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Difficulty: HardNouns and Noun Phrases

Read the sentence below and answer the question that follows.

The university governing council unanimously declared Dr. Evelyn Olayemi [the principal architect of the new academic curriculum].

What is the syntactic function of the bracketed noun phrase in the sentence above?

  1. A
    Appositive to the direct object
  2. Object complementAnswer
  3. C
    Direct object
  4. D
    Subject complement

Answer

Object complement
The correct answer is 'Object complement' because the noun phrase 'the principal architect of the new academic curriculum' follows the direct object ('Dr. Evelyn Olayemi') and completes the predicate of the complex-transitive verb 'declared' by supplying the official role assigned to that object.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the clause structure and identify the main verb.
The main verb is 'declared', which is a complex-transitive verb requiring both a direct object and an object complement.
Complex-transitive verbs cannot stand with only a direct object without leaving the clause predicate incomplete.
2
Identify the noun phrase receiving the direct action of the verb.
'Dr. Evelyn Olayemi' is the direct object of the verb 'declared'.
She is the person being designated by the governing council.
3
Determine the grammatical relationship between the direct object and the bracketed noun phrase.
The bracketed phrase 'the principal architect of the new academic curriculum' defines and completes the role attributed to the direct object.
A noun phrase that renames or characterizes a direct object following verbs of declaring, appointing, or electing functions as an object complement.

Key Concept

Syntactic Functions of Noun Phrases: Object Complement
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Topics

Nouns and Noun Phrases

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