Test Suite
Grammar Formalisms

\subsection{Core sentences}

Tenses and Verb Agreement:

Simple past tense
The doctor examined Sam.
The doctors examined Sam. 

Simple present tense, 3sg subject
The doctor examines Sam.

Main clause needs tensed verb. 
*The doctor examining Sam.
*The doctor to examine Sam. 

Wrong agreement with 3sg subject
*The doctor examine Sam.  

3pl subject
The doctors examine Sam.

Wrong agreement with 3pl subject
*The doctors examines Sam. 

Agreement between noun and determiner

This doctor yawned.
*This doctors yawned. 
These doctors yawned. 
*These doctor yawned.
The doctor yawned.
The doctors yawned.
A doctor yawned.
*A doctors yawned. 

Determiners with count and mass nouns:

Singular count nouns need determiners
*Doctor yawned.

Plural count nouns can occur without determiners
Doctors yawned.

Singular mass noun doesn't need determiner
Water leaked.

Mass noun with mass determiner
Much water leaked.

Mass noun with count determiner
*A water leaked. 

Count noun with mass determiner
*Much doctor yawned. 

``The'' goes with everything:
The doctor yawned.
The water leaked.

``This'' goes with everything:
This doctor yawned.
This water leaked.

Mass nouns aren't plural:
*Waters leaked.
*These waters leaked.
*The waters leaked.  


Auxiliary verbs:

``Be'' is followed by a present participle:
The doctor is yawning.
*The doctor is yawned.
*The doctor is yawns.
*The doctor is yawn.

``have'' is followed by an active voice past participle
The doctor has yawned.
*The doctor has yawn.
*The doctor has yawns.
*The doctor has yawning.

Either transitive verb without direct object, or passive voice with ``have''.
*The doctor has examined.  



\item The doctor is examining Sam.
\item The doctor has examined Sam.
\item The teacher gave a book to Sam.
\item The teacher is giving a book to Sam.
\item The teacher has given a book to Sam.
\item The girl saw Sam.
\item The girl has seen Sam.
\item The girl sees Sam.
\item Sam loaded the truck with hay.
Sam smeared paint onto the wall.


\subsection{Transitivity Alternations}

Passive:  

Make sure that ``Sam'' is the patient, not the agent.
Sam was examined by the doctor. 

Passive ``be'' has to be followed by a passive voice past participle:

Passive ``be'' followed by active voice and wrong verb form.
*Sam was examining by the doctor.

Passive ``be'' with a transitive verb, or active ``be'' with wrong
verb form. 
*The doctor was examined Sam.

Dative Shift:

The teacher gave the student a book.
The teacher gave a book to the student. 

Make sure auxiliary verbs work here too:
The teacher is giving the student a book.
The teacher has given the student a book. 
*The teacher is gives the student a book.
*The teacher is give the student a book.
*The teacher has gives the student a book.
*The teacher has give the student a book.

Interaction of dative and passive:

The student was given a book (by the teacher). 
The book was given to the student (by the teacher).  







\begin{itemize}
\item {\bf Passive:}  
\begin{itemize}
\item Identify the direct object:  This will be the noun phrase
immediately to the right of the verb, if the verb is transitive.  Note
that direct object is not equivalent to patient.  In {\it The teacher
gave a book to Sam\/}, {\it a book\/} is the direct object.  In {\it
The teacher gave Sam a book\/}, {\it Sam\/} is the direct object.  The
direct object is defined, somewhat circularly, as the NP that becomes
the subject of the passive:  {\it A book was given to Sam\/} or {\it
Sam was given a book\/}.

\item Put the direct object in subject position.

\item Optionally, put the agent noun phrase (the original subject) in
a prepositional phrase with the preposition {\it by\/}. 

\item Finally, change the verb.  This is a bit complicated, and is
technically not really part of the passive rule.  The verb
has to become a past participle ({\it examined, given, seen, loaded,
smeared\/}).   Also, an auxiliary verb must be added: {\it be\/} or
{\it get\/}.  If there is already an auxiliary verb, put the old one
first, and put the new one between the old one and the main verb.  

\examples{
\item The wall is being/getting smeared with paint.
\item The wall has been/gotten smeared with paint.}

\end{itemize}

\item {\bf Dative Shift:} This alternation applies to verbs like {\it
give\/} that have an agent, patient, and recipient.   The recipient
loses its preposition and moves to a position immediately after the
verb.  We say that it has become the direct object because it is not
eligible to become the subject of the passive.  The patient is placed
after the recipient.

