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Review

Structural ambiguity
Functional phrases
Results
Summary

Principles of Linguistics
Syntax - The structure of declarative sentences

Simona Herdan

October 20, 2005/ PoL

Simona Herdan P of L
Review
Structural ambiguity
Functional phrases
Results
Summary

Outline

1 Review

2 Structural ambiguity

3 Functional phrases
Inflection phrase
Complementizer phrase

4 Results

5 Summary

Simona Herdan P of L
Review
Structural ambiguity
Functional phrases
Results
Summary

Review

phrases must have a lexical or functional element as head


all phrases are constituents
phrases also have optional specifiers and complements

Simona Herdan P of L
Review
Structural ambiguity
Functional phrases
Results
Summary

Outline

1 Review

2 Structural ambiguity

3 Functional phrases
Inflection phrase
Complementizer phrase

4 Results

5 Summary

Simona Herdan P of L
Review
Structural ambiguity
Functional phrases
Results
Summary

Structural ambiguity

hit the man with a stick (= the man that was carrying a stick)
VP

V’

V NP

hit
Det N’

the
N PP

man P’

P NP

with Det N’

a N

stick

Simona Herdan P of L
Review
Structural ambiguity
Functional phrases
Results
Summary

Structural ambiguity
hit the man with a stick (= the hitting was done with a stick)
VP

V’

V’ PP

V NP P’

hit Det N’ P NP
the N with Det N’

man a N

stick
Simona Herdan P of L
Review
Structural ambiguity
Inflection phrase
Functional phrases
Complementizer phrase
Results
Summary

Outline

1 Review

2 Structural ambiguity

3 Functional phrases
Inflection phrase
Complementizer phrase

4 Results

5 Summary

Simona Herdan P of L
Review
Structural ambiguity
Inflection phrase
Functional phrases
Complementizer phrase
Results
Summary

Outline

1 Review

2 Structural ambiguity

3 Functional phrases
Inflection phrase
Complementizer phrase

4 Results

5 Summary

Simona Herdan P of L
Review
Structural ambiguity
Inflection phrase
Functional phrases
Complementizer phrase
Results
Summary

Heads of declarative sentences

all phrases that we have seen until now can appear more
than once in a simple clause
a declarative sentence must be headed by a category that
appears only once per clause: inflection
all sentences contain an inflection phrase (IP)

Simona Herdan P of L
Review
Structural ambiguity
Inflection phrase
Functional phrases
Complementizer phrase
Results
Summary

Sentences and clauses

a sentence can be made up of several clauses, or just one


for our purposes, a clause has only one main verb
if the sentence has more than one main verb, it will have
more than one clause

Simona Herdan P of L
Review
Structural ambiguity
Inflection phrase
Functional phrases
Complementizer phrase
Results
Summary

Types of inflections

tense markers - in English they are not seen separately


from the verb, they are abstract elements
Example
{pres} (for present) and {past} (for past) or {±past}

modal auxiliaries:
Example
can, may, must, could, might, will, would, shall, should

Simona Herdan P of L
Review
Structural ambiguity
Inflection phrase
Functional phrases
Complementizer phrase
Results
Summary

Non-modal auxiliaries
non-modal auxiliaries - have and be are verbs that take
another verb as complement; they are not inflections
Example
John has been swimming a lot lately.

non-modal auxiliaries can co-exist with inflection


Example
has = {pres} + have

have and be can also be full verbs


Example
I have no money today.
I am at home.
Simona Herdan P of L
Review
Structural ambiguity
Inflection phrase
Functional phrases
Complementizer phrase
Results
Summary

The structure of the I(nflection)P(hrase)

a specifier: NP = the subject of the clause/sentence


an inflectional head: a modal auxiliary or a tense marker
a complement: VP = the predicate of the clause/sentence
Example
- NP specifiers of IP: the man, the man with the hat, John,
John’s brother, John’s brother’s girlfriend, the tall man who
entered the store and bought an icecream
- VP complements of IP: sleep, sleep on a bench, sleep on a
bench in the park, eat dinner, eat dinner at 7 o’clock, eat dinner
at 7 o’clock on a Friday in August

