यशवंतराव ENG516

चव्हाण
Contemporary Studies in English Language
महाराቖኚर मुक्त
वव्ቕापीठ

Course 03: Contemporary Studies in English Language

Authors: Dr. Deb Dulal Halder, Dr. Joita Dhar Rakshit & Dr. Shuchi
Agarwal
Unit 1. Introduction to Linguistics and Contemporary Theories
Unit 2. Phonology
Unit 3. Morphology
Unit 4. Syntax
Unit 5. Sociolinguistics
Unit 6. Semantics
Unit 7. Speech Act Theory and Discourse Analysis
Unit 8. Syntax: Phrases and Clauses
Yashwantrao Chavan Maharashtra Open University, Nashik
Vice - Chancellor : Prof. Sanjeev Sonawane
Director : Nagarjun Wadekar, School of Humanities and Social Sciences

SCHOOL COUNCIL OF SCHOOL OF HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES

Nagarjun Wadekar Prof. Sanjeevani Mahale Dr. Chetana Kamalaskar

Director, Director, Director,
School of Humanities and School of Education, School of Science,
Social Sciences, YCMOU, Nashik (MS) YCMOU, Nashik (MS)
YCMOU, Nashik (MS)
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Director, Assistant Professor, Director,
School of Commerce and Students Services Division, Center for Internal Quality
Management, YCMOU, YCMOU, Nashik (MS) Assurance, IGNOU, New Delhi
Nashik (MS)
Dr. Sandip Choudhari Dr. Bharati Gore Dr. Shyamal Bansod
HoD, Department of Professor, Department of Hindi, Associate Professor,
Sociology, Saraswati Bhuvan Dr. BabasahebAmbedkar Department of Marathi,
College, Chhatrapati Marathwada University, University of Mumbai, Mumbai
Sambhajinagar (MS) Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar (MS)
(MS)
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Professor Assistant Professor, Librarian,
Matru Sewa Sangh College of Department of Media and Gokhale Education Society’s
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Savitribai Phule Pune Research, Paral, Mumbai
University, Pune (MS) (MS)
Dr. Nusarat Minu
Department of Urdu,
Vasantrao Naik Government
Institute of Arts and Social
Sciences, Nagpur (MS)
Yashwantrao Chavan Maharashtra Open University, Nashik

Vice-Chancellor : Prof. Sanjeev Sonawane

Director : Nagarjun Wadekar, School of Humanities and Social Sciences

Authors
Dr. Deb Dulal Halder Dr. Joita Dhar Rakshit
Assistant Professor, Assistant Professor,
Department of English, Acharya Narendra Dev College,
Kirori Mal College, University of Delhi University of Delhi, Delhi

Dr. Shuchi Agarwal

Associate Professor,
Amity University, Noida (UP)

Program Coordinator

Nagarjun Wadekar
School of Humanities and Social Sciences,
Yashwantrao Chavan Maharashtra Open University, Nashik – 422 222.

Production
Vilas Badhan
Manager (I/C), Print Production Centre, YCMOU, Nashik
© 2024, Yashwantrao Chavan Maharashtra Open University, Nashik
First Publication : July 2024 Publication Number :
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 CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION

UNIT 1 INTRODUCTION TO LINGUISTICS AND CONTEMPORARY

THEORIES/VIEWS OF LANGUAGE 1-31
1.0 Introduction
1.1 Objectives
1.2 Introduction: What is Linguistics?
1.2.1 Basic Notions
1.2.3 Major Branches of Linguistics: Psycholinguistics, Sociolinguistics,
Computational Linguistics, and Historical Linguistics
1.2.4 Linguistics In the 20th Century: A Short History
1.3 Ferdinand De Saussure’s Structuralist View of Grammar
1.3.1 Synchronic and Diachronic Studies
1.3.2 Langue and Parole
1.3.3 Syntagmatic and Paradigmatic Relations
1.3.4 Signifier and Signified
1.3.5 IC Analysis
1.4 Chomsky’s Theory of Transformational Generative Grammar
1.4.1 Language Acquisition: The Cognitivist Approach
1.4.2 The Concepts of Kernel and Non- Kernel Sentences (Deep and Surface Structure)
1.4.3 Basic Transformation
1.4.4 Competence
1.4.5 Dell Hymes’ Concept of Communicative Competence and Others
1.4.6 Performance
1.4.7 Selection Restrictions
1.4.8 Lexis And Grammar
1.4.9 Language Universals
1.5 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
1.6 Summary
1.7 Key Words
1.8 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
1.9 Further Readings

UNIT 2 PHONOLOGY 33-57

2.0 Introduction
2.1 Objectives
2.2 The Phonemes of English: Description and Classification
2.2.1 Allophones
2.3 The Syllable: Structure and Types, Syllabic Consonants
2.3.1 Structure
2.3.2 Syllabic Consonant
 2.3.3 Accent
2.3.4 Types
2.4 Word and Grammatical Stress
2.4.1 Degrees of Stress
2.4.2 Stress Shift
2.5 Sentence Stress
2.5.1 Rules for Word Stress
2.5.2 Use of Strong and Weak Forms
2.6 Intonation Patterns/Uses of Tones: Tone Groups
2.6.1 Rules for Intonation
2.6.2 The Concept of Nucleus (Types of Nucleus: end-placed and Contrastive)
2.6.3 Tonic Accent: Pre-tonic and Post-Tonic Accent
2.6.4 Intonational Functions: Grammatical, Attitudinal and Accentual Functions of Intonation
2.7 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
2.8 Summary
2.9 Key Words
2.10 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
2.11 Further Readings

UNIT 3 MORPHOLOGY 59-85

3.0 Introduction
3.1 Objectives
3.2 Structure of Words: The Concepts of Morpheme and Allomorph
3.2.1 Morphemes and Morphology
3.2.2 Allomorphs
3.3 Types of Morpheme General Principles of Lexicography
3.3.1 Free and Bound Morphemes
3.3.2 Derivational and Inflectional Morphemes
3.3.3 Full and Empty Morphemes
3.3.2 Root and The Affix: Prefix, Infix and Suffix
3.3.4 General Principles of Lexicography
3.4 Some Word Formation Processes: Reduplication, Clipping, and Blending
3.5 Morphophonemic Changes
3.5.1 Phonological Conditioning
3.5.2 Morphological Conditioning
3.6 Problems of Morphological Analysis
3.6.1 Types of Problems in Morphological Analysis
3.7 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
3.8 Summary
3.9 Key Words
3.10 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
3.11 Further Readings
UNIT 4 SYNTAX 87-105
4.0 Introduction
4.1 Objectives
4.2 Sentences and Their Parts
4.2.1 Compound-Complex Sentence: Analysis
4.3 Words
4.3.1 Word Order
4.3.2 Structure of Words
4.4 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
4.5 Summary
4.6 Key Words
4.7 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
4.8 Further Readings

UNIT 5 SOCIOLINGUISTICS 107-140

5.0 Introduction
5.1 Objectives
5.2 Language Variation
5.2.1 Idiolect
5.2.2 Dialect: Regional Dialects and Social Dialects/Sociolects
5.2.3 Standard and Non-Standard Varieties
5.2.4 Arguments for the Standardization of English
5.2.5 Arguments against the Standardisation of English
5.2.6 Registers
5.2.7 Formal and Informal Styles
5.2.8 Jargon
5.2.9 Slang
5.2.10 Diglossia
5.3 Language Contact
5.3.1 Bilingualism
5.3.2 Multilingualism
5.3.3 Language Planning
5.3.4 Code Switching
5.3.5 Code Mixing
5.3.6 Pidgins and Creoles
5.3.7 Borrowings
5.3.8 Esperanto
5.3.9 Language Maintenance, Language Shift and Death of Language
5.4 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
5.5 Summary
5.6 Key Words
5.7 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
5.8 Further Readings
UNIT 6 SEMANTICS 141-149
6.0 Introduction
6.1 Objectives
6.2 Nature of Semantics
6.2.1 Meaning of Semantics
6.2.2 Seven Types of Meaning
6.2.3 Lexical Semantics
6.2.4 Superordinate Terms
6.2.5 The Concept of Prototype
6.2.6 Antonymy
6.2.7 Hyponymy
6.2.8 Polysemy
6.2.9 Metonymy
6.2.10 Collocation
6.2.11 Synonymy, Homonymy, Ambiguity, and Tautology
6.3 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
6.4 Summary
6.5 Key Words
6.6 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
6.7 Further Readings

UNIT 7 SPEECH ACT THEORY AND DISCOURSE ANALYSIS 151-164

7.0 Introduction
7.1 Objectives
7.2 Semantics and Pragmatics: Differences
7.2.1 J. L. Austin’s Speech Act theory:
7.2.3 Felicity Conditions
7.2.4 J. R. Searle: Speech Acts
7.2.5 Austin’s Typology of Speech Acts
7.2.6 Searle’s Typology of Speech Acts
7.2.7 Direct and Indirect Speech Acts
7.2.8 Cooperative Principle
7.2.5 Conversational Implicature
7.2.6 Cohesion and Coherence
7.2.7 Turn-Taking
7.2.8 Adjacency Pair
7.3 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
7.4 Summary
7.5 Key Words
7.6 Self Asseesment Questions and Exercises
7.7 Further Readings
UNIT 8 SYNTAX: PHRASES AND CLAUSES 165-195
8.0 Introduction
8.1 Objectives
8.2 Syntax
8.2.1 Words
8.2.2 Phrases
8.2.3 Determiner
8.2.4 Modification
8.2.5 Adverb Phrase
8.2.6 Sentence Patterns
8.2.7 Clauses
8.3 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
8.4 Summary
8.5 Key Words
8.6 Self Asseesment Questions and Exercises
8.7 Further Readings
 INTRODUCTION

Although language has been an object of attention for many philosophers from the times of Aristotle and
Plato, it is said that the nineteenth century saw the birth of the study of language as a science. Linguistics
refers to the scientific study of human language. It assists in understanding the language structure and
focuses on the system of rules followed by the speakers and listeners of a language. It is divided into the
following modules: Phonology, Morphology, Syntax, Semantics and Semiotics. Phonetics is also a related
branch of linguistics that is based on the actual properties of speech.
The section of phonology assimilates sound system of English, syllables, features of connected speech,
stress and intonation, strong and weak forms, assimilation and elision. The Morphology section throws
light on the concepts like Morphemes, types of morphemes and word formation process in detail. A
section on lexical semantics examines structural semantics, lexical aspect and related topics. This book
contains topics such as branches of Linguistics, phonetics of English, Phonology and Morphology, and
prosodic features such as word stress, rhythm and intonation as well as constituents of a basic sentence
structure.
This book, Contemporary Studies in English Language, is written with the distance learning
student in mind. It is presented in a user-friendly format using a clear, lucid language. Each unit contains an
Introduction and a list of Objectives to prepare the student for what to expect in the text. At the end of each
unit are a Summary and a list of Key Words, to aid in recollection of concepts learnt. All units contain Self
Assessment Questions and Exercises, and strategically placed Check Your Progress questions so the
student can keep track of what has been discussed.
 Introduction to

UNIT 1 INTRODUCTION TO Linguistics and

Contemporary
Theories/Views
LINGUISTICS AND of Language
NOTES
CONTEMPORARY
THEORIES/VIEWS OF
LANGUAGE
Structure
1.0 Introduction
1.1 Objectives
1.2 Introduction: What is Linguistics?
1.2.1 Basic Notions
1.2.2 Major Branches of Linguistics: Psycholinguistics, Sociolinguistics,
Computational Linguistics, and Historical Linguistics
1.2.3 Linguistics in the 20th Century: A Short History
1.3 Ferdinand De Saussure’s Structuralist View of Grammar
1.3.1 Synchronic and Diachronic Studies
1.3.2 Langue and Parole
1.3.3 Syntagmatic and Paradigmatic Relations
1.3.4 Signifier and Signified
1.3.5 IC Analysis
1.4 Chomsky’s Theory of Transformational Generative Grammar
1.4.1 Language Acquisition: The Cognitivist Approach
1.4.2 The Concepts of Kernel and non- Kernel Sentences (Deep and Surface
Structure)
1.4.3 Basic Transformation
1.4.4 Competence
1.4.5 Dell Hymes’ Concept of Communicative Competence and Others
1.4.6 Performance
1.4.7 Selection Restrictions
1.4.8 Lexis And Grammar
1.4.9 Language Universals
1.5 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
1.6 Summary
1.7 Key Words
1.8 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
1.9 Further Readings

1.0 INTRODUCTION

Linguistics is defined as a scientific study of language; therefore, its major concerns are
with the sounds of language (phonetics and phonology). It is also related with the
meanings and combination rules that make this correlation between sounds and meaning
possible (morphology) and with the arrangement of words in a sentence (syntax) leading
Self-Instructional
to the meaning of a sentence and its manifestation in language (semantics). Like all Material 1
Introduction to other sciences, Linguistics is concerned with systematic, patterned and predictable
Linguistics and
Contemporary elements. Linguistics study languages in general and are not concerned with any
Theories/Views particular language. Hence, its goal is to formalize the linguistic phenomenon of all
of Language
individuals in society and to attempt to decode the factors generating variation in
NOTES languages. A full understanding of the various components of a language and their
relations with the rest of the world outside the language would constitute the right
scope of linguistics. In this unit, we will discuss themeaning of linguistics, along with its
major branches and history in the 20th century. It will also focus on Ferdinand de
Saussure’s structuralist view of grammar as well as Chomsky’s theory of transformational
generative grammar.

1.1 OBJECTIVES

After going through this unit, you will be able to:

• Understand the meaning of linguistics, along with its major branches and history
in the 20th century
• Explain Ferdinand de Saussure’s structuralist view of grammar
• Discuss Chomsky’s theory of transformational generative grammar

1.2 INTRODUCTION: WHAT IS LINGUISTICS?

Some definitions of linguistics are:

‘Linguistics will have to recognize laws operating universally in language, and in
a strictly rational manner, separating general phenomena from those restricted to one
branch of languages or another.’
–Ferdinand de Saussure
‘The marvellous thing is that even in studying linguistics, we find that the universe
as a whole is patterned, ordered, and to some degree intelligible to us.’
–Kenneth L. Pike
As discussed, linguistics can be defined as the scientific study of human language
which tries to uncover the underlying structure of human language. Before the twentieth
century, scholars primarily focused on the aspect of grammar and evolutionary aspect
of language. This is known as philology. Philology is a branch of study of language
where you try to trace the origin of words and primarily attaches importance to the
realm of vocabulary of a particular language. Linguistics is far wider than philology as
the real of linguistics is to figure out the underlying structure not only of a language, but
languages per se.
There are different subfields of linguistics which try to structurally figure out the
ways in which language is manifested by us. The different sub-fields include:
• Phonetics, the study of the physical properties of speech (or signed)
Self-Instructional
2 Material production and perception,
 • Phonology, the study of sounds (or signs) as discrete, abstract elements in Introduction to
Linguistics and
the speaker’s mind that distinguish meaning, Contemporary
Theories/Views
• Morphology, the study of internal structures of words and how they can be of Language
modified,
NOTES
• Syntax, the study of underlying structures of sentences,
• Semantics, the study of the meaning of words and how words combine to
form the meanings of sentences,
• Pragmatics, the study of how utterances are used in communicative acts,
and the role played by context and non-linguistic knowledge in the
transmission of meaning, and
• Discourse analysis, the analysis of language use in texts (spoken, written, or
signed).
There are more areas which come under the area of linguistics or are connected
with linguistics; some areas which are directly connected are:
• Sociolinguistics, the study of variation in language and its relationship with
social factors.
• Applied linguistics, the study of language-related issues applied in everyday
life, notably language policies, planning, and education,
• Stylistics, the study of linguistic factors that place a discourse in context, and
• Semiotics, the study which investigates the relationship between signs and
what they signify more broadly.
There are even more areas which are remotely linked to the field of linguistics.
They are bio linguistics, clinical linguistics, computational linguistics, developmental
linguistics, evolutionary linguistics, historical linguistics or diachronic linguistics, language
geography, linguistic typology, neuro-linguistics, psycholinguistics, and so on. Thus,
there is no limit to the way in which language is studied in the present day from a
scientific point of view. As days progress, linguists are trying to uncover more fields
and subfields of linguistics. The more you to study language per se, the more you can
get into the depth of it, because of the complexity of its use.
1.2.1 Basic Notions
Linguistics can be divided into five distinct branches in accordance with functionality.
These are discussed subsequently.
Phonetics
As the science of human speech sounds, it studies the defining characteristics of all
human vocal sounds. It is related to the physical properties of speech sounds (phones);
their physiological production, acoustic properties, auditory perception, and
neurophysiological status. Phonetics is a multi-layered subject that focuses on speech.
While researching phonetics there are three basic areas of study:
• Articulatory phonetics: It refers to the study of the production of speech by Self-Instructional
3
the articulatory and vocal tract of the speaker. Material
Introduction to • Acoustic phonetics: It refers to the study of the transmission of speech from
Linguistics and
Contemporary the speaker to the listener.
Theories/Views
of Language • Auditory phonetics: It refers to the study of phonetics of the reception and
perception of speech by the listener.
NOTES
Phonology
Phonology is used to sort out which sounds are important for causing differences in
meaning and which are not, and to establish rules to account for the variations in
sounds involved. It studies the different kinds of sounds that are found in a language,
their pattern and relationships and is viewed as a subsidiary field to linguistics. It deals
with the sound systems of languages. Phonetics is about the physical production, acoustic
transmission and perception of the sounds of speech. Phonology explains the way
sounds operate within a given language or across languages for encoding meaning.
The term ‘phonology’ is used in linguistics as a greater part of the 20th century as a
cover term uniting phonemics and phonetics.
Phonetics and phonology
Historical evidence has proved that speech developed before writing. A child learns to
speak first and the written form of the language is taught to him only when he begins his
formal education. There are many people in the world that can speak a language but
cannot write. Moreover, many languages of the world lack a written form. Hence, the
first level of linguistic analysis is phonetics which is the science of human speech sounds
and studies the defining characteristics of all human vocal sounds. The next level of
analysis naturally is to identify the sounds that are important for causing differences in
meaning and which are not and to establish rules to account for the variations in the
sounds involved. Thus, phonology concerns itself with the types of sounds which occur
in a given language and patterns of relationships they form as the sound systems of the
language.
The study of phonetic composition of utterances has revealed that different
languages not only use different selections from the articulatory possibilities of the
human vocal tract but also organize these selections differently in the process of
contrasting sounds and possibilities of combining them in utterances. As a result, two
separate ways of studying speech sounds are recognized in linguistics: phonetics–
which studies and analyses the sounds of languages with a focus on their articulation,
transmission and perception; and phonology – which is the study and analysis of the
use of different ranges of speech sounds by languages and the systems of contrasting
sound features found in them.
Both phonetics and phonology focus on the same subject matter, i.e. speech
sounds but they are concerned with them from different points of view. Phonetics is
descriptive and classificatory in nature and is concerned with speech sounds and their
functions in language. Phonology is more particular and focuses on a particular language
or languages and is functional in the sense of the actual working or functioning of
speech sounds in a language or languages. Therefore, phonology has been called
Self-Instructional
4 Material functional phonetics by linguists.
Branches of phonetics Introduction to
Linguistics and
Contemporary
There are several approaches to the study of different sounds produced in languages. Theories/Views
The different branches of phonetics focus on varying sounds produced by human of Language
voice. The following are the branches of phonetics: NOTES
• Acoustic phonetics: Acoustics is a branch of physics that studies the physical
properties of speech sounds such as frequency, amplitude and time period
involved in their transmission. Since a very long time it was believed that
production of speech sounds must have some basic principles and it only recently
become possible to record and measure various features of sound waves with
the help of instruments. Acoustic phoneticians analyze the speech waves with
the help of these instruments in order to describe their properties. Such an
analysis of sound is best represented graphically by a spectrogram. The study
of acoustic phonetics was hugely enhanced in the late 19th century by the invention
of the Edison phonograph. The phonograph let the speech signal to be recorded
and then later processed and analyzed. By replaying the identical speech signal
from the phonograph many times, filtering it every time with a different band-
pass filter, a spectrogram of the speech utterance can be built up. A series of
papers by Ludimar Hermann published in Pflüger’s Archives in the last two
decades of the nineteenth century investigated the specific properties of vowels
and consonants by using the Edison phonograph, and in these papers itself the
term formant was first introduced. Hermann also played back vowel recordings
made with the Edison phonograph at various speeds for distinguishing between
Willis’ and Wheatstone’s theories of vowel production. Further advances in
acoustic phonetics became possible by the invention of the telephone industry
(coincidentally, Alexander Graham Bell’s father, Alexander Melville Bell, was a
phonetician). During World War II, work process at the Bell Telephone
Laboratories (who invented the spectrograph) hugely facilitated the systematic
study of the spectral properties of the following:
o Periodic speech sounds
o Aperiodic speech sounds
o Vocal tract resonances
o Vowel formants
o Voice quality
o Prosody
• Auditory phonetics: Auditory phonetics is the study of the process of hearing
and the perception of speech sounds. It defines sounds on the basis of how they
reach the ear drum and focuses on different auditory impressions of quality,
pitch and loudness of sounds.
• Articulatory phonetics: Articulatory phonetics is a branch of human physiology
which distinguishes sounds on the basis of the manner and place of articulation Self-Instructional
Material 5
Introduction to of sounds. Speech is produced by the air pressure movements made by the
Linguistics and
Contemporary vocal organs like lungs, larynx, soft palate, tongue, teeth and lips. The knowledge
Theories/Views of the organs of speech, their relation to each other and the way in which they
of Language
are used in speaking provides a sound basis for the classification of sounds in
NOTES human languages. The field of articulatory phonetics is a subfield of phonetics.
In studying articulation, phoneticians explain how humans produce speech sounds
via the interaction of different physiological structures. Generally, articulatory
phonetics is concerned with the transformation of aerodynamic energy into
acoustic energy. Aerodynamic energy refers to the airflow through the vocal
tract. Its potential form is air pressure; its kinetic form is the actual dynamic
airflow. Acoustic energy is variation in the air pressure that can be represented
as sound waves, which are then perceived by the human auditory system as
sound.
1.2.2 Major Branches of Linguistics: Psycholinguistics, Sociolinguistics,
Computational Linguistics, and Historical Linguistics
These are different branches of linguistics into which the modern linguistics has spread.
Linguistics as a subject or a discipline is not theoretically concerned with the dry realm
of language and its scientific study anymore.
Psycholinguistics
Psycholinguistics can be said to be dealing with an understanding of language in terms
of its acquisition as well as production. It is a multi-disciplinary realm of studies which
deals with psychology, linguistics, anthropology, neuroscience, and computer science.
Some psycholinguists also extended the realm of this area of study to non-human
language, for example of gorillas and chimpanzees, to understand language as human
phenomena is a much better way. Some of the early developments in this field are:
• The term was coined in 1936 by Jaco Robert Kantor in his book An Objective
Psychology of Grammar
• In 1946 article “Language and psycholinguistics: a review”, by his student
Nicholas Henry Pronko.
• Later in 1954, the book Psycholinguistics: A survey of theory and research
problems, Charles E Osgood and Thomas A. Sebeok is an important addition
to this field.
In general, psycholinguistics decodes how a human brain acquires language, processes
it, comprehends it and gives feedback or produces language.
Sociolinguistics
Human Beings are distinct from other animals as they can use language in a creative
way to express themselves. It is not that animals do not have language of their own,
they do; but human beings use words to communicate with each other. Thus, language
becomes one of the important markers of human identity. Language is not only a
Self-Instructional means of communication but also serves the purpose of the carrier of our culture.
6 Material
Thus, one of the aspects of linguistic study that deals with the study of language vis-a- Introduction to
Linguistics and
vis society is sociolinguistics. The main concern of sociolinguistics is to examine the Contemporary
way that a complex relationship exists between language and society. In other words, Theories/Views
of Language
it can be said that sociolinguistics is a meeting ground for linguists and social scientists,
anthropologists and others. What the socio-linguist primarily studies is the variable NOTES
nature of language. The premise from where they undertake their work is that language
is not a static entity, but a dynamic one. Because of the dynamic quality of language
there are lots of varieties of language. Variation in language and language use happens
for various reasons such as geographical separation, sex, age, education, social
background, class, caste etc. and these variations can be studied at various levels such
as phonological, morphological, syntactical, semantic and others.
If we take the example of India, within the span of Indian territory there are
about 1652 languages spoken, which only points out to the linguistic diversity of our
land. But, it is not only that there are these many languages, but at the same time one
has to keep in mind that these languages are used in different settings by different
individuals in different ways. For example, a Bhojpuri man may use his Bhojpuri at
home, but when he is in a formal setting he would prefer to use standard Hindi, and if
he knows English then he may use that in a much more formal setting. He may even
mix the two languages while speaking to friends, while when he writes he may be using
any one of the three languages but his language will be much more formal. Thus in
different setting, according to the listener or some other parameter he may choose to
use different language Sociolinguistics studies this aspect of language variation in detail.
Sociolinguistics is a meeting ground for linguists and social scientists,
anthropologists and others. What the socio-linguist primarily studies is the variable
nature of language. The premise from where they undertake their work is that language
is not a static entity, but a dynamic one. Because of the dynamic quality of language
there are lots of varieties of language. Sociolinguistics studies this aspect of language
variation in detail. Apart from studying language variation per se, sociolinguistics also
studies how language becomes the marker of one’s identity – whether class identity,
gender identity, or group identity, national identity etc. Whereas all of us are different in
our use of language, in the sense that we all use language in different ways (we will
discuss this in detail when we come to the topic of Idiolect) yet it is language which
binds us together. Language makes our individual identity at the same time it marks our
group identity. Language is also a tool which is significant in different spheres of social
life such as education, religion, media, and administration. Language is also a tool of
domination. These are also spheres which come under the domain of sociolinguistics.

Self-Instructional
Material 7
Introduction to
Linguistics and Box 1.1
Contemporary
Theories/Views Some definitions of socio-linguistics
of Language
There are several possible relationships between language and society. One is that
NOTES social structure may either influence or determine linguistic structure and/or behavior.
. . .A second possible relationship is directly opposed to the first: linguistic structure
and/or behavior may either influence or determine social structure. . . . A third possible
relationship is that the influence is bi-directional: language and society may influence
each other. . . .Whatever sociolinguistics is . . . any conclusions we come to must be
solidly based on evidence.
R. Wardhaugh
P. Trudgill (1974): ‘Sociolinguistics.. is that part of linguistics which is concerned
with language as a social and cultural phenomenon. It investigates the field of language
and society & has close connections with the social sciences, especially social
psychology, anthropology, human geography and sociology.’
Peter Trudgill (1983: 2-5), On Dialect:
[Trudgill uses ‘language and society’ as the broadest term, and distinguishes
3 types of study:]
1. “First, those where the objectives are purely linguistic;
2. Second, those where they are partly linguistic and partly sociological; and
3. Third, those where the objectives are wholly sociological.
“Studies of [the first] type are based on empirical work on language as it is spoken in
its social context, and are intended to answer questions and deal with topics of
central interest to linguistics... the term ‘sociolinguistics’ [here]... is being used
principally to refer to a methodology: sociolinguistics as a way of doing linguistics.
“The 2nd category... includes [areas] such as: sociology of language; the social
psychology of language; anthropological linguistics; the ethnography of speaking;
& [interactional] discourse analysis.
“The third category consists of studies... [like] ethno-methodological studies of
conversational interaction... where language data is being employed to tell us, not
about language but only about society... [This] is fairly obviously not linguistics,
and therefore not sociolinguistics.”
Wm. Downes (1984: 15), Language and Society:
“Sociolinguistics is that branch of linguistics which studies just those properties of
language and languages which REQUIRE reference to social, including contextual,
factors in their explanation.”
Janet Holmes (1992, 16), An Introduction to Sociolinguistics:
“The sociolinguist’s aim is to move towards a theory which provides a motivated
account of the way language is used in a community, and of the choices people make
when they use language.”
J. K. Chambers (1995, 203), Sociolinguistic Theory:
“Upon observing variability, we seek its social correlates. What is the purpose of this
variation? What do its variants symbolize? … [These] are the central questions of
sociolinguistics.”
Ronald Wardhaugh (1998, 10-11), Sociolinguistics: An Introduction:
“[1] Social structure may either influence or determine linguistic structure and/or
Self-Instructional behavior… [2] Linguistic structure and/or behavior may either influence or determine
8 Material
 social structure [Whorf, Bernstein]… [3] The influence is bi-directional: language Introduction to
and society may influence each other… [4] There is no relationship at all between Linguistics and
Contemporary
linguistic structure and social structure… each is independent of the other… [4a] Theories/Views
Although there might be some such relationship, present attempts to characterize it of Language
are essentially premature… this view appears to be the one that Chomsky holds.”
NOTES
Florian Coulmas (1997), Handbook of Sociolinguistics “Introduction” (1-11)
“The primary concern of sociolinguistic scholarship is to study correlations between
language use and social structure… It attempts to establish causal links between
language and society, [asking] what language contributes to making community
possible & how communities shape their languages by using them… [It seeks] a
better understanding of language as a necessary condition and product of social
life… Linguistic theory is… a theory about language without human beings.”

Computational linguistics
Computational linguistics is a field ranges between linguistics and computer science
with the help of psychology and logic; again it is an interdisciplinary field of study
which emphasizes on using computers to understand and deal with linguistic issues
(McGuigan, 2006). Martin Kay (2003) is of the opinion that this field of study perhaps
first began in 1949 with machine translation. The phrase ‘computational linguistics’
began to be used in 1965 when it appeared as a sub-title of the journal ‘Mechanical
Translation and Computational Linguistics’. There are two aspects to it:
• To apply the experience of computer science to the study of linguistics
• Their experience of linguistics to computer science so that computers can
understand everyday human language and translation. (Wintner, 2004)
Computational linguistics ranges between cognitive sciences and artificial intelligence.
Applied computational linguistics is meant to devise program which can improve the
interaction between human and machine so that human and computers can communicate
easily.
Historical linguistics
Historical Linguistics deals with the study of language as it evolves over a historical
period of time. For example, from the Middle Age (Chaucer) to modern day, the
change that has occurred in the English language will be a subject matter of historical
linguistics. It is thought to be the oldest field of linguistics–a field which was much in
practice in the nineteenth century when the emphasis is laid on the study of common
ancestry of humankind through tracing language to a historical past to a proto-language.
Today we see that there is emphasis on Indo-European proto-language from which
most of the European as well as Indian languages supposedly arrived. Though in the
twentieth century there has been a change in perspective after the advent of Ferdinand
de Saussure who emphasized on synchronic study of language rather than diachronic
(historical) studies. Today Synchronic study of language is much in fashion, though
historical studies have not gone irrelevant as Philology is still a very significant field of
linguistics.

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Material 9
Introduction to 1.2.3 Linguistics in the 20th Century: A Short History
Linguistics and
Contemporary
Theories/Views Linguistic history is related to numerous hypotheses that were formulated in the attempt
of Language to understand the existence of the nature of human language. These theories can be
NOTES grouped into three broad categories which are loosely aligned with historical epochs:
• Before the 19th century: Non-theoretical studies
• 19th century: Historical linguistics
• First half of 20th century: Structuralism
• Second half of 20th century: Generative grammar
Here, we will only discuss the 20th century.
The rise of structuralism in the early twentieth century is synonymous with
Ferdinand de Saussure, a French-Swiss philosopher whose ideas have had a profound
influence on the linguistic thought of centuries to come. In his perspective, diachrony is
merely a series of different synchronic slices together, such that the structure of a
language at one point in time is primary and historical considerations depend on the
concepts derived from synchronous perception of language. Understanding the structure
of the system has led to a practical view of language change that considers simplification
and repair as well as avoiding merger as legitimate types of change.
The generative approach to language change sees it mainly as a change of rule
that is part of a generation’s internalized grammar, and remains so until it is replaced by
another change of rule. This form of change is often binary, i.e. a rule is either present
or not, and as such has been criticized by others, especially sociolinguists, who claim
that there is always a variable application of the rules and that speakers may have a
command of many subsystems whose usage is decided by external, social factors. We
will talk about these theories in detail in next sections.

Check Your Progress

1. What is the difference between philology and linguistics?
2. What are the three basic areas of studies in phonetics?
3. What are the significant eras of the development of linguistics?

1.3 FERDINAND DE SAUSSURE’S STRUCTURALIST

VIEW OF GRAMMAR

Ferdinand de Saussure (1857–1913, born in Geneva), considered the ‘father of modern

linguistics’, studied Sanskrit and comparative linguistics in Geneva, Paris, and Leipzig.
In 1878, at the age of 21, Saussure published a long and bright article, ‘Note on the
Primitive System of the Indo-European Vowels’, which established his credential as a
young scholar. Saussure’s influence on linguists was far-reaching, through his direct
influence on his students at the University of Geneva. They practically worshipped
Self-Instructional him. His teachings are spread through his ideas which were collected and disseminated
10 Material after his death by two of his students, Charles Bally and Albert Sechaye. These students,
who became well-known linguistic researchers in their own right, put together course Introduction to
Linguistics and
notes from their and another student’s notebooks. They produced the Cours de Contemporary
Linguistique Generale (Course in General Linguistics). This composite work, shaped Theories/Views
of Language
and interpreted by Bally and Sechaye, was prepared in the years immediately following
Saussure’s death. It was a tribute and was seen as a way of making his brilliant ideas NOTES
accessible beyond Geneva for posterity. It did well and the Cours de Linguistique
Generale was widely read in French by scholars all over Europe. In 1959, it was
translated into English by Wade Baskin mainly for American students, who were less
likely to have learned to read French than their European counterparts. A new translation
of the Cours de Linguistique Generale by Roy Harris appeared in 1986.
Saussure’s fresh ideas were consonant with those of his influential compatriot,
Claude Levi-Strauss, and also those of Emile Durkheim, the pioneer of the new field
of sociology. Saussure’s influence spread all through the new social sciences in the
early and mid-twentieth century, and ultimately, for better or worse, to literary theory
and modern cultural studies. They still exert a very strong intellectual force in all these
disciplines (probably most in linguistics and the disciplines most influenced by literary
theory; less so now in traditional anthropology, sociology, and psychology). In linguistics,
Saussure’s focus on the synchronic dimension and on language as an interrelated system
of elements was maintained through the American Structuralist period (Bloomfield,
Hockett). It was extended to the generative period (Chomsky, Bresnan). His view of
the essential nature of the form-meaning pairing, without the intermediate and essentially
meaningless syntactic layer posited by Chomsky, Perlmutter, and other generative
theory-builders, has re-emerged in theories like head-driven phrase structure grammar
(Sag and Pollard) and construction grammar.
Modern functionalist theories have integrated diachrony much more than
generative theories (cf. the functional typology of Greenberg, Givón, Comrie, Heine,
and Bybee), but the focus on the synchronic has nevertheless been essentially maintained
in modern cognitive theories of language. It keeps in with the synchronic view of the
human mind in the cognitive sciences, notably psychology and neuroscience.
Key ideas of Ferdinand de Saussure
Ferdinand de Saussure lost faith in philology (the study of the historical development
of languages) and the historical (or diachronic) study of language. He argued for
structurally studying language as it exists as a system at a particular point in time
(synchronically). This feature of Sassurean linguistics is taken by structuralists to study
any given text or cultural practice from a synchronic perspective.
1.3.1 Synchronic and Diachronic Studies
As against the historical view of language, Ferdinand de Saussure emphasized the
importance of studying language from two distinct points of view, which he called
‘synchronic’ and ‘diachronic’. The word ’chronic’ was derived from Greek word
’chronos’ and means time. While synchronic linguistics sees language as a living whole,
existing as a state at a particular point in time, diachronic linguistics considers language
in its historical development (Greek dia-through, chronos-time). Saussure says: Self-Instructional
Material 11
Introduction to Synchronic linguistics will concern the logical and psychological relations that bind
Linguistics and together co-existing terms and from a system in the collective mind of speakers.
Contemporary
Theories/Views
Diachronic linguistics, on the contrary, will study relations that bind together
of Language successive terms, not perceived by the collective mind but substituted for each other
without forming a system.
NOTES
Thus, synchronic linguistics deals with systems whereas diachronic with units.
The relationship between the both aspects of language study was diagrammatically
represented as follows in Figure 1.1.
Synchronic

Etat de langue

Diachronic
(through time)

here we will
find stability
(it is fixed)

Fig. 1.1 The Relationship between Synchronic and Diachronic Linguistics

You have to keep in mind that it is impossible to consider the way a language
has changed from one state to another without first knowing something about the two
states to be compared. This need not be a pair of complete synchronic descriptions. It
is raised as complaint with regard to what linguists actually do in practice. However,
some non-historical analysis is essential in the preliminary course of analysis. Saussure
rounds off his discussion with various analogies. His analogy with a game of chess is
perhaps the most famous of all. If we walk into a room while a game of chess is being
played, it is possible to assess the state of the game by simply studying the position of
the pieces on the board (as long as we know the rules): we do not normally need to
know the previous moves from the beginning of the game. And likewise, the state of
board at every move is implicit in any pattern of play we may wish to study. The
synchronic/diachronic distinction, Saussure claims, is very similar to this analogy.
Saussure’s distinction between diachronic and synchronic studies of the
language is a distinction between two opposing viewpoints. You have to keep in mind
that a good diachronic work is usually based on good synchronic work because no
valid statement about linguistic change can be made unless you have good synchronic
work of the languages across the time in which the diachronic work is being done.
1.3.2 Langue and Parole
Saussure divided language into three levels: (i) language, the human capacity to evolve
sign systems, (ii) langue, the system of language that is the rules and conventions which
organize it, and (iii) parole, any individual utterance or the individual’s use of language.
Saussure was chiefly interested in langue as a historical phenomenon. For Saussure,
Self-Instructional as Roland Barthes describes it, langue is ‘essentially a collective contract which one
12 Material
must accept in its entirety if one wishes to communicate.’ In other words, it can be said Introduction to
Linguistics and
that langue is the structure of a language at a given point of time and parole is the Contemporary
performance of a speaker of that language (Figure 1.2). Theories/Views
of Language
Synchronic
NOTES
(langue)

(parole)
Diachronic the individual speaker
time, change, process
the history of language

stasis
language always only
exits in the moment
Fig. 1.2 The Levels of Language

Saussure also made a categorical distinction between langue and parole. Langue
formed the subject matter of linguistics, and parole was constituted of all those elements
which lay beyond the domain of linguistics. Parole dealt with individual utterance in the
sense of how an individual uses a language within the structure of a language (langue).
Saussure was deeply influenced by the sociological theories of Durkheim. He
considered language to be an abstract body of knowledge which all members of society
shared collectively and individually. This knowledge of the code, which was encoded
in the brain of each individual and which belonged collectively to all the members of
society, was considered to be langue.
Individuals used it either by choice or predilection on individual occasions fell in
the domain of parole. Therefore, it was of no direct interest to linguistics. This is the
basic difference between the two: whereas one is social and a body of abstract
knowledge, the other is individual and is perceptible in individual instances. The
implication, therefore, is very simple: the stable, predictable, pattered, systematic
regularities of language are what linguistics could set out to study. On the other hand,
the random, unpredictable, idiosyncratic and wilful individual use of language was not
amenable to a scientific analysis and was therefore of no interest to linguistics.
1.3.3 Syntagmatic and Paradigmatic Relations
The synchronic system can then be described in terms of two axes: the paradigmatic
and the syntagmatic (Figure 1.3). The paradigmatic is concerned with meaning based
on association, and the syntagmatic is based on combination. The paradigmatic is
concerned with the ‘fixed’ value of signs based on their immediate associations with
other signs (like the association of the sound/idea ‘large’ with other size notions such
as ‘small’, as well as with other sound images, such as ‘barge’). On the other hand, the
syntagmatic is concerned with the ‘dynamic’, pertaining to meaning conferred by the
combination, order and sequence of signs.

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Material 13
Introduction to
Linguistics and Syntagmatic (in praesentia, horizontal)
Contemporary
Theories/Views
of Language
The ridiculous girl fell into the pond.
NOTES

silly person jumped river

Paradigmatic foolish woman tripped lake
(in absentia, funny lady plunged sea
vertical) crazy princess walked ocean
klutzy child ran pool

Fig. 1.3 Two Axes of the Synchronic System

The relationship between the words in syntagmatic arena in the sentence ‘the
ridiculous girl fell into the pond’ is the relationship where the words are combined
together to produce a meaning, where we have the word order of SVO (subject–
object–verb). Further, we have each word define a relationship with the other words.
But each word in this sentence can be substituted with other words, as given in the
diagram above to make an infinite number of sentences having different meanings. This
realm of substitution is termed by Saussure as paradigmatic. The relationship between
the paradigmatic and the syntagmatic is analogous to that between the synchronic and
diachronic, in that the former is like a snapshot of related values, and the latter offers a
trajectory where value is related to the sequence or progression. The paradigmatic
sense is structuralism’s primary concern, and it is more readily systematizable, although
a consideration of both (and the correlations between them) is essential for any
structuralist analysis.
1.3.4 Signifier and Signified
In Saussure’s view, words are not symbols which ‘refer’ to things, but are ‘signs’
which are made up of two parts. They comprise a sound pattern (either written or
spoken) called a ‘signifier’, and a concept called a ‘signified’. Things have no place in
Saussure’s model as language does not acquire meaning as the result of some connection
between words and things, but only as parts of a system of relations. Saussure says,
‘A linguistic system is a series of differences of sounds combined with a series of
differences of ideas.’ The relationship between the sounds (signifier) and the ideas or
concepts it refers to (signified) is arbitrary (Figure 1.4).

Self-Instructional Fig. 1.4 The Relationship between the Sounds and the Ideas
14 Material
 All these significant ideas of Saussure deeply influenced the French scholars of Introduction to
Linguistics and
1950s and 1960s. They started an intellectual movement known as structuralism. The Contemporary
underlying rules of the cultural texts and practices which produce its meaning or Theories/Views
of Language
signification are what interest the structuralists. The task of the structuralist, in other
words, is to figure out the rules and conventions (the structure) of texts and cultural NOTES
practices which govern the production of meaning (parole).
1.3.5 IC Analysis
In linguistics, Immediate Constituent analysis or IC analysis is a method of sentence
analysis that was first mentioned by Leonard Bloomfield and developed further by
Rulon Wells.It was further developed by Noam Chomsky. The process and result of
IC-analysis can vary based upon whether one chooses the constituency relation of
phrase structure grammars (constituency grammars) or the dependency relation of
dependency grammars as the underlying principle that organizes constituents into
hierarchical structures. IC-analysis divides up a sentence into major parts or immediate
constituents, and the process continues until irreducible constituents are reached, i.e.,
until each constituent consists of only a word or a meaningful part of a word. The end
result of IC-analysis is often presented in a visual diagrammatic form that reveals the
hierarchical immediate constituent structure of the sentence at hand.
In the context of the phrase structure grammar (=constituency grammar), IC-
analysis divides a sentence into major parts or immediate constituents and these
constituents are then divided into further immediate constituents. The process continues
until irreducible constituents are reached, i.e. until each constituent consists of only one
word or a meaningful part of a word. The end result of IC-analysis is always described
in a visual diagrammatic form showing the immediate hierarchical constituent structure
of the given sentence. In general such diagrams are trees. For instance:

The tree shows how the whole sentence is first divided into the two immediate
constituents of this tree and demonstrates IC-analysis by constituency relationship;
these two constituents are then divided into the immediate constituents this and branch,
and explain IC-analysis and by constituency relationship; and so forth.

Self-Instructional
Material 15
Introduction to
Linguistics and
Contemporary Check Your Progress
Theories/Views
of Language 4. What is the difference between synchronic and diachronic linguistics?
NOTES 5. What are the three levels of language?

