As big as a small elephant
The world’s biggest bull is as big as a small elephant.
From the Cambridge Dictionary
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/grammar/british-grammar/as-as
I wonder whether the adjective "big" is fused with the noun "bull" thus being the head in the NP.
I think along this line:
You cannot compare an adjective phrase with the noun phrase. It seems to me that the comparison should be between two noun phrases, hence as big [bull] as a small elephant.
I see both "as" as prepositions in as big as a small elephant.
Am I correct?
Top answer
anonymous I wonder whether the adjective "big" is fused with the noun "bull" thus being the head in the NP. Nope. That analysis is not going to work.
- anonymous I wonder whether the adjective "big" is fused with the noun "bull" thus being the head in the NP.
- Nope.
- That analysis is not going to work.
- The world’s biggest bull has a certain size, a certain degree of "bigness".
- A small elephant also has a certain size, a certain degree of "bigness".
Get the Weekly English Kit 📬
New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.
anonymousI wonder whether the adjective "big" is fused with the noun "bull" thus being the head in the NP.
Nope. That analysis is not going to work.
The world’s biggest bull has a certain size, a certain degree of "bigness".
A small elephant also has a certain size, a certain degree of "bigness".
The degree of "bigness" of the bull is the sam
0
Related Questions