Understanding Syntax (Understanding Language)

287 Pages·2005·14.46 MB·English

by  Maggie Tallerman

Understanding
Syntax
second edition
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Understanding
Syntax
Second Edition
Maggie Tallerman
Understanding
Language Series

Series Editors:
Bernard Comrie
and
Greville Corbett
HODDER
EDUCATION
PART OF HACHETTE UK
Copyright © 2005 Maggie Tallerman
First edition published 1998
Second edition published 2005
Impression number 10 9 876
Year 2009 2008
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Still for S.].
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Contents
Acknowledgements xi
Acknowledgements to the first edition xiii
A note to the instructor: changes to the second edition xv
Note to the reader xvii
List of abbreviations used in examples xix
1 What is syntax? 1
1 . 1 Some concepts and misconceptions l
1.1.1 What is the study of syntax about? l
1.1.2 Language change 8
1.2 Use of linguistic examples 11
1.2.1 Why not just use examples from English? 11
1 .2.2 How to read linguistic examples 12
1 . 3 Why do languages have syntax? 17
1.3.1 Word order 18
1 .3.2 Promotion and demotion processes 20
1.3.3 All languages have structure 22
Further reading 24
Exercises 24
2 Words belong to different classes 29
2. 1 Identifying word classes 29
2.1.1 How can we tell that words belong to different classes? 29
2.1 .2 Starting to identify nouns, adjectives and verbs 30
2.1.3 An illustration: How do speakers of a language identify word
classes? 33
2.2 Syntax of the major word classes 35
2.2. 1 An introduction to verb classes 36
2.2.2 The noun phrase 38
2.2.3The adjective phrase 44
2.2.4 The preposition phrase 47
2.2.5 Adverbs 49
2.2.6 Summary 51
Contents
viii
2.3 Grammatical categories 51
2.3.1 Introduction 52
2.3.2 Grammatical categories for nouns 53
2.3.3 Grammatical categories for verbs 55
2.3.4 Grammatical categories for adjectives 59
2.3.5 Grammatical categories for adpositions 60
2.3.6 Summary 61
Further reading 61
Exercises 61
3 Looking inside sentences 68
3. 1 Simple sentences and finiteness 68
3.1.1 The clause and the simple sentence 68
3. 1 .2 Finiteness and auxiliaries 70
3. 1.3 Non-finite verbs 73
3.1.4 Summary 76
3.2 Introduction to complex sentences 76
3.2. 1 Definitions and examples: Matrix and subordinate clauses 76
3.2.2 Distinguishing matrix and subordinate clauses in English 80
3.3 Cross -linguistic variation in clause types 83
3.3. 1 Languages without infinitival clauses 83
3.3.2 Inflected infinitival clauses 84
3.3.3 The co - ordination strategy 85
3.3.4 Nominalization 86
3.3.5 Serial verbs 87
3.3.6 Summary 89
Further reading 89
Exercises 90
4 Head words and phrases 95
4. 1 Heads and their dependents 95
4.1.1 What is a head? 95
4. 1 .2 The influence of heads on their dependents 96
4.1.3 Summary: The properties of heads 98
4. 1 .4 More about dependents: Adjuncts and complements 98
4. 1 .5 More about verb classes: Verbs and their complements 100
4. 1 .6 Other heads and their complements 102
4. 1 .7 Summary: The main properties of complements vs. adjuncts 104
4. 1 .8 Determiners and nouns: Which is the head? 104
4. 1 .9 Phrases within phrases 105
4.2 Where does the head occur in a phrase? Head-initial and
head-final languages 106
4.2.1 Head- initial languages 106
4.2.2 Head-final languages 107
4.2.3 An exercise on head-initial and head-final constructions 108
Contents
ix
4 . 3 Head- marking and dependent- marking languages 109
4.3. 1 Definitions and illustrations: Syntactic relationships between
heads and dependents 109
4.3.2 Head preposition/postposition and its NP object 110
4.3.3 The clause: A head verb and the arguments of the verb 111
4.3.4 Head noun and dependent possessor NP 113
4.3.5 Head noun and dependent AP 113
4.3.6 An exercise on head-marking and dependent-marking 114
4.3.7 Some typological distinctions between languages 115
4.3.8 Summary 118
Further reading 118
Exercises 118
5 How do we identify constituents? 123
5. 1 Discovering the structure of sentences 123
5.1.1 Evidence of structure in sentences 123
5.1.2 Some syntactic tests for constituent structure 125
5.1.3 Introduction to constituent structure trees 129
5.1.4 Summary 134
5.2 Relationships within the tree 134
5.3 Developing detailed tree diagrams and tests for constituent structure 137
5.3. 1 Verb classes and constituent structure tests 137
5.3.2 The co-ordination test for constituency 144
5.3.3 Do all languages have the same constituents? 146
5.3.4 An introduction to the bar notation 147
5.4 Summary 150
Further reading 150
Exercises 151
6 Relationships within the clause 155
6.1 Introduction 155
6.2 Order of phrases within the clause 156
6.2. 1 Basic and marked orders 156
6.2.2 Variations of order 158
6.2.3 Statistical patterns 158
6.3 Case systems 160
6.3. 1 Ways of dividing core arguments 160
6.3.2 Nominative/accusative systems 162
6.3.3 Ergative/absolutive systems 163
6.3.4 Split systems 164
6.3.5 Marked and unmarked forms 166
6.4 Agreement 166
6.5 Grammatical relations 171
6.5.1 Introduction 171
6.5.2 Subjects: Typical cross-linguistic properties 172