A phrase does not contain a

Participle Phrase
A participle phrase is an adjective phrase headed by a participle. In these examples, the participle phrases are shaded and the participles are in bold.

• 
  Overcome with disappointment, the professor shook his head and sighed.
  
• 
  Within 5 seconds, the dog chasing the hare was out of sight.
  

Read more about participle phrases.
Appositive Phrase
An appositive is a noun or a noun phrase that sits next to another noun to rename it or to describe it in another way. In these examples, the appositives are shaded.

• 
  Elizabeth I, the daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, became Queen of England in 1558.
  
• 
  Thomas Edison, the inventor of the light bulb, is often called USA's greatest inventor.
  

Read more about appositives.
Phrases Functioning as Different Parts of Speech
Here is a list of the parts of speech with an example of a phrase functioning as each one.

• 
  Adjectives
  
  • 
    I am looking for a book to make me laugh.
    

(This is an example of an infinitive phrase functioning as an adjective. It describes "a book." Phrases commonly function as adjectives.)
Read more about adjective phrases.

• 
  Adverbs
  
  • 
    I am going there to support you.
    

(This is an example of an infinitive phrase functioning as an adverb. It is an adverb of reason. Phrases commonly function as adverbs.)
Read more about adverbial phrases.
Conjunctions

• 
  I am not only angry but also disappointed.
  

(This is an example of a phrase functioning as a conjunction. Most conjunctions are single words, not phrases. This is an example of a correlative conjunction.)

• 
  Determiners
  
  • 
    I know a few people who could give you a hundred and one reasons.
    

(In this example, there are two phrases functioning as determiners. These determiners are both quantifiers. Most determiners are single words.)

• 
  Interjections
  
  • 
    Holy moly! She won!
    

(This is an example of a phrase functioning as an interjection. Most interjections are single words.)

• 
  Nouns
  
  • 
    Running the tap is necessary to clear the air pocket.
    

(This is an example of a gerund phrase functioning as a noun. Phrases commonly function as nouns.)
Read more about noun phrases.
Prepositions

• 
  According to Mark, the system is broken.
  

(This is an example of a phrase functioning as a preposition. Most prepositions are single words.)

• 
  Pronouns
  
  • 
    No one is infallible.
    

(This is an example of a phrase functioning as a pronoun. Most pronouns are single words.)

• 
  Verbs
  
  • 
    I am going there to support you.
    

(This is an example of a phrase functioning as a verb. Only one-word verbs (e.g., play, think) in the simple past tense (played, thought) and the simple present tense (plays, thinks) are single words. The rest are phrases that include auxiliary verbs.)
Read more about verb tense.
The Hierarchy of Word Units
The hierarchy of word units is:

• 
  Word (e.g., Shark)
  

(A word is the smallest meaningful unit.)

• 
  Phrase (e.g., A seven-foot tiger shark)
  

(A phrase is a single piece of information made up of more than one word. It will not contain a subject and a verb.)

• 
  Clause (e.g., When a seven-foot tiger shark arrived...)
  

(A clause is a single piece of information made up of more than one word which contains a subject and a verb.)

• 
  Sentence (e.g., A seven-foot tiger shark arrived.)
  

(A sentence conveys a complete idea. It must contain at least one clause. Note: A clause that stands alone as a sentence is known as an independent clause.)

• 
  Complex Sentence (e.g., When a seven-foot tiger shark arrived, the crew stopped fishing.)
  

(A complex sentence is an independent clause supported by at least one other clause.)

• 
  Compound Sentence (e.g., A seven-foot tiger shark arrived, and the crew stopped fishing.)
  

(A compound sentence is a sentence made up of at least two independent clauses.)
Why Should I Care about Phrases?
As we've covered, the scope of the term "phrase" is wide, and it is not uncommon to have a phrase that has another phrase embedded within it, which itself could have an embedded phrase. That sounds complicated, and it can be, but here's one simple, key fact about every phrase: it will only function as one part of speech.

That said, here are the top seven writing issues related to phrases.
(Issue 1) When your noun phrase is the subject of a verb, ensure subject-verb agreement with the head noun.

• 
  The Spitfire's 9-yard belt of bullets give us the term "the full nine yards." 
  

(The head noun in this noun phrase is "belt." All the other words in the noun phrase are modifiers. As "belt" is singular, the verb "give" is wrong. It should be "gives.")

• 
  The Spitfire's 9-yard belt of bullets gives us the term "the full nine yards." 
  

Do not be tricked into agreeing the verb with the nearest noun (here, "bullets"). When a noun phrase is the subject of a verb, the head noun governs the verb.

Read more about subject-verb agreement.

(Issue 2) Avoid ambiguity when placing your prepositional phrase.
Ambiguity with prepositional phrases can be an issue. Look at this example:

• 
  Mark fed the shark in the cage.
  

(Does the prepositional phrase tell us where Mark was when he fed the shark, or does it tell us which shark Mark fed? Is "in the cage" functioning as an adverb modifying "fed" or an adjective modifying "shark"? If you read it as an adverb (i.e., telling us where Mark was), you might assume there was just one shark. If you read it as an adjective (i.e., "the shark that was in the cage"), you would assume there were other sharks.)
You should eliminate such ambiguity by rewording. For example:

• 
  Mark was in the cage when he fed the shark. 
  
• 
  Mark fed the shark that was in the cage. 
  

