Comparative Morphosyntax Overview

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Questions and Answers

What role does the thematic subject bear in a sentence?

Accusative case

Impersonal passive

Internal theta-role

External theta-role (correct)

Which construction implies a general state and may require an adverb or negation?

Get-passive

Middle voice construction (correct)

Impersonal passive

Analytical passive

Which type of case is assigned directly by a lexical item based on semantic role?

Accusative case

Nominative case

Inherent case (correct)

Zero case morphology

What is the effect of the Case Filter in language syntax?

Ensures all DPs are assigned case once and only once (A) Signup and view all the answers

What type of construction is formed by using auxiliary verbs to create passives?

Analytical passive (B) Signup and view all the answers

Which is true regarding accusative case assignment according to the provided content?

A must be either V or P to assign accusative case. (B) Signup and view all the answers

Which construction uses a morpheme SE in romance languages to show agreement?

Active construction (D) Signup and view all the answers

How is the Little V concept defined in the content?

As a relationship with an accusative object. (B) Signup and view all the answers

What role does the subject play in a nominative-accusative language?

The subject receives nominative case regardless of verb type. (A) Signup and view all the answers

Which sentence exemplifies an unaccusative verb?

The ice melted. (B) Signup and view all the answers

In a sentence structured with a transitive verb, which role does 'O' represent?

The recipient or patient of the action. (C) Signup and view all the answers

What does the term 'gapping' refer to in sentence coordination?

The need for an antecedent in the same case for gapped subjects. (A) Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following is true regarding ergative-absolute languages?

The agent of a transitive verb receives ergative case. (A) Signup and view all the answers

Which statement best describes the relationship between 'A' and 'S' in nominative-accusative languages?

'A' and 'S' receive similar case marking while 'O' is marked differently. (C) Signup and view all the answers

What is the function of a thematic subject in a sentence?

To indicate the agent or doer of the action. (A) Signup and view all the answers

What does syntax primarily study?

How sentences are formed (D) Signup and view all the answers

Which structure is associated with an unergative verb?

The subject actively participates as an agent. (B) Signup and view all the answers

What does the term 'PF' refer to in the context of syntax?

Phonological form (B) Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following best describes Universal Grammar (UG)?

The subconscious knowledge underlying all languages (C) Signup and view all the answers

What role do native speakers play in understanding syntax?

They provide data for language models. (A) Signup and view all the answers

According to the features of generative grammar, what does the scientific method involve?

Formulating hypotheses and confronting them with data (D) Signup and view all the answers

What does emergentist theory emphasize in language learning?

Language input is critical for structural computation. (D) Signup and view all the answers

What is the theta criterion associated with?

The relationship between arguments and roles in a sentence (D) Signup and view all the answers

What does 'SM' stand for in the context of syntax?

Sensory-motor (D) Signup and view all the answers

What is the primary function of a verb in the probe-goal system?

To probe for inflection from the goal (B) Signup and view all the answers

What best defines an ergative subject in a transitive clause?

The subject performing the action on a direct object. (A) Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following verbs is classified as unaccusative?

The ice melted (B) Signup and view all the answers

What dictates the auxiliary that unaccusative and unergative verbs select?

The presence of an external argument (C) Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following describes an unaccusative verb?

A verb that can be used in there-sentences. (B), A verb lacking an agentive subject. (D) Signup and view all the answers

In nominative-accusative languages, what role does the subject play in an intransitive verb?

It is marked as nominative. (D) Signup and view all the answers

In the context of participial agreement, which type of participle shows subject agreement?

Unaccusative participles (C) Signup and view all the answers

What encapsulates the concept of agreement in linguistics?

The dependency of one word's form on another. (A) Signup and view all the answers

Which statement about unaccusative verbs is correct?

They can appear as absolute participles. (A) Signup and view all the answers

How do unaccusatives differ in syntactic behavior from transitives and intransitives?

They show unique behavior, being a class of their own. (B) Signup and view all the answers

Which terms best describe the two elements involved in the 'Agree' operation?

