A phrase is indeed a small group of words. But it's more specific than that. Here's why:
* A phrase does not have a subject and a verb. It's a group of words that acts as a single part of speech (like an adjective, adverb, noun, or verb).
* Phrases can't stand alone as a complete sentence. They need to be part of a larger sentence to make sense.
Here are some examples of phrases:
* "In the morning" (prepositional phrase)
* "Running quickly" (participial phrase)
* "To go to the store" (infinitive phrase)
So, while a phrase is a small group of words, not all small groups of words are phrases. Only those that lack a subject and verb and function as a single part of speech.