English Grammar for the Utterly Confused - Laurie Rozakis 2003

Overview of Phrases
Chapter 7 Phrases and Clauses
Part 3 Sentence Sense

Chapter 7 Phrases and Clauses

You should read this chapter if you need to review or learn about

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This chapter opens with a discussion of the phrase, one of the key building blocks of the sentence. There are several different kinds of phrases, including prepositional phrases (with the subcategories adjectival phrases and adverbial phrases), appositives, and verbals. Then, you’ll review the clause, a group of words with its own subject and verb.

Overview of Phrases

A phrase is a group of words that functions in a sentence as a single part of speech. A phrase does not have a subject or a verb, so it cannot stand alone as an independent unit—it can function only as a part of speech. As you write, you use phrases to add detail by describing. Phrases help you express yourself more clearly.