Modification by prepositional phrases

The use of articles modified by prepositional phrases depends on the context or the situation. It consists of a preposition followed by a noun (at the window, for his children). A prepositional phrase may be used as a limiting or a descriptive attribute:

She seated herself so that I could see the man at the screen very well.

From one of the bookshelves Julia took a bundle of her latest photographs.

I made plans to put up two or three hotels and bungalows for occasional residents.

A prepositional phrase may contain various preposi­tions, but special consideration should be given to the so-called of-phrase. The main meanings of structures with descriptive of-phrases are as follows:

· a container with its contents: a box of matches, a cup of tea; a pot of coffee

(Compare with a matchbox, a tea-cup, a coffee-pot, a soup bowl, etc., which are used for empty containers.)

· a certain quantity: a lump of sugar, a slice of lemon, a pinch of salt

· measure: a temperature of 20° C, a height of two hundred metres, a weight of two pounds, a distance of three miles, a pound of butter

· origin: a native of Wales, a man of Kent, a descendant of a good family

· characteristics of an object: a woman of great charm, a man of courage, a question of importance, a matter of urgency

· age: a man of middle age, a boy of five

· material a thing is made of: a box of cedar wood, a coat of mail, a heart of gold (met­aphorical use)

Note. In modern English the of-phrase is rarely used to denote material. As a rule we find an attributive noun in preposition to the head-noun in this meaning: older English, modern English; a ring of gold - a gold ring; a wall of glass - a glass wall.

· composition: a herd of deer, a crowd of people, a flock of birds

· two objects of the same kind or an object consisting of two parts of the same kind: a pair of gloves, a couple of ap­ples, a pair of trousers

· indication of implied analogy: a beast of a man (i.e. a man behaving like a beast), a peach of a girl (i.e. a girl as beautiful and fresh as a peach), a gem of a housekeeper, a fool of a woman

The of-phrase is a descriptive attribute in a construc­tion called "the double genitive" as it contains the of-genitive and the s-genitive: a friend of my brother's, a daughter of Mr. Parker's, an opera of Verdi's, a sonata of Britten's

Nouns modified by a descriptive of-phrase usually take the indefinite article, but the definite article may be also used.

The of-phrase may have a limiting force as well. In this case the head-noun is used with the definite article. Mark the most typical kinds of struc­tures with limiting of-phrases: the city of Chicago, the sound of the bell, the figure of a man, the position of a teacher, the foot of the hill, the bank of the river, the wife of the local doctor, the number (i.e. the total quantity) of people, the shadow of a tree, the shot of a gun, the face of a woman, the manager of a hotel, the edge of the table, the story of his life

But if there are many objects of the same description, the indefinite article is used: a member of the club, a student of the group, a leg of the table.

Practice

Exercise 1. Write the correct article in the space. DO NOT write the if the prepositional phrase, adjective phrase or adjective clause does not make the noun definite.

1. Daley Park was almost empty. I saw only ­­­____ man with a dog. 2. ­­­____ teacher that we had last semester was especially good. 3. Jan said, “I want to buy ­­­____ computer that has a lot of memory” 4. I’m so absent-minded! I just locked ­­­____ keys to my car inside the car. 5. There’s ­­­____ law against drinking and driving. 6. ­­­____ house destroyed by the fire was mine. 7. ­­­____ woman who wrote “Gone with the Wind” died tragically. 8. I’d like to buy ____ car that has an air bag. 9. ­­­____ town where I grew up is now a big city. 10. Yesterday night I saw ­­­____ man running down the street. 11. ­­­____ day after tomorrow is Saturday. 12. Is there ­­­____ FAX machine in your office? 13. I don’t like ­­­____ answer to question number 7. 14. I want to clean ­­­____ top of the refrigerator. 15. Do you have ­­­____ radio in your car? 16. The doctors at Mercy Hospital give ­­­____ patients excellent care. 17. There’s ­­­____ movie that I want to see on TV. 18. ­­­____ woman that Mozart married was a poor housekeeper. 19. My boss is looking for ­­­____ assistant who can help him with computers. 20. At school, there are ­­­____ computers that students and teachers can use.

Exercise 2. Insert articles where necessary.

1. ­­_____ man of whom I speak is ­­_____ low pantomime actor. 2. Excuse me now; I have to see ­­_____ man who’s in trouble. 3. He listened attentively to a great many stories she told him about _____ amiable and handsome daughter of hers, who was married to _____ amiable and handsome man and lived in the country. 4. I always think there’s something rather cold and cheerless about _____ house that lacks _____ woman’s touch. 5. He stood up and looked at _____ house where he had been born, grown up, and played, as if asking for _____ answer. 6. Her throat aches because of _____ tears locked in it. 7. There were half _____ dozen pocket robberies _____ day in _____ trams of Brussels. 8. At last they reached _____ door at which _____ servant knocked cautiously. 9. We passed _____ set of chambers where I had worked as _____ young man. 10. We dropped into _____ very pleasant nook under _____ great elm tree, to _____ spreading roots of which we fastened _____ boat.

Exercise 3. Insert articles where necessary.

1. He was staring at ­­______ waves like ______ man cornered by ______ strange animal. 2. You don’t know ______ man you are married to. 3. He spoke with a very slow, distinct voice… and always looked over ______ shoulder of ______ person to whom he was talking. 4. There had been at ______ dining table ______ middle-aged man with ______ dark eye and ______ sunburned face, who attracted Martin’s attention. 5. They walked ______ mile or more along ______ handsome street which ______ colonel said was called Broadway. 6. Colonel Mordaunt does not look like ______ man who would do ______ mean or dishonourable thing. 7. Rosa then noticed with surprise that she was in ______ room in which ______ party had been held. 8. She is ______ elderly matron who has worked hard and got nothing by it. 9. There we were in ______ country none of us knew anything about, amongst Indians and ______ people that were only half civilized. 10. As Dick took up his pipe, ______ man who had passed into ______ smoking car with him put down his newspaper and looked at him. For ______ moment Dick was puzzled. It was ______ face he knew, but he could not put ______ name to it.

Exercise 4. Make up situations of your own to justify the use of the articles in the following pairs of sentences.

1. A stout man came up and shook hands.

The stout man came up and shook hands.

2. I’ve got a job.

I’ve got the job.

3. This is a local library.

This is the local library.

4. He was standing behind a car.

He was standing behind the car.

5. He wrote down a figure.

He wrote down the figure.

Exercise 5. Determine whether the articles refer to the noun in the genitive case or the head-noun. Translate the sentences into Ukrainian.

1. They lived in a two-foot shelter just outside the officers' dug­out. 2. He was eager to see Dennis, who was at a boys' camp some­where. 3. There were two old men there and they were taken to an old people's home. 4. They made a two hours'journey in a train which stopped at every station. 5. After a six months' period of drought it started raining every day. 6. He was a tall young man with a sad clown's face under stiff red hair. 7. He returned the old woman's smile. 8. On the opposite side of the street was the Sharpes' old car. 9. She was a miner's widow. 10. Have you read Bob's new novel?

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