\example{The teacher gave Sam a book.}

\item {\bf Spray-load:} This alternation applies to verbs that have a
patient and either a container or surface that the patient is moved
to.  The container or surface moves to a position immediately to the
right of the verb, and loses its preposition.  We say that it has
become the direct object because it is now eligible to become the
subject of the passive.  The patient argument appears after the
container or surface and has a preposition.

\examples{
\item Sam sprayed the wall with paint.
\item Sam loaded the truch with hay.}
\end{itemize}

\subsection{Long Distance Dependencies}

\begin{itemize}
\item {\bf Wh-question:}  Identify one noun phrase and replace it with
a wh-question word or phrase like {\it who\/} or {\it what\/} or {\it
which book\/}.  Move the wh-phrase to the front of the sentence.  The
position that it vacated is called the gap.  Now adjust the auxiliary
verbs.  If the wh-phrase moved from subject position of the main
clause, no adjustments are necessary.  If it moved from any other
position, invert the subject and the auxiliary verb.  If there is no
auxiliary verb, insert a form of {\it do\/} in the same tense as the
original verb and change the original verb to an infinitive.

\examples{
\item Which book did the teacher give to Sam?
\item Who is examining Sam?
\item Who is the doctor examining?}

\item {\bf It-cleft:}  Take one NP from the sentence, leaving a gap in
the position it vacated.  Put the sentence in this pattern:  {\it It
is/was NP that/who S-with-gap\/}.

\examples{
\item It was Sue who saw Sam.
\item It was {\it the wall\/} that Sam smeared with paint.}

\item {\bf Relative clause:}  Take two sentences that have a common
noun phrase such as {\it The doctor examined Sam\/} and {\it The
doctor smeared the wall with paint.}  Choose one clause as the main
clause.  

\example{{\bf The doctor} examined Sam.}

Find the shared noun phrase {\it the doctor\/} in the main
clause.  Note that this NP does not have to be the subject.  It can be
the object or oblique. Put a relativizer ({\it that, who, which, or null\/}) after
the NP in the main clause.  

\example{{\bf The doctor who \ldots} examined Sam.}

Now construct the embedded clause.  Delete the noun phrase that the
two clauses share.  Note that this NP does not need to be the subject
as it is in this example. 

\example{{\bf \ldots} smeared the wall with paint.}

Put the embedded clause after the relativizer in the NP of the main
clause.

\example{The doctor who smeared the wall with paint examined Sam.}

\end{itemize}

\subsection{Embedding Operations}

\begin{itemize}
\item It seems that S.

It seems that the doctor yawned.

Make sure the verb form is right:
*It seems that the doctor yawn.
*It seems that the doctor to yawn. 
*It seems that the doctor yawning.  

Make sure that ``it'' is the only possible subject here:
*Sam seems that the doctor yawned. 

Make sure that subject verb agreement still works:
*It seem that the doctor yawned. 


\item NP SEEM to VP-infinitive

The doctor seemed to yawn.

Interaction with passive:
Sam seemed to be examined by the doctor.

Correct verb form after ``seem''
*The doctor seemed yawning. 
*The doctor seemed yawned. 
*The doctor seemed yawn.  
*The doctor seemed yawns.

\item NP TRY to VP-infinitive

*It tried that the doctor yawned.  

\item NP believe that S

It's ok to make the word ``that'' obligatory. 

Sam believes that the doctor yawned. 
Sam believes that the doctor yawns.

*Sam believes that the doctor yawning.
*Sam believes that the doctor yawn.
*Sam believes that the doctor to yawn. 

\item NP believe NP to VP-infinitive (note that this can undergo passivization)

Sam believes the doctor to yawn. 
*Sam believes the doctor to yawning. 
*Sam believes the doctor yawn. 

This is actually grammatical, but not with the NP beleive NP to VP
rule.  
*Sam believes the doctor yawns.


\item NP persuade NP that S

Sam persuaded the doctor that the teacher yawned. 


\item NP persuade NP to VP-infinitive

Sam persuaded the doctor to yawn. 


\item There BE NP VP-pastparticiple:  The input to this rule is a
passive without its extra auxiliary verb.  Also, NP must be indefinite
(can't have {\it the\/} or be a proper noun).


There was [a student] [given a book]. 

Subject has to be ``there''
*The doctor was a student given a book. 

(NP has to be indefinite, but don't worry about it.)

The third argument of ``be'' must be a verb phrase that is passive or
a present participle.

There was a student yawning.

*There was a student yawns.
*There was a student yawn.
*There was a student to yawn.
*There was a student yawned. 

Third argument of ``be'' isn't passive:
*There was a student examined Sam.

