in form and meaning Discussion of coordinateclauses is deferred to Chapter 13 and of subordinate
i Words negative in meaning but not in form clauses to Chapters 14 and 15. The present chapter is further restricted to
ona assertive items and negative items aspects of the simple sentence chiefly involving the elements subject, verb,
object, and complement. The adverbial, as a clause element that is generally
Nonassertive contexts
more detachable and more mobile than the others, receives detailed
Negative intensification consideration in Chapter 8.
More than one nonassertive item
bcope of negation Note [a] We use the term 'simple sentence' for an independent clause that does not have another
Focus of negation clause functioning as one of its elements. Thus, [l] is a complex sentence in which ifyou need it
functions as an adverbial:
Local negation You can borrow my car need it. 111
Negation of modal auxiliaries However, a simple sentence may have a clause functioning within a phrase. In that case the
Present forms of modals complexity is at the level of the phrase, not at the level of the sentence or clause. Thus [21 is a
Past forms of modals simple sentence:
You can borrow the car that belongs to my sister. I21
Predication negation In [2] the relative clause that belongs to my sister is a postmodifier within the complex noun
Double negation phrase constituting the object element the car that belongs to my sister. Clauses functioning as
modification of noun phrases are discussed in Chapter 17. Clauses functioning i n the
Bibliographical note complementation of adjective phrases are discussed in Chapter 16.
 720 The simple sentence

The term 'simple sentence' is frequently used elsewhere, but not in this book, for an
independent clause that does not contain another clause, regardless of whether the contained
clause is an immediate constituent of the sentence or not. In some grammars, nonfinite
constructions (which have a nonfinite verb as their verb element) are considered phrases rather
than clauses. We treat such constructions as clauses because they can be analysed into clause
elements (c/ 14.5). Nonfinite clauses themselves are intrinsically subordinate and therefore do
not constitute simple sentences in thecanonical forms (but 4 1 I .41).
[b] A simple sentence is not necessarily simple in a nontechnical sense. For example, a simple
sentence may be very complicated because its phrases are complex:
On the recommendation of the committee, the temporary chairman, who had previous
experienceof the medical issues concerned, made thedecision that no further experiments
o n living animals should be conducted in circumstances that might lead to unfavourable
press publicity.
Other factors apart from the complexity of phrases are mentioned in 14.2.

Clause structures
10.2 We now turn to a further consideration of the clause structures outlined in
2.13ff: We there distinguished five functionalcategoriesof clauseconstituents,
three of which were further subcategorized.
subject

-object complement (C,)

By eliminating optional adverbials, we established seven major clause types,

based on the permissible combinations of the seven functional categories,
the clause elements. Table 10.2 opposite exemplifies the major clause types in
their normal order in a simple declarative sentence, the canonical form of
the sentence.
The clause ty$es are determined by the verb class to which the full verbs
within the verb Lonstituent belong. ~ifferentverb classes require different
complementation (OdrOi, CS,C,, A) to complete the meaning of the verb, or
(in the case of SV, where the verb is intransitive) no complementation.

to a number of different classes (cf App I.54), and hence enter into a number
of different clause types. The verb get is a particularly versatile one, being
excluded only from Type SV (and even then not universally; cf Note):
SVO He'll get a surprise.
SVC He's getting angry.
SVA He got through the window.
SVOO He got her a splendid present.
SVOC He got his shoes and socks wet.
SVOA He got himself into trouble.
 722 The simple sentence Syntactic functions of clause elements 723

