Question

Pick out the noun phrase from the given sentence:
Both the thieves have fled with the jewels.

A) Both the thieves
B) thieves
C) have fled
D) with the jewels

Answer 1

Hint: Noun phrase is used to refer to a phrase formed by a noun and all its modifiers and determiners.

Complete answer:

In the given sentence, we need to find the option that depicts the most appropriate noun phrase.
In order to do this, we must first understand what a phrase and a noun phrase refers to. A phrase is a group of words that stand together to form a collective unit, forming the component of a clause.
A noun phrase refers to a word or group of words containing a noun and performing the function of a subject, object, or prepositional object in a sentence.
Let us take a look at the given options.
Option ‘B’, thieves, is incorrect as it is a noun and not a phrase.
Option ‘C’, have fled, is incorrect as the word ‘have’ is a verb and hence it is a verb phrase.
Option ‘D’, with the jewels, is incorrect as it has a preposition, ‘with’ and is hence a prepositional phrase.
Hence, the correct answer is option ‘A’, both the thieves, as it contains a noun ‘thieves’ and a quantifier ‘both’ that is used to modify the given noun.

Note: In such questions, locate the subject, noun, object, and preposition in the sentence before taking a look at the given options. This will help you to avoid confusion.