Summary
# Foundations of linguistics and language study
This section introduces the core concepts of linguistics and the various approaches to language study, including its fundamental branches and key theoretical distinctions.
## 1. Foundations of linguistics and language study
### 1.1 What is language and linguistics?
Language is understood as the sounds we associate with meanings, and it is not confined to spoken forms but is present everywhere. Linguistics is the scientific study of language or particular languages, examining the forms language can take and the ways it is used. Linguists ask various questions about language, leading to different subfields such as evolutionary linguistics (how and why language developed), historical/diachronic linguistics (language change over time), first and second language acquisition, multilingualism, psycholinguistics (language storage), cognitive linguistics (language interaction with cognition), sociolinguistics (language use shaped by society), functional linguistics (communicative functions), typology (language differences), and foreign language teaching [1](#page=1).
### 1.2 Core areas of linguistic study
Linguistics is often divided into six core areas that examine language at different levels:
* **Phonetics:** The study of speech sounds [1](#page=1).
* **Phonology:** The study of the sound systems of individual languages [1](#page=1).
* **Morphology:** The study of the creation and structure of words and morphemes (affixes, word forms) [1](#page=1).
* **Syntax:** The study of structural units larger than words, such as phrases, clauses, and sentences [1](#page=1).
* **Semantics:** The study of word and sentence meaning, focusing on the general meaning of words [1](#page=1).
* **Pragmatics:** The study of meaning in context and discourse [1](#page=1).
These branches can be combined to narrow down research questions, for example, studying phonetics in the context of first language acquisition [1](#page=1).
Ferdinand de Saussure is considered the father of "modern linguistics" for his significant contributions in the 20th century [1](#page=1).
### 1.3 Key linguistic concepts
#### 1.3.1 Synchronic vs. Diachronic approaches
* **Synchronic approach:** Studies language at a specific point in time. This is an abstraction, as language is always changing. For example, analyzing Old English in 1000 AD [1](#page=1).
* **Diachronic approach:** Studies language over time, examining changes throughout its history. For instance, comparing Old English to Present-day English [1](#page=1).
Understanding a synchronic state is a prerequisite for good diachronic studies. Language can be viewed as an evolutionary "Complex Adaptive System," where new variants spread successfully, leading to competition, layering, or loss of older variants [1](#page=1).
#### 1.3.2 Descriptive vs. Prescriptive approaches
* **Descriptive approach:** Neutrally describes how people actually speak or write, without judgment. Linguists primarily adopt this approach [2](#page=2).
* **Prescriptive approach:** Dictates how people *should* speak or write correctly, often using terms like "right/wrong" or "good/bad". Teachers and writers of guides and dictionaries often use this approach. The term "grammatical" can be used in both contexts: descriptively to describe actual or perceived normal speech, and prescriptively to denote adherence to authoritative rules [2](#page=2).
#### 1.3.3 Langue vs. Parole
* **Langue (competence):** Refers to the abstract system of language, the mental knowledge stored in the brain, encompassing all elements like sounds, words, and sentences. This explains our ability to understand novel sentences [2](#page=2).
* **Parole (performance):** Refers to the concrete use of language, the actual utterances spoken or written by a specific person at a specific time, constituting a speech event [2](#page=2).
#### 1.3.4 Signifier vs. Signified
In semiotics, a sign consists of two parts:
* **Signifier:** The physical form of the sign, which can be a word or an image [2](#page=2).
* **Signified:** The mental concept or idea evoked by the signifier [2](#page=2).
Semiotics is the study of signs, and language is considered a system of signs, with linguistic signs being a particular type. Humans are described as symbolic species [2](#page=2).
### 1.4 Types of signs
Signs are anything that signifies something else, and their meaning is learned, not innate. Understanding a sign is an unconscious process. There are three types of signs based on their form-meaning relationship [2](#page=2):
* **Icon:** Based on resemblance [2](#page=2).
* **Index:** Based on a causal link, where the form implies the concept indirectly [2](#page=2).
* **Symbol:** Arbitrary, with no inherent connection between form and meaning [2](#page=2).
For example, a road sign is a physical object (icon), while the word "meow" can be an icon (representing the sound a cat makes) or an index (representing the cat itself, especially to a child) [2](#page=2).
### 1.5 The linguistic sign
Linguistic signs are primarily **symbols** because their connection between the signifier (form) and the signified (concept) is **arbitrary** and **conventionalized**. An exception is onomatopoeia (e.g., "buzz," "pang"), which imitates the sound they represent and are often classified as icons, though they can contain some arbitrariness. Some written signs can also be iconic, based on resemblance. A word, therefore, is an arbitrary, conventionalized symbol with a form-meaning pairing, stored in the mental lexicon (langue) and produced in speech (parole) [3](#page=3).
### 1.6 Animal communication vs. human language
While animals possess communication systems, they differ significantly from human language. Animal communication often relies on indexical signs (e.g., a dog by the door indicating a desire to go out) and body language. Some animal systems can convey messages like danger signals and even exhibit dialectical differences. However, animal systems are qualitatively different from human language due to several unique properties of human language [3](#page=3).
### 1.7 Properties distinguishing human language
There are seven key properties that make human language unique, although some animal systems may exhibit one or two of these:
* **Reflexivity:** The ability to use language to talk about language itself [3](#page=3).
* **Displacement:** The ability to refer to past, future, or non-existent things, unlike animals that communicate primarily in the present moment [3](#page=3).
* **Arbitrariness:** The lack of a straightforward connection between the linguistic signifier and the signified [3](#page=3).
* **Productivity/Open-endedness/Creativity:** The capacity to produce an infinite number of new sentences from a limited set of elements. Animal systems are usually very restricted [3](#page=3).
* **Cultural transmission:** Language is learned and copied across generations and within social/local communities, rather than being purely instinctive [3](#page=3).
* **Duality/Double articulation:** Language has two levels of structure: meaningless sounds/gestures combined to form meaningful units (words), which are then combined into larger meaningful structures. Animals typically use sequences with fixed meanings that cannot be rearranged [3](#page=3).
* **Recursion/Embedding:** The ability to embed clauses within other clauses, allowing for potentially endless sentence structures [4](#page=4).
While not one property alone defines human language, their combination is unique. For example, bottlenose dolphins exhibit some properties like signature whistles (arbitrariness, limited productivity, duality) [4](#page=4).
### 1.8 Origins of language
The exact time, manner, and reasons for the development of language remain unknown. Hypotheses suggest a spoken proto-language may have developed between 200,000 and 50,000 years ago, but physical evidence is lacking. Written language developed much later, around 5000 years ago [4](#page=4).
Speculative theories for the origin of language include divine origin, natural sounds, social interaction, physical adaptation, tool-making, genetic factors, and musical origins. The genetic source theory suggests a species-specific genetic mutation, leading to the innateness hypothesis or linguistic nativism, which posits an innate "Language Acquisition Device" or "Universal Grammar" (proposed by Noam Chomsky). The "single-mutation" view is challenged, with research suggesting many genes affect linguistic ability, such as FOXP2. The evolutionary history is complex, with debates on whether only anatomically modern humans had language or if extinct relatives like Neanderthals also possessed it [4](#page=4) [5](#page=5).
### 1.9 Morphology: The structure of words
Morphology is the study of the internal structure of words and the rules governing them. The smallest meaningful unit in language is the **morpheme**, which consists of both meaning and form (morph). Words can be monomorphemic (one morpheme, e.g., "apple") or polymorphemic (multiple morphemes, e.g., "apple+s") [5](#page=5).
Morphemes can be classified by:
* **Autonomy:**
* **Free morphemes (lexemes):** Can stand alone (e.g., "man," "cat") [5](#page=5).
* **Bound morphemes (affixes):** Must combine with other morphemes (e.g., "un-", "-ness", "-s") [5](#page=5).
* **Function/Meaning:**
* **Lexical morphemes:** Content words (nouns, verbs, adjectives) that establish a relation to the world and can be easily added or created (open classes). Derivational affixes are also lexical [6](#page=6).
* **Grammatical morphemes:** Function words (prepositions, articles, pronouns) that establish relations within the sentence and are difficult to add (closed classes). Inflectional affixes are grammatical [6](#page=6).
* **Position:**
* **Prefix:** An affix before a base (e.g., "re-") [6](#page=6).
* **Suffix:** An affix after a base (e.g., "-tion") [6](#page=6).
### 1.10 Inflection vs. Derivation
Bound morphemes are either grammatical (inflectional) or lexical (derivational) [6](#page=6).
* **Inflection:** Expresses grammatical information and categories, never changes word class, and does not significantly alter meaning. Inflections are typically suffixes that attach to all possible bases. English has a limited inflectional system today (e.g., plural "-s," past tense "-ed") compared to Old English [6](#page=6).
