Is this possible for a single word to be a phrase?

Jackson6612Is this possible for a single word to be a phrase?

Yes.

Yankee

Jackson6612Is this possible for a single word to be a phrase?

Yes.

Indeed.

Right. "Yes" is a complete thought in the context and thus a complete sentence.

I do understand Jackson's question, thoug

YankeeRight. "Yes" is a complete thought in the context and thus a complete sentence.

YankeeRight. "Yes" is a complete thought in the context and thus a complete sentence.

Do you have a specific example? I THINK that a phrase tecnically is a group of words that does not contain a subject or a verb.

AnonymousI THINK that a phrase tecnically is a group of words that does not contain a subject or a verb.

But then there could be no such thing as a verb phrase, because all verb phrases contain verbs, and grammarians talk about verb phrases all the time!!!

I think you may need to go back to the drawing board and rethink that definition!

Hi,
Sorry, I'm a bit late to this discussion.

My dictionary begins its definition of 'a phrase' by saying it's a small group of words.
I'd call 'a red car' a phrase.
But I'd just call 'car' a word. Do you want to call it a phrase?

I'd also call 'yes' a word rather than a phrase.

Does what we call it matter?

Best wishes, Clive

CliveDoes what we call it matter?

Yes. In the relevant context. That a word can be a phrase is one of the central tenets of transformational grammar. Without that principle, the whole system falls apart.

In terms of TG, the subject of a sentence must be a noun phrase (NP). If a word cannot be a phrase, faith cannot be the subj