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Anonymous Posted 13 years ago
Vocabulary
Ringing
Hi.
"The practice of MPs renting space from those who also donate money to the MP or their party should also set alarm bells ringing". [From The Independent.]
Is "ringing" an adjective functioning as a modifier of the noun phrase "alarm bells" or a verbal noun, a head of the phrase "alarm bells ringing"? Or, is the "alarm bells ringing" a non-finite clause doing the job of the object of the verb "set"?
Thank you.
"The practice of MPs renting space from those who also donate money to the MP or their party should also set alarm bells ringing". [From The Independent.]
Is "ringing" an adjective functioning as a modifier of the noun phrase "alarm bells" or a verbal noun, a head of the phrase "alarm bells ringing"? Or, is the "alarm bells ringing" a non-finite clause doing the job of the object of the verb "set"?
Thank you.
Top answer
To me, "ringing" seems like an adjectival participle, describing the state that the alarm bells are put into. However, it does not simply modify "alarm bells", but is like a second argument to the verb "set" in the pattern "set + noun + resulting state".
- To me, "ringing" seems like an adjectival participle, describing the state that the alarm bells are put into.
- However, it does not simply modify "alarm bells", but is like a second argument to the verb "set" in the pattern "set + noun + resulting state".
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3 Answers
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To me, "ringing" seems like an adjectival participle, describing the state that the alarm bells are put into. However, it does not simply modify "alarm bells", but is like a second argument to the verb "set" in the pattern "set + noun + resulting state".
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Thank you, GPY, for your useful reply. I've understood that's a verb pattern transitive verb + object + ing-form and it should be treated as a sort of grammatical collocation as in I heard alarm bells ringing.
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Anonymousset alarm bells ringing ... Is "ringing" an adjective functioning as a modifier of the noun phrase "alarm bells" or a verbal noun, a head of the phrase "alarm bells ringing"?No. Definitely not. That would be "ringing alarm bells", i.e., "alarm bells that are ringing". If they were already ringing, there would be no need to set them ringing!
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