CHAPTER 5: GRAMMAR (COMPOUND NOUNS AND PHRASES)

A compound noun is a noun that is made with two or more words. A compound noun is usually [noun + noun] or [adjective + noun],
but there are other combinations (see below). It is important to understand and recognize compound nouns. Each compound noun acts
as a single unit and can be modified by adjectives and other nouns.

There are three forms for compound nouns:

1. open or spaced - space between words (tennis shoe)

2. hyphenated - hyphen between words (six-pack)
3. closed or solid - no space or hyphen between words (bedroom)

Here are some examples of compound nouns:

Is this the bus stop for the number 12

bus stop
bus?
noun + noun In the tropics you can see fire-flies at
fire-fly
night.
football Shall we play football today?

full moon I always feel crazy at full moon.

adjective + noun blackboard Clean the blackboard please.

software I can't install this software on my PC.

He always has chewing gum in his
Chewing gum
pocket.
verb(-ing) + noun washing Put the clothes in the red washing
machine machine.
swimming pool What a beautiful swimming pool!
Hang-gliding I like to go hang-gliding at sunrise.

noun + verb(-ing) We always go water-skiing in the

Water-skiing
summer.
Bird-watching His hobby is bird-watching.
Please remember that check-out is at
verb + preposition check-out
12 noon.
prepositional
noun + mother-in-law My mother-in-law lives with us.
phrase
Do you think the police accept money
preposition + noun underworld
from the underworld?

noun + adjective truckful We need 10 truckfuls of bricks.

Pronunciation

Compound nouns tend to have more stress on the first word. In the phrase "pink ball", both words are equally stressed (as you know,
adjectives and nouns are always stressed). In the compound noun "golf ball", the first word is stressed more (even though both words
are nouns, and nouns are always stressed). Since "golf ball" is a compound noun we consider it as a single noun and so it has a single
main stress - on the first word. Stress is important in compound nouns. For example, it helps us know if somebody said "a GREEN
HOUSE" (a house which is painted green) or "a greenhouse" (a building made of glass for growing plants inside).
British/American differences
Different varieties of English, and even different writers, may use the open, hyphenated or closed form for the same compound noun.
It is partly a matter of style. There are no definite rules. For example, we can find:
• container ship
• container-ship
• containership
If you are not sure which form to use, please check in a good dictionary.
Plural Forms of Compound Nouns
In general, we make the plural of a compound noun by adding -s to the "base word" (the most "significant" word). Look at these
examples:

SINGULAR PLURAL
my toothbrush our toothbrushes
a woman-doctor two women-doctors
a doctor of philosophy two doctors of philosophy
a passerby, a passer-by two passersby, two passersby

Note that there is some variation with words like spoonful or truckful. The old style was to say spoonsful or trucksful for the plural.
Today it is more usual to say spoonfuls or truckfuls. Both the old style (spoonsful) and the new style (spoonfuls) are normally
acceptable, but you should be consistent in your choice. Here are some examples:
old style plural (very formal) new style plural
teaspoonful 3 teaspoonsful of sugar 3 teaspoonfuls of sugar
truckful 5 trucksful of sand 5 truckfuls of sand
bucketful 2 bucketsful of water 2 bucketfuls of water
cupful 4 cupsful of rice 4 cupfuls of rice

Some compound nouns have no obvious base word and you may need to consult a dictionary to find the plural:
• higher-ups (A senior person in an organization.)
• also-rans (A loser in a race or contest, especially by a large margin.)
• go-betweens (An intermediary or negotiator.)
• has-beens (A person or thing considered to be outmoded or
no longer of any significance.)
• good-for-nothings (A worthless person.)
• grown-ups (An adult especially a child's word).
Note that with compound nouns made of [noun + noun] the first noun is like an adjective and therefore does not usually take an -s. A
tree that has apples has many apples, but we say an apple tree, not apples tree; matchbox not matchesbox; toothbrush not
teethbrush.

With compound nouns made of [noun + noun] the second noun takes an -s for plural. The first noun acts like an adjective and as you
know, adjectives in English are invariable. Look at these examples:

Long plural form becomes → Plural compound noun [noun + noun]

100 trees with apples 100 apple trees
1,000 cables for telephones 1,000 telephone cables
20 boxes for tools 20 tool boxes
10 stops for buses 10 bus stops
4,000 wheels for cars 4,000 car wheels

Noun compounds are short and convenient word combinations that are quite common in business English, they are mainly used to
simplify, shorten and be more specific in the communication process, and usually replace a longer noun phrase.