There was a student examined by the doctor.
There were students examined by the doctor. 
*There was students examined by the doctor.
*There were a student examined by the doctor.  

Interaction of There with embedding operations:

There seems to be a student yawning.
*There seem to be a student yawning.  


Sam believes that it is likely that it is Sam who was seen by the
girl.

It was the teacher who was from CA who gave Sam a book.

That John persuaded James that the doctor examined Sam is likely.

What is Sam loading onto the truck?  

It seems that there was a book that was blue on the table.  

It was the homework that I was doing.

I added some words that I don't understand.

The computers on which I run that code that produces and error make
mistakes.

What do you spend money on the truck Sam has loaded straws the girl
made a broom her brother would clean the room the students sit in
with from onto for? 

It is the room the girl's brother would clean with the broom she made
from straws which were loaded by Sam onto the truck you spend money on
for some reason that the students sit in.

There is some reason for which you spend money on the truck that is
loaded iwth straws that a broom that the girl's brother would clean
the room the students sit in with was made from.

The girl persuaded her brother to clean the room with the broom she
made from straws which are likely to be loaded onto the truck.

The students sit in the room which was cleaned with the broom which
was made from straws which were loaded onto the truck that you were
persuaded to spend money on for some reason. 

He believed that it was likely that there was a doctor who had
examined the girl who was examining Sam who had smeared the wall the
girls was smearing with paint with paint.

There is a teacher smearing the wall with paint that has been loaded
onto the truck by Sam.

Tom believes the wall the teacher saw to be smeared with paint.

It is likely that Black Jack Davey stole the wife of a rich man with a
coal-black steed that seems to have been ridden all night. 

The paint Sam saw is likely to be smeared on the wall by the boy.

That it is likely that that it is likely that the doctor will examine
Sam is likely is likely.  

Which book which the teacher gave to the boy who read the book did the
boy read?

Oysters oysters eat persuade oysters to eat oysters oysters oysters
eat eat.  

The boy saw the boy who saw the boy the boy saw. 

It was a truck that the boy the doctor was examining was loaded onto. 

That it seemed that it is likely that the doctor examined Sam is
likely.

Who is the lawyer who met Sue advising?

It seems that Sam tried to persuade Sally that the cat the dog chased
died.
  








\examples{
\item A boy seen by the doctor. (passive without auxiliary)
\item There was a boy seen by the doctor.}

\item There BE NP VP-presentparticiple: the input is a progressive
without its auxiliary.  Also, NP must be indefinite
(can't have {\it the\/} or be a proper noun).

\example{
\item A doctor examining Sam. (progressive without auxiliary)
\item There is a doctor examining Sam.}

\end{itemize}

\subsection{Untangle the knots}

Write derivations for the following sentences using the operations
described above.  You will first have to figure out the kernel
sentence or sentences.   Then list the operations in the order in
which they apply.  Do you notice anything about the order of
operations?

\examples{
\item The doctor who examined Sam was seen by the teacher. 
\item Sam saw the wall that the doctor smeared with paint. 
\item Sam saw the paint that the doctor smeared on the wall.
\item It was the wall that Sam smeared with paint that the teacher
saw. 
\item There was a student given a book by the teacher. 
\item There seemed to be a truck loaded with hay.
\item Sam is likely to be persuaded to be examined by the doctor
\item It is likely that the doctor will examine the boy who was given
a book by the teacher.}

\subsection{Make up sentences}

Make up five new sentences, as complicated as you like using the
operations above.  You should identify the kernel sentence or
sentences that you started with, but you don't need to write the
derivation.  I think (hope?) I'll be able to tell if there is a valid
derivation.  

\subsection{Extra credit: five percent} 

These sentences all have the same structure.  How would you derive
them?

\examples{
\item The windows the man you recommended washed are clean.
\item The rat the cat the dog chased bit ate the cheese.
\item Oysters oysters oysters eat eat eat. }

\section{Do the attached problem from last semester's Grammars and
Lexicons exam}


\section{Find things in the Penn TreeBank or Charniak parsed corpus}

Find one example of each long distance dependency and each embedding
type from Section~1 of this problem set, but don't use the examples from
Section~2 of this problem set.   You can find the examples in 
the treebank or in a corpus that has been parsed with the
Charniak parser.  Hand in the tree for each example that you find. 
There are several ways you can do this.  

\begin{itemize}
\item Open up the treebank and read it.
\item Use TGREP to search the treebank.
\item Go to the web page of Linguist's Search Engine and type in an
example of what you want to find.  Edit the tree to remove irrelevant
lexical items. 
\end{itemize}

\end{document}
