Can absolute phrase be substituted for noun phrase

(1) He being unable to communicate caused problems.
(2) His being unable to communicate caused problems.

In (1), subject is Absolute Phrase, whereas in (2), subject is a Gerund.

The answer to your question is "no". The function of the absolute phrase (aka nominative absolute) is to add narrative or descriptive details to the sentence. In other words, it is a modifier that introduces an idea related to the sentence as a whole, not to any one of its parts. It has its own subject which is usually not the same subject of the sentence it modifies. Here are some examples of how absolute phrase works.

John McEnroe turned toward the line judge, a mixture of anger and frustration distort his face.

The fire fighters truged back to the truck, their faces lined with exhaustion.

You can see that the two sentences above have their own subject (i.e. John McEnroe, The fire fighters) and the absolute phrase has nothing to do with the subject of each sentence. In form, the absolute phrase is a noun phrase that include a postnoun modifier. But it is not the type of noun phrase that can be subject of a sentence.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Rachel, Moderator,

PromegaX has written a very clear answer to the question. I must correct one detail, however. PromegaX's first example of a sentence with an absolute phrase should read

John McEnroe turned toward the line judge, a mixture of anger and frustration distorting his face.

Marilyn Martin

Here's an example of an absolute with "being unable":

The two parties being unable to reach an agreement, the dispute will now be turned over to an arbitrator

Note that the grammatical subject of the sentence is "dispute," not "parties."

Marilyn Martin

Oops! Thank you very much Marilyn for the correction. It was too late at night when I answered the question.

I have seen cases in which Object of preposition = Absoloute Phrase.

Hi Ven,

It's still not quite clear from your answer. If possible, can you give us some examples of your cases? Maybe we can tell you whether they are absolute phrases or not.

The following are what I gleaned from google.

1. With today being earth day, do you believe recycling works?
2. Problems with lists being archived.
3. Everything to do with her being a woman
4. Dealing with spam being forwared by your system.
5. Great vacations with kids being at great resort.
6. Problem with mail being rejected
7. Preview of books being published.

In order to determine whether a phrase using "with" is an absolute construction (I shouldn't have called it "absolute phrase") we need to have a complete sentence. Except for Sentence 1, none of these examples is a complete sentence. And even if these particular phrases (2 through 7) were part of a complete sentence, none of them would be a candidate for absolute construction status.

Sentence 1,

With today being earth day,. what do you think of recycling?

...is a complete sentence, and yes, the phrase "with today being earth day" is an absolute construction:

Even if with is ellipted (omitted), it is still an absolute construction:

Today being earth day, what do you think of recycling?

An absolute construction has a noun phrase but no finite verb. Sentence 1 has a present participle. Here's another kind:

Her tiny hand clasped in his, she whispered "yes." (past participle)

If we add "with," as is possible in some cases, it's still an absolute construction:

With her tiny hand clasped in his, she whispered "Yes."

Sometimes there is no verb form at all, e.g.

He strode away from his father, his face crimson from shame

We stealthily approached the enemy position, our guns at the ready

As we can note from these examples, absolute constructions are not typical of everyday, casual speech. They are a rhetorical device that is used mainly in writing for stylistic purposes.

Marilyn Martin

Thanks Marilyn Martin,

Can clause (1) be reduced to Noun (2).

(1) The TV is being sold.
(2) The TV being sold.

Another from http://www.dol.gov/ebsa/faqs/faq_911_2.html

(3) Frequently Asked Questions for Reservists Being Called to Active Duty .

In (3)[I]being called[/I} is not passive gerund.