1.4 CHOMSKY’S THEORY OF TRANSFORMATIONAL

GENERATIVE GRAMMAR

Transformational grammar is in contrast with traditional grammar. Traditional grammar

is based on set of rules followed since ages. It defines how a language ought to be
used, but transformational language shows how a language is really used by society.
According to it, language is dynamic; it keeps changing; it is in a state of flux. The
scholars concerned with transformational grammar believe that a native speaker
possesses four basic grammatical abilities such as synonymity, missing elements in a
sentence, ambiguity and ungrammatical string. They recognize such things in a sentence.
There is always a difference between the origin of language and its form. The following
are the grammatical abilities:
• Missing element: ‘He did not attend the class because he did not want to’.
(In this sentence some part of the sentence is missing)
• Ambiguity: ‘Visiting relatives is a kind of nuisance’. (In this sentence, meaning
is ambiguous whether to visit relatives or relatives who visit is a kind of nuisance)
• Ungrammatic string: ‘Pleasant the weather is’. (Structure is not followed in
this sentence).
• Synonmity: ‘Advocate (solicitor) pleaded my case’.
Concept of Generative Grammar
Before we begin considering how this morphological theory within the linguistic model
of generative grammar works, we will sketch the background assumptions made by
generative grammarians so that we can place the theory of morphology in the wider
theoretical context of generative linguistics. The central objective of generative linguistics
is to understand the nature of linguistic knowledge and its acquisition by the infants. In
the light of this objective, a fundamental question that a theory of word-structure must
address is, what kind of information must speakers have about the words of their
language in order to use them in utterances? Attempts to answer this question have led
to the development of sub-theories of the lexicon (i.e., dictionary) and of morphology.
According to Chomsky, the central goal of linguistic theory is to determine what
it is that people know if they know a particular language. Chomsky observes that
knowing a language is not simply a matter of being able to manipulate a long list of
sentences that have been memorized. Rather, knowing a language involves having the
ability to produce and understand a vast (and indeed unlimited) number of utterances
Self-Instructional
of that language that one may never have heard or produced before. In other words,
16 Material
creativity (also called productivity or open-endedness) is an aspect of linguistic Introduction to
Linguistics and
knowledge that is of paramount importance. Contemporary
Theories/Views
Linguistic creativity is for the most part rule-governed. For instance, speakers of Language
of English know that it is possible to indicate that there is more than one entity referred
NOTES
to by a noun and that the standard way of doing this is to add -s at the end of a noun.
Given the noun book, which we have encountered before, we know that if there is
more than one of these we refer to them as books. Likewise, given the nonsense word
as in the sentence, ‘The smilti stink which I have just made up’. You know smilti would
refer to more than one of these smelly things. Speakers of English have tacit knowledge
of the rule by which one can ‘add’ ‘s’ and can use it to produce the plural form of
virtually any noun. I have emphasized the notion of rule, taking the existence of rules
for granted.
We will discuss why a generative is a system of explicit rules which may apply
recursively to generate an indefinite number of sentences which can be as long as one
wants them to be. Reclusiveness has the consequence that, in principle, there is no
upper limit to the length of a sentence. A grammatical constituent like a noun phrase
(NP) or a pre-positional phrase (PP) can contain an indefinite number of further
constituents of that category as in the sentence ‘John saw the picture of the baby on
the table in the attic.’ In generative linguistics, ‘grammar’ can refer to the implicit,
totally unarticulated knowledge of rules and principles of their language. This tacit
knowledge enables them to distinguish between well-formed and ill-formed words
and utterances in their language. For example, many English speakers may not be able
to explain in an articulate mail why it is correct to say ‘a grain’ but incorrect to say ‘an
oat’. Nevertheless their knowledge of English grammatical structure enables them to
determine that the former is correct and the latter is not.
Secondly, whereas in traditional approaches ‘grammar only includes morphology
and syntax; in generative linguistics the terra grammar is employed in a much wider
sense. It not only covers morphology and syntax but also semantics, the lexicon and
phonology, hence, there are rules of grammar in every linguistic module. Phonological
rules, morphological rules, syntactic rules and semantic rules are all regarded as rules
of grammar.
Thirdly, grammar and rules of grammar may refer to a book containing a statement
of the rules and principles inferred by linguists to lie behind the linguistic behavior of
speakers of a particular language. These rules simply describe regular patterns observed
in the linguistic data.
Lastly, some grammars are books containing prescriptive statements. Such
grammars contain rules that prescribe certain kinds of usage. Outside linguistics, this
view of grammar is still prevalent. The reason for this is clear. In everyday life, rules are
normally mechanisms for regulating behavior- the behavior of pupils in a school,
members of a club, inmates of a prison, etc. In many traditional pedagogical grammars
rules serve the same thing. They are statements like ‘A sentence must not end with a
preposition.’ They prescribe what the officially or socially approved usage is in the
opinion of the grammarian. In much of modern linguistics, however, rules have a different Self-Instructional
function. Material 17
Introduction to 1.4.1 Language Acquisition: The Cognitivist Approach
Linguistics and
Contemporary
Theories/Views The following section discusses the phrase structure, deep and surface structures and
of Language transformational rules.
NOTES Phrase structure
The syntactic structure of a sentence can be represented as an inverted tree diagram.
Its start is sentence (S), which then branches into its immediate NP (Noun Phrase) and
VP (Verb Phrase). Each of the constituents of NP and VP then can branch into its
syntactic constituents. Let us take the example of the sentence, ‘The boy kicked the
ball.’ The phrase structure of this sentence can be represented as a diagram in the
following manner:
Phrase structure rules in transformational grammar
In Chomsky’s transformational (generative) grammar, two basic types of syntactic
rules are proposed:
• Phrase structure rules
• Transformational rules
The phrase structure tree of the sentence, ‘The boy kicked the ball’ will be as follows:
• S – NP + VP (Sentence – Noun Phrase + Verb Phrase)
• NP – Art + N (Noun Phrase – Article + Noun)
• VP – V + NP (Verb Phrase – Verb + Noun Phrase)
• NP – Art + N (Noun Phrase – Article + Noun)
Selection of PS rules of English
PS rules describe how syntactic categories/phrases combine to form larger constituents
in a given language.
Sentence/clause-level PS rules (English has quite a fixed clause-level PS rule)
• S NP VP (a sentence is obligatorily comprised of a NP and a VP)
[NP The students] [VP attended their lectures].
But some sentences also contain an auxiliary:
• S NP Aux VP
The students will take exams.
The auxiliary is optional; we can indicate this with (...).
• S NP (Aux) VP
where ( ) indicates an optional constituent
VP-related PS-rules (more variation here)
• VP V
Self-Instructional Talked
18 Material
 • VP V Adv Introduction to
Linguistics and
talked loudly Contemporary
Theories/Views
• VP V NP of Language

ate their desserts NOTES

• VP V NP PP (Adv)
put the book on the table (wearily)
• VP V (S)
know (the students attended their lectures)
So, a VP must contain a verb, but can also contain a lot of other phrases (...):
• VP ! V (NP) (PP)(Adv) (S)
NP-related PS-rules (lots of options)
• NP N
books
• NP ! Adj N
unopened books
• NP ! Det Adj N
the unopened books
• NP ! Det Adj N PP
the unopened books on the table
So NP must contain N but can also contain a lot of other phrases
• NP ! (Det) (Adj) N (PP)
Source: http://www.ling.cam.ac.uk/li1/syntax/Li1_Syntax_2.pdf

1.4.2 The Concepts of Kernel and Non- Kernel Sentences (Deep and
Surface Structure)
Often, sentences are ambiguous as we are not able to figure out what they mean. For
example, in the sentence, ‘Old man and woman are going’, we are not sure whether
old is an adjective only for man or also for the woman. Therefore, it is usually said that
any grammatical analysis is divided into two parts. One part talks about the superficial
or apparent structure of sentences, and the other about the underlying structure of
sentences. The deep structure is abstract and allows the native speaker of a language
to understand the sentence. It may then be said that the deep structure expresses the
semantic contents of a sentence, whereas the surface structure of a sentence determines
its phonetic form. Transformation functions as a link between the deep structure of
sentences and their surface structures. For example, in the sentence, ‘Visiting doctors
can be a nuisance’, the surface structure does not make the meaning clear. If we go to
the deep structure of the sentence it may either mean- (i) We visit doctors and can be Self-Instructional
a nuisance. Or, it may mean (ii) Doctors visit us and they can be a nuisance. Material 19
Introduction to The meaning of the sentence becomes clear only when an immediate constituent
Linguistics and
Contemporary analysis of the sentence is done. In this example, it is unclear as to whether the word
Theories/Views ‘nuisance’ is intended for the visit or for doctors. Similarly, in the sentence, ‘old man
of Language
and woman are going’, we are not sure as to whether in the adjectival phrase, ‘old
NOTES man and woman’, old stands for man and woman. Let us do an immediate constituent
analysis of the phrase ‘old man and woman’, and figure out the meaning.
In the first case, we can say that:
S – AP + V (Old man and woman + are going)
AP – Aj + NP (old + man and woman)
In the second case:
S – AP + V (Old man and woman + are going)
AP – AP + N (old man + woman)
When we do immediate constituent analysis like this through phrase structure,
there is no ambiguity in the sentence. In the first case, the adjective ‘old’ is both for
man and woman, and in the second case, the man is old but the woman is not. Thus,
the surface structure of a sentence may have its ambiguity but when we go to the deep
structure of a sentence the ambiguity vanishes and it helps us in understanding the
signification of the sentence.
1.4.3 Basic Transformation
The transformation involves the following.
Interrogative
Questions form a basic type of sentence in any language. The difference in word order
in questions has to be captured by a very different kind of rule from a phrase structure
rule. The transformational rule called the question word movement rule or Wh–
movement rule operates on a deeper representation to move the question word to the
front of the sentence. The name Wh–movement comes from generative grammar,
where a wh–word begins at some other place in a sentence and moves to the front.
But along with it there are also a number of other elements in a sentence that show the
special word order found in questions. Let us try to discuss Wh–movement through an
example. The interrogative sentence is ‘What do you stitch shirts with?’ Most
interrogative sentences operate on a hidden or ‘deeper’ representation to move the
question word ‘what’ to the front of the sentence:

__________ You Present + stitch shirts with what

What you Present +Stitch shirts with

In the next step there is a subject–auxiliary inversion:

Self-Instructional What do+ present you stitch shorts with
20 Material
 This is the S-structure representation. From here, we come to the interrogative Introduction to
Linguistics and
sentence—‘what do you stitch shorts with?’ Contemporary
Theories/Views
Passive of Language

Passive transformation is derived from the deep structure of the active sentence (which NOTES
is sometimes thought to be a sub-type of the transformation of NP movement). Let us
illustrate passivization through an example. In the following example, the passive
sentence B, is derived from the deep structure representation (sentence A.I) of the
active sentence A.

A. Children ate the mangoes.

A.I. ___________ past +be eaten the mangoes by the children.

B. The mangoes were (= be + Past third Plural) eaten by the children.

Negative
Negation is an important area of study of syntax as it affects not only the structure of
the sentence but also the meaning. In English, there are two kinds of negation, which
are as follows:
• The morphological prefixes such as un-, in-, im-, and dis- are used to express
the opposites of the meaning of certain individual words. In these cases, the
sentential meaning is not negated but the meaning of the individual word is
negated.
• In the other case, known as syntactic negation, the effect is the change of meaning
of the affirmative sentence.
For example:
Affirmative sentence: I am very happy with you
Negative sentences: A: Ram is very unhappy with you.
B: Ram is not very happy with you.
In the first case, it is clear that Ram is unhappy, whereas in the second sentence, it may
be that Ram is either unhappy or not as happy as he should be.
Contraction
‘Contraction’ is the term used to describe the phenomena where one word is reduced
and apparently affixed to another. For example, when have not is realized as haven’t,
or we have as we’ve or when want to is realized as wanna. There are different kinds
of contraction in English. One of the most common among them is the ‘finite auxiliary
contraction’. In this case, finite auxiliaries (have, be, and modals will and would) appear
to contract with elements to their left, as in:
Self-Instructional
Material 21
Introduction to • We’ve eaten the mango.
Linguistics and
Contemporary • We’re eating the mango.
Theories/Views
of Language • We’ll eat the mango.
NOTES • We’d eat the mango.
It involves the apparent contraction of the auxiliaries with something to its left. The
finite auxiliary contracts with whatever is to its left. The other well-known contraction
is that of ‘want to’ as ‘wanna’. For example,
• Who do you wanna dance with?
• Who do you wanna dance?
There are some analyses that claim that wanna is only possible when ‘want’ and ‘to’
are adjacent. There are other analyses in which the scholars feel that it is no contraction
at all, at least not in the phonological or syntactic sense. ‘Wanna’ under this analysis is
formed in the lexicon, and it is inserted in the syntax just like an ordinary verb.
1.4.4 Competence
Competence is a term which is used in linguistic theory in generative grammar which
refers to a person’s knowledge of his language. How much system of rules a language
user has mastered so that he may be able to produce end number of sentences. How
much he can recognize the mistakes and ambiguities in the use of a language.
Competence is an idealized conception of language which stands in opposition to the
idea of performance which is actually the utterance of speech. According to Chomsky,
competence has been used as a reaction to the linguistic era before generative grammar
which was mainly occupied with the performance. The aim of the transformational
grammarians was to represent the creative capacity of a native speaker to produce
and understand an infinite number of sentences which were implied by the linguistic
competence.
According to McNeil, competence is the knowledge of linguistic rules, categories,
etc., that accounts for native speaker’s intuitions about his language and the expression
of these utterances in talking and listening is known as performance. Chomsky also
believes that what a native speaker knows intuitively about his language is competence,
hence, speech production and speech comprehension are the categories of linguistic
performance, yet both involve the expression of competence. The former involves
producing and encoding of speech whereas the latter involves receiving or decoding
speech.
1.4.5 Dell Hymes’ Concept of Communicative Competence and Others
In the following sections, we will discuss the different types of competence.
Linguistic competence
It refers to a native speaker’s linguistic knowledge. It con comprise of grammatical
rules of a language. How much efficient a native speaker is in linguistic knowledge.
Self-Instructional Linguistic competence is the first version of competence which has also faced strong
22 Material
criticism.
Dell Hymes’ concept of communicative competence Introduction to
Linguistics and
Contemporary
It refers to native speaker’s ability to produce and understand sentences which are Theories/Views
appropriate to the context. It is different from linguistic competence as linguistic of Language
competence is more concerned with linguistic knowledge but communicative competence NOTES
deals with terms like context, setting, the relation between speaker and listener. In
communicative competence the speaker has to have the information and knowledge
of environmental factors, the pressures that stem from the time and place of speaking.
Thus, communicative competence refers not only to the right application of grammatical
rules but also how and when to use those utterances appropriately. Communicative
competence can be further divided into the following terms:
• Grammatical competence- Words and rules.
• Sociolinguistic competence-Appropriateness.
•Strategic competence-Appropriate use of communicative strategies.
• Discourse competence-Cohesion and coherence.
• Pragmatic competence- Use of language and background knowledge, personal
beliefs.
• Literary Competence- Handling the literary language.
1.4.6 Performance
Performance can be described in two ways- it is a technique in which practitioners are
trained to control the use of their vocal organs and as per the linguistic theory, it refers
to the language-set of specific utterances produced by native speakers. Many critics
find problems regarding the distinction between competence and performance.
However, it has been proved that the utterances of performance contain features which
may be irrelevant to the rules and regulations of grammar many times. Performance
may also decline due to psychological, emotional barriers of the speaker, memory
loss, lapse of memory and biological limitations. A speaker may have linguistic
competence but the use of speech and utterances can be used at its best as far as a
speaker knows more than the grammatical rules. It means just having the knowledge
of grammar cannot make a speaker eligible to produce utterances and to understand
them. Thus, the grammar formed by grammarians is only one part of the speaker’s
knowledge. Linguistic performance is more relevant. It involves psychological processes
which includes the following:
• Producing utterances.
• Understanding them and making judgments about them and acquiring the ability
to do these things.
Certain factors such as chewing a gum, short in memory, tiredness, are the causes
behind failure of performance. As a result of such factors, performance does not always
reflect competence. Language behaviour is an approach among different approaches.
However, a lot of linguists do not believe in the need for the consultation of informants,
i.e., native speaker’s language. Some linguists claim that they deal with their own Self-Instructional
intuitions about language though they had never heard it before. Thus, a speaker’s Material 23
Introduction to actual language behaviour or his performance gives an indirect reflection of his
Linguistics and
Contemporary competence. Performance is a reflection of competence. Every individual has his/her
Theories/Views linguistic competence thus, the performance also varies from person to person/ speaker
of Language
to speaker. For example, if an individual has often tongue slips in every day conversation,
NOTES it does not mean that he does not have linguistic competence. However, it may come
under performance errors like discussed above as tiredness, lapses of memory,
boredom, drunkenness, external and internal barriers and so on. There is a close
relationship between linguistic competence and performance as it depends on speaker’s
knowledge and execution of that knowledge.
1.4.7 Selection Restrictions
In early 60s, semantic features were the unique theoretical instruments of semantic
analysis. It evolves in 70s and 80s. In first place, it was connected with lexical meanings.
It also drew the notion of semantic features aside. It is the semantic feature and not the
syntactic one which plays the leading role in regulating selection restrictions in lexicon
and grammar. It is a point of debate whether selection restrictions should be treated in
syntax or semantics or even outside grammar. For example, a verb ‘eat’ requires a
subject which should refer to an animate entity and its object should be concrete but if
we try to violate selection restrictions, the result could be ‘ mountain eats’ which is an
example of sheer violation of selection restrictions leading to anomaly.
The phenomenon of selection restrictions was first described by Chomsky in
1965 which is a part of linguistics. If we read the following sentences:
• Kim ate a motor-bike.
• There is an apple bathing in the water.
The verb ‘eat’ requires an edible object and also the action of bathing can be
fulfilled by an animate entity. One should also consider the following sentences:
• The dog barks.
• The philodendron barks.
From the above mentioned sentences, it can be implied that the sheer violation
of selection restrictions can lead to ambiguity and anomaly. For example, in the sentence,
‘the astrologer married a star’ may mean a film star or celestial body but at the same
time the example can be disambiguated as we know that the object of marry must be
human.
Selection restrictions are language specific. In English, ‘drive’ means a locomotion
which is driven by an engine but in German word ‘reiten’ can be said only for the riding
back on the animal. Thus, we can see that violation of selection restrictions does not
always result in an ungrammatical utterance. Selection restrictions may be violated in
metonymic, metaphoric and idiomatic utterances. For example, I drank the whole
bottle. In this sentence, the bottle cannot be drunk rather the element contained in
bottle. (Metonymy), in another sentence, the ‘camel’ is the ship of the desert. In this,
the camel cannot be the ship so a metaphor is used here (Metaphor), while ‘to pour
Self-Instructional out one’s grief to someone’ is an idiom (idiom). Thus, one can find that violation of
24 Material selectional restrictions is highly context sensitive. They are pragmatic phenomenon.
On one hand, they seem to be related to lexical information and on the other hand, we Introduction to
Linguistics and
cannot just say that the violation of selectional restrictions lead to such expressions Contemporary
which are uninterpretable. Hence, selectional restriction is a part of the semantics- Theories/Views
of Language
pragmatics-interface.
NOTES
1.4.8 Lexis and Grammar
If we see carefully, we find that historically, linguistics focused on grammar neglecting
lexis. Traditionally linguistics was grammar centric as it dealt with phonology, phonetics
and grammar whereas the components of lexicon were considered very particular.
Lexis was considered as the province of dictionary-makers, it does not concern with
linguists. Due to the shift in ELT from grammar to lexis, there is a change in the attitude
of linguists. In the existing times, the term ‘lexis’ which was traditionally used by linguists,
has become a common word which is frequently even used in textbooks.
Lexis+ vocabulary + grammar
Lexis is considered as a wider concept which consists of collocations, chunks and
formulaic expressions. It can even include such expressions as follows:
If I were you, I had not done this.
In Communicative Language Teaching (CLT), some structures associated with
grammar started to be associated with grammar started to be taught lexically or
functionally. For example, ‘I’d like to…’ is not taught as a conditional sentence but as
a chunk expression. In our day to day interaction, we come across many persons who
use English without following any grammatical rules. According to Michael Lewis, the
founder of Lexical Approach, there is no direct relationship between knowledge of
grammar and speaking.
While teaching English, the expression such as ‘Don’t make any noise- she’s
fallen asleep./Don’t make any noise-she’s asleep. In the sentences, what does (‘s)
stand for (is or has)? Thus, the students of English should be taught functional
occurrences of language.
1.4.9 Language Universals
Languages in the world differ from each other. At first glance, in different parts of the
world, languages are extremely different. However, still the aim of linguistic theories is
to pin down what is common in the languages of the world. Languages differ from
each other in relation to its tools such as vowels and consonants, nouns and verbs,
front and back vowels, subject and object. However, still we can discuss language
universals as per the following kinds of universals:
• Absolute universals: Absolute universals refer to properties found in a
predominant part of the languages of the world. For example, all languages
have one thing in common that is they cannot just depend on either vowels or
consonants. All languages have vowels and consonants.
• Statistical universal: In the vast majority of languages, subject precedes the
object. Language universals may be called the generalizations about the Self-Instructional
Material 25
Introduction to properties of languages. If a language has voiced fricatives like /v/ and /z/, it has
Linguistics and
Contemporary also unvoiced fricatives like /f/ and /s/ but if a language has unvoiced fricatives it
Theories/Views does not necessarily have voiced fricatives. And some languages can lack both
of Language
voiced and unvoiced fricatives. Such universals are known as ‘absolute
NOTES universals’.
Another universal can be noticed that if a language places the main verb between
subject and object and even the relative clause also follows the noun it modifies as:
‘A cat ate the mouse’ and ‘The cat that ate the mouse…….’
But Chinese and a few other languages are exceptions, placing relative clauses
before the noun they modify.
Languages learn from each other. When languages come in contact with
each other, they learn. They adopt many changes in features spread across the world.
Some language features are universal as they make linguistic utterances easier both to
produce and to interpret for cognitive, anatomic or other reasons. The most absolute
universal type of sentence includes both the vowels and consonants. One cannot imagine
a language having only consonants. Such language would be more difficult to hear and
a language with only vowels would be unsatisfactory because we are only able to
distinguish a very limited number of vowel qualities.

Check Your Progress

6. What are the basic grammatical abilities that a native speaker possesses?
7. State the objective of generative linguistics.
8. Why is negation considered as an important area for the study of syntax?
9. What do you understand by the term ‘Contraction’?
10. What are the psychological processes which related to linguistic performance?
11. State the aim of the transformational grammarians.

1.5 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

QUESTIONS

1. Philology is a branch of study of language where you try to trace the origin of
words and primarily attaches importance to the realm of vocabulary of a particular
language. Linguistics is far wider than philology as the real objective of linguistics
is to figure out the underlying structure not only of a language, but languages per
se.
2. The three basic areas of studies in phonetics are:
a. Articulatory phonetics: It refers to the study of the production of speech by
the articulatory and vocal tract of the speaker.
b. Acoustic phonetics: It refers to the study of the transmission of speech from
Self-Instructional the speaker to the listener.
26 Material
 c. Auditory phonetics: It refers to the study of phonetics of the reception and Introduction to
Linguistics and
perception of speech by the listener. Contemporary
Theories/Views
3. The significant eras of the development of linguistics are: of Language
a. Before the 19th century: Non-theoretical studies NOTES
b. 19th century: Historical linguistics
c. First half of 20th century: Structuralism
d. Second half of 20th century: Generative grammar
4. While synchronic linguistics sees language as a living whole, existing as a state at
a particular point in time, diachronic linguistics considers language in its historical
development (Greek dia-through, chronos-time). Thus, synchronic linguistics
deals with systems whereas diachronic with units.
5. Saussure divided language into three levels: (i) language, the human capacity to
evolve sign systems, (ii) langue, the system of language that is the rules and
conventions which organize it, and (iii) parole, any individual utterance or the
individual’s use of language.
6. The four basic grammatical abilities that a native speaker possesses are
synonymity, missing elements in a sentence, ambiguity and ungrammatical string.
7. The objective of generative linguistics is to understand the nature of linguistic
knowledge and its acquisition by the infants.
8. Negation is considered as an important area for the study of syntax as it affects
not only the structure of the sentence but also the meaning.
9. ‘Contraction’ is defined as a term that is used to describe the phenomena where
one word is reduced and apparently affixed to another.
10. The psychological processes related to linguistic performance are as follows:
• Producing utterances.
• Understanding them and making judgments about them and acquiring the
ability to do these things.
11. The aim of the transformational grammarians was to represent the creative
capacity of a native speaker to produce and understand an infinite number of
sentences which were implied by the linguistic competence.

1.6 SUMMARY

• Linguistics can be defined as the scientific study of human language which tries
to uncover the underlying structure of human language.
• Phonetics is related to the physical properties of speech sounds (phones); their
physiological production, acoustic properties, auditory perception, and
neurophysiological status.
Self-Instructional
Material 27
Introduction to • Phonology is used to sort out which sounds are important for causing differences
Linguistics and
Contemporary in meaning and which are not, and to establish rules to account for the variations
Theories/Views in sounds involved.
of Language
• There are several approaches to the study of different sounds produced in
NOTES
languages. The different branches of phonetics focus on varying sounds produced
by human voice.
• These are different branches of linguistics into which the modern linguistics has
spread. Linguistics as a subject or a discipline is not theoretically concerned
with the dry realm of language and its scientific study anymore.
• Psycholinguistics can be said to be dealing with an understanding of language in
terms of its acquisition as well as production. It is a multi-disciplinary realm of
studies which deals with psychology, linguistics, anthropology, neuroscience,
and computer science.
• The main concern of sociolinguistics is to examine the way that a complex
relationship exists between language and society.
• Computational linguistics is a field ranges between linguistics and computer science
with the help of psychology and logic; again it is an interdisciplinary field of
study which emphasizes on using computers to understand and deal with linguistic
issues.
• Historical Linguistics deals with the study of language as it evolves over a historical
period of time. For example, from the Middle Age (Chaucer) to modern day,
the change that has occurred in the English language will be a subject matter of
historical linguistics.
• The rise of structuralism in the early twentieth century is synonymous with
Ferdinand de Saussure, a French-Swiss philosopher whose ideas have had a
profound influence on the linguistic thought of centuries to come.
• The generative approach to language change sees it mainly as a change of rule
that is part of a generation’s internalized grammar, and remains so until it is
replaced by another change of rule.
• Ferdinand de Saussure (1857–1913, born in Geneva), considered as the ‘father
of modern linguistics’, studied Sanskrit and comparative linguistics in Geneva,
Paris, and Leipzig.
• Ferdinand de Saussure lost faith in philology (the study of the historical
development of languages) and the historical (or diachronic) study of language.
He argued for structurally studying language as it exists as a system at a particular
point in time (synchronically).
• As against the historical view of language, Ferdinand de Saussure emphasized
the importance of studying language from two distinct points of view, which he
called ‘synchronic’ and ‘diachronic’.
• Saussure divided language into three levels: (i) language, the human capacity to
Self-Instructional evolve sign systems, (ii) langue, the system of language that is the rules and
28 Material
 conventions which organize it, and (iii) parole, any individual utterance or the Introduction to
Linguistics and
individual’s use of language. Contemporary
Theories/Views
• The paradigmatic is concerned with meaning based on association, and the of Language
syntagmatic is based on combination.
NOTES
• In Saussure’s view, words are not symbols which ‘refer’ to things, but are ‘signs’
which are made up of two parts. They comprise a sound pattern (either written
or spoken) called a ‘signifier’, and a concept called a ‘signified’.
• In linguistics, Immediate Constituent analysis or IC analysis is a method of
sentence analysis that was first mentioned by Leonard Bloomfield and developed
further by Rulon Wells.It was further developed by Noam Chomsky.
• Transformational grammar is in contrast with traditional grammar. Traditional
grammar is based on set of rules followed since ages. It defines how a language
ought to be used, but transformational language shows how a language is really
used by society. According to it, language is dynamic; it keeps changing; it is in
a state of flux.
• Traditional grammar defines how a language ought to be used, but
transformational language shows how a language is really used by society.
• The scholars concerned with transformational grammar believe that a native
speaker possesses four basic grammatical abilities such as synonimity, missing
elements in a sentence, ambiguity and ungrammatical string.
• The central objective of generative linguistics is to understand the nature of
linguistic knowledge and its acquisition by the infants.
• Phonological rules, morphological rules, syntactic rules and semantic rules are
all regarded as rules of grammar.
• The meaning of the sentence only becomes clear when an immediate constituent
analysis of the sentence is done.
• The surface structure of a sentence may have its ambiguity but when we go to
the deep structure of a sentence the ambiguity vanishes and it helps us in
understanding the signification of the sentence.
• The transformational rule called the question word movement rule or Wh–
movement rule operates on a deeper representation to move the question word
to the front of the sentence.
• Passive transformation is derived from the deep structure of the active sentence
(which is sometimes thought to be a sub-type of the transformation of NP
movement).
• Negation is an important area of study of syntax as it affects not only the structure
of the sentence but also the meaning.
• ‘Contraction’ is the term used to describe the phenomena where one word is
reduced and apparently affixed to another.
Self-Instructional
Material 29
Introduction to • Competence is a term which is used in linguistic theory in generative grammar
Linguistics and
Contemporary which refers to a person’s knowledge of his language.
Theories/Views
of Language • Performance can be described in two ways- it is a technique in which practitioners
are trained to control the use of their vocal organs and as per the linguistic
NOTES
theory, it refers to the language-set of specific utterances produced by native
speakers.
• Lexis is considered as a wider concept which consists of collocations, chunks
and formulaic expressions.

1.7 KEY WORDS

• Phone: This is the smallest unit of human sound which is recognizable but not
classified.
• Phonology: It analyzes the sound patterns of a language by ascertaining which
phonetic sounds are significant and interpreting how a native speaker would
interpret these sounds.
• Linguistic competence: It refers to a native speaker’s linguistic knowledge. It
can comprise of grammatical rules of a language.

1.8 SELF ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS AND

EXERCISES

Short Answer Questions

1. State the different subfields of linguistics.
2. State the difference between ‘signified’ and ‘signifier’.
3. Write a short note on performance.
4. What do you understand by the concept of generative linguistics?
Long Answer Questions
1. Discuss the different branches of phonetics in detail.
2. Describe the origin and significance of the branches of linguistics.
3. Explain the term IC analysis in detail.
4. ‘Transformation functions as a link between the deep structure of sentences and
their surface structures’. Explain the statement.

Self-Instructional
30 Material
 Introduction to
1.9 FURTHER READINGS Linguistics and
Contemporary
Theories/Views
Hockett, C.F. 1960. A Course in Modern Linguistics. California: MacMillan Books. of Language

Lyons, John. 1981. Language and Linguistics. Cambridge: Cambridge University NOTES
Press.
Rajimwale, Sharad. 1997. Introduction to English Phonetics, Phonology and
Morphology. Jaipur: Rawal Publication.
Varshney, R.L. 1977. An Introductory Textbook of Linguistics and Phonetics.
Bareilly: Student Store.
Yule, George. 1985. The Study of Language. Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press.

Self-Instructional
Material 31
 Phonology

UNIT 2 PHONOLOGY
Structure NOTES
2.0 Introduction
2.1 Objectives
2.2 The Phonemes of English: Description and Classification
2.2.1 Allophones
2.3 The Syllable: Structure and Types, Syllabic Consonants
2.3.1 Structure
2.3.2 Syllabic Consonant
2.3.3 Accent
2.3.4 Types
2.4 Word and Grammatical Stress
2.4.1 Degrees of Stress
2.4.2 Stress Shift
2.5 Sentence Stress
2.5.1 Rules for Word Stress
2.5.2 Use of Strong and Weak Forms
2.6 Intonation Patterns/Uses of Tones: Tone Groups
2.6.1 Rules for Intonation
2.6.2 The Concept of Nucleus (Types of Nucleus: End-Placed and Contrastive)
2.6.3 Tonic Accent: Pre-tonic and Post-Tonic Accent
2.6.4 Intonational Functions: Grammatical, Attitudinal and Accentual Functions of
Intonation
2.7 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
2.8 Summary
2.9 Key Words
2.10 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
2.11 Further Readings

2.0 INTRODUCTION

Phonology is a part of linguistics that studies how systematically languages or dialects

organize their sounds (or signs, in sign languages). The concept also refers to the
sound system of any given variety of languages.At one time the phonology research
was related primarily to the research of phonemes structures in spoken languages.
Now it may pertain to a) any linguistic analysis, either at a level below the word (including
syllable, onset and rime, articulatory gestures, articulatory characteristics, mora, etc.),
or b) all language levels where sound or signs are structured to convey linguistic meaning.
In this unit, we will discuss the phonemes of English, along with the concept of syllable.
It will also focus on the word stress, sentence stress, and the intonation patterns.

Self-Instructional
Material 33
Phonology
2.1 OBJECTIVES

After going through this unit, you will be able to:

NOTES • Understand the phonemes of English, along with the concept of syllable
• Explain the concepts of word and sentence stress
• Discuss the intonation patterns and its grammatical, attitudinal and accentual
functions.

2.2 THE PHONEMES OF ENGLISH: DESCRIPTION

AND CLASSIFICATION

Phonology is used to sort out the sounds that are important for causing differences in
meaning and those which are not, and to establish rules to account for the variations in
sounds involved. It studies the different kinds of sounds that are found in a language,
their pattern and relationships and is viewed as a subsidiary field to linguistics. It deals
with the sound systems of languages.
Phonemes
The word ‘phoneme’ was used in the nineteenth century to refer to a unit of sound.
The term largely remained under-developed until it was used by distinguished linguists
like Saussure and Bloomfield. Leonard Bloomfield defined a phoneme thus, ‘a minimal
unit of distinctive sound-feature’. Each phoneme was said to possess a set of ‘distinctive
features’ which was in clear opposition to other features in the data. Thus, there would
be no point in talking about a /p/ phoneme as voiceless and tense as these features
only make sense when considered in opposition to the /b/ phoneme, which is voiced,
unaspirated and lax. So, phonemes are defined as the minimal contrastive units of
sound in a language.
Phonemes can be divided into two categories–segmental phonemes and
suprasegmental phonemes. All the segmental sounds used in each language can be
classed into a limited number of phonemes, and conversely the consonant and vowel
phonemes exhaustively cover the entire consonant and vowel sounds so occurring. All
consonant and vowel contrasts between distinct forms in a language can be referred to
one or another of its component phonemes. Thus, the English word, ‘man’ /mn/ contains
three phonemes, contrasted at three points or places wherein a distinctively different
sound unit may be substituted: man, pan; man, men; man, mad. These are called ‘minimal
pairs’ or pairs of words differing by one phoneme. There are twelve vowel phonemes
and twenty six consonant phonemes in the English language.
Suprasegmental phonemes consist of stresses, pitches and junctures (modes of
transition from one segment to another). Phonemes are contrastive in certain
environments. They may or may not be contrastive in all environments. In the
environments where they do not contrast, the contrast is said to be neutralized. In
Self-Instructional English there are three nasal phonemes, /m, n, K/, as shown by the minimal triplet.
34 Material
These phonemes are not usually contrastive before plosives like /p, t, k/ within the Phonology

same morpheme. Although all the three phones appear before plosives, like in limp,
lint, link (limp/, /lint/, /liKk/), only one of these might appear before each of the plosives,
i.e., the /m, n, K/ distinction is neutralized before each of the plosives /p, t, k/:
NOTES
• Only /m/ occurs before /p/
• Only /n/ before /t/
• Only /K/ before /k/
Hence, these phonemes are not contrastive in these environments, and according
to some of the theorists, there is no assurance as to what the underlying representation
may be. If anyone hypothesizes that they are dealing with just a single underlying nasal,
there is no need to pick one of the three phonemes /m, n, K/ over the remaining two.
(In some of the languages there is just one phonemic nasal anywhere, and because of
the obligatory assimilation, it surfaces as [m, n, K] in only these environments, so this
is not as far-fetched an idea as it might seem at first glance.)
In some schools of phonology, such a neutralized distinction is termed as an
archiphoneme (Nikolai Trubetzkoy of the Prague school is often associated with this
analysis). Archiphonemes are usally notated with a capital letter. Following this
convention, the neutralization of /m, n, K/ before /p, t, k/ could be notated as |N|, and
limp, lint, link would be represented as |ljNp, ljNt, ljNk| (the |pipes| hint towards the
underlying representation). Some other ways through which this archiphoneme could
be represented are as follows:
• |m-n-K|
• {m, n, K}
• |n*|
One more example of phonolgy from American English is the neutralization of
the plosives /t, d/ following a stressed syllable. Phonetically, both can be realized in this
position as [~], a voiced alveolar flap. This can be heard by comparing betting with
bedding. So, it cannot be said whether the underlying representation of the intervocalic
consonant in either word is /t/ or /d/ without looking at the un-suffixed form. This
neutralization can be described as an archiphoneme |D|, in which case the underlying
representation of betting or bedding could be |Èb[DjK|. One more way to describe
about archiphonemes includes the concept of under specification. Phonemes can be
thought of as fully specified segments while archiphonemes are underspecified segments.
In a language known as Tuvan, phonemic vowels are specified along with the following
articulatory features:
• Tongue
• Height
• Backness
• Lip rounding

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Phonology The archiphoneme |U| is an underspecified high vowel where only the tongue
height is mentioned. Whether |U| is pronounced as front or back and whether rounded
or unrounded depends on vowel harmony. If |U| occurs follows a front unrounded
vowel, it will be pronounced as the phoneme /i/; if following a back unrounded vowel,
NOTES it will be as an /o/; and if following a back rounded vowel, it will be an /u/.
Minimal contrastive units in sign languages
In sign language, the basic elements of gesture and location were earlier known as
cheremes (or cheiremes), but later on the general usage changed to phoneme. Tonic
phonemes are usually known as tonemes, and timing phonemes are known as
chronemes. In sign languages, phonemes may be grouped as Tab (elements of location,
from Latin tabula), Dez (the hand shape, from designator), Sig (the motion, from
signation), and with some researchers, Ori (orientation). Expressions of the face and
mouth are also phonemic. There is one published set of phonemic symbols for sign
language, the Stokoe notation, which is used for linguistic research and originally
developed for American Sign Language. However, as they are not bound by phonology,
they do not display any particular spelling for a sign. For example, the signwriting form
would be different based on whether the signer is left or right-handed, irrespective of
the fact that it makes no difference towards the meaning of the sign.
2.2.1 Allophones
While phoneme is the minimal unit of sound, there are many different versions of that
unit of sound, which are produced in the actual speech. These different versions are
called phones. A group of several phones, all of which are versions of one phoneme,
are referred to as allophones of that phoneme. The English words ‘can’ and scan’
contain the phoneme /k/. A native speaker will not be able to identify the difference in
the sound /k/ in the two words but for a linguist the phoneme /k/ does not sound alike.
The /k/ in ‘can’ is an aspirated sound (followed by a ‘puff of breath’) while in ‘scan’ it
is un-aspirated. Such variations in sound of the same phoneme are called allophones.
Furthermore, if you take the phoneme ‘p’, a phonemic transcription will include three
kinds of /p/ - [p], [p’], [p‘] – [‘] standing for aspiration and [p’] indicating no release
by reopening the lips. All these varieties are called phones or allophones. Allophones
have complementary distribution, i.e., they do not get into each other’s ways. They
tend to be restrictive- [p’] cannot appear at the beginning of a word and [p‘] cannot
occur at the end of the word. Therefore, allophones never collide and they complement
one another in such a way that they take care of all the situations in which the phoneme
occurs.
Each time a speech sound is produced for a given phoneme, it sounds a little
different from the other utterances, even for the same speaker. This has led to some
kind of debate over how real, and how universal, phonemes are in reality. Only some
of the variation is important (i.e., detectable or perceivable) to the speakers. There are
two types of allophones, depending on whether a phoneme should be pronounced by
using a specific allophone in a specific situation, or whether the speaker has freedom
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 Whenever a particular allophone (from a set of allophones that correspond to a Phonology

phoneme) must be selected in a specific context (i.e., using a different allophone for a
phoneme will cause confusion or make the speaker sound non-native), the allophones
are thought to be complementary (i.e., the allophones complement each other, and
one cannot be used in a situation where the usage of the other is standard). In the case NOTES
of complementary allophones, every allophone is used in a particular phonetic context
and it may be involved in a phonological process.
In the other cases, the speaker has been able to select freely from free variant
allophones, depending upon personal habits and preferences. Most linguists have
identified allophones on the following basis:
• Phonetic similarity: Linguists assume that if a phoneme is represented in
two or more environments, there will be a high degree of similarity in the
sounds produced among the allophones involved. In English, the phoneme /
p/ is similar in both the initial and final positions as in pin (/‘pin/) and gap (/
g ‘p/). Thus, both the sounds are phonetically similar. Phonetic similarity is
used for comparing two data strings that might be spelled differently but will
sound exactly the same. In master data management, phonetic similarity is
used for data matching while comparing two sets of data that does not have
a common exact key but it might be describing in the same real-world
construct. Utilizing phonetic similarity in data quality improvement applies to
both customer data quality as well as product data quality.
• Complementary distribution: Every phoneme may have allophones.
Sometimes, the allophones of a phoneme have a fixed place in different
words. For example, the phoneme /p/ is aspirated and stressed in the initial
position as in ‘pan’ but when used after ‘s’ as in ‘span’, it becomes unaspirated
and unstressed. These variants of /p/ are said to be in complementary
distribution. Complementary distribution in linguistics is the relationship
amongst two elements, wherein one element is found in a specific environment
and the other element is found in the opposite environment. It usually hints
that two superficially different elements are in actuality one single linguistic
unit at a deeper level. In some situations, more than two elements can be in
complementary distribution with one another. Complementary distribution
is basically applied to phonology, when identical phones in complementary
distribution are basically allophones of the same phoneme. For example, in
English, [p] and [p°] are allophones of the phoneme /p/ as they occur in
complementary distribution. [p°] always occurs when it is the syllable onset
and is followed by a stressed vowel (as in the word pin). [p] occurs in all the
other situations (as in the word spin). There are various cases where elements
are in complementary distribution, but are not considered allophones. For
example in English [h] and [K] (engma, written with the digraph <-ng> in
English) are in complementary distribution, as [h] only occurs at the beginning
of a syllable and [K] only at the end. But they have so less in common in
phonetic terms as they are still considered separate phonemes.
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Phonology • Symmetrical patterning: This can be explained by taking some consonant
phonemes and pairing them on the basis of the similarity between them. For
example, /p/ with /b/, /t/ with /d/ and /f/ with /v/. The phonemes /p/, /t/ and /
k/ behave in a similar manner and each of them is aspirated when they occur
NOTES in the initial position as in pill, till and kill. However, if /s/ comes before them,
they become un-aspirated as in spill, still and skill. Here the above sounds
are phonetically different. /p/ is a bilabial sound (articulated by the two lips),
/t/ is a palatoalveolar (articulated by the blade of the tongue against the teeth
ridge or hard palate) and /k/ is a velar (articulated by the back of the tongue
against the central and forward part of the soft palate). If you select a set of
six phonemes /p, t, k, b, d, g/, which contrast with each other on the same
phonetic basis in both the environments initial and final, you find that their
allophones differ from each other from one environment to the other in parallel
ways, or the initial /p-/ differs from the initial /t-/ and /k-/ in that one is
bilabial and the other two are palato-alveolar and velar, respectively. The
same differences can be found in the final /-p/, /-t/ and /- k/. The initial /b-/
, /d-/, /g-/ and the final /-b/, /-d/,/-g/ also differ in the same way. This sort of
parallelism is called symmetrical patterning.

Check Your Progress

1. What are the two categories of phonemes?
2. Define allophones.
3. Why has the reality of phonemes become debatable?

2.3 THE SYLLABLE: STRUCTURE AND TYPES,

SYLLABIC CONSONANTS

A syllable is a phonological unit. Phonemes themselves have no meaning. Their only

function is to combine together to form higher level of meaningful units, that is, words.
But between phonemes and words we have to recognize an intermediate level of
phonological organization-namely the syllable. Like phonemes, syllables are in principle
meaningless. Let us consider the word Symbol. This word has two syllables (sound
units), namely /SIM/ and / b l / as in ago – a – go /∂g∂v/. However in some cases they
do coincide with a meaningful unit. hard-ship; un-do. A vowel sound is the nucleus
sound of any syllable. Words may have only one syllable or more than one syllable.
Words which have only one syllable are called monosyllabic words. e.g. sit, kill, peel
and chart. Words which have two syllables are called bisyllabic words. e.g. ago, permit.
A word which has three syllables is called a tri-syllabic word e.g. happily. Words
which have more than three syllables are called polysyllabic words e.g. examination,
electricity. The number of syllables in a word is identified by the number of vowel
sounds in the word e.g. book-/buk/-1 ago - /∂g∂U/. A few more examples can be
seen in the Table 2.1.
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 Table 2.1 Examples of Syllables Phonology

NOTES

2.3.1 Structure
After identifying the syllables, we can make out the syllable structure. For example,
the syllable structure in words like bus, examinations, party, spring, is as shown below:
• Bus /b∧s/ will be consonant-vowel-consonant.
• Examination - /IgzæmIneI+∫n/ - vccvcvcvcc
• Party - /pa:ti/ - cvcv
• Spring - /sprinu/ - cccvc
Consonant clusters
If a syllable structure ends with two or more consonant sounds then we say that the
word has a consonant cluster. A word may begin with a consonant cluster and end
with consonant cluster, for example, spring, teachings, swords, stormed, shrink, drugs,
play, blame, people, cotton, kettle.
2.3.2 Syllabic consonant
In a syllable the nucleus is always a vowel. But there are occasions where a consonant
cluster can function as a syllable without accompanying vowel. For example, in the
words, cotton, sudden, often, oven, listen, In these words the syllabic consonant is /tn/
/dn/,/vn/, /sn/. Similarly with /l/ we can have words where / l / functions as a syllabic
consonant, for example, apple, trouble, bubble, cattle, medal, mettle, kettle, bottle.
Similarly / r / can be syllabic but it is used less frequently as in ‘memory’.
2.3.3 Accent
The word ‘accent’ refers to the prominence expressed by means of stress or situation,
which is given to a syllable. In other words, the syllables or syllables of a word that
stand out from the remainder are said to be accented or said to receive the accent. For
example, in the word democracy deMOcracy the accent is on the second syllable and
in the word answer ANSwer the accent is on the first syllable, for example, Pho.to,
pho.to.GRAPH-I c, e.xa.mi-Nation, etc.

