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Eipjoo Posted 13 years ago
Grammar
) Can adjectives make adjuncts modifying verbs?
Her teeth gleamed white against the tanned skin of her face.
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It seems ‘white’ is an adjunct modifying gleamed, while it’s not a complement for it’s not necessary to complete the meaning. But I’m wondering if adjectives can make adjuncts modifying verbs. My question are two: (1) Is ‘white’ a complement or an adjunct? (2) Can adjectives make adjuncts modifying verbs? (Even if the case is not an example of this question, would you let me know?)
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It seems ‘white’ is an adjunct modifying gleamed, while it’s not a complement for it’s not necessary to complete the meaning. But I’m wondering if adjectives can make adjuncts modifying verbs. My question are two: (1) Is ‘white’ a complement or an adjunct? (2) Can adjectives make adjuncts modifying verbs? (Even if the case is not an example of this question, would you let me know?)
Top answer
It's certainly not a complement because it's not licensed by "gleamed". This use of the adjective "white" is clearly non-standard since it's being used as an adjunct, just like an adverb would be (cf. ).
- It's certainly not a complement because it's not licensed by "gleamed".
- This use of the adjective "white" is clearly non-standard since it's being used as an adjunct, just like an adverb would be (cf.
- ).
- I'm inclined to say that it is best taken as a predicative adjective (cf.
- ) not an adverb.
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11 Answers
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It's certainly not a complement because it's not licensed by "gleamed".
This use of the adjective "white" is clearly non-standard since it's being used as an adjunct, just like an adverb would be (cf. Her teeth gleamed brightly ...).
I'm inclined to say that it is best taken as a predicative adjective (cf. Her teeth looked white ...) not an adverb.
BillJ
This use of the adjective "white" is clearly non-standard since it's being used as an adjunct, just like an adverb would be (cf. Her teeth gleamed brightly ...).
I'm inclined to say that it is best taken as a predicative adjective (cf. Her teeth looked white ...) not an adverb.
BillJ
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BillJThis use of the adjective "white" is clearly non-standardHi Bill,
How do we go about making a determination like this? It seems to me to be common.
Best regards, - A.
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AvangiBillJThis use of the adjective "white" is clearly non-standardHi Bill,How do we go about making a determination like this? It seems to me to be common.Adverbs, not adjectives, modify verbs, so when the adjective "white" is used to modify a verb, I'd say that was a non-standard use.
I daresay it is used like that quite often in some places, at l
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Thanks, Bill!
I think my sense of it was that "gleamed white" is not that far removed from "looked white."
That is, it's standard for "looked" to be "followed" by adjectives as well as by adverbs. Granted, these are two different senses of "looked."
I think my sense of it was that "gleamed white" is not that far removed from "looked white."
That is, it's standard for "looked" to be "followed" by adjectives as well as by adverbs. Granted, these are two different senses of "looked."
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AvangiI think my sense of it was that "gleamed white" is not that far removed from "looked white."That is, it's standard for "looked" to be "followed" by adjectives as well as by adverbs. Granted, these are two different senses of "looked."That's why, as I said, I would analyse "white" in the OP's example as a predicative adjective, not an adverb: "Her
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Got it!
What threw me was that I hadn't even considered that "white" might be an adverb. "Adjuncts" had not really been on my radar screen, and I just now note that adjuncts are typically adverbial.
I think this is what was on the OP's mind.
What threw me was that I hadn't even considered that "white" might be an adverb. "Adjuncts" had not really been on my radar screen, and I just now note that adjuncts are typically adverbial.
I think this is what was on the OP's mind.
eipjooIt seems ‘white’ is an adjunct modifying gleamed, while it’s not a complement for it’s not necessary to compl
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AvangiDo you agree that in order to be a "complement," a word or phrase must be "necessary to complete the meaning"?No, A, I wouldn't go along with that.
An adjunct is grammatically optional, but that doesn’t mean that it is not necessary to convey the intended meaning; in fact it will typically be a vital part of the information being conveyed. For
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BillJpredicative adjectiveThank you very much.
I’d have liked to open a new question for not bothering you. But my new question is intimately related to the excellent reply you gave me (and I’ve been very pleased to get it), I want to put a new one to you.
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(1) He pushed open the door.
(2)
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eipjoo(1) He pushed open the door.(2) He pushed the door open.**‘Open’ in (1) is an adjunct modifying ‘pushed’, and ‘open’ in (2) is an objective complement, aren’t they? If yes, does ‘open’ in (1) also a predicative adjective?Hello eipjoo,
Sorry, I overlooked your last question.
(1) He pushed open
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BillJ"Open" belongs to the category of particles, which mainly contains prepositions but also a few adjectives. Particles can follow an object, as in (2), or occur between verb and object,So your words can be substituted by a phrase, phrasal verb. 'Pushed open' is a phrasal verb and 'the door' is its object, aren't they?
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