What is the head of a phrase?

Definition
	The head of a phrase is the element that determines the syntactic function of the whole phrase.

Example (English)

In a noun phrase, the head is the noun that refers to the same entity that the whole phrase refers to, such as:

'hat' in 'the man in the brown suit’s hat'

Note:

The head of an English noun phrase usually comes after the dependents (the non-head elements in the phrase).

Concept module: head of a phrase
In overview module: Glossary (Linguistics): H
In modular book: Glossary of linguistic terms, by Eugene E. Loos (general editor), Susan Anderson (editor), Dwight H., Day, Jr. (editor), Paul C. Jordan (editor), and J. Douglas Wingate (editor)
In bookshelf: Linguistics

This page is an extract from the LinguaLinks Library, Version 5.0 published on CD-ROM by SIL International, 2003. [Ordering information.]

Page content last modified: 24 March 1998