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Phonology 2.3.4 Types
Following are the types of syllable:
• Closed syllable: When a syllable has a short vowel, as in the words: ‘cat’,
NOTES ‘cut’, ‘hat’, and ‘bet’, then it must end with one consonant. The two letters are
divided between each vowel when followed by another syllable that begins with
a consonant. For instance, the word ‘happen’ has two syllables, ‘hap-’ and ‘-
pen’. Closed syllables help to remind writers that even though it is a silent
consonant, there is an extra P inside the word. This is particularly useful when
learning to spell.
• Open syllable: These syllables always end without a consonant in a single long
vowel sound. Some simple instances to remember are ‘me’, ‘go’, ‘she’, and
‘be’. However, open syllables need not be monosyllabic, or at the end of a
word. For example, polysyllabic words with open syllables include ‘spider’,
‘bonus’, and ‘slogan’. This kind of syllable is distinct from closed syllables in
that it typically does not have a double consonant.
• Vowel-Consonant-e (VC-e): This type often occurs when a long vowel follows
a single consonant and a silent E. For example, ‘bare’, ‘care’, ‘woke’, and
‘cute’.
• Vowel team: They are not called digraphs, since there may be more than two
vowels. Vowel teams may produce long, short, or diphthong sounds. They are
some of the hardest syllables to know in the English language due to the
propensity to seek to pronounce every vowel. They are equally hard to recall
how to write, because the individual vowels bend together. For example, the
OA vowels form a new vocal sound in the word ‘boat’. The sounds for O and
A are not pronounced individually.
• R-controlled or vowel-r: These syllables are as it sounds, a vowel followed
by the letter R. For example, all r-controlled syllables are the ‘perform’, ‘charm’,
and ‘store’. The R ‘controls’ how the vowel articulates itself.
• Consonant plus LE syllable (C-le): Such syllables come only at the end of
words. There are several syllables of C-le including ‘apple’, ‘title’, ‘little’ and
even ‘syllable’.

Check Your Progress

4. Define the term syllable.
5. Give three examples for monosyllabic, polysyllabic and disyllabic words.

2.4 WORD AND GRAMMATICAL STRESS

Some definitions of stress are:

• Stress is the force used in speaking. (Palmer)
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 • Stress is the relative degree of force with which a syllable is uttered. (Daniel Phonology

Jones)
• Stress is the degree of loudness or intensity upon some syllable which makes it
louder and more prominent than unstressed syllables (Bloch & Trager)
NOTES
Stress is usually studied from two points of view: production and perception. The
production of stressed syllables is said to imply a greater muscular energy than the
production of unstressed syllables. That is to say that when there is more than one
syllable in a word, the speaker of the word gives more prominence to one syllable than
the other(s). From the perceptive point of view, stressed syllables are prominent.
There are several factors responsible for such prominence or word stress, they are:
• Loudness: When one speaks one is breathing out and in the process the syllables
where the speaker provides greater muscular energy, it is heard with greater
loudness or stress. For example, in the word “calculation” there is four syllables
– ‘cal’, ‘cu’, ‘la’, ‘tion’. Amongst these four syllables, “la” receives usually the
loudest followed by “cal”, while ‘cu’ and ‘tion’ are unstressed syllables.
• Pitch change: The pattern of accent in a word also becomes clearer when the
prominent syllable of the word is associated with a pitch change. For example
in the two syllabic word “insult” the first syllable is not only louder, but at the
same time; there is a pitch change in the first syllable from high to low, resulting
in more emphasis on the first syllable.
• Quality of the vowel: The prominence of a syllable in a word also depends on
he quality of the vowel the syllable contains in comparison to the vowels of the
neighbouring syllables. The syllable which will have a strong vowel sound will
be more stressed than the rest.
• Quantity: Sometimes the quantity or the length of the syllable decides the stress
of a syllable in a word.
Thus, word stress depends on primarily these four factors – loudness, pitch, quality
and quantity.
2.4.1 Degrees of Stress
It is true that the stress in unpredictable, and more so in English. Yet some general rules
can be framed based on certain regularities that are found in providing stress in words,
though it can never be said that these rules are always true in every case. Yet they are
significant so as to make us understand that there are certain patterns of stress in
English.
• The first rule can be exemplified as that all English words more or less have
some stress (whether primary or secondary) in the first or second syllable. For
example, in the word ‘calculation’ which has four syllables, the primary stress is
in the third syllable but the first syllable has got the secondary stress.
o Two-syllable words are normally stressed on the first syllable: foreign,
mountain, legal
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Phonology o Three-syllable words are normally stressed on the first syllable: character,
family
o Words of more than three syllables are normally stressed on the
antepenultimate: original, curiosity
NOTES
• The inflectional morphemes or suffixes are not stressed and does not affect the
stress in a word. ‘Mistake’ becomes ‘mistaken’ by adding an inflectional
morpheme but that does not affect the stress in the word.
• The following derivational morphemes or suffixes are not stressed and do not
affect stress. They are:

Derivational Example
morpheme
-age Postage, breakage
-ance Appearance, governance
-en Soften, brighten
-ence Subsistence
-er Doer, keeper
-ess Lioness, goddess
-ful Dutiful, faithful
-fy Beautify, classify
-hood Childhood, manhood
-ice Cowardice
-ish Childish, foolish
-ive Creative. Attractive
-less Aimless, careless
-ly Faithfully, happily
-ment Government, postponement
-ness Boldness, heaviness
-or Governor
-ship Scholarship
-ter Laughter
-ure Enclosure, failure
-y Bloody, woolly
-zen citizen
• Some derivational suffixes receive stress and some others affect word stress.
That is to say, that in case of these suffixes, the stress is shifted when the suffix
is added to the stem. For example, in the word ‘employ’ the primary stress is in
the second syllable ‘-ploy’, but when we add the suffix ‘-ee’ to the stem ‘employ’
the new word ‘employee’ is formed where there are three syllables and the
primary stress shifts to the third syllable.
Another important feature related to stress is the ‘weak forms’. There are a
number of words in English, mostly functional or grammatical words, which can be
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42 Material
such words.
 The most common weak-form words are: Phonology

The most common weak-form words are:

• THE
NOTES
• A
• AND
• BUT
• THAT (as a conjunction of relative pronoun)
• THAN
• AT
• FOR
• FROM
• OF
• TO
• AS
• SOME
• CAN, COULD
• HAVE, HAS, HAD
• SHALL, SHOULD
• MUST
• DO, DOES
• AM, IS, ARE, WAS, WERE

To sum up, one can say that words have as many syllables as there is vowel
sounds. In English language, depending on the number of vowel sounds, there can be
one syllabic (monosyllabic) word, or word consisting of two or more syllables
(sometimes the syllable count van go up to seven). All the syllables in the word do not
receive similar kind of prominence or stress which makes the language rhythmic or
musical.
2.4.2 Stress Shift
Shifting of stress can lead to a change of meaning in English language as the way in
which we stress on a part of the word makes it get the intended meaning. It is usually
seen that the following two things happen in case of stress shift.
• Those which keep the same general meaning, but which change from noun to
verb when the stress moves from the first to the second syllable.
• Those which change their meaning completely — most of them change from
noun to verb, but a few change to an adjective.
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Phonology For example, ‘John is a drug ADD-ict’. (Here Addict is a noun) and ‘If you keep
playing that game, you will get add-ICT-ed to it!’ (Here addict is a verb). Another
example is the word ‘IN-val-id’ with stress on ‘In’ suggests disability (Noun) as in
‘after the accident, he was invalid for a year’; whereas the word ‘In-VAl-ID’ with
NOTES stress on ‘VAL’ suggests ‘can’t be used’–as an adjective –for example, ‘an invalid
passpor’.

2.5 SENTENCE STRESS

Connected speech refers to an utterance or utterances consisting of more than one

word. In a normal English sentence, certain words are stressed and certain words are
not. Normally, ‘content words’ are stressed. Content words are those that are essential
for conveying a message. These are nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs and
demonstratives. Normally, structural words are not stressed. These are words like
conjunctions auxiliaries grammatical units such as preparations, articles, and when
they don’t require an emphasis. Example:
A: Do you speak ENGLISH?
B: “Yes, do’ YOU?
A: I can SPEAK but I can’t’ READ it.
The stress on words in a sentence depends on the context and the speaker’s
intention. Example:
Look at the boy.
He is a tall boy.
He is a very tall and handsome ‘boy.
Stress in a sentence also varies according to what the speaker wants to say.
Example:
This is an expensive hotel – emphasising that it is a hotel not anything else.
This is an expensive hotel – emphasising that it is not a cheap hotel.
This is an expensive hotel – emphasising that this hotel, and not the other.
This is an expensive hotel – it is an expensive hotel – not something else.
Weak forms
Certain unstressed words change their pronunciation from the way they are said when
they are in isolation and have a different phonetic form in the sentence or phrase. They
are as follows:
• Prepositions– at, to, of, for, from, etc.
• Auxiliary and modal verbs – be, been, am, is, are, was, were, have, has, had,
do, does, shall, should, will, would, can, could, must, etc.
• Pronouns–me, he, him, his, she, we, us, you, your, them, others, who, that (as a
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44 Material
 words when they are not in a stressed position, which is always at the end of a Phonology

sentence and sometimes at the beginning are said weakly and the vowel sound
is reduced to / a /.
2.5.1 Rules for Word Stress NOTES
Following are the rules of word stress:
• Words with weak prefixes take the accent on the root. Example: abroad, ago,
alone
• The inflexional suffixes do not affect the accent. Example:
Behead – Beheaded
Abuse – Abuses
Advance – Advanced
• The suffixes –age, -ance, -en, -er, -ers, -ful, -hood, -ice, -ish, -ive, -less, -ly, -
ment, -ness, -or, -ship, -zen, -ure, -ter, do not affect the accent, Examples:
Cover–Coverage
Annoy–Annoyance
Eat–Eaten
Begin–Beginner
Tiger–Tigress
Faith–Faithful
Child–Childhood
Coward–Cowardice
Fool–Foolish
Act–Active
Use–Useless
Develop–Development
Happy–Happiness
City–Citizen
Body–Bodily
Friend–Friendship
Abduct–Abductor
Laugh–Laughter
• Words ending in –ion take the primary accent on the syllable before the last
syllable e.g. examination, application, profession.
• Words ending in –ic, -ical, -ically, -ious, -ial, -ially take the accent on the syllable
preceding the suffix, for example: scientific, logical, chemically, furious,
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Material 45
Phonology • Words ending ity, take the primary accent on the third syllable before the end of
the word, for example: ability, capacity, electricity, magnanimity
• Not all disyllabic words which can be used as nouns and verbs take the accent
on the first and second syllable respectively. There are few words which do not
NOTES
undergo any change in stress.
WORD NOUN / ADJECTIVE VERB
Debate Debate Debate
Account Account Account
Balance Balance Balance
Profit Profit Profit
• There are a few compound words with ‘ever’ and ‘self’ as the second element.
These compounds receive the primary accent on the second element, for
example: whoever, however, myself, himself, ourselves, yourself, herself, etc.
• In a few compound words, both the elements receive the stress, for example:
afternoon, downstairs, water, post-haste, ready-mad, etc.
2.5.2 Use of Strong and Weak Forms
English language has stress timed rhythm. This means, strong or stressed syllables in
an utterance have the tendency to occur at regular intervals of time. In an English
utterance, this happens irrespective of the number of weak syllables between two
strong syllables. There are a number of English words which have two patterns of
pronunciation. The patterns differ in quality and quantity.
When the difference is in quality, the vowel quality differs. That is, we use two
different vowels- namely the strong form and the weak form of the vowels as shown in
the Table 2.2. When the difference is in quantity, the length of the sound in the two
forms differ. Also, the two patterns of pronunciation depend upon whether these words
are accented or not in connected speech. We use the strong form, when the context
demands that these words be accented and also if the word is said in isolation. The
following chart gives you a summary of the strong and weak forms of the structural
items given there. Examples are given for the weak forms only.
Table 2.2 Structural Items and their Strong and Weak Forms

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 Phonology

NOTES

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Phonology

NOTES

Check Your Progress

6. State some of the definitions of stress.
7. Define content words.

2.6 INTONATION PATTERNS/USES OF TONES:

TONE GROUPS

When we speak we tend to vary our tone of speech. We do not speak using a monotone
for the simple reason we cannot consider speech as consisting of mere combination of
phonemes occurring simultaneously getting articulated. You have already learnt how
speech sounds to behave at the segment level. Now, you will learn how they behave in
connected speech and also at the suprasegmental level. At the supra segmental level,
one aspect of it is the use of ‘stress’ at the word level and sentence level which has
been discussed in the earlier sections. Stress at the word level is different from stress
at the sentence level. Stress at the word level is to give importance to a particular
syllable or giving prominence to a particular syllable by going extra breath force while
uttering the syllable. While stress at the sentence level is giving importance to a particular
word in an utterance, for example:
‘The ‘CAT’ chased the mouse (To refer to the animal that chased the cat)
The cat ‘CHASED’ the mouse (to refer to what the cat did. The eat did not kill
the rat)
The cat chased the ‘MOUSE’ (to refer to the fact that the cat chased only the
mouse and not anything else.)
Intonation is yet another aspect of speech that functions at the supra segmental
level. The term intonations refer to the rise or fall of the pitch of voice. The term
intonation also refers to the tone with which one makes an utterance. When speaking,
people generally raise or lower the pitch of voice. They also give some syllables in
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every utterance that one makes will have a number of tone–groups. Each tone group Phonology

represents units of information. This is to say that intonation has the function of dividing
the tone groups. Viewed phonetically each tone group consists of a series of rises and
falls in the pitch of the voice. Intonation does not happen at random but has definite
patterns. The tone in which one utters a statement will be different from the tone in NOTES
which one utters a question. The different patterns can be analyzed according to their
structure and function. Intonation is used to carry information over and above that
which is expressed by the words in the sentence.
Intonation patterns
The term intonation patterns refer to patterns in the spoken form of a language, which
one usually expressed by variations in pitch soundness, syllable length and sometimes
speech rhythm. As noted earlier, intonation patterns may:
• Have grammatical functions
For example, they may show that an utterance is a question and not a statement.
Really? Ready?
• Give additional information to that given by the words of an utterance.
For example, I’got the — it was —— whether. I would accept
• Indicate the speaker’s attitude to the matter discussed or to the listener
For example, But I told you
Intonation patterns often differ between languages or even between varieties of the
same language, for example, between Australian English and American English. In
some communities, there is a difference in the intonation patterns of different age groups
or gender.
2.6.1 Rules for intonation
There are four different types of intonations. They are:
• The falling-intonation
• The rising-intonation
• The rise–fall intonation
• The fall-rise intonation
Intonation is undercoated by the marks shown in the brackets. We use the falling
intonation in the following situations and contexts:
• Statements, for example, ‘I am a’ student in çlass’10
• Wh-Question asked without any sense of cordiality, for example, ‘Where are
you going?’
• Exclamations, for example, ‘What a beautiful flower’, ‘A nice dress indeed!’,
etc.
• Imperative–commands, introductions, directions and orders
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o ‘Go’ and ‘get’ me ‘something to ‘eat’ Material 49
Phonology o ‘Ópen the door’
o ‘Post the Letter’
• Question tags which we use to get confirmation of a statement made. For example:
NOTES o You are visiting them tomorrow, aren’t you?
o She has passed the exam, hasn’t she?
Rising Intonation is used in the following contexts:
• Asking yes-no questions, for example, Did you meet him?
• Making—requests, for example,
o Pass the salt, please
o Would you lend me your car?
• Incomplete utterances, for example,
o One Two Three
o January, February, March ——
o When I went to his school, I ——
o as the teacher entered the class
• Wh – questions asked with a sense of cordiality, for example, ‘Where are you
going My dear?’
• Question tags used for clarification for which we seek an answer, for example,
o ‘He met you, didn’t he?’
o We are playing the make tomorrow aren’t we?
2.6.2 The Concept of Nucleus (Types of Nucleus: End-Placed and
Contrastive)
Every tone-group has a nucleus which is the most prominent part and it is a heavily
stressed syllable in a tone-group. In a tone group with contrastive or emphatic meaning
stress falls on the primary stressed syllable of the lexical word. For example: Let us
consider the utterance ‘no’,
If said with a Fall: No (a matter of fact statement)
If said with a Rise: No (is a question)
If said with a Fall-Rise: No (expressing uncertainty)
If said with a Rise–Fall: No (emphatic scolding)
Tail
Any syllable in a tone group coning after the nucleus is called the tail. The tail on these
syllables continues the tone of the nucleus. So if the nucleus has a rising or a falling
rising pitch then the tail will be rising and it will be falling if the nucleus is falling or rising
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Head Phonology

The part of the tone group coming directly before the nucleus is called the head. This
extends from the primarily stressed syllable on the first lexica word in the tone group
up to the nucleus. NOTES
Pre-head
Any syllable or syllables coming before the head are called the pre-head. They will be
the part of the lexical words or grammatical words and will be relating unstressed. The
pre head may normally consists of high level tones or of low level tones. For example:
He does not know how to say it. (matter of fact statement)
He does not know how to say it. (a mocking tone)
2.6.3 Tonic Accent: Pre-tonic and Post-tonic Accent
Tonic accent means the emphasis produced by change to a syllable, particularly a rise
in pitch, rather than a rise in stress. Sometimes known as pitch accent, it is a language
with word-accents—that is, where one syllable in a word or morpheme is more
pronounced than the others, but the accentuated syllable is indicated by a contrasting
pitch (linguistic tone) rather than by loudness, as in a stress-accented pitch. Pitch-
accent is also in contrast to entirely tonal languages such as Regular Chinese, in which
each syllable may have an individual tone. Languages which have been identified as
pitch-accent languages include most Serbo-Croatian, Slovenian, Baltic, Ancient Greek,
Vedic Sanskrit, Turkish, Japanese, Norwegian, Swedish, Western Basque, Yaqui, some
Korean, and Shanghainese dialects.
Pre-tonic and post-tonic accent
As already discussed, in every word which consists of more than one syllable one of
those syllables is stressed. It’s a stressed syllable. (for example, capital, ñòîëèöà). The
tones (vowel sounds) which are located before this stressed syllable are pre-tonic (for
example, ‘I’ in inspection, ‘î’ in ñòîëèöà). Those located after the stressed syllable are
post-tonic, for example, capital, ñòîëèöà, etc.
2.6.4 Intonational Functions: Grammatical, Attitudinal and Accentual
Functions of Intonation
Intonational choices made by speakers carry linguistic information and perform a variety
of functions. Though researchers of intonation suggest various functions of Intonation,
yet the common practice is to take four functions of intonation as a general practice:
• Grammatical function
• Attitudinal
• Accentual
• Informational/Discourse

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Phonology Grammatical intonation
Grammatical intonation helps to identify the grammatical structure in speech, which is
similar to the role punctuation performs in writing. Grammatical intonation also helps
NOTES us in identifying clause and sentence units and contrasts questions/statements. According
to Halliday, grammatical intonation relates to grammatical mood (question/statement,
etc.) as well as to modality (possibility, validity, etc.). Roach believed that ‘grammatical
intonation helps language speakers and learners to recognize the grammar and syntactic
structures, e.g. boundaries between phrases, clauses, and sentences. It also facilitates
our knowledge of the differences between questions and statements as well as the
intricacies of grammatical subordination’.
Attitudinal intonation
We use intonation as a chief means of expressing our attitude, emotions and thoughts.
The researchers of Intonation points out those patterns with a narrow range of frequency
variations are the most unpleasant to our ears, while smooth changes in one direction
are generally less pleasant. They also point out differences in the judgments according
to the grammatical category of the sentence; statements could be pleasant with either
a final rise or fall while questions and commands were pleasant only with a final rise
(Fry, 1974). Citing the descriptions from ‘Nine ways of saying yes’ by Crystal and
Allen, it can be pointed out that the problems of the attitudinal meaning of tone are as
follows:
• The imprecision of the descriptions. It is difficult to be precise about emotional
nuances. For example it is difficult to say what the difference is between the
meaning ‘detached, unemotional statement of fact’ and ‘routine, uncommitted
comment; detached and unexcited.’
• It results in the form where any tone can mean anything, depending on the
context. This is a serious problem for a systematic description.
• Meaning of an intonation choice may depend on associated gestures or facial
expressions.
In fact, almost any emotion can be accompanied by any tone. Without lexical or
contextual information or other vocal clues, it becomes almost impossible to reliably
label a tone as displaying a particular attitude or emotion. Generally speaking, discussions
of the function of intonation in English often centre on the relation between intonation
and attitudes. In fact, the main function of intonation is seen by many phonologists as
conveying attitudes. Many other factors, such as loudness, quality of voice, speed of
delivery, facial and bodily gestures, etc., also contribute significantly to the conveying
of attitude. The result of all this is that we cannot really say anything constructive about
intonation and attitude.
Accentual intonation
The word accentuation refers to accent. Some writers attach stress to the word accent.
When it is said that intonation has an accentual role, it means that intonation somewhat
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52 Material defines the location of stress. The most common position for tonic syllable placement
is the last lexical word (nouns, adjectives, words, adverbs) and not the functional Phonology

words. However any word may become the bearer of tonic syllable for contrastive
purposes. Take, for example:
• She was wearing a cotton dress (Normal placement)
NOTES
She was not wearing a cotton dress. She was wearing a silk dress. (Contrastive
purpose placement)
• I want to know where he is travelling to
I don’t want to know where he is travelling to. I want to know where he is
travellingfrom
Similarly the tonic stress may be put in other places for the purpose of emphasis, for
example:
• The movie was very boring
The movie was very boring
• You shouldn’t talk so loudly
You shouldn’t talk so loudly
Intonation is used to clear out the ambiguities, for example:
I have plans to leave (I am planning to leave)
I have plans to leave (I have some plans/diagrams/drawings that I have to
leave)
Discourse or Informational Intonation
Discourse or Information entails in it the kind of response to be expected. In normal
daily communication, intonation is used at of syntax (sentence). As people communicate
primarily through language, therefore intonation should be studied at discourse level.
Recent phonological research defines intonation as a speaker’s way of organizing and
relating meanings throughout the discourse. More significantly, this approach interprets
various meanings based on the choices of the speaker. Almost all intonational choices
are tied to the context in which they occur. In contrast to the linguistic universality of
grammar, it is impossible in the discourse approach to isolate a speech from its context
and, hence, make reasonable generalizations about intonational meaning. We can say
that discourse intonation provides a tool for the four options associated with tone
units: prominence, tone, key, and termination; each of which adds a different type of
information.
• Prominence is a syllable on which there is a major pitch movement.
• Tone pitch movements are distinguished by their particular direction: falling,
rising, fall-rise, rise-fall.
• Key is the relative pitch level chosen by speakers for each tone unit. Three
choices are proposed: low, middle, and high.
• Termination is a low, middle, or high pitch level choice made by speakers at the
beginning or end of a tone unit. Self-Instructional
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Phonology Gradually there is a shift in focus towards adopting the discourse view of
intonation, particularly in teaching new language learners. Hewings (1995) is of the
view that, Discourse view of Intonation tends to view speech as ‘a purpose-driven
activity where speakers and hearers cooperate to reach the desired goal of shared
NOTES understanding. It also refers to the common ground that exists between speaker and
hearer as the area in which their world views converge’. Although discourse intonation
has some difficulties for pedagogical application and its adapted and simplified version
for teaching purposes, Discourse Intonation seems to be most viable and convincing
of all intonational functions available at the moment. Moreover, its well-developed
model provides us with a strong systematic framework within which teachers and
students can study intonation.

Check Your Progress

8. List the features of intonation patterns.
9. Define nucleus of a tone group.
10. What is the difference between pre-tonic and post-tonic accent?

2.7 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

QUESTIONS

1. Segmental phonemes and suprasegmental phonemes are the two categories of

phonemes.
2. A group of several phones, all of which are versions of one phoneme, are referred
to as allophones of that phoneme.
3. Each time a speech sound is produced for a given phoneme, it sounds a little
different from the other utterances, even for the same speaker. This has led to
some kind of debate over how real, and how universal, phonemes are in reality.
4. A syllable is a unit of pronunciation having one vowel sound, with or without
surrounding consonants, forming the whole or a part of a word; for example,
there are two syllables in label and three in describe.
5. The examples of Monosyllabic words: sit, kill, peel; Polysyllabic words:
examination, electricity, phonetics; and Disyllabic words: women, island, nuclear.
6. Some of the definitions of stress are:
a. Stress is the force used in speaking. (Palmer)
b. Stress is the relative degree of force with which a syllable is uttered. (Daniel
Jones)
c. Stress is the degree of loudness or intensity upon some syllable which makes
it louder and more prominent than unstressed syllables (Bloch & Trager)
7. Content words are those that are essential for conveying a message. These are
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 8. The features of intonation patterns are: Phonology

a. Have grammatical functions

b. Give additional information to that given by the words of an utterance.
c. Indicate the speaker’s attitude to the matter discussed or to the listener NOTES
9. Every tone-group has a nucleus which is the most prominent part and it is a
heavily stressed syllable in a tone-group.
10. In every word which consists of more than one syllable one of those syllables is
stressed. It’s a stressed syllable. (for example, capital, ñòîëèöà). The tones
(vowel sounds) which are located before this stressed syllable are pre-tonic
(for example, i in inspection, î in ñòîëèöà). Those located after the stressed
syllable are post-tonic. (for example, capital, ñòîëèöà).

2.8 SUMMARY

• Leonard Bloomfield defined a phoneme thus, ‘a minimal unit of distinctive sound-

feature’. Each phoneme was said to possess a set of ‘distinctive features’ which
was in clear opposition to other features in the data.
• Phonemes can be divided into two categories–segmental phonemes and
suprasegmental phonemes.
• All the segmental sounds used in each language can be classed into a limited
number of phonemes, and conversely the consonant and vowel phonemes
exhaustively cover the entire consonant and vowel sounds so occurring.
• Suprasegmental phonemes consist of stresses, pitches and junctures (modes of
transition from one segment to another).
• While phoneme is the minimal unit of sound, there are many different versions of
that unit of sound, which are produced in the actual speech. These different
versions are called phones. A group of several phones, all of which are versions
of one phoneme, are referred to as allophones of that phoneme.
• A syllable is a phonological unit. Phonemes themselves have no meaning. Their
only function is to combine together to form higher level of meaningful units, that
is, words. But between phonemes and words we have to recognize an
intermediate level of phonological organization-namely the syllable.
• Stress is usually studied from two points of view: production and perception.
The production of stressed syllables is said to imply a greater muscular energy
than the production of unstressed syllables. From the perceptive point of view,
stressed syllables are prominent.
• It is true that the stress in unpredictable, and more so in English. Yet some
general rules can be framed based on certain regularities that are found in
providing stress in words, though it can never be said that these rules are always
true in every case. Yet they are significant so as to make us understand that
there are certain patterns of stress in English. Self-Instructional
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Phonology • Shifting of stress can lead to a change of meaning in English language as the way
in which we stress on a part of the word makes it get the intended meaning.
• Connected speech refers to an utterance or utterances consisting of more than
one word. In a normal English sentence, certain words are stressed and certain
NOTES
words are not.
• When the difference is in quality, the vowel quality differs. That is, we use two
different vowels-namely the strong form and the weak form of the vowels.
• We use the strong form, when the context demands that these words be accented
and also if the word is said in isolation.
• Intonation is yet another aspect of speech that functions at the suprasegmental
level. The term intonations refer to the rise or fall of the pitch of voice. The term
intonation also refers to the tone with which one makes an utterance.
• The term intonation patterns refer to patterns in the spoken form of a language,
which one usually expressed by variations in pitch soundness, syllable length
and sometimes speech rhythm.
• Every tone-group has a nucleus which is the most prominent part and it is a
heavily stressed syllable in a tone-group.
• Tonic accent means the emphasis produced by change to a syllable, particularly
a rise in pitch, rather than a rise in stress.
• The tones (vowel sounds) which are located before the stressed syllable are
pre-tonic (for example, i in inspection, î in ñòîëèöà). Those located after the
stressed syllable are post-tonic. (for example, capital, ñòîëèöà).
• Grammatical intonation helps to identify the grammatical structure in speech,
which is similar to the role punctuation performs in writing. Grammatical intonation
also helps us in identifying clause and sentence units and contrasts questions/
statements.
• We use intonation as a chief means of expressing our attitude, emotions and
thoughts. The researchers of intonation points out those patterns with a narrow
range of frequency variations are the most unpleasant to our ears, while smooth
changes in one direction are generally less pleasant.
• The word accentuation refers to accent. Some writers attach stress to the word
accent. When it is said that intonation has an accentual role, it means that intonation
somewhat defines the location of stress.

2.9 KEY WORDS

• Suprasegmental: It denotes a feature of an utterance other than the consonantal

and vocalic components, for example (in English) stress and intonation.
• Accentuation: It is the pattern of relative prominence of syllables in a phrase
or utterance.
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 Phonology
2.10 SELF ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS AND
EXERCISES

Short Answer Questions NOTES

1. What is a syllabic consonant? Give examples.

2. Which factors are responsible for word stress?
3. What is the use of weak and strong forms of stress?
4. What are the rules of intonation?
Long Answer Questions
1. Discuss the bases on which the linguists have identified allophones.
2. Explain the different types of syllables.
3. Describe some of the general rules regarding the degree of stress.
4. Elaborate on the various functions of intonation.

2.11 FURTHER READINGS

Hockett, C.F. 1960. A Course in Modern Linguistics. California: MacMillan Books.

Lyons, John. 1981. Language and Linguistics. Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press.
Rajimwale, Sharad. 1997. Introduction to English Phonetics, Phonology and
Morphology. Jaipur: Rawal Publication.
Varshney, R.L. 1977. An Introductory Textbook of Linguistics and Phonetics.
Bareilly: Student Store.
Yule, George. 1985. The Study of Language. Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press.

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 Morphology

UNIT 3 MORPHOLOGY
Structure NOTES
3.0 Introduction
3.1 Objectives
3.2 Structure of Words: The Concepts of Morpheme and Allomorph
3.2.1 Morphemes and Morphology
3.2.2 Allomorphs
3.3 Types of Morphemes
3.3.1 Root and The Affix: Prefix, Infix and Suffix
3.3.2 Class Maintaining and Class Changing
3.3.3 General Principles of Lexicography
3.4 Some Word Formation Processes: Reduplication, Clipping, and Blending
3.5 Morphophonemic Changes
3.5.1 Phonological Conditioning
3.5.2 Morphological Conditioning
3.6 Problems of Morphological Analysis
3.6.1 Types of Problems in Morphological Analysis
3.7 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
3.8 Summary
3.9 Key Words
3.10 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
3.11 Further Readings

3.0 INTRODUCTION

Morphology focuses on words and the combination of phonemes to make morphemes.

In linguistics, morphology is the identification, analysis and description of the structure
of morphemes and other units of meaning. Morphological typology represents a way
of classifying languages according to the ways in which morphemes are used in a
language. In this unit, we will discuss the structure of words with discussion on the
concepts of morpheme and allomorph, along with the types of morpheme and some
word formation processes. It will also focus on the morphophonemic changes,
phonological and morphological conditioning, and problems of morphological analysis.

3.1 OBJECTIVES

After going through this unit, you will be able to:

• Understand the structure of words
• Explain the types of morpheme and some word formation processes
• Discuss morphophonemic changes, phonological and morphological
conditioning, and problems of morphological analysis
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Morphology
3.2 STRUCTURE OF WORDS: THE CONCEPTS OF
MORPHEME AND ALLOMORPH

NOTES Morphology means the study of forms. It was taken for granted by the traditional
grammarians that these forms are the words and these words are to be put together to
form sentences. Hence, morphology focuses on words, how they are formed and
what forms they take in language.
3.2.1 Morphemes and Morphology
The most intriguing elements of language are the combination of sounds to form words
and the association of words to form meaning. When individual meaningless phonemes
combine to make meaningful grammatical units, they at once assume significance.
According to Edward Sapir, a well-known linguist, the ‘word’ is the smallest such unit.
Another eminent linguist, Bloomfield has pointed out that words could be ‘alike or
partially alike’ as far as ‘form’ and ‘meaning’ are concerned but at the same time be
different words. The obvious implication of this definition is, of course, that ‘words’
have parts and they are therefore, not the smallest units. Thus, dog and dogs are alike
as to dog just as dogs and cats are alike as to the plural marker ‘s’ both in form and
meaning. Now, dog and cat in these examples are words but not the plural marker /z/
. Bloomfield called these units ‘morphemes’ and defined them as the ‘minimum same
of form and meaning.’ From this definition of morphemes, it can be concluded that:
• Morphemes are minimal, i.e., they cannot be further analysed without destroying
either the form or meaning.
• They must have the same stable form or phonetic identity.
• They must have the same stable meaning, i.e., semantic identity.
Hockett defined morphemes as ‘the smallest individually meaningful elements in the
utterances of a language’. For example, in words like boys, girls, trees, the morpheme
/s/ has the same meaning in each – an indication of plurality. But this definition does not
hold true in all cases. In a sentence like I want to sing – ‘to’ does not have any
independent meaning to attribute to the sentence. Its occurrence is purely syntactical
and has nothing to do with the morphemic definition of the semantic notion of
meaningfulness. Therefore, Gleason defined morphemes as ‘that smallest unit which is
grammatically pertinent.’
Morphology, therefore, includes the identification and classification of morphs.
A morph can be defined as ‘an individual linguistic form which is an indivisible unit of
meaning’. For example, a word like ‘scramble’ has several forms – am, ram, scram,
ramble, and amble. If any one of these forms is taken out, the remaining sounds will be
meaningless. Therefore, scramble is a morph. A morpheme can, therefore, be called a
class of morphs that are semantically similar and in contrast with morphs belonging to
other morphemes.
The /z/ of dogs and cats meet the requirements of this definition and are therefore,
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/s/ can have different manifestations in different phonetic environments, i.e, it could be Morphology

/s/ in pens, /z/ in dogs, /iz/ in houses. Similarly, the past tense marker /ed/ could be /d/
in received, /t/ in ‘rushed’ or /id/ in ‘butted’. The variation which is symmetrical with
regard to the voiced and unvoiced variety could be related to the nature of the preceding
sound. Bloomfield called one of these forms ‘basic’ and the other ‘alternates’. If /s/ is NOTES
taken to be the basic, three rules have to be applied:
• Pens – pens – no rule
• Dogs – dogs - /s/ - /z/
• Houses – houses - /s/ - /z/ - /iz/
But if /z/ is taken to be the basic
• Pens – pens - /z/ - /s/
• Dogs – dogs - /z/ - /z/
• Houses – houses - /z/ - /iz/
Thus, if /z/ is the basic, only two rules have to be applied. Similarly, /d/ is the
basic and /t/ and /id/ are the alternants. Each alternant is a morph and they are
allomorphs of one another. Morphs are used in a mutually exclusive environment, that
is, when one morph is used, the other morphs cannot be used. Therefore, the second
implication of Bloomfield’s definition had to be changed from phonetic identity to
complementary distribution of sounds.
3.2.2 Allomorphs
Just as there are ‘allophones’ of a particular phoneme, there are ‘allomorphs’ of a
particular morpheme that is, when we find a group of different morphs, all versions of
one morpheme, we can use the prefix ‘allo’ and describe them as allomorphs of that
morpheme. Thus, an allomorph is the alternative phonological manifestation of a
morpheme. Allomorphs are of two types:
• Phonologically conditioned allomorphs.
• Morphologically conditioned allomorphs.
When the distribution of the allomorphs is conditioned by the phonetic nature of the
preceding phoneme, they are said to be phonologically conditioned allomorphs.
For example, /s/ occurs after voiceless sounds (for example in cats - /cat/ + /s/
), /z/ after voiced sounds (for example, dogs - /dog/ + /z/) and /iz/ after affricates or
fricatives (for example in buses - /bus/ + /iz/). On the other hand, in the case of words
like children, oxen, brethren, the allomorphs are determined by the morpheme or
morphemes forming the context. They are called morphologically conditioned
allomorphs.
In English, there are a number of other morphological processes at work such
as those involved in the range of allomorphs for the morpheme ‘past tense’. These
include the common pattern in ‘walk + past tense’ that produces walked and also the
special pattern that takes ‘go + past tense’ and produces the irregular past form ‘went’.
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Morphology

Check Your Progress

1. Define morphology.
NOTES 2. What are the two types of allomorphs?

3.3 TYPES OF MORPHEMES

Although students of language have always been aware of the importance of words,
morphology, the study of the internal structure of words did not emerge as a distinct
sub branch of linguistics until the nineteenth century. In the early nineteenth century,
morphology played a pivotal role in the reconstruction of Indo-European. In 1816,
Franz Bopp published the results of a study supporting the claim, originally made by
Sir William Jones in 1786, that Sanskrit, Latin, Persian and the Germanic languages
were descended from a common ancestor. Bopp’s evidence was based on a comparison
of the grammatical endings of words in these languages. Between 1819 and 1837,
Bopp’s contemporary Jacob Grimm published his classic work, Deutsche Grammatik.
By making a thorough analytical comparison of sound systems and word-formation
patterns, Grimm showed the evolution of the grammar of Germanic languages and the
relationships of Germanic to other Indo-European languages.
Later, under the influence of the Darwinian theory of evolution, the philologist,
Max Muller, contended in his Oxford lectures of 1899 that the study of the evolution
of words would illuminate the evolution of language just as in biology morphology the
study of the forms of organisms had thrown light on the evolution of species. Such
evolutionary pretensions were abandoned very early in the history of morphology. In
this century, morphology has been regarded as an essential discipline, that is to say, a
study focusing on study of word-structure at one stage in the life of a language rather
than on the evolution of words. But, in spite of the unanimous agreement among linguists
on this point, morphology has had a conquered career.
Morphology in American structural linguistics
American structural linguistics, one of the dominant schools of linguistics in the first
part of this century, typically viewed linguistics not so much as a theory of the nature of
language but rather as a body of descriptive and analytical procedures. Ideally, linguistic
analysis is expected to proceed by focusing selectively on one dimension of language
structure at a time before tackling the next one. Each dimension was formally referred
to as a linguistic level. The levels were assumed to be ordered in a hierarchy, with
phonology at the bottom and semantics at the top. The task of the analyst producing a
description of a language was seen as one of working out, in separate stages, first the
pronunciation, then the word-structure, then the sentence structure and finally the
meaning of utterances. It was considered theoretically remarkable to make use of
information from a higher level, e.g. syntax, a lower level such as phonology. This was
the doctrine of separation of levels.
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 In the early days, especially between 1920 and 1945, American structuralists Morphology

dealt with the problem of how sounds are used to distinguish meaning in language.
They developed and refined the theory of the phoneme. As time went on the focus
gradually shifted to morphology. When structuralism was in its prime, especially between
1940 and 1960, the study of morphology occupied centre stage. Many major NOTES
structuralists investigated issues in the theory of word-structure which was published
in 1949 and codified structuralist theory and practice. It introduced generations of
linguists to the descriptive analysis of words.
There was much that was commendable in the structuralist approach to
morphology. One of the main contributions of structuralists was the recognition of the
fact that words may have intricate internal structures whereas traditionally, linguistic
analysis had treated the word as the basic unit of grammatical theory and lexicography.
Morphemes are the smallest units of meaning and grammatical function. Previously,
word-structure had been treated together with sentence structure under grammar. The
structuralists introduced morphology as a separate sub-branch of linguistics. Its purpose
was the study of morphemes and their arrangements in forming words.
Morpheme
Morpheme is a minimal unit of meaning or grammatical function. To clarify the definition,
we need certain examples. For example, the word ‘reopened’ in a sentence, ‘The
police reopened the case.’ consists of three morphemes. The first minimal unit of meaning
is ‘open’, and the another minimal unit of meaning is ‘re’ and the last grammatical
function is ‘ed’. Similarly, the word ‘tourist’ also consists of three morphemes:
tour- stem
ist-suffix
s- suffix
Morpheme

Free Morpheme Bound Morpheme

Lexical Morpheme Functional Morpheme

Derivational Morpheme Inflectional

Fig. 3.1 Types of Morphemes

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Morphology Types of Morphemes
Morphemes can be categorized into different types. Some of these are discussed
below.
NOTES I. Free and Bound Morphemes
As we have just seen in the above examples, there are two kinds of morphemes—one
has meaning and the other serving the grammatical function. One can exist by its own
right. This means that the morphemes have a meaning. The other one forms meaning
and needs to be with a minimally free unit with a meaning. The first category of
morphemes can exist on its own. They are called the free morpheme. The morpheme
of the second category is called the bound morpheme. In other words, free morphemes
can stand by themselves as single words. For example, in words like open and centre,
etc. Bound morphemes are those forms that cannot normally stand alone and are
typically attached to another form, exemplified as follows:
re-, -ist, -ed, -s.
The English word ‘decentralization’ and its various free and bound morphemes.
The minimal unit having meaning – Centre (Free Morpheme)
Centre +al = central (‘-al’ – Bound Morpheme)
Central + ize = centralize (‘-ize’ – Bound Morpheme
Centralize + tion = centralization (‘-tion’ – Bound Morpheme)
De + centralization = decentralization (‘de’ – Bound Morpheme)
From the list of bound morphemes that we have come across till now, it has
been clear that all affixes (prefixes and suffixes) in English are bound morphemes. The
free morphemes can generally be identified as the set of separate English word forms
such as basic nouns, adjectives, verbs, etc. When they are used with bound morphemes,
the basic word forms are technically known as stems. For example, take the English
word ‘decentred’
decentred
de- centre –ed
prefix – stem – suffix
bound – free – bound
This kind of description of English words is actually a simplification of the complex
morphological facts of English. There are a number of English words in which the
element treated as the stem is not, in fact, a free morpheme. In words such as receive,
reduce and repeat, we can identify the bound morpheme re- at the beginning. But the
elements ‘-ceive’, ‘-duce’ and ‘-peat’ are not separate word forms and hence cannot
be free morphemes. These types of forms are sometimes described as ‘bound stems’
to keep them distinct from ‘free stems’ such as centre.

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II. Lexical and Functional Morphemes Morphology

Free morphemes fall into two categories—lexical and functional lexical morphemes.
They consist of ordinary nouns, adjectives and verbs that carry the ‘content’ of the
messages. Some examples of lexical morphemes are girl, man, house, tiger, sad, long, NOTES
yellow, sincere, open, look, follow and break. New Lexical morphemes can be added
to the language easily, and are treated as an ‘open’ class of words. Other types of free
morphemes are called functional morphemes. Some examples are and, but, when,
because, on, near, above, in, the, that, it, them. This set consists largely of the functional
words in the language such as conjunctions, prepositions, articles and pronouns. New
functional morphemes are not usually added to the language; therefore, they are
described as a ‘closed’ class of words.
Derivational and Inflectional Morphemes
The affixes, that is, prefixes and suffixes, which make up the category of bound
morphemes, can be divided into two groups—derivational morphemes and inflectional
morphemes.
English inflectional morphology
English has three categories of meaning which are expressed inflectionally. They are
number in nouns, tense/aspect in verbs, and comparison in adjectives.