Through the multiple class membership of verbs, ambiguities can arise: I (1) A specific object is recoverable from the preceding linguistic context:
found her an entertainingpartner, like She called him herfavourite waiter, could A: Show me your essay. B: I'll show you later.
be interpreted either as belonging to the SVOCor SVOO types. Let's do the dishes. I'll wash and you dry.
The complementation of verbs receives detailed treatment in Chapter 16.
In such instances the verb may be analysed as genuinely transitive with
Note In informal (especially dialectal) AmE, get is used even as an intransitive verb(='leaveat once') ellipsis of the direct object.
in Type S V : She told him to get.
(2) A specific object is understood from the situational context:
Verb complementation Keep off [sign on grass] Shake well before use.
10.4 The elements, Od, CS,CO,and A in the patterns exemplified in 10.2 and 10.3 Watch! Don't touch.
are obligatory elements of clause structure in that they are required for the The tie doesn'tfit.
complementation of the verb. Given the use of a particular verb in a (3) A specific reflexive object is understood when the verb allows such an
particular sentence, the sentence is incomplete if one of these elements is object (cf 6.25):
omitted, eg: *Your dinner seems (type SVC) and *You can put the dish (type
SVOA) are unacceptable. In somecases, however, a direct object or an object I'm shaving. They're dressing.
complement could from one point of view be considered grammatically Some verbs allow omission of either a reflexive or a nonreflexive object: She's

--
washing (herselfor the clothes).
They're eating. [S V] cf They're eating lunch. [S V 0 ] (4) A nonspecific object is semantically entailed (cf 16.19):
We elected her. [S V 01 cf We elected her our delegate. [S V 0 C]
He's teaching. [S V] cf He's teaching chemistry. [S V 01 Are you eating again? Do you drink?
He's teaching them chemistry. [S V 0 01 He teaches. I don't want to catch you smoking again.
They can't spell. I can't come now, because I'm cleaning.
We regard these as cases of conversion, whereby a word such as eat is
I don't want to read.
transferred from the transitive to the intransitive category. Thus, They're
eating is an instance of type SV rather than of SVO (with optional deletion of The range of understood nonspecific objects is restricted with some verbs
the object). We adopt this approach because there is to a greater or lesser when they are used intransitively. For example, Do you drink? refers to the
extent a shift in,meaning. drinking of alcoholic drinks, Zm
' cleaning refers to domestic cleaning and not
To justify treating object omission as a matter of conversion, we may (say) to cleaning teeth or cleaning a pipe, and to catch you smoking again
notice that it applies to some transitive verbs but not to others: normally excludes (say) smoking fish. In other instances, the intransitive

--
verb may lack the causative meaning of the transitive verb: Contrast He
They're hunting deer. They're hunting.
walked and He walked the dog (410.22).
They're chabing cats. *They're chasing.
\
Also, one can fihd nonce object omissions, which again points to a word- Note In some instances the omission of a sentence element radically changes the sense of the verb.
formation process rather than a syntactic process. Thus (*)John is licking Contrast the use of the verbfind and run in these examples:
I have found her reasonably helpful. [S V 0 C] 1 have found her. [S V O]
today is a highly improbable sentence for which one could (as with all nonce- He is running a business. [S V 01 He is running.[S V]
formations) find a plausible use if one tried hard enough (eg a situation in
which two people are alternatively employed in licking and sticking stamps
on letters). Coniersions from one verb category to another, including from
transitive to intransitive verbs, are exemplified in App 1.54.
A similar approach may be made to instances where the indirect object is
omissible:
Syntactic functions of clause elements
She gives expensive presents. [S V O,]
cf She gives her friends expensive presents. [S V OiO,] A partial characterization of the clause elements based on formal criteria is
10.5
But here the case for conversion is not so strong, and one may regard the given in 2.24. Formal criteria usually suffice to identify the verb element
indirect object with many verbs as an optional element similar in status to an within a clausal context, since the verb element is always realized by a verb
optional adverbial. phrase. We have also noted its syntactic importance in determining what
We should in principle distinguish different types of omission of objects, other elements may or must occur in the clause (cf 10.3f). We now give
though the distinction may be blurred in particular instances: further consideration to the other clause elements.
 724 The simple sentence Syntactic functions of clause elements 725

