Section 13.6 Noun Adjectivals
When one noun modifies another noun, the modifying noun is called a noun adjectival (also known as an attributive noun). In coffee table, the noun coffee modifies table, specifying what kind of table it is. This is a productive pattern in English—speakers create new noun-noun compounds freely. Noun adjuncts differ from adjectives in important ways: they cannot be graded (a very coffee table), they cannot appear in predicative position (the table is coffee), and they always precede the head noun.
Formation.
A noun adjectival is simply a noun placed before another noun to modify it. The first noun classifies, categorizes, or identifies the type of the second noun:
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the coffee table (material/purpose)
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a government report (source)
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the history professor (field)
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car insurance (object insured)
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a chicken sandwich (content)
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the morning commute (time)
Noun Adjectival vs. Adjective.
How do you know whether a pre-modifier is a noun adjectival or an adjective? Apply the adjective tests from Chapter 5:
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Can it be graded?
a very government report— No. It is a noun adjectival. -
Can it appear predicatively?
The report is government.— No. It is a noun adjectival. -
Compare: a beautiful report → a very beautiful report → The report is beautiful. — Yes to both. Beautiful is an adjective.
Labeling Table.
[S [NP [DET The] [N government] [N report]] [VP [V arrived]]]
Note that the POS for the noun adjectival is N (noun), not ADJ—it retains its form as a noun even though it fills the adjectival function.
Key Points.
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Noun adjuncts always precede the head noun—they never appear in post-position or predicative position.
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Multiple noun adjectivals can stack: the university research ethics committee.
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In the pre-modifier order (Section 13.3), noun adjectivals come last, just before the head noun: a beautiful old French cooking pot.
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In diagrams, label noun adjectivals as N, not ADJ. Their form is noun; their function is adjectival.
