GRAMÀTICA DESCRIPTIVA 1

INTRODUCTION
1. APPROACHES TO THE GRAMMAR OF LANGUAGES
PRESCRIPTIVE GRAMMAR VS. DESCRIPTIVE GRAMMAR
Prescrip(ve:
- Set of rules and examples which deal with the syntax and word structures of a
language, intended as an aid to the learning of a language
- Descrip(on of rules for proper usage (as certain people think it should be used)
à style (avoid mistakes)
- They aim at improving the speech and wri(ng of speakers, give advice on how
they ought to use the language
- They make no dis(nc(on between standard and non-standard, and formal or
informal, but between correct and incorrect
- Specialists à editors and teachers
- Lay out rules about they believe to be correct or incorrect
Descrip(ve:
- Aim at describing usage in a non-judgmental way, systema(c study of the
gramma(cal system actually used by speakers
- Descrip(on of what the language is like, how speakers of a language really
speak and write, making dis(nc(on between
o Standard and non-standard (no dialect is beFer than any other)
o Formal and informal
- Specialists à linguists
- Study the rules or paFerns that underlie our use of words, phrases, clauses,
sentences
Exercise: do you think the following ideas are prescrip(vely correct or not? Why or why
not?
- It looks good à correct (structurally is correct because we use present simple
and “s” for he, she and it. “Good” is a complement of the subject)
- Me and my family went out à my family and I went out (the order must be
changed; the first person must be in the second posi(on. We change the “me”
for “I” because we need a subject pronoun)
 - Hopefully, hunger will be eliminated à hunger will hopefully be eliminated /
correct (the adverb can be before the verb)
- There’s cookies for everyone à there are cookies for everyone (“are” instead of
“is” because is plural)
- Colorless green ideas sleep furiously à correct (but no one would use this
sentence, is gramma(cal correct)

2. LEVELS OF LINGUISTIC ANALYSIS

Interac(ng levels:
- Pronuncia(on à phone(cs / phonology
- Grammar à morphology / syntax
- Seman(cs à lexicon / discourse (pragma(cs)

PRONUNCIATION (phone?cs / phonology)

- Phonemes and minimal pair or minimal pairs

GRAMMAR (morphology and syntax)

- Grammar (synchronic descrip(on vs. diachronic descrip(on)
- Morphology à word structure / morphemes
o Inflec(onal / deriva(onal
o Words (syntac(cally – orienta(on / lexically orienta(on
o Lexemes (variable / invariable)
o Inflec(on (tense, number, compara(ves and superla(ves, cases)
o Syntax (cons(tuent structure)

SEMANTICS (lexicon and discourse (pragma(cs))

- The sense conven(onally assigned to sentences independently of the contexts
in which they might be uFered
- Truth condi(ons à the king of France is bold
- Entailments
PRAGMATICS
- How uFerances are interpreted in context
- Conversa(onal implicatures à requests
o Literal meaning vs implied meaning

3. SCHOOLS OF LINGUISTICS
- Linguis(cs à human faculty of language
- Origin: Ancient India
o Panini: descrip(on of Sanskrit morphology
o The Greeks and the Romans: origins of language and nature of meaning
o Medieval (mes
- 18th C: the Indo-European family of languages, Sanskrit, Greek, La(n compared
to other European languages
- 19th C: compara(ve and historical linguis(cs
- 20th C: several schools

STRUCTURALISM MOVEMENT
- synchronic study of language (NO diachronic perspec(ve) how elements relate
to each other in the present
- main interests:
o to study the structure of individual language
§ focus on structure and not on usage
§ Ferdinand de Saussure à linguis(c sign:
• Signifier (sound paFern)
• Signified (concept / meaning)
o Related arbitrarily
o Signs gain meaning from their rela(onship with
other signs
- Principles:
o There are no primi(ve languages à evolu(on
o Wider diversity among languages than suspected (ll then à
comparisons
 o Each language deserves to be described in its own terms

FUNCTIONALISM
Interest: form and func(on must be taken into considera(on:
- Linguis(c units perform a func(on within a larger linguis(c unit
- Func(ons of language and its elements are the key to understanding linguis(c
structures
- Focus: how language is used in communica(ve context
Principles:
- There is one-to-one correspondence between form and func(on
- 1 category – different func(ons
o He leaves next week (SVA)
o Next week is the (me to do it (SVC)
o We call next week period one (SVOC)
o We might give next week priority (SVOiOd)
- 1 func(on – different categories
o He understood the problem (NP)
o He understood what I was talking about (Wh-clause)

GENERATIVE GRAMMAR
- A genera(ve grammar of a language aFempts to give a set of rules that will
predict which combina(ons of words will form gramma(cal sentences
- Development of general theory that reveals the rules and laws that govern the
structure of par(cular languages, and the general laws and principles governing
all natural languages
o Phonology
o Morphology
o Syntax
o Seman(cs
- Noam Chomsky
o Internaliza(on of rules in the mind, humans have an innate language
faculty
 o Universal grammar, grammar is not simply learned from the
environment
o Autonomy of syntax: GGr= approach to the study of syntax
o Rules that are true to all languages

4. GRAMMAR UNITS
WORD
Open-class words (lexical words):
- Nouns
- Lexical verbs
- Adjec(ves
- Adverbs
Closed-class words:
- Preposi(ons
- Pronouns
- Determiners
- Modal auxiliary verbs
- Non-modal auxiliary verbs (be, have, do)
- Conjunc(ons

PHRASE
Structure:
- (dependent(d)) + HEAD + (dependent(s))
- Obligatory head
- Op(onal independents
o Premodifiers: before the head
o Postmodifiers: aher the head
Types:
- NP
- VP
- AdjP
- AdvP
 - PP

CLAUSE
- Independent vs dependent
o Independent clause =main clause (complete in itself)
o Dependent clause = subordinate clause (necessarily depending on
another element)
- Finite vs non-finite
o Finite clause: its VP is finite
o Non-finite clause: its VP is non-finite

