What is an endocentric construction?

Definition
	An endocentric construction is a construction that contains
	a head, which is the single obligatory element in the construction (except in coordinate constructions, which have multiple heads), and one or more optional elements subordinate to the head.
	The optional elements can, in the proper context, be omitted without loss of grammaticality. The head is a syntactically adequate substitution for the whole construction.

Examples (English)
	In the following sentence, the noun phrase wet paint is an endocentric construction. The word paint is the obligatory head and may stand alone in its position in the clause. The word wet is an optional subordinate element. There is wet paint on the bench. The coordinate noun phrase dogs and ponies is an endocentric construction. Both nouns are heads of the noun phrase.

Generic
	An endocentric construction is a kind of
	What is a construction?

Sources
	Hartmann and Stork 1972 76
	Pei and Gaynor 1954 66
	Crystal 1985 109
	Quirk, Greenbaum, Leech, and Svartvik 1985 60

Context for this page:

Concept module: endocentric construction
In overview module: Glossary (Linguistics): E
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: 5 January 2004

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