What kind of construction is "All I want..."? Sentences like "All I want to say is that they don't really care about us." and "All I want is you.", they all have "All I want...." as subjects. I have t

Speare

What kind of construction is "All I want..."? Sentences like "All I want to say is that they don't really care about us." and "All I want is you.", they all have "All I want...." as subjects. I have two questions about this construction. Q1: Is "that" reduced between "All" and "I want" in terms of grammar? Q2: Is "All I want..." a noun clause?

Oct 9, 2019 10:40 AM

Answers · 8

Yes, it’s reduced from “all that I want”. This being true, the whole thing isn’t a clause, but a noun (“all”) plus an object (defining) relative clause (functioning as an adjective). As much fun as abstract grammar is, Speare, if you’d like a more practical analysis, perhaps you could explain what it is you’d really like to know.

October 9, 2019

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