Word Inflectional Regular affix used Examples

class to category to express category
which
inflection
applies
Nouns number -s, -es books, bushes
Nouns possessive -'s, -' Ravi’s book,
schools’
manifesto
Verbs third person -s, -es it rains, karim
singular present writes
Verbs past tense -ed painted
Verbs perfect aspect -ed painted (has
painted) (past
participle)
Verbs progressive or -ing falling, (present
continuous aspect participle)
Adjectives comparative -er taller
Adjectives superlative -est tallest

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Morphology English Inflectional Morphology Is Irregular In Some Ways:

Type of Noun plurals Verbs: past tense Verbs: past participle

irregularity
Unusual oxen, syllabi, taken, seen, fallen, eaten
NOTES suffix antennae
Change of foot/feet, run/ran, come/came, swim/swum, sing/sung
stem vowel mouse/mice flee/fled, meet/met,
fly/flew, stick/stuck,
get/got, break/broke
Change of brother/brethren/ feel/felt, kneel/knelt write/written, do/done,
stem vowel break/broken, fly/flown
with unusual
suffix
Change in send/sent, bend/bent, send/sent, bend/bent,
base/stem think/thought, think/thought, teach/taught,
form teach/taught, buy/bought buy/bought
(sometimes
with unusual
suffix)
Zero- deer, sheep, hit, beat hit, beat, come
marking (no moose, fish
suffix, no
stem
change)

Inflection can be irregular in more ways such as suppletion (instead of a suffix,

the whole word changes):
be - am - are - is - was - were - been
go - went - gone
good - better - best
bad - worse - worst
some - more - most
English derivational morphology
There are many derivational affixes in English. Some of them are discussed below, as
examples. Some Derivational Affixes of English are:

Affix Class(es) of Nature of change in Examples

word to which meaning
affix applies
Prefix Noun, adjective Negation/opposite Noun: non-starter
'non-' Adj.: non-partisan
Suffix Adjective Changes to noun electric/electricity
'ity' obese/obesity
Prefix Verb Reverses action tie/untie,
'un-' Adjective opposite quality fasten/unfasten
clear/unclear,
safe/unsafe
Suffix Noun Changes to adjective fame/famous,
'-ous' glamour/glamorous
Prefix Verb Repeat action tie/retie, write/rewrite
're-'
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66 Material '-able' drink/drinkable
George Yule (2005) in his work titled The Study of Language differentiates between Morphology

derivational and inflectional morphemes in the manner given as follows:

The difference between derivational and inflectional morphemes is worth emphasizing.
An inflectional morpheme never changes the grammatical category of a word. For
example, the words ‘old’ and ‘older’ are adjectives. The -er inflection here simply NOTES
creates a different version of the adjective. However, a derivational morpheme can
change the grammatical category of a word. The verb teach becomes the noun teacher
if we add the derivational morpheme -er (from Old English -ere). So, the suffix -er in
modern English can be an inflectional morpheme as part of an adjective and also a
distinct derivational morpheme as part of a noun. Just because they look the same (-
er), it doesn’t mean that they do the same kind of work. Whenever there is a derivational
suffix and an inflectional suffix attached to the same word, they always appear in that
order. First the derivational (-er) is attached to teach, then the inflectional (-s) is
added to produce teachers.

III. Full and Empty Morphemes

Complete segmentability is an important characteristic of words which consists of
words whose morphemic structure is transparent which indicates that the morphs in a
word are distinct from each other. These types of morphs are known as full morphemes.
This type pf structure can be found in words such as useless or hopeful is conditioned
by a fact that these morphemes recur with the same meaning in other words such as
use, to use, a hope, to hope and homeless, powerful. Empty morphemes are defined
as morphs that do not consist of a specific meaning. For instance, ‘I helped him (to) fill
in the form’, in this sentence, the word ‘to’ is optional. It does not contribute any
meaning in the sentence. An empty morpheme can be found in the words such as
Anglo-French, Psychology or Pseudo-Elizabethan, in such words, ‘o’ is the empty
morph.
3.3.1 Root and the Affix: Prefix, Infix and Suffix
Let us take a group of words like goes, walks, talked, smiled, and received. An analysis
of the words will reveal the following facts:
Goes – go + -es
Walks – walk + -s
Talked – talk + -ed
Smiled – smile + -d
Received – receive + -d
Deceived – deceive + d
In goes and walks, -es and –s are bound morphemes which make the root
words ‘go’ and ‘walk’ singular. Similarly, -ed and –d have been joined with the free
morphemes talk, smile, receive and deceive to change them into past tense. These are
free morphemes as they have their own meaning without being added to any other
morpheme. –es, -s, -ed and –d are the bound morphemes because they are
independently meaningless. Thus, we see that every word of the above group has one
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Morphology added to each to form a new word. Since the bound morphemes have no independent
meaning, the free morphemes are the roots to which the bound morphemes are added
as affixes. In English, the roots are mostly free morphemes. A word may consist of one
or more morphemes, one morpheme usually as the central and one or more morphemes
NOTES as the peripheral. The central morpheme is known as root morpheme and the peripheral,
affixes. Affixes can be divided into three types which are as follows:
Prefixes
A prefix is added at the beginning of a root word to form a new word. In English,
prefixes are profusely used to make new words or to modify or extend the concept
which is denoted by the root word. In this way, the English language has evolved and
kept pace with the changing needs of time. Some of the native prefixes are:
• Be: Originally meaning about, it forms derivative verbs which can have two
kinds of meanings – beset, bemoan, besmear, etc. It also forms verbs from
nouns and adjectives. For example, befool, befriend, belittle.
• Un: This negative prefix is freely used with adjectives and adverbs to form
words like unhappy, untidy, and unnatural. Un- is very commonly used in Modern
English with present participles to change them into permanent verbs like
unbecoming, untiring and unyielding. In the Old and Middle English periods,
un- was commonly used with nouns as in the word unreality.
• With: Though a very productive prefix in the Old English period, only one
derivative word has survived in Modern English, i.e., withstand. Withdraw and
withhold were two new words that were added in the Middle English period.
• For: This prefix has now become obsolete though it was very much used in the
Old English Period. For example, forbid, forgo, and forbear.
• Mis: This prefix has been used with verbs, nouns and adjectives to form new
words like misbehave, mislead, misconception.
Apart from native prefixes, new words have been formed by foreign prefixes mainly
borrowed from French, Latin and Greek.
• French prefixes:
o En- - endanger, enlist
o Em- - embark, empower
o Demi- - demigod
• Latin prefixes:
o Re- return, rewrite
o Pro- - prodemocracy
o Pre- - prenatal
o Super- - supernatural
o Dis- - disadvantage, discomfort
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 o De- - decode Morphology

o Trans- - transplant
o Multi- - multinational, multilingual
o Extra- - extraordinary NOTES
• Greek prefixes
o A- - atypical
o Anti- - antinational, antisocial
o Pan- - pantheism
o Hyper- - hyperactive
o Pseudo- - pseudo-intellectual
o Neo- - neo-feminist
o Auto- - autobiography, automobile
General list of words with prefixes
• Advance
• Anti-aircraft
• Antibiotic
• Anticlockwise
• Bejewelled
• Bemuse
• Beset
• Bespatter
• Bespectacled
• Bewitch
• Bicycle
• Bifocal
• Bilingual
• Bisexuality
• Decantation
• Decentralization
• Decode
• Decompose
• Defame
• Deforestation
• Defrost
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Morphology • Degenerate
• Degradation
• Degrade
NOTES • Dehydration
• Derange
• Disadvantage
• Disappear
• Disconnect
• Dishonest
• Embitter
• Embitter
• Engulf
• Enlighten
• Enmesh
• Enrage
• Entangle
• Hyperactive
• Hypersonic
• Illegal
• Immaterial
• Impossible
• Invisible
• Invisible
• Irresistible
• Irresponsible
• Misbehave
• Mischief
• Monocle
• Monolith
• Monologue
• Monotony
• Nonentity
• Nonfiction
• Nonsense
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• Overbearing Morphology

• Overboard
• Overcast
• Overconfident NOTES
• Overview
• Prehistoric
• Reconnect
• Recover
• Replay
• Reserve
• Review
• Rewind
• Submarine
• Subservient
• Subsoil
• Subtitles
• Sub-tropical
• Subway
• Telecommunication
• Telepathy
• Telephoto lens
• Television
• Telegraph
• Unable
• Unacceptable
• Uncover
• Underarm
• Underdeveloped
• Underground
• Undersecretary
• Undertake
• Undertaker
• Unfair
• Unforgettable
• Unhappy Self-Instructional
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Morphology • Unhealthy
• Unlucky
• Unmanned
NOTES • Unmask
• Unplug
• Unreal
• Untamed
• Untidy
• Unwind
Suffixes
A suffix is attached at the end of a root word to form a new word. It can change the
word- class and meaning of a word. Suffixes may be used to form nouns from verbs
and adjectives, and adjectives from nouns and verbs. The following lists contain different
suffixes and their uses to form new words.
Nouns from verbs
• –ment – appointment, arrangement
• –ion – selection, collection
• –ance – assistance, insurance
• –al – arrival, dismissal
• –sion – extension, compulsion
• –ing – reading, walking
• –ure – failure
Nouns from adjectives
• –ity – activity, reality
• –ness – happiness, sadness
• –ance – distance, ignorance
Adjectives from nouns
• –y – cloudy, dusty
• – ly – fatherly, manly
• –al – accidental, classical
• –ish – boyish, reddish
• –ful – beautiful, thoughtful
• –less – penniless, careless
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Adjectives from verbs Morphology

• –able – admirable, agreeable

• –ful – thankful, helpful
NOTES
Infixes
Infixes are not very commonly found in English except in plural words like geese, men,
etc. These words change their inflection by bringing some variations in the vowels in
their middle structure. For example:
• Man – men
• Mouse – mice
• Foot- feet
• Tooth- teeth
Such changes are known as replacive because they involve the replacement of vowels.
All English words formed by this derivational process have either prefixes or suffixes,
or both. Thus, mislead has a prefix, disrespectful has both a prefix and a suffix, and
foolishness has two suffixes.
3.3.2 Class Maintaining and Class Changing
Derivation is a significant means of word formation as it is through use of derivational
morphemes that new words are created in every language. In English we see that the
derivational morphemes–Suffixes and Prefixes are added to words to create new
words. When affixes are used and the grammatical category of the word remains the
same it is called the class maintaining morphemes and when the category changes, it is
called class changing morphemes. For example, if the root morpheme ‘organize’ is
added with prefixes ‘re-’ or ‘dis-’ we get the words ‘Reorganize’ or ‘disorganize’– in
both the cases the words are verbs and the class of words did not change and therefore
they can be called class maintaining morphemes. Whereas, to the same root word
‘organize’ if we use suffix ‘-er’ then we get the word ‘organizer’ – here the grammatical
category of the word has changed as we have got a noun from a verb. When, thus, the
grammatical category changes of a root word by adding derivational morphemes then
those morphemes are called class changing morphemes.
3.3.3 General Principles of Lexicography
Both lexicology and lexicography are derived from the Greek word ‘lexiko’ (adjective
from lexis meaning ‘speech’, or ‘way of speaking’ or ‘word’). Both are concerned
with the lexical unit of a language. Lexicology is derived from lexico, which means
‘word’ plus logos meaning ‘learning or science’, i.e., the science of words. Lexicography
is lexico ‘word’ plus graph ‘writing’, i.e., the writing of words. The etymological meaning
of these words speaks for itself, the scope of these branches of linguistics. Lexicology
is the science of the study of word, whereas, lexicography is the writing of the word in
a concrete form, i.e., in the form of dictionary. Lexicology and lexicography are very
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Morphology closely related, rather the latter is directly dependent on the former and may be called
applied lexicology.
As already noted, both lexicology and lexicography share a common subject
‘word’. The sum total of all the words of a language forms the vocabulary or the
NOTES
lexical system of a language. The words of a language are like constellations of stars in
the firmament. Every word although having its own independent entity is related to
others, both paradigmatically and syntagmatically. The paradigmatic relations are based
on the interdependence of words within the lexical system. The syntagmatic relations
show the relation of words in the patterns of arrangement. In other words, the vocabulary
of a language is not a chaos of diversified phenomena but consists of elements which,
though independent, are related in some way. A word has a particular meaning, it has
a particular group of sounds, and a particular grammatical function. As such it is a
semantic, phonological and grammatical unit. Lexicology studies a word in all these
aspects, i.e., the patterns of semantic relationship of words as also their phonological,
morphological and contextual behaviour. Words undergo constant change in their form
and meaning and lexicology studies the vocabulary of a language in terms of its origin,
development and current use. The study of the interrelationship of lexical units is done
in terms of the contrasts and similarities existing between them.
As a word does not occur in isolation, lexicology studies it with its combinative
possibilities. And thus, the scope of lexicology includes the study of phraseological
units, set combinations, etc. Like general linguistics, of which lexicology is a branch,
lexicology can be both historical and descriptive, the former dealing with the origin and
development of the form and meaning of the lexical units in a particular language across
time and the latter studying the vocabulary of a language as a system at a particular
point of time. But there are many areas in lexicology, where one cannot be studied in
isolation, without regard to the other. They are, thus, interdependent. The lexicological
studies can be of two types, general and special. General lexicology is concerned with
the general features of words common to all languages. It deals with something like
universal in language. Special lexicology on the other hand studies the words with
reference to one particular language. Lexicological studies can be, further, of
comparative and contrastive type wherein the lexical systems of two languages are
studied from a contrastive point of view.
Lexicology fulfils the needs of different branches of applied linguistics, such as
lexicography, stylistics, language teaching, etc. As the vocabulary or the lexical system
of a language forms a system of the language as other systems, its study in lexicology
should not be separated from the other constituents of the system. Therefore, lexicology
is closely related to phonetics and grammar. The relation between phonetics and
lexicology is very important. Words consist of phonemes, which, although not having
meaning of their own, serve in formation of morphemes, the level where meaning is
expressed. So, they serve to distinguish between meanings. Moreover, meaning itself
is indispensable for phonemic analysis. The difference of meaning in /pIt/ and /pUt/
helps in the fixation of the phonemes /I/and /U/. Historical phonetics helps in the study
of polysemy, homonymy and synonymy.
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 The link between lexicology and grammar is also very close. Each word has a Morphology

relation in the grammatical system of a language and belongs to some parts of speech.
Lexicology studies this relationship in terms of the grammatical meanings as also their
relationship with the lexical meaning. In the field of word formation, lexicology is still
more closely related to grammar. Both study the patterns of word formation. Language NOTES
is a social phenomenon. The study of language cannot be divorced from the study of
the social system and the development in society. The development and progress in
the social, political and technological systems, manifests itself in the vocabulary of a
language. New words are introduced and old words die out. New meanings are added
to words and old meanings are dropped out. Lexicology studies the vocabulary of a
language from the sociological points also.
Lexicography also studies the lexicon as lexicology does, however, ‘lexicology
concentrates more on general properties and features that can be viewed as systematic,
lexicography typically has, so to say, the individuality of each lexical unit in the focus of
its interest’ (Zgusta 1973, 14). Lexicography has been generally defined as the writing
or compiling of a lexicon or dictionary, the art or practice of writing dictionaries or the
science of methods of compiling dictionaries. The word was used as early as 1680.
(Oxford English Dictionary/Lexicography). In lexicology, the word is studied as a part
of the system. In lexicography, it is studied as an individual unit in respect to its meaning
and use from the practical point of its use by the reader of the dictionary for learning
the language or comprehending texts in it or for any other purpose like checking correct
spelling, pronunciation, etc.
A word may have different and varied characteristic, all of which may not be
needed by a lexicographer. His work is guided more by the purpose of the dictionary
and the type of the audience. He presents the words of the lexical system in a way so
as to make it practically useable in real life situation, i.e., in actual speech. For example,
lexicology may give the theoretical basis for enumerating different meanings of a
polysemous word, but how these meanings are worded and presented in the dictionary
is governed by the practical problems of utility of the dictionary for different types of
readers. The aim of lexicology is to study the vocabulary of a language as a system, so
the treatment of individual units may not claim to be complete because the number of
units is very larger. Its goal is systematization in the study as a whole but not completeness
as regards to individual units. Therefore, it cannot claim to be a perfectly systematic
treatment. Here, every entry is treated as an independent problem. Lexicologists present
their material in sequence according to their view of the study of vocabulary. The
lexicographers are mostly guided by the principle of convenience in retrieval of the
data and arrange words usually in an alphabetical order.
Lexicology provides the theoretical basis of lexicography. The lexicographer
although knowing all the semantic details of a lexical unit might, at times, have to take
such decisions and include such features in the definition which might be his/her own
observations. In lexicology the study of words is objective, governed by the theories
of semantics and word formation. There is no scope for individual aberrations. In
lexicography, in spite of all the best attempts on the part of the lexicographer, many a
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Morphology definition become subjective, i.e. they are not free from the bias of the dictionary
maker. (cf. the meaning of oats in Johnson’s Dictionary.)
General lexicology deals with the universal features of the words of languages.
In this sense lexicology is not language specific, whereas lexicography is more or less
NOTES
language specific in spite of its universal theoretical background. Its theories have no
other validation except for practical applicability in the compilation of a dictionary.
While lexicology is more theory oriented, lexicography is more concerned with concrete
application (i.e., results) of these theories. Therefore, ‘in a certain sense, lexicography
may be considered a superior discipline to lexicology, for results are more important
than intentions and the value of theoretical principles must be estimated according to
results’ (Doroszewski 1973, 36).
Lexicography is the science and art of compiling dictionary. The word ‘dictionary’
was first used as Dictionarius in this sense in the 13th century by an English man named
John Garland. The word Dictionarium was used in the 14th century. The first book
published under the English title Dictionary was the Latin-English dictionary by Sir
Thomas Elyot (1538). For a medieval scholar a dictionary was a collection of diction
or phrases put together for the use of pupils studying Latin. One of the purposes of
dictionary in medieval times was glossing texts and employing synonyms for them.
Dictionaries are prepared to serve different practical needs of the people. A
reader looks at the dictionary mainly from the following points of view:
• As a reference book for different types of information on words, e.g.,
pronunciation, etymology, usage, etc., this may be called the store house
function of the dictionary.
• As a reference point for distinguishing the good or proper usage from the
bad or wrong usage. This is the legislative or the court house function of the
dictionary.
Johnson (1755) described the lexicographer as ‘a writer of dictionaries. ……a
harmless drudge that busies himself in tracing the original and detailing the signification
of word’. Little did he realize at that time that his dictionary would, for almost a century,
serve as the ‘Bible’ of the English language. Besides these a dictionary also serves as
a clearing house of information. In order to ensure that these functions be performed
adequately, the information in the dictionaries should be collected from as many sources
as possible, and should be authentic and easily retrievable. Lexicography in this way is
an applied science.
Relevance of lexicography to a language teaching programme
As noted earlier, the basic concern of lexicography is ‘word’ which is studied in different
branches of linguistics, such as phonetics, grammar, stylistics etc. Lexicography is not
only related to linguistics but is an applied discipline under it. The practical problems of
lexicography are solved by the application of the researches of linguistic works. As we
shall study under this section, during the entire work from the selection of entries,
fixation of head words, the definition of words to the arrangement of meanings and
76
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Material
entries, the lexicographer is helped by the work of different branches of linguistics.
 One of the most widely accepted criteria for selection of entries in most Morphology

dictionaries is usually the frequency count. The frequency of head words, the
lexicographer usually chooses the canonical or the most frequently occurring form of a
word. This was found from the grammatical study of the language. For written languages
and languages with established grammatical traditions the problem of selection of the NOTES
head word is not difficult as in the case of unwritten languages. Here, the lexicographer
has to be his own linguist and has to recourse to the linguistic analysis of the language.
For data collection, he takes the help of the field linguistics and for analysis, of descriptive
linguistics. For giving definitions of flora and fauna as also of artefacts and other cultural
items, the lexicographer gives encyclopaedic information. For this the principle of the
hierarchical structure of the vocabulary in terms of folk taxonomy is utilized by a
lexicographer. Thus, he enters the domain of ethnolinguistics.
For giving spellings and pronunciation of words in his dictionary, the lexicographer,
is helped by the phonetic study of the language. For grammatical information, he has to
depend on the morphological analysis of the language. In the determination of the
central meaning of a polysemous word, the lexicographer is helped by historical
linguistics. Etymology gives him the clue to decide the basic meaning. In the fixation of
the number of meanings and their inter-relationship the lexicographer has to take recourse
to the linguistic methods of set collocations, valency and selective restrictions.
Historical linguistics help in tracing the origin and development of the form and
meaning of the words in historical dictionaries. In descriptive dictionaries, such labels
as archaic, obsolete etc., denoting the temporal status of words, are decided with the
help of historical linguistics. Historical linguistics, especially etymological study, helps
in distinguishing between homonymy and polysemy. However, where etymological
consideration is not applicable for want of such studies, it is the native speaker’s
intuition which is taken as the determining factor. In this, the lexicographer is helped by
psycholinguistics. Psycholinguistics also help in providing material for vocabulary
development which might be used for the preparation of the graded dictionaries.
Dictionaries give status labels like slang, jargon, taboo, figurative, formal, etc. These
labels are decided with the help of sociolinguistic and stylistic studies. For dialect
dictionaries dialectology is a necessary helpmate. A basic prerequisite of bilingual
dictionaries is a contrastive analysis of the linguistic systems of the two languages. This
is provided by contrastive linguistics.
All this show that in his work the lexicographer has, to a large extent,
always to depend on the findings of different branches of linguistics. But this is not so
in actual life. Lexicographical works had preceded grammatical works in many
languages. It is not only the findings of linguistics which help in the solution of
lexicographical problems, the lexicographical findings are equally utilized by the linguists
for different purposes of authenticating their hypothesis, in helping standardization of
the languages, especially in the fields of technical terminologies. The problems of a
lexicographer are practical and need based requiring at-themoment solution. The
lexicographer cannot wait for certain findings in the field of linguistics or other disciplines
for the solution of his problems. It is here that linguistics might fail to meet the needs of
a lexicographer. There are different schools of linguistics vying with each other in Self-Instructional
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Morphology theoretical researches. The findings of one school are contradicted by the other. There
are different studies on the same aspect of a language. Nothing is final. The lexicographer
might not afford to wait for the final word to come. Moreover, many languages still
remain uninvestigated. So the lexicographer has to find his own way. In his entire
NOTES work, the lexicographer is guided by the practical considerations of a dictionary user.
The linguistic theories are quite important for the lexicographer but practical utility is
more basic for him. As rightly put forward by Urdang ‘Lexicography, in practice is a
form of applied linguistics and although more theoreticians would be a welcome addition
to the field, they must remember that their theories should be interpretable above all in
terms of practicality.’ (Urdang, 1963, 594)
Lexicon and grammar
The relation between lexicon and grammar has been discussed differently. Bloomfield
considers grammar and lexicon (dictionary) as two parts of linguistic description and
remarks ‘lexicon is really an appendix of the grammar, a list of basic irregularities’
(Bloomfield 1933, 274). His statement seems to be inspired by the fact that grammar
takes care of all the regular and predictable forms of the language, whereas dictionary
gives all the irregular and unpredictable forms as also forms with irregular and
unpredictable meanings. In other words, it deals with the individual idiosyncrasies of a
language. The dictionary gives irregular plurals, irregular forms of verbs and other
unpredictable forms in the paradigm of the lexical unit. It does not enter regular inflected
forms but gives derivational forms. It gives all the lexical units of a language because
the relation between the form and the meaning is not predictable. It is arbitrary. It is in
this sense that Bloomfield calls dictionary an appendix of grammar and a list of basic
irregularities.
As a matter of fact, there can be no strict separation of the two in terms that the
dictionary is concerned with words only, or the grammar is concerned with forms and
the dictionary with meaning (Gleason 1967, 90). Actually the grammatical rules also
give or are supposed to include the meaning of constructions. The dictionary gives
different grammatical categories of the lexical entry along with its meaning and use.
The basic difference between the lexicon and the grammar lies in respect of their being
open-ended and close-ended. The grammatical rules of a language are internalized by
an individual by the age of five or six years. Practically little is added to the grammatical
structure afterwards. On the contrary, the acquisition of vocabulary is an ongoing and
continuous process and lasts only at the time of death. Every day a new lexical item is
added to the lexicon (the inbuilt dictionary–the lexical stock of a language an individual
speaker of a language has in himself). The lexicon is constantly changing. New words
are added, some old words are dropped while some others are modified in their
signification. Gleason (1967, 93-94) describes the relationship between grammar and
lexicon as that of class and member. Grammar sets up classes and studies relationship
between them. Dictionary deals with individual isolated items, words and morphemes
called members and identifies the class to which a member belongs.

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 Morphology

Check Your Progress

3. Define morphemes.
4. What are the major types of morphemes? NOTES
5. What are the two types of lexicological studies?
6. What is lexicography?
7. Who are historical linguists?
8. How are status labels given to words?

3.4 SOME WORD FORMATION PROCESSES:

REDUPLICATION, CLIPPING, AND BLENDING

Bloomfield defined word as the minimum free form which is based on the criterion of
stability. A sentence is a free linguistic form and the word is its minimal free version.
‘Man’ is a word. So is ‘Manly’. But the unit ‘-ly’ is not a word. The elements such as
‘the’, ‘of’, ‘and’ cannot be seen as words in isolation for they do not have meaning in
isolation. The study of the origin and history of words is known as etymology. New
words get generated or developed through various means and processes. One of the
least common processes of word formation is coinage. ‘Coinage’ refers to the invention
of new words. Words like aspirin, nylon are originally invented brand names. Xerox is
also one such word.
Root creation
There are many words in English which have been borrowed from other languages.
There are a lot of words in English which have not been formed by any process of
composition or derivations. Such words have had their roots created. One of the main
forms of root creation is onomatopoeia. It is one of the most important sources of
word making. For example: words like bang, pop, buzz, giggle etc. These are the
words that describe some kind of sound. Similarly, words like fiddle-faddle, fidge-
fudge, hug, hump, see-saw, throb and thump are also a combinations of sounds.
Reduplication
This is a process in which two identical words are put together to coin new reduplicative
item, for example, walkie-talkie; criss-cross, goody-goody, ding-dong, flip-flop, ping-
pong, wishy-washy, dilly-dally, shilly-shally.
Clipping
In this word formation process, a part of a long word is used to serve for the whole,
for example, ad- advertisement; demo-demonstration;
Lab- Laboratory; Mike-Microphone; Photo-Photograph, etc.
Plane-Aeroplane; Bus-Omnibus, etc. Self-Instructional
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Morphology Fridge-Refrigerator
Maths-Mathematics
Blending
NOTES
Blends are words formed by the blending or putting together of the shortened forms of
two other words, for example,
Motel – motorway and hotel Brunch- breakfast + lunch
Smog – smoke and fog Toy toon- toy + cartoon
Oxbridge – Oxford + Cambridge travelogue – travel + catalogue
Newscast – news + broadcast telecast – television + broadcast

3.5 MORPHOPHONEMIC CHANGES

Morphophonemics is usually defined as analysis and classification of the phonological

factors which are known to affect the pronunciation of morphemes or, consequently,
the morphological factors which affect the appearance of phonemes. It is the field of
study in which the interaction between morphological and phonological processes is
studied. These affect each other in a significant ways, for example,
• The use of indefinite in English language a and an: Word beginning with a
consonantal sound has indefinite article ‘a’, while word beginning with a
consonantal sound is manifested with an ‘an’ (an apple or an idiot). It is to be
noted here that it is not necessarily the vowels or the consonants as they are
written but as they are pronounced – for example, an hour, a European.
• The norms of pluralization in English: Usually we make plural by ‘-s’ or ‘-
es’, but when we think of it from phonological point of view the following are
the cases
o Words such as ‘cut, kick and top’end with voiceless consonant and take /
-s/ as the allomorph to be plural.
o Words such as ‘dog, rib and kid’end with voiced consonant and take /-z/
as the allomorph to be plural.
o Words such as ‘judge, wish and church’end with consonant that strident
in nature. and take /-Yz/ as allomorph to be plural.
o Words such as ‘shoe, day and pea’ end with vowel sound and therefore
take /-z/ allomorph to be plural.
3.5.1 Phonological Conditioning
Phonological conditioning is any change is the phonological shape of a morpheme
because of the phonological features surrounding the target, for example, selection
among ‘in-’, ‘im-’, ‘il-’, and ‘ir-’ is phonologically conditioned to the attributes of the
word that they attach to, for instance:
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 Possible-impossible Morphology

(‘im-’ when the next word starts with a labial /p/ or /b/),
Legal-illegal,
Regular-irregular NOTES
‘in-’ as in efficient-inefficient.
(the consonant is dropped in pronunciation when the word starts with /l/ or /r/
although spelling might suggest that there is a lengthening in pronunciation)
3.5.2 Morphological Conditioning
In terms such as Man-men, Child-children, deer-deer, the second item contains the
plural phoneme. Each morpheme is considered individually or alternatively to their
phonemic shapes, and specifies the allomorph of the plural morpheme separately for
each. Morphologically conditioned allomorphs of a morpheme are regarded as irregular
in contrast to phonologically conditioned.

3.6 PROBLEMS OF MORPHOLOGICAL ANALYSIS

No language is complete in itself in terms of its vocabulary. Every language borrows

from the language it comes in contact with to enrich its vocabulary. But apart from
borrowing there are other ways in which a language tries to enrich its stock of words
that is by coining new words through various means, such as inflection, derivation,
compounding, back-formation, clipping etc. English language is also similar in terms of
its enriching in vocabulary. Thus morphological analysis is a very significant tool of
understanding language as well as in the study of linguistics. But like every field of
study it also has its own shortcomings which make it not a full proof system of studying
language. Words inherently do not have meaning and they get the meaning in the context
in which they are used. Thus, to know the morphological means of understanding the
word is not often the final way of looking at the word. But at the same time, it is also
true that morphology has extended the field of study of linguistics and as Palmer
(1971) says:
What is clear nowadays, however, is that the morpheme concept is only of limited
value. It can certainly display the minimal units of grammatical analysis in a vast
amount of language data. The irregularities of English are not, after all, very many.
And when it comes to the analysis of the agglutinative languages, the morpheme
concept is invaluable, as these languages are, as it were, tailor-made for it. But when
we consider the difficulties of morphemic identification as a whole... it is clear that the
concept is not as all-embracing as it has sometimes be made out to be.

3.6.1 Types of Problems in Morphological Analysis

There are three types of problems that occur in morphological analysis:
• False analysis words such as hospitable, sizeable don’t have the meaning ‘to be
able’. They cannot take the suffix ‘-ity’ to form a noun. Analyzing them as the
words containing suffix -able leads to false analysis. Self-Instructional
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Morphology • Productivity is the property of a morphological process to give rise to new
formations on a systematic basis. Exceptions to the above rule are: Peaceable,
actionable, and companionable.
• Bound base morphemes occur only in a particular complex word. Thy do not
NOTES
have independent existence. In words such as feasible and malleable, ‘-able’
has the regular meaning ‘be able’ and ‘-ity’ form is possible. Base words don’t
exit independently base (nonexistent) morpheme (known) compound.

Check Your Progress

9. List some of the types of word formation processes.
10. What do you mean by phonological conditioning?

3.7 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

QUESTIONS

1. Morphology means the study of forms. Morphology focuses on words, how

they are formed and what forms they take in language.
2. The two types of allomorphs are phonologically conditioned allomorphs and
morphologically conditioned allomorphs.
3. A morpheme is a minimal unit of meaning or grammatical function.
4. The major types of morphemes are free and bound morphemes, lexical and
functional morphemes and derivational and inflectional morphemes.
5. The lexicological studies can be of two types; general and special. General
lexicology is concerned with the general features of words common to all
languages. It deals with something like universal in language. Special lexicology
on the other hand studies the words with reference to one particular language.
6. Lexicography is the science and art of compiling dictionary.
7. Historical linguistics help in tracing the origin and development of the form and
meaning of the words in historical dictionaries.
8. Dictionaries give status labels like slang, jargon, taboo, figurative, formal, etc.
These labels are decided with the help of sociolinguistic and stylistic studies.
9. Word formation is the creation of new word. There are number of various word
formation processes like compounding, back formation, shortening, conversion,
reduplication, clipping, acronyms, blends, brand names, words from names,
extension of words, and multiple processes.
10. Phonological conditioning is any change is the phonological shape of a morpheme
because of the phonological features surrounding the target, for example, selection
among ‘in-’, ‘im-’, ‘il-’, and ‘ir-’ is phonologically conditioned to the attributes
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 Morphology
3.8 SUMMARY

• Morphology means the study of forms. It was taken for granted by the traditional
grammarians that these forms are the words and these words are to be put NOTES
together to form sentences.
• Hockett defined morphemes as ‘the smallest individually meaningful elements in
the utterances of a language’.
• When we find a group of different morphs, all versions of one morpheme, we
can use the prefix ‘allo’ and describe them as allomorphs of that morpheme.
Thus, an allomorph is the alternative phonological manifestation of a morpheme.
• Although students of language have always been aware of the importance of
words, morphology, the study of the internal structure of words did not emerge
as a distinct sub-branch of linguistics until the nineteenth century.
• American structural linguistics, one of the dominant schools of linguistics in the
first part of this century, typically viewed linguistics not so much as a theory of
the nature of language but rather as a body of descriptive and analytical
procedures.
• In the early days, especially between 1920 and 1945, American structuralists
dealt with the problem of how sounds are used to distinguish meaning in language.
• Morpheme is a minimal unit of meaning or grammatical function. To clarify the
definition, we need certain examples.
• There are two kinds of morphemes—one has meaning and the other serving the
grammatical function. One can exist by its own right. This means that the
morphemes have a meaning. The other one forms meaning and needs to be with
a minimally free unit with a meaning.
• Free morphemes fall into two categories—lexical and functional lexical
morphemes. They consist of ordinary nouns, adjectives and verbs that carry the
‘content’ of the messages.
• When affixes are used and the grammatical category of the word remains the
same it is called the class maintaining morphemes and when the category changes,
it is called class changing morphemes.
• Both lexicology and lexicography are derived from the Greek word ‘lexiko’
(adjective from lexis meaning ‘speech’, or ‘way of speaking’ or ‘word’). Both
are concerned with the lexical unit of a language.
• Lexicology is the science of the study of word, whereas, lexicography is the
writing of the word in a concrete form, i.e., in the form of dictionary. Lexicology
and lexicography are very closely related; in fact, the latter is directly dependent
on the former and may be called applied lexicology.
• The lexicological studies can be of two types: general and special. General
lexicology is concerned with the general features of words common to all
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Morphology languages. It deals with something like universal in language. Special lexicology
on the other hand studies the words with reference to one particular language.
• The link between lexicology and grammar is also very close. Each word has a
relation in the grammatical system of a language and belongs to some parts of
NOTES
speech.
• Historical linguistics help in tracing the origin and development of the form and
meaning of the words in historical dictionaries. In descriptive dictionaries, such
labels as archaic, obsolete etc., denoting the temporal status of words, are
decided with the help of historical linguistics.
• Dictionaries give status labels like slang, jargon, taboo, figurative, formal, etc.
These labels are decided with the help of sociolinguistic and stylistic studies.
• Bloomfield defined word as the minimum free form which is based on the criterion
of stability. A sentence is a free linguistic form and the word is its minimal free
version.
• Reduplication is a process in which two identical words are put together to coin
new reduplicative item
• In clipping, a part of a long word is used to serve for the whole.
• Blends are words formed by the blending or putting together of the shortened
forms of two other words.
• Morphophonemics is usually defined as analysis and classification of the
phonological factors which are known to affect the pronunciation of morphemes
or, consequently, the morphological factors which affect the appearance of
phonemes.
• Phonological conditioning is any change is the phonological shape of a morpheme
because of the phonological features surrounding the target.
• Each morpheme is considered individually or alternatively to their phonemic
shapes, and specifies the allomorph of the plural morpheme separately for each.
Morphologically conditioned allomorphs of a morpheme are regarded as irregular
in contrast to phonologically conditioned.
• Words inherently do not have meaning and they get the meaning in the context
in which they are used. Thus, to know the morphological means of understanding
the word is not often the final way of looking at the word.
• There are three types of problems that occur in morphological analysis: False
analysis; Productivity; and Bound base morphemes.

3.9 KEY WORDS

• Lexicology: It is the study of the form, meaning, and behaviour of words.

• Lexicography: It is the activity or occupation of compiling dictionaries.
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 • Polysemy: It refers to the coexistence of many possible meanings for a word Morphology

or phrase.

3.10 SELF ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS AND NOTES

EXERCISES

Short-Answer Questions
1. Write a short note on the emergence of morphology.
2. What is the difference between allomorphs and morphemes?
3. What is the work of a lexicographer?
4. Briefly explain the relevance of lexicography to a language.
Long-Answer Questions
1. What are morphemes? Discuss the types of morphemes.
2. Explain the terms class maintaining and class changing morphemes.
3. Discuss the relationship between lexicon and grammar.
4. Describe the problems and types of morphological analysis.

3.11 FURTHER READINGS

Gimson, A.C. 1960. Introduction to English Pronunciation. London: ELBS.

Hockett, C.F. 1960. A Course in Modern Linguistics. California: MacMillan Books.
Lyons, John. 1981. Language and Linguistics. Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press.
Rajimwale, Sharad. 1997. Introduction to English Phonetics, Phonology and
Morphology. Jaipur: Rawal Publication.
Varshney, R.L. 1977. An Introductory Textbook of Linguistics and Phonetics.
Bareilly: Student Store.
Yule, George. 1985. The Study of Language. Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press.

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 Syntax

UNIT 4 SYNTAX
Structure NOTES
4.0 Introduction
4.1 Objectives
4.2 Sentences and their Parts
4.2.1 Compound-Complex Sentence: Analysis
4.3 Words
4.3.1 Word Order
4.3.2 Structure of Words
4.4 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
4.5 Summary
4.6 Key Words
4.7 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
4.8 Further Readings

4.0 INTRODUCTION

In the previous unit, you learnt about morphology. In this unit, the discussion will turn
towards syntax. Syntax can simply be defined linguistically as the study of sentences
and their structures. In the 1950s and 60s, the famous American linguist Noam Chomsky
came up with a new approach called the generativist view of language or generative
grammar. Syntax occupied a central positive in this study of generative grammar. It is
an abstract body of rules and principles that tells us how the words, phrases and
sentences of a language are constructed. In this unit we will discuss sentences and their
parts and words.

4.1 OBJECTIVES

After going through this unit, you will be able to:

• Examine the types of sentences in English
• Analyse compound and complex sentences
• Describe words and its structure

4.2 SENTENCES AND THEIR PARTS

A sentence can be classified into three types: simple sentence, compound sentence
and complex sentence. A complex or compound sentence consists of two or more
clauses.
A sentence can be shaped by bringing together clauses either by coordination
or by subordination:
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Syntax
Coordination: main clause + main clause = compound sentence
Subordination: main clause + subordinate clause = complex sentence

(a) Simple Sentence

NOTES
A simple sentence has a subject and a verb, and it expresses a complete thought. A
simple sentence is also referred to as an independent clause.
For example:
• Mary had a little lamb.
• Ravi goes to school.
• Some students like to study in the night.
• Ram and Sumit play cricket every afternoon.
• Rita goes to the library and studies every day.
Elements of a simple sentence
The elements of a simple sentence are as follows:
a. Subject
b. Predicate
c. Object
d. Complements
e. Modifiers
f. Independent elements
(b) Compound Sentence
A compound sentence consists of more than one independent or main clause and it
has more than one finite verb.
For example:
• Ram was tired and he went to bed early.
The above sentence can be broken up into two clauses—Ram was tired and he went
to bed early. Each of these two parts makes complete sense by itself and so each can
be called a main clause. The two clauses are joined by a conjunction.
A compound sentence has one or more independent clauses joined by
coordinating conjunctions. The coordinators are for, and, nor, but, or and yet.
For example:
• Lucky played football, so Lucy went shopping.
• Canada is a rich country, but still it has many poor people.
• She talks and he listens.
• I went to the mall and I bought two dresses.
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A compound sentence can also comprise three clauses. Syntax

For example:
• The night was dark and no stars could be seen but we had a powerful light to
show us the way. NOTES
Note: Compound sentence: at least two independent clauses; no dependent clauses
(c) Complex Sentence
A complex sentence also has more than one finite verb and comprises of at least two
clauses. However, only one of the clauses can stand independently on its own, the
other (or others) is a subordinate clause with a finite verb.
For example:
• The children stood up when the teacher entered.
Here, the child stood up makes complete sense by itself and is therefore the main
clause; when the teacher entered cannot stand on its own. It is dependent on the
main clause. Therefore, it is called the subordinate or the dependent clause. A complex
sentence has several subordinate clauses.
For example:
• When the bell rang, the children who had completed their work went out to
play.
Here, the children went out to play is the main clause, and when the bell rang and
who had completed their work are both subordinate clauses.
A complex sentence can have dependent clauses in front of, in the middle of,
and after a main clause. When there are several dependent clauses in a row and there
is a need for an extra pause, place a comma between them where there the meaning is
least disrupted.
• The number and type of clauses they contain determine all sentences.
• If there is one main clause and nine dependent clauses, there will still be a
complex sentence.
For example:
• The students are studying because they have an exam tomorrow.
• Harry and Lisa went to the movies after they finished studying.
• We had to go inside when it started raining.
• Because life is complex, we have complex sentences.
• Because the tea was too cold, I warmed it up in the microwave.
4.2.1 Compound-Complex Sentence: Analysis
A compound-complex sentence combines the elements of both complex and compound
sentences. A compound-complex sentence contains two or more independent clauses
and one or more dependant clauses. Self-Instructional
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Syntax For example:
• Because I am a French teacher, some people expect me to speak perfectly,
and other people expect me to write perfectly.
NOTES (The dependent clause is italicized, and the independent clauses are in bold.)
• Monica forgot her friend’s birthday, so she sent him a card when she finally
remembered.
Compound-complex sentences are usually longer than normal sentences;
therefore, it is very important to punctuate them correctly.
• The captain of the Indian cricket team jumped for joy, and the fans cheered
because they won the T20 World Cup.
Important Terms
Independent main clause is a group of words that carries the meaning of the sentence.
It has a subject and a main verb. This is normally called a simple sentence. Subordinate
clause adds extra information about the subject in the independent main clause. It has
a subject and a main verb and is always introduced by a subordinating conjunction.
Analysis of Compound and Complex Sentences
Analysis means separation of the parts of which the sentence is made up of. When we
break down a sentence in order to understand the relationship of its parts, it is known
as analysis of sentences. The analysis of compound and complex sentences is discussed
in the following sections:
(i) Analysis of Compound Sentences
Two or more principal or main clauses joined by a coordinating conjunction make a
compound sentence. Sometimes a compound sentence may include one or more
subordinate clauses.
For example:
• They asked her how she got the wound, but she refused to answer.
This sentence has two main clauses and one subordinate clause.
• Rita says what she means, and means what she says.
This sentence has two main clauses and two subordinate clauses.
• They were fond of movies, watched various kinds of movies and indulged in
much viewing.
This sentence has three main clauses.
It is seen that a main clause of a compound sentence may be a simple or a complex
sentence.
The link between the two main clauses of a compound sentence can be one of the
following kinds:
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1. Copulative Syntax

• He plays the flute, he sings also.

• Akbar was not only a great warrior; he was also a judicious ruler.
• She cannot speak English, nor can he write. NOTES

In all the above sentences, the main clauses are coupled.

2. Adversative
• Ravi is slow, but she is sure.
• He did his best, nevertheless he failed.
• He has a great job, yet he is not happy.
• He is an idiot, still his friends love him.
In all the above sentences, the main clauses are opposed.
3. Alternative
• She must cry or she will not live.
• Either he is lazy, or he acts lazy
• Drive fast; else, you will not over take her.
In all the above sentences, the main clauses are disjoined in meaning and a choice is
offered.
4. Illative
• Sita is diligent, therefore she will succeed.
• Sabir is unwell, so he cannot attend school.
• Liz is hungry, so she is eating her lunch.
In all the above sentences, the second clause is inferred from the first.
There are times when a compound sentence needs no connecting word to join
the clauses.
For example:
• Control promotes health, overindulgence destroys it.
Sometimes the clauses of a compound sentence are joined by a subordinate conjunction.
• Rita walked with Sam to the subway, where (=and there) they parted.
• I shall see him tomorrow, when (= and then) we can go shopping.
The analysis of compound sentences is not difficult. Each of the main clauses should
be analysed separately. This will help in pointing out the conjunctions, which connects
them.
• The morning is snowy, and I am far from office.
This is a compound sentence since it has two main clauses. This sentence is called a
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Syntax

CONNECTIVE
SUBJECT PREDICATE
NOTES Simple
Attribute
of Adverbial
CLAUSES Subject Subject Verb Complement Qualification

A. The morning
was snowy morning The was snowy

B. I am far from
office. Coordinate far from
with A. and I am office

• The sky was clear, the winds had gone up, and the bright sun was rising radiantly
in the east.
This compound sentence is made up of three main clauses and is called a multiple
sentence.
CONNECTIVE

SUBJECT PREDICATE

Simple Attribute of Adverbial

CLAUSES Subject Subject Verb Complement Qualification

A. The sky was

clear sky The was clear

B. The winds had had

gone up winds The gone up

1. radiantly
2. in the
C.The bright sun east
was rising radiantly (1) The (2) was
in the east and sun bright rising

(ii) Analysis of Complex Sentences

The first step in analysing a complex sentence is to find the principal or the main clause.
Next is to find the subordinate clause or clauses, which shows the relationship between
each clause to the principal clause. Finally, the principal clause and the subordinate
clause are to be analysed separately.
Let us now look at a few examples of complex sentences that contains two
subordinate clauses.
For example:
• The student who sat behind me lent me a pen.
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• The plane that goes to New York is a jet.
 • The tape recorder, which Jim bought, is good. Syntax

• The place where we have lunch is the cafeteria.

Let us now look at a complex sentence that contains three subordinate clauses:
For example: NOTES
• When she heard the question, the old woman who lived in that hut, answered
that the earth is round.
This complex sentence contains three subordinate clauses.
1. The old woman……answered. (Principal clause)
2. When she heard the question. (Adverb clause of time, modifying answered in
1.)
3. Who lived in that house. (Adjective clause, qualifying woman in 1)
4. That the earth is round. (Noun clause, object of answered in 1.)
CONNECTIVE

SUBJECT PREDICATE

Subject- Adverbial
No word Attribute Verb Object Complement Qualification

1 woman (1)the (2)old answered

2 whenever she heard the question

the
3 who lived question in that house

4 that earth the is round

Sometimes, a subordinate clause has a dependant clause within it.

