Can we use adverb phrase with conjunction plus noun phrase?

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I could not remember him; but I knew that he was my own uncle—my mother’s brother—that he had taken me when a parentless infant to his house; and that in his last moments he had required a promise of Mrs. Reed that she would rear and maintain me as one of her own children. (Jane Eyre)

Can we use adverb phrase like the highlighted: conjunction plus noun phrase?

Listenever

Posted 2013-02-11T12:35:56.140

Reputation: 25 811

Answers

4

It’s an instance of ellipsis, in which elements of a clause or phrase are not expressed. In the example, ‘when a parentless infant’ would, in full, be ‘when I was a parentless infant’.

Barrie England

Posted 2013-02-11T12:35:56.140

Reputation: 7 553

Is Ellipsis and implicit words are same? – Mistu4u – 2013-02-11T14:01:20.997

@Mistu4u. The missing words are implicit, but ellipsis is the grammatical feature. – Barrie England – 2013-02-11T14:05:07.523

Asked: 2013-02-11T12:35:56.140

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Active: 2016-02-14T09:18:55.993