Noun is a noun (terminology)
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2
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Is there any particular term for when we use one noun to describe/define another.
Karl is a teacher
Pigeons are birds.
Basically, the format being “x is y”.
Is there a name for the concept, the type of sentence, the noun in this position, or any other related terminology?
It makes me think of an apposite noun, but I don’t believe this counts as that..?
grammar nouns
asked Oct 21 at 16:44
Karl
5,5871931
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show 3 more comments
up vote
2
down vote
favorite
Is there any particular term for when we use one noun to describe/define another.
Karl is a teacher
Pigeons are birds.
Basically, the format being “x is y”.
Is there a name for the concept, the type of sentence, the noun in this position, or any other related terminology?
It makes me think of an apposite noun, but I don’t believe this counts as that..?
grammar nouns
asked Oct 21 at 16:44
Karl
5,5871931
3
The noun after the auxiliary verb is is called a predicate noun or predicate nominal or predicate noun phrase. The noun before the auxiliary verb is called the subject or the subject noun phrase.
– John Lawler
Oct 21 at 16:59
Superb. So could one say that we can describe people with adjectives and with predicate nouns. Would that be accurate?
– Karl
Oct 21 at 17:12
2
We can describe people with any word at all. That's what most words are for. If you're looking for a definition for noun, it doesn't have anything to do with what it refers to -- it's entirely about its use in a sentence. Nouns can be subjects and objects and objects of prepositions, and they can be modified by articles. That's pretty much it.
– John Lawler
Oct 21 at 17:19
I think the "is a" relationship is termed a coupla, plural copulae. But that's obviously not a term for the noun.
– Dan Bron
Oct 21 at 17:47
2
Yes, the noun phrases "a teacher" and "birds" are called 'subjective predicative complements'. The noun phrase that a predicative complement relates to is called the predicand. In your example, "Karl" and "Pigeons" are the predicands. Clauses like this with "be" as predicator are called 'copular' clauses.
– BillJ
Oct 21 at 18:50
|
show 3 more comments
up vote
2
down vote
favorite
up vote
2
down vote
favorite
Is there any particular term for when we use one noun to describe/define another.
Karl is a teacher
Pigeons are birds.
Basically, the format being “x is y”.
Is there a name for the concept, the type of sentence, the noun in this position, or any other related terminology?
It makes me think of an apposite noun, but I don’t believe this counts as that..?
grammar nouns
asked Oct 21 at 16:44
Karl
5,5871931
Is there any particular term for when we use one noun to describe/define another.
Karl is a teacher
Pigeons are birds.
Basically, the format being “x is y”.
Is there a name for the concept, the type of sentence, the noun in this position, or any other related terminology?
It makes me think of an apposite noun, but I don’t believe this counts as that..?
grammar nouns
grammar nouns
asked Oct 21 at 16:44
Karl
5,5871931
asked Oct 21 at 16:44
Karl
5,5871931
asked Oct 21 at 16:44
Karl
5,5871931
asked Oct 21 at 16:44
Karl
5,5871931
asked Oct 21 at 16:44
Karl
5,5871931
5,5871931
3
The noun after the auxiliary verb is is called a predicate noun or predicate nominal or predicate noun phrase. The noun before the auxiliary verb is called the subject or the subject noun phrase.
– John Lawler
Oct 21 at 16:59
Superb. So could one say that we can describe people with adjectives and with predicate nouns. Would that be accurate?
– Karl
Oct 21 at 17:12
2
We can describe people with any word at all. That's what most words are for. If you're looking for a definition for noun, it doesn't have anything to do with what it refers to -- it's entirely about its use in a sentence. Nouns can be subjects and objects and objects of prepositions, and they can be modified by articles. That's pretty much it.
– John Lawler
Oct 21 at 17:19
I think the "is a" relationship is termed a coupla, plural copulae. But that's obviously not a term for the noun.
– Dan Bron
Oct 21 at 17:47
2
Yes, the noun phrases "a teacher" and "birds" are called 'subjective predicative complements'. The noun phrase that a predicative complement relates to is called the predicand. In your example, "Karl" and "Pigeons" are the predicands. Clauses like this with "be" as predicator are called 'copular' clauses.
– BillJ
Oct 21 at 18:50
|
show 3 more comments
3
The noun after the auxiliary verb is is called a predicate noun or predicate nominal or predicate noun phrase. The noun before the auxiliary verb is called the subject or the subject noun phrase.
– John Lawler
Oct 21 at 16:59
Superb. So could one say that we can describe people with adjectives and with predicate nouns. Would that be accurate?
