EXPANDED NOUN PHRASES Expanded noun phrases add information to nouns (naming words). They make your writing more interesting and can help the reader to build a picture in their minds.

Examples of nouns: house, garden, lady, creature 4 types of noun expansions: 

Adjectives - The spooky house was deserted. By adding adjectives, you make your description more accurate, more interesting. Adjectives can be placed right next to the noun (in that case they are called “épithètes”) or after a description verb such as BE or SEEM (être or sembler, paraître)

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Relative clauses - The old lady who lived next door had a black cat. A noun can also be expanded with a relative clause, introduced with a relative pronoun such as WHO or THAT (in French “QUI, Avec qui, etc) . This clause contains a verb and it gives information about the noun LADY. It could easily be deleted without destroying the original sentence.

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Noun complement - The garden gate was open. The noun “Gate” is expanded with another noun. Here, it’s GARDEN. In French we would say “le portail du jardin”. We would use DE or Du or DES between the 2 nouns. Ex: La porte de la salle, la dame de pique, la maison des sept nains.

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Apposition – This is more common in French than in English. It consists in a noun phrase placed next to another one, both separated with a comma. This noun phrase adds descriptive details or information to the main noun. Ex : Amateur de sang frais, Dracula adorait choisir de jeunes victimes.