Simona Herdan P of L
Review
Structural ambiguity
Inflection phrase
Functional phrases
Complementizer phrase
Results
Summary

What is special about inflection?

unlike with other phrases, the specifier and complement of


IP are obligatory
the specifier and the complement of IP can be in theory
infinitely complex, but they are still attached in the same
positions

Simona Herdan P of L
Review
Structural ambiguity
Inflection phrase
Functional phrases
Complementizer phrase
Results
Summary

An IP example
IP

NP I’

Det N’ I VP

the {past} V’
N PP

man P’ V PP

P NP came P’

with Det N’ P NP

a N to Det N’

hat the N

house

Simona Herdan P of L
Review
Structural ambiguity
Inflection phrase
Functional phrases
Complementizer phrase
Results
Summary

Back to recursion
multiple complements of V are introduced by V’-recursion
Recursive rule - V’-recursion
V’ is both in the input and in the output of the rule
V’ → V’ PP
another recursive rule inserts an NP inside another NP
(see above)
Recursive set of rules - NP/PP recursion
- only recursive when used together in this order
NP → (Det) N’
N’ → N PP
PP → P’
P’ → P NP
Simona Herdan P of L
Review
Structural ambiguity
Inflection phrase
Functional phrases
Complementizer phrase
Results
Summary

IP recursion

most common recursion is at the level of IPs


we can always embed a sentence/clause inside another
sentence/clause
Example
1. John is smart.
2. Bill knows that John is smart.
3. Sam said that Bill knows that John is smart.
etc.

Simona Herdan P of L
Review
Structural ambiguity
Inflection phrase
Functional phrases
Complementizer phrase
Results
Summary

Outline

1 Review

2 Structural ambiguity

3 Functional phrases
Inflection phrase
Complementizer phrase

4 Results

5 Summary

Simona Herdan P of L
Review
Structural ambiguity
Inflection phrase
Functional phrases
Complementizer phrase
Results
Summary

Implementing IP recursion
the word that (or an abstract equivalent of it which is not
pronounced) heads a phrase: complementizer phrase
why complementizer? - the CP turns an IP into the
complement of a verb from another IP
what does that mean? - the CP embeds an IP inside
another IP = IP recursion
Example
IP → NP I’
I’ → I VP
VP → V’
V’ → V CP
CP → C’
C’ → C IP
Simona Herdan P of L
Review
Structural ambiguity
Inflection phrase
Functional phrases
Complementizer phrase
Results
Summary

Illustration of IP recursion
IP

NP I’

N’
I VP
N
{pres} V’
John

V CP

knows C’

C IP

that

NP I’

Det N’ I VP

the N PP {past} V’

man P’ V PP

P NP came P’

with Det N’ P NP

a N to Det N’

hat the N

house

Simona Herdan P of L
Review
Structural ambiguity
Functional phrases
Results
Summary

Outline

1 Review

2 Structural ambiguity

3 Functional phrases
Inflection phrase
Complementizer phrase

4 Results

5 Summary

Simona Herdan P of L
Review
Structural ambiguity
Functional phrases
Results
Summary

Advantages of using phrase structure rules

phrase structure rules allow us to explain recursion in


natural language
phrase structure rules allow us to explain structural
ambiguity

Simona Herdan P of L
Review
Structural ambiguity
Functional phrases
Results
Summary

Outline

1 Review

2 Structural ambiguity

3 Functional phrases
Inflection phrase
Complementizer phrase

4 Results

5 Summary

Simona Herdan P of L
Review
Structural ambiguity
Functional phrases
Results
Summary

Summary

a declarative sentence/clause is an inflection phrase (IP)


we only have on IP per clause
complementizer phrases (CP) allow for IP recursion

Simona Herdan P of L

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