* **Derivation:** Creates new lexemes by adding an affix to a lexical base. Derivation can change word class and alter meaning. Both suffixes and prefixes are used, attaching to a subset of bases [6](#page=6).
A single word can undergo both derivation and inflection (e.g., "speak"+"er" (derivation) +"s" (inflection)) [7](#page=7).
### 1.11 Unique morphemes and allomorphy
* **Unique morphemes ("cranberry morphemes"):** Bound morphemes that have neither meaning nor grammatical function but serve to distinguish a word from others (e.g., the "-berry" in "cranberry" vs. "strawberry") [7](#page=7).
* **Allomorphy:** The phenomenon where a single morpheme can have multiple forms, known as allomorphs. The form can be determined by phonological (neighboring sounds), morphological (preceding/following morpheme), or lexical (the word itself) conditioning. For example, the plural morpheme {PLURAL} has allomorphs like "-s", "-es" [7](#page=7).
### 1.12 Word-formation processes
New words are added to a language through various processes:
* **Productive processes:**
* **Compounding:** Putting two words together to form a new one (e.g., "handout," "word-class"). The head element (right-hand) carries the main meaning and determines word class and inflection [7](#page=7) [8](#page=8).
* **Affixation (derivation):** Adding an affix to a lexical base to create a new word, sometimes changing word class. Derivational suffixes often change word class, while prefixes rarely do. "Blocking" occurs when a synonymous word already exists, preventing affixation (e.g., "*stealer" is blocked by "thief") [8](#page=8).
* **Less productive processes:**
* **Conversion (zero-derivation):** Using a word in a different word class without any overt change in form (e.g., "to gesture" from "a gesture") [8](#page=8).
* **Shortening:** Removing linguistic material.
* **Clipping (truncation):** Retaining the first or stressed syllable (e.g., "doctor" → "doc") [8](#page=8).
* **Blends:** Combining parts of two words (e.g., "smoke" + "fog" = "smog") [8](#page=8).
* **Abbreviations:** Initial letters or sounds of words [9](#page=9).
* **Acronyms:** Pronounced as a word (e.g., "UNESCO") [9](#page=9).
* **Initialisms:** Each letter pronounced individually (e.g., "USA") [9](#page=9).
* **Back-formation:** Creating a new word by deleting a seeming suffix from an older, complex word, often resulting in a word class change (e.g., "editor" → "edit") [9](#page=9).
Other ways words are formed include coinage (inventing from scratch, e.g., "Google") and borrowing from other languages. Semantic change also contributes to new word meanings [7](#page=7).
### 1.13 Semantics and Lexicon
Semantics is the study of meaning in language, exploring its nature and structure. It is distinguished from pragmatics, which focuses on meaning intended by the speaker in a specific context. Lexical semantics deals with word meanings, sentential semantics with larger syntactic units, and discourse semantics with meaning in context [9](#page=9).
Key questions in semantics include how word meaning is defined, organized in the mind, learned by children, affected by sentence structure, expressed differently across languages, and how meaning changes over time [9](#page=9).
### 1.14 The semiotic triangle and dimensions of meaning
The semiotic triangle illustrates the relationship between a word (linguistic expression), its form, and the mental concept it evokes. While words can refer to objects, this is mediated through mental concepts, and not all concepts correspond to physical objects. Meaning is also understood as a word's use in language, encompassing associations beyond just concepts [10](#page=10) [9](#page=9).
Dimensions of word meaning contrast language-internal (intralinguistic) aspects with language-external (extralinguistic) ones:
* **Sense (Intension):** The language-internal meaning, referring to the semantic properties or conditions an object must meet to be classified by the word. It describes the semantic features. Example: "bird" features include [+animate, [-human, [+wings, [+feathers [10](#page=10).
* **Referent/Reference (Extension):** The real-world object or entity to which the word refers when used. Reference belongs to parole, whereas sense belongs to langue. Example: "birds" refers to doves, parrots, penguins [10](#page=10).
* **Denotation:** The primary, dictionary meaning that refers to a stable relationship between an expression and the concrete entities it refers to [10](#page=10).
* **Connotation:** All associations, ideas, and emotions related to a linguistic expression, which can differ among individuals [10](#page=10).
### 1.15 Word meaning and categorization
Understanding word use requires understanding mental concepts and categories [11](#page=11).
* **Semantic Feature Analysis (Aristotle):** Defines concepts by a set of semantic features. While useful for relationships, it struggles with atomic features, fuzzy boundaries, and cases where different concepts share the same features (e.g., "bachelor" and "pope") [11](#page=11).
* **Family Resemblance Theory (Wittgenstein):** Argues that members of a category share overlapping resemblances, not necessarily a single set of common features, like members of a family. This allows for fuzzy boundaries but doesn't grade members' typicality [11](#page=11).
* **Prototype Theory:** Suggests that category members are graded based on their typicality, with central members sharing more features with the prototype. This accounts for non-typical members and gradience, and includes associative meaning [11](#page=11).
### 1.16 The lexicon and word forms
The lexicon is the set of words in a language, stored in a vast mental lexicon. Word processing is efficient, allowing recognition before full pronunciation. The lexicon is organized in a network where related words are connected, influencing word meaning [11](#page=11) [12](#page=12).
* **Polysemy:** One form with related meanings (e.g., "head" of a person, a nail, an institution) [12](#page=12).
* **Homonymy:** One form with unrelated meanings (e.g., "bat" the animal and "bat" the wooden stick) [12](#page=12).
* **Homophony:** Two forms with the same sound but different spellings and meanings (e.g., "knight" / "night") [12](#page=12).
* **Homography:** One spelling with different pronunciations and meanings (e.g., "tear" (drop) / "tear" (apart)) [12](#page=12).
### 1.17 Semantic relations among words
These are paradigmatic relations, where words can substitute for each other in a structure:
* **Synonymy:** Different words with approximately the same meaning. True synonymy is rare; near-synonymy is more common, with words often differing in stylistic level or context suitability [12](#page=12).
* **Antonymy:** Words with opposite meanings. Types include gradable (hot/cold), complementary (dead/alive), reversive (enter/exit), and converse (buy/sell) antonyms [13](#page=13).
* **Hyponymy:** A hierarchical relationship where one word is a kind of another (e.g., "red" is a hyponym of "colour") [13](#page=13).
* **Meronymy:** A part-whole relationship (e.g., "branch" is part of a "tree") [14](#page=14).
### 1.18 Syntagmatic vs. Paradigmatic relations
* **Syntagmatic relations:** Describe how words co-occur in a sequence (horizontally) [14](#page=14).
* **Collocations:** Words that tend to co-occur frequently, forming word partnerships. Knowledge of collocations is a substantial part of language competence [14](#page=14).
* **Colligation:** The occurrence of a lexical item in a specific grammatical structure [14](#page=14).
* **Highly fixed collocations:** Formulaic phrases learned as a whole unit, like "good morning" [15](#page=15).
* **Idioms:** Highly fixed, non-compositional expressions where the meaning cannot be deduced from the individual words [15](#page=15).
* **Paradigmatic relations:** Describe words that can substitute for each other in a given structure (vertically) [14](#page=14).
### 1.19 Phrasal and sentential semantics
The Principle of Semantic Compositionality states that the meaning of a phrase or sentence is determined by the meaning of its parts and how they are structurally combined. Ambiguities (lexical and structural) are typically resolved by co-text and syntagmatic relations. Semantics focuses on objective, coded meaning, while pragmatics considers implied meaning in context [16](#page=16).
### 1.20 Meaning relations among sentences
* **Truth conditions:** The conditions under which a sentence is true [16](#page=16).
* **Propositional content:** The part of meaning that can be true or false, representing a possible state of the world [16](#page=16).
* **Truth value:** Whether the propositional content is true or false [16](#page=16).
* **Paraphrase:** Two sentences with roughly the same meaning, where the truth of one implies the truth of the other (symmetrical entailment) [16](#page=16).
* **Entailment:** The truth of one sentence implies the truth of another, but not vice versa (asymmetrical) [16](#page=16).
* **Contradiction:** If one sentence is true, the other must be false [17](#page=17).
### 1.21 Semantic roles
Semantic roles describe the function a noun plays in the event described by a clause, such as Agent, Experiencer, Theme, Instrument, Location, etc.. Verbs act as predicates that select obligatory arguments, and predication links these arguments to the predicate [17](#page=17).
### 1.22 Syntax and Grammar
Grammar, in a broad sense, refers to the rules governing sounds, words, sentences, and their interpretation; it's a feature of the mind that enables communication. Syntax specifically refers to the set of rules and principles that govern sentence structure, including word order, and explains why sentences are grammatically correct even with nonsense words [17](#page=17).
A grammar must generate a finite set of rules to produce an infinite number of well-formed sentences. Syntax involves identifying and classifying elements (categories, phrases, constituents), their ordering, hierarchy, recursivity, ambiguity, and functions. The hierarchical structure of sentences moves from Sentence > Clause > Phrase > Word [18](#page=18).
