Cambridge Grammar of English Hardback with cd-rom a comprehensive Guide

Compound nouns and noun modifiers

The borderline between compound nouns and noun phrases acting as

premodifiers of noun heads is not always clear. However, the preferred stress

pattern for compounds, with stress on the first item, is usually an indication that

the nouns are considered as an ‘institutionalised’ unit (stressed items in bold):

car park

bus stop

safety helmet

The noun modifier construction has the stress on the noun head:

a fur 

coat

that government 

report

several volunteer 

helpers

bathroom 

door

Meaning of compound nouns

The compound noun structure is extremely varied in the types of meaning

relations it can indicate. It can be used to indicate what someone does (language

teacher

), what something is for (waste-paper basket, grindstone), what the

qualities of something are (whiteboard), how something works (immersion

heater

), when something happens (night frost), where something is (doormat),

what something is made of (woodpile), and so on. 

Proper names

Compound nouns are common in proper names and titles. Most typically, these

have the stress on the final noun:

Narita 

Airport

Head

teacher

New York City 

Hall

Ronald 

Bickerton

The London 

Underground

Mary 

Prosser

Prime 

Minister

video shop

orange juice

petrol station

window box

sports centre

greyhound

blackboard

grindstone

320 | The noun phrase

Cambridge Grammar of English

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