Grammar II Study Guide 1

Sebastian Andres Amado

Ward College

Syntax Revision (Modern English Course by Wekker and Haegeman: chapter 3(First
part)
Functions

Fill in (only one word)

1. Lexical verbs can be classified according to the type of ……………………..they take

(that is, in terms of the subcategorisation frames in which they can occur.
2. Adjuncts are not……………………constituents.
3. ‘Activities’ usually involve one or more participants. The activity ‘kill’, for
example, involves ……………….. participants: the Agent and the …………………. .
4. Constituents are said to have different ……………………. Functions. In the sentence
‘the girl showed the diary to the tramp’, ‘the girl’ is ……………….. ; ‘the diary’ is
……………object and ‘to the tramp’ is …………………. Object. The subject is realized
by an ………….P, the Od is realized by an NP, and the Oi by a………..P.
5. The subject of a sentence has been defined as the ……….P which combines with
the …………P to form an S (sentence).
6. As to the formation of questions, the switch of the Subject NP and the first
auxiliary element is called Subject-Auxiliary …………(SAI).
7. Another characteristic of Subject NPs in finite clauses is that they normally
……………in number with the first element in the VP
8. Agreement is overtly marked in finite clauses on the first auxiliary element, or, if
there is no auxiliary element, on the …………….. verb itself
9. Both the subject NP and the VP together make up a ………………… .(S------ NP-VP)
10. The VP ‘predicates something of’ of the …………………; its function is predicative .
Since the function of VP is that of predicating, we shall call it the ………………… of
the sentence.
11. The elements ‘unfortunately’ and ‘however’, which are peripheral in the
structure of the sentence and therefore fall outside the NP and VP, are referred
to as ………………….adjuncts.
12. Complements are ……………………constituents, which are needed to complete the
VP.
13. In addition to Complements of V, the VP may also contain optional ……………..,
generally denoting place, time, manner, condition and the like.
14. The function of a Predicative Complement is that of ascribing some property to
the ………………… of the sentence. This function is normally realized by……………,
AdjPs or PPs, and the verbs that select such a complement belong to the class of
………………. (be, look, seem etc. )
15. The VP as a whole also has a predicative function. It predicates something of
an………..P.
16. Copulas characteristically serve to ‘link’ the subject NP and the property
expressed by the ………………..C.
17. An NP Complement of V which becomes the Subject of a passive sentence is said
to have the function of ……………………… .
18. Verbs such as ‘unfold’ which subcategorises for a constituent functioning as Od
are said to be ………………………….. .
19. Both NPs in ‘she had given the tramp no chocolate’ are complements to the lexical
verb give, which is ……………………….. .
20. Both NPs in 19 are objects: no chocolate is the ………………… object (Od), and the
tramp is the ………………….object.

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 21. It is characteristic of the Oi that it can often be replaced by a ……………P with
either to or for.
22. Constituents which give us more information concerning the place, manner,
time, duration etc. of an activity are said to have an ……………………function, and if
such an element (like the PP with Mr Ellis in the sentence the newspaper
remained with Mr. Ellis) is obligatory, we call it an adverbial………………… .
23. Verbs like remain, belong and last require an ……………………complement to
complete the ……………P.
24. The PP in a box in the sentence he put the money in a box is a …………………….of the
V and expresses the location of ‘putting’. Where did he put the money?: in a box.
This constituent is thus an ………….c.
25. In the sentence John put the money there/upstairs, the Ac for put is realized by an
……….Phrase.
26. In the sentence the government set the prisoners free, free is obligatory and
therefore a…………………….within the VP. It narrows down the meaning of set
(and is thus adverbial), but it also links up with the ………..Object NP; it
predicates something of the ………P the prisoners.
27. In a sense, free is both a Predicative Complement and an ………………Complement.
This combination of functions could be abbreviated as Pc+Ac. Verbs which select
a Pc+Ac are called ……………….transitive.
28. Complex transitive verbs such as call, set and fling require
two………………………….., one of which is the ………....Object, while the other has an
adverbial and, perhaps more importantly, a ………………. function relating it to the
Direct Object.
29. Verbs such as laugh, snore and yawn have no Complement. This is not the same
as …………………Complementation.
30. In each VP the lexical verb (V) is the Head, and the Head selects certain
………………….. .

Answer

1. What is the predicative complement in the following sentences?

 Mary is in love with her driving instructor

 The milk has turned sour
 She got angry with him
 That trip is out of the question

2. Can you say which is the complement and adjunct in the sentence ‘The tramp
was unfolding the magazine for the second time’?
3. Does the verb ‘unfold’ subcategorise for or select two NPs?
4. Can you bracket NP/Su and VP in the following sentences? Are there any
complements inside VP?
 He spoke a few words to the German girl
 He destroyed all the magazines
 She had forgotten his name

5. Can you bracket the Indirect Object NPs and PPs in the sentences below?
 The princess donated all her money to the church
 Arthur demonstrated his new invention to his friend
6. Can you specify the function of the italized phrases below?
 He is in London
 He is at his club

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  His birthday is on Saturday
 He leaned against the sideboard
 This parcel weighs two kilos
 The enterprise cost thousands of pounds
7. Can we argue that the verb to be is a copula per se in the sentences above? In
other words, can it be said that the complements in London, at the club, on
Saturday assign a property to the subject NP? If not, what do these complements
specify?
8. Can you identify the Ac in each of the following sentences and label the category
which realizes the function Ac?
 Mary belongs to several social clubs
 She specializes in biochemistry
 She stayed at the Hilton
 His father lived to be 90
 Your new car drives very smoothly

9. Consider these two sentences:

 Mary belongs to several social clubs
 Somebody has slept in my bed
Can you compare both complements? Are both complements adverbial?

10. Can you bracket the Acs and indicate how they are realized?
 The doctor put her on a diet
 He kept his money in a shoe-box
 The government has brought the country close to economic ruin
 She devoted her life to charity
11. What is the function of the AdjP free in the government set the prisoners free?
12. What is the grammatical function of George in the sentence she called her baby
George?
13. What kind of verb is call in the sentence above?
14. Can you bracket the Pc+Acs in the following sentences and indicate how they are
realized?
 Who left the door open?
 Shall we call it a day?
 They elected Mr. Owen chairman
 John treated the whole affair as a joke
 She threw the window open
15. Can you explain and give an example of Zero Complementation?
16. Can you mention the six the types of complementation that lexical verbs require?

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