* **Sentence:** An abstract entity, typically starting with a capital letter and ending with punctuation, that can be derived from the meaning of its parts [18](#page=18).
* **Clause:** A grammatical term, containing at least one verb, and can be dependent or independent [18](#page=18).
* **Phrase:** A syntactic unit above the word level, with internal structure determined by a head and dependents. Types include Noun Phrase (NP), Verb Phrase (VP), Adjectival Phrase (AdjP), Prepositional Phrase (PP), and Adverbial Phrase (AdvP) [18](#page=18) [20](#page=20).
### 1.23 Word classes (parts of speech)
Words are classified into classes based on semantic, morphological, and syntactic (distributional) criteria [19](#page=19).
* **Open classes:** Feature many words and are easy to add new ones (nouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbs) [19](#page=19).
* **Closed classes:** Hard to add new elements (determiners, coordinators, subordinators, prepositions) [19](#page=19).
Each classification criterion has limitations, and usually, a combination of all three is needed for accurate classification. A prototype approach can also be applied, where some members of a class are more typical than others [20](#page=20).
### 1.24 Constituents and features of grammar
**Constituents** are structural units or building blocks that make up larger units, functioning as a single unit. Constituency tests (pronominalization, movement, coordination, gapping, sentence fragments) help identify them [21](#page=21).
Key features of grammar include:
* **Hierarchy of constituents:** Language structures have layers, representable by tree diagrams or brackets [21](#page=21).
* **Recursivity:** The ability to embed the same syntactic patterns repeatedly, allowing for self-similar structures [21](#page=21).
* **Ambiguity:** Human grammar allows for sentences to have multiple structural interpretations [21](#page=21).
### 1.25 Syntactic form vs. syntactic function
* **Syntactic form:** Refers to word classes and phrases, defined by semantic, morphological, and syntactic criteria [22](#page=22).
* **Syntactic function:** Describes the role an element plays in its grammatical context (e.g., subject, predicate, complement, adjunct) [22](#page=22).
Common syntactic functions include Subject, Predicate, Complement (Direct Object, Indirect Object, Subject Complement, Object Complement, Prepositional Object), and Adjunct. Notably, one form can have multiple functions, and one function can be expressed by multiple forms (many-to-one and one-to-many relationships) [22](#page=22) [23](#page=23).
### 1.26 Complementation patterns
Complementation patterns, determined by verb classes, describe the number of complements a verb requires in a clause. These include [23](#page=23):
* **Intransitive:** (S V) - no complements [23](#page=23).
* **Monotransitive:** (S V Od) - one direct object [23](#page=23).
* **Ditransitive:** (S V Oi Od) or (S V Od Oi) - one indirect and one direct object [23](#page=23).
* **Complex-transitive:** Involves PP-complement or object complement [23](#page=23).
* **Copulative:** (S V Cs) - uses copular verbs with a subject complement [24](#page=24).
### 1.27 Linguistic typology
Linguistic typology is the study and classification of languages based on structural and functional features, aiming to identify universals and patterns of variation. It differs from etymology, which groups languages by historical relations [24](#page=24).
* **Classification based on Morphology:**
* **Analytic/Isolating languages:** Each word is a single morpheme with one meaning (e.g., Mandarin) [24](#page=24).
* **Synthetic languages:** Words can be polymorphemic.
* **Fusional/Inflectional:** Morphemes carry multiple meanings (e.g., Latin, Spanish) [25](#page=25).
* **Non-fusional/Agglutinating:** Each morpheme has a single meaning (e.g., Turkish, Basque) [25](#page=25).
Most languages are mixed, with a dominant type. English is predominantly analytic but has synthetic elements [25](#page=25).
* **Classification based on Word Order (Syntax):**
* **Sentential level:** Analytic languages rely on strict word order (e.g., SVO), while synthetic languages have freer word order due to inflections. The most common orders are SVO and SOV [25](#page=25).
* **Phrase level:** Languages can be head-initial (head first, e.g., "flower yellow") or head-final (head last, e.g., "yellow flower"). English has a mixed system [26](#page=26).
### 1.28 Linguistic universals
These are features common to all or most languages [26](#page=26).
* **Absolute universals:** True for all languages (e.g., all languages have consonants and vowels) [26](#page=26).
* **Non-absolute/Probabilistic universals:** True for most languages or with high probability (e.g., most languages have adjectives) [26](#page=26).
* **Implicational universals:** If a language has feature A, it also has feature B (e.g., if a language has inflection, it also has derivation) [26](#page=26).
### 1.29 Diachronic and Historical Linguistics
Diachronic linguistics studies language change over time, contrasting with the synchronic study of language at a single point. Historical linguistics reconstructs language history using written evidence and comparative methods. Understanding language change is crucial because synchronic systems are not static or homogenous but are consequences of historical processes, explaining irregularities and variations [1](#page=1) [26](#page=26).
Language is viewed as an evolutionary "complex adaptive system" where innovation, diffusion, implementation, and standardization occur. Changes can be observed in lexicon, grammar, form, and meaning. Language change can be driven by internal factors (e.g., child language acquisition rules) or external factors [27](#page=27).
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# Morphology and word formation processes
This topic explores the internal structure of words, identifying their fundamental meaningful units and the processes by which new words are formed [5](#page=5).
### 2.1 The building blocks of language: Morphemes
Morphology is the study of the internal structure of words and the rules that govern them, drawing an analogy to the biological study of organism structure. The fundamental unit in morphology is the **morpheme**, which is the smallest meaningful unit in a language, composed of both meaning and form [5](#page=5).
Words can be:
* **Monomorphemic (simplex):** Consisting of a single morpheme, such as "apple" [5](#page=5).
* **Polymorphemic (complex):** Consisting of two or more morphemes, such as "apple + s" [5](#page=5).
Morphemes are categorized based on several criteria:
#### 2.1.1 Morphemes by autonomy
* **Free morphemes (lexemes):** These can stand alone as independent words (e.g., "man," "cat," "these") [5](#page=5).
* **Bound morphemes (affixes):** These cannot stand alone and must be attached to other morphemes (e.g., "un-," "-ness," "-s") [5](#page=5).
#### 2.1.2 Morphemes by function/meaning
* **Lexical morphemes:** These carry the main content and establish a relation to the world. They include content words (free morphemes like nouns, verbs, adjectives, which form open classes and are easily added to) and derivational affixes (bound morphemes) [6](#page=6).
* **Grammatical morphemes:** These establish relations between other parts of the sentence. They include function words (free morphemes like prepositions, articles, pronouns, which form closed classes and are not spontaneously added to) and inflectional affixes (bound morphemes) that express grammatical information like plurals, cases, etc. [6](#page=6).
#### 2.1.3 Morphemes by position
* **Prefix:** An affix that comes before a base (e.g., "un-" in "unhappy") [6](#page=6).
* **Suffix:** An affix that comes after a base (e.g., "-s" in "cats") [6](#page=6).
> **Tip:** The terms "stem" and "root" are related. A **base** is what other morphemes attach to. If a bound grammatical morpheme is added to a base, it becomes a **stem**. Simplex bases are also called **roots** [6](#page=6).
#### 2.1.4 Inflection vs. Derivation
Bound morphemes can be either grammatical (inflectional) or lexical (derivational) [6](#page=6).
* **Inflection:**
* Expresses grammatical information and categories.
* Never changes the word class.
* Meaning remains stable.
* Consists only of suffixes that attach to all possible bases.
* English has a limited inflectional system today (e.g., noun plural "-s," past tense "-ed") compared to Old English or modern German [6](#page=6).
* **Derivation:**
* Creates new lexemes by adding an affix to a lexical base.
* Can change the word class.
* Meaning changes, leading to a variable form-meaning relationship.
* Uses both prefixes and suffixes, which attach to a subset of bases.
* Examples include suffixes like "-ity," "-ness," and prefixes like "re-," "dis-" [6](#page=6).
> **Example:** The word "speakers" is formed by a base ("speak") + a derivational suffix ("-er") + an inflectional suffix ("-s") [7](#page=7).
#### 2.1.5 Unique and Allomorphic Morphemes
* **Unique morphemes ("cranberry morphemes"):** These are bound morphemes that have neither meaning nor grammatical function but serve to distinguish one word from another (e.g., the "cran-" in "cranberry") [7](#page=7).
* **Allomorphy:** This refers to a morpheme having multiple forms (allomorphs) that realize a single meaning.
* **Phonological conditioning:** The form of an allomorph depends on neighboring sounds. For example, the indefinite article has allomorphs "a" and "an". The regular plural suffix has allomorphs [7](#page=7):
* `-s` after voiceless consonants (e.g., "cats") [7](#page=7).
