- Nominalization is the process of changing verbs (or, sometimes adjectives) to nouns.
- It is rather common in academic and formal writing.
- Nominalization helps to make writing more elegant and concise.
- Practice converting verbs into nouns:
withdraw — withdrawal
submit — submission
- Practice converting adjectives into nouns:
aware — awareness
diverse — diversity
- Nominalization may also be derived from phrasal verbs.
e.g. to break out – an outbreak , to turn out – a turnout
- Paraphrase the sentences using nominalization:
to release this latest report — this latest release
to understand how significant the cyber security threats they face are — to understand the significance of the cyber security threats they face
Nominal Groups
- To show the relationship between nouns we can use the following patterns:
— the genitive case: noun + ‘s + noun (e.g. the president’s office)
— of- structure : noun + of + noun (e.g. the leadership of the country)
— an attributive nominal phrase: noun + noun (e.g. export business)
- There are many cases when we use an attributive nominal phrase (“noun + noun” structure).
- In such phrases a noun is used as a classifying adjective of another noun – it tells or describes the nature of the second noun: e.g. human rights activists; oil company
- examples:
If the economic structure is more diverse, it makes the region more resistant to shocks. — The diversity of the economic structure provides greater regional resistance to shocks.
Today’s threats differ from those of the 19th and 20th centuries and so, too, should our responses.
Adrian Nish offers his perspective on the state of cyber security and predictions for 2019.