!
Distinctions between the elements-and between types within the Everbody [S] has left [V] for the day.
elements - are based on (i) forms (noun phrase, verb phrase, adjectivephrase, Has [op] everybody [S] left for the day?
finite clause, etc), (ii) position, (iii) syntactic function other than positional In wh-interrogative clauses, subject-operator inversion also occurs except
potentialities, and (iv) semantic role. It is primarily on the basis of (iii) and where the wh-element is itself the subject:
(iv) that a distinction is made between Od and Oi, C, and C,. The following
sentences contain final phrases that are identical in form and position: What have [op]you [S]seen today?
What [S] has [op] kept you so long?
They told the mayor. {They told his life story.
They admired the mayor. They admired his life story. (C)SYNTACTIC FUNCTION
(i) A subject is obligatory in finite clauses except in imperative clauses,
But the identity stops there. While the process of admiring the mayor is where it is normally absent but implied (cf 11.24ff).
parallel to that of admiring his life story, telling the mayor involves something (ii) In finite clauses the subject determines the number and person, where
very different from telling his life story. The difference is confirmed by relevant, of the verb (cf 10.348):
coordination:
Nancy [S]knows[V] my parents. [singular number concord]
They admired the mayor and his life story. Nancy and Dauid [S]know [V] my parents. [plural number concord]
*They told the mayor and his life story. Z[S] am [V] your new colleague. [singular number and 1st person
Equally, if we attempt to introduce apposition, we can contrast: concord]
They admired the mayor, ie his life story. (iii) The subject normally determines number of the subject complement
*They told the mayor, ie his life story. when that is a noun phrase (cf 10.46):
In other words, the mayor and his lge story are realizations of the same type Caroline [S] is my sister [C].
of 0 with admire but are realizations of different types of 0 with tell. Caroline and Vanessa [S] are my sisters [C].
Consequently,we cannot have: (iv) The subject determines the number and, where relevant, the person
*They admired the mayor his life story. and gender of the reflexive pronoun as direct object, indirect object, subject
complement, or prepositional complement (cf 6.23, 10.48, 10.50). The same
But we can have: concord relation generally applies when the emphatic genitive my own, etc is
They told the mayor his life story. used (cf 6.30) :
Hence it is necessary (for this last sentence) to distinguish Oi (the mayor) Z[S] shaved myself[O]with my own razor.
from 0,(his life story). He [S] shaved himself[O] with his own razor.
(v) The subject requires the subjective form for pronouns that have
Note If the verb is in tlie simple present, it may be iddistinguishable from a noun in a sentence in
block language (cf 11.45), where determinersare commonlyomitted: distinctive case forms (cf 6.4):
Mail leaves tomorrow. ['Mail the leaves tomorrow.'or 'The mail leaves tomorrow.)
I [S] like him.
He [S] likes me.
Subject I (vi) There is a systematic correspondence between active and passive
10.6 Of the clause elements other than the verb, the subject is the most important l clauses in that the direct or indirect object of an active clause becomes the
in that (except for the verb) it is the element that is most often present. It is subject of a passive clause while the subject of the active clause is either
also the element for which we can find the greatest number of characteristic
features. In characterizing the subject and the other clause elements, we l omitted or made the complement in a by-agent phrase (cf 16.26):
identify the four types of distinction listed in 10.5. Because of its My son [S] has prepared lunch [O] today. [active]
conspicuousness we treat position separately from other syntactic functions. Lunch [S] has been prepared by my son today. [passive]
(a) FORM
The subject is normally a noun phrase (cf Chapters 5,6, and 17) or a nominal
lI (vii) The subject is repeated in a tag question by a pronoun form (cf 11.8ff):
The milk is sour, isn't it?
clause (cf15.3fn. l

(b) POSITION
The subject normally occurs before the verb in declarative clauses, and after
I (viii) The implied subject of a subjectless nonfinite or verbless clause is
normally identical with the subject of the superordinate clause:
Susan telephoned before coming over. ['. . . before Susan came over']
the operator in yes-no interrogative clauses (cf 11.5fi:
l
 726 The simple sentence Syntactic functions of clauseelements 727