* `-z` after voiced consonants (e.g., "dogs") [7](#page=7).
* `-Əs` after sibilants (e.g., "horses") [7](#page=7).
* **Morphological conditioning:** The form depends on the preceding or following morpheme, often seen in bases changing shape with affixes (e.g., "agile" $\rightarrow$ "agility," "exclaim" $\rightarrow$ "exclamation") [7](#page=7).
* **Lexical conditioning:** The form depends on the word as a whole, as seen in irregular plurals (e.g., "child" $\rightarrow$ "children") and irregular comparative/superlative forms (e.g., "good" $\rightarrow$ "better" $\rightarrow$ "best") [7](#page=7).
### 2.2 Word-formation processes
Languages acquire new words through various processes, including coinage, borrowing, semantic change, and word formation using existing elements [7](#page=7).
#### 2.2.1 Productive word-formation processes
These processes are currently active and commonly used in language creation [7](#page=7).
* **Compounding:** This involves joining two words together to create a new one.
* Compounds can have three alternative spellings: as one word, as a hyphenated word, or as two separate words (e.g., "handout," "word-class") [8](#page=8).
* Stress is typically on the left-hand member, which can distinguish meaning (e.g., "English STUdents" vs. "ENGlish students") [8](#page=8).
* **Compound types:** Modifier (left) + Head (right). The head carries the main meaning, determines the word class, and receives inflection (e.g., "Newspaper," "colour-blind," "to housekeep") [8](#page=8).
* **Constituency:** Compounds can have complex hierarchical structures, where parts function as single units (e.g., "wild-life sanctuary" can be analyzed as "wild + life sanctuary" or "wildlife + sanctuary") [8](#page=8).
* **Affixation (Derivation):** This process creates a new word by adding an affix to a base [8](#page=8).
* **Prefixes** rarely change the word class (e.g., "un-," "mal-") [8](#page=8).
* **Suffixes** often change the word class and can have different meanings (e.g., "-er" can denote an agent or an instrument: "teacher" vs. "toaster") [8](#page=8).
* **Blocking:** If a synonymous word already exists, affixation might be blocked (e.g., "*stealer" is not used because "thief" exists) [8](#page=8).
#### 2.2.2 Less productive word-formation processes
These processes are less active or occur in more specialized contexts [8](#page=8).
* **Conversion (Zero-derivation):** A word is used in a different word class without any overt marking of change.
* Examples include using a noun as a verb (e.g., "a gesture" $\rightarrow$ "to gesture," "Google" $\rightarrow$ "to google") [8](#page=8).
* **Shortening:** Linguistic material (sounds or letters) is removed from a word.
* Generally, there is no change in word class or meaning, except in back-formation [8](#page=8).
* **Clipping (truncation):** The first or stressed syllable is retained (e.g., "doctor" $\rightarrow$ "doc," "Elizabeth" $\rightarrow$ "Liz") [8](#page=8).
* **Blends:** Parts of two words are combined (e.g., "smoke" + "fog" = "smog," "hungry" + "angry" = "hangry") [8](#page=8).
* **Abbreviations:** Initial letters or sounds of several words are used.
* **Acronyms:** Pronounced as a word (e.g., "UNESCO," "OPEC") [9](#page=9).
* **Initialisms:** Each letter is pronounced individually (e.g., "TV," "USA") [9](#page=9).
* Some abbreviations have entered general vocabulary (e.g., "Laser," "Radar," "FOMO") [9](#page=9).
* **Back-formation:** An older, complex word is perceived as having a suffix, and this perceived suffix is deleted to create a new word. This often results in a change of word class, making it appear as if the original word was derived from the new one (e.g., "editor" $\rightarrow$ "edit," "enthusiasm" $\rightarrow$ "enthuse") [9](#page=9).
---
# Semantics and the nature of meaning
Semantics is the study of meaning in language, encompassing how meaning is encoded in words and sentences and how it is organized in the mind.
## 3 Semantics and the nature of meaning
Semantics investigates the nature and structure of meaning in language. It is distinct from pragmatics, which focuses on the meaning intended by a speaker in a specific context, as semantics deals solely with meaning encoded within language itself. Key questions in semantics include how word meanings are defined and organized, the relationship between language and thought, and how meaning changes across languages and over time. Since meaning cannot be directly observed, it is inferred, and its understanding is contingent on knowing the language [9](#page=9).
### 3.1 Branches of semantics
* **Lexical semantics:** Focuses on the meanings of individual words and morphemes [9](#page=9).
* **Sentential semantics:** Deals with the meaning of syntactic units larger than words, such as phrases and sentences [9](#page=9).
* **Discourse semantics:** Examines meaning created within a broader linguistic context, closely related to pragmatics [9](#page=9).
### 3.2 The semiotic triangle
The semiotic triangle illustrates the relationship between a word (linguistic expression), a concept (mental category), and the real-world object or referent. Early views proposed that words directly refer to objects, but this is limited as not all words refer to tangible objects, and multiple words can refer to the same object. A more comprehensive view posits that meaning is the relationship between a linguistic expression and a mental category used for classification, with the mental concept acting as a crucial intermediary. The meaning of a word can also be understood as its use in language, encompassing not just concepts but also associations [10](#page=10) [9](#page=9).
### 3.3 Dimensions of word meaning
Word meaning can be analyzed through several paired dimensions, contrasting language-internal (intra-linguistic) and language-external (extra-linguistic) aspects [10](#page=10):
* **Sense vs. Referent/Reference:**
* **Sense:** The language-internal, conceptual meaning of a word, referring to a stable relationship between an expression and the concrete entities it denotes. It is considered part of *langue* (the language system) and is the same for all speakers. For example, the sense of "President of the US" refers to the office itself [10](#page=10).
* **Referent:** The actual object or entity in the real world that a word picks out when used in a specific utterance. It belongs to *parole* (language use) and is restricted by sense. For example, "George Washington," "Bill Clinton," and "Barack Obama" are referents for "President of the US" [10](#page=10).
* **Reference:** The relationship between a linguistic expression (in the mind) and its referent [10](#page=10).
* **Denotation vs. Connotation:**
* **Denotation:** The primary, dictionary meaning of a word, referring to the set of semantic properties or features that an object must meet to qualify for the word's application. It represents the stable, objective meaning shared by all speakers. For example, the denotation of "bird" includes features like [+animate, [-human, [+wings, [+feathers [10](#page=10).
* **Connotation:** All the associations, ideas, emotions, and subjective implications that a word evokes for an individual speaker. It can differ significantly from person to person. For example, connotations of "tree" might include relaxation, nature, or shade [10](#page=10).
* **Intension vs. Extension:**
* **Intension:** The description of semantic properties that define a word's meaning. It refers to the conceptual characteristics that an entity must possess to be classified under a given word. For example, the intension of "bird" involves being animate, non-human, having wings, and having feathers [10](#page=10).
* **Extension:** The set of actual real entities that satisfy the intension of a word. These are the concrete examples that fall under the word's meaning. For example, the extension of "bird" includes doves, parrots, and penguins [10](#page=10).
### 3.4 Theories of word meaning
Understanding how meanings are categorized in the mind is crucial for comprehending word usage. Three prominent approaches exist:
#### 3.4.1 Semantic feature analysis (Aristotle)
This approach defines word meaning by a set of semantic features, similar to intension [11](#page=11).
* **Concept:** Words are characterized by a list of binary features (e.g., [+human, [-male, [+adult]) [11](#page=11).
* **Advantages:** Easy to understand and apply, and it can automatically define relationships between words (e.g., similarity between "woman" and "girl") [11](#page=11).
* **Problems:**
* Features are themselves concepts and not necessarily atomic [11](#page=11).
* It does not account for our intuition that some members of a category are better examples than others (e.g., a robin is a better example of a "bird" than a penguin) [11](#page=11).
* Different words can have the same features but distinct meanings (e.g., "bachelor" and "pope" could share features like [+human, [+adult, [+male, [-married]) [11](#page=11).
* It is unclear which features are essential for defining a word's meaning [11](#page=11).
#### 3.4.2 Family resemblance theory (Wittgenstein)
Wittgenstein proposed that categories are not defined by a single set of essential features but by overlapping similarities, much like members of a family share resemblances without all having identical features [11](#page=11).
* **Concept:** Members of a category are related through a network of overlapping similarities. Not every member possesses all features, but each shares some features with others [11](#page=11).
* **Application:** Wittgenstein used the example of "game," which can involve entertainment, competition, skill, luck, and require multiple players, yet no single game embodies all these features [11](#page=11).
* **Advantage:** This theory acknowledges fuzzy boundaries and the lack of strict definitions for many categories [11](#page=11).
#### 3.4.3 Prototype theory
This theory posits that members of a category are graded according to their typicality, with a "prototype" representing the most central example [11](#page=11).
