Parts of Speech: StructureClasses
By
Ihssan A. J. ALMuslimawi
Aims:
This chapter will enhance leaners’ knowledge at getting
information at an advanced level in the following areas:
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First, characteristics of structure-classes.
Qualifiers: to demonstrate consistent and appropriate understanding of
“what is a qualifier?” and what are their marginal related topics?.
Prepositions: to master prepositions and their types and groups.
Determiners: to learn information about determiners and their
classifications and positions.
Auxiliaries: to shed some light on this class of verbs that are basic for
learning English.
Pronouns: to increase awareness of “what are pronouns? Their labels?
And other related topics?”
Finally, practicing some exercises to make it easier when applying these
classes.
Characteristics of Structure-Classes
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Its members have no characteristics of form in
common, they are distinguished by position.
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It is a small class, the largest one (prepositions) about
50 members.
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It has a stable membership and is closed class; it does
not allow new members.
1- Qualifiers
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Qualifiers occur just before an adjectival or an
adverbial position.
e.g. The explanation is quite simple.
I didn't do too badly on the exam.
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Their function is to modify the word happening after
them; and the word following is called “the head”.
See exercise (13-1)
1- Qualifiers
A bit
less
least
A little
mighty (colloq.)
so
pretty
more
real (colloq)
quite
most
enough
rather
too
indeed
somewhat
very
See more examples on
page.168
Exercise: 13.3
1- Qualifiers
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-
Most qualifiers are uninflected words such as
very, rather, quite, too, somewhat, and many
others.
However, the qualifier position can admit any
form-class, as in:
Noun: The baby is a month old.
Verb: This water is freezing cold.
See Exercise (13-2 on p. 167)
1- Qualifiers
A few qualifiers have the same form as adjectives; i.e.,
they are homophones of adjectives in which they do
not take (-er) and (-est) and are considered as
uninflected words; for instance:
Pretty good, mighty fine, jolly hot, great big, full well,
dead right, too hard (adv).
 Sometimes NPs and idiomatic expressions are used in
the position before (adj) and (adv); therefore, they are
considered as qualifiers. See p. 168
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1- Qualifiers
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We have two qualifiers that occur before and
after the head:
Indeed and still
Finally, we have one qualifier occurring after
the head, enough
e.g. You are not driving fast enough.
e.g. Is it warm enough for you?
2- Prepositions
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Preposition means a structure word that occupies a
pre- position = a place before; i.e., they are words to
which are usually followed by a noun, NP, personal
pronoun, or noun substitute called the object of the
preposition.
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Examples: See p. 169 (single preps), p. 170 (two syllable preps),
and p. 172 (compound preps); also you can find a complete list of
the prepositions on the following link:
http://www.english4dummies.com/grammar/prepositions_.html
2- Prepositions
2- Prepositions
2- Prepositions
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Monosyllabic prepositions usually have weak or third
stress in their common uses. P. 169.
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However, they take a primary stress in special cases.
P, 169, 170, see also exercise (13-4).
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Dissyllabic prepositions have primary stress when the
object is a personal pronoun, and weak and third
stresses when the object is a noun. P. 170 see
exercise (13-5)
2- Prepositions
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Pay attention for words that can be either
prepositions and adverbials:
-
They are in the kitchen. Preposition
Please come in. adverb see also p. 171
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A few prepositions can also be conjunctions:
-
Everyone came but Tara. Preposition
I asked her but she didn’t answer. conjunction
-
2- Prepositions
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A number of prepositions have affinities with other
word classes such as a verb as a stem. See p. 171.
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Complex or compound preps. consist of two- or threeword combinations acting as a single unit See p.172.
and exercise (13-8)
2- Prepositions
2- Prepositions
Like simple prepositions, these two-word combinations
come before a noun:
according to Shakespeare, contrary to my advice, due
to illness
 Three-word combinations often have the following
pattern:
Simple Preposition + Noun + Simple Preposition
We can see this pattern in the following examples:
- In aid of charity, in front of the window, in line with
inflation
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2- Prepositions
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Finally, you can find some prepositions at the
end of a few structures. See p. 173.
3- Determiners
A determiner is a word that precedes a noun and
serves as a signal that a noun is soon to follow. This is,
a determiner is a word used before a noun to give
more information about the noun.
e.g. a, an, the, this, these, that, those, some, any, all,
both, many, each, every, several, few, no, two, first, etc.
 The absence of a determiner sometimes creates
ambiguity:
e.g. Union demands increase

A verb
will
an
A determiner
3- Determiners
Types of determiners
1- Predeterminers: they specify quantity in the
noun which follows them; they include:
A: Multiplying expressions:
e.g. Twice my salary
Double my salary
Ten times my salary
3- Determiners
B: Fractions
Half an hour
One third my salary
C: The words all and both
All my students
Both my lectures
D: Intensifiers:
What a mess, rather skillfully, quite happy, etc.
3- Determiners
2- Central determiners: these include:
- Articles:
all the time
a book
an interest
- Possessives:
My, your, his, her, its, our, their, John’s, whose
- Demonstratives:
This, that, these, those
See more in Greenbaum & Quirk (2007)
3- Determiners
3- Postdeterminers:
- Cardinal numbers:
One, two, fifty, eighty, …… e.g. the three eagles.
- Ordinal numbers:
First, second, twenty-third…. e.g., the first time.
- General ordinals:
Last, next, previous, …… e.g., our next meeting.
- Quantifiers: few, several, many, plenty of, a lot
of, least, most, a little.
3- Determiners
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Examples of quantifiers:
I play a few games, she ate a little bread, we
need plenty of time, we don’t need much time,
he has written many poems, he spent the most
money, the least time, his several successes,….
and so on.
References
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Greenbaum, S., & Quirk, R. (2007). A student’s
grammar of the English Language. London: Longman.
King, G. (2009). Improve Your Grammar. Glasgow, UK:
Collins.
Swan, M. (2003). Practical English Usage (2 nd).
London: Hodder Press.
Thanks for your attendance and
attention