For example:
She replied that she played whenever she liked.
1. She replied ……(principal clause)
2. That she played…….(noun clause, object of replied in 1)
3. Whenever she liked….. (Adverb clause, subordinate to 2, modifying played.)

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Syntax

CONNECTIVE
NOTES SUBJECT PREDICATE

No Subject Verb Adverbial Qualification

1 She replied

2 that she played

3 She liked whenever

Complex sentences can also be analysed differently. The complete sentence can be
analysed completely and then the subordinate clause can be analysed. Let us look at
an example of a complex sentence which has four subordinate clauses.
For example:
1. The woman, who can sing most heartily when she has the chance of singing, is
generally the woman who can work most heartily when she must work.
(i) The woman who is generally the woman….(principal clause)
(ii) Who can sing most heartily. [Adjective clause, qualifyingwoman (subject)
in 1]
(iii) When she has the chance of singing. (Adverb clause, subordinate to 2,
modifying sing.)
(iv) Who can work most heartily. [Adjective clause, qualifying man
(complement) in 1.]
(v) When she must work. (Adverb clause, subordinate to 4, modifying work.)
2. I knew a woman who believed that, if a woman was permitted to make the
ballads, she need not care who made the laws of a nation.
(i) I knew a woman…..(principal clause)
(ii) Who believed….[Adjective clause, qualifying woman (subject) in 1]
(iii) That she need not care.(noun clause, subordinate to 2.,object of believed)
(iv) Who made the laws of nation. (Noun clause, subordinate to 2., object of
care)
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 (v) If a woman were permitted to make the ballads. (Adverb clause of Syntax

condition, subordinate to 3, modifying need not care.) Alternatively, we

can arrange this analysis in a tabular form.

SUBJECT PREDICATE NOTES

CONNECTIVE
The Kind of Subject- Adverbial
Clause Clause word Attribute Verb Object Complement Qualification

Principal
The old Clause
woman (1)the
answered woman (2)old answered

Adverb
Clause of
Whenever Time,
she heard modifying
the answered
question in 1. whenever she heard the question

Adjective
Clause,
Who lived qualifying
in that woman the in that
house in1. who lived question house

Noun
Clause,
That the object of
earth is answered
round in1. that earth the is round

Whenever a complex sentence is analysed, you will be required to give a clause analysis.
In clause analysis, a sentence is broken into several clauses and their relation to one
another is shown.
For example:
• Rupa refuses to marry Jack (independent main clause), unless he will get a
proper job.(subordinate clause)
• Harry drinks (independent main clause) so that he can forget the reality.
(subordinate clause)
• Although he knows the language well (subordinate clause), Jack refuses to
speak Italian. (independent main clause)
Complex sentences can also be analysed differently. The complete sentence can be
analysed completely and then the subordinate clause can be analysed.

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Syntax For example:
When she heard the question, the old woman who lived in that hut, answered that the
earth is round.
NOTES

SUBJECT PREDICATE

Subject-
word Attribute Verb Object Adverbial Qualification

(1)The (2)old that the

(3)who lived earth is whenever she heard the
woman in that house answered round question

4.3 WORDS

The preliminary stages in the language development of a child are studied in terms of
the number of words gained by the child. Children are supposed to understand the
first around 50 words before actually producing them. A child can produce estimated
production of 50 words at the age of eighteen months. This is followed by a phase of
vocabulary spurt which is characterized by a significant increase in the number of
words a child can produce and those which s/he can understand. It is estimated by
some researchers that an average of 10-20 words are added in the vocabulary of
toddlers during this vocabulary spurt. Many words the child is able to associate with
some object or some meaning, and is able to actively use them in expressing himself /
herself in daily life. A number of words are present in the internal storage of the child
and h/she is able to recognize it and comprehend it when it is used.
As per Smith (1926) the learning of words by children in their early years may
be traced as per the table given below:
Age Words
0-8 months 0
0-10 1
01 year 3
1-3 years 19
1-6 years 22
1-9 years 118
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96 Material
 Benedict (1979) in a longitudinal study on 08 children analyzed their Syntax

comprehension and production and the findings were interesting. It was concluded
that in the early development of speaking skills the receptive vocabulary was acquired
earlier before the productive vocabulary. It was revealed that the rate of Comprehension
was twice as fast as Production for first 50 words .Up to 100 words were understood NOTES
by children before their first produced words , however , this rate and gap between
receptive and productive vocabulary are independent.
How does the child acquire these words? You would say by listening to others,
imitating them, reading books and so on. A very significant question as ask, for a
linguist is – what is a word?
Linguists have identified various terms to define ‘word’; some of these are
summarized below for your reference.
• A word is a meaningful unit of a sentence
• It is a distinct unit of a sentence
• It has a meaning
• Has a regular stress pattern, and
• Has phonological changes which can be conditioned by or blocked at word
boundaries
• It is resistant to insertion of new constituents within its boundaries
• It is the smallest constituent capable of moving within a given sentence, with
least possibility of making the sentence ungrammatical
• In hierarchical terms of grammatical constituents, we can place a ‘word’
between the morpheme and the phrase. It is larger than a morpheme yet
smaller to a phrase.
Some of the excerpts of this are put below for you to gain a better understanding
of the same.
(i) Word is a string of letters preceded and followed by a blank space
(word in the writing system)
For example SushmagreetedRavirespectfully (04 words)
In this sentence you can easily identify 04 words on the basis of how they are
written (orthography), the spacing between two words.
Now, look at the sentence below:
For example Sushma greeted her brother’s would-be mother-in-law respectfully.
(05 words)
Where would you put (‘) in ‘brother’s’? Is it a word or not? As per the definition
above, it can be one as there is a space between the words. As per conventions, we
however define it as an apostrophe – punctuation mark.
What is ‘would-be’? One word or two words?
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Syntax What about compound word ‘mother-in-law’? Is it a word? Or something else?
Thus, the first attempt to define a ‘word’ orthographically is slightly problematic.
How do you spell ‘pen-friend’? With hyphen or, without hyphen? Which is correct?
Also sometimes writer use different words to communicate the same idea such as
NOTES
‘grapefruit is also referred to as passion fruit’, which is correct and when? All these
problems may be resolved by stating that one should follow the conventions followed
in writing.
However, the orthographic interpretation of defining ‘word’ is not reliable in all
situations.
(ii) Understanding word in terms of sound structure ‘Phonological’
While speaking in normal speech, the speaker takes pause between two words. It
may serve as a basis for defining the word. But there is a problem here, because the
speakers pause often between tow syllables for more emphasis. A word is composed
of one or more than one syllable. In speech articulation you often find that the speaker
stresses on a particular syllable for emphasis, it is articulated with more prominence –
loud, longer, higher pitch. Thus, in this way, we may not be able to categorize the word
unit clearly. In addition, in case of function words such as articles, determiners,
conjunctions, modals, prepositions and others, there is no stress, hence the criterion of
stress to classify a unit as word cannot be applied on this category of words.
(iii) Understanding word in terms of ‘integrity’
As per this criterion, a word is a distinct, indivisible unit. It cannot take anything within
its structure for modification of category of words to another thus such as verbs to
adjectives (colonize – colonized), we have addition taking place in the initial or final
position of a particular word, such as
Unpopular
Dissatisfaction
Impolite
Unlike
Approached
Lovingly
Girls
Caring etc
So far, the criterion fits the bill, but what we do with words such as ‘daughter-
in-law’, the plural is not ‘daughter- in –laws’ but ‘daughters-in-law’. Certain other
words, created and used by writers also violate this criterion sometimes such as
(iv) Understanding word in terms of ‘semantically’
As per this concept the word is a semantic concept. This means that a word conveys
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 Look at some examples given below, would you call them a single unified unit Syntax

‘word’ or a group pf words?

Along the busy seven lane highway
Feeling sad NOTES
The fruits left in vegetable bin have turned sour.
Here, as you can see, one concept is being communicated by using a couple of
word. Hence, one can say that while a single word does communicate a single concept,
not all concepts may be represented with a single word, a couple of words / phrase /
or a larger unit would be required for the same.
Another problem with this definition is that many a times a word created for
conveying a concept/message cannot be used to represent only one single concept.
Such as the word ‘traumatized’ conveys somebody who is under great stress,
that stress could be physical, mental or emotional.
Therefore, this definition is also not able to define the concept of ‘word’ in
absolute terms. We need to be clear about the nature and meaning of ‘unified concept’
as well.
(v) Understanding words in terms of ‘sentence structure’ (‘synatactic’)
According to this definition, words are the syntactic atoms or the smallest unit of a
given syntactical structure. The words are said to be a part of a particular syntactic
class such as a word class, parts of speech or other syntactic categories. The syntactical
rules determine the position of a particular word in a sentence as per syntactical rules.
‘The’ is belongs to the class of words called ‘article’ which occur in a particular
sentence in certain specific positions- before nouns and their modifiers. Such as:
The sun rises in east.
The big bad wolf.
For instance, some Categories of words include:
• Noun
• Adjectives
• Adverbs
• Conjunction
• Determiner
• Dummy Word
• Emphasis Marker
• Prepositions
There are grammatical rules available for regulating the occurrence of these
categories in sentence structure.
Thus, in this section we have deliberated on various criterions which may be
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Syntax and easy to define. But as the foregoing discussion reveals, no absolute explanation
may be possible to define words. This is because of the various exceptions in each
criterions, however the criterion of stress, meaning and syntactic feature holds satisfaction
in most instances.
NOTES
4.3.1 Word Order
A sentence has two parts. These parts include the noun phrase and the verb phase.
Every sentence conveys a meaning at two different levels. The meaning can be the
either proposed or the intended; it can be the assumed meaning that which is at the
centre.
The term focus distinguishes between the information used by the speaker and
that which is at the centre or focus of his/her communication interest. The term ‘focus’
in this sense is opposed to presupposition. e.g. It was John who came to tea. In this
sentence John is the focus.
The sentence can be an answer to the question ‘Who came to tea? And it
cannot be an answer to the question, ‘What did John do?’ Taking such factors into
account is an important aspect of inter sentence relationships.
In communication one can think of giving two types of information such as
(i) Old or given information and
(ii) New information
Old or given information refers to the theme.
Theme are the terms in Grammar which aims to indicate the beginning of a
clause or a sentence (theme) and the rest (theme). The idea behind this division is that
the beginning of a sentence is more prominent; the end of a sentence is less prominent.
The noticed sentence is also called a marked sentence an unthematized sentence is
termed as unmarked sentence.
e.g. The following sentence is unmarked.
They told the children a story at bed time
Theme Rheme
But we can also thematise the various parts of the above sentence by bringing
those parts to the theme position and thereby, making them more prominent.
Examples: Theme Rheme
Telling the children, a story at bed time is what they did
The children were told a story by them at bedtime.
At bed time they told the children a story.
When we talk or write, we usually switch between marked and unmarked clauses
and sentences. If everything we said were unthematised, it would be boring, if it were
all — it would be too gushy.
Examples:
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 Theme Rheme Syntax

Sony Came home from school with her report card

To her dismay, her mother saw (marked)
That she had failed in all but one (unmarked) NOTES
Subject
That subject was music (unmarked)
She looked at him disapprovingly (un marked)
With marks you still feel like singing? (marked)
like that,
Additional examples
1. John sat in the front seat
Theme Rheme
2. In the front seat sat, John
Theme Rheme
What is rheme in sentence (1) is theme in sentence (2).
3. She studied at Kingston
Theme Rheme
At Kingston, she studied
Theme Rheme
4.3.2 Structure of Words
The three possible categories of words are:
• Simple Words
• Compound Words and
• Complex Words
Simple Words
Simple words consist of a single free morpheme. Such as flourish, freedom, derive
and so on.
Compound Words
When two free forms come together to form a new complete word, we get a compound
word such as:
Star + night
Tea + stall
Hall + ticket
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Syntax We, often have some interesting compound words which have more than three
or four free forms such as :
Happy-go-lucky
NOTES Twist – and- turn
Compound words often imply grammatical structure showing some sort of
relationship between free forms.
Such as stoop down (verb + adverbial)
Thunder storm (verb + noun)
However, compound words are different from grammatical forms in many ways:
• It is not possible to divide compound words by inserting anything between
them (thunder storm)
• A member of compound form cannot participate in any grammatical role
(basket + ball, the two forms cannot be used to convey any grammatical
information)
• Stress pattern is different from grammatical structure
Complex Words
A complex word is one in which:
(a) Base and one or more affixes
(b) More than one root in a compound word
Such as – extraordinarily
There can be two bound morphemes (ex + change) or a combination of one
free and one / more than one bound morpheme (drive + er).

Check Your Progress

1. What is a sentence? Give examples.
2. What is a compound – complex sentence?
3. How are the preliminary stages in the language development of a child studied?

4.4 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

QUESTIONS

1. A sentence is a group of words, which makes complete sense. Every sentence

must have at least one finite verb though it can have more than one. For example:
• In the jungle, the lion roared and growled at the mouse.
• The dancer bowed.
2. A compound-complex sentence combines the elements of both complex and
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102 Material
independent clauses and one or more dependant clauses.
 3. The preliminary stages in the language development of a child are studied in Syntax

terms of the number of words gained by the child.

4.5 SUMMARY NOTES

• A sentence can be classified into three types: simple sentence, compound sentence
and complex sentence. A complex or compound sentence consists of two or
more clauses.
• A simple sentence has a subject and a verb, and it expresses a complete thought.
A simple sentence is also referred to as an independent clause.
• A compound sentence consists of more than one independent or main clause
and it has more than one finite verb.
• A complex sentence also has more than one finite verb and comprises of at least
two clauses. However, only one of the clauses can stand independently on its
own, the other (or others) is a subordinate clause with a finite verb.
• A compound-complex sentence combines the elements of both complex and
compound sentences. A compound-complex sentence contains two or more
independent clauses and one or more dependant clauses.
• Analysis means separation of the parts of which the sentence is made up of.
When we break down a sentence in order to understand the relationship of its
parts, it is known as analysis of sentences.
• The first step in analysing a complex sentence is to find the principal or the main
clause. Next is to find the subordinate clause or clauses, which shows the
relationship between each clause to the principal clause. Finally, the principal
clause and the subordinate clause are to be analysed separately.
• Children are supposed to understand the first around 50 words before actually
producing them. A child can produce estimated production of 50 words at the
age of eighteen months. This is followed by a phase of vocabulary spurt which
is characterized by a significant increase in the number of words a child can
produce and those which s/he can understand.
• A sentence has two parts. These parts include the noun phrase and the verb
phase. Every sentence conveys a meaning at two different levels. The meaning
can be the either proposed or the intended; it can be the assumed meaning that
which is at the centre.
• The three possible categories of words are:
o Simple Words
o Compound Words and
o Complex Words

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Syntax
4.6 KEY WORDS

• Semantics: It refers to the meaning of a sentence and its manifestations in

NOTES language. It is the study of meaning and it focuses on the relation between
signifiers, such as words, phrases, signs and symbols, and what they stand for.
• Independent main clause: It refers to a group of words that carries the meaning
of the sentence. It has a subject and a main verb. This is normally called a
simple sentence.
• Subordinate clause: It adds extra information about the subject in the
independent main clause. It has a subject and a main verb and is always
introduced by a subordinating conjunction.
• Analysis of sentences: It refers to a practice in which a sentence is broken
down in order to understand the relationship of its parts.

4.7 SELF ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS AND

EXERCISES

Short-Answer Questions
1. Find the subject, predicate, and the (direct) object:
• This, and other measures of precaution, he took.
• The pursuing of the inquiry under the light of an end or final cause, gives
wonderful animation, a sort of personality to the whole writing.
• Why does the vertical hold me fast, with my joy and grief, in this center?
2. What is a complex sentence?
3. Write a short-note on word order.
Long-Answer Questions
1. Analyse the following complex sentences.
• As my eldest son was bred a scholar, I was determined to send him to town,
where his abilities might contribute to our support and his own.
• Clive had been only a few months in the army, when intelligence arrived that
peace had been concluded between Great Britain and France.
• I had a partial father, who gave me a better education than his broken fortune
would have allowed.
2. Analyse the following compound sentences.
• I am satisfied with things as they are; and it will be my pride and pleasure to
hand down this country to my children as I received it from those who
preceded me.
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 • Some politicians of our time lay it down as a self-evident proposition that no Syntax

people ought to be free till they are fit to use their freedom.
• He [a gentleman] never speaks of himself except when compelled, never
defends himself by a mere retort; he has no ears for slander or gossip, is
NOTES
scrupulous in imputing motives to those who interfere with him, and interprets
everything for the best.
3. Discuss the different ways linguists have tried to define ‘word’.

4.8 FURTHER READINGS

Aitchison, Jean. 1992. Teach Yourself Linguistics. London: Teach Yourself Books.
Akmajian, et al. 1995. Linguistics: An Introduction to Language and
Communication. New Delhi: Prentice Hall of India.
Balasubramaniam, T. 1981. A Text book of English Phonetics for Indian Students.
New Delhi: Macmillan.
Bansal, R. K. and J. B. Harrison. 2000. Spoken English for India: A Manual of
Speech and Phonetics (4th Edition). New Delhi: Orient Longman.
Cutting, Joan. 2015. Pragmatics: A Resource Book for Students (3rd Edition).
London: Routledge.
Leech, G. N. 1983. Principles of Pragmatics. London: Longman.
Leech, Geoffrey, Margaret Deuchar, Robert Hoogenraad. 2005. English Grammar
for Today: A New Introduction (2nd Edition). London: Palgrave.
Levinson, S. C. 1983. Pragmatics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Quirk, R, & S. Greenbaum. 1973. A University Grammar of English. London:
Longman.
Sethi J and PV Dhamija. 1989. A Course in Phonetics and Spoken English. New
Delhi: Prentice Hall of India.
Syal, Pushpinder and D Jindal. V. 2001. An Introduction to Linguistics: Language
Grammar and Semantics. New Delhi: Prentice Hall of India.
Thakur, Damodar. 1998. Linguistics Simplified: Syntax. Patna: Bharati Bhawan.
Verma and Krishnaswamy. 1989. Modern Linguistics: An Introduction. Oxford:
Oxford University Press.

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 Sociolinguistics

UNIT 5 SOCIOLINGUISTICS
Structure NOTES
5.0 Introduction
5.1 Objectives
5.2 Language Variation
5.2.1 Idiolect
5.2.2 Dialect: Regional Dialects and Social Dialects/Sociolects
5.2.3 Standard and Non-Standard Varieties
5.2.4 Arguments for the Standardization of English
5.2.5 Arguments against the Standardisation of English
5.2.6 Registers
5.2.7 Formal and Informal Styles
5.2.8 Jargon
5.2.9 Slang
5.2.10 Diglossia
5.3 Language Contact
5.3.1 Bilingualism
5.3.2 Multilingualism
5.3.3 Language Planning
5.3.4 Code Switching
5.3.5 Code Mixing
5.3.6 Pidgins and Creoles
5.3.7 Borrowings
5.3.8 Esperanto
5.3.9 Language Maintenance, Language Shift and Death of Language
5.4 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
5.5 Summary
5.6 Key Words
5.7 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
5.8 Further ReadingsS

5.0 INTRODUCTION

Sociolinguistics is the systematic study of the influence of all and all facets of society on
the way language is utilized, including societal values, perceptions, and meaning, and
the impact of culture on language. It pretty much overlaps with pragmatics. It is closely
related to linguistic anthropology; some dispute the differentiation between the two
disciplines, emphasizing their historical interrelationship. It also explores how language
varieties vary between groups divided by other social variables (e.g., race, faith, class,
gender, educational level, age, etc.) and how development and adherence to these
rules are used to categorize individuals.As the use of a language varies from place to
place, it often differs across social classes and it is these socio-linguistic groups, which
are studied by sociolinguistics. In this unit, we will understand the meaning of language
variation and language contact. It will also focus on the bilingualism, multilingualism,
language planning, code switching and code mixing. Then, it will discuss the concept Self-Instructional
of pidgins, creoles, borrowing, and Esperanto, along with language maintenance, Material 107
language shift and death of language.
Sociolinguistics
5.1 OBJECTIVES

After going through this unit, you will be able to:

NOTES • Understand the meaning of language variation and language contact
• Explain the concept of bilingualism, multilingualism, language planning, code
switching and code mixing
• Discuss the concept of pidgins, creoles, borrowing, and esperanto, along with
language maintenance, language shift and death of language

5.2 LANGUAGE VARIATION

In variation studies, Noam Chomsky, a famous linguist and a political thinker of the
twentieth century, makes a significant distinction between competence and performance.
Chomsky differentiates competence, which is an idealized capacity, from performance
being the production of actual utterances. According to him, competence is the ideal
speaker-hearer’s knowledge of his or her language. It is the ‘mental reality’ which is
responsible for all those aspects of language use which can be characterized as
‘linguistic’. Performance refers to the specific utterances, including grammatical mistakes
and non-linguistic features. It includes hesitations that accompany the use of language.
Based on the performance of language of the users, variation studies find empirical
data which helps in formulating theories. For example, the Hindi spoken in New Delhi
and the Hindi spoken in eastern Uttar Pradesh or Haryana are very different. Similarly,
the English used in India is very different from the English used in United States of
America or Caribbean or England. English is often different not only across the borders,
but even within India.
A Bengali person speaking English would use English in a very different manner
that than of a South Indian English speaking person. Even the same person would
speak different English in different contexts/circumstances. For example, in a formal
setting (such as in a meeting or an interview), a person would use words which are
much more formal (father, instead of dad, child, instead of kid, etc.) than in an informal
context, such as talking to a friend or a person from the same peer group. Thus, there
are varieties in the use of language. When you ponder over the divergent language use,
you can only think in terms of the complexity of language variation studies deal with
this performative aspect of language use.
Language and Class: A Study of William Labov
William Labov’s classic work, The Social Stratification of English in New York
City, has immense importance in this context. He investigated the sound ‘r’ in New
York City. He believed that r-pronunciation after vowels as in ‘park’ and ‘fourth’ was
being reintroduced into New York speech. His hypothesis was that the pronunciation
of ‘r’ by New York City speakers varies according to the social class that they belong
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108 Material
carried out a large scale survey. Thus, his study is an important step in the setting of the Sociolinguistics

model of language variation.

He tested the hypothesis by walking around three New York City department
stores of Saks, Macy’s, and S. Klein. These are distinguished according to the social
NOTES
class groups they cater to. Saks caters to the prestigious upper social class; Macy’s
caters to the middle class, while Klein caters to the lower class. Labov asked the shop
assistants working in the stores, the location of the departments he knew to be located
on the fourth floor. He thus, elicited the use of ‘r’. He assumed that by investigating the
speech of the shop assistants, he would get a good idea of the social stratification of
the customers. This is because it would be mirrored in a similar stratification of these
shop assistants. When they answered, Labov would seek a careful repetition of the
‘fourth floor’ by pretending not to have heard the initial response. The incidence of r-
pronunciation was found to be maximum at Saks, where it was used over sixty percent
of the time, at Macy’s it was inserted fifty percent of the time and under twenty percent
at S. Klein. As he had anticipated, the results suggested that the pronunciation of /r/
varies according to the social status of the speakers. The analysis resulted in a pattern
called class stratification.
Labov claimed that the r-pronunciation is highly valued. It is associated with the
upper middle class even though members of that class may not use it on all occasions.
A further analysis of the department store makes its firm that that low social class
people tend to change their pronunciation as they always aspire to move up in the
order and reach a place of status and prestige. His final analysis also tried to prove the
fact that the use of r-pronunciation increases the formality off style along with the class
status. The most interesting research of Labov was when he said that the lower middle
class speakers outperformed the upper middle class speakers when they read words
lists and minimal pairs. Labov termed it as hypercorrection. Therefore, in many cases,
where the r–pronunciation is not there, r is deliberately pronounced. This is because it
is a matter of outperforming the upper class. Therefore, the word ‘idea’ is pronounced
as ‘aydiyar’. This happens because the speakers try to overcompensate or overcorrect
their pronunciation by believing that it is incorrect to drop ‘r’ because it denotes prestige.
Labov’s contribution to sociolinguistics is that he made it clear how language
changes or varies with the variation of class, age, and gender. Language is a social
phenomenon, but each individual had his or her own mark in the way he or she speaks
or writes. Therefore, the study of that becomes very important because language is
not a constant thing. It is this interaction of the small variations in language which paves
the path for the development of the language. Labov has undoubtedly been able to
establish that there is nothing pathological associated with language variation.
There has also been a criticism of Labov’s classic work for the methodology.
He opined that prestige and status are involved with the pronunciation of ‘r’. Labov’s
procedure for identifying the linguistic and social variables is suspected, as the investigator
began with a predetermined list of linguistic variables and their variants. It also includes
a range of hypotheses about the social variables such as sex, region, age and social
class etc. to which the linguistic variables are related. It is believed that there is a Self-Instructional
danger of prejudging the issue as it starts with the wrong hypotheses. Another problem Material 109
Sociolinguistics with Labov’s style is that it assumes that societies are rigidly stratified, with different
socio-economic layers stacked up on top of one another. It is thought that this is an
oversimplification of the way the society functions. There are many criticisms against
Labov’s classic work, The Social Stratification of English in New York City.
NOTES However, Labov’s study is important for sociolinguistics as he pointed out how language
varies in its use. So, when we make theoretical generalizations about language, they
are merely abstract things. In reality, language is a much more complex affair. It is an
affair that needs to be understood in its complexity to make us realize the power
relationships in the society and the social fabric of the society.
5.2.1 Idiolect
Idiolect is a term coined by linguist Bernard Bloch from the Greek word idio (personal,
private) and the word (dia)lect to mean a variety of language which is unique to an
individual. Idiolect, in other words, can be said to be referring to ‘a person’s individual
speech patterns’ (Frege), but the term is not so easy to define as there are at least two
claims about the relationship between idiolects and language, and are as follows:
• Idiolects are defined as deviations from a common standard, deviations from a
language intended as a social institution or convention (thesis of the priority of
language over idiolects)
• A language is defined as the result of the way individuals use linguistic expressions
in different contexts (thesis of the priority of idiolects over language).
Thus, whether idiolects are variations or deviations from language or many idiolects
make a language is something which has caused difficulty for the linguists. Parole is the
individual way of speaking or using language which is very personalized and idiosyncratic.
Saussure was of the opinion that the field of studies of linguistics can only be langue
and not the parole. The sociolinguists try their best to study every aspect of language
in all its varieties. They do so in order to understand the way people belonging to a
speech community vary in their use of language and yet are intelligible to each other.
We might have noticed that each one of us has a unique way of speaking or
using language. We are different from others as we use language in a different way than
others do. This is not only limited to speaking but also to writing. Idiolect is manifested
by patterns of vocabulary. This refers to the individual’s lexicon, grammatical uses,
and pronunciations that are unique to the individual. Each one’s language production is
unique in some sense. Individual variation of language use is of no concern to prescriptive
linguists. They are primarily interested in the standard variety. To the descriptive
grammarians, this is of utmost importance as idiolect points out the real use of language
in particular contexts.
Some observations on idiolect
Let us now discuss some of the conclusions about idiolects which have been made by
some of the renowned linguists.
• Because each of us belongs to different social groups, we each speak a language
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 characteristics of any other speaker of the language. The language variety unique Sociolinguistics

to a single speaker of a language is called an idiolect. Your idiolect includes the

vocabulary appropriate to your various interests and activities, pronunciations
reflective of the region in which you live or have lived, and variable styles of
speaking that shift subtly depending on whom you are addressing. NOTES
(Klammer, Schulz, & Volpe, 2007)
• Almost all speakers make use of several idiolects, depending on the circumstances
of communication. For example, when family members talk to each other, their
speech habits typically differ from those any one of them would use in, say, an
interview with a prospective employer. The concept of idiolect refers to a very
specific phenomenon—the speech variety, or linguistic system, used by a
particular individual. All those idiolects that have enough in common to appear
at least superficially alike belong to a dialect. The term dialect, then, is an
abstraction.
(Stanlaw, Adachi, & Salzmann, 2019)
• ‘It must be noted that the very existence of the term idiolect as a proper object
of linguistic description represents a defeat of the Saussurian notion of langue
as an object of uniform social understanding.’
(Labov, 1991)
If we go by our interest in language use, we will wonder that almost no user of a
language is using the standard variety and that everybody is using an idiolect. In other
words, it can be said that a language is an ‘ensemble of idiolects... rather than an entity
per se’.
5.2.2 Dialect: Regional Dialects and Social Dialects/Sociolects
The term dialect has its origin from the Greek Language word dialektos. It is significant
to the sociolinguists and linguists in two ways. On one hand, dialect refers to a particular
variety of a language that is a characteristic of a particular group of that language’s
speakers. On the other hand, it refers to a variety of language which is supposedly
socially subordinate to a regional or national standard language. Thus, dialect is being
used by linguists with varied connotations. The first way of looking at dialect is politically
neutral in terms of not giving any prestige value to the variety of language. The second
one is politically motivated where the users of a dialect is usually looked down upon
by the users of the standard language. For example, let us take the example of Maithili
or Bhojpuri. Are they languages on their own or are they dialects? If they are dialects
in the sense of variety of Hindi then, the question of the status of the language does not
come into question. But when a supposedly Hindi speaker (in the sense of speaking
the standard Hindi) looks down upon these languages or other varieties of Hindi then
the notion of the prestige value of the dialect comes into existence. In most urban
centres, the standard Hindi speakers look down upon not only the speakers of the
dialects, but at the same time also looks down upon the dialects. This is because they
are brought up with the idea that they are more cultured as they speak the standard
variety of a language. Self-Instructional
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Sociolinguistics When a dialect is associated with a particular social class, it is termed as sociolect.
When it is a regional dialect, it is called regiolect or topolect. For example, the language
spoken by the elite educated class is not similar to that of the language of the lower,
working class. In his study on class difference and language, William Labov examines
NOTES the way people speak, and says that you can very well understand to which class he or
she belongs to. Similarly, while listening to the language of a particular person, you can
point out to which region the person belongs to. For example, if you listen to a person
in India speaking English, you can make out in most cases, to which region of India he
or she belongs to. A south Indian person has a different accent of English than a
Bengali English-speaking man. However, accentor pronunciation is only one of the
aspect in which a dialect differs from another dialect. A dialect is also distinguished by
its vocabulary, grammar, and phonology, including prosody.
Dialect or language—No universal criteria
There seems to be no universally accepted criterion for distinguishing a language from
a dialect. Different scholars and linguists suggest different measures, but they often
lead to contradictory results. There are some linguists who do not want to differentiate
between languages and dialects, that is, languages are dialects and vice versa. There
are some who think that language and dialect should be used separately. Thus, there is
a major disagreement in the distinction and depends on the user’s frame of reference.
However, it can be said that the term dialect always suggests a relation among languages:
if language A is called a dialect, this implies that the speaker considers A as a dialect of
some other language B, which then usually is some standard language.
It can further be added that language varieties are often called dialects rather
than language. They are termed so because of the following reasons:
• They have no standard or codified form
• The speakers of the given language do not have a state of their own
• They are rarely or never used in writing (outside reported speech)
• They lack prestige with respect to standardized variety
Anthropological linguists try to define dialect as the specific form of a language
used by a speech community. In other words, the difference between language and
dialect is the difference between the abstract or general and the concrete and particular.
From this perspective, no one speaks a ‘language.’ Everyone speaks a dialect of a
language. Often, the standard language is the dialect (sociolect) of the elite class. Linguists
do not study linguistics per se merely from the point of view of language. They also
give importance to the socio-political and cultural factors that determine the use of a
particular language by a community and the use of the language by individuals. Linguists
focus on the aspect of the modern nation-state as a significant determiner of the way
the language policies and planning are done. This difference affects the way you perceive
it to be a language or a dialect.
It is widely believed that the notion of the modern nation state was developed in
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Europe since the French Revolution which made the distinction between ‘language’
112 Material and ‘dialect’. Western nations are built on the theoretical premise that they achieved
their unity as a nation on the basis of either or few or all of the following criteria: Sociolinguistics

linguistic unity, cultural cohesiveness, and same religion or cut off from rest of the last
by some geographical boundary. It is necessary to keep in mind that in case of India,
none of these parameters work. This is because India is a multi-lingual, multicultural
state having diverse religions. The diversity of the land gives it a plurality of its own and NOTES
the linguistic diversity is peculiar of its kind where there are at least 1,652 languages
existing within the boundaries of India.
When we came together as a nation, it was meant for a different reason. However,
the linguistic diversity in India has created political problems for India often. Whenever
a linguistic community or a speech community figured out that their language and culture
is threatened by the dominant group, there is a rebellion. Sometimes, it arises in the
manner of asking for regional autonomy or for demanding a separate nation. A group
speaking a separate language is often seen as having a greater claim to being a separate
people or a nation. A group speaking a dialect tends to be seen not as ‘a people’ in its
own right. The distinction between language and dialect is thus, made at least as much
on a political basis as on a linguistic one, and can lead to great political controversy, or
even armed conflict.
However, the question of deciding the status of a language or a dialect based on
the view of the modern nation state is doubted by many linguists. The historical linguists
try to approach dialect from the language (parent language) from which it evolved or
developed. From this point of view, the modern Romance languages are dialects of
Latin, modern Greek is a dialect of ancient Greek, Tok Piskin is a dialect of English,
etc. This paradigm is not entirely problem-free. This approach gives paramount
importance to genetic relationships between languages. But this approach also has its
own pitfalls as a language may develop from another language or dialect. It can diversify
to such an extent to be mutually unintelligible over a period of time. Some languages or
dialects may change widely, others may not. Those languages may again be subdivided
into more languages or dialects. The following language tree of Indo-European
languages (Figure 5.1) may make us understand it in a better fashion how language
evolved from a parent language.

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Fig. 5.1 The Indo-European Family of Languages
Material 113
Sociolinguistics For example, almost all north Indian languages have evolved from the parent
language, Sanskrit. Therefore, in some cases, one finds that there are many similarities
between the languages of North India and in many cases there are too many differences
to make two languages of North India mutually unintelligible to each other.
NOTES
5.2.3 Standard and Non-Standard Varieties
Ronald Wardhaugh (2006) in An Introduction to Sociolinguistics, defines language
standardization as ‘the process by which a language has been codified in some way.
That process usually involves the development of such things as grammars, spelling
books, and dictionaries, and possibly a literature.’ In other words, some spoken form
of a particular language has been written down in an official manner with the intention
of making this particular variety the preferred variety. A. Duranti (1997) in Linguistic
Anthropology supported this claim as follows:
Writing down a language also establishes a particular dialect or register among the
several in use at any particular time as the standard language. Such a practice has
important consequences not only for the destiny of local dialects that are different
from the one chosen that is different from the standard but also for the type of
idealization made by students of language.

Thus, language standardization is a process through which a language is codified

in an official manner so as to enable certain smoothness in interregional communication
and easier governance.
Need for standardization
Scholars from various disciplines, linguists, sociolinguists, sociologists and even
educationists are of the view that as there is an endless variation and diversity in
languages across the world. Therefore, it is essential that some form of standardization
is required as it becomes impossible to think about progress, development and good
governance without standardization. There are various kinds of dialects existing in the
world. There are social dialects, regional dialects and even register; but some form of
language needs to be fixed. This is needed so that it can be used as a standard variety
for the purposes of studying and analysing the language itself. Language can be used
as a medium of instruction and as a reference point for talking amongst dialects of a
similar language family.
Moreover, it has also been argued that a standard language is needed as it
would make people feel that they share some commonality and bonding. This bonding
can give rise to a feeling for the community as well as for the nation. In practical terms,
it can be pointed out that a standard language makes it easier for the government or
the ruling class/authority to govern the ruled. It helps them lay down laws of the land.
In short, it can be said that some standard form of a language is needed for literacy,
education, law and order, good governance, inter-regional communication, for creation
of discourses in various disciplines, and for proving people with an ‘identity’ of which
they can feel proud about themselves. We also need standard language for the following
purposes:
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are very different from normal everyday language, a standard language should
 be encoded for the field of science so that all the practitioners of science can Sociolinguistics

mutually benefit from each other’s research.

• Creation of textbooks, primers, reference materials: If textbooks and
course materials are not printed in standard language, it may often lead to
NOTES
problems as it is through the text books that you can acquire the basic
knowledge of things. Therefore, it is essential that the standard language is
developed so that the text books, reference materials can use the standard
language to set uniformity.
• Creation of discourse in various disciplines: Similar to scientific discourse,
all other discourses of various disciplines also needs a standard language so
that various discourses across disciplines can interact with each other. In
today’s world, where we are moving towards multi-disciplinary approach,
it is significant that a standard language is developed in which the knowledge
of various discourses across disciplines finds its expression.
• Dissemination of knowledge: Democracies supposedly work through
dissemination of knowledge and information. Therefore, it is essential that a
nation should develop a standard language so that the government and other
institution finds it easier to disseminate knowledge and information.
• Education and literary activities: Education is also a kind of dissemination
of knowledge. Therefore, for educational purposes, a standard language is
quite essential. For literary pursuits, the standard language is helpful as
standard language ensures that you get a cast readership. For example, a
Maithili person writing in Maithili would get a very small audience, but if he
writes in Hindi he will get a larger share of readers, and if he shifts to the
global language, English, then he can get the most potential readers.
• A sense of unity and identity: Language unifies people in terms of providing
us with a distinctive mark which makes us connect with each other. A speech
community is a community based on language. A nation can also come into
being based on the premise that all the people living within the nation speak
same language. Thus, language unifies and also provides us with identity.
• Proper and smooth functioning of law and order: Law and order can
only be maintained if proper information about laws and dos and don’ts are
disseminated among the people living within the land. For this purpose, a
standard language is very much needed as it can be done only through a
standard language easily.
• Easy governance: Standard language manifests itself mostly in smoother
functioning of governments and ensures easier governance. Though the ruling
class tries to standardize a language by using the term good governance, but
what is true is that they are looking forward to easier governance than good
governance.
• Inter-regional and/or international communication: People across
various dialects many a times could not connect to each other and cannot Self-Instructional
understand each other as they supposedly share different languages. If there Material 115
Sociolinguistics is a standard language this problem will be solved. People across different
regions will be able to connect and communicate with each other. For
example, in India, because of standardized Hindi people across various
regions can communicate amongst themselves.
NOTES
• Modernity, stability and development: Modernity, development, progress
can only be ensures if there is language which many speak and that can only
be achieved if a language is standardized.
Thus, the need for standardization is required in today’s world in much more
vehement terms as people are communicating more nowadays. When the world was
limited (in the sense smaller) to a village, knowing the dialect of your own would
suffice. However, today with mass migration, global networking, and global business
venture being the tune of the day, it is essential that languages are standardized to
smoothen things.
The process of standardization
Language standardization is a process through which a language gets codified in a
certain way so that the codified language gets certain kind of official status. It is thought
to be a language of prestige and of the elites. As proposed by Einar Hauge (1966),
language standardization involves four stages. The four stages are discussed below.
Selection
For a language to be standardized, we need to choose or select a language which
would be standardized. There are many varieties of language in use and you need to
choose which variety will be standardized. Selection of the variety is therefore, a
significant process and it is a decision that needs to be taken in a careful manner. It is
recommended that the language of the majority should be chosen as the language to
be standardized. However, if you attentively look at the way in which a variety of a
language is chosen for the process of standardization, you will figure out that the variety
chosen is usually a variety which is often spoken by the people who are in power.
Moreover, one can say that the language of the elites or the ruling class is usually the
language that is standardized. The powerful elites in order to retain their dominance
would naturally like their language to be the language followed by the mass.
In other words, language selection in the process of standardization becomes
the process through which the hegemony of the ruling class is consolidated. For example,
you can think in terms of which English variety is standardized and for what purpose.
Similarly, in post–independence India, when Hindi was declared the national official
language, a particular variety of Hindi was selected to be standardized. We need to
examine the choice of the variety of Hindi and the reasons for selecting it. In other
words, we can say that when a particular variety of a particular language is selected
for standardization, it is not a neutral, natural and innocent process. It involves the
involvement of politics and it is a political choice.

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Codification Sociolinguistics

Once a particular variety of a language is selected then the second stage of

standardization is the codification of the language. Codification involves the following:
• Penning down grammatical rules or standard grammar NOTES
• The norms of pronunciation-manuals of pronunciation
• The norms of spellings and other writing conventions
• Thesauruses
• Reference books
• Dictionaries
It is thorough the fixing of the norms in such terms that a language is codified which
then becomes the ‘correct’, ’pure’, ‘sophisticated’ form and becomes the variety which
attains prestige. Thereafter, this codified language becomes the language which is used
for creation of text books, reference manuals, learned discourse, art, science, legal
documents, legislative documents and all other important governmental and non-
governmental documents.
Elaboration of the function
When the language is codified, the next stage is the use of the language amongst the
masses. The spread of the language across people using different variety of the language
is necessary as only if people accept it then the standard codified language is useful.
The most powerful and persuasive way of elaborating the codified language is through
education. Text books, learning materials, and study materials are written in the standard
language. The medium of instruction and the language in which to write in the examination
is to be in the standard language. The lectures, seminars and research papers are all
expected to be in the standard codified language. Higher education, technical education,
and scientific education call for the use of the standard language. Codified language
may not be necessarily used in informal contexts, like within the family, with the peer
group, in the playground, in the neighbourhood gossip and discussion. In formal contexts,
in the public domain the use of the standard language becomes a necessity. Government
agencies, law and judiciary, bureaucracy, diplomacy, trade and commerce call for the
use of the standard language.
Moreover, as the standard language is used in more domains, it needs to be
expanded in terms of special and technical vocabularies. This often calls for the creation
of new words and new terminologies. Several standard languages meet this requirement
by drawing upon classical sources. English, for instance, draws much of its technical
and special lexicon from Latin and Greek, and Hindi does get influenced by Sanskrit.
Elaboration of function also requires the creation of new styles of discourse. Diplomatic
English, business English, technical English, English for scientific writing are formats
and formal forms which need to be evolved in English language once the standard
English was codified.
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Sociolinguistics Acceptance
Once a language is codified and the process of the elaboration of the function of the
codified language begins, the next stage is the acceptance of the codified language
NOTES amongst the community. If the community does not widely and heartily accept the
codified language then, the language ceases to be standardized. The speakers, though
belonging to diverse dialect groups (that is, primarily speaking different dialects), must
recognize the codified language and accept it. They should cherish to learn the language
and recognize it as their own.
Sometimes, the standard language is also given the distinct identity by making it
an official language or a national language which provides the users of a language a
particular identity. For example, when Hindi is declared as the national official language
of India, the users of the language not only used it as it is the standard variety, but also
because it provides the users with a national identity. Similarly, indifferent states of
India, the dominant language variety of the state was codified and given the status of
the regional official language—Bengali in West Bengal, Gujarati in Gujarat, Marathi in
Maharashtra etc., which provide a regional identity to the users of that variety of
language.
5.2.4 Arguments for the Standardization of English
There are several useful purposes of standardization of a language:
• For the community, language standardization serves as a symbol of distinct
identity. Wardhaugh (2000) is of the opinion that language standardization ‘can
be employed to reflect and symbolize some kind of identity’ and ‘can also be
used to give prestige to speakers’. The community or the nation gets a formalized
uniform linguistic identity that opens channels of communication between
linguistically divergent (using different dialects) groups and communities.
• People of different dialects can forget their differences as they share some
language in common which can help them in forming a unity.
• Travelling and conduct of business become smoother as people can communicate
between each other easily. You can easily understand the relationship between
business or financial transactions and language; sometimes business transactions
can lead to the birth of a new language (Pidgin and Creole) and very often,
smooth business transactions demands a smoother communication which
necessitates a standard language.
• Legal matters, legislation in the standard language makes it easier for the
governments to make governance smoother and easier.
• Dissemination of information whether by governmental or non-governmental
bodies becomes easier amongst a large group of people.
• Media also finds it easier to communicate with the mass if there is a standard
language. Sometimes media also helps in making the acceptance of a language.
For example, Hindi movies served a great purpose in making people of India
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 • Standard language helps in pedagogy: this is the language that is taught in schools Sociolinguistics

and it in this language that the students are taught. Thus, for the learners, being
educated means one should be able to have mastery over the standard language.
It becomes the language of higher education, technical education, special
education. For example, when one enters the field of higher studies one figures NOTES
out that if the student is not conversant with the standard language he or she
may not find enough material for his other studies.
• Standardization enables the writers, scientists, thinkers, philosophers and other
scholars and artists to create newer repositories of ideas, thoughts and discoveries
in the forms of books, journals and other forms of scholarly discourses.
5.2.5 Arguments against the Standardisation of English
There may be many positive and useful reasons for language standardization, but the
process of standardization also has its negative implications. The following are the
arguments against the standardisation of English:
• The most dangerous impact of language standardization is that it acts as a powerful
instrument for the domination of the elite over the masses. The standard language
is all pervasive in the field of education, legal matters, bureaucracy, professional
and most importantly education. It helps in consolidating and perpetuating the
hegemony of the elites. Theoretically, the fruits of language standardization are
available to all, but what happens in reality is that the elites take the advantage
of it and the vast majority of the people who are outside the sphere of the
standard language, their advancement gets hampered.
• Language standardization creates a class difference in terms of the standard
language knowing group and the not-knowing group. The knowing group looks
down upon the not-knowing one. Thus, a gap is created between the two groups.
• The standard language not knowing groups are thus, forced to a situation where
they do not have access to anything which is related to the development and
progress and they thus are forced to a position of powerlessness.
• Sometimes, it may also happen that the dialect users start using the standard
language in the informal contexts. They may also use in personal conversations
which may lead to a state where there can be death of a dialect when all users
of a dialect start using the standard language only. Wardhaugh wrote,
‘…choosing one vernacular as a norm means favouring those who speak that
variety. It also diminishes all the other varieties and possible competing norms,
and those who use those varieties.’ This creates a sense of elitism among the
speakers of the standard and a feeling of inferiority in those who continue to use
the non-standard form. Ryan (1979) reported the following attitudes based on
language use: ‘In situations where two stable language varieties exist, Fishman
(1970) has indicated that one speech variety (the standard) is usually associated
with status, high culture, and aspiration towards social mobility, while the second
variety (non-standard) is typically connected with solidarity, comradeship, and
intimacy with a low status group.’ This tends to create an inferiority complex Self-Instructional
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Sociolinguistics among the low status speakers. It also forces parents who wish for their children
to be accepted by the dominant group to conform to the standard variety,
possibly neglecting the language and culture they were born into. This could
become a threat to one’s mother tongue.
NOTES
• Lippi-Green believes that the concept of a standard language is a myth, created
and perpetuated by social groups with the most power in a given society at the
expense of all other language groups. She wrote:
‘Individuals acting for a larger social group take it upon themselves to control and
limit spoken language variation, the most basic and fundamental of human
socialization tools. The term standard itself does much to promote this idea: we
speak of one standard and in opposition, non-standard, or sub-standard. This is the
core of an ideology of standardization which empowers certain individuals and
institutions to make these decisions.’