* **Concept:** A prototype is a mental representation of the most typical instance of a category. Central members of the category share the most features with the prototype [11](#page=11).
* **Advantages:**
* Accounts for non-typical or peripheral members of a category [11](#page=11).
* Allows for gradience and fuzzy boundaries within categories [11](#page=11).
* Incorporates associative meaning [11](#page=11).
* Explains linguistic expressions used to denote degrees of belonging (e.g., "typically," "sort of") [11](#page=11).
* **Comparison:** Unlike family resemblance, prototype theory identifies a core or central member, while both theories allow for gradience and associative meaning [11](#page=11).
### 3.5 Lexicon and word meaning organization
The lexicon is the set of words in a language, stored in a mental lexicon which is vast and highly organized. Words are not isolated but are interconnected in a network, as evidenced by word-association tests where people often show similar associative patterns for given words. This interconnectedness influences word meaning [11](#page=11) [12](#page=12).
### 3.6 Word forms and senses
* **Polysemy:** A single word form has multiple related meanings. These meanings are often listed together in a dictionary (e.g., "head" of a person, a nail, or an institution) [12](#page=12).
* **Homonymy:** Different word forms that happen to have the same pronunciation or spelling but unrelated meanings. They are treated as separate entries in a dictionary (e.g., "bat" – animal vs. wooden stick) [12](#page=12).
* **Homophony:** Two different forms with the same sound (e.g., "knight" and "night") [12](#page=12).
* **Homography:** Two different meanings with the same spelling but potentially different pronunciations (e.g., "tear" (a drop) vs. "tear" (to rip)) [12](#page=12).
* **Heteronyms:** Homographs that are pronounced differently [12](#page=12).
* **Lexical ambiguity:** A word's meaning is unclear and depends on its context [12](#page=12).
### 3.7 Semantic relations among words
These relations describe how words are connected in meaning within the lexicon.
* **Synonymy:** Different words with approximately the same meaning. While they can often substitute for each other, perfect synonymy is rare, as words may differ in stylistic level, connotation, or context-appropriateness (e.g., "eat" vs. "consume"). Near-synonymy is common [12](#page=12).
* **Euphemism:** Using a less offensive or more pleasant expression to replace a taboo or sensitive word (e.g., "pass away" for "die"). Euphemisms can lose their distinctiveness over time [13](#page=13).
* **Antonymy:** Words with opposite meanings, requiring them to share most semantic components except for one oppositional feature [13](#page=13).
* **Gradable antonyms:** Represent polarity on a scale and have comparatives (e.g., "hot," "warm," "cool," "cold") [13](#page=13).
* **Complementary pairs:** Binary opposites with no middle ground (e.g., "dead" vs. "alive") [13](#page=13).
* **Reversives:** Indicate opposite directions or actions (e.g., "enter" vs. "exit") [13](#page=13).
* **Converses:** Relational opposites viewed from different perspectives (e.g., "buy" vs. "sell") [13](#page=13).
* Complications arise as words can have different opposites in different contexts (e.g., "light" bag vs. "light" wind) [13](#page=13).
* **Hyponymy:** A hierarchical relationship where one word is a kind of another (e.g., "terrier" is a hyponym of "dog," and "dog" is a hyponym of "animal"). The more general term is the hyperonym, and the more specific term is the hyponym [13](#page=13).
* **Meronymy:** A part-whole relationship, where one word denotes a part of a larger object (e.g., "branch" is part of a "tree") [14](#page=14).
### 3.8 Syntagmatic vs. Paradigmatic Relations
These describe how words relate to each other in language.
* **Syntagmatic Relations:** Refer to words that can occur together in a linear sequence, forming phrases and sentences. These are "horizontal" relationships [14](#page=14).
* **Collocations:** Statistical tendencies for words to co-occur, forming word partnerships. Knowledge of collocations is a significant part of language proficiency, and using incorrect collocations can sound unnatural. They can be highly predictable (e.g., "rancid butter") or less so [14](#page=14).
* **Colligation:** The occurrence of a lexical item within a specific grammatical structure (e.g., "look forward to + -ing") [14](#page=14).
* **Collocational bounds:** The connections between words can extend beyond immediate adjacency, even across changes in word class or syntactic structure (e.g., "strong argument" to "the strength of her argument") [14](#page=14).
* **Highly fixed collocations:** These are learned as whole combinations and are not flexible (e.g., "good morning" as a greeting) [15](#page=15).
* **Paradigmatic Relations:** Refer to linguistic forms that can substitute for each other within a given structure, forming a "vertical" relationship [14](#page=14).
### 3.9 Idioms and compositionality
* **Idioms:** Expressions where the meaning is non-compositional, meaning it cannot be deduced from the individual meanings of its constituent words. They must be learned as a whole [15](#page=15).
* **Compositional (transparent):** The meaning can be understood from the parts (e.g., "cook some beans") [15](#page=15).
* **Semi-compositional:** There is a connection to the literal meaning, but it's metaphorical (e.g., "spill the beans") [15](#page=15).
* **Non-compositional:** The meaning is entirely divorced from the literal meaning of the words (e.g., "kick the bucket") [15](#page=15).
* **Principle of Semantic Compositionality:** The meaning of a phrase or sentence is determined by the meanings of its component parts and how they are structurally combined. This principle is fundamental to understanding how an infinite number of sentences can be generated from a finite lexicon [15](#page=15) [16](#page=16).
### 3.10 Ambiguity and sentence meaning
* **Lexical ambiguity:** A single word has multiple meanings, usually resolved by co-text or context [16](#page=16).
* **Structural ambiguity:** A sentence or phrase can be interpreted in more than one way due to its grammatical structure (e.g., "Mary had a little lamb" could refer to a live animal or a meal) [16](#page=16).
* Semantics deals with objective, coded meaning, while pragmatics addresses implied meaning in context [16](#page=16).
### 3.11 Meaning relations among sentences
* **Truth conditions:** The circumstances under which a sentence is true [16](#page=16).
* **Propositional content:** The part of a sentence's meaning that can be true or false; it represents a possible state of the world [16](#page=16).
* **Truth value:** Whether the propositional content is true or false [16](#page=16).
* **Paraphrase:** Two sentences with roughly the same meaning; if one is true, the other must also be true (symmetric entailment). This is analogous to synonymy at the lexical level [16](#page=16).
* **Entailment:** The truth of one sentence guarantees the truth of another, but not vice versa (asymmetric). This is analogous to hyponymy at the lexical level [16](#page=16).
---
# Syntax and grammatical structure
Syntax and grammatical structure define the rules that govern how words are combined to form meaningful sentences, exploring their internal organization, functions, and various analytical approaches.
### 4.1 The nature of grammar and syntax
Grammar, in a broad sense, encompasses the rules governing the sounds, words, sentences, and their combination and interpretation, forming a complete system of phonological, morphological, syntactic, and semantic information. It represents a feature of the mind, a set of rules stored in the brain that enables understanding and communication [17](#page=17).
Syntax specifically refers to the set of rules, principles, and processes that govern the structure of sentences, typically including word order. It explains why a sentence might sound correct even with nonsense words, demonstrating that a structure exists for forming sentences independent of semantics [17](#page=17).
A key goal of syntax is to account for all grammatically correct phrases and sentences, and only those, through a finite set of rules that can generate an infinite number of well-formed sentences [18](#page=18).
#### 4.1.1 Levels of grammatical organization
Grammar operates on different levels, identifying and classifying elements into categories, phrases, and clauses, and analyzing their ordering, hierarchy, recursivity, and potential for ambiguity. The hierarchical structure of linguistic units can be visualized as [18](#page=18):
Sentence > Clause > Phrase > Word/Lexeme
Morphemes and phonemes fall outside the scope of syntax [18](#page=18).
* **Sentence:** An abstract entity formed by grammatical rules, typically starting with a capital letter and ending with punctuation, consisting of a minimum of one verb and potentially subjects, objects, and adjuncts. A sentence can comprise one or more clauses organized around a main verb, and can be dependent or independent [18](#page=18).
* **Clause:** A grammatical term that can be finite (inflected) or non-finite (no tense) [18](#page=18).
* **Phrase:** A syntactic unit formed by words, above the word level [20](#page=20).
The terms "Competence" (langue) and "Performance" (parole) are also relevant, with competence referring to the abstract linguistic knowledge and parole referring to the actual use of language in a specific context [18](#page=18).
> **Tip:** Linguists analyze both spoken and written language, and analyzing larger structures is generally easier when they are more complete [18](#page=18).
#### 4.1.2 Approaches to grammar
Grammar can be approached in several ways:
* **Prescriptive vs. Descriptive:** Prescriptive grammar focuses on researching particular rules, while descriptive grammar aims to write a grammar book [19](#page=19).
* **Theoretical:** Aims for a unified model of the organization, acquisition, and development of languages in general [19](#page=19).
