Understanding Key Terms in Sentence Formation: An English Grammar Assignment
Sofía Fernández Becerra
Grammar 1: Task 1
English Studies, group 220
24/03/14
Task 1: Constituent structure
1. Constituency tests (4 points).
Are the following sentences examples of VP-ellipsis, gapping, ordinary coordination or shared constituent coordination? What does each test prove in terms of the constituency of the elided, gapped, coordinated or shared sequence of words?
1. Tom got away with a lie and with an excuse.
2. I argue about politics and my mom about religion.
3. Wallace designed an enormous, but Gromit built a gigantic, tin moon rocket
4. Sarah could work for any company in the world if she wanted to.
5. By now Adam will have stopped by and said hello.
2. Analysis of data: Lexical vs. non-lexical verbs (6 points). [adapted from T. E. Payne, 2011: Understanding English Grammar. Cambridge: C. U. P.]
In traditional grammars, verbs like be or seem are labeled together as copular (or “linking”) verbs. However, the data in (1) and (2) show that they are in fact syntactically distinct. Explain how the examples in (1) and (2) allow us to determine that be is a non-lexical verb, whereas seem is a lexical verb. Provide another piece of evidence to support your answer.
1. (1) a. They are not hilarious b. *They seem not hilarious
2. (2) a. Are they hilarious? b. *Seem they hilarious?
Take now the examples in (3). How can they help us to further classify be? What syntactic position does be occupy in the structure as opposed to must? Provide another example to justify your answer and the p-marker of (3a).
(3) a. They must have being hilarious b. ...and their sisters must have too b’...and their sisters must too b’’...*and their sisters too
1. Constituency tests
Sentence (b) shows an example of the syntactic process known as gapping. Gapping is a type of medial ellipsis where two clauses are conjoined and one element (or more), which is the same in both clauses, is omitted, leaving a gap in the middle of the 2nd clause (∅). In this sentence we
Grammar 1: Task 1
English Studies, group 220
24/03/14
Task 1: Constituent structure
1. Constituency tests (4 points).
Are the following sentences examples of VP-ellipsis, gapping, ordinary coordination or shared constituent coordination? What does each test prove in terms of the constituency of the elided, gapped, coordinated or shared sequence of words?
1. Tom got away with a lie and with an excuse.
2. I argue about politics and my mom about religion.
3. Wallace designed an enormous, but Gromit built a gigantic, tin moon rocket
4. Sarah could work for any company in the world if she wanted to.
5. By now Adam will have stopped by and said hello.
2. Analysis of data: Lexical vs. non-lexical verbs (6 points). [adapted from T. E. Payne, 2011: Understanding English Grammar. Cambridge: C. U. P.]
In traditional grammars, verbs like be or seem are labeled together as copular (or “linking”) verbs. However, the data in (1) and (2) show that they are in fact syntactically distinct. Explain how the examples in (1) and (2) allow us to determine that be is a non-lexical verb, whereas seem is a lexical verb. Provide another piece of evidence to support your answer.
1. (1) a. They are not hilarious b. *They seem not hilarious
2. (2) a. Are they hilarious? b. *Seem they hilarious?
Take now the examples in (3). How can they help us to further classify be? What syntactic position does be occupy in the structure as opposed to must? Provide another example to justify your answer and the p-marker of (3a).
(3) a. They must have being hilarious b. ...and their sisters must have too b’...and their sisters must too b’’...*and their sisters too
1. Constituency tests
Sentence (b) shows an example of the syntactic process known as gapping. Gapping is a type of medial ellipsis where two clauses are conjoined and one element (or more), which is the same in both clauses, is omitted, leaving a gap in the middle of the 2nd clause (∅). In this sentence we