• Wardhaugh described as language standardization’s ‘attempt either to reduce

or to eliminate diversity and variety.’
Language Standardization: Conclusion
Standardization of a language refers to the codification of a certain variety of a language.
We accept it as the standard version and use it in all formal occasions, in official use
and as a medium of instruction. The process of standardization is a four part process:
at first, a variety of the language is selected from the available varieties; secondly, the
chosen variety is codified through the writing of standard grammar, manuals of
pronunciation, thesauruses, reference books, dictionaries; thirdly, there is the elaboration
of the language where in the formal public domains this language is used; and lastly, the
variety of language gets wide acceptance within the community. The process of
standardization has many advantages as it makes us overcome dialectical differences
and get wider acceptability. It also leads to smoother governance, wider communicability
of messages and speedier and easier dissemination of knowledge. However, the process
of standardization is not apolitical thing for two reasons. First, which variety of the
language will be selected for standardization is often associated with the power. The
power may be economic, political, cultural or combination of two or all of them. The
powerful elites do naturally tend to make their variety of language gets selected for
standardization.
Second, standardization acts as a powerful instrument for the domination of the
elite over the masses. Due to its pervasive use in administration, bureaucracy, law, the
professions and most importantly, in education, it helps the elite consolidate and
perpetuate their power. Though, theoretically the standard language is for the benefits
of all, but in reality the majority remains outside the sphere of the standard language.
Thus, while on the face of it, language standardization has a laudable aim, the fact
remains that in most societies the access to standard language and the knowledge and
technologies associated with it have been largely the preserve of the select few or the
elites.
People who fail to get the standard language within their repertoire they have a
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the non-standard is also attached to them. When people of a language variety are able Sociolinguistics

to use the standard form, then that variety of language is in the verge of extinction.
Moreover, all literary writing and all the other kinds of formal writing are done in the
standard variation, thus leading to the loss of the dialect. R.A. Hudson holds the
following opinion: NOTES
• It is probably fair to say that the only kind of variety which would count as
proper language is a standard language.
• Standard English is not a dialect at all, but a language, whereas the varieties
that are not used in formal writing are dialects.
Thus, the standardization of language may lead to the minimization of vagueness
and ambiguity, but at the same time the charm and cadence of the dialects are lost due
to the over-privileging of the standard language.
5.2.6 Registers
Linguists use the term ‘register’ to refer to the patterns of communication used in
particular settings and for specific purposes. Linguists point out that register varies
with use, rather than with the user. For example, we change our speech to fit the
occasion, such as while appearing in court, we use a legal language, while speaking to
a bureaucrat, we use formal language, while writing a scientific paper, we use scientific
jargons, while making a business presentation, we use the language of finance and
market research, and while interacting with an older relative or small child, we use
different informal languages. Moreover, we can say that a common man having no
knowledge of the field of medicine would not be able to fathom anything from a medical
journal. This is because the subject of the journal would use specific jargons of the
field of medicine which would not be intelligible to him or her. Specific jargons and
register are also marked by distinction in other aspects of language such as syntax,
accent or phonology, vocabulary, and morphology. Sometimes, register is also identified
by non-linguistic markers, such as body language and attire. For further understanding,
when speaking in a formal setting an English speaker may follow more closely to
prescribed grammar, pronounce words ending in ‘–ing’ with a velar nasal instead of an
alveolar nasal (e.g., walking, not walk in), choose more formal words (e.g., father vs.
dad, child vs. kid, etc.), and refrain from using the word ain’t than when speaking in an
informal setting.
The term register was first used by the linguist Thomas Bertram Reid in 1956,
and became popular in the 1960s by a group of linguists. They wanted to distinguish
between variations in language according to the user (defined by variables such as
social background, geography, sex and age), and variations according to use. It was
seen ‘in the sense that each speaker has a range of varieties and choices between them
at different times’ (Halliday et al., 1964). Michael Halliday and R. Hasan (1976)
identified three variables or types of factors that affect register. For them, ‘register’
has ‘the linguistic features which are typically associated with a configuration of situational
features, with particular values of the field, mode and tenor...’ The following are the
features with which register is associated: Self-Instructional
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Sociolinguistics • Tenor: The tenor refers to ‘the type of role interaction, the set of relevant
social relations, permanent and temporary, among the participants involved.’
The relationship between the speakers matters, such as when a student is
talking to a teacher, an office worker to his or her superior, or a parent to an
NOTES infant and other such numerous situations. Here, register is generally a marker
of formality or intimacy which commonly affects phonology, pragmatic rules,
and accent.
• Field: Field for Halliday and Hasan is ‘the total event, in which the text is
functioning, together with the purposive activity of the speaker or writer;
includes subject-matter as one of the elements.’ The subject of conversation
or discourse matters, as particular situations call for particular kinds of
vocabulary, mood. These variations are often called jargon. For instance,
priests use liturgical language; lawyers use ‘legalese’.
• • Mode: Mode is ‘the function of the text in the event, including both the
channel taken by language. It comprises the spoken or written, extempore
or prepared, and its genre, rhetorical mode, as narrative, didactic, persuasive,
‘phatic communion’. The medium of communication matters, such as whether
it is spoken or written, SMS language, for example, is less formal than a
handwritten letter, and a professional presentation is different from a coffee
shop conversation.
These three values i.e. field, mode, and tenor are thus, the determining factors
for the linguistic features of the text. ‘The register is the set of meanings, the configuration
of semantic patterns, that are typically drawn upon under the specified conditions,
along with the words and structures that are used in the realization of these meanings’.
In the view of M.A.K. Halliday and R. Hasan, register is one of the two defining
concepts of text. ‘A text is a passage of discourse which is coherent in these two
regards: it is coherent with respect to the context of situation and therefore, consistent
in register; and it is coherent with respect to itself, register as formality scale.’
Thus, while studying this aspect of language variation, one needs to keep in
mind that there is a spectrum of registers rather than a discrete set of obviously distinct
varieties. In other words, there is a countless number of registers with no clear
boundaries. Studying register is a complex problem, as there are cases where other
kinds of language variation, such as regional or age overlap. As a result of this complexity,
there is no consensus about the meanings of terms like ‘register’, ‘field’ or ‘tenor’.
Additional terms such as diatype, genre, text types, style, acrolect, mesolect and basilect
among many others may be used to cover the same or similar ground. Some prefer to
restrict the domain of the term ‘register’ to a specific vocabulary (Wardhaugh) while
others argue against the use of the term altogether.
5.2.7 Formal and Informal Styles
Martin Joos (1961) describes the five styles in spoken English:
• Frozen: Printed unchanging language such as Biblical quotations; often contains
Self-Instructional archaisms. Examples are the Pledge of Allegiance, wedding vows, and other
122 Material
 static vocalizations that are recited in a ritualistic monotone. The wording is Sociolinguistics

exactly the same every time it is spoken.

• Formal: In formal style of language, there is one-way participation and no
interruption. Technical vocabulary and ‘fuzzy semantics’ or exact definitions are
NOTES
important. It includes introductions among strangers.
• Consultative: Two-way participation. Background information is provided;
prior knowledge is not assumed. Back-channel behaviour such as ‘uh huh’ and
‘I see’ are common. Interruptions are allowed. Examples include teacher/student,
doctor/patient, expert/apprentice, etc.
• Informal/Casual: Informal/casual style of language is commonly used among
group of friends and acquaintances. No background information is provided.
Ellipsis, slang, and interruptions are common.
• Intimate: Non-public. Intonation is more important than wording or grammar.
Private vocabulary is used. Also includes non-verbal messages. This is common
among family members and close friends.
Diatype
The term ‘diatype’ is often used to describe language variation determined by its social
purpose (Gregory 1967). According to many linguists, language variation can be divided
into two categories: dialect, for variation according to user, and diatype for variation
according to use (e.g. the specialized language of an academic journal). This definition
of diatype is very similar to those of register.
5.2.8 Jargon
Jargon is a special technical vocabulary associated with a specific activity or topic as
part of a register e.g. plaintiff, suffix. In social terms, jargon helps to create and maintain
connections among those who see themselves as insiders in some way and to exclude
‘outsiders’. Specialized jargon are there as in the medical register, for e.g. Zanoxyn is
a now steroidal anti-inflammatory drug for arthritis. Jargon can be defined as the
professional language of a specialized group. Its technical form and meaning allows for
efficient and accurate communications. It can be understood only by the group of
professionals that uses it.
The word jargon has two different meanings; one meaning as said above refers
to the technical vocabulary of a profession, trade or activity example: law, medicine,
tourism, sports etc., another meaning is that which refers to the obscure and often
pretentious use of language marked about by a roundabout way of expression and use
of long words. In the sense of the term Jargon as specialized vocabulary, it is universal.
It is an essential part of the network of occupations and activities which make up
society, for example: Phoneme, Morpheme, Allophone, etc.
Jargon in this sense, works like a professional code as it is perfectly intelligible
to anyone who has learnt it and who knows how to interpret it and use it but is not
comprehensible to those outside the profession or the group. Within the group it has
two important functions. Self-Instructional
Material 123
Sociolinguistics • It makes communication specific, precise and accurate.
• It promotes economy; in communications it works like a verbal short hand.
Using the jargon of a group, especially of a profession that enjoys a high social
NOTES status, it confers authority and prestige on the person, as it identifies him/her them as a
member of a prestigious profession. When people use specialized and technical terms
not for purposes of professional communication but only to impress their audience
with their importance or the importance or complexity of their subject matter,
communication suffers and the words and expressions used act as impediments to
understanding.
5.2.9 Slang
The term ‘slang’ is not easy to define though almost everyone recognizes slang
expressions and uses them on some occasions. While jargon is a specialized vocabulary
used by those inside established social groups, often defined by professional status,
slang is more typically used among those who are outside established higher status
groups. ‘Slang’ or colloquial speech describes words or phrases that one uses instead
of more every day terms among younger speakers and other groups with special
interests. The word ‘bucks’ for moneyis a slang expression ‘megabucks’ is also a
slang expression.
Hunk (physically attractive man) and groovy, hip, awesome, hot tie, dope, kikass
and phat are some of the slang expressions. Slang is used by social groups who consider
themselves to be distinct from the rest of the society and who wish to preserve an
identity of their own. Words and expressions classified as slang often change their
status withtime; slang, can be, defined as an ever-changing set of colloquial words and
expressions considered to be district from and lower in status than standard language
and used by social groups who see themselves as alienated from the rest of the society.
For example: scam, goof, geeks
Slang expressions are coined in different ways:
• By recombining old words into new meanings, for example: Rip off, bump
off, beat it, buzz off, etc.
• by giving new meanings to old words, for example: Pot, grass, dough, grub,
dig, etc.
• by introducing entirely new words, for example: flub, pooped, etc.
Slang expressions can be witty, for example: oaf, balloon, jerk, plonker, pledge,
flake, wally herd, dope and goof.
Functions of Slang
The functions of slang are:
• Being witty, ingenious and humorous slang enriches language and often adds a
touch of concreteness to what is obstruct of earthiness to what is idealistic and
of immediacy to what is remote.
Self-Instructional • Slang also helps to reduce solemnity and to lighten the atmosphere.
124 Material
 • Slang introduces a note of friendliness and intimacy to social intercourse. Sociolinguistics

• Slang creates a feeling of solidarity among the members of a social group.

5.2.10 Diglossia
NOTES
‘Diglossia’ is derived from the Greek word, ‘diglossos’, meaning ‘bilingual’ based on
the pattern of French ‘diglossie’. In a situation of diglossia, it is necessary that there
are two variations of a language which exist and they are used in different domains of
language use. In other words, one variety is used in a particular domain and the other
is another domain. It is to be kept in mind that diglossia does not include a dialect of
that particular language. It can also be said to be a certain kind of bilingualism.
Diglossia was first introduced in English by Charles A. Ferguson in 1959 in his
essay ‘Diglossia’ in the journal, Word, to refer to a situation ‘where two varieties
of a language exist side by side throughout the community, with each having a
definite role to play’. According to Ferguson:
…diglossia is a relatively stable language situation in which, in addition to the primary
dialects of the language (which may include a standard or regional standards), there
is a very divergent, highly codified (often grammatically more complex) superposed
variety, the vehicle of a large and respected body of written literature, either of an
earlier period or in another speech community, which is learned largely by formal
education and used for most written and formal spoken purposes but is not used by
any sector of the community for ordinary conversation.

Later on, Joshua Fishman modified Ferguson’s concept of diglossia in 1967:

• A diglossic speech community is not characterized by the use of two language
varieties only. There may be more than two language varieties used within a
diglossic community.
• Diglossia refers to all kinds of language varieties which show functional distribution
in a speech community. Diglossia, as a consequence describes a number of
sociolinguistic situations, from stylistic differences within one language or the
use of separate dialects.
Diglossia has three crucial features:
• Two distinct varieties of the same language are used in the community, with one
regarded as a high (or H) variety and the other a low (or L) variety
• Each variety is used for quite distinct functions, H and L complement each other
• The high variety is not used in everyday conversation
High variety (H) is thought to be the standard variety and usually used in formal
or official communicative practices, for example, in government missives, conferences,
formal letters, broadcasts, religious services as well as in teaching, etc. Usually it is
also the language in which literature is written. Low variety (L) is the non-standard
variety and generally used in informal situations and daily use. Some of the examples
of Diglossia are: ‘Sadhu Bangla’ is the high variety and ‘Chalit Bangla’ is the low
variety in Bengali, Standard German is high variety and Swiss German is low variety,
etc.
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Sociolinguistics

Check Your Progress

1. What is the difference between competence and performance?
NOTES 2. Define idiolects.
3. Who used the term register for the first time?
4. Differentiate between formal and informal styles of language.
5. What are the crucial features of Diglossia?

5.3 LANGUAGE CONTACT

Language contact happens when speakers of two or more languages or varieties

communicate and influence one another.When different language speakers communicate
closely, their languages typically affect the other’s language. It can occur at language
boundaries, between ad stratum languages, or as a consequence of migration, with
either a superstratum or a substratum acting as an intrusive language. Language contact
takes place in a number of processes, including convergence of languages, borrowing
and relexification. Pidgins, creoles, code-switching, and mixed languages are the
commonest products.
5.3.1 Bilingualism
Bilingualism can be defined as a competence of a person or a group of people who
has more or less similar competence of two languages and belongs to two speech
communities. The more the world is progressing the more people are becoming
bilinguals, as the official language and the language of the household are becoming
different. If we look at the world today, we will find out that English has become such
a global language that it is used in most of the countries as the official language. English
is seen as a language which can make you reach great heights in your career. Therefore,
whatever he mother tongue is, all the people aspire to learn at least the spoken English
so that they can be at par with the world. This as the days are progressing the global
atmosphere is becoming so that in the third world countries people are consciously
choosing to be bilinguals as it would serve their professional and personal needs better.
But whatever the case at no point of time it can happen that a bilingual individual can
achieve a state where he is having similar level of competence and performance in
both L1 and L2.
Thus, the linguists tried to distinguish between different kinds of bilinguals
depending upon the competence of the bilingual’s L2. A report of UNESCO (1978)
states that: ‘Bilingualism is not an absolute state, not an “all or none” phenomenon, but
a relative state.’ It may range from a smattering of L2, through ‘a minimal but sufficiently
functional competence in the operational control of a second language (L2) to what
Bloomfield calls “a native-like competence.’” Therefore, the linguists make a threefold
distinction with regard to the proficiency of the L2–compound bilinguals, coordinate
Self-Instructional bilinguals, and subordinate bilinguals.
126 Material
 The subordinate Bilingual is one who has been taught the L2 through Grammar- Sociolinguistics

translation method and is at the beginner’s stage in his or her control over the L2. The
Subordinate bilingual is also sometimes called the ‘incipient bilingual’. In this state, the
bilingual person operates with a simple mechanism where he just tries to find the
equivalent term of L2 for L1. The next stage of the bilingual ability is reached when NOTES
one becomes a Coordinate Bilingual. The Coordinate Bilingual operates with two
semantic bases–one for the L1 and other for L2. Thus, the coordinate bilingual doesn’t
operate in the simple procedure of item to item translation but operates with two
separate referents and produces the matching linguistic signs in two languages concerned.
Thus, the coordinate bilingual doesn’t take recourse to the translation, but can think of
two semantic bases. For example, if a subordinate bilingual with Hindi as mother
tongue and English as L2 will first think the word, ‘ghoda’, and then translate it as
‘Horse’; whereas the coordinate bilingual will be able to think both of ‘ghoda’ and
‘horse’ at the same time.
The third kind of Bilingual is the compound bilingual. In this state, the bilingual
operates with a fused or single semantic base, a single set of referents (a single reality,
as it were), and has complete control over the two linguistic codes: L1 and L2. In
other words, these bilinguals have a ‘native like competence in two languages’ and
find themselves at ease in both the languages. These kinds of bilinguals are often also
called ‘full bilinguals’.
5.3.2 Multilingualism
Multilingualism implies the use of more than two languages proficiently (though not
necessarily perfectly), either by a person or a group of individuals. Multilingual speakers
are estimated to outnumber monolingual speakers in the population of the world.
Multilingualism is also useful to merchants and is helpful for people wishing to engage
in globalization and cultural freedom.Due to the ease of access to information facilitated
by the Internet, it is increasingly possible for individuals to expose themselves to multiple
languages. People who speak multiple languages are also known as polyglots.
5.3.3 Language Planning
Language is a social phenomenon and is in the continuous process of change and
development. Therefore, the linguists along with doing a synchronic study of language
also do a diachronic study to study the process of changes that a particular language
has gone through in the course of its livelihood. But when we talk of language planning,
it is not a study concerning the study of language as it has evolved, but a process
where the linguists try to decide a path from where the language should proceed in the
route of its growth. When we talk about such planning we know that there are certain
interests of a certain class which is always served by the planning. As planning means
that we are not allowing the thing to grow according to its own propensities, but we
are trying to control it and mould it according to our demands. Therefore, while talking
about language planning it is very important to understand why the language planning is
the thing that has become one of the major concerns of the twentieth century.
Self-Instructional
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Sociolinguistics Twentieth century theorists and scholars were much more concerned with
language as they know to speak is to act. In other words when we are uttering certain
sounds we are all too careful to utter them as they serve our interests. Even the ruling
class rules through language. Therefore, the power relations in this world is constituted,
NOTES maintained, authorized, and appropriated through the use of language. The feminists of
the twentieth century are therefore concerned much with language as language provides
a medium for the patriarchy to work. The feminists found the language to be male-
centric and until they change this sexist language, their project will not achieve anything.
Similarly, the colonized countries are trying to get rid of the colonial language, English,
and trying to evolve a language which is English, yet still not the British English. All
around us people are trying to change language according to their interests and demands.
But at the same time there are also language scholars, who are doing the language
planning because they are trying to preserve and defend the purity of language. And
this concern for the purity of language is nothing new as we see in Europe, where
various establishments of language academies were set up as early as the sixteenth
century such as in Florence (1582), France (1634), Spain (1713) and Sweden (1786).
Against this backdrop of activities language planning began to emerge as a field
in its own right, Eastman (1983) provides a decade wise presentation of the history of
language planning, beginning in 1960 through 1980. Based on her theory, we will also
try to look at the history of language planning in four phases and try to see the major
concerns of each decade of the planning.
In 1960s, the language planning was concerned with the problem solving which
is societal in nature. Since language is a marker of social, class, racial and ethnic
identity and a reflection of the status and mobility of a class, therefore the concern of
language planning in the 60s was, as Eastman says ‘primarily the activity of preparing
a language to serve a social function, as it had been earlier’. It was rather looked as a
solution to language problems in a multilingual context or in the context of problems
faced by multi-ethnic communities in developed and developing nations, for example,
the problems of concerning language types, language attitudes, diglossia, factors that
contribute to language maintenance and shift, etc.
In the 1970s, the language planning emphasized more on the change. Change in
language is nothing but the change of the attitudes that people have towards the language.
Eastman here observes that problem solving aspect still continued in the 1970s as ‘the
field in general was consolidated such that all solutions pursued involved language
change, generally by means of language choice and language policy formation’. Arising
from the language choice are the issues concerning role of planning in the context of
language for wider communication, relationship between the spread of lingua franca
and the use of language for wider communication. According to Eastman, language
planning in the beginning of the 70s had two pronged emphasis–language standardization
and multilingualism. Language standardization refers to the fact that the different dialects
of a language exist in a particular region and then one of the dialect which is the major
one is taken into account and made into the standard form in which all the official,
academic, and formal things are done. Thus, the standardization has a good side, but
Self-Instructional
128 Material at the same time there are problems with it as gradually the dialects which are spoken
by less number of people die down. Moreover, politics is also involved in the process Sociolinguistics

of deciding which dialect will become the standard one. Thus, standardization is not an
easy process, but it is of major concern to sociolinguistics as it is much related with the
study of the power relations of the society. The aspect of the multilingualism was
largely dominated by the policy approach, where the emphasis was placed on ‘finding NOTES
out what linguistic varieties exist and how they are distributed rather than on questions
of style, correctness, efficiency and the like’ (Eastman)
The 1980 was concerned with the evaluation of the language planning. The
large number of case studies that have been done in the 70s was reviewed in the 80s.
This decade paid heed to Haugen’s plea that language planning ought to focus on the
evaluation of linguistic change as well as on the ways to bring it about. In the 80s,
questions concerning the social and cultural context in which language planning takes
place had begun to appear in literature. Questions concerning social motivations for
language planning in society, the reasons for success and failures, etc. were raised.
Apart from this there were other important questions asked in this decade, such as
whether there can be a theory of language planning. Moreover, we see that the 80s
was also concerned with language management approach to language planning.
The 1990s was concerned with the critical reflection on the things that has been
done in the name of language planning. Language planning was made more
multidisciplinary in nature and we see a critical insight into the language planning as
scholars concerned themselves with the political and economic issues related to the
language. Specific language policies in specific contexts are investigated to explain
why particular languages are maintained or allowed to die, why one language is acquired
and another is not and why and how ‘language is built into the economic and social
structure of society’ (Tollefson). The research in the 90s often dealt with issues
concerning language rights’ the ways language policies perpetuate structural
socioeconomic inequalities, and bottom up efforts to revitalize threatened and non-
dominant languages. It also concerned itself with the national identities, and therefore
migrations and ethnic relations and their relationship with language. The effect of
globalization is also been perceived in the language planning. Thus, the four decades of
language planning seems to be comprehensive in nature as it started with the problems
and moved on to make change and evaluate its success and failures to make a critical
decision regarding the standardization of language for the global communication, without
making minority speakers feel threatened of the extinction of their languages.
5.3.4 Code Switching
Code switching refers to a situation in which we switch between two languages or two
dialects. For example, at home while talking to a family member we use a particular
dialect, while outside we often use the standard variety of that language. Suppose a
girl, Neha, is talking to a friend Shekhar over telephone as well as taking permission
from her mom to watch a movie with the said friend. So, Neha will switch to Hindi
when speaking to her mom and to English when speaking to Shekhar:
Neha: Hello, Shekhar!
Self-Instructional
Shekhar: Hi Neha, How are you? Material 129
Sociolinguistics Neha: Am good. What are you doing?
Shekhar: We are planning to go watch a movie today. Do you wanna join us?
Neha: Wow! Sure! When, where and which movie?
NOTES Shekhar: Around three, we are planning to meet at Rajiv Chowk and watch
Barfi. You should come along.
Neha: But I have to take permission from my mom.
Shekhar: Then, do it right now, it’s already 12.30.
Neha: Maa, mere dost film dekhne jaa rahe hain. Main jaun un logon ke
saath?
Neha’s Mom: Achcha! Kab jana hai beta?
Neha: Aaj hi, do baje.
Neha’s Mom: Theek hai, par jaldi laut aana.
Neha: Ok Shekhar, my mom has agreed. I will come. Bye!
Shekhar: Bye, See you.
5.3.5 Code Mixing
Code Mixing, on the other hand, is a linguistic situation where a person mixes two
languages in a single sentence/message. In some cases, a word or part of word from
one language can also be mixed with a word or part of word from another language;
this often occurs as a case of applying the grammatical structures of one language to
another. For example: Suraj and Parikshit, two friends, are talking to each other about
the promise that Suraj made to go for shopping but cannot:
Suraj: Sorry yaar. Kuch important kaam aa gaya hai. Main aaj
shopping ke liye nahin aa paaunga.
Parikshit: Not fair yaar. You only banao-ed the plan and now you are saying,
main nahi aa sakta. What is this, yaar?
Suraj: Sorry kaha na! Next time, pakka chalunga.
Parikshit: Ok dear, but next time yaad rakhna.
Suraj: Haan fine, bye!
This is the case of code-mixing where these two friends used the two languages
in such a way that the grammatical structures or syntactical structures of the languages
are not kept in mind. They mixed the two languages to communicate their ideas. This
is what we all usually do in informal situations.
5.3.6 Pidgins and Creoles
When people from two speech communities come in contact with each other and
need to communicate among themselves, then it often happens that one community
has to shed its ego and learn the language of the other dominant/ruling community. But
in some cases, it happens because of the mutual benefit of both the communities; a
Self-Instructional
130 Material simplified language is developed which comes as a result of contact between two or
more languages in order to find a means of communication. It happens due to the Sociolinguistics

needs of trade and colonization. Pidgin has a simplified syntax, word order, so that the
communication can happen in a smoother way. It is not a planned activity, but comes
in existence because of the use of the language in the context–primarily for trade. It is
not a native language belonging to anyone but learnt as a second language by many. ‘A NOTES
pidgin is a marginal language which arises to fulfil certain restricted communication
needs among people who have no common language’.
A creole can be defined as a naturalized stable language that came into existence
through mixed parent languages, a language that developed or derived usually from
pidgin. Usually in a creole, one of the languages is a European one. Creole has native
speakers and is therefore a mother tongue. Creole gets grammatically structured form.
In simple words it can be said that ‘a Creole arises when a pidgin becomes the mother
tongue of a speech-community’.
When two communities come in contact and develop a language for business or
trade purposes then it is a pidgin and it has an easier structure so that communication
needs are fulfilled. When the pidgin travels from the market place and enters other
spheres of lives and takes over as a mother tongue of a community then it becomes a
creole. In the process of creolization, the language gets structured and becomes
grammatically complex. Wardhaugh is of the opinion that: ‘Pidgin and Creole arise
from a basic need that people who speak different languages have to find a common
system of communication. Such a common system is often called a lingua franca.’
5.3.7 Borrowings
We all know by now that languages are always in the process of evolution for various
reasons such as–human use change the course of language; but language also changes
its course because of linguistic and cultural responses from other languages. For example,
we see that many of the Indian languages were influenced by English because of the
British colonial presence; similarly, English language too was influenced by Indian
languages and borrowed many words from different Indian languages. No language is
sacrosanct in any way as languages interact with each other (by means of interaction
of people belonging to two speech communities) leading to them being influenced by
each other and borrowing words and other nuances of language. The words that are
taken from other language(s) are known as the borrowings or the loan words.
When we talk of the English language, we see that English has developed much
from the Old English that we know from the work,Beowulf. This development happened
because of the internal changes in the language as well as the different borrowings
from other languages. Some of the borrowings are being discussed below which
significantly influenced English language and gave it a modern shape that it is in the
present day.
• English is a West Germanic language which belongs to the Indo-European
language family, originating from the Anglo-Frisian dialects spoken by people
formerly living in the area of northwest Germany and the Northern
Netherlands. Self-Instructional
Material 131
Sociolinguistics • English language has been influenced by a number of other languages.
• The size of the Old English vocabulary is about thirty thousand words.
• English was then influenced by many languages, primarily by Scandinavian
NOTES languages, Latin, and French.
• 29 percent of the words in English come from French. 29% come from
Latin.
• 26% from German
• 6% from Greek, another
• 6% from other languages, and
• 4% words derived from Proper Names.
The following are some of the significant words from major languages for your
ready reference.
• French origin:
o Government and administrative: Govern, government, administer,
crown, state, empire, royal, majesty, treaty, statute, parliament, tax, rebel,
traitor, treason, exile, chancellor, treasurer, major, noble, peer, prince,
princess, duke, squire, page, peasant, slave, servant, vassal, etc.
o Ecclesiastical: Religion, theology, sermon, confession, clergy, cardinal,
friar, crucifix, censer, lectern, abbey, convent, creator, saviour, virgin, faith,
heresy, schism, solemn, divine, devout, preach, pray, adore, confess, etc.
o Law: Justice, equity, plaintiff, judge, attorney, petition, inquest, felon,
evidence, sue, accuse, arrest, blame, libel, slander, felony, adultery,
property, estate, heir, executor, etc.
o Military, Army and Navy: Armor, army, navy, peace, enemy, arms,
battle, spy, combat, siege, ambush, soldier, guard, mail, buckler, banner,
lance, besiege, defend, array, etc.
o Clothing: Habit, gown, robe, garment, attire, cape, coat, collar, petticoat,
train, lace, embroidery, pleat, buckle, button, tassel, plume, satin, taffeta,
fur, sable, blue, vermilion, russet, tawny, jewel, ornament, broach, ivory,
turquoise, topaz, garnet, ruby, pearl, diamond, etc.
o Food: Feast, repast, collation, mess, appetite, tart, sole, perch, sturgeon,
sardine, venison, beef, veal, mutton, port, bacon, toast, cream, sugar, salad,
raisin, jelly, spice, clove, etc.
o Social: Baron, noble, dame, servant, messenger, feast, minstrel, juggler,
largess, curtain, couch, lamp, wardrobe, screen, closet, leisure, dance,
carol, lute, melody, etc.
o Hunting: Rein, curry, trot, stable, harness, mastiff, spaniel, stallion,
pheasant, quail, heron, joust, tournament, pavilion, etc.
o Art, learning, and medicine: Painting, sculpture, music, beauty, color,
image, cathedral, palace, mansion, chamber, ceiling, porch, column, poet,
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 geometry, grammar, noun, gender, physician, malady, pain, gout, plague, Sociolinguistics

pulse, remedy, poison, etc.

o Common words and expressions:
Nouns: Age, air, city, cheer, honour, joy, etc. NOTES
Adjectives: Chaste, coy, cruel poor, nice, pure, etc.
Verbs: Advance, advise, carry, cry, desire, etc.
Phrases: Draw near, make believe, hand to hand, by heart, without
fail, etc.
• Latin origin: Allegory, index, magnify, mechanical, private, secular, zenith,
conspiracy, contempt, gesture, immune, infinite, minor, necessity, popular,
precinct, private, script, secular, solar, subjugate, temperature, testimony, vulgar,
agendum, antenna, bona fide, real, genuine, erratum, innuendo, diurnal,
tenebrous, laureate, mediation, oriental, prolixity, etc.
• Greek origin: Athlete, catastrophe, criterion, theory, enthusiasm, orchestra,
devil, church, dropsy, academy, atom, diphthong, ecstasy, harmony, nymph,
theatre, phobia, micro, demos, bio, gigantic, gloss, logo, meter, phone, pseudo,
therapy, thermal, toxic, zone, etc.
• German origin: Kindergarten, iceberg, wunderkind, angst, diktat, doppelganger,
flak, Neanderthal, leitmotif, Volkswagen, noodle pretzel, hinterland, seminar,
uber, zeitgeist, etc.
• Italian origin: Pizza, concerto, pasta, tempo, macaroni, finale, piano, casino,
balcony, scherzo, macchiato, solo, espresso, trombone, zucchini, etc.
• Spanish origin: Banana, barbecue, bonanza, chocolate, cocoa, comrade, guitar,
mosquito, vanilla, siesta, etc.
• Indian origin: Aryan, avatar, bandana, basmati, bahuvrihi, brinjal, cheetah,
chutney, chuddar, cot, datura, deodar, dharma, dhoti, dacoit, jungle, pyjamas,
verandah, shawl, bangle, khaki, poori, punch, thug, typhoon, yaar, etc.
• Arabic origin: Nadir, artichoke, arsenal, zenith, hijab, doner, kebab, imam,
bayildi, Hamas, Taliban, Bedouin, gazelle, giraffe, harem, hashish, lute, minaret,
mosque, myrrh, salaam, sirocco, sultan, vizier, bazaar, etc.
• Russian origin: Mammoth, cosmonaut, intelligentsia, Politburo, sputnik, icon,
etc.
5.3.8 Esperanto
Esperanto can be called a synthetic language which was thought about and created by
Dr. L. L. Zamenhof, a Polish oculist from Bialistok in 1887. The intention behind
thinking of such a language was to make international/global communication smoother
by developing a common language which can be used as a second language and can
be helpful in different communicational needs. Therefore, what is intended in the creation
of such a language is that:
• It is made politically neutral so that no one has any objection to the acquisition
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Sociolinguistics • It is made easy to learn and is thought that it can be learnt at one tenth of the time
of learning English. Some of the aspects that it tried to work on it keep itself
easy to learn are:
o Pronunciations and spellings are kept consistent.
NOTES
o Phonetically simpler.
o There are no exceptions in grammatical rules – so easy to remember.
There are about sixteen rules which can be studied and mastered in a
matter of few weeks and if needed, also in few hours.
o Vocabulary is made of the words which are international in character. For
example - patro (father) vs. patrino (mother); bona (good) vs. malbona
(bad).
5.3.9 Language Maintenance, Language Shift and Death of Language
Language maintenance signifies the continued usage of a language in the face of
competition from a stronger language at national and social levels. Some of the language
maintenance factors are developed by Giles, Bourhis and Taylor (1977):
• Status:
o Economic status is a dominant factor in almost all language maintenance
studies, where minority language speaker groups have relatively low
economic status, and there is a clear tendency to migrate to majority language.
o Social status is closely related to economic status, and is likely to be similarly
related to language maintenance.A social group status, which here refers to
group esteem, is largely based on its economic status, cultural organization,
etc.
o Language status and social status are closely linked in the sense that the
latter affects the former. The self-assigned status of the language would be
low, especially when the minority speaks a dialect of the language in question.
Thus, languages with low status are in danger of being adolescent, where
this often depends on the status of competing language, as is often the case.
• Demographic factor: They concern the number of members of a linguistic
minority group and their social distribution. As it declines, the total number of
speakers of a particular language becomes significant.
• Institutional support: It refers to the degree to which the minority language
group is expressed in a nation or community’s different institutions. Maintenance
is facilitated as the minority language is used in different government agencies,
schools, cultural organizations, etc.
Course of language shift
The opposite of language maintenance is language shift. It signifies the substitution of
one language with another as the primary means of communication within a culture.
The word language death is used when a population is the last one to use the certain
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language in the world. Cornish extinction in England is an example of both language Sociolinguistics

death and a shift (to English).Yet Norwegian’s downfall as an immigrant language in

the US exemplifies shift without death, as Norwegian is still spoken, of course, in its
original setting in Norway. In case of the language shift, the languages may exhibit
specific patterns of distribution over different domains in the initial phases of the NOTES
relationship between two languages. The dominant language can be assigned to public
and formal domains, with more informal and personal domains assigned to the minority
language. The house, religion, folk songs and tales are typically the last bastions for the
oppressed language to live on.
Speakers of a language in its final stages can exhibit a range of skills from full
command to null. Three types of speakers are distinguished: young fluent speakers
have a native command of ancestral language, but display subtle deviations from the
norms of older speakers; passive bilinguals are able to understand ancestral language,
but are unable to generate it themselves; semi-speakers tend to use ancestral language
in an imperfect manner.
Death of a Language
Although languages such as Latin, Ancient Greek and Sanskrit are sometimes referred
to as dead languages, in sociolinguistics this use of the word is rare. That’s because
they slowly progressed from one generation to the next through continuous transmission
and spread into regional dialects that gave rise to standardized forms of speech. For
example, Latin still exists in the modern French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian and
Romanian languages. Campbell and Muntzel (1989) have discerned four forms of
linguistic death:
• Gradual death involves a long substitution of one language for another. In parts
of Scotland, one example is the replacement of Gaelic by English.
• Sudden death is a speedy extinction of a language, without a period of intervening
bilingualism. So the last speaker in dying language, as with Tasmanian, is
monolingual.
• Radical death is when out of self-defence a group ceases to speak its language.
For instance, after the massacre of thousands of Indians in El Salvador in 1932
the Cacaopera and Lencia speakers stopped speaking their language to avoid
being identified as Indians.
• Bottom-to-top death is when a language ceases to be used as a conversational
medium, but may persist in unique use such as religion or folk songs. Tzeltal in
Mexico for instance has only a few older speakers in dispersed villages, but
persists in the prayer register.
There is no single set of variables that can be used to foresee the outcome of the
efforts to maintain language. But factors that caused some languages to decline can be
grouped together as economic changes, demographics, institutional support and status.

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Sociolinguistics

Check Your Progress

6. How does language contact typically take place?
NOTES 7. How does a pidgin transformed into a creole?
8. Who is responsible for creating Esperanto?
9. Give an example of language shift without death.

5.4 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

QUESTIONS
1. Chomsky differentiates competence, which is an idealized capacity, from
performance being the production of actual utterances.
2. Idiolects are defined as deviations from a common standard, deviations from a
language intended as a social institution or convention (thesis of the priority of
language over idiolects).
3. The term, register, was first used by the linguist Thomas Bertram Reid in 1956,
and became popular in the 1960s due to a group of linguists.
4. In formal style of language, there is one-way participation and no interruption.
Technical vocabulary and ‘fuzzy semantics’ or exact definitions are important. It
includes introductions among strangers. On the other hand, informal/casual style
of language is commonly used among group of friends and acquaintances. No
background information is provided. Ellipsis, slang, and interruptions are
common.
5. Diglossia has three crucial features:
(a) Two distinct varieties of the same language are used in the community,
with one regarded as a high (or H) variety and the other a low (or L)
variety
(b) Each variety is used for quite distinct functions, H and L complement each
other
(c) The high variety is not used in everyday conversation
6. Language contact can occur at language boundaries, between ad stratum
languages, or as a consequence of migration, with either a superstratum or a
substratum acting as an intrusive language. It takes place in a number of processes,
including convergence of languages, borrowing and relexification.
7. When the pidgin travels from the market place and enters other spheres of lives
and takes over as a mother tongue of a community then it becomes a creole. In
the process of creolization, the language gets structured and becomes
grammatically complex.
8. Dr. L. L. Zamenhof, a Polish oculist from Bialistok Created Esperanto in 1887.
9. Norwegian’s downfall as an immigrant language in the US exemplifies shift without
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 Sociolinguistics
5.5 SUMMARY

• In variation studies, Noam Chomsky, a famous linguist and a political thinker of

the twentieth century, makes a significant distinction between competence and NOTES
performance.
• Competence is the ideal speaker-hearer’s knowledge of his or her language
whereas performance refers to the specific utterances, including grammatical
mistakes and non-linguistic features.
• Labov’s contribution to sociolinguistics is that he made it clear how language
changes or varies with the variation of class, age, and gender.
• Idiolect is a term coined by linguist Bernard Bloch from the Greek word idio
(personal, private) and the word (dia)lect to mean a variety of language which
is unique to an individual.
• Whether idiolects are variations or deviations from language or many idiolects
make a language is something which has caused difficulty for the linguists.
• Dialect is significant to the sociolinguists and linguists in two ways. On one
hand, it refers to a particular variety of a language that is a characteristic of a
particular group of that language’s speakers. On the other hand, it refers to a
variety of language which is supposedly socially subordinate to a regional or
national standard language.
• When a dialect is associated with a particular social class, it is termed as sociolect.
When it is a regional dialect, it is called regiolect or topolect.
• Linguists focus on the aspect of the modern nation-state as a significant determiner
of the way the language policies and planning are done.
• The spread of the language across people using different variety of the language
is necessary as only if people accept it then the standard codified language is
useful.
• Sometimes, the standard language is also given the distinct identity by making it
an official language or a national language which provides the users of a language
a particular identity.
• The most dangerous impact of language standardization is that it acts as a powerful
instrument for the domination of the elite over the masses.
• The standardization of language may lead to the minimization of vagueness and
ambiguity, but at the same time the charm and cadence of the dialects are lost
due to the over-privileging of the standard language.
• Linguists use the term ‘register’ to refer to the patterns of communication used
in particular settings and for specific purposes.
• Specific jargons and register are also marked by distinction in other aspects of
language such as syntax, accent or phonology, vocabulary, and morphology.
• The term ‘diatype’ is often used to describe language variation determined by Self-Instructional
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its social purpose.
Sociolinguistics • According to many linguists, language variation can be divided into two
categories: dialect, for variation according to user, and diatype for variation
according to use (e.g. the specialized language of an academic journal).
• Jargon is a special technical vocabulary associated with a specific activity or
NOTES
topic as part of a register e.g. plaintiff, suffix. In social terms, jargon helps to
create and maintain connections among those who see themselves as insiders in
some way and to exclude ‘outsiders’.
• ‘Slang’ or colloquial speech describes words or phrases that one uses instead
of more every day terms among younger speakers and other groups with special
interests.
• In a situation of diglossia, it is necessary that there are two variations of a language
which exist and they are used in different domains of language use. In other
words, one variety is used in a particular domain and the other is another domain.
• Language contact happens when speakers of two or more languages or varieties
communicate and influence one another. Pidgins, creoles, code-switching, and
mixed languages are the commonest products.
• Bilingualism can be defined as a competence of a person or a group of people
who has more or less similar competence of two languages and belongs to two
speech communities.
• Multilingualism implies the use of more than two languages proficiently (though
not necessarily perfectly), either by a person or a group of individuals.
• When we talk of language planning, it is not a study concerning the study of
language as it has evolved, but a process where the linguists try to decide a path
from where the language should proceed in the route of its growth.
• Code switching refers to a situation in which we switch between two languages
or two dialects. Code Mixing, on the other hand, is a linguistic situation where a
person mixes two languages in a single sentence/message.
• When two communities come in contact and develop a language for business or
trade purposes then it is a pidgin and it has an easier structure so that
communication needs are fulfilled. When the pidgin travels from the market
place and enters other spheres of lives and takes over as a mother tongue of a
community then it becomes a creole.
• No language is sacrosanct in any way as languages interact with each other
leading to them being influenced by each other and borrowing words and other
nuances of language. The words that are taken from other language(s) are known
as the borrowings or the loan words.
• Esperanto can be called a synthetic language which was thought about and
created by Dr. L. L. Zamenhof, a Polish oculist from Bialistok in 1887.
• The intention behind the invention of Esperanto was to make international/global
communication smoother by developing a common language which can be used
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 • Language maintenance signifies the continued usage of a language in the face of Sociolinguistics

competition from a stronger language at national and social levels.

• The opposite of language maintenance is language shift. It signifies the substitution
of one language with another as the primary means of communication within a
NOTES
culture.
• The word language death is used when a population is the last one to use the
certain language in the world. Cornish extinction in England is an example of
both language death and a shift (to English).

