Chapter 4 Syntax a branch of linguistics that

Chapter 4 Syntax • a branch of linguistics that studies how words are combined to form sentences and the rules that govern the formation of sentences.

4. 2 Categories 范畴 • Category refers to a group of linguistic items which fulfill the same or similar functions in a particular language such as a sentence, a noun phrase or a verb. • Words can be grouped together into a number of classes, called syntactic categories. • The most central categories to the syntactic study are the word-level categories. (traditionally, parts of speech)

Word-level categories • Traditional & non traditional categories • Major lexical categories: N, V, Adj, Prep. • Minor Lexical categories: Det, Deg, Qual, Auxi, Conj. • Minor Lexical categories are often the heads of the phrases.

The criteria on which categories are determined • • Meaning Inflection Distribution Note: The most reliable criterion of determining a word’s category is its distribution.

Phrase categories and their structures • Phrases----the syntactic units that are built around a certain word category are called phrases, such as NP(N), VP(V), AP(A), PP(P). • The structure: specifier + head + complement • Head---- the word around which a phrase is formed • Specifier---- the words on the left side of the heads • Complement---- the words on the right side of the heads

Phrase structure rules • The grammatical mechanism that regulates the arrangement of elements that make up a phrase is called a phrase structure rule, such as: • NP (Det) + N +(PP)…… e. g. those people, the fish on the plate, pretty girls. • VP (Qual) + V + (NP)…… e. g. always play games, finish assignments. • AP (Deg) + A + (PP)…… very handsome, familiar with, very close to • PP (Deg) + P + (NP)…… on the shelf, in the boat, quite near the station.

The XP rule XP Specifier X Complement Head XP (specifier) X (complement) Note: The phrase structure rules can be summed up as XP rule shown in the diagram, in which X stands for N, V, A or P.

Coordination rule ※ boys and girls yes or no • Coordination structures-----the structures that are formed by joining two or more elements of the same type with the help of a conjunction such as and, or, etc. • Coordination has four important properties: 1. no limit on the number of coordinated categories before the conjunction; 2. a category at any level can be coordinated; 3. the categories must be of the same type; 4. the category type of the coordinate phrase is identical to the category type of the elements being conjoined.

Phrase elements • Specifier • Head • complement

Specifiers • Semantical and syntactical role • Category of Specifiers

Complements • Complements themselves can be a phrase, they provide information abut entities and locations whose existence is implied by the meaning of the head, e. g. a story about a sentimental girl; • Subcategorization • There can be no complement, one complement, or more than one complement in a phrase, a sentence-like construction may also function as a complement such as in “I believed that she was innocent. I doubt if she will come. XP (specifier) X (complement )

Modifiers • ---- Modifiers specify optionally expressible properties of heads. XP (specifier) (mod) X (complement )(mod)

Sentences (the S rule) • S NP VP S VP NP Det A N boy V found Det the NP N evidence

Sentences (the S rule) l S NP infl VP NP l Infl. P(=S) Infl VP Many linguists believe that sentences, like other phrases, also have their own heads. Infl is an abstract category inflection (dubbed ‘Infl’) as their heads, which indicates the sentence’s tense and agreement.

Infl realized by a tense label Infl. P（=S） VP NP Det A N Infl boy Pst V found NP Det the N evidence

Infl realized by an auxiliary Infl. P（=S） VP NP Det A NP N Infl boy will V find Det the N evidence

Transformations • • • Auxiliary movement (inversion) Do insertion Deep structure & surface structure Wh-movement Move α and constraints on transformations

Will the train arrive?

Auxiliary movement (inversion) • Inversion Move Infl to the left of the subject NP. • Inversion (revised) Move Infl to C. CP S NP C Det the N Infl train will V arrive

Auxiliary movement (inversion) Head movement CP C Infl Det Will the NP S N Infl train e V arrive

• His student should stay. • Should his student stay? • The teacher wonders if his student should stay.

Do insertion • Do insertion---- Insert interrogative do into an empty Infl position. CP S C NP Infl Birds Figure-1 CP CP S C NP Infl Birds do Figure-2 VP fly S C Infl NP Infl Do birds e Figure-3 VP fly

Deep structure & surface structure • Consider the following pair of sentences: John is easy to please. John is eager to please. • Structurally similar sentences might be very different in their meanings, for they have quite different deep structures.

Deep structure & surface structure • Consider one more sentence: Flying planes can be dangerous. • It can mean either that if you fly planes you are engaged in a dangerous activity or Planes that are flying are dangerous.

Deep structure & surface structure • Deep structure----formed by the XP rule in accordance with the head’s sub-categorization properties; it contains all the units and relationships that are necessary for interpreting the meaning of the sentence. • Surface structure----corresponding to the final syntactic form of the sentence which results from appropriate transformations; it is that of the sentence as it is pronounced or written.

The organization of the syntactic component The XP rule Deep structure transformations Surface structure Subcategorization restricts choice of complements

Wh-movement • Consider the derivation of the following sentences: What languages can you speak? What can you talk about? • These sentences may originate as: You can speak what languages. You can talk about what.

Wh-movement • Wh-movement---- Move a wh phrase to the beginning of the sentence. • What language can you speak ? • What can you talk about ?

Wh-movement • Wh-movement---- Move a wh phrase to the specifier position under CP. (Revised) CP S NP Who C NP e Infl Pst VP V won NP the game

Move α and constraints on transformations • Inversion can move an auxiliary from the Infl to the nearest C position, but not to a more distant C position. • No element may be removed from a coordinate structure.