Clause à sentence
- Coordina(on and subordina(on
o 1 dependent clause = simple sentence
§ Robert phoned Monica yesterday morning
o 2 coordinated independent clauses= compound sentence
§ I wanted to come to the party, but I felt unwell
o 1 main clause and 1 subordinated clause= complex sentence
§ I didn’t come to the party because I felt unwell

SENTENCE
- Obligatory cons(tuents:
o SUBJECT + PREDICATE
§ She has bought a new car
- Types:
o Simple sentence = independent clause
o Compound sentence = coordina(on
o Complex sentence = subordina(on
UNIT 1: NOUN PHRASE
Structure of prototypical NPs à (DEPENDENT) + HEAD (DEPENDENT)
Head:
- Noun (pronouns, proper nouns, common nouns)
- Dependents (determiners, complements, modifiers)

Noun à a gramma(cally dis(nct category of words which includes those deno(ng all
kinds of physical objects, such as persons, animals and inanimate objects

CLASSIFICATION OF NOUNS

COMMON vs PROPER
- Seman(c dis(nc(on: proper nouns have unique reference and they are
basically names
- Gramma(cal dis(nc(on: proper nouns exclude such features as determiners
and number contrast. Yet, there are some excep(ons to this rule
 COUNT vs. NON-COUNT
- Count nouns: a class of individual en((es that cannot be divided into smaller
parts to designate the same en(ty
- Non-count nouns: physical substances that can be divided into smaller amounts
to designate the same substance
- Seman(c dis(nc(on: the possibility of coun(ng or not the en(ty designated by
the noun
- Gramma(cal dis(nc(on: the range of determiners each type of noun admits
o Count nouns can take cardinal numerals as dependent, whereas non-
count nouns cannot

CONCRETE vs ABSTRACT
- Concrete nouns:
o Accessible to the senses
o Observable
o Measurable
- Abstract nouns:
o Non-observable
o Non-measurable

1.2 GENDER, NUMBER AND CASE

FEATURES OF NOUNS
English nouns can show gender, number and case
GENDER
Lexical and morphological devices:
- Lexical pairs (male vs female)
o Uncle – aunt
o King – queen
o Bull – cow
- Formal markers
o Gender-specific modifica(on
§ Male: nurse
§ Female: officer
o Compounding with a gender-specific element
§ Englishman, policewoman
o Gender-specific deriva(onal ending (morphological device)
§ Actor – actress
§ Hero – heroine
- Means of expressing dual gender
o Compounds ending with -person (s) / -people
§ Chairperson
§ Spokesperson
§ Salespersons
There are pronouns in gender:
- She with non-females
o Countries considered as poli(cal en((es
o Ships and similar things
- It with animals
o Non-human: animals
o Human: babies

- Single-gender masculine nouns: boy, husband, widower, policeman, duke

- Single-gender feminine nouns: bride, girl, heroine, queen, woman, wife
- Single-gender neuter nouns: arrival, beer, fact, finger, garage, sincerity
 - Dual-gender masculine / feminine nouns: narrator, writer, friend, actor, god,
angel
- Dual-gender masculine / neuter nouns: brother, bull, father
- Dual-gender feminine / neuter nouns: boat, car, cow, mother, sister
- Triple-gender nouns: baby, horse, lion, child

NUMBER
English nouns inflect for number to show contrast between:
- Singular forms: one en(ty
- Plural forms: two or more en((es
This system is relevant in 4 main areas of grammar:
- Noun inflec(on: plural marked vs singular unmarked
- Agreement and selec(on within the NP: this dog vs these dogs
- Pronouns-antecedent agreement: my dog hid its bone vs my dog hit their bones
- Subject-verb agreement: the dog likes her vs the dog like her

Regular plural à marked by the inflec(onal suffix -s

Regular plural à
- Voicing: loaf, leaves, wolf, wolves
- Vocalic change: man, men, goose, geese
- Addi(on of -en: child, children, ox, oxen
- No change: sheep, deer
- Foreign plurals: criterion, criteria, syllabus, syllabi

COUNTABILITY
- Non-count nouns are usually invariably singular
o The furniture, but not one furniture
- There are a small number of mass nouns that are invariably plural
o The remains, but not one remain
- Most nouns can have both count and non-count interpreta(ons
o I love chocolate vs. can I have a chocolate?
COUNTABILITY OF NPs
Plural noun head = count interpreta(on
- I can’t believe all the improvements she’s made
- She’s made liFle improvement
Common singular noun head with no determiner (singular bare NP) =non-count
interpreta(on
- I had cheese yesterday vs I usually read books (no possibility of non-count
interpreta(on)
Excep(ons!
- They elected him president (nouns deno(ng role or office)
- I pronounce you man and wife (coordina(on of two closely related nouns)

DETERMINATIVES AND COUNTABILITY

- Count and non-count nouns:
o The/this/that/ no + singular noun à sugar
o Car
- Count noun:
o One/another/each/every/either/neither/* a à + singular noun
§ Every pen had a different name vs. *Every furniture has been
repaired
- Non-count nouns:
o Much/liFle/ a liFle/ enough/ *a + a singular noun
§ He painted liFle table vs He used liFle sugar
* Excep(ons:
- He made a great impression (singular non-count)
- I was awake all night (singular count noun)

