Navnleds

Navnleds is a term used in linguistics to describe a noun phrase that lacks a head noun. Instead, the phrase is headed by a determiner, adjective, or other word class that functions as a noun substitute. These phrases are often found in contexts where the referent is understood from the surrounding discourse or shared knowledge. For example, in the sentence "The red one is mine," "the red one" is a navnleds, with "red" acting as the head. Similarly, in "She prefers to eat out," "out" functions as a noun substitute within a prepositional phrase.

The concept of navnleds is particularly relevant in the study of nominalization and ellipsis. In some languages, navnleds are more common and may be formed through different grammatical mechanisms than in others. Understanding navnleds helps linguists analyze sentence structure and the flexibility of word classes in conveying meaning. The term itself is derived from Norwegian, where "navn" means noun and "leds" implies a part or element. Therefore, navnleds literally translates to "noun element."