atw: Re: Time for another debate?

Yes, I see your point. But does that then mean that we can't discuss the
syntactic properties of strings of words like 'man next door', 'on the
beach', 'entering transactions', 'run up' at all, without reference to some
containing clause? It seems to me that they all have characteristics that
determine how they can be used, independently of context. I can't see how
you'd use 'man next door' except as a noun phrase, for instance. I already
pointed out that you could make 'entering transactions' into a noun phrase
in two different ways, depending whether you make 'entering' or
'transactions' the head word, and that serves to illustrate the importance
of context. But surely all these strings of words have something about them
that distinguishes them from words juxtaposed at random?

Howard

2009/5/26 Michael Lewis <Michael.Lewis@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>

> Howard's comments need further comment.
>
> To argue about the correct name for a construction such as "Entering
> transactions" requires clarification of context. In general, a phrase (using
> the term in its technical, grammatical sense) is a constituent of a clause.
> When it's on its own, it isn't a constituent of a clause, so it's not a
> phrase of any kind.
>
> "Put out more flags" and "Keep the aspidistra flying", on the other hand,
> are themselves complete clauses, so they are also not phrases of any kind.
>
> Michael Lewis
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