– Karl
Oct 21 at 17:12
2
We can describe people with any word at all. That's what most words are for. If you're looking for a definition for noun, it doesn't have anything to do with what it refers to -- it's entirely about its use in a sentence. Nouns can be subjects and objects and objects of prepositions, and they can be modified by articles. That's pretty much it.
– John Lawler
Oct 21 at 17:19
I think the "is a" relationship is termed a coupla, plural copulae. But that's obviously not a term for the noun.
– Dan Bron
Oct 21 at 17:47
2
Yes, the noun phrases "a teacher" and "birds" are called 'subjective predicative complements'. The noun phrase that a predicative complement relates to is called the predicand. In your example, "Karl" and "Pigeons" are the predicands. Clauses like this with "be" as predicator are called 'copular' clauses.
– BillJ
Oct 21 at 18:50
3
3
The noun after the auxiliary verb is is called a predicate noun or predicate nominal or predicate noun phrase. The noun before the auxiliary verb is called the subject or the subject noun phrase.
– John Lawler
Oct 21 at 16:59
The noun after the auxiliary verb is is called a predicate noun or predicate nominal or predicate noun phrase. The noun before the auxiliary verb is called the subject or the subject noun phrase.
– John Lawler
Oct 21 at 16:59
Superb. So could one say that we can describe people with adjectives and with predicate nouns. Would that be accurate?
– Karl
Oct 21 at 17:12
Superb. So could one say that we can describe people with adjectives and with predicate nouns. Would that be accurate?
– Karl
Oct 21 at 17:12
2
2
We can describe people with any word at all. That's what most words are for. If you're looking for a definition for noun, it doesn't have anything to do with what it refers to -- it's entirely about its use in a sentence. Nouns can be subjects and objects and objects of prepositions, and they can be modified by articles. That's pretty much it.
– John Lawler
Oct 21 at 17:19
We can describe people with any word at all. That's what most words are for. If you're looking for a definition for noun, it doesn't have anything to do with what it refers to -- it's entirely about its use in a sentence. Nouns can be subjects and objects and objects of prepositions, and they can be modified by articles. That's pretty much it.
– John Lawler
Oct 21 at 17:19
I think the "is a" relationship is termed a coupla, plural copulae. But that's obviously not a term for the noun.
– Dan Bron
Oct 21 at 17:47
I think the "is a" relationship is termed a coupla, plural copulae. But that's obviously not a term for the noun.
– Dan Bron
Oct 21 at 17:47
2
2
Yes, the noun phrases "a teacher" and "birds" are called 'subjective predicative complements'. The noun phrase that a predicative complement relates to is called the predicand. In your example, "Karl" and "Pigeons" are the predicands. Clauses like this with "be" as predicator are called 'copular' clauses.
– BillJ
Oct 21 at 18:50
Yes, the noun phrases "a teacher" and "birds" are called 'subjective predicative complements'. The noun phrase that a predicative complement relates to is called the predicand. In your example, "Karl" and "Pigeons" are the predicands. Clauses like this with "be" as predicator are called 'copular' clauses.
– BillJ
Oct 21 at 18:50
|
show 3 more comments
1 Answer
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There is some terminology in logic for these kinds of statements.
Karl is a teacher.
This is a singular membership proposition: a proposition asserting that an individual (in this case Karl) is member of a category (teachers).
Pigeons are birds.
meaning
All pigeons are birds.
This is an A-form categorical proposition: a proposition asserting that all of the members of one category, the subject term (pigeons), are included in another category, the predicate term (birds).
In logic, the predicate in this example is the function “is a bird”, which takes an individual as an argument (the subject), and outputs “true” or “false”.
There are 4 standard forms of categorical propositions:
A-form: All S are P.
E-form: No S are P.
I-form: Some S are P.
O-form: Some S are not P.
Quantity: A-form and E-form categorical propositions are universal, I-form and O-form categorical propositions are particular (or existential).
Quality: A-form and I-form categorical propositions are affirmative, E-form and O-form categorical propositions are negative.
Karl is a teacher.
Pigeons are birds.
In grammar, both sentences consist of a subject (“Karl”, “Pigeons”), a copula (“is”, “are”) and a predicate or a predicative complement (“a teacher”, “birds”).
The grammar term predicate is not quite the same as the logic term predicate: in logic, a predicate is (sort-of) a Boolean-valued function; in grammar, it is the phrase describing an attribute of the subject, usually following (but not including) the copula.
In grammar, both the subject and the predicate can be much longer than just a simple noun. A predicate can also consist of just an adjective.
