preposition complement

preposition + wh-complement clause

1. Descriptions
   • wh-complement clauses can be compliments of preopositions and objects of prepositional verbs.
   • wh-complements begin with who, what, when, how, where, why, or which.
   • Common prepositions are in, on, at, by, with, about, and through
   • Prepositional verbs are verbs that when combined with a preposition may take on new meaning.
2. Tag
   • whcls+incomp is tagged on the main verb of the wh-complement clause.
3. Examples
   • I’ll offer a suggestion for what we should do.
4. Discussions
   • When wh-complement clauses are part of a comparative construction, they were not tagged.
     • e.g., this is the probability of getting a score bigger than what we calculate.
   • Q. Should we include that clauses? (e.g., He took comfort in that he was not alone in his struggles; The scientist found satisfaction in that her research was making a difference)
   • Check out the list of the multi-word prepositions here.

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Prepositional phrases

Prepositional phrases are structures that combine a preposition with a complement, typically a noun phrase. This combination extends a noun phrase, creating a link that integrates it into the larger context of a sentence. Examples include in the morning, to him, a street with no name, and in which she had to be expelled. Prepositions can be accompanied by nominal clauses (wh-complement clause, e.g., suggestion for what we need) and ing-clauses as complements (e.g., interested in playing the piano) (p. 103).