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Syntax Exercises 2022 VC

This document provides practice exercises on grammar and syntax for students learning English as a foreign language. It includes exercises to identify parts of speech, classify words as different parts of speech, label the constituent parts of sentences, rewrite sentences using phrase structure rules, summarize sentences in constituent structure rules, draw syntactic trees using given rules, and identify structurally ambiguous expressions. The exercises are intended to help students practice and improve their understanding of English grammar and sentence structure.

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ANDREA LÓPEZ BELMONTE
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© © All Rights Reserved
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69 views

Syntax Exercises 2022 VC

This document provides practice exercises on grammar and syntax for students learning English as a foreign language. It includes exercises to identify parts of speech, classify words as different parts of speech, label the constituent parts of sentences, rewrite sentences using phrase structure rules, summarize sentences in constituent structure rules, draw syntactic trees using given rules, and identify structurally ambiguous expressions. The exercises are intended to help students practice and improve their understanding of English grammar and sentence structure.

Uploaded by

ANDREA LÓPEZ BELMONTE
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Linguistics applied to FL teaching and learning

2021-2022

Grammar & Syntax: Practice exercises

1. Identify the part of speech of the underlined words.


(Hint: A word can be more than one part of speech and you have to look at how the
word works in a particular sentence to know what part of speech it is.)

Sentence Part of Speech


I think I can do it.
Don't open that can of beans.
This is my only pen.
He was only joking.
That book is his.
That is his book.
Can you speak English?
I am reading an English novel.

2. Classify the underlined words as parts of speech.

a) Is it right to say that right wrongs no man?


b) One cannot right all the wrongs in the world.
c) It is a common failing to suppose we are not like other men, that we are not as
other people are.
d) As your doctor, I must warn you that the results of taking this drug may be very
serious.
e) Dry hair thoroughly with warm towel and comb.

3. Divide each of the sentences below into its constituent parts, and label each part
S, V, O, C, or A.

a) Full-scale computers have a large number of programs.


b) We must change all the programs tomorrow.
c) Tomorrow will be a holiday here.
d) These bookshelves are becoming very popular in Sweden.
e) We have recently added an extra unit to them.
f) Will you give it a try?
g) The young man grew restless in his mother-in-law’s house.
h) They had made him their son-in-law despite his objections.

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Linguistics applied to FL teaching and learning
2021-2022

4a. Rewrite the following sentences with Phrase Structure Rules.  


(Hint: Locate your principal NP and VP before beginning.)
Example:  Miriam swims.
S –> NP  VP
NP –> PN
VP –> V

a) The dog is barking.


b) Peter told the truth.
c) The wicked witch spilled the potion.
d) The runner with the best time won the prize.
e) The witch said that Sleeping Beauty took the potion.

4b. Summarize the above sentences in their constituent structure (CS) rules.

5. Here is the list of some CS rules:

S –> NP VP
VP –> (Adv) V (NP) (NP) (PP)
NP –> (Det) (AdjP) N (PP)
PP –> P NP
AdjP –> (Adv) A

Using these rules, draw trees for the following sentences. (Hint: One of the
sentences is ambiguous. Make sure to draw two trees for it, one for each of its
meanings.)

a) The big man from New York loves bagels with cream cheese.
b) Susan drove a car from Girona to Barcelona.
c) The extremely tired students hated syntactic trees with a passion.

6. In what ways are these expressions structurally ambiguous?

a) Peter followed the girl from Mexico.


b) The students are revolting.
c) Nobody would call him a doctor.
d) I asked him when he got up.
e) He wrote three books on Ibiza.
f) Mary looked at John with nothing on.

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