(d) SEMANTIC PROPERTIES relevant, in number and gender. Similar agreement is required for a n
(i) T h e subject is typically the theme (or topic) of the clause (cf 18.9fl. emphatic genitive (my own, etc) within theobject (cf 6.30):
(ii) I t typically refers to information that is regarded by the speaker as
given (cf 18.8fn. You [S] can please yourself[Od].
(iii) I n a clause that is not passive, the subject is agentive if the agentive I[S] have given myself[Oi] a treat.
role is expressed in the clause (cf 10.33). They [S] type their own letters [Od].
(iii) The object of an active clause may generally become the subject of the
Note [a] For adverbial forms functioning as subject, cJIO.1S. On adjectives functioning as heads of corresponding passive clause (but cf Note [c] below, 16.27):
noun phrases (theyoung),cf 7.23fi
[b] For declarative clauses with subject-operator or subject-verb inversion, c/ 10.58f, 15.36,
18.22fi
We have finished the work [O,]. - The work [S] has been finished.
[C] For the questionof there as a subject in existential sentences, c/ 18.46. If both objects are present, it is often possible tomake either the subject in a
[d] The implied subject of apostmodifyingparticiple clause is the head of the noun phrase: corresponding passive clause:
I haven't yet seen thefriendsstaying with you.
['The friends are staying with you.']
These are theflowersgiuen to us by our children.
['The flowers were given to us by our children.']
--
We sent Jack [Oil a copy of the letter [Od].
Jack [S] was sent a copy of the letter [Od].
A copy of the letter [S] was sent Jack [Oil.
[e] The identity of the subject can be tested in an independent declarative clause through a wh-
question with who or what. The subject is the element that can be replaced in its normal position But [l] is far more common than [2]. Instead of the retained indirect object
by the wh-item:
- -
Joan [S] wants a piece of cake. Who[S] wants a piece of cake?
in [2], the prepositional paraphrase is more usual:
The bright light [S]is disturbing Percy. What [S] is disturbing Percy? A copy of the letter was sent to Jack. 124
Other clause elements require fronting and subject-operator inversion:
Joan wants apieceofcake[O]. What [O] does Joan want? (iv) The indirect object generally corresponds to a prepositional phrase,
which is generally placed after the direct object:
I'll send Charles another copy.
Pour me a drink.
-- I'll send another copy to Charles.
Pour a drinkfor me.
(v) The indirect object can generally be omitted without affecting the
semantic relations between the other elements:

10.7
Object: dire& and indirect
Direct and indirect objects have some characteristics in common, and this David saved me a seat. - David saved a seat. N David saved me.
fact justifies their sharing the term object: Hence, if there is only one object present, it is generally the direct object. But
(a) FORM with a few verbs that are normally ditransitive, the indirect object may be
Like the subjecf, the object is normallyf noun phrase or a nominal clause. retained while the direct object is omitted. In that case the only object present
There are constraints on the types of nominal clauses that can be indirect is the indirect object:
object: generally, only nominal relative clauses (cf 15.8f). Bob is teaching the older children.
(b) POSITION You can pay me instead.
The object normally follows the subject and verb (butcf 10.58f, 11.14f, 18.20). (d) SEMANTIC PROPERTIES
If both objectslare present, the indirect object normally comes before the (i) The direct object typically refers to an entity that is affected by the
direct object (bht cf 18.38): action denoted in the clause (cf 10.19, but cf also 10.27ff):
I gave him [Oilmy address tod]. Norman smashed a window in his father's car.
(C)SYNTACTIC FUNCTION (ii) The indirect object typically refers to an animate being that is the
(i) The object function requires the objective form for pronouns that have recipient of the action (cf 10.19, but cf also 10.32).
distinctive case forms:
They amuse me [Od]. They gave me [Oil some chocolate. Note [a] We do not, as some do, apply the term 'indirect object' to the corresponding prepositional
I amuse them [Od]. I gave them [oilsome chocolate. phrases (eg:for me in Pour a drinkforme), though we use the term 'prepositional object' for the
complement in such phrases (cf16.56, 16.60). Some apply the term 'direct object' to an indirect
(ii) If an object is coreferential with the subject, it usually requires a object if it is the only object (eg:you in I'llshow you or his children in He's teaching his children).
reflexive pronoun which agrees with the subject in person and, where Others again apply the term 'object'exclusively to the first (or only) object.
 728 The simple sentence Syntactic functions of clause elements 729

