Phrase

 What is a Phrase? 

A phrase. in a sentence, is a group of related words that complement the structure of the 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, prepositions, or nouns. 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 blackboard. 

■ 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 as 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 to America. (as a noun: subject) 

■ The girl in the white shirt won the competition. (as an adjective modifying the noun: girl) 

■ He gave me a cup full of tea. (as an adjective modifying the noun: cup)  

■ She came back in a short while. (as an adverb modifying the verb: come)  

■ He cordially welcomed the guests. (as an adverb modifying the verb: welcome) 

Depending upon its function in a sentence, the phrases are divided into many types such as Noun phrases. Verb Phrase, Adjective Phrase, Adverb Phrase. Appositive Phrase, Infinite Phrase, and Gerund Phrase. Click here to read the 'Types of Phrases'.