Probe and Target. (C) Signup and view all the answers

What characterizes head-marking languages?

They mark agreement on the head of the phrase. (A) Signup and view all the answers

What case does the Russian language utilize in negative clauses with unaccusatives?

Genitive of Negation (C) Signup and view all the answers

In syntactic terms, what does a controller do?

Determines the ending on another element. (C) Signup and view all the answers

Which of these verbs requires only an external argument, categorizing it as unergative?

He walked (A) Signup and view all the answers

Which type of verb can be identified by originating in object position?

Unaccusative. (C) Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following defines c-command in syntactic structure?

A node c-commands another if both nodes are siblings and not embedded. (A) Signup and view all the answers

What role does the head play in a phrase?

It provides the syntactic category for the entire phrase. (C) Signup and view all the answers

What is the purpose of EPP in syntactic structure?

It requires that every clause has a subject in the specifier position of TP. (D) Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following best describes light verbs?

They carry little to no inherent meaning on their own. (C) Signup and view all the answers

What happens when a movement occurs in syntax?

The original position of the moved object retains a trace. (B) Signup and view all the answers

In which position does the possessor occur in a syntactic structure?

In the specifier position with possessive markers. (B) Signup and view all the answers

What is indicated by 'DP, TP, CP' in syntactic terms?

They denote different classes of phrases and their functions. (D) Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following statements about adjuncts is correct?

Adjuncts provide additional information influencing the main clause. (B) Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Comparative Morphosyntax Notes

Syntax: The study of how sentences are formed, the grammatical module for sentence formation, and operations/rules used to create sentences.
Syntax Modules: Phonological form (PF) and logical form (LF)
Syntax Components: Narrow syntax (CS), conceptual-intentional (CI), and sensory-motor (SM).
Generative Grammar: Sentences are generated by subconscious procedures (like computer programs) part of our minds. Syntactic theory models these procedures. Universal Grammar (UG) is considered innate.
Universal Grammar (UG): Children perceive prosody at birth and possess language bias. They can filter and recognize linguistic signals.
Intuitions: Native speakers possess intuitions about syntax. A theory of grammar attempts to model this competence.
Native Speaker Competence: Understanding grammatical and ungrammatical combinations.
Features of Generative Grammar: Commitment to the scientific method (hypotheses, data confrontation), and the study of unconscious knowledge. Language is the "software" in the brain, functioning like an operating system. Syntax is the blueprint of language structure.
Neurolinguistics: Views language from a brain perspective, focusing on optimal language solutions for interface requirements.
Biolinguistics and Psycholinguistics: Examine how syntax interacts with other communication systems within the brain.
Theta Criterion: Every argument carries one theta role, assigned to one argument.
Example: Alex eats an apple (Agent [Alex], Theme [apple]).
Word formation in Turkish: Complex words are formed by adding suffixes to a root, rather than combining multiple words. This is an example of morphologically complex words.

Week 1 Morphosyntax Seminar

Dates: Submission deadlines for essay drafts and final versions.
Essay topics: Descriptive and comparative analyses of languages with similar phenomena.
Essay Format: Short paper (3–4 pages).
Data collection and analysis: Look at examples (snippets) rather than formal analysis.
Writing style: Consistent formatting.

Barrie Chapter 4 Notes

Example format for analyzing foreign languages: Providing a model for glosses, translation, and analysis of foreign language examples (including grammatical information, e.g. neg, 3-pss sg, poss.1sg).
Reflection on feedback: Essay requires appendix reflecting on feedback (acceptances/rejections) and collaboration processes.