Of course, as readers have some context, there is usually no genuine ambiguity, but you should still strive to keep your sentences ambiguity-free to portray yourself as a clear thinker. Here is another example:

• 
  Simon and his mother were reunited after 52 years in McDonald's. 
  

When you use a prepositional phrase, check to see whether it could potentially be modifying something else in your sentence. Bear in mind that, even though it's clear to you what your prepositional phrase is modifying, it might not be clear to your readers.

If your prepositional phrase is ambiguous, move it next to (usually immediately to the right of) whatever it's meant to be modifying. That usually does the trick. For example:

• 
  Simon and his mother were reunited in McDonald's after 52 years. 
  

Sometimes, you have to reword. For example:

• 
  Joe hit the burglar with a hammer. (ambiguous)
  
• 
  Joe hit with a hammer the burglar . (unwieldy)
  
• 
  Joe used a hammer to hit the burglar. 
  

(This reworded version works.)
Read more about this issue on the "prepositional phrases" page (see Reason 3).
(Issue 3) Don't use a hyphen with an adverb ending "-ly."
When an adverb ending -"ly" (and lots do) is modifying an adjective, don't use a hyphen to join it to the adjective. The hyphen is unjustified (in the interest of writing efficiency).

• 
  She has beautifully-formed feet. 
  

(The hyphen is unjustified when the adverb ends -"ly.")
However, if your adverb is one like "well," "fast," "best," or "better" (i.e., one that could feasibly be mistaken as an adjective), then use a hyphen to eliminate any ambiguity.
She has well-formed feet. (The hyphen is justified to make it clear you mean the adverb "well," i.e., healthily, and not the adjective "well," i.e., healthy.) Read more about this issue on the "adjective phrases" page.

(Issue 4) You can usually save two words by deleting "in order" in a phrase that starts "in order to."

If you need to reduce your word count, you can usually replace "in order to" with just "to" without any loss of meaning. For example:

• 
  You need a stubborn belief in an idea in order to see it realised. (Inventor James Dyson)
  

Read more about deleting "in order" on the "infinitives" page (see Reason 3).
(Issue 5) Punctuate your participle phrases correctly.
Here are some general guidelines to help with correctly placing and punctuating a participle phrase.

(Guideline 1) When a participle phrase is at the front of a sentence, offset it with a comma and put the noun being modified immediately after the comma.

• 
  Removing his glasses, the professor shook his head with disappointment. 
  

(Guideline 2) When a participle phrase follows the noun it's modifying, don't use a comma.

• 
  Scandal is gossip made tedious by morality. (Playwright Oscar Wilde)
  

However, if the participle phrase is nonessential (i.e., you could delete it or put it in brackets), then offset with a comma (or two commas if it's mid-sentence). (You could also use dashes or brackets.)

• 
  The yellow Ferrari, unregistered in the UK and probably stolen in France, was used as the get-away car. 
  

Read more about this issue on the page about restrictive (or essential) modifiers.

(Guideline 3) When a participle phrase is at the end of your sentence and not immediately after its noun, offset it with a comma to help show that it's not modifying whatever is to its left.

• 
  The boys loved their boxing gloves, wearing them even to bed. 
  

(Issue 6) Split infinitives are okay.
Often, an infinitive phrase will feature a split infinitive(e.g., "to really try," "to secretly observe").

Using a split infinitive is usually the most succinct and natural way to write. However, there's an issue with the split infinitive: some regard it as non-standard English or even a grammar mistake. Let's be clear. Split infinitives are perfectly acceptable.

But, can you take the risk that some of your readers might consider you sloppy for using a split infinitive? Here's some advice: Have a quick go at rewording your sentence to avoid the split infinitive, but if your new sentence doesn't read as well (and it probably won't), go with the split infinitive.

In these examples, the split infinitives are in bold and the infinitive phrases are shaded:

• 
  He needs to accurately present the facts.
  
• 
  He needs to present the facts accurately.
  

(The second version (the reworded version) is safer. It sounds okay, and it doesn't feature a split infinitive that could annoy some of your readers.)
Read more about this issue on the "infinitive phrases" page (see Point 2).
(Issue 7) Gerunds can reduce your word count and improve reading flow.
Gerund phrases are useful for reducing your word count and writing better-flowing sentences. Look at this sentence:

• 
  The discovery of this new cave will assist with the facilitation of the exploration of the western tunnels.
  

(This sentence has way too many nouns. It's long and stuffy, and it doesn't flow naturally.)
Here is the sentence using gerund phrases:

• 
  Discovering this new cave will assist with exploring the western tunnels.
  

(This version features two gerund phrases. It flows far better than the version above.)
Read more about this issue on the "gerund phrases" page.
Key Points

• 
  When a noun phrase is the subject of a verb, don't let the modifiers divert your eye from the head noun as it must govern the verb.
  
• 
  If your prepositional phrase could cause ambiguity, put it next to whatever it's modifying.
  
• 
  Join the adverb "well" to any adjective it's modifying with a hyphen.
  
• 
  If "in order to" adds no clarity and you're not looking for emphasis on the reason, delete "in order."
  
• 
  Split infinitives are fine.
  
• 
  Placed at the front of a sentence, a participle phrase is offset with a comma.
  
• 
  A participle phrase placed immediately after the noun its modifying is not offset with commas (unless it's nonessential).
  
• 
  Use gerund phrases to write shorter, better-flowing sentences.