Lexical and phrasal categories (Noun and Noun Phrase)

I will look at the relation between lexical and phrasal categories, using nouns and Noun Phrases
as an example. We have discussed that an NP is a phrase that contains, and is centred on, a noun.
Their rather dubious jokes is an NP and it contains the noun jokes. But it contains words of
other categories as well. Why does the phrase as a whole have to be of the same category as
jokes? Why can’t it be of the same category as their or rather or dubious? The answer crucially
involves the notion of head.
I showed how rather modified dubious, rather dubious modified jokes, and their modified
rather dubious jokes. At every level of structure in the phrase, it is jokes that functions as head.
It is the category of the head word that determines the category of the phrase a whole. The other
words are present only because of the function they (directly or indirectly) have in respect of the
head noun. So, we can think of their rather dubious jokes and their extremely subtle tactics as
expansions of jokes and tactics respectively.
It is the head noun that determines the number (singular or plural) and the gender (masculine,
feminine, or neutral) of the Noun Phrase as a whole. This can be seen by considering what
pronoun could be used to replace the NP in a sentence:
[3] their extremely subtle tactics – they, them
[4] their extremely subtle tactic – it
[5] an extremely subtle actress – she, her
[6] an extremely subtle actor – he, him.
Tactics, to take just the first example, is the plural head noun. So the NP as a whole is plural, as
indicated by the fact that it could only be replaced by the plural pronouns they or them.
Before I comment further on the relation between NP and N, here is a phrase marker of their
extremely subtle tactics, in which I have filled in all the information.about categories introduced
so far.
Tree Diagram
For the topmost node, I have categorised PHRASE-a as a Noun Phrase (NP). In order to say that
tactics is a noun, I have introduced an extra node, immediately dominating tactics, which I have
labelled N. Noun Phrases, of course, may contain more than one noun. But (with one exception
to be discussed in a moment) only one noun in a Noun Phrase can function as its head. In each of
the following sentences, first identify the subject NP and then all the nouns contained in those
subject NPs, indicating which is the head noun.
Consider the following sentence
The man devouring the plums is grinning broadly.
The subject NP is the man devouring the plums. It contains two nouns, man and plums, and it is
clear that man is the head noun. The appropriate pronoun to replace the whole Noun Phrase
would be he – a singular masculine pronoun – which is consistent with the number and gender of
man but not with the number and gender of plums.
Consider another example
The girl eating the apple is smiling broadly.
The subject NP is the girl eating the apples. It contains two nouns, girl and apple and it is clear
that the girl is the head noun. The appropriate pronoun to replace the whole noun phrase would
be she-a singular feminine pronoun-which is consistent with the number and gender of girl but
not with the number and gender of apple.