Linguistics: Definition of Grammar

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Questions and Answers

What type of words serve primarily to carry information about the grammatical function of particular types of expression within the sentence?

Content words

Functors

Function words (correct)

Contentives

What type of words have descriptive content?

Determiners

Functors

Content words (correct)

Auxiliaries

What test can be used to determine if a word has descriptive content?

To see whether they can be used as an Adjunct

To see whether they have antonyms (correct)

To see whether they can be used as an object

To see whether they can be used as a complement

What type of words include nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, and prepositions?

Content words Signup and view all the answers

What type of pronoun is 'one' in the sentence 'John has a red car and Jim has a blue one'?

Indefinite Signup and view all the answers

What type of word is 'each' in the sentence 'Each son was envious of the other'?

Distributive Signup and view all the answers

What type of word is 'that' in the sentence 'I haven’t read that book'?

Demonstrative Signup and view all the answers

What type of word is 'which' in the sentence 'Which did you choose?'?

Interrogative Signup and view all the answers

What is grammar primarily concerned with?

A set of language rules Signup and view all the answers

Why are native speakers expected to know their language's structure and be competent in its usage?

They have internalized the grammar of their language Signup and view all the answers

What does grammar as a native speaker's knowledge include?

Phonology, morphology, and syntax Signup and view all the answers

What refers to the arrangement of words or ways in which words are put together?

Syntax Signup and view all the answers

What term is used to describe the internal structure of words or the different forms or shapes of words?

Morphology Signup and view all the answers

What is grammar used for when describing how linguistic units are combined into sentences?

Grammatical structure Signup and view all the answers

What is bad grammar an example of?

A standard of acceptability Signup and view all the answers

What approach describes the grammatical constructions used in a language?

Descriptive grammar Signup and view all the answers

What is the function of the word 'very' in the given sentences?

To modify only gradable adjectives and adverbs Signup and view all the answers

What type of adjective is 'real' in the sentence 'There is a real crisis'?

Attributive adjective Signup and view all the answers

What type of adjective is 'real' in the sentence 'The crisis is real'?

Predicative adjective Signup and view all the answers

What word class can be intensified by 'right' in the sense of 'completely'?

Adjective Signup and view all the answers

What type of prepositions take a following noun or pronoun expression as their complement?

Transitive prepositions Signup and view all the answers

What form must pronouns take when they are the complement of transitive prepositions?

Accusative Signup and view all the answers

Why can't we always rely on morphological clues to categorize words?

Morphology is sometimes irregular, sometimes subject to idiosyncratic restrictions, and sometimes of limited productivity Signup and view all the answers

What type of relations are ascribed to the Swiss linguist mentioned in the text?

Syntagmatic and paradigmatic Signup and view all the answers

What syntactic test can be used to determine the category that a particular word belongs to?

Substitution Signup and view all the answers

What is the term for the relationship between constituents where one requires the other to assume a particular grammatical form?

Mutual dependency Signup and view all the answers

What type of constructions involve unilateral dependent constituents?

Unilateral constructions Signup and view all the answers

What is the term for the phrase in a clause that the rest of the clause is understood to be about?

Theme Signup and view all the answers

What is the term for the element that serves as the point of departure of the message?

Rheme Signup and view all the answers

How many types of given information are there, according to the text?

Four Signup and view all the answers

What is the term for the information not previously known and therefore to be particularly brought to the hearer’s or reader’s attention?

New information Signup and view all the answers

In tense, how many possible order relationships are there between events and any axis of orientation?

Three Signup and view all the answers

What is the pre-modification of an adjectival phrase usually a?

adjective Signup and view all the answers

What two functions can an adjectival phrase perform?

attributive and predicative Signup and view all the answers

Which adjective can perform only attributive function?

mere Signup and view all the answers

What three functions can an adverbial phrase perform in a sentence?

modifier, complement, and adjunct Signup and view all the answers

What type of function does an adverbial phrase perform when it indicates the speaker's attitude or stance?

evaluative Signup and view all the answers

What is a group of related words containing a subject and a verb?

clause Signup and view all the answers

What is the principle by which elements placed towards the end of a phrase, clause, or sentence tend to receive the focus or prominence associated with new information?

end-focus Signup and view all the answers

What are the two relations between words known as?

syntagmatic and paradigmatic Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Grammar and Linguistics

Grammar is the attainable standard of acceptability being used to justify grammatical expressions in a particular language.
Grammar can also refer to the grammatical labels and terms used to describe language structures.
Grammar involves a set of language rules that can be generalized into a body of truth called theory.

Native Speaker's Knowledge

Linguists believe that a native speaker of a language is expected to know the structure of their language and be competent in its usage.
A native speaker's knowledge of grammar includes phonology, morphology, and syntax.

Grammar and Sentence Structure

The arrangement of words or ways in which words are put together is referred to as syntax.
The internal structure of words or the different forms or shapes of words is referred to as morphology.
Grammar used as a language description refers to how linguistic units such as words and phrases are combined into sentences.

Types of Grammar

There are different types of grammar, including teaching grammar, descriptive grammar, prescriptive grammar, and theoretical grammar.
Descriptive grammar is an approach that describes the grammatical constructions that are used in a language.

Adjectives and Adverbs

Adjectives can be used to modify nouns, and adverbs can be used to modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs.
Some adjectives can be used as both attributive and predicative adjectives.
Adjectives can be intensified by "right" or "straight" in certain contexts.

Prepositions and Pronouns

Prepositions that take a following noun or pronoun expression as their complement are called prepositional prepositions.
The type of pronouns transitive prepositions take as their complement must be in their accusative form.
Function words, such as prepositions, serve primarily to carry information about the grammatical function of particular types of expression within the sentence.

Word Categories

Words can be categorized into different types, including nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, and prepositions.
Words that have descriptive content are referred to as content words, and words that do not have descriptive content are referred to as function words.
One test of whether words have descriptive content is to see whether they can be used as an antonym.

Sentence Types

There are different types of sentences, including declarative, imperative, interrogative, and exclamatory sentences.
Sentences can also be categorized according to their function, such as declarative, interrogative, imperative, and exclamatory.

Syntagmatic and Paradigmatic Relations

Syntagmatic relations refer to the combination of words in a sentence, and paradigmatic relations refer to the relationships between words that can be substituted for each other in a sentence.
Syntagmatic and paradigmatic relations are ascribed to the Swiss linguist Ferdinand de Saussure.

Morphology and Inflection

Morphology is concerned with changes in the shape of linguistic forms that match a series of changes in position.
Inflection is a type of morphology that involves the modification of a word's form to indicate grammatical function.

Information Structure

Information structure refers to the way in which information is packaged and presented in a sentence.
Given information is information that is already known to the audience, and new information is information that is not previously known.
Information structure can be signaled through intonation, stress, and word order.

Theme and Rheme

The theme is the phrase in a clause that the rest of the clause is understood to be about.
The rheme is the element that serves as the point of departure of the message.
Functional linguists tend to describe dislocations with informational notions such as theme and rheme rather than grammatical structures.

Tense and Aspect

Tense refers to the relationship between the time of the event and the axis of orientation.
There are three possible order relationships between events and any axis of orientation: before, simultaneous, and after.

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Description

This quiz assesses your understanding of the definition of grammar in linguistics. It covers the concept of grammar as a standard, grammatical labels, and language rules.