The mother gave the crying child a toy to play with

Question

What is the grammatical function of Crying child and why

Answer 1

In the sentence "The mother gave the crying child a toy to play with," the phrase "the crying child" functions as the indirect object of the verb "gave."

Reasons:

1. Indirect Object: The indirect object is the recipient of the direct object (in this case, "a toy"). It indicates to whom or for whom the action of the verb is performed. Here, the mother is giving a toy to the child.

2. Adjective Usage: The word "crying" is a present participle used as an adjective to modify "child," describing the child's condition at the time of the action.

Thus, "the crying child" as a whole serves to represent the recipient of the toy, fulfilling the role of the indirect object in this sentence structure.