Tricky Grammar

Question

On first glance you may think some of these require ly to make them adverbs:

a. She opened her eyes wide

b. The people/disease ran rampant through the city.

c. I painted the door red.

d. The dentist said, "Open wide".

Please tell me the emboldened words' parts of speech.

Can you please explain to me why each is in adjective form and not used an adverb form with ly

(One person I spoke to thought 'ran' in b is working like a linking verb and that therefore rampant modifies people or disease...). I believe some of the examples above may be adj complements...

Thanks for your help

Jeff Cowell · Accepted Answer

Check out "object complements".

Fandorin · Answer

Complex object with predicate will do as well, I suppose. I would like to see some links if they exist. But I'm longing for teachers' further explanation on this <img class='emoticon' style='Width:19px;Height:19px;' data-delaysrc='https://uat-englishforward-forums-backend.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/Emoticons/10.gif' src='https://uat-englishforward-forums-backend.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/Emoticons/10.gif' alt='Emotion: embarrassed'/>.

Yankee · Answer

Well, the word 'wide' is recognized by both American and British dictionaries as an adjective AND as an adverb, so I imagine it could be argued that 'wide' is an adverb in both (a) and (d).

As for sentences (b) and (c), I'd also call them object complements. Here is a link that you might find helpful:

http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/objects.htm

(Scroll down to 'Complements')

CalifJim · Answer

But (b) doesn't have an object, so rampantcan't be an object complement.

It must be an adjectival subject complement, or as some people say, more accurately, I think, a subject-oriented secondary predicate. (His blood ran cold at hearing the news.)

red is an adjective. It's an object complement. The structure is called a resultative. The idea is that the door is to be painted so that it becomes, as a result of the painting, red.

I think the best argument for wide is that it is an adverb of degree in those sentences. The eyes or the mouth are to be opened to the degree that they are wide open , as opposed to partially open, for example. I don't see wide as an adjectival object complement. This would indicate that the eyes or mouth are to be opened so that they become wide. If a person has wide eyes or a wide mouth, the eyes or mouth are wide whether they are open or not.

CJ

English 1b3 · Answer

Thank you all for your answers.

CalifJim
It must be an adjectival subject complement, or as some people say, more accurately, I think, a subject-oriented secondary predicate. (His blood ran cold at hearing the news.)

Yes, I heard something similar to this from someone else. The verb acts like a linking verb... Ta.

Fandorin · Answer

Thank you Amy and CalifJim.

Ticce · Answer

This is the resultative construction, as CALIFJIM said, and these words are adjectives. However, you can use here not only adjectives but

1) Particple I, II
2) Noun
3)Adjective

EXAMPLES

1) He started the engine running. Amy ran herself exhausted
2) She laughed a merry laugh
3) I painted the door red.

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