Adjective complements: what are they?

[donnach]

Originally Posted by fiona bramble
Hi C,
Thanks for taking the time
The examples GD gives are:
a.Bulls being killed in bullfights seems brutal
b.For campers to pollute streams is irresponsible
c. It is important that she be punctual (with subjunctive)
d. That the blue whale is becoming extinct seems sad

F
My two questions:

1. Referring to the above examples, why can't the clause in d. ("That the blue whale is becoming extinct") just be a noun clause acting as subject?

2. Referring to the below comments, how can an adjective complement be nominal? Doesn't an adjective complement automatically = adverb?

3. Adjective complements confuse me.

Thank you,

Donna




Quote:
Originally Posted by Casiopea
Well, if the adjective complement is nominal, such as a that clause (c. and d.) or a for clause (b.) or a reduce relative clause (a. [That] bulls [are] being...), then yes, the adjective complement can modify its adjective on either side of the linking verb because it functions as a nominal. Like these,

a. Bulls being killed in bullfights seems brutal.
=> It seems brutal bulls being killed in bullfights.

b. For campers to pollute streams is irresponsible.
=> It is irresponsible for campers to pollute streams.

c. It is important that she be punctual.
=> That she be punctual is important.

d. That the blue whale is becoming extinct seems sad.
=> It seems sad that the blue whale is becoming extinct.

Does that help?

All the best.

[Soup]

donnach, try here first http://www.eslenglish.ca/pdf/sample_...OEFLsample.pdf. If you still have questions, let us know.

[donnach]

Thank you Soup. I read the information you posted on adjective complements. From what I read, it seems like some phrases do double-duty: a gerund phrase can serve as both the subject of the sentence and, at the same time, an adjective complement. It's the same deal with certain infinitive phrases and noun clauses.
Is this how I should view adjective complements? A sort of secondary function or role to their primary one of subject, in certain instances, of the sentence?

Thanks,

Donna

[Soup]

Yes. Every word/phrase has a form (e.g., adjective) and a function (e.g., subject):

Ex: Studying for TOEFL is exhausting.

S+LV+Adj

S = subject & adjective complement

[donnach]

So that's what they mean by form and function in grammar! So, as I understand it now, form is what part of speech it is and function is what role it plays in the sentence. In your example, the form is a gerund phrase and the functions are simultaneously subject and adjective complement. Is this correct?

Thank you for your help,

Donna

[Soup]

Originally Posted by donnach

So that's what they mean by form and function in grammar! So, as I understand it now, form is what part of speech it is and function is what role it plays in the sentence. In your example, the form is a gerund phrase and the functions are simultaneously subject and adjective complement. Is this correct?

Thank you for your help,

Donna

Every sentence, even a imperative, e.g., Study for TOEFL!, has a subject. Studying for TOEFL is a gerund phrase by form (it's headed by a gerund) and it complements the adjective exhausting. Its position in the sentence is that of subject.

[donnach]

I'm not sure if I understand what form and function are in grammar.

Ex: Studying for TOEFL is very exhausting.

Studying for TOEFL - Its form is a gerund phrase. Its function is as subject and adjective complement

very - Its form is adverb. Its function is modifying the adjective exhausting (which is in itself a gerund modifier).


Correct?

Thanks,

Donna

[Clark]

When I read about all those adjective complements I feel like a person who has always known that there is white and there is black, but then somebody tells him that there is white that is white and there is white that is black. There are parts of speech, such as nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, etc. and there are sentence constituents - a subject, a predicate, an attribute, an object, etc. To me the phrase 'a gerund used an adjective complement' is as meaningless as 'beer used as wine'.

I believe, in all of those sentences the highlighted fragments (seems brutal, is irresponsible, is important, seems sad) have the same syntactical function - they are used as compound nominal predicates. As is known, any nominal predicate consists of a link-verb and a nominal part (often called a predicative). Here the link verbs are: seem, be; and the predicatives are expressed by the adjectives 'brutal, irresponsible, important, sad.

Studying for a TOEFL is very exhausting.
The subject is expressed by the gerundial phrase 'studying for a TOEFL' which consists of the gerund 'studying' managing the noun 'TOEFL'.
The predicate is 'is very exhausting', where 'is' is a link-verb, and 'very exhausting' is a predicative. 'Exhausting' is an adjectivised participle I (or present participle) modified by the adverb of degree 'very'.

[Soup]

Originally Posted by Clark

Studying for a TOEFL is very exhausting. The subject is expressed by the gerundial phrase 'studying for a TOEFL' which consists of the gerund 'studying' managing the noun 'TOEFL'. The predicate is 'is very exhausting', where 'is' is a link-verb, and 'very exhausting' is a predicative. 'Exhausting' is an adjectivised participle I (or present participle) modified by the adverb of degree 'very'.

Alternatively,

Studying for the TOEFL <gerundival phrase>

head = studying <gerund>
object = for the TOEFL <prepositional phrase>

head = for
object = the TOEFL

Syntactic/Structural function = subject
Semantic function = adjective complement
_____________________________

is <linking verb>

_____________________________

very exhuasting <predicate nominal>

modifier = very <adverb>
adjective = exhausting <present participle>

[donnach]

Studying for the TOEFL <gerundival phrase>

But is the gerundival phrase from your example the form?

Does Form = Part of Speech?

Thanks,

Donna