Guest  +  54379 Tue, 09 Nov 04 04:18 PM Please define what the word combination 'years old' is in grammatical terms. Example, "We are addressing the topic to people who are 50 years old." Thank you! Guest Grammar

	Mister Micawber  +  54452 Tue, 09 Nov 04 11:42 PM I believe it is an adjective phrase modifiying '50': They are 50. They are 50 years of age. They are 50 years old. I would be happy to receive correction, however. Interesting question. Mister Micawber Joined on Wed, Aug 4 2004 Yokohama Veteran Member 30,788 'The question is,' said Humpty Dumpty, 'which is to be master-- that's all.'

	MrPedantic  +  54463 Wed, 10 Nov 04 12:28 AM Hello Guest and Mister M. It looks like a postpositive adjective to me as well, meaning 'having lived for'; though I would say it relates to 'they' (in this example). Other views surely abound out there... MrP MrPedantic Joined on Tue, Oct 12 2004 Veteran Member 12,592 ...opella forensis / adducit febris...

	CalifJim  +  54475 Wed, 10 Nov 04 02:56 AM "old" is an adjective, of course. "fifty years" is a noun phrase used as an adverb answering the question "how (old)?". How old is he? = adverb adjective verb pronoun. The pattern is NUMBER + UNIT + DIMENSION-ADJECTIVE Numbers: 3, 6, 10, 20, 75, ... Dimension adjective: old Corresponding Units: years, days, months, ... Dimension adjective: long Corresponding Units: miles, feet, yards, meters, light-years Dimension adjective: wide Corresponding Units: (same as for length) From this we get "How long?" "Five meters long." "How old?" "Fifty years old." "How deep?" "A millimeter deep." ... Exception: It's not "25 degrees hot", just "25 degrees". CalifJim Joined on Mon, Aug 2 2004 California Veteran Member 22,393 "There are no facts, only interpretations" - Nietzsche Grammar, Verbs, Nouns, Pronouns, Adverbs, Noun Phrases