International Journal of Linguistics

and Literature (IJLL)

ISSN(P): 2319-3956; ISSN(E): 2319-3964
Vol. 11, Issue 2, Jul - Dec 2022; 15–22
© IASET

ADJUNCTS, DISJUNCTS AND CONJUNCTS NOUNS IN ENGLISH

Dr. Hadhir H. Abood

Assistant Professor, Department of English Language/College of Education, University of Samarra, Iraq

ABSTRACT

This research sheds light on the types of the adverbial classes: adjuncts, disjuncts and conjuncts, and this research also
mentions the functions of these classes, because these classes play a major role in the linguistic structures generally and in
grammatical structures specifically. The classes are classified into many groups and the groups also appear to be the
fundamental structures in the linguistic and grammatical sentences. The researcher presents these classes and groups with
examples and clarifies these sentences to be clear and concise.

KEYWORDS: Adjuncts, Disjuncts, Conjuncts, Noun Phrases, Adverbial Phrases, Nominal Phrases

Article History
Received: 16 Sep 2022 | Revised: 21 Sep 2022 | Accepted: 03 Oct 2022

INTRODUCTION
Three sections make up the Adverbial Class. Adjuncts, Disjuncts, and Conjuncts all exist. An adverb can modify a noun
phrase, a prepositional phrase, a clause with a finite verb, a clause with an indefinite verb, or a clause with no verb at all. In
contrast, neither clausal process has any effect on a disjunct or a conjunct. There are eight different categories for adjuncts’
sub classifications.

Prepositional clauses or phrases make up the majority of disjuncts. Style disjuncts and attitudinal disjuncts are the
two basic groups that can be distinguished. Adverb or prepositional phrases make up the majority of conjuncts. For the
majority of conjuncts, initial is the usual location. If an adverb is logically positioned within the sentence, it is an adjunct.
When an adverb is separated from the rest of the phrase and serves as a sort of evaluator for it, it is referred to as a disjunct.
Last but not least, an adverb can connect two concepts if it is separated from a phrase by a comma and works as a conjunct.

The phrases “conjuncts” and “disjuncts,” which are the subject of this inquiry, refer to the grammatical uses of
adverbs. A further division between “adjuncts” and “subjects,” with four subcategories that each offer a distinctive set of
grammatical characteristics. The key distinction between these qualities is how they compare to sentence components like
the subject, object, and complement.

Accordingly, “adjuncts” are seen as having the most in common with sentence elements in terms of the role they
play within a sentence, while “subjects,” for example, are said to “lack the grammatical parity with other sentence
elements” and “have a subordinate and parenthetic role” in comparison to adjuncts.

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16 Dr. Hadhir H. Abood

BASIC DEFINITIONS OF CONCEPTS

Definitions of Adjuncts

Adjuncts, according to Sailor & Schütze (2013:2), are an essential component of the sentence and give the reader
information beyond what is in the subject, verb, object, or complement. They communicate where (location and direction),
when, and how (time, duration, frequency).

According to Ninio (2019: 3), an adjunct is a word, phrase, or clause that can be eliminated from a sentence
without the sentence becoming grammatically incorrect. Adverbs are frequently employed as adjuncts to modify verbs. An
adjunct will typically suggest a time, a way, a place, a frequency, a reason, or a degree when employed as an adverb. An
adjunct adverbial in grammar is a word, phrase, or clause that modifies an entire clause by adding details concerning time,
place, manner, condition, purpose, cause, consequence, and concession, according to Mirzahoseini et al. (2015: 125).
Sometimes nouns and noun phrases serve as adjunct adverbials.

Definitions of Disjunct

Disjuncts are adverbial words, phrases, and clauses, according to Brinton & Donna (2010: 55), which allow the speaker or
writer to communicate beliefs or thoughts regarding what they are communicating. They convey the speaker’s or writer’s
attitude. As an illustration, certainly, regrettably, personally, undoubtedly, in my judgment, which is certain, even if this is
obviously inaccurate

According to Crystal (2004: 84), disjuncts are a class of optional structure that serve to offer parenthetic
commentary to the clause in which they appear. They are crucial in ensuring the fluidity and natural flow of dialogue.

Definitions of Conjuncts

They are a class of words, according to Crystal (2004: 207), whose primary purpose is to connect separate grammatical
components, such as clauses, phrases, and paragraphs. Adverbs were the name given to these words in conventional
grammar.

Conjuncts, according to Biber et al. (2000: 133), are crucial tools for establishing textual cohesiveness because
they convey the nature of the connection between phrases. They are not a component of the sentence and are less central to
the remainder of the phrase structure in which they appear than adjunct adverbials. Instead of providing more information
to the clause, they serve as a major connective.

