ABSTRACT
We need to maintain a consistent distinction between what phrases are and what they do because most phrasal categories have a variety of different functions. For example, while it’s true that subjects are usually noun phrases, not all noun phrases function as subjects:
The bride’s mother threw a large pickled gherkin. (AUS#47: 9)
Here both the bride’s mother and a large pickled gherkin are noun phrases. The first functions as a subject and the second functions as an object. So although both the bride’s mother and a large pickled gherkin belong to the same phrasal category, their functions do differ. In English, it’s their position in the sentence that tells us who is doing what and to whom (also of course the knowledge that large pickled gherkins don’t usually throw people!).