[b] Speakers vary in their acceptance of wh-questions in which the wh-interrogative pronoun object complement normally follows the direct object. (But cf 11.15, 11.31,
replaces an indirect object. The corresponding prepositional phrase is fully acceptable: 18.208, 18.37).
-
?Who did the detective show his badge?
Who did the detective show his badge to?
-To whom did the detective show his badge? (formal)
(C) SYNTACTIC FUNCTION
(i) If it is a noun phrase, the subject complement normally has concord of
Similar variation applies to relative clauses: number with the subject, and the object complement normally has concord
?The person I sent the book has not acknowledged receiving it.
-The person I sent the book to has not acknowledgedreceiving it.
of number with the direct object (but cf 10.46). Contrast [2] and [4].
-The person to whom I sent the book has not acknowledged receiving it. (formal) (ii) If it is a reflexive pronoun, the subject complement has concord of
It also applies to retained indirect objects in passive clauses: number, person and, where relevant, gender with the subject:
?No reply has been given me.
-No reply has been given to me. She is not hersewtoday.
Retained indirect objects are generally restricted to pronouns. (iii) Unlike the object, the complement cannot become the subject of a
All.three conStructions have been exemplified by indirect objects with corresponding
prepositional phiases introduced by to. The constructions are less acceptable with other corresponding passive clause. There is no corresponding passive clause for
correspondences (eg :for-phrases) or no correspondences. the SVC type. With the SVOC type, the direct object can of course be made
[c] In instances where the passive is inapplicable because the object is a clause, we can test for the subject of a passive clause:
the presence of an object by adding a coordinate clause with a pro-form and making the second
clause passive. His friends call him Ted. [Ted is C,] [S]
I asked whether he was there and his parents asked thot too. -He is called Ted by his friends. [Ted is C,] 154
-That was asked by his parents.
[d] The identity of the direct object can be tested in an independent declarative clause through The object complement becomes the subject complement in the passive
a wh-question with who or what; fronting of the wh-item and subject-operator inversion are clause.
required: (iv) The complement can be questioned, but there is no one general way
-
The buzzer signals tlrc end of the game [Od].
Whot [O,] does [op] the buzzer [S] signal?
On the difficultyof applying this test to the indirect object, cf Note [bl above.
of doing so (cf 11.5 Note [e], 11.15 Note [i]).
(v) If the subject complement is a pronoun, there is a distinction between
subjective and objective forms; the subjective form is more prevalent in
formal use (especially in AmE):
~ o m ~ l e m e {subject
t: and object This is he. (formal) That's him.
10.8 Both complements are in a copular relationship with another clause element.
The subject complement relates to the subject, and the verb is copular (cf (d) SEMANTIC PROPERTIES
16.21ff): The complement typically identifies or characterizes the referent of the clause
element to which it is related (cf 10.20).
My glass is empty. [l]
Their daughter has become an accountant. [2] Note [a] With some verbs, object complements can be omitted (c/ 16.44f):
; We appointed her our delegate to the conwntion. -We appointed her.
The object coniplement relates to the di'rect object: They have named their baby Roger. -They havenamed their baby.
We find them very pleasant. L31 [bl The object complement cannot be the normal reflexive pronoun, but it can have a
corresponding form with selflselues:
Carol made Joshua and Peter her assistants. [4] I prefer George his normalseIJ I did not find them their usuolselues.
The implied relationship between the object and the object complement can
be expressed b) means of a correspondingSVC sentence with a copular verb,
be if the object complement is acurrent attribute and become if it is a resulting Adverbial
attribute (cf 10.20): 10.9 Adverbials are the most diverse of the clause elements, and we therefore
They are verypleasant. 134 distinguish several major types (cf Chapter 8, 15.178).
Joshua and Peter became her assistants. L44 (a) FORM
(a) FORM The adverbial is norinally an adverb phrase, prepositional phrase, or
The complement is normally a noun phrase or an adjective phrase, but it may adverbial clause. It may also be a noun phrase (cf 8.13).
also be a nominal clause (cf 15.4ff). It is a defining characteristic of (b) POSITION
complements, in contrast to objects, that they may be adjective phrases. In general, the adverbial is capable of occurring in more than one position in
(b) POSITION the clause. Constraints on its mobility depend on the type and form of the
The subject complement normally follows the subject and the verb. The adverbial. The adverbial in the SVA type normally follows the subject and
 730 The simple sentence Syntactic functionsof clause elements 731

