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thefreedictionary.com:
(1) The shop stocks everything from cigarettes to recycled loo paper.

Am I right that?:
The noun phrase "everything from cigarettes to recycled loo paper" is the direct object of "stocks".
The prepositional phrase "from cigarettes to recycled loo paper" is a supplement.
"Everything" is the anchor of this supplement.

If I'm not right, then:
Why not?
What does the prepositional phrase "from cigarettes to recycled loo paper" function as?

Am I right that?:
"From cigarettes to recycled loo paper" is not an appositive to "everything" because if we remove "everything":
(2) The shop stocks from cigarettes to recycled loo paper.
then (2) is ungrammatical since "from cigarettes to recycled loo paper" is a prepositional phrase and, therefore, can't be a direct object of the transitive verb "stocks".

If I'm not right, then:
Why not?

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    Yes: "everything [from cigarettes to recycled loo paper]" is an NP functioning as object of "stocks". I'd say that the bracketed PP is complement of "everything" since that is the head that licenses it.
    – BillJ
    Commented May 15, 2023 at 12:52
  • @BillJ Does "a grin from ear to ear" have the same parse? I mean the PP “from ear to ear” is the complement of “a grin”. Thanks.
    – Loviii
    Commented Aug 6, 2023 at 2:35

1 Answer 1

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Everything from A to Z is a way of saying 'all kinds of things'. Usually A and Z are things at opposite ends of some kind of scale (large to small, elegant to utilitarian); I'm not sure what the criteria for mentioning cigarettes and toilet rolls are!

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