SUBJECT-VERB AGRREMENT
When the NP is func(oning as the subject in the clause, its head agrees in number with
the verb in the clause.
- The black cat (sg) is (sg) sleeping
- My neighbor’s cats (pl) are (pl) sleeping
Agreement is only visible in very few cases:
- Present tense
o 3rd person singular vs non-3rd person singular (all verbs except for modal
verbs)
o Verb to be
- Preterite
o Verb to be
*Excep(ons
- Expressions deno(ng measure:
o Two weeks is too long for me to wait
o 30 euros is not expensive for the dinner we had
o Another two cups of sugar has to be added to the dough
o She s(ll owes me that 20 dollars I lent her
- Nouns expressing quan(fica(on:
o Plenty of food was bought for the cooking workshop
o Plenty of vegetables were bought for the cooking workshop
o The rest of the money was paid her
o The rest of the payments were made later
o Also with: a lot of, a number of…
- Collec(ve nouns: they denote a group of individuals. Both singular and plural
agreement with the verb are possible
o Singular agreement: emphasis on the group as a whole
§ The team was interviewed aher the match
o Plural agreement: emphasis on the individuals forming the group
§ The team were interviewed aher the match

* Excep(ons
- Any, none, either, neither
o None of the book were in the library
o None of the books was in the library
o Any of the candidates is suitable for the job
o Any of the candidates are suitable for the job
CASE
Nouns can inflect to mark case (‘s or ‘)
- Geni(ve case:
o (those students’) geni(ve NP essays
o (the secretary’s) geni(ve NP computer
- Plain case:
o These jeans
- Prototypical meaning = possession
o (my sister’s) geni(ve NP daughter (possession)
o (the prisoner’s) geni(ve NP release
o (my flatmate’s) geni(ve NP decision of living the flat

Func(ons of Geni(ve NPs:

- Subject-determiner à dependent within a NP
o Joe’s detailed exemplifica(on of the argument
o Joe exemplified the argument in detail
o My daughter’s arrival
o The arrival of my daughter
o This woman’s magazine
- Modifier à whenever there is an aFribu(ve geni(ve within a NP, it func(ons as
a modifier
o This women’s magazine à these women’s magazine
o An old people’s house
- Complement à whenever the geni(ve NP is func(oning as a post-head
dependent of a PP introduced by “of” (oblique geni(ve)
o A friend of my brother’s
NP geni(ve as subject-determiner: tree analysis

1.3 ANALOGY / ANALOGICAL CHANGE (regular and irregular nouns)

Analogy à process by which irregular nouns are transformed into regular because of
the addi(on of the plural suffix -s. analogy makes the language be clearer
- (e)s à plural
- Plural à (e)s

IRREGULAR PLURAL FORMATION

- Voicing à words that have resisted analogy:
o Knife – knives
o Wife – wives
o Leaf – leaves
Analogy would have taken place if we have modern English plural nouns such as:
knifes, wifes, leafs
- Some words have acquired analogical plurals:
o Roof – roofs
o Scarf – scarfs
o Reef – reefs
- Analogical ending becomes the regular ending
- -s plural suffix is added to any new word entering the language
 - However, a few older words remain:
o Foot – feet
o Sheep – sheep
o Ox – oxen
o Child – children
No analogy, no produc(ve plurals, never used to pluralise new words entering the
language.
- Words of very high frequency tend to resist analogical change
- Analogy works where memory fails, we have no difficulty in remembering the
forms of frequently used words, for example BE
- Occasionally, even when the analogical form spreads, the irregular form
survives in a restricted context
o Brother (sg)
o Brothers (pl)
o Brethren (pl à religious context)

1.4 DETERMINATIVES AND PRONOUNS

- Determiner à syntac(c func(on
- Determina(ve à a word category
- Possible realiza(ons of a determiner
o Determina(ve: a star, those houses
o Determina(ve Phrase (DP): very few people
o Geni(ve NP: Jason’s book, their hands
- A determina(ve is required with count singular common nouns
o *Pen is broken vs. This/my/the pen is broken
- Determina(ves and pronouns cannot co-occur
o They forgot the keys vs *the/these they forgot the keys

DEFINITNESS
- Seman(c contribu(on of the determiner, making the NP as definite or
indefinite
- Definite NP: its referent can be iden(fied from the context
 o Prototypical definite determina(ve: definite ar(cle
§ Where’s the book?
- Indefinite NP: the en(ty cannot be iden(fied in a unique way
o Prototypical indefinite determina(ve: indefinite ar(cle
§ Kim was looking for a doctor
- Other definite determina(ves:
o This (these), that (those) (demonstra(ve det)
o Which, whichever, what, whatever (rela(ve det)
o Each every, some, any, either, neither, no, another, a few, a liFle, several,
many, much, more, most, few, fewer, liFle, less, enough, sufficient, one,
two, three, four, five… all the indefinite determina(ves except the
interroga(ves refer to quan(fica(on
PRONOUNS

-Syntac(c features:
o Inability to take determiners as dependents
o They func(on as the head of the NP
-Main uses:
o Deic(c: the referent is understood thanks to the context
§ I don’t know you
o Anaphoric: the referent appears before the pronoun
§ I saw your brother yesterday and he told me about the accident
o Cataphoric: the referent appears aher the pronoun
§ It’s difficult the company has gone bankrupt

CLASSIFICATION OF PRONOUNS
- Personal: I, it, us, them, her, your
- Reciprocal: each, other, another
- Interroga(ve: who, what, when
- Rela(ve, that, which, who

FEATURES OF PERSONAL PRONOUNS

- Person dis(nc(on by means of lexical devices (different lexical forms to refer to
different persons)
- Number dis(nc(on by means of lexical or morphological devices
- Non-reflexive pronouns show case dis(nc(on: nomina(ve, accusa(ve and
geni(ve
- Personal pronouns show gender dis(nc(on: masculine, feminine and neuter

THE CASE OF PRONOUNS

- Gramma(cal category which marks different syntac(c func(ons in pronouns:
o Nomina(ve case: subjects
o Accusa(ve case: objects
o Plain case: pronouns not marking the contrast
 o Geni(ve case:
§ Dependent: it func(ons as a determiner
§ Independent: it func(ons as the head of a NP