Not all grammaticians would agree. In some grammars, the term predicate is used differently, referring to basically a whole sentence without its subject. In this usage, the copula (or indeed the verb of a sentence, whether it is a copula or not) is included in the predicate. In this usage, the gap with the logic term is smaller: the “rest of the sentence” can be regarded as a Boolean-valued function on the subject of the sentence, indicating whether the subject “is doing this” or not.
answered 7 mins ago
Adhemar
43326
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There is some terminology in logic for these kinds of statements.
Karl is a teacher.
This is a singular membership proposition: a proposition asserting that an individual (in this case Karl) is member of a category (teachers).
Pigeons are birds.
meaning
All pigeons are birds.
This is an A-form categorical proposition: a proposition asserting that all of the members of one category, the subject term (pigeons), are included in another category, the predicate term (birds).
In logic, the predicate in this example is the function “is a bird”, which takes an individual as an argument (the subject), and outputs “true” or “false”.
There are 4 standard forms of categorical propositions:
A-form: All S are P.
E-form: No S are P.
I-form: Some S are P.
O-form: Some S are not P.
Quantity: A-form and E-form categorical propositions are universal, I-form and O-form categorical propositions are particular (or existential).
Quality: A-form and I-form categorical propositions are affirmative, E-form and O-form categorical propositions are negative.
Karl is a teacher.
Pigeons are birds.
In grammar, both sentences consist of a subject (“Karl”, “Pigeons”), a copula (“is”, “are”) and a predicate or a predicative complement (“a teacher”, “birds”).
The grammar term predicate is not quite the same as the logic term predicate: in logic, a predicate is (sort-of) a Boolean-valued function; in grammar, it is the phrase describing an attribute of the subject, usually following (but not including) the copula.
In grammar, both the subject and the predicate can be much longer than just a simple noun. A predicate can also consist of just an adjective.
Not all grammaticians would agree. In some grammars, the term predicate is used differently, referring to basically a whole sentence without its subject. In this usage, the copula (or indeed the verb of a sentence, whether it is a copula or not) is included in the predicate. In this usage, the gap with the logic term is smaller: the “rest of the sentence” can be regarded as a Boolean-valued function on the subject of the sentence, indicating whether the subject “is doing this” or not.
answered 7 mins ago
Adhemar
43326
add a comment |
up vote
0
down vote
There is some terminology in logic for these kinds of statements.
Karl is a teacher.
This is a singular membership proposition: a proposition asserting that an individual (in this case Karl) is member of a category (teachers).
Pigeons are birds.
meaning
All pigeons are birds.
This is an A-form categorical proposition: a proposition asserting that all of the members of one category, the subject term (pigeons), are included in another category, the predicate term (birds).
In logic, the predicate in this example is the function “is a bird”, which takes an individual as an argument (the subject), and outputs “true” or “false”.
There are 4 standard forms of categorical propositions:
A-form: All S are P.
E-form: No S are P.
I-form: Some S are P.
O-form: Some S are not P.
Quantity: A-form and E-form categorical propositions are universal, I-form and O-form categorical propositions are particular (or existential).
Quality: A-form and I-form categorical propositions are affirmative, E-form and O-form categorical propositions are negative.
Karl is a teacher.
Pigeons are birds.
In grammar, both sentences consist of a subject (“Karl”, “Pigeons”), a copula (“is”, “are”) and a predicate or a predicative complement (“a teacher”, “birds”).
The grammar term predicate is not quite the same as the logic term predicate: in logic, a predicate is (sort-of) a Boolean-valued function; in grammar, it is the phrase describing an attribute of the subject, usually following (but not including) the copula.
In grammar, both the subject and the predicate can be much longer than just a simple noun. A predicate can also consist of just an adjective.
Not all grammaticians would agree. In some grammars, the term predicate is used differently, referring to basically a whole sentence without its subject. In this usage, the copula (or indeed the verb of a sentence, whether it is a copula or not) is included in the predicate. In this usage, the gap with the logic term is smaller: the “rest of the sentence” can be regarded as a Boolean-valued function on the subject of the sentence, indicating whether the subject “is doing this” or not.
answered 7 mins ago
Adhemar
43326
add a comment |
up vote
0
down vote
up vote
0
down vote
There is some terminology in logic for these kinds of statements.
Karl is a teacher.
This is a singular membership proposition: a proposition asserting that an individual (in this case Karl) is member of a category (teachers).
Pigeons are birds.
meaning
All pigeons are birds.
This is an A-form categorical proposition: a proposition asserting that all of the members of one category, the subject term (pigeons), are included in another category, the predicate term (birds).