TYPES AND FEATURES OF ADJUNCTS, CONJUNCTS AND DISJUNCTS

Disjuncts

Disjuncts are a type of optional structure that provide parenthetic commentary to the clause in which they are used, as
described by Crystal (2003: 84). They are vital in ensuring the fluency and organic flow of speech. Tipping (1959: 231)
argues that these adverbs have a greater impact on the meaning of the phrase as a whole than on any given word within it
(e.g. verb, object, etc.). This is why we refer to them as adverbs and adverbials in sentences.

The common adverbial expression: hurry up.

An adverb in a sentence: Here we have a story that actually happened.

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Adjuncts, Disjuncts and Conjuncts Nouns in English 17

It is further confirmed by Nash (1986: 37), who describes disjuncts as being parenthetical, as they are not part of
the clause whose meaning they clarify. He gives two examples to differentiate between the adverbial and disjunctive uses
of the word “amazingly”:

To his credit, he accomplished the remarkable feat of cycling across the Sahara. (that is, in an incredible way)

He rode his bike across the Sahara, which is an incredible feat. I can’t believe it!

Types of Disjuncts

According to Crystal’s classification (2003: 229), disjuncts can be broken down into two broad classes, each of which can
be further subdivided.

Asymmetries in Style b. Disjointed material (b)

Discordant Elements of Style 1.

Disjunctive explanations of style shed light on the context in which a phrase should be understood by the listener.
The following is an illustration provided by Greenbaum and Quirk (1991: 181):

Mr. Forster is a bad father because a.

In my opinion, Mr. Forster is a bad father since he doesn’t spend enough time with his kids.

Quirk and Greenbaum (1989: 242) give other examples of the use of style disjuncts:

You’ve got to be kidding me if you plan on resigning.

I can’t say that I’m a fan of hers.

Guests are not permitted here under any circumstances.

A matching sentence with a verb of speaking and its subject as the object of the disjunctive style can express the
relation between the two clauses. Thus, the disjunct might have a whole clausal form, as in the example sentence:
“Frankly, I am exhausted.”

Just as “I tell you candidly” or “I say frankly” mean the same thing, “frankly” does as well. The disjunct may be
unclear if the clause is a question. In other words, “I ask you plainly” and “Tell me frankly” are both possible translations
of the adverb (Quirk, et al, 1985: 615).

The following categories of adverbs are frequently employed as style disjuncts: (Quirk, et al, 1985: 615–16).

Type (a) Mode and procedure

The following disjuncts are organized according to their mode and style: candidly, flatly, honestly, gravely,
rigorously, sincerely, trustfully, confidentially, roughly, in short, and simply.

I don’t need the money, for instance.

Prepositional phrases and sentences are another common form of these disjuncts in style.

For instance: To sum up, he is elated but enraged.

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18 Dr. Hadhir H. Abood

In other words, he doesn’t really amount to much in the marketplace.

Type (b): Respect:

Disjunct adverbials of this type include the following:

Figuratively, generally, literally, metaphorically, and strictly.

For example: Generally, the rainy season has already begun by September.

Frequently respect disjuncts can come in the form of longer phrases or clauses.

For example: Generally speaking, the rainy season has already begun by September

With due respect, I must state that none of you are qualified to make the necessary legal determination.

According to Quirk, et al. (1985: 617), there is a sense analogous to some adverb phrases in other structural
contexts.

For example, in place of “frankly” in: Frankly, he has not a chance.

1. Content Disjuncts

According to Quirk & Greenbaum (1989: 243), Content Disjuncts (also known as Attitudinal Disjuncts) indicate the
speaker’s comment on the content of what he is saying. They often only have a place in declarative clauses: Nobody
anticipated that I would be here today, of course. According to Eastwood (2000: 276), words like “surprise,” “fortunately”
and “thankfully” may be used to “evaluate” and “comment” on what we are saying.

The newspaper was not interested in the story, surprisingly.

Content disjuncts can also be realized by prepositional phrases and clauses:

To my regret, he did not accept our offer.

What is even more remarkable, he manages to inspire confidence in the most suspicious people. (ibid).

DISCREPANCIES IN STYLE AND CONTENT

As was stated before, “conjuncts” are a grammatical representation of one of the adverbial functions. Having a common

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Adjuncts, Disjuncts and Conjuncts Nouns in English 19

understanding of the term “function” before proceeding is often beneficial.

According to Greenbaum (1969), an item’s “function” is “the sum of its syntactic properties” (ibid.: 3). He goes on to say that
syntactic qualities can be both present and potential for an item in the phrase that is being evaluated, using the term “potential” to refer to
both positive and negative features (ibid.). The characteristics of “conjuncts” can be summed up as follows:

First, it has no premodifiers or postmodifiers; phrases like “truly however” or “moreover enough” are not allowed
since they modify the meaning of the conjunction “conjunct.”

Patterns of occurrence in clause types:

Direct queries, such as “yes” or “no,” and “what?”

