Janet,

 

One sticking point here, I think, is that it’s tempting to set up a parallel between “X such as Y” and “such X as Y”:

 

Altering the position of such vocal structures as the tongue and lips produces different sounds.

Altering the position of vocal structures such as the tongue and lips produces different sounds.

 

If those are considered “the same thing” but with different arrangements, it’s hard to label such as a preposition. That first version is becoming rare in spoken English, though, and I think it would be plausible to argue that – regardless of any historical connection between the structures – people now use it as a phrasal preposition. I don’t think that’s the “official” stance taken by most dictionaries, though (I’m a linguist, so disagreeing with dictionaries simply makes me feel all professionalish).

 

Sincerely,

 

Bill Spruiell

 

 

In the following sentence, would you consider ‘such as the tongue and lips’ a prepositional phrase?  Can ‘such as’ function as a preposition?

 

Altering the position of vocal structures such as the tongue and lips produces different sounds.

 

Janet

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