In logic, the predicate in this example is the function “is a bird”, which takes an individual as an argument (the subject), and outputs “true” or “false”.
There are 4 standard forms of categorical propositions:
A-form: All S are P.
E-form: No S are P.
I-form: Some S are P.
O-form: Some S are not P.
Quantity: A-form and E-form categorical propositions are universal, I-form and O-form categorical propositions are particular (or existential).
Quality: A-form and I-form categorical propositions are affirmative, E-form and O-form categorical propositions are negative.
Karl is a teacher.
Pigeons are birds.
In grammar, both sentences consist of a subject (“Karl”, “Pigeons”), a copula (“is”, “are”) and a predicate or a predicative complement (“a teacher”, “birds”).
The grammar term predicate is not quite the same as the logic term predicate: in logic, a predicate is (sort-of) a Boolean-valued function; in grammar, it is the phrase describing an attribute of the subject, usually following (but not including) the copula.
In grammar, both the subject and the predicate can be much longer than just a simple noun. A predicate can also consist of just an adjective.
Not all grammaticians would agree. In some grammars, the term predicate is used differently, referring to basically a whole sentence without its subject. In this usage, the copula (or indeed the verb of a sentence, whether it is a copula or not) is included in the predicate. In this usage, the gap with the logic term is smaller: the “rest of the sentence” can be regarded as a Boolean-valued function on the subject of the sentence, indicating whether the subject “is doing this” or not.
answered 7 mins ago
Adhemar
43326
There is some terminology in logic for these kinds of statements.
Karl is a teacher.
This is a singular membership proposition: a proposition asserting that an individual (in this case Karl) is member of a category (teachers).
Pigeons are birds.
meaning
All pigeons are birds.
This is an A-form categorical proposition: a proposition asserting that all of the members of one category, the subject term (pigeons), are included in another category, the predicate term (birds).
In logic, the predicate in this example is the function “is a bird”, which takes an individual as an argument (the subject), and outputs “true” or “false”.
There are 4 standard forms of categorical propositions:
A-form: All S are P.
E-form: No S are P.
I-form: Some S are P.
O-form: Some S are not P.
Quantity: A-form and E-form categorical propositions are universal, I-form and O-form categorical propositions are particular (or existential).
Quality: A-form and I-form categorical propositions are affirmative, E-form and O-form categorical propositions are negative.
Karl is a teacher.
Pigeons are birds.
In grammar, both sentences consist of a subject (“Karl”, “Pigeons”), a copula (“is”, “are”) and a predicate or a predicative complement (“a teacher”, “birds”).
The grammar term predicate is not quite the same as the logic term predicate: in logic, a predicate is (sort-of) a Boolean-valued function; in grammar, it is the phrase describing an attribute of the subject, usually following (but not including) the copula.
In grammar, both the subject and the predicate can be much longer than just a simple noun. A predicate can also consist of just an adjective.
Not all grammaticians would agree. In some grammars, the term predicate is used differently, referring to basically a whole sentence without its subject. In this usage, the copula (or indeed the verb of a sentence, whether it is a copula or not) is included in the predicate. In this usage, the gap with the logic term is smaller: the “rest of the sentence” can be regarded as a Boolean-valued function on the subject of the sentence, indicating whether the subject “is doing this” or not.
answered 7 mins ago
Adhemar
43326
edited just now
answered 7 mins ago
Adhemar
43326
answered 7 mins ago
Adhemar
43326
answered 7 mins ago
Adhemar
43326
43326
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3
The noun after the auxiliary verb is is called a predicate noun or predicate nominal or predicate noun phrase. The noun before the auxiliary verb is called the subject or the subject noun phrase.
– John Lawler
Oct 21 at 16:59
Superb. So could one say that we can describe people with adjectives and with predicate nouns. Would that be accurate?
– Karl
Oct 21 at 17:12
2
We can describe people with any word at all. That's what most words are for. If you're looking for a definition for noun, it doesn't have anything to do with what it refers to -- it's entirely about its use in a sentence. Nouns can be subjects and objects and objects of prepositions, and they can be modified by articles. That's pretty much it.
– John Lawler
Oct 21 at 17:19
I think the "is a" relationship is termed a coupla, plural copulae. But that's obviously not a term for the noun.
– Dan Bron
Oct 21 at 17:47
2
Yes, the noun phrases "a teacher" and "birds" are called 'subjective predicative complements'. The noun phrase that a predicative complement relates to is called the predicand. In your example, "Karl" and "Pigeons" are the predicands. Clauses like this with "be" as predicator are called 'copular' clauses.
– BillJ
Oct 21 at 18:50