Most “conjuncts” can respond to both open-ended and directional questions. Unlike “immobile conjuncts,” which
are limited to their initial location and therefore unacceptable in indirect questions, “mobile conjuncts” are perfectly
acceptable in such queries. Yes/no questions and wh-questions are examples of straightforward questions. It’s worth
noting, nevertheless, that there could be exceptions to this rule depending on the broader semantic class or a narrower
“conjunct.” Thus, concessive nonetheless is appropriate in an indirect question, whereas concessive however is not. A
similar comparison can be made between the results that are generally accepted and those that are generally not accepted.
Read the following case in point:

And yet, we’re all curious as to whether or not she’ll actually come clean.

They wanted to know if I should *thus disagree with it or not.

It should be highlighted at this point that all the examples used to illustrate the positive and negative features of
the adverbials in question were made up on the spot. Id. at 44 (Greenbaum, 1969).

Types of Adjuncts

Adjuncts can be used in a variety of ways to change the words in the sentence. Adjuncts usually elaborate on the
frequency, place, time, degree, reason, or style of the word or phrase they are altering in a sentence. Examples of adjuncts
that can be used to change all of these things are as follows:

1. Regularity: “The youngster and his buddy played basketball every day.”

The farmer mowed his land once a week.

2. Location: “The visitors explored the city and its many landmarks.”

There are several stunning lakes in North Carolina.

3. Time: “At 5:00 o’clock in the evening, the dog went to check on his food dish.”

Right as class let out, the game started.

4. Degree: He leaped as high as he could.

In spite of his stature, he was unable to open the upper cupboard.

5. Justification: “The plants grew large because they got a lot of sunlight.”

She put in a lot of work, so it’s no surprise that she excelled in mathematics.

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20 Dr. Hadhir H. Abood

6. Sense: “The gazelle galloped across the field.”

Fast currents carried debris and boats down the river. This is according to a number of researchers (Biber et al.,
2000: 45).

Characteristics of Adjuncts

 Adverbs are frequently used as optional parts of clauses. Adverbs that are optional provide the phrase with further
detail and can have a wide range of meanings, including place, time, style, extent, and attitude.

 Optional adverbials can be added to clauses with any type of verb.

 They are usually prepositional phrases, adverb phrases, or noun phrases.

 They can be placed in different positions within the clause, in final, initial, or medial positions.

 More than one of them can occur in a single clause.

 The rest of the clause is only tangentially connected to them. The adverbial is largely peripheral in
comparison to the verb phrase, which is primary (except in those clause patterns that require adverbials),
(Richard, 2020).

Conjuncts Versus Disjuncts and Adjuncts

Greenbaum (1969: 24) establishes three diagnostic criteria to differentiate “adjuncts” from “conjuncts” and “disjuncts.”

The following are some examples:

One, when this is a standalone tone unit and the clause is negated, ‘adjuncts’ are not often seen in the initial
position, although ‘conjuncts’ and ‘disjuncts’ are.

Second, “adjuncts” may serve as the focal point of clause interrogation, but “conjuncts” and “disjuncts” cannot.

Third, whereas ‘conjuncts’ and ‘disjuncts’ cannot be the target of clause negation, ‘adjuncts’ may.

After distinguishing “conjuncts” and “disjuncts” from “adjuncts,” Greenbaum adds one more necessary criterion
to make a clear distinction between them. The ability of an adverb to double as an answer to a yes/no question is the basis
for this criteria. In contrast to “conjuncts,” which are incapable of answering yes or no questions, disjuncts can. Differences
between the two groups include the following.

 Pre- and post-modifications are not possible with conjuncts but are with disjuncts.

 The availability of conjuncts and style disjuncts in both direct (yes-no and wh questions) and indirect (both yes-no
and wh questions are disjunctive) question types, but disjunctives of attitude and substance are unavailable in both
question types.

 Third, disjuncts of style and conjunctions may be used in either obligatory or optional clauses, but disjuncts of
attitude cannot. (ibid).

CONCLUSION

An adjunct is a phrase, clause, or word that can be removed from a sentence without altering its meaning. Adverbs are

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Adjuncts, Disjuncts and Conjuncts Nouns in English 21

commonly used to add emphasis to a verb. When used in this role, an adjunct often implies a time, a method, a location, a
frequency, a justification, or an amount. While, A disjunct is an adverbial phrase used to make a remark about the tone or
style of a sentence in English. A disjunct is a remark or phrase that explicitly states the opinion of the speaker or writer.
These are also referred to as sentence adverbs or sentence adjectives. Unlike adjuncts, which are built into the syntax of a
sentence or clause, disjuncts stand apart from the material they are commenting on. Disjuncts essentially “look down from
above on a clause, making a judgment about what it is saying or how it is written,” according to David Crystal. A conjunct
joins the ideas expressed in two separate sentences. Because of this, it serves no functional purpose in the phrase.

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