### 4.2 Word classes (parts of speech)
Word classes, also known as parts of speech, are categories of words based on criteria like meaning, form, and distribution [19](#page=19).
* **Open Word Classes:** These include nouns, adjectives, verbs, and adverbs, and allow for the addition of new words [19](#page=19).
* **Closed Word Classes:** These include determiners, coordinators, subordinators, and prepositions, and it is difficult to add new words to these categories [19](#page=19).
#### 4.2.1 Criteria for classification
* **Semantic Criteria:** Classifying words based on their meaning. For example, nouns denote persons and objects, verbs denote actions or states, and adjectives denote qualities [19](#page=19).
* **Problems:** Some categories are difficult to name, and classification can be problematic as words can fit multiple semantic categories (e.g., nouns denoting events, qualities, places, or times) [19](#page=19).
* **Morphological Criteria:** Classifying words based on their form and inflections or derivations.
* **Nouns:** Inflection (plural endings), derivational suffixes (-er, -ion, -ment) [19](#page=19).
* **Verbs:** Inflection (past tense endings), derivational affixes (re-, dis-, -fy) [19](#page=19).
* **Adjectives:** Inflection (comparative, superlative), derivational affixes (un-, -al, -ful) [19](#page=19).
* **Adverbs:** Suffixes like -ly, -wise [19](#page=19).
* **Problems:** Some words (e.g., prepositions, determiners, conjunctions) cannot be easily derived. Suffixes can be misleading (e.g., "goodly" is an adjective, "building" is a noun). One suffix can attach to multiple word classes (e.g., "walks" - verb, "streets" - noun). Productive morphemes do not apply to all members of a class (e.g., mass nouns lack plurals) [19](#page=19).
* **Syntactic Criteria (Distribution):** Classifying words based on their position and what precedes or follows them in a sentence.
* Examples: Adjectives precede nouns (red shoes), determiners precede adjectives (the red shoes), adverbs modifying adjectives precede them (extremely cheap), clausal conjunctions are clause-initial (because I was tired), and prepositions precede noun phrases (on the table) [20](#page=20).
* **Problems:** Adjectives can also follow nouns, and this criterion is not always conclusive on its own [20](#page=20).
> **Conclusion:** No single criterion is usually conclusive; therefore, all criteria should be applied. A prototype approach can also be used, where some members of a class are more typical than others. Determining word class can be challenging (e.g., "my" can be a determiner or pronoun) [20](#page=20).
### 4.3 Phrases
Phrases are syntactic units formed by words, existing at a level above individual words [20](#page=20).
#### 4.3.1 Internal structure of phrases
* **Head:** The most important element in a phrase, which determines its syntactic behavior and indicates what is being described by the phrase [20](#page=20).
* **Dependents:** Elements that modify or complete the head. These can be pre-head (e.g., determiners, modifiers) or post-head (e.g., complements, modifiers, peripheral dependents) [20](#page=20).
#### 4.3.2 Types of phrases and their structure
* **Noun Phrase (NP):** Headed by a noun. Structure: (Det) (Adj) N (PP) (Clause) [e.g., "the end of the story"] [20](#page=20).
* **(Extended) Verb Phrase (VP):** Headed by a verb. Structure: (Aux) V (NP) (PP) [e.g., "gave my sister a present"] [20](#page=20).
* **Adjectival Phrase (AdjP):** Headed by an adjective. Structure: (Adv) A [e.g., "smaller than that"] [20](#page=20).
* **Prepositional Phrase (PP):** Headed by a preposition. Structure: P NP [e.g., "with a knife"] [20](#page=20).
* **Adverbial Phrase (AdvP):** Headed by an adverb. Structure: Adv [e.g., "as quickly as possible"] [20](#page=20).
A clause is typically composed of an NP and a VP [20](#page=20).
### 4.4 Constituents
Constituents are structural units or building blocks that make up larger linguistic units. A single word is always a constituent. A sequence of words functions as a unit if it is a constituent [21](#page=21).
#### 4.4.1 Constituency tests
These tests help identify if a sequence of words functions as a unit:
* **Pronominalization:** Replacing the sequence with a single pronoun or pro-form [e.g., "The dog ate some bones" → "It ate them" or "The dog did so"] [21](#page=21).
* **Movement:** Moving the constituent to a different position in the sentence [e.g., "Some bones were eaten by the dog"] [21](#page=21).
* **Coordination:** Conjoining the sequence with a similar constituent using a coordinating conjunction like "and" [e.g., "The dog ate some bones and some cookies"] [21](#page=21).
* **Gapping:** Creating a tag question that leaves a gap for the constituent [e.g., "The dog has eaten all the bones, hasn't it?"] [21](#page=21).
* **Sentence Fragments:** Using the constituent to answer a formulated question [e.g., "Who ate some bones?" – "The dog"] [21](#page=21).
> **Tip:** If one test doesn't work, try another, as not all tests are always applicable even if the sequence is a constituent [21](#page=21).
### 4.5 Features of grammar
* **Hierarchy of constituents:** Grammatical structures have different layers, which can be represented using tree diagrams or brackets. Constituency tests aid in determining this hierarchical structure [21](#page=21).
* **Recursivity:** The ability to repeat items in a self-similar way, allowing for embedding and the repetition of syntactic patterns [e.g., NP PP NP PP NP. An example of recursion is: "The dog [that bit the cat [that chased the mouse [that ate the cheese [that we got from a friend [who owns a farm [that belonged to an uncle]]]]]]" [21](#page=21).
* **Ambiguity:** Human grammar allows for sentences that can be analyzed in multiple ways. For example, "The soldiers saw the men with binoculars" can be interpreted as soldiers seeing men who possessed binoculars or soldiers seeing men through binoculars. Visualizing structures with trees or brackets helps, and constituency tests can yield different results based on the interpretation [21](#page=21).
### 4.6 Syntactic form vs. syntactic function
* **Syntactic form:** Refers to word classes (N, V, P, etc.) and phrases (NP, VP, etc.), defined by semantic, morphological, and syntactic criteria. It is an internal property of a constituent [22](#page=22).
* **Syntactic function:** Describes the role an element plays in its grammatical context, such as subject, predicate, or complement. It is an external role that the constituent plays [22](#page=22).
#### 4.6.1 Syntactic functions
* **Subject:** Controls agreement with the verb, influences case, and typically precedes the verb. Subjects are often NPs, but can also be clauses or PPs [22](#page=22).
* **Predicate:** In traditional grammar, everything that is not the subject. Some linguists define it solely as the verb (predicator) [22](#page=22).
* **Complement:** A non-subject argument that is obligatory to the sentence structure [22](#page=22).
* **Direct Object (Od):** Follows the verb, often in an oblique form (me, him). Typically NPs or clauses [e.g., "He likes me"] [22](#page=22).
* **Indirect Object (Oi):** Represents the recipient and occurs only with a direct object, preceding it. It has an oblique case and can be transformed into a "to-PP" [e.g., "He gave me the present" or "He gave the present to me"] [22](#page=22).
* **Subject Complement (Cs):** Specifies features of the subject and follows a copular verb (be, seem, appear, etc.). Can be an NP or AdjP [e.g., "My sister is nice"] [22](#page=22).
* **Object Complement (Co):** Provides information about the direct object, following it. Can be an NP or AdjP [e.g., "He finds her attractive"] [22](#page=22).
* **Prepositional Object (Op):** Follows the verb or direct object, fulfilling a semantic role (e.g., goal), and is realized only by PPs [e.g., "We returned to London". Not all PPs are OPs; many are adjuncts [23](#page=23).
* **Adjunct (Adverbials/Modifiers):** Non-obligatory elements that provide additional information. These can be modifiers (e.g., "little sister") or adverbials (e.g., "last week," "under the table," "always") [23](#page=23).
> **Note:** There is no one-to-one relationship between form and function. An NP can have various functions (subject, Od, Oi, Cs, Co, Adjunct), and one function can be expressed by different forms (subject can be NP, Clause, or PP) [23](#page=23).
### 4.7 Complementation patterns
The verb is the most powerful element in a clause, and its complementation pattern (the number of complements it requires) varies based on verb classes. Adjuncts are not counted in these patterns [23](#page=23).
* **Intransitive:** Verbs that require no complements (Schema: S V) [e.g., "The girl cried". Examples: laugh, snore, fall, die [23](#page=23).
* **Monotransitive:** Verbs that require one complement (Schema: S V Od) [e.g., "Alex bought a guitar". Examples: buy, build, kill [23](#page=23).
* **Ditransitive:** Verbs that require two complements (Schema: S V Oi Od or S V Od to-PP) [e.g., "The boy gave the dog a bone" or "The boy gave a bone to the dog". Examples: give, donate, send [23](#page=23).
