Russian uses five different terms to name civilian nuclear power plant valves: армат́ура, в́ентиль, задв́ижка, кл́апан, предохран́ительньıӥ кл́апан (armatura, ventil', zadvizhka, klapan, predoxranitel'nyj klapan). These words can be distinguished semantically on the basis of binary marking for intrinsic (physical) or extrinsic (situational) meaning. Modifiers (determiners) also refer to intrinsic or extrinsic features of a valve. There appears to be sufficient evidence to posit that extrinsic features are primary in this semantic class. Analysis of the syntax of complex noun phrases enables one to establish sequential patterns of determiners for both English and Russian; the Russian pattern must account for the existence of both left- and right-posed determiners.