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Anonymous Posted 9 years ago
Grammar
He knows a lot about the town.
I'd like to know the grammatical structure of the following sentence:
He knows a lot about the town.
I have come up with the following three possibilities (a), (b), and (c):
(a)
"knows" is an intransitive verb.
"a lot" is the adverbial phrase modifying "knows".
"about the town" is the adverbial phrase modifying "knows a lot".
(b)
"knows" is a transitive verb.
"a lot" is a pronoun (and hence is the object of the verb "knows").
"about the town" is the adverbial phrase modifying "knows a lot".
(c)
"knows" is a transitive verb.
"a lot" is a pronoun (and hence is the object of the verb "knows").
"about the town" is the adjective phrase modifying "a lot".
Which is correct?
He knows a lot about the town.
I have come up with the following three possibilities (a), (b), and (c):
(a)
"knows" is an intransitive verb.
"a lot" is the adverbial phrase modifying "knows".
"about the town" is the adverbial phrase modifying "knows a lot".
(b)
"knows" is a transitive verb.
"a lot" is a pronoun (and hence is the object of the verb "knows").
"about the town" is the adverbial phrase modifying "knows a lot".
(c)
"knows" is a transitive verb.
"a lot" is a pronoun (and hence is the object of the verb "knows").
"about the town" is the adjective phrase modifying "a lot".
Which is correct?
Top answer
"a lot" is the object of "knows". Whether it is classified as a pronoun may be a matter of taste. At least one dictionary does call it that, but it does not appear on most pronoun lists.
- "a lot" is the object of "knows".
- Whether it is classified as a pronoun may be a matter of taste.
- At least one dictionary does call it that, but it does not appear on most pronoun lists.
- I would say that the other point is ambiguous and could be analysed either way.
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11 Answers
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"a lot" is the object of "knows". Whether it is classified as a pronoun may be a matter of taste. At least one dictionary does call it that, but it does not appear on most pronoun lists.
I would say that the other point is ambiguous and could be analysed either way.
I would say that the other point is ambiguous and could be analysed either way.
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YAMATO2201 I'd like to know the grammatical structure of the following sentence:He knows a lot about the town.I have come up with the following three possibilities (a), (b), and (c):(a)"knows" is an intransitive verb."a lot" is the adverbial phrase modifying "knows"."about the town" is the adverbial phrase modifying "knows a lot".(b)"knows" is a transitive verb."a lot" is
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CalifJim and "about the town" a prepositional phrase, not an adjective phrase.I think there is no question that it is a prepositional phrase.
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YAMATO2201He knows a lot about the town.He - a subject (function), a pronoun (form);
knows - a predicator (function), a verb (form);
a lot about the town - a direct object (function), a noun phrase (form) in which:
a lot [a great deal] - a head of the noun phrase (function), a noun (form);
about the town - a postmodi
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Anonymousabout the town - a postmodifier of the noun-phrase head (function), a prepositional phrase (form).This is the adjectival interpretation. In the adverbial interpretation, "about the town" tells us how or in what way he "knows a lot". Really it comes down to:
He knows / a lot about the town.
vs.
He knows a lot / about the town.
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GPYHe knows / a lot about the town.vs.He knows a lot / about the town.I agree. There is no single right way to parse a sentence.
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GPY"a lot" is the object of "knows". Whether it is classified as a pronoun may be a matter of taste. At least one dictionary does call it that, but it does not appear on most pronoun lists.I would say that the other point is ambiguous and could be analysed either way.Excellent answer!!
Thank you so much.
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CalifJimIn my opinion (c) is the closest to a correct analysis. I would call "lot" a noun and "about the town" a prepositional phrase, not an adjective phrase.Thank you so much.
"A lot" as it is used as a pronoun can be found in Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary.
By an adjective phrase, I mean a phrase functioning as an adjectiv
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Anonymous YAMATO2201He knows a lot about the town.He - a subject (function), a pronoun (form);knows - a predicator (function), a verb (form);a lot about the town - a direct object (function), a noun phrase (form) in which:a lot [a great deal] - a head of the noun phrase (function), a noun (form);about the town - a postmodifier of the noun-phrase head (function), a preposi
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