THE REFLEXIVE FORMS

Two main uses:
- Complements:
o I hurt myself
o They are proud of themselves
- Modifier (empha(c use):
o I’ll do the prepara(on myself
o He himself admiFed having lost the book

1.5 NOUN PRHASE STRUCTURE

- (dependent) + HEAD + (dependent)
- Dependents
o Internal à cons(tuents of a NOM
§ Complement
§ Modifier
• Pre modifier
• Post modifier
o External à cons(tuents of a NP
§ Determiner
§ Modifier
• Pre-determiners
• Peripheral

INTERNAL DEPENDENTS
- Complements à formal realiza(ons
o PP
o Subordinate clauses
§ Finite
 § Non-finite
- Modifiers à formal realiza(ons
o Pre-modifiers
§ AdjP
§ Determina(ve phrase
§ Nominal
o Post-modifiers
§ PP
§ AdjP
§ Apposi(ve NP
§ Finite clause
§ Non-finite clause

Internal dependents: complements

- PP
o A talk about linguis(cs
o The removal of the furniture
- Subordinate clause
o Finite
§ Apposi(ve clause à the news that he is ill
§ An easier task than we had expected (ind. Complement)
§ So dark a cave that we could not see a thing (ind. Compl)
o Non-finite
§ Her aFempts to stop the quarrel (compl)
§ Too expensive a project to finance (ind comple)

Internal dependents: modifiers

- Pre-modifiers
o AdjP à adjec(ve (alone or with dependent)
§ Those incredibly tall people
§ A very old house
o DetP à when there’s an external dependent
 § The first two books
o Nominal à nouns alone or with dependents
§ London underground guide
§ Sign language
- Post-modifiers
o PP
§ The house at the corner of the street
o AdjP à never before the noun (alone or with dependents)
§ The difficul(es implicit in this job
§ People fond of animals
o Apposi(ve NP à nouns or NP renames another N / subs(tute NP
§ My cousin the teacher
o Non-apposi(ve NP à can stand alone as NP
§ A car this colour
o Finite clauses à usually rela(ve clause
§ The passengers that need iden(fica(on
§ The guy who spoke first
o Non-finite clauses
§ Infini(val à the right man to talk to
§ Post-par(cipial à the general impression given by this book
§ Gerund-par(cipial à students taking the exam in June

External dependents
- Determiners à formal realiza(ons
o Determina(ve
o Determina(ve phrase
o Geni(ve (NP gen)
- Modifiers à formal realiza(ons
o Pre-determiners
§ Determina(ves both and all
§ Frac(ons
§ Mul(pliers
 § Adjec(ve phrase
o Peripheral
§ AdvP
§ PP
§ Reflexive pronoun

External dependents determiners

- Determina(ve (det)
o A star
o Those houses
- Determina(ve phrase (DP)
o Very few people
- Geni(ve NP (gen NP)
o Jason’s book
o Their hands

External dependents modifiers

Pre-determiners à before a determiner
- Determina(ves both and all
o Both her cars
o All these boys
- Frac(ons
o Half this amount
o Two thirds this price
- Mul(pliers
o Twice this table
o Double your salary
- Adj P à a small range of Adjs
o Such a failure
o Too dangerous a trip

Peripheral (ini(al or final posi(on)

 - AdvP
o Only two weeks
o The kid alone
- PP
o By far the most difficult ques(on
- Reflexive pronouns
o The groom himself

1.6 NP COMPLEMENTS VS MODIFIERS

- Complements à they follow the HEAD. More related to the head than
modifiers and are obligatory
- Modifiers à they may precede or follow the HEAD. They are op(onal

COMPLEMENTS
- Difference between Ns and Vs à Ns do not take objects
- With Ns that are morphologically related to transi(ve Vs (cri(cism is related to
cri(cize), the complement of the N that corresponds to the object of the V has
the form of a PP
o My cri(cism of her decision
o His abandonment of this trip
o Sandy’s marriage to Pat
- Complements in NP structure are restricted to
o PP
o Subordinate clauses

PP COMPLEMENT
The clearest case has one or more of the following 3 proper(es
1. They correspond to object or subject NPs in clause structure
a. Object case à I cri(cized her decision / my cri(cism of her decision
b. Subject case à the warriors returned / the return of the warriors
2. The choice of the preposi(on is specified by the head noun
a. Their belief in God
 b. Its effect on the audience
c. Familiarity with the data
d. The introduc(on to the book
3. The PP is obligatory because the N makes liFle sense without it
a. The advent of the steam engine
b. The abandonment of sensible budgetary policies
c. A dearth of new ideas
d. The feasibility of the proposal

Other types of complements

- Subordinate clause complements
o Finite
§ The claim that he was ill
§ A suspicion that it was a hoax
o Non-finite
§ Her ability to complete the task
§ His eagerness to redeem himself
- Indirect complements
o Compara(ve
§ A longer delay than…
§ An easier task than we had expected
o So (as a modifier)
§ So dark a cave that we could not see a thing
o Too (as a modifier)
§ Too expensive a project to finance
MODIFIERS
- Ns accept a very wide range of modifiers within the nominal (the intermediate
unit between the NP and the N)
- They are called internal modifiers since they are inside the nominal
o Pre-modifiers à precede the N (head)
o Post-modifiers à follow the N (head)
 - If we do not know whether a phrase is func(oning as a complement or
modifier, see whether they are op(onal or obligatory elements

1.7 THE FUSED-HEAD CONSTRUCTION

- Ordinary NP à (dependents) + HEAD + (dependents)
- Fused-head construc(on
o Head is fused with a dependent element (determiner or internal
modifier)

TYPOLOGY OF FUSED-HEAD CONSTRUCTIONS

Types of f-h construc(on:
- Simple
o Kim has lots of friends. But Pat doesn’t have (any)
- Par((ve
o (Some of his remarks) were quite flaFering à explicit
o I have two photos of her, but (both) are out of focus à implicit
- Special
o (many) would disagree with you on that point