5.6 KEY WORDS

• Parole: It refers to the way an individual speaks or uses any language which is
very personalized and idiosyncratic.
• Ad Stratum Language: An ad stratum or ad strate is a language that is in
contact with another language in a neighbour population without having
identifiably higher or lower prestige.
• Relexification: In linguistics, relexification is a mechanism of language change
by which one language changes much or its entire lexicon, including basic
vocabulary, with the lexicon of another language, without drastically changing
the relexified language’s grammar.
• Superstratum Language: It is the language that has higher power or prestige.
Both substratum and superstratum languages influence each other, but in different
ways.
• Lingua Franca: It is a language or dialect systematically used to make
communication possible between groups of people who do not share a native
language or dialect, particularly when not one of the speakers’ native languages.

5.7 SELF ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS AND

EXERCISES

Short Answer Questions

1. Write a short note on Labov’s contribution to the field of linguistics.
2. State the arguments made for the standardization of English language.
3. Write a short note on bilingualism.
4. List some of the significant words taken from other major languages by the
English language.
5. What are the four kinds of language death?

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Sociolinguistics Long Answer Questions
1. ‘Language varieties are often called dialects rather than language’. Explain the
statement.
NOTES 2. Discuss the steps involved in the process of language standardization.
3. Explain the terms register, jargon and slang in detail.
4. Describe the decade wise history of language planning as provided by Eastman.
5. Evaluate the factors affecting language maintenance and course of language
shift in detail.

5.8 FURTHER READINGS

Klammer, T. P.; M. Schulz; and A. D. Volpe. 2007. Analyzing English Grammar.

New York: Pearson/Longman.
Stanlaw, J.; N. Adachi; and Z. Salzmann. 2019. Language, Culture, and Society:
An Introduction to Linguistic Anthropology. London: Routledge.
Labov, W. 1991. Sociolinguistic Patterns. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania.
Gimson, A.C. 1960. Introduction to English Pronunciation. London: ELBS.
Hockett, C.F. 1960. A Course in Modern Linguistics. California: MacMillan Books.
Lyons, John. 1981. Language and Linguistics. Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press.
Rajimwale, Sharad. 1997. Introduction to English Phonetics, Phonology and
Morphology. Jaipur: Rawal Publication.
Varshney, R.L. 1977. An Introductory Textbook of Linguistics and Phonetics.
Bareilly: Student Store.
Yule, George. 1985. The Study of Language. Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press.
Campbell, L. and M. C. Munzell, ‘The structural consequences of language death’,
Investigating Obsolescence. 181-196, 1989.
Giles, H.; R. Y. Bourhis and D. M Taylor, ‘Towards a theory of language in ethnic
group relations’ In H. Giles (Ed.). Language, Ethnicity and Intergroup
Relations. 307-348, 1977.

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 Semantics

UNIT 6 SEMANTICS
Structure NOTES
6.0 Introduction
6.1 Objectives
6.2 Nature of Semantics
6.2.1 Meaning of Semantics
6.2.2 Seven Types of Meaning
6.2.3 Lexical Semantics
6.2.4 Superordinate Terms
6.2.5 The Concept of Prototype
6.2.6 Antonymy
6.2.7 Hyponymy
6.2.8 Polysemy
6.2.9 Metonymy
6.2.10 Collocation
6.2.11 Synonymy, Homonymy, Ambiguity, and Tautology
6.3 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
6.4 Summary
6.5 Key Words
6.6 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
6.7 Further Readings

6.0 INTRODUCTION

Semantics is the study of the word-to-word relation and how we derive meaning from
those words. Individuals can perceive words entirely differently, and derive various
interpretations from them. It includes the deconstruction of words, signals and the
form of sentences. It affects our understanding of the text, as well as our interpretation
of the words of other people in daily conversation. Semantics play an important role in
our day-to-day conversation, comprehension and language learning without us even
knowing it. In this unit, we will understand the nature of semantics and the seven types
of meaning. It will also focus on the concept of lexical semantics, which includes
synonymy, antonymy, homonymy, polysemy, hyponymy, super ordinate terms,
metonymy, and the concept of prototype.

6.1 OBJECTIVES

After going through this unit, you will be able to:

• Understand the nature of semantics
• Explain the seven types of meaning
• Discuss the concept of lexical semantics

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Semantics
6.2 NATURE OF SEMANTICS

Semantics is described as the linguistic study of the meaning of words, phrases and
NOTES sentences. Linguistic semantics, therefore,deals with the conventional meaning conveyed
by the use of words, phrases and sentences of a language. In semantic analysis, what
one focuses on is what the words conventionally mean, rather than on what an individual
speaker might want them to mean on a particular occasion. When we will come to
Pragmatics in the next unit, we will be able to understand the difference between
Semantics and Pragmatics. Pragmatics deals with meaning in different contexts, to put
it in a simplistic manner. Often, it is seen that to understand the meaning of a word, we
can at least do two things:
• Refer to a dictionary–which will give us the semantic meaning of the word.
• Refer to the context–which can often tell us what the speaker or the author
intended to signify in the given context.
When we are dealing with semantics, we are often dealing with just the meaning from
a dictionary point of view. But this way of looking at an utterance or writing has its own
problems as the dictionary is not often a great pointer to understand the signification of
an utterance. For example, Chomsky used a particular sentence–‘Colourless green
ideas sleep furiously.’ Each of the word in this sentence has a meaning (dictionary
meaning) but when it comes to make sense of the sentence, it is seen that we are not
able to make sense of it. So, semantic meaning is not often the best way to decipher
the meaning of an utterance.
6.2.1 Meaning of Semantics
It is true that no two words are same in their meaning. If the meaning of two or more
words would have been similar, there would not have been a need for two different
words. There must be a slight variation in meaning amongst the two words. Two or
more words with very closely related meanings are called synonyms. These synonymous
words can often be substituted in a sentence to mean almost the same thing. However,
this may not always be true. For example, ‘what is your answer?’, ‘what is your
reply?’ or ‘what is your response?’ almost mean the same thing. The meanings may
differ from context to context. However, the words which are synonymous, like ‘reply’,
‘answer’ and ‘response’ cannot be used when a person is writing an exam. It seems
not very proper to say that ‘Sam has replies to all the questions in the examination’.
Also, ‘Sam has responses to all the questions in the examination’ is also not correct.
The proper mode should be ‘Sam has answers to all the questions in the examination.’
Thus, depending on the context, we can substitute one synonymous word with another.
Therefore, one needs to keep in mind that the idea of ‘sameness’ of meaning used in
discussing synonymy is not necessarily ‘total sameness’.
6.2.2 Seven Types of Meaning
Semantics: The Study of Meaning published in the year 1981 by Geoffrey Leech
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142 Material
account of the nature of meaning’. The whole concept in Leech’s thesis rests on the Semantics

distinction between meaningful and meaningless utterancesin relation to ‘the knowledge

of language’ and ‘the knowledge of the real world’. Leech talks about the seven types
of meaning: (a) Conceptual meaning (b) Connotative meaning (c) Social meaning (d)
Affective meaning (e) Reflected meaning (f) Collocative meaning (g) Thematic meaning NOTES
• Conceptual meaning: The conceptual meaning ‘is widely assumed to be the
central factor in linguistic communication’ as it ‘has a complex and sophisticated
organization which may be compared with, and cross-related to, a similar
organization on the syntactic and phonological levels of language’. For example,
the language is usually patterned in binaries so as to make it intelligible; ‘man’
and ‘woman’–one is understood in terms of the other.
• Connotative meaning: It ‘is the communicative value an expression has by
virtue of what it refers to, over and above its purely conceptual content’. So, it
is usually perceived that connotative meanings is open-ended in nature in
comparison to conceptual meaning as the referent of the meaning depends on
various other factors, such as age or society, and they can also depend on the
individual, as claimed by Leech.
• Social meaning: It is the meaning that we gather out of an utterance when it is
used in a social context. Language varies with usages and therefore the meaning
of what is being said also varies along with its use. Some of the ways in which
the variation of language can be studied in detail are–Dialects (regional/in the
sense of geographical), time (for example Shakespearean English is different
from today’s English), province (the language of a specific domain, such as law
or science, etc.) status (colloquial, slang, formal, etc.), modality (how it is spoken,
in the form of lecture or a joke, etc.), singularity (in terms of specific style such
as Wordsworthian English or Eliot’s English).
• Affective meaning: It is related to the way a language can reflect personal
feelings of the speaker that may include attitude to a listener or something he is
talking about. Affective meaning can be expressed directly and indirectly, once
again depending on the context.
• Reflected meaning: It is when one sense of a word influences our response to
another sense. It is to make sense of meaning with its associative power of
meaning.
• Collocative meaning: It refers to ‘the associations a word acquires on account
of the meanings of words which tend to occur in its environment’. For example,
Leech uses the example of words like ‘to wander’ and ‘to stroll’ and explains
that it is usual that ‘cows may wander, but may not stroll’.
• Thematic meaning: It provides an answer to the question: ‘What is
communicated by the way the author formed and organized the message?’ Leech
states that thematic meaning is ‘matter of choice between alternative grammatical
constructions’ for instance in sentences: ‘A man is here to see you.’ and ‘There
is a man here to see you.’
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Semantics 6.2.3 Lexical Semantics
Lexical semantics can be defined as the ‘study of word meaning’ which is concerned
with the study of lexical (i.e. content) word meaning, as opposed to the meanings of
NOTES grammatical (or function) words. When we discussed semantics in general, we talked
about how meanings of words can often lead to ambiguity when we are trying to deal
with it in a sentence and we gave the example of Chomsky’s sentence, ‘Colourless
green ideas sleep furiously’, which though has meanings in their individual words, does
not account to anything but ambiguity and incomprehension, when it comes to lexical
sense. This led to the development of lexical semantics. The lexical semanticists are
interested in the open classes of noun, verb and adjective and with more ‘content’
members of the adverb and preposition classes. Even though these are the words that
lexical semanticists are trying to study but one needs to understand that these cannot
be studied in a vacuum. For quick reference
• Lexicon: The sum of all lexemes of a language
• Sense/intension/denotation: Those features and properties which define a
linguistic expression (content without reference)
• Extension: the class of entities to which a lexeme is correctly applied (reference
potential)
6.2.4 Superordinate Terms
Superordinate terms (often also called ‘hypernyms,’ ‘anaphoric nouns,’ or ‘discourse-
organizing words’) are nouns which can be used to describe a whole ‘class’ or group
of things. Therefore, a superordinate term serves as an umbrella term that incorporates
the sense of other terms within it. For instance, ‘vehicle’ is a superordinate concept of
‘lorry,’ ‘automobile,’ ‘bike,’ etc. Superordinate words play a major role in promoting
‘cohesion’ by providing writers with a more clear means than pronouns (it, they, this,
these, those) to connect their ideas either back to earlier pieces of text, or forward to
upcoming knowledge. Superordinate words tell the reader what to expect ahead of an
idea as they arise. Superordinate terms serve as the ‘class’ of definitions in this role,
and define the items and examples contained in lists.
6.2.5 The Concept of Prototype
The original meaning of prototype (studied elaborately Rosch as well as Labov) is the
central member of so-called basic level terms, i.e. the hierarchical level with the highest
proto-typicality. For example, for the category of ‘bird’-‘robin’ is a prototype in North
America while ‘sparrow’ is in Europe. Thus, it represents the hierarchical relationship
level with the highest proto-typicality which is in contrast to Superordinate levels (such
as “animal”) and sub-ordinate levels (such as ‘robin’). In other words, it can be said
that in a minimal lexical class, the term that accepts the highest number of contexts can
also serve as the generic term.

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6.2.6 Antonymy Semantics

Words with opposite meanings are called antonyms. For example, big/small, fast/
slow, happy/sad, hot/cold, long/short, male/female, old/new, rich/poor, true/false.
Antonyms can be divided into two main types: NOTES
• Gradable antonyms, that is, opposites along a scale and
• Non-gradable antonyms, that is, direct opposites.
Gradable antonyms, such as the pair, big/small, can be used in comparative structures,
such as ‘A football is bigger than a cricket ball’ or ‘a cricket ball is smaller than a
football’. Moreover, it should also be mentioned here that the negative of one member
of a gradable pair does not necessarily imply the other. For example, ‘my car is not
old’, does not mean that the car is new. Non-gradable antonyms are antonyms such as
dead/alive. They are non-gradable as we cannot say that someone is more or less
dead than the other. In this case, the negative of one member of a non-gradable pair
does imply the other member.
6.2.7 Hyponymy
When the meaning of one form of word is included in the meaning of the other, the
relationship between the two words is described as hyponymy. For example, animal/
dog, vegetable/carrot, flower/rose, tree/banyan. The concept of ‘inclusion’ is involved
in this relationship. The concept of a rose necessarily implies that it is a flower. Therefore,
rose is a hyponym of flower. In hyponymous connections, one is primarily looking at
the meaning of words in some type of hierarchical relationship. The relation of hyponymy
captures the concept of ‘is a kind of’. For example, let us consider the sentence,
‘carrot is a kind of vegetable’. Sometimes, the only thing we know about the meaning
of a word is that it is a hyponym of another term.
6.2.8 Polysemy
Two or more words with the same form and related meanings are known as polysemy.
Polysemy can be described as one form (written or spoken) having multiple meanings
that are all related by extension. Examples are the word ‘head’, used to refer to the
object on top of your body, on top of a glass of beer, person at the top of a company
or department, and many other things. Other examples of polysemy are ‘foot’ (of
person, of bed, of mountain) or run (person does, water does, colours do). When one
is not sure whether different uses of a single word are examples of homonymy or
polysemy, one should check in a dictionary. If the word has multiple meanings, it is
polysemous and there will be a single entry. There will be a numbered list of the different
meanings of that word. If two words are treated as homonyms, they will typically have
two separate entries. In most dictionaries, bank, mail, mole, and sole are clearly treated
as homonyms whereas face, foot, get, head and run are treated as examples of polysemy.
6.2.9 Metonymy
Metonymy is a substitution of a word or phrase to stand for a word or phrase similar
in meaning. Examples are as follows: Self-Instructional
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Semantics • In Shakespeare’s time, the crown was anti-Catholic. (Crown stands for Queen
Elizabeth I.)
• The White House was severely criticized for its opposition to the tax increase.
(‘White House’ stands for the president or the president and his advisers.)
NOTES
• The Wall Street welcomes the reduction in interest rates. (‘Wall Street’ represents
investors.)
• Sweat, not wealth, earned her the respect of her peers. (‘Sweat’ stands for
hard work.)
Some more examples are as follows: The close connection can be based on a container–
contents relation (bottle/water, can/juice), a whole–part relation (car/wheels, house/
roof) or a representative–symbol relationship (king/crown, the President/the White
House). Metonymy makes it possible for us to understand that ‘He drank the whole
bottle’, although it sounds absurd literally (i.e., he drank the liquid, not the glass object).
Similarly, when we say ‘The White House has announced . . . or Downing Street
protested... , we do not get puzzled that buildings appear to be talking. This is because
we know that the buildings are representative of something, someone or some office.
We use metonymy when we talk about filling up the car, answering the door, boiling a
kettle, giving someone a hand, or needing some wheels. Making sense of such
expressions often depends on context, background knowledge and inference.
6.2.10 Collocation
One way in which we organize our vocabulary or knowledge of words is based on the
words which frequently occur together. They are technically known as collocation.
For example, when one says hammer, most people will say nail, as it is the word that
frequently occur with it. If you say table, mostly people will say chair, and butter elicits
bread, needle elicits thread and salt elicits pepper and so forth. In recent years, the
study of the words occurring together and their frequency of co-occurrence have
received a lot more attention in corpus linguistics. A corpus is a large collection of
texts, spoken or written, typically stored as a database of how often specific words or
phrases occur and what types of collocations are most common.
6.2.11 Synonymy, Homonymy, Ambiguity, and Tautology
This section will show the meaning relations existing between words.
• Synonymy refers to the phenomenon of ‘more than one form having the same
meaning’ such as: talk, chatter, speak, etc. They are listed in a special type of
dictionary called thesaurus.
• Homonymy refers to the likeness of different words. Such as ‘bank’ can mean
side of a river as well as a financial organization. They are pronounced and spelt
alike. When two words are pronounced alike but their spelling is different, they
are called as homophones such as quay and key; sweet and suite. Some words
which have common spelling but are different in spellings, we call them as
homographs.
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 • Ambiguity: Semantic ambiguity occurs when a word is open to multiple Semantics

interpretations. Such as when the girl returned home late she could see her
mother fume. Here, fume conveys more than one meaning, and the impact of
the sentence changes considerably based on which meaning is intended.
NOTES
• Tautology refers to the repetitive use of words or phrases that have similar
meaning. For instance, my father is a man. Here, the word, ‘father’ and ‘man’
convey the same message, so it seems an ungrammatical sentence as the word
‘man’ is redundant. However, if the word ‘man’ is used metaphorically to convey.

Check Your Progress

1. What are the two things that one usually refers to while trying to know the
meaning of words?
2. Which work provides the seven types of meaning?
3. How can you check whether a word is a homonymy or a polysemy?
4. Define corpus.

6.3 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

QUESTIONS

1. Often, it is seen that to understand the meaning of a word, we can at least do

two things:
(a) Refer to a dictionary–which will give us the semantic meaning of the word.
(b) Refer to the context–which can often tell us what the speaker or the author
intended to signify in the given context.
2. Semantics: The Study of Meaning published in the year 1981 by Geoffrey
Leech provides the seven types of meaning.
3. When one is not sure whether different uses of a single word are examples of
homonymy or polysemy, one should check in a dictionary. If the word has
multiple meanings, it is polysemous and there will be a single entry. There will be
a numbered list of the different meanings of that word. If two words are treated
as homonyms, they will typically have two separate entries.
4. A corpus is a large collection of texts, spoken or written, typically stored as a
database of how often specific words or phrases occur and what types of
collocations are most common.

6.4 SUMMARY

• In semantic analysis, what one focuses on is what the words conventionally

mean, rather than on what an individual speaker might want them to mean on a
particular occasion.
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Semantics • Semantics: The Study of Meaning published in the year 1981 by Geoffrey
Leech classifies meaning from a semantic point of view and tries to provide ‘a
systematic account of the nature of meaning’.
• Leech talks about the seven types of meaning: (a) Conceptual meaning (b)
NOTES
Connotative meaning (c) Social meaning (d) Affective meaning (e) Reflected
meaning (f) Collocative meaning (g) Thematic meaning
• Lexical semantics can be defined as the ‘study of word meaning’ which is
concerned with the study of lexical (i.e. content) word meaning, as opposed to
the meanings of grammatical (or function) words.
• Superordinate terms (often also called ‘hypernyms,’ ‘anaphoric nouns,’ or
‘discourse-organizing words’) are nouns which can be used to describe a whole
‘class’ or group of things.
• The original meaning of prototype (studied elaborately Rosch as well as Labov)
is the central member of so-called basic level terms, i.e. the hierarchical level
with the highest proto-typicality.
• Words with opposite meanings are called antonyms. For example, big/small,
fast/slow, happy/sad, hot/cold, long/short, male/female, old/new, rich/poor, true/
false.
• When the meaning of one form of word is included in the meaning of the other,
the relationship between the two words is described as hyponymy.
• Two or more words with the same form and related meanings are known as
polysemy. Polysemy can be described as one form (written or spoken) having
multiple meanings that are all related by extension.
• Metonymy is a substitution of a word or phrase to stand for a word or phrase
similar in meaning.
• One way in which we organize our vocabulary or knowledge of words is based
on the words which frequently occur together. They are technically known as
collocation.
• Synonymy refers to the phenomenon of ‘more than one form having the same
meaning’ such as: talk, chatter, speak, etc.
• Homonymy refers to the likeness of different words. Such as ‘bank’ can mean
side of a river as well as a financial organization. They are pronounced and spelt
alike.

6.5 KEY WORDS

• Pragmatics: It is a subfield of linguistics and semiotics that studies the ways in

which context contributes to meaning.
• Homonymy: It refers to the likeness of different words.

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• Tautology: It refers to the repetitive use of words or phrases that have similar
148 Material meaning.
 Semantics
6.6 SELF ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS AND
EXERCISES

Short Answer Questions NOTES

1. Write a short note on the nature of semantics.

2. What do you mean by lexical semantics?
3. How would you explain the term antonymy?
Long Answer Questions
1. Explain the seven types of meanings as described by Leech.
2. Describe the concepts of hyponymy, superordinate terms, metonymy, and
prototype.
3. Discuss the meaning relations existing between words.

6.7 FURTHER READINGS

Stanlaw, J.; N. Adachi; and Z. Salzmann. 2019. Language, Culture, and Society:
An Introduction to Linguistic Anthropology. London: Routledge.
Labov, W. 1991. Sociolinguistic Patterns. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania.
Hockett, C.F. 1960. A Course in Modern Linguistics. California: MacMillan Books.
Lyons, John. 1981. Language and Linguistics. Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press.
Varshney, R.L. 1977. An Introductory Textbook of Linguistics and Phonetics.
Bareilly: Student Store.
Leech, Geoffrey. 1981. Semantics: The Study of Meaning, Second edition.
Harmondsworth: Penguin Books.

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 Speech Act Theory and

UNIT 7 SPEECH ACT THEORY AND Discourse Analysis

DISCOURSE ANALYSIS
NOTES
Structure
7.0 Introduction
7.1 Objectives
7.2 Semantics and Pragmatics: Differences
7.2.1 J. L. Austin’s Speech Act Theory:
7.2.3 Felicity Conditions
7.2.4 J. R. Searle: Speech Acts
7.2.5 Austin’s Typology of Speech Acts
7.2.6 Searle’s Typology of Speech Acts
7.2.7 Direct and Indirect Speech Acts
7.2.8 Cooperative Principle
7.2.5 Conversational Implicature
7.2.6 Cohesion and Coherence
7.2.7 Turn-Taking
7.2.8 Adjacency Pair
7.3 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
7.4 Summary
7.5 Key Words
7.6 Self Asseesment Questions and Exercises
7.7 Further Readings

7.0 INTRODUCTION

The Speech Act Theory deals with the ways in which language is used. This theory
was propounded by J. L. Austin and further elaborated by J. L. Searle. This unit will
apprise you with the Speech Act Theory as put forward by Austin and further elaborated
by Searle. In addition, you will also get to study the use of coherence and cohesion,
turn-taking and the use of adjacency pairs in English language.

7.1 OBJECTIVES

After going through this unit, you will be able to:

• Examine the differences between semantics and pragmatics
• Discuss J. L. Austin’s Speech Act theory
• Identify the significant features of J. R. Searle’s Typology of Speech Acts
• Give examples of the use of coherence and cohesion in the English language

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Speech Act Theory and
Discourse Analysis 7.2 SEMANTICS AND PRAGMATICS: DIFFERENCES

The terms “Semantics” and “Pragmatics” – both deal with the process of signification;
NOTES while Semantics deals with signification in the abstract order, Pragmatics is signification
in a particular context. The term pragmatics was proposed by Morris in 1938 to
select a field of study of signs and their relationship to interpreters; whereas the term
semantics was used to designate the more abstract study of the relationship between
signs and the objects. So whereas semantics is an abstraction in terms of its ambit of
study, pragmatics is dependent on the context in which the utterance is made. In other
words, the semantic meaning will not change depending on the context or the situation,
where as the pragmatic meaning may change with the context – while semantics is not
situational; pragmatics is situational in signification.
For example, if we have to interpret the utterance “I am hungry” – Semantically,
it may mean what the dictionary meaning suggest it is – that “I” (the first person pronoun)
did not have food for some time and is craving for some food; but when we look at it
pragmatically, there are few things which we need to take into account such as –
(a) Who is this “I”?
(b) Where is he or she situated?
(c) When is it spoken?
(d) What kind of hunger is he or she talking about? – Hunger for food, hunger
for more (ambition/ desire), etc.
As none of this is there in the sentence “I am hungry” therefore only after knowing
the situation or the context, the proper pragmatic signification of the sentence is possible.
7.2.1 J. L. Austin’s Speech Act Theory:
J. L. Austin’s How to Do Thing with Words (1962) deals with his theory of Speech
Acts. When we speak or communicate we do not merely exchange information; but at
the same time, we assert, request, promise, congratulate, threaten, compliment, advise,
order, warn, command and perform various such things. Such acts which we perform
through our speeches are called speech acts. Austin is of the opinion that “The uttering
of the sentence is, or is a part of the doing of an action which again would not normally
be described as or as just saying something”. In simple words, a speech act is an act
we perform through utterance.
For example, when a commander in a war front says “March forward”, he is
performing an act as his words mean to go forward and some actions are performed
due to his utterance. Though the commander has only spoken two words, but it may
result in the army moving forward and taking over the opposition.
So, on one hand, there are these words which lead to certain actions, then there
are others such as “I promise” or “I request” which do not necessarily lead to action is
also a kind of performance. Austin defined the performatives to be defined in an
organized grammatical manner and thus, he endeavoured to do so in his Speech Theory.
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As opposed to these performatives, here are constative functions of some words such
as when we say or state certain facts. In short, performatives are utterances that are Speech Act Theory and
Discourse Analysis
used to do thing or perform acts. Constatives are utterances that are employed to
make assertions or statements.
It is because of this that he shifts from performative and constative division to
NOTES
talk in favour of the following:
(a) Locutionary acts: A locutionary act is the act of saying something, it
includes making noises of a contain type belonging to a certain vocabulary
and conforming to the rules of a certain grammar, used with a more or less
definite sense and reference.
(b) Illocutionary acts: An illocutionary act is an act performed in saying
something and includes things like making a statement, asking a question,
issuing a command, giving a report, greeting, warning, promising and other
actions.
(c) Perlocucationary acts: Perlocutionary acts consists of the production
of effects on the feeling, thought, actions of someone, and includes things
like informing, or boring or irritating, or convincing, or alarming the listener.
The study of speech acts is focused on the illocutionary act. Austin wrote;
“….. for some years we have been realizing that the occasion of an utterance
matters seriously, and that the words used are to some extent to be explained by the
context in which they are designed to be or have actually been spoken in a linguistic
interchange”(Austin, 1962: 100).
Therefore, J L. Austin sets out to say that in the declarative sentences often it
happens that we are not just declaring something true or false, but also perform some
action of part of the action. For example, when someone says that “I name this ship
the Queen Elizabeth”, he or she performs the act of naming the ship and betting. The
speaker said a sentence in the form of a declaration or a statement. These sentences
are grammatically termed as statements, but Austin termed them as “performatives”.
7.2.3 Felicity Conditions
According to Speech Acts Theory, whereas constatives can be judged as true or
false, performatives can be felicitous or infelicitious depending on the conditions in
which they are uttered. A performative utterance can be happy or unhappy depending
on the ‘conditions for happy performatives.’ For example – “I declare that he is dead.”
is thought to be infelicitous if the speaker does not have any authority of declaring
anybody dead, if he is not a doctor. Austin formulated rules to be followed for a
making a performative happy. Austin believed that these rules “are necessary for the
smooth or happy functioning of a performance.” For example,
(a) Following certain conventions — conventions which are marked by traditions.
(b) Circumstances often define the meaning such as the uttering of the priest in a
church to declare the bride and groom to be husband and wife
(c) The procedure also often decides the conditions, for example, in legal courses
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Speech Act Theory and Violations of the felicity conditions can lead to the performative being unhappy
Discourse Analysis
of infelicitous. For example, in a marriage ceremony, the bride cannot but say the
exact words, “I do.” He cannot choose to say “yes.”
words, “I do.” He cannot choose to say “yes.”
NOTES
7.2.4 J. R. Searle: Speech Acts
J. R. Searle also worked on the felicity conditions and divided them into four major
types “depending on how they specify propositional content, preparatory conditions,
conditions of sincerity and the existential condition.” The felicity conditions proposed
by Searle are the following:
(i) Propositional Content Condition: Propositional content condition specifies
restrictions on the content of complement sentence.
(ii) Preparatory Condition: Preparatory condition takes into account pre-
conditions that are required of the real world to the illocutionary act.
(iii) Sincerity Condition: Sincerity condition states the requisite beliefs, feelings
and intentions of the speaker, as whether the speech act is performed sincerely.
(iv) Essential Condition: Essential condition relates to the way the speaker is
committed to a certain kind of belief of behaviour, having performed a speech
act.
7.2.5 Austin’s Typology of Speech Acts
J.L. Austin also classified the speech acts and broadly labelled them into five categories
based on performative verbs:
• Verdictives: The verdictives are verdicts as the name implies, by a jury arbitrator,
or umpire and the performative verbs associatd with it are acquit, convict
,find(fact), hold(law), interpret, read it as, reckon, place , put it at, grade, assess,
characterize, rule, estimate, date, make it, rank, value, diagnose, analyse,
describe, rate, take it, measure, locate, calculate, understand
• Exercitives: Exercitives “are the exercising of power rights or influence”, and
the verb associated are appoint, degrade, denote, dismiss, excommunicate,
name, order, command, direct, sentence, fine, grant, levy, vote for, nominate,
choose, claim, give, bequeath, pardon, resign, warn, advise, plead, pray, entreat,
beg, urge, press, recommend, proclaim, announce, quash, countermand, annul,
repeal, enact, reprieve, veto, dedicate, declare closed, declare open
• Commissives: Commissives are “typified by promising or otherwising
undertaking, they commit you to do something”, and the verbs associated with
it are promise, covenant, contract, undertake, bind(myself), give(my word),
(am) determined (to), intend, declare(my intention), mean to, plan , purpose,
propose (to), shall, contemplate, envisage, engage, swear, guarantee, pledge
(myself), bet, row, agree, consent, dedicate (myself to), declare (for), side with,
adopt, champion, embrace, expense, oppose, favour.
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 • Behavitives: Behavitives are “a very miscellaneous group, and have to do Speech Act Theory and
Discourse Analysis
with attitudes and social behavior and the verbs are (i) for apologies : apologize,
(ii) for thanks: thank, (iii) for sympathy: deplore, commiserate, compliment,
condole, congratulate, felicitate, sympathize, (iv) for attitudes: resent, (don’t)
mind, pay tribute, criticize, grumble(about), complain(of), applaud, overlook, NOTES
commend, deprecate and the non-exercitive uses of blame, approve, favour,
(v) for greetings: welcome, bid you farewell, (vi) for wishes : bless, curse, toast,
drink (to), wish (performative use), and (vii) for challenges: dare , defy, protest,
challenge.(Austin, 1962:160-161).
• Expositives: Expositivies “make plain how our utterances fit into the course of
an argument or conversation, how we are using words or, in general, expository.
Examples are ‘I reply’, ‘I argue’, ‘I concede’, ‘I illustrate’, ‘I assume’, ‘I
postulate’ or are used in acts of exposition, the conducting of argument, the
clarifying of usages and of references and the verbs are (1) affirm, deny, state,
describe, class, identify, (2) remark, mention, interpose, (3) inform, apprise,
tell, answer, rejoin, (3a) ask, (4) testify, report, swear, conjecture, doubt, know,
believe, (5) accept, concede, withdraw, agree, demur(to), object (to), adhere
(to), recognize, repudiate (5a) correct, revise, (6) postulate, deduce, argue,
neglect, emphasize, (7) begin(by) , turn(to), conclude by, (7a) interpret, distinguish,
analyse, define (7b) illustrate, explain, formulate, (7c) mean, refer, call ,
understand, regard (as).
7.2.6 Searle’s Typology of Speech Acts
J.R. Searle classified the speech act verbs and grouped the different illocutionary acts
into five basic types, which can be thought to be a modified form ofAustin’s classification.
Searle says that, some of the English verbs denoting illocutionary acts are ‘state’,
describe, assert, warn, remark, comment, command, order, request, criticize, apologize,
censure, approve, welcome, promise, object, ‘demand’ and argue. According to Searle,
one can perform only five basic kinds of actions in speaking and they are as follows:
(a) Representatives or Assertives: The speaker in these speech acts expresses
the truth of the expressed proposition and they are basically assertions about a
state of affairs or his or her belief. They can also reflect the subjective state of
mind of the speaker. For example, “It was a warm sunny day.” (Yule)
(b) Directives: Speech acts which are undertaken by the speaker asking the listener
to do something – gives a direction and thus are called Directives. Such speech
acts include advice, order, requesting, questioning, begging, commanding and
others. For example, “Close the door., Could you lend me a pen please? “(Yule,
1996: 54)
(c) Commissives: Commissives are employed by the speaker if he commits himself
to a certain course of action to be taken in the future. Such speech acts include
offer, pledges, refusals, promise, threats vows, warning, guaranteeing etc.
Examples - “I promise to pay you the money.” (Searle).
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Speech Act Theory and (d) Expressives: Expressives are speech acts where the speaker expresses his
Discourse Analysis
or her feelings or the psychological state which is essentially subjective. Such
speech acts include, apologizing, welcoming, thank, congratulate, condole,
deplore, and sympathizing and others. Examples: “ Well done, Mary!” or “I
NOTES congratulate you on winning the race.” (Searle)
(e) Declaratives: In these speech acts, the external situation of the world are
brought forward through utterances. For example: “I declare this bridge to be
opened.” (Searle, 1979).
7.2.7 Direct and Indirect Speech Acts
In general, it is thought that in English language, there are three basic sentence types
(declarative, interrogative, imperative) which provide a fairly simple structural distinction
between three general types of speech acts - statement, question, command or request.
For example:
• “Satya owns a big shop.” (Declarative): A declarative is used to make a statement.
• “What do you like to have for dinner?” (Interrogative): An interrogative is used
to ask a question.
• “Come on, Rani, have another samosa!” (Imperative): An imperative is used to
issuing a command or making a request.
It can be said that when there is a direct relationship between a structure and a function,
it is a direct speech act. For example, when a question (interrogative) is asked for the
sake of asking question then it is Direct Speech Act. But, when an interrogative is
asked to request something then it can be called an Indirect Speech Act. For example,
when someone says “Will you close the door?” It is an indirect speech as through an
interrogative, the person is requesting (doing an imperative function).
In other words, it can be said that a direct speech act has only one function,
whereas an indirect speech act performs more than one function simultaneously. In
indirect speech acts, one performs one illocutionary act while indirectly by way of
performing a direct one. Indirect speech acts are cases in which one says one thing
and means what he says and also means another illocution with a different propositional
content. An indirect speech act is an utterance whose literal meaning is necessary but
not enough to convey its full import. The meaning of a Direct Speech Act is more or
less encoded in the literal meaning of utterance, whereas an Indirect Speech Act has
an implied meaning.
7.2.8 Cooperative Principle
Language is sometimes used to converse with oneself, but language is of more importance
to use in its societal use, in the sense that it is mostly through language that we
communicate with each other. And when we communicate there are certain codes that
we have to follow to make our communication understandable to each other. Grice
has written:
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Our talk exchanges do not normally consist of a succession of disconnected
156 Material remarks, and would not be rational if they did. They are characteristically, to some
degree at least, of cooperative efforts, and each participant recognizes in them, to Speech Act Theory and
Discourse Analysis
some extent, a common purpose or set of purposes, or at least a mutually accepted
direction.
According to Grice, when the speakers or participants are getting involved in a
NOTES
particular conversation then there has to be a direction of the whole conversation.
Otherwise, different people will carry on saying different things though they will not to
conversing with each other as they will be talking about disconnected things which will
not make sense to each other. It is true that parole is important but the parole should
refer to the Langue all the times, otherwise, the parole will remain senseless to other
participants. Therefore, whenever a conversation is happening we have to always
respect certain rules about it to make it a successful one. It is termed by Grice as
Cooperative Principle, in which he proposed four Maxims or rules of conversation.
Acting in accordance with these Maxims will, according to Grice, yield results consistent
with the Cooperative Principle. The Maxims are the following:
(i) Maxim of Quantity
(ii) Maxim of Quality
(iii) Maxim of Relevance
(iv) Maxim Of Manner
By Maxim of Quantity what Grice meant was the information that we provide
in the process of a conversation. According to Grice, we should neither provide nor
contribute more information than what is needed for the current conversation, nor
should we provide less information that what is needed for a successful conversation.
Maxim of Quality is that ethical part of the conversation where we should nether
say what we believe to be false and neither should we say something about which we
lack adequate evidence. In other words, we should always base our statements on
evidence and should not say something just because we think it can be like that.
The Maxim of Relevance refers to the fact that when we are conversing we
should keep in mind never to speak anything that is not a part of the conversation. In
other words, we should be relevant and to the point so that the conversation becomes
a meaningful one.
By Maxim of Manner, Grice meant that we should avoid obscurity of
expression, avoid ambiguity and be brief and orderly, that is, we should be short,
systematic and simple in our expressions so that the person in front of us gets the thing
directly and has no problem in comprehending whatever the other person is saying.
Grice’s four maxims are absolutely related to common sense. Most of the times,
when we are in a conversation, we usually keep in mind all these four factors. And
when we do not keep it in mind, we are usually either not able to converse or the
conversation ends in a misunderstanding among the participants. Let us take an example
to illustrate how the four maxim works in a conversation.
We are assuming that two friends Sachin and Saurav are meeting after a long
time, and we are trying to form two set of dialogues which can happen between them,
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them.
Speech Act Theory and Sachin and Saurav following the four Maxims
Discourse Analysis
Sachin – Hi, what’s up? Where were you so many days?
Saurav – Hello, I was in Bombay. What about you. How are you doing?
NOTES Sachin – I am doing well and presently working in a call centre in Gurgaon, and what
about you?
Saurav – I was working in an Ad Agency in Bombay. Left it and I am searching for a
job here.
Sachin – Ok. Take my Number – 98282367348. Be in contact. I am in a hurry now.
Have to go. Do drop in to my place in the weekend.
Saurav – Surely, I will. See you then. Take care.
Sachin – Take care, bye.
Saurav – Bye.
Sachin and Saurav not following the Four Maxims
Sachin – . Hi, what’s up? Where were you so many days?
Saurav – Hi. I was not in Delhi.
Sachin – How are you doing?
Saurav – Do you know any Ad Agency here?
Sachin – No. why?
Saurav – forget it.
Sachin – Let’s go to have a coffee?
Saurav – where are you staying?
Sachin – (Feeling Disgusted) near by. I am in hurry. See you. Bye.
Saurav – Bye.
In the first case, Sachin and Saurav, though they have met after a long time, they kept
the four maxims of conversation in mind while speaking to each other. They provided
the exact information while talking; neither more than what is necessary, nor less. They
neither said anything false and whatever they were saying were irrelevant. In the second
case, their conversation was lacking the four maxims and therefore, it ended in a way
where though they met after a long time, still there was coldness in their relationship.
In the second case, Sachin was trying his best to get the conversation going in a
particular direction, but Saurav’s manner of speaking made him so bored with the
whole conversation that he left it and went without ever having the intention to meet
this person any more.
In the first case, we do find out as the conversation was well struck with the four
Maxims therefore they decide again to meet in the weekend.
Thus, we can say that though what Grice says in the four Maxims are the common
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158 Material note.
7.2.5 Conversational Implicature Speech Act Theory and
Discourse Analysis
Grice also formulated the theory of “conversational implicature” which focuses on the
implied meaning in an utterance. According to Grice, when the speaker flouts the co-
operative principles, it can lead to the listeners taking out the hidden meaning from the NOTES
utterance. Therefore, he suggested that speakers use implicatures to convey the implied
meaning which is known as conversational implicature. The different types of
implicatures are the following:
• Generalized Conversational Implicature: Generalized Conversational
Implicature “arise irrespective of the context in which they occur” in the sense
that in all contexts the meaning remains almost same.
• Particularized Conversational Implicature: Particularized Conversational
implicature is “derived not from the utterance alone, but from the utterance in
context.” For example, if someone says “We won” – The meaning is only clear
in a particular context as a particular game is won.
• Scalar Implicature: In a scalar implicature “certain information is always
communicated by choosing a word which expresses one value from a scale of
value.” (Yule). For example, if someone says “I had some food” – Some refers
to a particular amount in the scale.
• Conventional Implicature: Conventional implicature is “associated with specific
words and results in additional conveyed meaning when these words are used”
(Yule). For example, if someone says “Even Johar had coffee” – the word even
is of significance as it suggests that it was an unusual case.
7.2.6 Cohesion and Coherence
The term ‘Cohesion’ refers to that, which relates to the grammar of texts. Cohesion is
what makes the words and sentences of a text stick together as a whole. Without
cohesion, a text is disjointed and dull. There are four ways of giving a text cohesion.
(i) Referential cohesion: I spoke with Jim and he invited me to visit him.
(ii) Conjunctive cohesion: He was at home when I arrived.
(iii) Elliptical cohesion: Kitty was doing well, and so was Krish.
(iv) Lexical cohesion: We all ate a good meal.
Let us discuss these briefly.
1. Referential cohesion means using pronouns or determiners to refer to the
known nouns in a text.
For example, Madhuri is one of the best students in the college, whose desire to
live a comfortable life, took her, into a very posh area where her parents found
it difficult to live.
In the above passage, her is used to refer to Madhuri instead of using the name
‘Madhuri’ again.
Let us consider the following and try how cohesion is achieved. Self-Instructional
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Speech Act Theory and Melissa Jafer: My grand mother, sister and I had permanent bookings at the
Discourse Analysis
Star Theatre. We used to go to confession at St. Ignatius Church, then we go to
the Star Theatre.
Mr. Jones: After several years, as she approached another renewal of her rows,
NOTES
Melissa was called to an interview with a French Priest.
2. Conjunctive cohesion means using conjunctions to bind the parts of a text
together.
Example: This book should be read almost as though it were science fiction.
But it is not science fiction, it is science chiche or not ‘stranger than fiction’
expresses exactly how I feel about the truth.
One of my hopes is that I may have some success in astonishing others.
In the above passage, the underlined units or words are conjunctions or cohesive
devices that bind the parts of the text together (but, or, than,how, that).
3. Elliptical cohesion: This means using ellipsis (the omission of a word or words
and relying on the reader’s minds to fill in the missing bits from what they have
read or heard before.
Raju looked back and (he) saw his parents. They were very happy and he was
(happy) as well. They were strolling along and she was (strolling along) too.
Do you think they got there on time? Yes, I do (think they got there on time).
In the above text, the words/phrases marked in brackets can be omitted and
the text can be written without them. The text will read well.
4. Lexical cohesion: This means using the lexicon – the words of a text to give
the text unity. There are four varieties of lexical confession.
(a) Repetition: Repeating the same word or words.
e.g. Play, Play, Play, that’s all you seem to do.
(b) Synonymy: (using words with a similar meaning)
e.g. I saw this large dog, you know, it’s really huge.
(c) Antonymy: (using words with an opposite meaning)
e.g. Get educated! You can’t stay always ignorant.
(d) Collocation: (using words that go with each other)
e.g. My friend did me a great favour last week.
Let us consider the following text and see how cohesive the text is built (The sentences
are marked 1………….6)
1. I have, myself, full confidence that if all do their duty, if nothing is neglected, we
shall prove ourselves, once again able to defend our island home, to ride out the
storm of war and to outlive them menace of tyranny, if necessary for years, if
necessary alone.
2. We shall not flag or fail, we shall go on to the end.
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 3. We shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air. Speech Act Theory and
Discourse Analysis
4. We shall defend our island whatever the cost may be.
5. We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall
fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills, we shall never NOTES
surrender.
(Churchill, Winston, in the British Parliament, 1940)
As we know, referential cohesion means the use of pronouns and determine to
bind a text together.
(a) Use of personal pronouns: I, Myself, ourselves, we (1-5)
(b) Indefinite pronoun: Nothing (1)
(c) Determiners: All, their (1)
The (1,2,3,4,5): our (1,4)
Conjunctive cohesion: If, (1); and (1,3,5) of (1), whatever (4)
Elliptical cohesion: the bracketed words one omitted (we shall prove ourselves
once again from the text) to ride out the storms of war (1) (we shall prove
ourselves once again able) to outlive the menace of tyranny (1) in the streets (5)
(we shall fight) in the streets (5)
Lexical confession
(a) Repetition: If necessary (1) confidence (1,3) defend (1,4) we shall (1-5) growing
(3) we shall fight (5) our island(4)
(b) Synonymy: ride out/outlive (1) storm/menace (1) flag/fail (2) beaches/landing
grounds (5) go on to the end/never surrender (2,5)
(d) Antonymy: duty/neglected (1) field/streets (5) fight/surrender (5)
(d) Collocation: War, menace, tyranny, defend, lost, fight, landing grounds surrender
(1-5)
7.2.7 Turn-Taking
During the conversation, the individuals interacting usually take turns to make the
conversation smoother. If everyone tries to speak at the same time, then no common
sense will be left in the conversation, as it will only make way for confusion. So in
general, in human communication, people take turn to speak which is usually decided
by the intention of the speaker. When the first speaker is on the verge of completion,
the second speaker take up the conversation and as the second is about to end, the
first reacts or the third person takes up. Thus, for smoother conversation, it is essential
that we take turns to speak and when someone is speaking; we are silent and yet show
our interest and attention to the speaker by listening.
7.2.8 Adjacency Pair
Adjacency pair is the pair of utterances that generally come together, for example:
Self-Instructional
• ‘question-answer’, Material 161
Speech Act Theory and • ‘offer-acceptance’,
Discourse Analysis
• ‘greeting-greeting’ etc.
Whenever there is a question, the answer follows or it may be a questioning of the
NOTES question which is also a response. When an offer is made, the offer is only successful
when it is accepted. Similarly, when we greet someone, other person greets back.
Therefore, Malcolm Coulthard comments that “adjacency pairs are normative structure,
the second part ought to occur, and thus the other sequences are inserted between the
first pair part that has occurred and the second pair part that is anticipated.”

