complements – English Grammar Profiler
- Sometimes we need a word, phrase, or clause to make the meaning of something ‘complete.’
- ‘Complements’ are not always obligatory.
- Complements have a stronger bond to the head of a phrase than modifiers.
- Complements are often labelled objects or predicative.
Here is an example of B2 focus with a singular noun phrase at the front of a sentence: The problem is that she wants a bottle of red wine. listen It is easy to find information about singular noun phrases + that clauses on the internet: We use a noun + that-clause to express opinions and feelings, often about certainty and possibility. We […]
plural noun phrase + ARE + THAT clause Read More »
Here’s an example of the possessive pronoun ‘yours’ in object position. It’s just like yours. Listen to the pronunciation. A2 point 21 in the category of PRONOUNS: the possessive pronoun ‘yours’, with singular reference, in object positions, and complement positions after ‘be’ and after prepositions A search in iWeb corpus for: * * * yours .
YOURS (object) Read More »
In English grammar, “there is” and “there are” are commonly used to indicate the existence or presence of something.
“There is” is used when the noun following it is singular. For example, “There is a book on the table.” “There are” is used when the noun following it is plural. For example, “There are many books on the shelf.”
These phrases can be used in various tenses by adjusting the form of the verb “be”. For instance, you could say “There was a time when I was everything to you,” using the past tense. However, this usage is typically considered more advanced and may be classified as A2 level in some learning resources.
THERE + is | are | was | were Read More »
Here’s a STUDENT EXAMPLE: Therefore, people should educate themselves on their human rights and the basic human rights that other nations have in order to avoid being deceived. PELIC Arabic female level 4 writing class. GSE 64 B2 NP + VP +VP gerund (passive) An iWeb search for: * _VV being _VVN * 1 TO AVOID BEING HIT BY 313 2 TO AVOID BEING HIT . 185 3 N’T LIKE BEING TOLD WHAT 182
gerund (passive complement) Read More »
Let’s analyse questions that have relative clauses to give emphasis. So usually, we would say something like: What do we want to ask? What are we trying to find out here? You can see the normal auxiliary verbs ‘be’ and ‘do’ get removed and relative clauses are added in the EXPERT EXAMPLES: What is it that we want
WHAT IS IT YOU WANT? (relative clause question) Read More »
Here’s an example of the preposition ‘after’ complemented by a non-finite perfect form of the passive ‘having been p.p.’ Roughly a month and a half after having been laid, the surviving eggs hatch. Listen In the English Grammar Profile, there are two similar C2 points in the category of passives: Point 38: non-finite ‘-ing’ perfect forms of the passive as the complement of prepositions. Point
Having been + PAST PARTICIPLE Read More »
Defining relative clauses, also known as restrictive relative clauses, provide essential information about the noun they refer to. This information is crucial for defining or restricting the meaning of the noun.
When the noun refers to a person, ‘who’ is often used as the subject of a defining relative clause. For example, in the sentence “The woman who lives next door is a doctor,” ‘who’ is the subject of the clause and refers back to ‘the woman’. The clause “who lives next door” provides essential information about which woman is being referred to.
On the other hand, ‘that’ can also be used as a subject in defining relative clauses when referring to both people and things. For instance, in the sentence “He’s the man that saw me yesterday,” ‘that’ refers to ‘the man’, and the clause “that saw me yesterday” tells us which man is being referred to.
WHO | THAT subject pronouns in defining relative clauses Read More »
Point 14 in the category of NEGATION: negative forms of mental process verbs (‘I don’t think’, ‘I don’t believe’) followed by a complement clause, where the negative form is in the mental process verb rather than the complement clause An iWeb search for: _P _VD _X think|believe that_C 1 I DO N’T THINK THAT 20060
I don’t + think | believe + CLAUSE Read More »
In the English Grammar Profile, B1 point 40 in the category of NOUNS is defined as: the noun phrase ‘The thing’ in front position, with a clause complement, to give focus to something. *This grammar point overlaps others at B1 and there is a slight overlap with B2. A search in iWeb corpus for: . The
The thing + CLAUSE COMPLEMENT (front position) Read More »
in the English Grammar Profile, B1 point 58 in the category of PRONOUNS is defined as: wide range of indefinite pronouns as objects or complements. For example: You don’t have to show anyone any of these steps. TED There are also English Vocabulary Profile phrases at various levels. For example: Come on, Scarlett! When you want something, you stop at nothing to get it.
nothing | anyone | everywhere Read More »
In the English Grammar Profile, B1 point 59 in the category of PRONOUNS/substitution is defined as: POSTMODIFYING, SPECIFYING: ‘the ones’ with a complement, to refer to something specific. the_AT ones _P 1 THE ONES WHO 62764 We are the ones who will inherit this earth. listen 2 THE ONES I 34421 3 THE ONES YOU 33077 4 THE ONES WE 15126 5
the ones Read More »
Point 60 in the category of PRONOUNS/reciprocal is defined as: ‘each other’ as the object of a verb or complement of a preposition to talk about the mutual behaviour of two or more people. An iWeb search for: * * * each other 1 ON TOP OF EACH OTHER 13130 (note that many of these
each other Read More »
Existential “there + BE” is a grammatical construction that asserts the existence or non-existence of something. It is usually followed by a noun phrase that is the real subject of the sentence. For example: There is a book on the table. There are many stars in the sky. Modal verbs are verbs that express possibility, necessity, obligation, permission, etc. They can be used with existential “there + BE” to hedge claims or express hypothetical situations. For example: There may be no simple solution to this problem.
There should be some food in the fridge.
there + MODAL VERB + BE Read More »
To understand ‘make + object + adjective’ let’s see how there are many ways to say for example: ‘you make me happy.‘ The meaning is the same as: ‘I am happy because of you.’ ‘You cause me to be happy.’ ‘You are the reason I am happy.’ The grammar of ‘you make me happy’ “you
make + OBJECT + ADJECTIVE ‘make me happy’ Read More »
Each relies on the other for support. Each sibling has a unique bond with the others. Each of the players passed the ball to the others during the game. In these examples, “each” indicates individuality or distribution, and “the others” serves as a complement of a preposition, representing the remaining entities in the group or set.
EACH + THE OTHER Read More »
In the English Grammar Profile, point 52 at B1 in ADJECTIVES/position is defined as: adjectives as object complement after ‘make’. *However, this clashes with B2: where ‘it’ introduces a reference. *Note, if you capitalise your search term such as MAKE on iWeb, it will give you all forms of the word. A search in iWeb
MAKE + object + adjective Read More »
Here are examples of reported speech with relative clauses ending with stranded prepositions: He told me the company he works for. She requested that I give him all the information he asks for. He exclaimed that this is the best festival he has been to. This type of construction is considered informal and is often discouraged in formal writing. However, it is commonly used in spoken English and in informal writing. Profiling Research This post is about two points in the English Grammar
STRANDED PREPOSITION Read More »
In the English Grammar Profile, B2 point 50 in the category of VERBS is defined as: ‘there’ with other verbs with modal meaning + ‘be’ + complement. The EGP modality examples contain: ‘need, have, is going + to’ However, in the English Vocabulary Profile, ‘there needs to be’ is listed at C2 with the following example:
THERE + modality + TO BE Read More »
In the English Grammar Profile, A2 point 16 in the category of PRONOUNS/substitution: ‘the one’ and ‘the’ + pre-modifier + ‘one’ with a complement, to refer to something specific. Point 35 in PRONOUNS/substitution is defined as: substitute for singular countable nouns which have already been mentioned or are obvious from the context. *There are a
ONE (pronoun) Read More »