14:51
Noun phrases are prototypically used for acts of
reference as in "
The blonde girl shouts" or "
She kissed
the man". Also possible, but found less often, is the use of noun phrases for predication, as in "Suzy is
a blonde girl". Note that in English the use of the
copula is
indicates the use of a noun phrase as predicate, but other languages
may not require the use of the copula. Finally, noun phrases are used
for identifications like "
The murderer was
the butler", where no
ascription is taking place. The possibility for a noun phrase to play the role of
subject and predicate leads to the constructions of
syllogisms.
[citation needed]
See also