* **Complex-transitive:**
* **PP-complement:** Involves a prepositional phrase complement (Schema: S V Op or S V Od Op) [e.g., "The dog hides in the garden" or "The dog knocked the bone off the table". Examples: venture, put, subtract [23](#page=23).
* **Object complement:** Involves an object complement providing information about the direct object (Schema: S V Od Co) [e.g., "He made me angry"] [23](#page=23).
---
# Linguistic typology and language change
Linguistic typology classifies languages by structural and functional features, while diachronic linguistics examines their evolution over time.
## 5. Linguistic typology and language change
### 5.1 Linguistic typology
Linguistic typology is the study and classification of languages based on their structural and functional features, grouping them by shared characteristics. This is distinct from etymology, which groups languages by historical relationships. The primary goals of typology are to identify linguistic universals, establish the potential range of variation across languages, and uncover cross-linguistic patterns and correlations. It involves examining formal features, conducting cross-linguistic comparisons, and classifying language components [24](#page=24).
#### 5.1.1 Historical perspectives in typology
Early typologists like Schlegel and Humboldt were interested in "exotic" languages, often influenced by colonial perspectives and a belief in linguistic hierarchy, where languages closer to Latin were considered "superior". They focused on morphological classification, categorizing languages as affixal, inflectional, or lacking structure. Modern typology, pioneered by Greenberg, shifted to a neutral and comparative approach, studying linguistic universals based on a large number of languages and features. Greenberg conceptualized "implicational universals," viewing all languages as equal entities [24](#page=24).
#### 5.1.2 Classification based on morphology
Languages can be classified morphologically based on how words are constructed:
* **Analytic/Isolating languages:** Characterized by one word equaling one morpheme and one meaning, resulting in semantically transparent words. Mandarin Chinese is a prime example [24](#page=24).
* **Synthetic languages:** Involve poly-morphemic words where a single morpheme can carry multiple meanings, leading to semantically non-transparent structures [25](#page=25).
* **Fusional/Inflectional:** Morphemes are fused, and one morpheme conveys multiple grammatical meanings simultaneously. Latin, Spanish, and Russian exemplify this, where a single ending like '-ué' in "llegué" can indicate past tense and first-person singular [25](#page=25).
* **Non-fusional/Agglutinating:** Each morpheme generally corresponds to a single meaning, and morphemes are strung together transparently. Turkish, Quechua, and Basque are examples [25](#page=25).
> **Tip:** Most languages exhibit a mixed morphological typology, but they usually have a dominant type. English, for instance, is largely analytic but retains some synthetic (fusional) inflections, having lost many from its Old English stage [25](#page=25).
#### 5.1.3 Classification based on word order (syntax)
Word order is another crucial typological parameter, examined at both the sentential and phrase levels.
* **Sentential level:**
* **Isolating languages** rely heavily on strict word order due to their lack of inflection, making meaning dependent on sequence (e.g., "The dog bit the cat" differs from "The cat bit the dog") [25](#page=25).
* **Synthetic languages**, with their rich inflectional systems, can afford more flexible word order, as grammatical roles are marked morphologically (e.g., "Der Hund biss die Katze" can be rearranged without altering meaning) [25](#page=25).
Globally, Subject-Verb-Object (SVO) and Subject-Object-Verb (SOV) are the most common word orders, with others like VSO, VOS, OVS, and OSV being less frequent. Cross-linguistic tendencies include the adjacency of verbs and objects (VO or OV) and the tendency for subjects to precede objects. English, being SVO, adheres to these tendencies [25](#page=25).
* **Phrase level:**
* **Head-initial languages** place the head of a phrase before its complements or modifiers. Examples include noun-adjective order ("flower yellow" in Spanish and French) and preposition-noun order ("under the tree" in English and German) [26](#page=26).
* **Head-final languages** place the head last. Examples include adjective-noun order ("yellow flower" in English and German) and noun-postposition order ("the tree under" in Hungarian and Japanese) [26](#page=26).
> **Tip:** English exhibits a mixed system: its clause structure is largely SVO, but its noun phrases and adjective phrases can show variation, while prepositional and verb phrases tend to be head-initial [26](#page=26).
#### 5.1.4 Linguistic universals
Linguistic universals are features found in all or most languages. They can be categorized as [26](#page=26):
* **Absolute universals:** True for all languages, such as the presence of consonants and vowels, a distinction between nouns and verbs, and mechanisms for forming questions [26](#page=26).
* **Non-absolute/probabilistic universals:** Occur in most languages with high probability, like the presence of adjectives or the use of rising intonation for Yes/No questions [26](#page=26).
* **Implicational universals:** State that if a language possesses feature A, it must also possess feature B. An example is the implication that if a language has inflection, it also has derivation [26](#page=26).
### 5.2 Language change (Diachronic Linguistics)
Diachronic linguistics studies how languages evolve over time, contrasting with synchronic linguistics, which examines language at a single point in time. Historical linguistics specifically reconstructs the history of a language using written evidence, though for older languages, comparisons between related languages are necessary to trace development. The field investigates variation within languages (dialects, social factors) and seeks to identify universal mechanisms, tendencies, and reasons for linguistic change [26](#page=26).
#### 5.2.1 Reasons for studying linguistic change
Understanding linguistic change is crucial because:
* Synchronic language systems, often perceived as static, are actually the result of historical processes and are not always systematic or homogenous [26](#page=26).
* Irregularities found in modern languages are frequently remnants of older language stages [26](#page=26).
* Natural language is not perfectly logical; many linguistic forms are inexplicable in synchronic terms alone and are products of historical transmission [26](#page=26).
* Awareness of variation and change enhances social navigation, particularly regarding register and formality [26](#page=26).
* It helps in understanding whether language changes are internally or externally driven and in identifying various universal mechanisms and phenomena of change [26](#page=26).
> **Tip:** While prescriptivists often lament language change, linguists adopt a descriptive stance, viewing change as a neutral phenomenon [26](#page=26).
#### 5.2.2 Observable changes
The most apparent changes occur in the lexicon. However, change also affects various other linguistic levels, including grammar [27](#page=27).
* **Changes in form:** For instance, the shift from "fOde" to "food" [27](#page=27).
* **Changes in meaning/function:** The word "silly" has evolved from meaning "happy" to "stupid" [27](#page=27).
Recent morpho-syntactic changes, such as "I am loving it," "Come quick," "He kinda lost it," and "I'm gonna," suggest potential long-term grammatical shifts in progress [27](#page=27).
#### 5.2.3 Models of linguistic change
Language is viewed as an evolutionary, "complex adaptive system" from a diachronic perspective, involving the introduction of new variants, their successful spread, competition with existing forms, and subsequent layering or loss [27](#page=27).
A general model of linguistic change includes the following stages:
1. **Actuation/Innovation:** A new linguistic variant emerges.
2. **Gradual diffusion:** The new variant spreads through the speech community.
3. **Implementation:** The variant becomes established.
4. **Standardization/Codification:** The variant may be formally recognized and standardized.
The diffusion process is often described as an "S-spread," starting slowly, accelerating during a phase of widespread adoption, and eventually plateauing without necessarily reaching 100% adoption [27](#page=27).
Disagreements in the study of language change exist regarding the modes of change, particularly concerning whether it primarily occurs during adult variation or child language acquisition [27](#page=27).
* One perspective suggests change happens during a child's acquisition process, where children may apply their own rules to the input they receive [27](#page=27).
* Another views change as originating from variation among adult speakers, with new forms adopted by groups and gradually spreading until a majority uses them, while some speakers lag behind [27](#page=27).
