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Prepositions in this section may also take other kinds of complements in addition to noun phrase complements. Prepositions marked with an asterisk can be used transitively or intransitively; that is, they can take noun phrase complements (e.g., he was in the house) or not (e.g., he was in).
Traditional grammars of English characterize prepositions as words that take objects in the form of noun phrases. Though the prototypical prepositional phrase consists of a noun phrase complement following a preposition, prepositions can take a wider variety of complements than just noun phrases.
The most common situations in which a complete noun phrase can be formed without a determiner are when it refers generally to a whole class or concept (as in dogs are dangerous and beauty is subjective) and when it is a name (Jane, Spain, etc.). This is discussed in more detail at English articles and Zero article in English.
Nouns can also be classified as count nouns or non-count nouns; some can belong to either category. The most common part of speech; they are called naming words. Pronoun (replaces or places again) a substitute for a noun or noun phrase (them, he). Pronouns make sentences shorter and clearer since they replace nouns. Adjective (describes, limits)
Verbs take a variety of inflectional endings that nouns cannot, such as the -ing suffix of the present participle form. Nouns typically take prepositional phrases and clauses as complements while verbs typically take noun phrases and clauses as complements.
An incomplete sentence, or sentence fragment, is a set of words that does not form a complete sentence, either because it does not express a complete thought or because it lacks some grammatical element, such as a subject or a verb. [6] [7] A dependent clause without an independent clause is an example of an incomplete sentence.
In English, this applies to a number of structures of the form "preposition + (article) + noun + preposition", such as in front of, for the sake of. [15] The following characteristics are good indications that a given combination is "frozen" enough to be considered a complex preposition in English: [16]
[a] The predicate must contain a verb, and the verb requires or permits other elements to complete the predicate, or else precludes them from doing so. These elements are objects (direct, indirect, prepositional), predicatives, and adjuncts: She dances. — Verb-only predicate. Ben reads the book. — Verb-plus-direct-object predicate.