Simple à f-h NP: det / det = head of Np. The focused-head can be expanded into an
ordinary NP with a separate head (retrieved from the context), but Pat doesn’t have
any (friends)

Par((ve à it denotes a part / not a whole. 2 sub-types:

- Explicit: (some of his remarks) were quite flaFering
o F-H is followed by a PP compl
o F-H is par((ve
o Transforma(on into an ordinary NP cannot be made
- Implicit: I have two photos of her, but (both) are out of focus
o PP compl, is understood through context
o (both) à both of them
Special à (many) would disagree with you on that point
- Many understood by many people
- General knowledge – not retrievable from text or context

UNIT 2: ADJECTIVE PRHASE

PROPERTIES OF PROTOTYPICAL ADJECTIVES
- Seman(c defini(on à prototypical adjec(ves typically denote proper(es of
objects, persons, places… related to age, size, shape, weight, color or quality.

MORPHOLOGICAL PROPERTIES
- Prototypical suffixes of adjec(ves à many adjec(ves can be easily iden(fied by
their suffix (-able/-ible, -ful, -ic/-ical…)
- Grade à
o By means of inflec(on (plain, compara(ve and superla(ve form)
o AdjPs marked by “more” and “most” (compara(ve and superla(ve
AdjPs)
§ Types of adjec(ves according to their grada(on:
• Gradable (cold, big, funny)
• Non-gradable (only, former, main, uFer)

SYNTACTIC PROPERTIES
- Modifica(on à adjec(ves are typically modified by adverbs
- Func(on à adjec(ves can have aFribu(ve and predica(ve uses
o AFribu(ve use: internal pre-head modifier (a big house)
o Predica(ve use: predica(ve complement (the house is big)

SYNTACTIC USES OF ADJECTIVES: ATTRIBUTIVE ADJECTIVES

- They are part of a NP
- They follow a determina(ve (if any), and precede the head noun
o Many wiFy remarks
o I don’t like big cars
 - Excep(ons:
o Posi(ve adjec(ves: they follow the head noun instead of preceding it
§ Somebody important
§ Men anxious to leave
§ The only actor possible
o External modifiers: AdjPs occurring before the indefinite ar(cle “a”
§ Too dark a colour
§ Such a mistake

SYNTACTIC USES OF ADJECTIVES: PREDICATIVE ADJECTIVES

- They perform one of the following syntac(c func(ons at the clause level
o Complement of the subject (Cs)
§ The door is green
§ Your plan seems foolish
o Complement of the object (Co)
§ We painted the door green
§ I consider your plan foolish
CENTRAL VS PERIPHERAL ADJECTIVES
- Central adjec(ves à adjec(ves that can have both uses (aFribu(ve and
predica(ve) without changing their meaning
o You have two incredibly handsome children (aFribu(ve)
o Your children are incredibly handsome (predica(ve)
- Peripheral adjec(ves à adjec(ves that are restricted to one of the uses, they
are aFribu(ve-only or predica(ve-only
o The only thing we need to change is the conclusion (aFribu(ve-only)
o For the first (me in her life, she was alone (predica(ve-only)
- AFribu(ve-only adjec(ves:
o The only problem
o The eventual rain
o The main reason
o My own mistake
 - Predica(ve-only adjec(ves
o The shops were set ablaze
o Something is amiss
o The dog seemed afraid
o We were alone

ADJECTIVES VS NOUNS
- Inflec(on
o Nouns: they inflect for plural
o Adjec(ves: some have compara(ve and superla(ve inflected forms
- Determiners
o Nouns: they take determiners as dependents
o Adjec(ves: they don’t take them as independents
- Modifiers
o Nouns: prototypically modified by adjec(ves
o Adjec(ves: prototypically modified by adverbs
Overlap between the categories:
- Intellectual interests / those intellectuals
- Many classic books / many classics in the library
- Terribly colder / a terrible cold

ADJECTIVES VS VERBS
- Inflec(on
o Verbs: preterite and 3rd person singular
o Adjec(ves: compara(ve and superla(ve forms
- Modifiers
o Verbs: very, preFy (=quite), too (=excessively) cannot modify a verb
o Adjec(ves: “preFy”, “very”, “too” can modify gradable adjec(ves
- Func(on
o Verbs: head of the VP
o Adjec(ves: complement to a copular verb in their predica(ve use
Overlap between the categories: par(cipial adjec(ves vs verb-forms aher “be” in the
progressive and passive construc(ons
o The window was closed
o The traffic signs are confusing
Tests:
- Some par(cipial adjec(ve can be modified by very
- Par(cipial adjec(ves can appear in coordina(on with an adjec(ve
- The verb “be” can be subs(tuted by another copular verb in the case of
par(cipial adjec(ves
- The presence of a by-phrase usually indicates that it is part of the verb

THE STRCUTURE OF ADJPS

- Pre-modifiers
o AdvPs (prototypical)
§ A deeply moving film; preFy short; almost completely free
o NP??
§ Two hours long; a great deal smaller; ten cen(meters thick
o PP??
 § An on the whole persuasive argument; their to some extent
perfectly wild objec(ons
- Post-modifier
o Enough (adverb); hot enough; big enough
o PPs: clear in his mind; dangerous in the extreme
- Complementa(on
o PPs: afraid of the unknown; good at Maths; annoyed about the delay;
very distressed by the insinua(ons; obsessed with money
o Clauses:
§ Henry should be grateful that he is s(ll alive
§ I’m doubtul whether he should go
§ He was hesitant to answer the ques(on

