Collins Cobuild English Grammar (81 page)

USAGE NOTE

3.134
  Some verbs in the second group listed above have special features.

Appear
,
prove
, and
seem
are often followed by
to be
and an adjective, instead of directly by an adjective.

Mary was breathing quietly and
seemed to be asleep
.
Some people
appeared to be immune to the virus
.

See paragraph
3.192
for information on using a
to
-infinitive after these verbs.

3.135
  With some verbs in the second group, especially
feel
,
look
, and
seem
, you can use the
-ed
participle of a verb as an adjective.

The other child looked
neglected
.
The quarrel of the night before seemed
forgotten
.

3.136
  When you are using the second group of verbs to say what qualities someone or something seems to have, you may want to mention the person whose viewpoint you are giving. You can do this by using a phrase beginning with the preposition
to
. It usually comes after the adjective.

They looked all right
to me
.
It sounds unnatural
to you
, I expect.

BE CAREFUL

3.137
  You cannot use all adjectives with all linking verbs. Some verbs, such as
be
and
look
, are used with a wide range of adjectives and some are used with a restricted range. For example,
taste
is used only with adjectives that describe the taste of something;
go
is used mainly with adjectives that indicate colour or a negative state; and
fall
is used mainly with
asleep
,
ill
, and
silent
.

Sea water
tastes nasty
.
It
tasted sweet
like fruit juice.
Jack
went red
.
It all
went horribly wrong
.
The world
has gone crazy
.
He
fell asleep
at the table.
The courtroom
fell silent
.

Nouns after linking verbs:
She is a teacher
,
It remained a secret

3.138
  
Nouns
can be used after the following linking verbs:

be

become

remain

~

feel

look

prove

seem

sound

~

constitute

make

represent

~

comprise

form

qualities

3.139
  You can use descriptive nouns or noun phrases after
be
,
become
,
remain
,
feel
,
look
,
prove
,
seem
,
sound
,
constitute
, and
represent
to say what qualities someone or something has.

Their policy on higher education is
an unmitigated disaster
.
He always seemed
a controlled sort of man
.
I feel
a bit of a fraud
.
The results of these experiments remain
a secret
.
Any change would represent
a turnaround
.

Make
is only used as a linking verb with a noun that indicates whether someone is good at a particular job.

He’ll make
a good president
.

using
one
:
That’s a nice one

3.140
  With
be
,
become
,
remain
,
feel
,
look
,
prove
,
seem
, and
sound
, you can use a noun phrase based on
one
.

The noun phrase consists of
a
or
an
followed by the adjective and
one
, if the subject is singular. For example, instead of saying
The school is large
, you can say
The school is a large one
.

The sound is
a familiar one
.
The impression the region gives is still
a rural one
.

If the subject is plural, you can use the adjective followed by
ones
.

My memories of a London childhood are
happy ones
.

One
can also be followed by a
prepositional phrase
or a
relative clause
.

Their story was indeed
one of passion
.
The problem is
one that always faces a society when it finds itself threatened
.

size, age, colour, shape

3.141
  If you want to make a statement about the size, age, colour, or shape of something, you can use a noun phrase based on
size
,
age
,
colour
, or
shape
after the linking verbs mentioned in the previous paragraph. The noun phrase begins with a determiner and has an adjective in front of the noun or the preposition
of
after it.

It’s just
the right shape
.
The opposing force would be about
the same size
.
The walls are
a delicate pale cream colour
.
His body was
the colour of bronze
.
It is only
the size of a mouse
.

types of people and things

3.142
  You can use noun phrases beginning with
a
or
an
, or plural noun phrases without a determiner, after
be
,
become
,
remain
,
comprise
, and
form
, to say what type of person or thing someone or something is.

He is
a geologist
.
I’m not
an unreasonable person
.
He is now
a teenager
.
The air moved a little faster and became
a light wind
.
They became
farmers
.
Promises by MPs remained just
promises
.
These arches formed
a barrier to the tide
.

talking about identity

3.143
  You can use names or noun phrases referring to a particular person or thing after
be
,
become
,
remain
,
constitute
,
represent
,
comprise
, and
form
to talk about exactly who or what someone or something is.

This is
Desiree, my father’s second wife
.
He’s now
the Director of the Office of Management and Budget
.
The winner of the competition was
Ross Lambert of Forest Hill Primary School
.
The downstairs television room became
my room for receiving visitors
.
…the four young men who comprised
the TV crew
.

USAGE NOTE

3.144
  When you use a noun indicating a unique job or position within an organization, you do not have to put a determiner in front of the noun.

At one time you wanted to be
President
.
He went on to become
head of one of the company’s largest divisions
.

pronouns after linking verbs

3.145
  
Personal pronouns
are sometimes used after linking verbs to indicate identity. Note that the object pronouns are used, except in very formal speech or writing.