Where's the conjuction?

Question

Is there a rule that allows an understood "that is" or "that are" in sentences such as

"The man running down the street."

because in the sentence above there really isn't anything connecting 'man' and 'running' like in this sentence

"The man that is running down the street."

Sorry if my question wasn't worded well. It was hard to describe what I was asking.

AlpheccaStars · Accepted Answer

blankzip"The man running down the street."
"The man that is running down the street."

Neither of these is a sentence, because there is no finite verb. You can use these fragments as subordinate clauses or phrases, or make the verb finite:

The man is running down the street.
Did you see the man running down the street?

Do you see the man that is running down the street?

The man that is running down the street is probably the suspect.

Blankzip · Answer

I'm sorry. I didn't mean to say sentences. I meant to say fragments.

Cwtch · Answer

Yes, as part of a longer sentence.

The man, running down the street, was bit by a dog.

CalifJim · Answer

blankzipIs there a rule that allows an understood "that is" or "that are"

Yes. It's even got a name: Whiz Deletion.

The restrictive relative pronouns who, which or that followed by a form of be (is, are, etc.) can be deleted.

The lady who is speaking to Lucy is Mrs. Brown.
= The lady speaking to Lucy is Mrs. Brown.

Mr. Winfield read the document which was found yesterday in the barn.

= Mr. Winfield read the document found yesterday in the barn.

There may be some restrictions on this transformation, because it doesn't always work. For example, you can say The door that was closed was made of wood but not The door closed was made of wood. Apparently if you're left with just an adjective, you have to move it before the noun: The closed door was made of wood.

CJ

Blankzip · Answer

Thanks a lot for the reply. Is there a similar rule for the sentence

"Paint it black"?

In my dictionary there is no entry for 'black' as an adverb which is the only reason I could think of 'black' to relate to 'it'. Could this possibly be an expanded alternative

"Paint it to be black"?

Cwtch · Answer

First, "Paint it black." can only be a sentence as a command. In this case, it is and understood "you." (You) paint it black. I am telling you to do this.

As far as I know, this is really an expression from the Rolling Stones song : "Paint It Black".

Lyrics: "I see my red door and I want it painted black. No colors anymore I want them to turn black."

In my dictionary there is no entry for 'black' as an adverb which is the only reason I could think of 'black' to relate to 'it'. Could this possibly be an expanded alternative

Colors are almost always adjectives because they describe nouns. This is no exception except that there are several omitted words. (understood to be there without being written). "Paint it black" is really short for: (You) paint it (with) black (paint). Therefore, black is describing "paint" which is a noun.

We do this in normal speech.

Speaker 1: What color do you want it?
Speaker 2: Paint it black.

or even shorter

Speaker 1: What color do you want it?
Speaker 2: Black.

"Paint it to be black"? No, we would never use this construction. "Paint" is already the verb so "to be" is confusing and redundant. We know that if you paint it black that it will be black. A lot of ESL people want to do this but it is something we would never say.

CalifJim · Answer

blankzipIs there a similar rule for the sentence

"Paint it black"?

No. This is a completely different construction. black is an adjective. The meaning is as you say, but Paint it to be black is not the way to say it. It's Paint it so that it is black, or better yet, Paint it with black paint. In this sentence black is called an object complement or a resultative.

Compare:

Make me happy.
Don't get it wet.
Keep him awake.

CJ

Where's the conjuction?

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