Week 2 Lecture

Possessor: The entity that owns something, often presented as a noun phrase within a larger phrase (DP): for example, John's book
Pronouns: Replace full nominal phrases (DPs), occupying specifier position in a sentence.
Tense Phrase (TP): Head of a sentence, followed by the tense head (T). Tense encodes time and agreement between subject and predicate. Temporal encoding can be separate from VP. -Affix-hopping/T-to-V movement: putting the past tense affix on the verb.
Complementizer Phrase (CP): Syntactic structure with a complementizer (C), such as that, if, or whether; introduces subordinate clauses, and handles questions (yes/no and wh-questions)

Week 2 Seminar

Constituency Tests: Methods for determining if a group of words forms a constituent unit within a sentence: -Substitution (pro-form) -Movement (clefting, pseudo-clefting) -Question formation -Stand-alone analysis -Coordination (joining constituents) -Dislocation (passivization, topicalization, scrambling) -Right-node raising
C-command: Node B c-commands node C if every branching node dominating B also dominates C, and B does not dominate C. Antecedents must c-command pronouns in the structure.
Head-gives-category: A head is necessary to have a phrase.

Week 3 Seminar

Light verbs: Verbs carrying little meaning, frequently used with triadic/dyadic verbs (requiring objects or subject, indirect object): an example (solid-ify)
Overt light verbs: verbalizers, active verbs from other verbs
- Ex: Verbalize, prioritize, formulate, active
External argument: receives theta role from v
Internal argument: receives theta role from v
Floated quantifier: quantifier that appears separately rather than preceding the noun phrase. Examples include "all," "both," and "each."
Examples: Given sentences with phrases or quantifiers, provide correct analysis of the structure (e.g. external and internal arguments).

Week 3 Exercises

Floated quantifiers: Examples are analyzed and explained. (e.g., "all the children have tasted the chocolate").
Sentences have subject-verb agreement : analysis of the sentence structure

Weeks 4-5 Seminar

Case and Case-marking: Case is a marker indicating the grammatical function (subject or object) of a noun within a sentence.
- Nominative case marks the subject
- Accusative case marks the object
- Some languages use overt case marking (e.g., Latin, or Korean), while other languages use word order or other approaches
Case Filter: All nominal phrases (DPs) must be assigned a case. This determines grammatical subject and object roles, preventing grammatical errors
Case assigners (V,P): Case is assigned by verbs and prepositions to their complements. Nominative or accusative case are assigned by the verb (V)
Head-initial / Head-final: Languages differ in whether the head of a phrase precedes or follows its dependents
Case Filtering: all noun phrases must be assigned a case one time and only once.
Nominative/Accusative: In nominative/accusative languages, the subject is usually marked with nominative case and the object is marked with accusative.

Week 5 Lecture

Agreement: words change form based on other words
Probe: An element examining semantic/formal properties in other elements of a sentence ("Controller" determines the ending of another element, the "target" changes its form)
Head-marking: languages indicate subjects/objects morphologically.
Dependent-marking: agreement morphology is marked on dependencies

Weeks 6 and beyond

Morphosyntactic Alignment: Languages vary in how subjects and objects are marked grammatically or thematically (e.g. SVO vs. SOV).
Ergative-absolutive: Subject of a transitive clause takes the ergative case, while object receives the absolutive case. The Nominative/Accusative system is the opposite, where the subject receives a nominative case and the object an accusative case.
- Some languages show different morphologies depending on the grammatical function, whereas others do not.
Coordination with Gapping: A gap in coordination. Example: He saw her and returned -> he saw her and he returned (same case is used)
A receives ergative case, S and O receive absolutive case (In ergative-absolutive languages)
Unergative: an intransitive verb with properties of an active agent
Unaccusative: Intransitive verb whose subject is fundamentally similar to an object
Semantics: Meaning of words, role of words within a phrase
Syntax: Grammar of words in how a phrase, and then a sentence is constructed.
Morphology: Structure, formation of words (affix forms)

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Explore the key concepts of Comparative Morphosyntax, including syntax formation, generative grammar, and the role of Universal Grammar. This quiz will guide you through the fundamental components and modules that comprise linguistic analysis and native speaker competence. Test your understanding of how sentences are constructed and the innate abilities of language acquisition.