The Structure and Functions of the English Nominal Groups within the English Grammar Structure

Abstract

This paper focuses on the nominal group structure within the grammatical framework of the English language. Further investigations were carried out on the functions performed by the sub-structure within the larger clause structure on the one hand and the rank-shifted approach was adopted. A total of 14 (fourteen) randomly selected sentences were isolated and 25 (twenty-five) nominal groups were isolated and analyzed. The study found a preponderance of rank-shifted structures within the ‘q’ element with its attendant difficulty in pedagogical placement considering its similarity with the clause structure in non-simple sentences. This finding demands further explications for a fuller outcome in grammatical conceptualization of English.

Key terms: English nominal group, structure, functions, contexts.