A noun phrase includes a noun and any associated modifiers:

• The long and winding road
• A new product
• any additional skills

The modifiers that accompany a noun can take any number of forms and combination of forms:
• adjectives ("the tall and old tree");
• a participial phrase ("the road following the edge of the frozen lake");
• an infinitive phrase ("the first man to walk on the moon");
• a modifying clause ("the presentation that he had made the day before");

Usually, a noun phrase will be all of pieces, all the words that compose it being included in the noun itself. In business English, noun
compounds are quite common mainly because they are shorter and more convenient than noun phrases. For example:
The measures for the safety of the customers.
can also be written as:
The customer safety measures.
Other examples:
I lost my permit to park in the school. → I lost my school parking permit.
Have you seen my glasses to read? → Have you seen my reading glasses?
That is the new plant for research and development. → That is the new research and development plant.

In many cases, they are composed of two nouns, where the first one is used as an adjective, in other words, it describes the second one.
For example:

• quality control → control of the quality

• equipment maintenance → maintenance of the equipment
• business strategy → strategy of the business

There are also cases when a compound becomes so common that it can be merged into one word, such as:

• Base of data → database

• Line of time → timeline
• Letter of/with news → newsletter
EXERCISE 1. Write the complete phrase (meaning) of each noun compound.

1. manufacturing line: ___________________________a line of manufacturing

______

2. sales team: _____________________ a team of sales people

3. public relations department: the department that concerns the public

image and the company

4. international marketing staff: a staff that markets internationally

5. product development program: a program that develops a product

6. difficult labor situation: a situation that’s difficult in labor

EXERCISE 2. Now, create the noun compound for each phrase below.

1. liquid for the protection of the paint: paint protection liquid

2. team for the investigation of the market: investigative market tea

3. programmer of computers: computer programmer
4. leader of the department of research: department research leader

1. I write software for computers.

________I write computer
software______________________________________________________________
2. Our company has prices that are lower.
____________our company has lower
prices__________________________________________________________
3. Please read the book of the policies of the company.
____________please read the company
policies__________________________________________________________
4. We are facing conditions of the market that are very difficult.
___________________we are facing difficult market conditions
___________________________________________________
5. Our engineers are looking for new methods to produce the refrigerators.
_______________________our engineers are looking for new refrigerator producing
methods______________________________________________
EXERCISE 4. Complete the following paragraph by writing in the space provided a suitable noun
compound or phrase. Use the words in parenthesis as guides.

Our (facilities / manufacturing) _____________facilities manufacturing______________________ are among the

most advanced in the world. We hire (personnel / highly / qualified) __________highly qualified
personnel_____________________ and provide them with (class / technology / world) __________________world
class technology___________________________________. Our (department / research / market)
_________________market research department___________________________ combined with the (team / sales)
________________sales team______________ have really helped our company.

EXERCISE 5. Using compound nouns, can you shorten the following phrases?

1. a room used for storing things b. two steel toolboxes

a. warehouse
b. where house 10. the husband of my daughter
a. my husband-in-law
2. a tape for measuring up to 300 ft. b. my son-in-law
a. a 300-ft. tape measure
b. a 300-ft. measure tape

3. the assistant manager of the restaurant

a. the assistant manager restaurant
b. the assistant restaurant manager

4. a station for express trains

a. an express-train station
b. a train-station express

5. size of cables
a. cables size
b. cable size

6. reduction in cost
a. reduction cost
b. cost reduction

7. two periods of three months

a. two three-month periods
b. three two-month periods

8. plugs with 3 pins

a. 3-pin plugs
b. 3-plug pins

9. two steel boxes for tools

a. two steel-tool boxes
 EXERCISE 6. Complete the following words to match its meaning that has been given.

1. daylight___________ The time in the morning when light first appears.

2. dishwasher___________ A machine for washing dishes.

3. heartache___________ Intense and overwhelming sorrow, grief.

4. homework___________ Schoolwork done out of class especially at home.

5. honeymoon___________ A vacation or trip taken by a newly married couple.

6. horsepower___________ The power exerted by a horse in pulling.

7. jellyfish___________ A fish having a gelatinous umbrella-shape body with trailing

tentacles.

8. leftovers___________ Food remaining from a previous meal.

9. lighthouse___________ A tall structure that supports a powerful light.

10. sideburns___________ Facial hair that has grown down the side of a man’s face.

11. sidewalk___________ A paved walkway.

12. egghead___________ An intellectual.

13. bedtime___________ The time at which one goes to bed.

14. billboards___________ A panel used to display advertisements in public places.(often

very large)

15. coffee cup___________ A glass used to drink coffee.

16. tugboat___________ A vehicle designed for towing or pushing larger vessels on the
water.