Meaning & use
appositive
A noun or noun phrase placed next to another noun to identify or rename it, such as my friend in Anna, my friend, arrived late.
See it in a sentence
In the sentence 'Paris, the capital of France, is famous for its museums,' the phrase is an appositive.
Teachers often ask students to set off an appositive with commas to show it renames the noun before it.
A note on using this word
An appositive is typically set off by commas when nonessential to the sentence's meaning, but not when it is essential for identifying the noun.
Words with a similar meaning
This term is best learned through its definition and examples.
Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.
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