UNIT 3: THE VERB PHRASE

MORPHOLOGICAL FEATURES
- It denotes:
o States à they love each other
o Ac(ons à I turned on the lights
o Events à the sun rose
- Inflec(on
- Func(on: head of predicate
- Verbs = variable lexemes à variety of inflec(onal forms
- Paradigm: the group of different inflec(onal forms that a verb has. Most English
verbs paradigm consists of 6 inflec(onal forms
o Preterite (primary form) à she walked home
o 3rd singular person (primary person) à she walks home
o Plain present (primary form) à they walk home
o Plain form (secondary form), can be:
§ Subjunc(ve à the doctor suggested that she walk home
§ Impera(ve à walk home!
§ To infini(ve à it’s important for her to walk home
§ Bare infini(ve à she should walk home
 o Present par(ciple (secondary form) à she is walking home
o Past par(ciple (secondary form) à she has walked home

Primary forms:
- They show tense dis(nc(on by means of inflec(on
- They can stand on their own in a canonical clause
Secondary forms:
- Impossibility of inflec(ng to sow tense dis(nc(on
- They cannot stand on their own in a canonical clause

Finite vs non-finite forms:

- Finite forms:
o Preterite
o 3rd singular present
o Plain present
o Plain form (subjunc(ve)
o Plain form (impera(ve)
- Non-finite forms:
o Plain form (to-infini(ve)
o Plain form (bare infini(ve)
o Present par(ciple
o Past par(ciple
Inflec(onal form vs shape:
- Different inflec(onal forms may have the same shape
o Preterite vs past par(ciple (only when the verb is regular)
§ Yesterday I walked 2 miles
§ I’ve walked too many miles
o Plain present vs plain form
§ They walk home
§ The doctor suggested that she walk home
Regular vs irregular verbs
- All its inflec(onal forms predictable by general rule
 o Preterite and past par(ciple = plain form + ed
- Five possible paFerns of irregular verbs:
o Plain form = past par(ciple
§ Come, came, come
o Plain form = preterite
§ Beat, beat, beaten
o Preterite = past par(ciple
§ Bring, brought, brought
o Plain form = Preterite = PsP
§ Put, put, put
o Plain form =x preterite =x PsP
§ Go, went, gone

AUXILIARY VS LEXICAL VERBS

A verb can be auxiliary or lexical. If it is an auxiliary can be a modal verb (can, could,
may, might, must, will, would, shall, should, ought, need, dare), and if it is a non-modal
verb) be, have, do). all the other verbs are lexical.
- Lexical verbs can represent the nucleus of the meaning of the VP
- Auxiliary verbs are used to mark tense, aspect, mood or voice

GRAMMATICAL PROPERTIES OF AUXILIARIES

- Subject - auxiliary inversion to differen(ate interroga(ve clauses from
declara(ves
o I should have said that to her à should I have said that to her?
Vs.
o I said that to her à said I that to her?
- Nega(on: you need an auxiliary verb to negate the VP
o They have lost the keys à they have not lost the keys
Vs.
o They lost the keys à they lost not the keys*
- Empha(c polarity: auxiliary verbs can carry stress to emphasize the posi(ve or
nega(ve polarity of the clause
 o A: I can’t do it
o B: of course you CAN do it
- Ellipsis: auxiliaries can stand for the full or part of the predicate that is omiFed
o They can do it à I can do it and they can ____ too

FEATURES OF MODAL AUXILIARIES

Inflec(onal proper(es
- Lack of secondary inflec(onal forms
- No 3rd person singular present inflec(onal form
- Preterite form to refer to present and future (me
o Could I ask you something?
o Could you go to the supermarket tomorrow aher work?

Syntac(c proper(es
- Bare infini(ve complement
o I must finish the report
- Only one modal in a VP
o I might should say something to you*

DUALLY CLASSIFIED VERBS

- Certain verbs can behave as both auxiliary verbs and lexical verbs depending on
the context they are
- Such verbs are do, have, need, dare and be
o Do
§ Lexical verb = an ac(vity meaning
§ Auxiliary verb (only present and preterite forms)
• “do” support in nega(ves and interroga(ves
o He doesn’t like them vs he likes them
o Did you see Andy today? Vs you saw Andy
today
• Empha(c “do” (declara(ve or impera(ve clause): t
emphasize the meaning of the lexical verbs
 o Oh do shut up!
o They do share important awtudes about legal
educa(on
o Have
§ Lexical verbs = physical possession, family connec(on, food
consump(on…
• They had three tone of sugar
• She has two children
• I’ll have a tuna sandwich
§ Auxiliary verb = perfect tense
• I hadn’t seen anything like this before
o Need
§ Auxiliary verb:
• It needs are infini(ve complement
• It only occurs in non-affirma(ve contexts (interroga(ves
and nega(ves)
• It only has present tense forms
o Need they come with us?
o She needn’t come
o Need you anything else? *
§ Lexical verb:
• Whenever it doesn’t need a bare infini(ve complement
o Do they need to come with us?
o She doesn’t need to come
o Do you need anything else?
o Dare
§ Auxiliary verb:
• It needs a bare infini(ve complement
• It only occurs in non-affirma(ve contexts (interroga(ves
and nega(ves)
o I daren’t oblige them
 o Dare you go there aher all you said to her?
§ Lexical verbs:
• It mostly occurs in non-affirma(ve contexts as well,
though it is not restricted to them
o I didn’t dare to oblige them
o Did you dare to go there aher all you said to her?
o He had dared to go there aher all he had said to
her
o Be
§ Lexical verb = the most important copular verb in English
• You drink coffee as if it was water
§ Auxiliary verb
• Progressive aspect
o You are going so slow
• Passive voice
o Shareholders will be advised of the outcome as
soon as possible
§ It is the only dually-classified verb that can be both auxiliary and
lexical verb at the same (me
• Were you nice to her?
• You weren’t nice to her
• You were nice to her

THE ORDER OF AUXILIARIES IN A COMPLEX VP

Each auxiliary determines the inflec(onal form of the following verb:
Auxiliary Next verb
Modal plain form
Perfect past par(ciple
Progressive present par(ciple
Passive past par(ciple
THE STRUCTURE OF THE VP

