function of "by far"e

[hela]

Dear teachers,

How should I analyse "They are by far the best"? The pattern of the sentence is SVC or SV(A)C? Should it have 3 elements or 4? i.e.

They + are + by far the best OR They + are + by far + the best?

by far the best:

Parts of speech:

by= preposition
far = adverb
the = article / determiner
best = superlative adjective

Form 1: "by far the best" = prepositional phrase or adjective phrase?

Function 1: "by far the best" = complement ?
(Can a prepositional phrase function as a complement, i.e., a predicate adjective?)

or

Form + Function 2: by far = prepositional phrase = optional adverbial / the best = adjective phrase = complement ?

Thank you for your help.

 

[MikeNewYork]

Sometimes the best way to analyze a sentence is to rearrange it.

Your base sentence is "They are the best". That is subject - verb -article - predicate adjective. Now what do we do with "by far"? It is an adverbial prepositional phrase that modifies the adjective "best".

 

[hela]

Re: function of "by far"

Hello MikeNewYork,

Yes, I do think that the adverb phrase "by far" modifies "the best". So should I consider it as part of the predicate adjective and divide the sentence into 3 elements?

Wish you a merry Christmas

 

[MikeNewYork]

Re: function of "by far"

You can consider it attached to the predicate adjective. Merry Christmas to you!

 

[hela]

Re: function of "by far"

Thank you very much for your help.
Wish you a wonderful evening.