---
## Common mistakes to avoid
- Review all topics thoroughly before exams
- Pay attention to formulas and key definitions
- Practice with examples provided in each section
- Don't memorize without understanding the underlying concepts
Glossary
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Linguistics | The scientific study of language or of particular languages, examining the forms language can take and the ways it is used. |
| Phonetics | The study of speech sounds produced by humans, focusing on their physical properties and production. |
| Phonology | The study of the sound systems of individual languages, analyzing how sounds are organized and used to create meaning. |
| Morphology | The study of the internal structure of words and the rules that govern their formation and modification, including the study of morphemes. |
| Syntax | The study of the structural units larger than words, such as phrases, clauses, and sentences, and the rules that govern their arrangement. |
| Semantics | The study of word and sentence meaning, focusing on the general meaning of words and how meaning is conveyed. |
| Pragmatics | The study of meaning in context, examining how meaning is influenced by the situation, speaker's intention, and discourse. |
| Synchronic | The study of language at a particular point in time, examining its state without considering its historical development. |
| Diachronic | The study of language over time, examining changes and developments that occur in the history of a language. |
| Descriptive | An approach to linguistics that describes how people actually speak and write neutrally, without making judgments. |
| Prescriptive | An approach to linguistics that dictates how people should speak or write correctly, often based on established rules or authorities. |
| Langue | The abstract system of language, representing the mental knowledge stored in the brain, including all its elements like sounds, words, and sentences. |
| Parole | The concrete use of language, referring to specific utterances made by a specific person at a specific point in time, essentially a speech event. |
| Signifier | The physical form of a sign, such as a word or an image, which represents a concept. |
| Signified | The mental concept or idea that is evoked in the mind by a signifier. |
| Semiotics | The study of signs and symbols and their interpretation, considering language as a system of signs. |
| Icon | A type of sign that signifies by resemblance, where the form of the sign looks like the thing it represents. |
| Index | A type of sign that signifies through a causal link or physical connection, where the form implies the concept indirectly. |
| Symbol | A type of sign where the connection between the form and the meaning is arbitrary and conventionalized, requiring learned association. |
| Morpheme | The smallest meaningful unit of language, consisting of both a meaning and a form (morph). |
| Lexeme | A free morpheme that can stand on its own and carries lexical meaning. |
| Affix | A bound morpheme that must be attached to a base or stem to form a word, such as prefixes and suffixes. |
| Inflection | The process of adding grammatical information or categories to a word by using affixes, which does not change the word class or stable meaning. |
| Derivation | The process of creating new lexemes by adding an affix to a lexical base, which can change the word class and meaning. |
| Allomorphy | The phenomenon where a single morpheme can have multiple forms, called allomorphs, which vary based on phonological, morphological, or lexical conditioning. |
| Compounding | A word-formation process where two or more words are combined to create a new word with a new meaning. |
| Conversion (Zero-derivation) | A word-formation process where a word is used in a different word class without any overt marking or change in its form. |
| Clipping (Truncation) | A shortening process where part of a word, typically the beginning or a stressed syllable, is removed, such as "doctor" becoming "doc". |
| Blends | A shortening process where parts of two words are combined to form a new word, such as "smoke" + "fog" = "smog". |
| Acronyms | Abbreviations formed from the initial letters of a series of words that are pronounced as a single word, like UNESCO. |
| Initialisms | Abbreviations formed from the initial letters of a series of words that are pronounced individually, like USA. |
| Back-formation | A word-formation process where a shorter word is created by removing a supposed suffix from a longer word, often changing the word class. |
| Lexical Semantics | The study of the meanings of individual words and morphemes. |
| Sentential Semantics | The study of the meaning of syntactical units larger than words, such as phrases and sentences. |
| Semiotic Triangle | A model illustrating the relationship between a word (signifier), the concept it represents (signified), and the real-world object or referent. |
| Sense | The language-internal meaning of a word, representing the mental concept or the set of semantic properties associated with it. |
| Denotation | The primary, dictionary meaning of a word, referring to the stable relation between an expression and the concrete entities it represents. |
| Connotation | All the associations, ideas, emotions, or feelings that come to mind in relation to a linguistic expression, which can differ among individuals. |
| Intension | The description of semantic properties that an object must meet to be classified under a particular word; it defines the set of semantic features. |
| Extension | The actual real entities that fulfill the intension of a word; it is the set of all referents that satisfy the word's meaning. |
| Semantic Feature Analysis | An approach to word meaning that breaks down meanings into a set of semantic features or components, like (+ human, + male, + adult). |
| Family Resemblance Theory | A theory proposed by Wittgenstein suggesting that members of a category share a network of overlapping similarities, rather than a single defining set of features. |
| Prototype Theory | A theory of word meaning that posits that members of a category are organized around a central prototype, with other members being graded according to their typicality. |
| Lexicon | The set of all words existing in a language, often conceptualized as a mental storage device. |
| Polysemy | A situation where one word has multiple related meanings, often listed together in a dictionary. |
| Homonymy | A situation where different words happen to have the same form but unrelated meanings, usually appearing as separate entries in a dictionary. |
| Homophony | A type of homonymy where words have the same sound (pronunciation) but different spellings and meanings (e.g., knight and night). |
| Homography | A type of homonymy where words have the same spelling but different pronunciations and meanings (e.g., tear (a drop) vs. tear (apart)). |
| Synonymy | The relationship between words that have the same or very similar meanings and can often be interchanged in a sentence, though perfect synonymy is rare. |
| Antonymy | The relationship between words that have opposite meanings, existing in various types such as gradable, complementary, reversive, and converse antonyms. |
| Hyponymy | A hierarchical relationship between words where one word (hyponym) is a kind of another word (hyperonym), forming a "is a" relationship (e.g., red is a hyponym of colour). |
| Meronymy | A part-whole relationship between words, describing the relationship of a part to a whole object (e.g., a branch is a meronym of a tree). |
| Syntagmatic Relations | Associations between words that can stand together in a sentence, forming horizontal relationships in a linear sequence. |
| Paradigmatic Relations | "Vertical" relationships of linguistic forms that can replace each other within a structure, representing choices from a set of options. |
| Collocations | Patterns of co-occurrence where certain words tend to appear together frequently, forming word partnerships that are important for natural language use. |
| Idioms | Non-compositional expressions where the meaning of the phrase cannot be determined by the literal meanings of its individual words and must be learned as a whole unit. |
| Principle of Semantic Compositionality | The principle that the meaning of a phrase or sentence is determined by the meaning of its component parts and the way they are structurally combined. |
| Entailment | A relationship between two sentences where the truth of one sentence logically implies the truth of the other sentence. |
| Contradiction | A relationship between two sentences where if one sentence is true, the other must be false, and vice versa. |
| Semantic Roles | The role that a noun or noun phrase plays in the event or state described by a clause, such as Agent, Experiencer, or Patient. |
| Predicate | The word in a sentence that indicates a relationship and selects a number of obligatory arguments to form a complete thought. |
| Grammar | The complete system of phonological, morphological, syntactic, and semantic information and rules that govern a language. |
| Clause | A grammatical unit that typically contains a subject and a predicate, organized around a main verb, and can be dependent or independent. |
| Phrase | A syntactic unit composed of words that forms a constituent above the word level, such as a Noun Phrase (NP) or Verb Phrase (VP). |
| Constituent | A structural unit, which can be a single word or a sequence of words, that functions as a single unit within a larger grammatical structure. |
| Recursivity | The feature of grammar that allows for the embedding of syntactic patterns within themselves, enabling the creation of infinitely long sentences. |
| Ambiguity | The property of language where a sentence or phrase can have more than one possible interpretation or analysis. |
| Syntactic Form | The word class (e.g., Noun, Verb) or phrase type (e.g., NP, VP) of a constituent, determined by semantic, morphological, and syntactic criteria. |
| Syntactic Function | The role an element plays in its grammatical context within a sentence, such as subject, predicate, complement, or adjunct. |
| Subject | The syntactic function that often controls agreement with the verb, determines case, and typically precedes the verb in English. |
| Predicate | In traditional grammar, everything in a sentence that is not the subject; in some linguistic analyses, it refers specifically to the verb. |
| Complement | A non-subject argument that is an obligatory part of a sentence and is required by the verb, noun, or adjective. |
| Adjunct | A non-obligatory element in a clause that provides additional information, functioning as a modifier or adverbial. |
| Complementation Pattern | The number and type of complements required by a verb to form a complete clause, categorizing verbs as intransitive, monotransitive, ditransitive, etc. |
| Linguistic Typology | The study and classification of languages based on their structural and functional features, grouping them by shared characteristics. |
| Analytic Languages | Languages where each word typically consists of a single morpheme, and word order is crucial for conveying meaning (e.g., Mandarin). |
| Synthetic Languages | Languages where words can be poly-morphemic, and morphemes can carry multiple meanings; they are further divided into fusional/inflectional and non-fusional/agglutinating types. |
| Fusional / Inflectional Languages | Synthetic languages where words are poly-morphemic and morphemes often carry multiple meanings simultaneously, making them semantically non-transparent. |
| Agglutinating Languages | Synthetic languages where words are poly-morphemic, but each morpheme typically carries a single, transparent meaning. |
| Head-Initial Languages | Languages where the head of a phrase typically appears first (e.g., preposition before noun phrase in English). |
| Head-Final Languages | Languages where the head of a phrase typically appears last (e.g., noun before postposition in Japanese). |
| Linguistic Universals | Features that are present in all or most languages, categorized as absolute (true for all languages) or non-absolute/probabilistic (true for most languages). |
| Diachronic Linguistics | The study of language change over time, examining how languages evolve historically. |
| Lexical Change | Changes that occur in the vocabulary of a language, involving the addition, loss, or modification of words. |
| Morpho-syntactic Change | Changes that occur in the grammatical structure of a language, affecting morphology (word formation) and syntax (sentence structure). |
| Actuation / Innovation | The initial stage of linguistic change, where a new variant or linguistic form is introduced. |
| Diffusion | The process by which a linguistic innovation spreads through a speech community. |
| Standardization / Codification | The stage of linguistic change where a variant becomes established and is codified in dictionaries, grammars, or other authoritative sources. |