THE SEMANTICS OF THE VERB

- Perfec(ve vs Imperfec(ve interpreta(on

o Perfec(ves: situa(on presented as a whole
§ She read a book
§ She slept in Mike’s home
o Imperfec(ve: reference to the internal temporal structure or parts of the
situa(on
§ She was reading a book
§ She was sleeping in Mike’s home
- Perfec(ve vs Perfect
o Perfect makes reference to a gramma(cal category (a type of past tense)
o Perfec(ve refers to a seman(c interpreta(on which views a situa(on as
complete regardless of the (me it is situated
TENSE, ASPECT AND MOOD

TENSE:
- The tense system deals with the loca(on in (me of a situa(on
- English tense can be divided into:
o Primary tense: it marks tense by means of inflec(on (preterite vs. present
tense)
o Secondary tense: it marks tense dis(nc(on by means of an auxiliary
(perfect vs. non-perfect)

Primary tense: preterite vs. present

Present tense:
- Present (me (the most basic use)
o I recommend that you go to the doctor
o I live in Barcelona
- The futurate
o The train departs tomorrow at 15.35
o The sun rises tomorrow at 6.10
 - Future (me in subordinate clauses
o If she comes, we will go to the cinema (condi(onal adjunct)
o When she finishes her exams, we will have a party (temporal adjunct)
o I hope you come back next week (complement of “hope”)
- The historic present (narra(ve use)
o I was having a walk with Mike, when suddenly we see someone waving
his hands and shou(ng
Preterite tense:
- Past (me (the most basic use)
o I recommended that you go to the doctor
o I lived in Barcelona
- Modal remoteness: the modal preterite
o If he loved her, he’d change his job
o I wished they lived nearby
- Backshih (indirect reported speech)
o Her name is Helen à I said her name was Helen
o I doubted whether her name was Helen

Secondary tense: perfect vs non-perfect

- Past tense marked by means of the auxiliary have
- Compound secondary tense:
o Present perfect: the auxiliary have inflects for primary tense by means of
present form
o Preterite perfect: the auxiliary have inflects for primary tense by means
of the preterite form

Present perfect tense:

- Past (me though explicit reference to present:
o They have by now completed most of the collec(on ((me adjunct)
o You’ve changed the furniture. It looks very nice (current relevance –
present results of past events)
Preterite perfect tense:
- Past (me: 2 past situa(ons, one happening before the other
o She had already prepared lunch when I phoned her
- Modal remoteness: the preterite indicates modal remoteness, and the perfect
indicates past (me
o You would have passed if you had gone to class
- Backshih: when repor(ng uFerances in the preterite or the present perfect
o She confirmed that they had been to Portugal

The perfect in clauses without primary tense:

- The auxiliary have is a secondary form
- Use: to mark past tense in non-finite clauses, where past tense cannot be marked
by means of inflec(on
o Having finished the report, I leh home
o She is thought to have helped the robbers escape

The con(nua(ve perfect:

- It put emphasis on the dura(on of a situa(on that began in the past
o They have lived here ever since their daughter was born
o They had been in the office for one hour when I arrived

Experimental perfect à Resulta(ve perfect

- It involves a specific change of state

Have you seen Jim? Vs Did you see Jim?

Perfect or recent past:

- There is a rela(onship between present perfect and recent past
o She has recently been to Paris

ASPECT
- It describes the temporal proper(es of a situa(on:
 o In progress
o Imperfec(ve interpreta(on
o Dura(ve vs Instantaneous / punctual
o Dynamic vs Sta(c
o Temporary
§ She is reading a book
§ I was living with Jane then
- Formal realiza(on:
o BE + Present Par(ciple
- The progressive futurate
o She’s being tested tomorrow

MOOD
- Mood: gramma(cal category expressing different kinds of modality
- Modality: seman(c category used to refer to two related contrasts
Mood is the gramma(caliza(on of modality within the verbal system: by means of
inflec(on and by means of specific words (modal auxiliaries).
Contrasts related to modality:
- Factual vs non-factual:
o He phoned (fact)
o He must have phoned (inference)
o He may have phoned (probability)
- Asserted vs non-asserted
o He finished his homework (asser(on)
o He must finish his homework (direc(ve)
Meanings of modal auxiliaries
- Epistemic modality: necessity and possibility
o You needn’t come
o He must have missed the train
- Deon(c modality: obliga(on and permission
o Sally should stop smoking
o She may have whatever she wants
 - Dynamic modality: proper(es or awtudes of people (voli(on or ability)
o They won’t help you
o I can do that beFer than you

THE PRETERITE FORM OF THE MODALS

- Can/could, may/might, will/would and shall/should
- Similari(es with preterites
o I wanted her to come with me, but she couldn’t/wouldn’t (past (me)
o We would finish the job if you could/would help us (remote condi(onal)
o They believed she would/could/might/should visit her doctor (backshih)
- Differences with preterites
o The modal remoteness of preterites is normally restricted to subordinate
clauses, whereas with modals this remoteness is present in main clauses
§ Could/would you help me with these files, please?
§ She might/should come

CANONICAL VS NON-CANONICAL CLAUSES

TYPES OF VERB “BE”

UNIT 4: ADVERB PHRASE

MORPHOLOGICAL FEATURES
- Typical deriva(onal suffixes:
o -ly: fully, completely à it’s very nice to see a friendly face
o Ward (s): aherwards, outward, backward à it was a cowardly act of
violence
o Wise: clockwise à she had a womanly shape
Further examples: beastly, deathly, fatherly, princely
ADVERBS VS ADJECTIVES
Commonali(es:
- Both can be marked for grade
o He talks for more quickly than me
o He is the nicest person I’ve ever met
 - Both can take adverbs as modifiers
o It was virtually impossible
o He speaks English incredibly fluently
Differences:
- Adjec(ves can modify nouns, whereas adverbs cannot
o The incredibly news*
o The incredible news
- Adjec(ves can func(on as predica(ve complements, whereas adverbs cannot
o Her performance was amazingly*
o Her performance was amazing