Check Your Progress

1. State one difference between semantics and pragmatics.
2. What are performatives and constatives?
3. Name the four major types of felicity conditions as propounded by J. R. Searle.

7.3 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

QUESTIONS

1. The semantic meaning will not change depending on the context or the situation,
whereas the pragmatic meaning may change with the context.
2. Performatives are utterances that are used to do thing or perform acts.
Constatives are utterances that are employed to make assertions or statements.
3. The four major types of felicity conditions as propounded by J. R. Searle are
the following:
(i) Propositional Content Condition
(ii) Preparatory Condition
(iii) Sincerity Condition
(iv) Essential Condition

7.4 SUMMARY

• The terms “Semantics” and “Pragmatics” – both deal with the process of
signification; while Semantics deals with signification in the abstract order,
Pragmatics is signification in a particular context.
• In other words, the semantic meaning will not change depending on the context
or the situation, where as the pragmatic meaning may change with the context –
while semantics is not situational; pragmatics is situational in signification.
• J. L. Austin’s How to Do Thing with Words (1962) deals with his theory of
Speech Acts.
Self-Instructional
• Austin defined the performatives to be defined in an organized grammatical
162 Material manner and thus, he endeavoured to do so in his Speech Theory.
 • According to Speech Acts Theory, whereas constatives can be judged as true Speech Act Theory and
Discourse Analysis
or false, performatives can be felicitous or infelicitious depending on the conditions
in which they are uttered.
• J. R. Searle also worked on the felicity conditions and divided them into four
NOTES
major types “depending on how they specify propositional content, preparatory
conditions, conditions of sincerity and the existential condition.”
• J.R. Searle classified the speech act verbs and grouped the different illocutionary
acts into five basic types, which can be thought to be a modified form of Austin’s
classification.
• It can be said that when there is a direct relationship between a structure and a
function, it is a direct speech act.
• Language is sometimes used to converse with oneself, but language is of more
importance to use in its societal use, in the sense that it is mostly through language
that we communicate with each other.
• Grice also formulated the theory of “conversational implicature” which focuses
on the implied meaning in an utterance.
• The term ‘Cohesion’ refers to that, which relates to the grammar of texts.
Cohesion is what makes the words and sentences of a text stick together as a
whole. Without cohesion, a text is disjointed and dull.
• During the conversation, the individuals interacting usually take turns to make
the conversation smoother. If everyone tries to speak at the same time, then no
common sense will be left in the conversation, as it will only make way for
confusion.

7.5 KEY WORDS

• Perlocutionary acts: They consists of the production of effects on the feeling,

thought, actions of someone, and includes things like informing, or boring or
irritating, or convincing, or alarming the listener.
• Expressives: These are speech acts where the speaker expresses his or her
feelings or the psychological state which is essentially subjective.
• Cohesion: It is what makes the words and sentences of a text stick together as
a whole.

7.6 SELF ASSEESMENT QUESTIONS AND

EXERCISES

Short-Answer Questions
1. What is the difference between locutionary acts and illocutionary acts?
2. Write a short note on Austin’s Typology of Speech Acts. Self-Instructional
Material 163
Speech Act Theory and 3. What are direct and indirect speech acts in the English language?
Discourse Analysis
4. Briefly mention the major maxims covered under the cooperative principles as
mentioned by Grice.
NOTES 5. Write short notes on the following:
(a) Turn-taking (b) Adjacency pair
Long-Answer Questions
1. Explain the differences between semantics and pragmatics with the help of
examples in the English language.
2. ‘Violations of the felicity conditions can lead to the performative being unhappy
of infelicitous.’ Explain with the help of examples.
3. Discuss Searle’s Typology of Speech Acts.
4. Analyse the different types of conversational implicatures.
5. Give examples of the use of cohesion and coherence in the English language.

7.7 FURTHER READINGS

Cutting, Joan. 2015. Pragmatics: A Resource Book for Students (3rd Edition). India:
Routledge.
Syal, Pushpinder and D Jindal. V. 2001. An Introduction to Linguistics: Language
Grammar and. Semantics. India: Prentice Hall of India.
Thakur, Damodar. 1998. Linguistics Simplified: Syntax. India: Bharati Bhawan.
Verma and Krishnaswamy. 1989. Modern Linguistics: An Introduction. Oxford:
Oxford University Press.
Chomsky, Noam. 2000. New Horizons in the Study of Language and Mind. India:
Cambridge University Press.

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 Syntax: Phrases

UNIT 8 SYNTAX: PHRASES and Clauses

AND CLAUSES
NOTES
Structure
8.0 Introduction
8.1 Objectives
8.2 Syntax
8.2.1 Words
8.2.2 Phrases
8.2.3 Determiner
8.2.4 Modification
8.2.5 Adverb Phrase
8.2.6 Sentence Patterns
8.2.7 Clauses
8.3 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
8.4 Summary
8.5 Key Words
8.6 Self Asseesment Questions and Exercises
8.7 Further Readings

8.0 INTRODUCTION

It is extremely vital to arrange words in a proper manner while speaking and writing
English. There are a set of rules which determine the arrangement of words in a
sentence and this is known as syntax. In addition to diction, syntax plays a vital role in
the process of writing English. The term syntax encompasses the use of words, phrases,
clauses and punctuation to form sentences. When a writer adheres to the rules of
syntax, it gives the impression that the writer is capable of writing and speaking English
in a proper manner. In this unit, you will study about the significance of syntax and the
various elements which form a part of syntax in English language.

8.1 OBJECTIVES

After going through this unit, you will be able to:

• Examine the use of syntax in the English language
• Explain the classification of phrases
• Give examples of the use of determiners
• Discuss the classification of clauses

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Syntax: Phrases
and Clauses 8.2 SYNTAX

Syntax can be referred to as being the set of rules that govern the use of words, how
NOTES they are combined to form clauses, phrases or even full sentences. The term syntax
also deals with the manner in which sentences are formed, and include the rules that
describe or govern how those sentences are formed. Traditionally, the word syntax
was often referred to as grammar, perhaps because they contained the set of rules that
govern the use of words. However, it must be clearly understood that syntax is distinctive
from grammar.
The word grammar is to be used in a wider and broader way to cover the study
of languages and the way those languages are used both in speech and in the written
form. In traditional grammars, syntax provides two parts to a sentence, mainly the
subject and the predicate. The subject usually is placed at the beginning of the sentence,
followed by the predicate. The subject is normally the part that is being talked about,
or described, as being involved in some activity. The predicate, by contrast, is the part
of the sentence that tells people what the subject is doing, the activity that the subject
is being involved in. Traditionally, English and other languages define sentences into
subject and predicate. When the subject is placed at the beginning of the sentence,
followed by the predicate, the sentence is referred to as conveying direct speech.
However, there may be occasions when the reverse may be the case. That is to say,
the predicate may be placed at the beginning of the sentence followed by the subject.
When this happens, the sentence may be considered to be conveying indirect speech.
Teachers of English grammar across schools in Europe and Asia often require their
students to convert sentences from the direct to the indirect speech or from the indirect
to the direct speech. This activity is apart of their assignments and formative assessments
and is intended to test the knowledge of the students of the language itself, and the
rules that govern the use of words and sentences within that language. The subject of
a sentence may be a noun, a pronoun or even a complete phrase that contains a noun
or a pronoun. The predicate of a sentence may be said to contain the verb or the
object, or a phrase containing the verb or the object. These words are also described
as the doing words.
In contemporary grammars however, the placement of words is not deemed to
follow any fixed pattern or rule. The emphasis of contemporary grammars is more on
conveying meaning or communicating something of vital importance. The problem
with sing traditional grammars, on the other hand, is that there is a great deal of emphasis
on the correct formation of the sentences, or on the correct use of the words, rather
than on conveying or communicating the intended meaning or substance of vital
importance.
Therefore, the actual meaning, or perhaps even the urgency of a situation or
event unfolding, may be lost in adhering to the rules of the grammars. This is probably
the reason why traditional grammars across the world are slowly going out of fashion,
or are not being used as much.
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 Since the Renaissance period, in fact, traditional grammars have been fading in Syntax: Phrases
and Clauses
and out of importance and usage. This is perhaps because people are becoming more
aware of the fact that language is to be used to communicate and convey thoughts,
feelings and emotions, and so the emphasis needs to be less on adhering to the syntax,
or the set of rules that demand that the words within a language need to be said just so, NOTES
in the context and pattern that they had been prescribed for. We are living now in the
21st century, when language needs to be more flexible, and grammars need to be
more tolerant in the manner words are placed, the pattern they follow, and the roles
they play within those sentences.
8.2.1 Words
We use words to speak or write. These words are generally used in groups.
For example, Jack and Jill went up the hill. Such a group of words which makes
complete sense is called a sentence. It can be of four types:
(a) Declarative or assertive as in The boy kicked the ball.
(b) Interrogative as in Who kicked the ball?
(c) Imperative as in Kick the ball.
(d) Exclamatory as in Hurrah! He kicked the ball.
When we make a sentence, we name some person or thing and say something
about that person or thing.
For example, Ram kicked the ball.
Here, Ram is the person who is named and kicked the ball is what is said about
Ram.
Hence, Ram is the subject and what is said about him, kicked the ball, is the
predicate. Every sentence thus, has a subject and a predicate.
8.2.2 Phrases
A phrase is a group of words which makes sense but not complete sense.
For example:
• Jack and Jill went up the hill.
• Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall.
Examples of Phrases
There are hundreds of phrases in the English language. Below are some commonly
used phrases:
1. Point-blank: To say something directly or rudely, without explaining or apologizing.
Example: The company owner told the workers point-blank that their demands
could not be met.

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Syntax: Phrases 2. So-so: Not very satisfactory.
and Clauses
Example: My new job is so-so but I cannot afford to
give it up.
NOTES 3. Chit-chat: Small talk or unimportant conversation.
Example: The boss asked them to stop their chit-chat and get on with their work.
4. See-saw: Something that goes up and down.
Example: The Indian rupee has been see-sawing for the last one year.
5. Black-and-white: Something which is extremely clear.
Example: The employees have been told in black-and-white that they have to deliver
or quit.
5. Dos and don’ts: The rules.
Example: A good driver always follows the do’s and don’ts of driving.
6. Haves and have-nots: Those who are rich and those who are not.
Example: In India, there is a wide gap between the haves and have-nots of the
population.
7. Ins and outs: The details.
Example: As I don’t know the ins and outs of the situation, I can’t really comment on
it.
8. Pros and cons: Advantages and disadvantages.
Example: One must consider all the pros and cons before buying a new car.
9. Tried and tested: Something which has been well-tested.
Example: Drinking green tea is a tried and tested way of improving the digestion.
10. Ups and downs: Very good times and very bad times.
Example: He has had a lot of ups and downs in his business.
11. Flesh and blood: One’s close family.
Example: You must help your brother – after all, he’s your flesh and blood.
12. By and large: Generally.
Example: By and large, people prefer quality products to low prices.
13. Dead and buried: Something that is not going to happen again.
Example: Their long dispute is now dead and buried.
14. Wine and dine: To entertain someone lavishly.
Example: The Chopras are known for wining and dining their guests.
15. Bread and butter: The main source of income, or the most important issue.
Example: Making shoes was the poor shoemaker’s bread and butter.
16.Spick and span: Very clean and tidy.
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168 Material Example: Mrs Khanna’s house is always spick and span.
17. A bit much: Something that is excessive or annoying. Syntax: Phrases
and Clauses
Example: All that violence in today’s movies is a bit much.
18. Bad egg: A person who cannot be trusted.
Example: Don’t hire that man – he is a bad egg. NOTES
19. Behind bars: To be in prison.
Example: Corrupt people find themselves behind bars one day.
Every language has a basic sentence pattern. In the English language, the basic
sentence pattern is Subject – Verb – Object (SVO). For example, in the sentence,
The boy broke the pen, the boy is the subject, broke is the verb and the pen is the
object.
Noun Phrase (NP)
In keeping with the SVO pattern, every sentence in the English language has a Noun
Phrase (NP) and a Verb Phrase (VP). The NP can have a wide range of grammatical
constituents which can also be represented with the help of a tree diagram. For example:
(i) NP – Noun (Ram)
NP
↓
Noun
↓
Ram
(ii) NP – Article + Noun (A girl)

NP (Noun Phrase)

Article Noun

A Girl
(iii) NP – Determiner + Noun (The girl)

NP (Noun Phrase)

Determiner Noun

The Girl
(iv) NP – Article + Adjective + Noun (A beautiful girl)

NP (Noun Phrase)

Article Adjective Noun

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A Beautiful Girl
Syntax: Phrases (v) NP – Determiner + Adjective + Noun (The beautiful girl)
and Clauses

NP (Noun Phrase)

NOTES
Determiner Adjective Noun

The Beautiful Girl

(vi) NP – Pronoun (He)
NP (Noun Phrase)
↓
Pronoun
↓
He
8.2.3 Determiner
A determiner is a noun-modifier that shows the reference of a noun or noun-phrase
in the context, rather than attributes expressed by adjectives. This function is usually
performed by articles, demonstratives, possessive determiners or quantifiers.
Determiners are independent words that precede the rest of the noun phrase. In
other languages, determiners are prefixed or suffixed to the noun, or even change the
noun’s form. For example, in Swedish bok book’, when definite, becomes boken ‘the
book’ (suffixed definite articles are common in Scandinavian languages), while in
Romanian caiet ‘notebook’ becomes caietul “the notebook”.
Some constructions, such as those that use names of school subjects don’t use
a determiner. This condition is called the ‘zero determiner’. The determiner function is
usually carried out by the determiner class of words but can also be filled by words
from other entities.
1. Basic determiners are words from the determiner class (for example, the
girl, those pencils) or determiner phrases (e.g. almost all employees, more
than two problems)
2. Subject determiners are possessive noun phrases (for example, his daughter,
the boy’s friend)
3. Minor determiners are simple noun phrases (for example, what colour curtain,
this size shoes) and prepositional phrases (under twenty meters, up to twelve
people).
A determiner establishes the reference of a noun or noun-phrase, including
quantity, rather than its attributes as expressed by adjectives. Despite this tendency,
determiners have a variety of functions in English such as being modifiers in adjective
phrases and determiner phrases, and even markers of coordination.
This word class, or part of speech, exists in many languages, including English,
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170 Material
 Determiners usually include articles, demonstratives, possessive determiners, Syntax: Phrases
and Clauses
quantifiers, and cardinal numbers depending on the language. Determiners form a closed
class of words that number about 50 (not counting the cardinal numerals) and include:
Alternative determiners: another, other, somebody else, different
NOTES
• Articles: a, an, the
• Cardinal numbers: zero, one, two, fifty, infinite, etc.
• Degree determiners: many, much, few, little, couple, several, most
• Demonstratives: this, that, these, those, which
• Disjunctive determiners: either, neither
• Distributive determiners: each, every
• Elective determiners: any, either, whichever
• Equative determiners: the same
• Evaluative determiners: such, that, so
• Exclamative determiners: what lovely hair!
• Existential determiners: some, any
• Interrogative and relative determiners: which, what, whichever, whatever
• Mutual determiners: a lot of, many, several, much
• Negative determiners: no, neither
• Personal determiners: we students, you guys
• Possessive determiners: my, mine their, your etc.
• Quantifiers: all, few, many etc.
• Sufficiency determiners: enough, sufficient, plenty
• Uniquitive determiners: the only
• Universal determiners: all, both
All of these determiners can be grouped under the following two categories:
• Definite determiners: These determiners refer back to a specific already-
established entity. (cardinals, demonstratives, equatives, evaluatives,
exclamatives, relatives, personals, possessives, uniquitives)
• Indefinite determiners: These determiners broaden their referent to one not
previously mentioned, otherwise newly introduced into discourse. (disjunctives,
electives, existentials, interrogatives, negatives, universals)
• Determiners as Different From Adjectives
According to traditional English grammar, adjectives were called as determiners. There
are, however, a number of key differences between determiners and adjectives. In
English, articles, demonstratives, and possessive determiners cannot co-occur in the
same phrase, while any number of adjectives are typically allowed.
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Syntax: Phrases Example: A huge red Italian hat
and Clauses
1. Most determiners cannot occur alone in predicative complement position but
most adjectives can.
NOTES Example: The worker is joyful.
2. Most determiners are not gradable while adjectives typically are.
Example: small, smaller, smallest
3. Some determiners have corresponding pronouns, while adjectives don’t.
Example: Everybody likes something unique.
4. Adjectives can modify singular or plural nouns, while some determiners can
only modify one or the other.
Determiners as Different from Pronouns
Determiners such as this, all, some etc., can often occur without a noun. In traditional
grammar, these are called pronouns. There are, however, a number of key differences
between such determiners and pronouns which are as follows:
1. Pronouns may occur in tag questions. Determiners cannot.
Example: This is beautiful, isn’t it?
2. In phrasal verbs, pronouns must appear between the verb and the particle.
Determiners may occur after the particle.
Example: break it down
pick up this
3. All pronouns have distinct possessive forms while determiners do not.
Example: This is hers/mine/theirs
This is all’s
8.2.4 Modification

Verb Phrase
We have established that a sentence consists of a Noun Phrase (NP) and a Verb
Phrase
(VP): S – NP + VP
The constituents of the Noun Phrase have been discussed. Let us now discuss the
modifications of the Verb Phrase.
Verb Phrase (VP) – Verb + Noun Phrase (NP)
Or
VP – Verb + NP
VP – Verb + Determiner + Noun
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 Verbs form the second largest word forms after nouns. They denote action and Syntax: Phrases
and Clauses
are therefore, also called action words. For example, walk, climb, talk, sing etc. Verbs
have three grammatical types – lexical, auxiliary and modal.
Lexical verbs form an open class and include most verbs like run, eat, breathe
NOTES
etc.
Auxiliary verbs form a closed class and consist of words like be, do and have.
The main function of auxiliary verbs is to add information to other lexical verbs. Modal
verbs consist of words like can, could, shall, should, will, would, must, may, might etc.
They add information to lexical verbs about degrees of certainty and necessity.
A verb phrase contains the following optional features:
• A modal verb (e.g., will)
• The verb have to express perfect aspect (created by the auxiliary “have”
and the “-ed” participle form of the lexical verb referring to a time period
that
• includes the present moment). For example, He might have walked home
today.
• The verb be to express progressive aspect (referring to uncompleted action
and consists of the auxiliary be form and the -ing form of the lexical verb).
For example, are going.
• The verb be to express passive voice (formed with the auxiliary “be” and
the “-ed” participle form of the lexical verb). For example, She was criticized
by her friends.
The modal comes first followed by the auxiliary or several auxiliaries and finally
the lexical (main) verb. A verb phrase which is a combination of modals and auxiliaries
is structured usually in the following order: modal verb >> perfect have >> progressive
be >> passive be >> Lexical verb. Whichever verbs are used in the verb phrase, the
first verb is conjugated for tense, person and number.
Adjective Phrase
An adjective is a word that describes or qualifies a noun/pronoun. An adjective phrase
can consist of:
A single adjective – The girl is beautiful.
An adjective which has been modified by an adverb phrase – The girl is truly
beautiful.
An adjective which has been complemented by a prepositional phrase – The girl is
beautiful to look at.
For example:
• Adjectives of quality describe the noun, for example, small, good, honest,
clever, pretty, thin, etc.
• Adjectives of quantity answer the question ‘how much’” They are used with Self-Instructional
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uncountable nouns, for example, much, little, some, all, any, whole, sufficient, etc.
Syntax: Phrases • Adjectives of number answer the question ‘how many’?
and Clauses
• Demonstrative adjectives point out which person or thing is meant.
• Possessive adjectives show possession, for example, his, her, their, whose,
NOTES when, etc.
• Interrogative adjectives are used with nouns to ask questions, for example,
what, which, whose, etc.
The adjective phrase is a group of words, without a finite verb, which describes a
noun and functions like an adjective.
For example:
• The boy in the blue shirt is my brother.
• She wore a necklace made of pearls and rubies.
• Anita is a girl with a friendly nature.
In the above sentences, the three groups of words in bold describe the nouns boy,
necklace, and girl; so they are adjective phrases.
An adjective can sometimes be changed into an adjective phrase.
For example:
A village road — A road through the village
A blank page — A page with no writing on it
A silk dress — A dress made of silk
An intelligent man — A man of intelligence
A rich woman — A woman of wealth
A smiling face — A face with a smile on it
Some more examples of adjective phrases used in sentences are as follows.
• This book has stories about our freedom fighters.
• He is a student of great promise.
• He is a man of great courage.
• Only a person with plenty of money can afford to travel around the world.
• A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.
Care must be taken to place an adjective phrase next to the noun it describes, or you
may get absurd sentences.
For example:
The dog chased the man with the curly tail.
The chair was sold by the man with a broken seat.
The two adjective phrases, with the curly tail and broken seat describe the dog and
the chair respectively, and so should have been placed next to the dog and the chair.
The correct sentences should read:
The dog with the curly tail chased the man.
Self-Instructional The chair with the broken seat was sold by the man.
174 Material
8.2.5 Adverb Phrase Syntax: Phrases
and Clauses
An adverb is a part of speech which modifies verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs.
Adverbs perform a wide range of functions and are particularly important for indicating
time, manner, place, degree, and frequency of an event, action, or process. An adverb NOTES
phrase can:
Act as an adverb in a sentence – She came home too suddenly.
Modify verbs – She talks too loudly.
Modify adjectives – She was so tired that she fell into a really deep sleep.
Modify adverbs – She fell very heavily.
For example:
• Harry worked hard. (Here, hard modifies the verb worked.)
• It is bitterly cold today. (Here, bitterly modifies the adjective cold.)
• They behaved rather noisily. (Here, rather modifies the verb noisily.)
In the above sentences hard, bitterly and rather are adverbs. An adverb phrase is a
group of words without a finite verb, which does the work of an adverb.
For example:
He spoke rudely; we can say, he spoke in a rude manner.
‘Rudely’ is an adverb and modifies the verb ‘spoke’. Similarly, ‘in a rude manner’
modifies the verb ‘spoke’. The only difference is that instead of a single word ‘rude’,
we have used a group of words to convey the same meaning.
Therefore, a group of words which does not include a finite verb and which does the
work of an adverb, is known as an adverb phrase.
Some examples of adverb phrases are as follows:
• next month
• in the morning
• at the end of this road
• with great care
• with great fury
• in a short period
Instead of using a single word, we are using a group of words to do the same thing,
that is, modify a verb.

Just as there are several types of adverbs, there are various types of adverb phrases.
For example:
• He searched all over the place for his keys. (Adverb phrases of place (shows
where)]
• We shall begin the journey soon after sunrise. [Adverb phrase of time (shows Self-Instructional
when)] Material 175
Syntax: Phrases • He spoke in a dignified manner. [Adverb phrase of manner (shows how)]
and Clauses
• Barking dogs seldom bite. [Adverb of frequency (shows how often)]
• I am almost ready. [Adverb of degree or quantity (shows how much or to
NOTES what degree)]
• I do not like milk. [Adverb phrase of assertion (shows affirmation or negation)]
• When will he return? [Interrogative adverb (used to ask questions)]
• She was, hence, given a punishment. [Adverb of reason (shows case or reason)]
An adverb phrase, like an adverb, can also modify an adjective or an adverb.
For example:
• Fruit is good for health. (‘for health’ modifies the adjective ‘good;.)
• He spoke well on the whole. (‘On the whole’ modifies the adverb ‘well’.)
• He came yesterday, late in the evening. (‘Late in the evening’ modifies the
adverb ‘yesterday’)
Some Important Adverbial Phrases
1. Above all—most important of all. Send to me all these things and above all
don’t forget to wire me.
2. After all—whatever may be against it. You must help him in his distress ;
after all, he is your own brother.
3. As it were—in other words ; speaking metaphorically. After a meeting with
his beloved, he was, as it were, flying in the air.
4. Again and again, over and over again, time and again—repeatedly, often.
I dialled his number again and again but every time I found his telephone
engaged.
5. At large—unconfined. The murderer is still at large and the police are hotly
after him.
6. Above board—honest and unconcealed. His conduct has been entirely above
board and your criticism of him is quite unjustified.
7. At the eleventh hour—at the last moment. He was coming with us but at
the eleventh hour he changed his mind.
8. At any rate, at all events—whatever may happen. In this matter, you must
help your friend at any rate.
9. At a stretch—continuously. Yesterday, I worked for ten hours at a stretch.
10. By and by—after a little while soon. Don’t be impatient, you will come to
know everything by and by
11. Before long—in a short time. Please be seated: I’ll be here before long.
12. By the by or way—incidentally. Yes, I’ll come to you tomorrow. By the way,
my brother has come back from England.
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 13. Few and far between—rare, scarce. Even though he lives in the same city, his Syntax: Phrases
and Clauses
visits to us are few and far between. My holidays are few and far between.
14. Far and away, out and out—beyond all comparison. Murty is far and away
the best player in the team.
NOTES
15. Far and near or wide—in all directions. Soon the news spread far and
wide.
Prepositional Phrase
A preposition is a word which shows the relation between persons or things mentioned
in a sentence. A prepositional phrase is formed when a preposition combines with its
complement. For example:
They are related to one another.
The mouse fell into the well.
A comprehensive list of prepositional phrases combining with their specific
complements are as follows:
• at (a) high speed
• at (the) risk (of)
• at / by one’s side
• at / for a fraction of
• at / from the outset
• at / in the end
• at / on sight
• at a glance
• at a guess
• at a loose end
• at a loss
• at a low ebb
• at a moment’s notice
• at a price
• at a rate of
• at a speed of
• at a standstill
• at all costs
• at all events
• at an advantage
• at any cost
• at any rate
• at breakfast
• at ease (with)
• at face value
• at fault
• at full strength
• at hand Self-Instructional
Material 177
Syntax: Phrases • at heart
and Clauses
• at home (with)
• at issue
• at large
NOTES • at least
• at length
• at liberty
• at most
• at night
• at noon
• at odds with
• at once
• at one’s best
• at one’s discretion
• at one’s disposal
• at one’s leisure
• at one’s request
• at peace / war (with)
• at play
• at present
• at random
• at sea
• at the / in front of
• at the age of
• at the beginning
• at the expense of
• at the foot of
• at the hands of
• at the height of
• at the latest
• at the mercy of
• at the peak of
• at the same time
• at the thought of
• at the time of
• at the top of
• at this juncture
• at times
• at war with
• at work
• behind the scenes
• by (any) chance
• by / under the name of
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• by / with luck
178 Material • by accident
• by air /sea /land Syntax: Phrases
and Clauses
• by all accounts
• by all means
• by any standard
• by appointment NOTES
• by birth
• by check
• by coincidence
• by courtesy of
• by definition
• by degrees
• by design
• by dint of
• by far
• by force
• by hand
• by heart
• by law
• by marriage
• by means of
• by mistake
• by my watch
• by nature
• by no means
• by oneself
• by order of
• by process of
• by profession
• by reason of
• by request
• by rights
• by sight
• by surprise
• by the side of
• by virtue of
• by way of
• for / in a good cause
• for / to the benefit (of)
• for a (good) reason
• for a change
• for certain / sure
• for fear of
• for good
• for granted
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• for hire Material 179
Syntax: Phrases • for lack of
and Clauses
• for life
• for love
• for my / your, etc. part
NOTES • for real
• for the good of
• for the sake of
• for want of
• from experience
• from memory
• in (no) time
• in / at the forefront of
• in / on demand
• in / out of focus
• in / out of one’s element
• in / out of prison
• in / out of season
• in / out of stock
• in / out of touch (with)
• in / out of use
• in / with difficulty
• in / within sight (of)
• in a deep sleep
• in a flash
• in a heap
• in a hurry
• in a mess
• for certain / sure
• for fear of
• for good
• for granted
• for hire
• for lack of
• for life
• for love
• for my / your, etc. part
• for real
• for the good of
• for the sake of
• for want of
• from experience
• from memory
• in (no) time
• in / at the forefront of
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180 Material • in / on demand
• in / out of focus Syntax: Phrases
and Clauses
• in / out of one’s element
• in / out of prison
• in / out of season
• in / out of stock NOTES
• in / out of touch (with)
• in / out of use
• in / with difficulty
• in / within sight (of)
• in a deep sleep
• in a flash
• in a heap
• in a hurry
• in a mess
• in a pile
• in a sense
• in a temper
• in abeyance
• in abundance
• in accordance with
• in action
• in addition to
• in advance
• in agony
• in agreement with
• in aid of
• in all likelihood
• in an instant
• in an uproar
• in answer to
• in anticipation of
• in arrears
• in awe of
• in blossom
• in brief
• in bulk
• in cash
• in character
• in charge of
• in code
• in collaboration with
• in combination with
• in comfort
• in command of
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• in common Material 181
Syntax: Phrases • in comparison with
and Clauses
• in compensation for
• in conclusion
• in confidence
NOTES • in confinement
• in confusion
• in conjunction with
• in connection with
• in consequence of
• in contact with
• in contrast with / to
• in control of
• in convoy
• in custody
• in danger
• in debt
• in decline
• in defense of
• in detail
• in disgrace
• in disguise
• in disorder
• in dispute
• in distress
• in doubt
• in due course
• in duplicate
• in earnest
• in effect
• in error
• in essence
• in excess of
• in exchange for
• in existence
• in fact
• in fairness to
• in favor of
• in fear of
• in flames
• in flower
• in full
• in future
• in gear
Self-Instructional
• in general
182 Material • in good / bad condition
• in good faith Syntax: Phrases
and Clauses
• in hand
• in harmony (with)
• in haste
• in hiding NOTES
• in high spirits
• in honor of
• in horror (of)
• in ink / pencil
• in isolation
• in its infancy
• in jeopardy
• in its infancy
• in jeopardy
• in keeping with
• in labor
• in league with
• in length
• in line with
• in love with
• in memory of
• in mid-air
• in mind
• in moderation
• in mourning (for)
• in name
• in office
• in one’s absence / presence
• in one’s spare time
• in operation
• in opposition to
• in origin
• in other words
• in pain
• in Parliament
• in particular
• in person
• in pieces
• in place of
• in possession of
• in poverty
• in practice
• in preference to
• in preparation for
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• in principle Material 183
Syntax: Phrases • in private
and Clauses
• in progress
• in proportion to / with
• in public
NOTES • in pursuit of
• in quantity
• in question
• in reality
• in recognition of
• in relation to
• in reply to
• in reserve
• in residence
• in respect of
• in response to
• in retrospect
• in return
• in re venge for
• in reverse
• in ruins
• in safety
• in somebody’s interest
• in somebody’s opinion
• in search of
• in secret
• in self-defense
• in settlement of
• in short
• in silence
• in small change
• in store for
• in succession
• in support of
• in suspense
• in sympathy with
• in tears
• in terms of
• in terror
• in the absence of
• in the aftermath
• in the balance
• in the case of
• in the course of
• in the distance
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184 Material • in the event of
• in the extreme Syntax: Phrases
and Clauses
• in the eyes of
• in the flesh
• in the form of
• in the habit of NOTES
• in the interests of
• in the lead
• in the light of
• in the long run
• in the making
• in the meantime
• in the midst of
• in the mood for
• in the name of
• in the night
• in the open
• in the process of
• in the right
• in the seclusion of
• in the shade
• in the space of
• in the wake of
• in the way of
• in the wrong
• in theory
• in time for
• in times of
• in town
• in trouble
• in tune with
• in turmoil
• in turn
• in two minds
• in twos / threes / tens
• in uniform
• in unison
• in vain
• in view of
• in vogue
• in words
• of the opinion
• off / on duty
• off school
• off duty
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• off their rocker Material 185
Syntax: Phrases • off their meds
and Clauses
• on (the) watch (for)
• on / behind schedule
• on / off the record
NOTES • on / off the road
• on / under oath
• on / under pain of
• on /of the air
• on /off balance
• on a diet
• on a journey / trip / cruise
• on a large / small scale
• on a pension
• on a regular basis
• on a spree
• on account of
• on an expedition
• on an island
• on approval
• on average
• on bail
• on behalf of
• on board
• on business
• on condition that
• on credit
• on display
• on edge
• on end
• on file
• on fire
• on foot
• on good terms
• on guard
• on hand
• on horseback
• on impulse
• on leave
• on loan
• on no account
• on occasion
• on one’s (own) terms
• on one’s own
Self-Instructional
• on one’s own initiative
186 Material • on order
• on paper Syntax: Phrases
and Clauses
• on parade
• on patrol
• on principle
• on purpose NOTES
• on reflection
• on remand
• on sale
• on second thoughts
• on show
• on strike
• on suspicion of
• on the agenda
• on the assumption
• on the brink of
• on the dot
• on th e edge of
• on the eve of
• on the grounds of
• on the horizon
• on the hour
• on the increase
• on the job
• on the move
• on the off-chance
• on the outskirts
• on the part of
• on the phone
• on the point of
• on the run
• on the strength of
• on the stroke of
• on the tip of
• on the top of
• on the understanding that
• on the verge of
• on the way to
• on time
• on tiptoe
• on trial
• on vacation
• out of / in fashion
• out of / in print
• out of / in step
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• out of breath Material 187
Syntax: Phrases • out of context
and Clauses
• out of control
• out of curiosity / jealousy / love /hatred
• out of date
NOTES • out of doors
• out of duty
• out of hand • out of ideas
• out of one’s mind
• out of order
• out of pity
• out of place
• out of practice
• out of reach
• out of respect for
• out of sight
• out of spite
• out of stock
• out of the ordinary
• out of the question
• out of work
• through no fault of
• to / on the contrary
• to an extent
• to date
• to excess
• to one’s astonishment
• to one’s credit
• to one’s dismay
• to sb’s face
• to the / this day
• to the accompaniment of
• to the best of
• to the detriment of
• to the exclusion of
• to the full
• to the satisfaction of
• under / in the circumstances
• under age
• under arrest
• under consideration
• under construction
• under cover of
• under discussion
• under lock and key
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188 Material • under one’s protection
• under orders Syntax: Phrases
and Clauses
• under pressure
• under regulations
• under repair
• under strain NOTES
• under stress
• under suspicion
• under the command of
• under the impression that
• under the influence (of)
• under the misapprehension
• under treatment
• with / in reference to
• with / without success
• with a view to
• with an eye to
• with regard to
• with regret
• with respect to
• with the aid of
• with the compliments of
• with the exception of
• with the help of
• with the intention of
• within / out of earshot
• within / without reason within grasp
• within limits
• within one’s budget
• within one’s power
• within one’s rights
• within reach (of)
• within site
• within walking / striking distance
• without (a) doubt
• without a break
• without a hitch
• without delay
• without exception
• without fail
• without foundation
• without precedent
• without question
• without respite
• without warning Self-Instructional
Material 189
Syntax: Phrases 8.2.6 Sentence Patterns
and Clauses
In English, the Subject-Verb-Object pattern does not change even when we combine
several sentences into a single sentence. For example:
NOTES (a) The sculptor is skillful.
(b) The sculptor created the statue.
(c) The statue is beautiful.
All the three sentences are based on the subject-verb-object pattern. Let us combine
the three sentences:
The sculptor who is skillful created the statue which is beautiful.
In the above sentence, we have avoided the repetition of the word sculptor and
statue twice. Instead, we have used the words who and which, both of which
are pronouns.
When we represent this sentence with the help of a tree diagram, the complexity
of the sentence structure becomes clear though the sentence structure remains the
same, i.e, subject-verb-object.
The analysis of the above sentence shows that no matter how many sentences
and in whatever way sentences are combined into a single sentence in English, the
basic sentence structure is on the pattern of Subject-Verb-Object.
8.2.7 Clauses
A group of words which forms a part of a sentence and contains a subject and a
predicate is called a clause. For example: I think that the painting is beautiful.
Clauses are classified as:

(a) Independent clause - An independent clause is one which has a subject and a
predicate without any words or phrases that associate the function of that clause to
another clause. The independent clause includes relatively simple sentences. For
example:
My mother cooked my favourite dish.
I bought a red car.
(b) Dependent clause or Subordinate clause - A dependent or subordinate clause is
one which has a subject and a predicate with a word or phrase that associates the
function of that clause to another clause, causing the first clause to become dependent
upon the other clause for its greater meaning. Here, some words are added or even a
phrase that causes the entire clause to function in a broader sense, such as cause or
background. For example:
• Because it was my birthday, my mother cooked my favourite dish.
• Although I like red motorbikes, I bought a red car.
Subordinate clauses can be further classified as:
Self-Instructional • Noun clause
190 Material
 • Adjective clause Syntax: Phrases
and Clauses
• Adverb clause
Noun Clause
A noun clause is a clause that behaves like a noun. Noun clauses can perform different NOTES
functions in a sentence, such as:
a) the subject of a verb
b) the object of a verb
c) the complement of a verb
d) the object of a preposition
e) the apposition to a noun or pronoun
Examples of each type of noun clause are given as follows:
a) When a noun clause comes before a verb and answers the question:
What? – then the noun clause is the subject of a verb.
Example: What we eat and drink affects our health.
b) When a noun clause comes after a verb and answers the question: What?
– then the noun clause is the object of a verb.
Example: She told me she would go to the party.

Example: He has not decided yet which course to study.

c) When a noun clause comes directly after a verb and answers the question:
What? – then the noun clause is the complement of a verb.
Example: I don’t believe what he told us.
Example: She could not fully express what she felt.
d) When a noun clause comes directly after a preposition and answers the question:
What? – then the noun clause is the object of a preposition.
Example : The doctor told me to exercise daily.
Example: My brother is auditioning for a part in the new play.
e) When a noun clause tells us more about a noun or pronoun, then it is said to be the
apposition to a noun or pronoun. Such a noun clause is generally located
in the middle of a sentence.
Example: Mrs Sethi, our class-teacher, is a wonderful lady.
Example: Shahjahan, the Mughal emperor, loved art and beauty.
Adjective Clause
An adjective clause is a subordinate clause that behaves like an adjective, qualifying a
noun or pronoun in the sentence. Remember that an adjective clause always begins
with who, whom, whose, that, which, when, where, or why. Self-Instructional
Material 191
Syntax: Phrases Examples
and Clauses
• The paintings which are in the museum are under extreme security.
• The girl who won the contest is my best friend.
NOTES • The student whom the principal praised is the head boy.
• The mountains that you see in the distance are the Nilgiris.
Adverb Clause
An adverb clause is a subordinate clause that behaves like an adverb, qualifying a verb
in the sentence. Adverb clauses can be of nine types:
a) adverb clause of time
b) adverb clause of place
c) adverb clause of manner
d) adverb clause of result
e) adverb clause of reason
f) adverb clause of concession
g) adverb clause of purpose
h) adverb clause of condition
i) adverb clause of contrast or comparison
Examples of each type of adverb clause are given as follows:
a) Adverb clause of time
Example: Tell me when you will be ready.
b) Adverb clause of place
Example: Please put the books back where you found them.
c) Adverb clause of manner

Example: He behaves as if he owns the place.

d) Adverb clause of result
Example: The scene was so beautiful that we could not take our eyes off it.
e) Adverb clause of reason
Example: Since he was already late, he took a taxi.
f) Adverb clause of concession
Example: Although she eats well, she is unable to put on weight.
g) Adverb clause of purpose
Example: We must work hard so that we may progress fast.
h) Adverb clause of condition
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192 Material
Example: If the weather is fine on Saturday, we will go for a picnic. Syntax: Phrases
and Clauses
i) Adverb clause of contrast or comparison
Example: While Akram is good at acting, Asif is a great mimic.
NOTES
Check Your Progress
1. What are doing words?
2. Mention the four types of sentences.
3. What are indefinite determiners?
4. What is a prepositional phrase?

8.3 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

QUESTIONS

1. The subject of a sentence may be a noun, a pronoun or even a complete phrase

that contains a noun or a pronoun. The predicate of a sentence may be said to
contain the verb or the object, or a phrase containing the verb or the object.
These words are also described as the doing words.
2. The four types of sentences are the following:
(a) Declarative or assertive as in ‘The boy kicked the ball’.
(b) Interrogative as in ‘Who kicked the ball’?
(c) Imperative as in ‘Kick the ball’.
(d) Exclamatory as in ‘Hurrah! He kicked the ball’.
3. Indefinite determiners broaden their referent to one not previously mentioned,
otherwise newly introduced into discourse. (disjunctives, electives, existentials,
interrogatives, negatives, universals).
4. A prepositional phrase is formed when a preposition combines with its
complement. For example:
• They are related to one another.
• The mouse fell into the well.

8.4 SUMMARY
• Syntax can be referred to as being the set of rules that govern the use of words,
how they are combined to form clauses, phrases or even full sentences. The
term syntax also deals with the manner in which sentences are formed, and
include the rules that describe or govern how those sentences are formed.
• When the subject is placed at the beginning of the sentence, followed by the
predicate, the sentence is referred to as conveying direct speech. However,
there may be occasions when the reverse may be the case. Self-Instructional
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Syntax: Phrases • When the subject is placed at the beginning of the sentence, followed by the
and Clauses
predicate, the sentence is referred to as conveying direct speech. However,
there may be occasions when the reverse may be the case.
• In contemporary grammars however, the placement of words is not deemed to
NOTES follow any fixed pattern or rule. The emphasis of contemporary grammars is
more on conveying meaning or communicating something of vital importance.
• We use words to speak or write. These words are generally used in groups.
For example, Jack and Jill went up the hill. Such a group of words which makes
complete sense is called a sentence.
• Every language has a basic sentence pattern. In the English language, the basic
sentence pattern is Subject – Verb – Object (SVO). For example, in the sentence,
The boy broke the pen, the boy is the subject, broke is the verb and the pen is
the object.
• A determiner is a noun-modifier that shows the reference of a noun or noun-
phrase in the context, rather than attributes expressed by adjectives. This function
is usually performed by articles, demonstratives, possessive determiners or
quantifiers.
• The main function of auxiliary verbs is to add information to other lexical verbs.
Modal verbs consist of words like can, could, shall, should, will, would, must,
may, might etc. They add information to lexical verbs about degrees of certainty
and necessity.
• An adverb is a part of speech which modifies verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs.
Adverbs perform a wide range of functions and are particularly important for
indicating time, manner, place, degree, and frequency of an event, action, or
process.
• A preposition is a word which shows the relation between persons or things
mentioned in a sentence. A prepositional phrase is formed when a preposition
combines with its complement.
• A group of words which forms a part of a sentence and contains a subject and
a predicate is called a clause.
• An adjective clause is a subordinate clause that behaves like an adjective,
qualifying a noun or pronoun in the sentence. Remember that an adjective clause
always begins with who, whom, whose, that, which, when, where, or why.

8.5 KEY WORDS

• Syntax: These can be referred to as being the set of rules that govern the use of
words, how they are combined to form clauses, phrases or even full sentences.
The term syntax also deals with the manner in which sentences are formed, and
include the rules that describe or govern how those sentences are formed.
• Determiner: It is a noun-modifier that shows the reference of a noun or noun-
Self-Instructional phrase in the context, rather than attributes expressed by adjectives.
194 Material
 • Adverb: It is a part of speech which modifies verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs. Syntax: Phrases
and Clauses
Adverbs perform a wide range of functions and are particularly important for
indicating time, manner, place, degree, and frequency of an event, action, or
process
NOTES
8.6 SELF ASSEESMENT QUESTIONS AND
EXERCISES

Short-Answer Questions
1. Why do you think that the use of traditional grammar has become outdated?
2. Give examples of phrases used in the english language.
3. Mention the different categories of determiners.
Long-Answer Questions
1. Give examples of some important adverbial phrases used in the english language.
2. Explain the classification of clauses used in the english language.
3. How are determiners different from pronouns? Discuss.

8.7 FURTHER READINGS

Hockett, C.F. 1960. A Course in Modern Linguistics. California: MacMillan Books.

Lyons, John. 1981. Language and Linguistics. Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press.
Rajimwale, Sharad. 1997. Introduction to English Phonetics, Phonology and
Morphology. Jaipur: Rawal Publication.
Varshney, R.L. 1977. An Introductory Textbook of Linguistics and Phonetics.
Bareilly: Student Store.
Yule, George. 1985. The Study of Language. Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press.

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MA English

Contemporary Studies
in English Language
English Literature
from 1550 to 1798

MA English
Yashwantrao Chavan Maharashtra
Open University