verb, and the adverbial in the SVOA type normally follows the direct object Others express metaphorical extensions of space relations:
(cf 10.10, also 8.27). Other predication adjuncts (cf 8.341: 15.22) normally
appear at the end of the clause. They're into yoga. ['are keen on yoga'] (informal)
We got into a heated argument.
(C) SYNTACTIC FUNCTION He's offcigarettes.
(i) Except for the obligatory adverbial in the SVA and SVOA types (cf
Time adjuncts commonly cooccur with an eventive subject (cf 10.25):
10.10), adverbials are optional: they may be added to or removed from the
clause without affecting its acceptability and without affecting the relations Their holiday extended through the summer.
of structure and meaning in the rest of the clause. The next meeting is on Monday.
(ii) Other syntactic potentialities depend crucially on the typeof adverbial. The last performance was at eight o'clock.
At the most general level, the adverbial may be characterized negatively: it The play lastsfor three hours.
does not have the syntactic features listed for the other clause elements (cf
On the conditions for omitting the prepositions in the last three examples, cf
10.6fl). 9.408.
(d) SEMANTIC PROPERTIES We briefly exemplify other semantic types of obligatory adverbials in the
The adverbial refers to the circumstances of the situation (adjunct and SVA, type:
subjunct), comments on the form or content of the clause (disjunct), or The two eggs arefor you. [recipient, 9.461
provides a link between clauses (conjunct). A more specific semantic The drinks arefor the journey. [purpose, 9.451
characterization relates to the semantic subtypes of adverbials (cf Chapter 8 Iffruitpricesare higherthis year, it'sbecause [reason, 9.441
and 15.248). of the bad harvest.
Note The term 'adjunct' is sometimes applied by others to all types of adverbial. Transport to the mainland is byferry. [means, 9.491
Entrance was by special invitation only. [means]
Obligatory adverbials: subject-related and object-related adverbials Payment is by cash only. [means]
10.10 Obligatory adverbials are a subclass of predication adjuncts (cf 8.27) that Melvin's main interest is in sporr. [stimulus, 9.511
belong to the SVA and SVOA types. Inasmuch as they are obligatory, they Jack and Nora are with me. [accompaniment,9.521
are central elevents of the clause (cf 2.13), part of the clause nucleus. They The painting was by an unknown artist. [agent, 9.501
may be adverbiphrases, prepositional phrases, or adverbial clauses. In 10.11 How much is this jacket? It's f60. [measure, 8.91
we suggest that some obligatory adverb phrases and prepositional phrases The connection of subject-related adverbial with subject is parallel to that
may be analysed as complements, belonging to the SVC and SVOC types. of subject complement with subject:
Obligatory adverbials are commonly required as complementation for the
verb BE in the ;SVA type, but they are also found as complementation for Ronald is offcigarettes. [S V A,]
other verbs. The adverbials in this type are subject-related.Many are space Ann is happy. [S V C,]
adjuncts that dehignate the position of the referent of the subject: Similarly, the connection of object-related adverbial to direct object parallels
Your children are outside. that of object complement with direct object:
Our car isn't in thegarage. We kept Ronald offcigarettes.[S V OdA,,]
We are now living in a small village. We kept Ann happy. [S V Od CO]
The plane's offthe ground.
Dorothy is remaining at Oxfird. i@ Here are examples of object-related adverbials:
Sam is staybngat a nearby motel. I put the kettle on the stove. ['The kettle is now on the stove.']
Your scarf is lying on thepoor. They are placing the blame on us.
The road begins in Denver. I'm keeping most of my money in the bank.
Some express other types of space relations: I stuck the wallet in the drawer.
t'" He set the typewriter on the table.
We got offthe train. F!, You should have your hands on the wheeI.
We all got into my car. :$
He directed his speech at the workers.
I stole into her room. She wants the payment in dollars.
All roads lead to Rome.
The lawn goes all the way around the house. Like optional adverbials of the same semantic types, most obligatory
The hills extendfrom here into the next county. adverbials can be questioned with wh-interrogative adverbials such as where,