OVERLAP BETWEEN CATEGORIES: ADVS AND ADJS

- Context is essen(al to establish their category
o He woke up late (adv)
o He apologized for his late arrival (adj)
o A preFy girl (Adj)
o A preFy intelligent girl (adv)

THE STRUCTURE OF ADVP

- Head à adverb
- Dependents à complements and modifiers
Complements:
- Adverbs with the -ly suffix can take them
- PP
o I will forgive you independently of what you did
o They are treated similarly to the rest of candidates
- Clauses
o I didn’t write the report as carefully as I should have done
o He was driving too fast to see the man crossing the street
Modifiers:
- Pre-modifiers
o AdvP: prototypical modifier
 § I did it quite unconsciously
§ We departed much later than we had planned
o NP
§ We arrived one hour late
- Post-modifiers
o PP
§ They behaved badly in the extreme
o Adverb enough
§ He was driving fast enough

UNIT 5: PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE

The term preposi(on applies to a rela(vely small category of words, with basic meanings
predominantly having to do with rela(ons in space and (me, containing among its
prototypical members gramma(cized words that serve to mark various gramma(cal
func(ons.

TRADITIONAL PROPERTIES
1. Preposi(ons + NP complements
She came before the mee(ng à prep
She came before à adv
She came before I started talking à sub conj

2. No inflec(onal forms
3. Spa(al or temporal rela(ons
4. Func(on: H of PPs, which can have different func(ons:
- Dependent of N:
o A tree near the school
o The dog under the table
- Dependent of V:
o I went around the corner
o I live in a big flat
 - Complement of be:
o Mary is in bed
o This is of no use to us

TRADITIONAL GRAMMAR
Preposi(ons need to be followed by a NP
I found the cat ((outside) prep (the house) NP) PP
I found the cat (outside) adverb

A NEW CONCEPT OF PREPOSITION

Huddleston and Pullum: forget about the 1st feature. Preposi(ons license different kinds
of complements. Preposi(ons may be transi(ve (followed by a NP or a clause) or
intransi(ve (without a complement).
We leh (before the last act NP) PP
That was (before he died clause) PP
I had seen her once (before prep) PP

TRANSITIVE AND INTRANSITIVE PREPOSITIONS

Func(ons of PP
- Dependent of a noun
o A house at the beach
o The temperature outside
A manager with act pp is needed
*A manager tactully adv is needed
The manager outside pp (intransi(ve) is the owner of the house

- Dependent of a verb
o I saw her at school
o He sat outside

- Complement of BE
o We were in the pool
 o He is outside
The key is under the table pp
*The play was horribly Adv
The mee(ng is outside prep (intransi(ve)

PREPOSTIONS WITH OPTIONAL NP COMPLEMENTS

Abroad, above, across, aher, along, behind, below, beneath, beyond, by, down, in, off,
outside, over, past, round, since, through, under, up

PREPOSITIONS WHICH NORMALLY OCCUR WITHOUT COMPLEMENTS

Abroad, downstairs, here, outdoors, overhead, overseas, there

PREPOSITIONS OR SUBORDINATORS?
Tradi(onal grammar – subordina(ng conjunc(ons
Group 1 à although, because, if (condi(onal), provided, though, unless
Group 2 à if (interroga(ve), that, whether

Huddleston and Pullum – preposi(ons and subordinators

Group 1 à preposi(ons (need a clause doing the func(on of complement)
Group 2 à subordinators

Differences between group 1 and 2:

Group 1: preposi(ons
Items are HEADS of the cons(tuents they introduce. They do not mark subordina(on.
Independent meaning – it is through the meaning that we interpret them as adjuncts.
They introduce the subordinate clause aher them, but they are not part of it themselves.
They normally have a clause performing the func(on of complement.
Sarah arrived before (I had finished cleaning the house)
Sarah decided to stay although (I had a lot of work to do)

Group 2: subordinators (that, whether, if)

Items are used as markers of subordina(on
 I doubt (whether she will come)
I think ((that)she’s probably right)

GRAMMATICISED USE OF PREPOSITIONS

Uses of preposi(ons whose func(on is to mark specific gramma(cal func(ons.
Their occurrence is a maFer of grammar, rather than depending on their meaning (not
seman(cs).
They do not have any iden(fiable meaning and they cannot be replaced by other
preposi(ons.
I bought some flowers for Caroline
The list of people registered in the house
We were all interested in your arrival
Their worries about terrorism
I talked to Peter

THE STRUCTURE OF PP
Head à preposi(on
Dependents à complements and modifiers
DEPENDENTS WITHIN THE PP
- Complements NPs: inside the folder, by my side, in the next line
o AdvPs : for long, (ll recently, before long, for later, un(l recently
o Subordinate clauses: I was interested in how to proceed / I did it because
I wanted to
§ Preposi(ons with no complement: she lived abroad
§ Ago: it is always preceded by its complement. He died ten years
(complement) ago

- Modifiers
o AdvP: I went / right / directly to bed
Straight and right are adverbs (modifiers). They can only modify
preposi(ons, not adjec(ves or other adverbs.
Degree adverbs:
Quite in tune with her ideals, completely in line with our policies
o NP: a few aher the end of the film, a few meters under the water

NOT IN THE UNITS BUT ALSO THEORY

NP COORDINATION
- Coordina(on: two or more same units are linked through a coordinator –
coordina(ng element (func(on – marker)
- Coordina(on of units (examples)
o A big and beau(ful house à modifiers
o Her dirty paws and furry coat à nominals
o The birds and the bus à noun phrases (also nouns)
Nouns, preposi(onal phrases…