AOU. Linguistics

English Phonetics and Linguistics
An Introductory Course Book
Second Edition
Lewis Mukattash Najib Al-Shehabi Aziz Thabit Saeed Hayat Al-Khatib
© Arab Open University 2018

Phonetic Symbols
Consonants Vowels
1. /p/ pen /pen/ (AmE /pen/) 25. /ɪ/ sit /sɪt/ (AmE /sɪt/)
2. /b/ book /bʊk/ (AmE /bʊk/) 26. /i:/ sea /si:/ (AmE /si:/)
3. /t/ tea /ti:/ (AmE /tiː/) 27. /ʊ/ good /ɡʊd/ (AmE /ɡʊd/)
4. /d/ did /dɪd/ (AmE /dɪd/) 28. /uː/ food /fuːd/ (AmE /fuːd/)
5. /tʃ/ chat /tʃæt/ (AmE /tʃæt/) 29. /ʌ/ cup /kʌp/ (AmE /kʌp/)
6. /dʒ/ June /dʒuːn/ (AmE /dʒuːn/) 30. /ɑː/ car /kɑː/ (AmE /kɑːr/)
7. /k/ kick /kɪk/ (AmE /kɪk/) 31. /ɒ/ not /nɒt/ (AmE /nɑːt/)
8. /g/ get /get/ (AmE /get/) 32. /ɔː/ saw /sɔː/ (AmE /sɔː/)
9. /f/ food /fu:d/ (AmE/fu:d) 33. /ə/ attack /əˈtæk/ (AmE /əˈtæk/)
10. /v/ voice /vɔɪs/ (AmE /vɔɪs/) 34. /ɜː/ bird /bɜːd/ (AmE /bɝːd/)
11. /θ/ thin /θɪn/ (AmE /θɪn/) 35. /e/ head /hed/ (AmE /hed/)
12. /ð/ this /ðɪs/ (AmE /ðɪs/) 36. /æ/ cat /kæt/ (AmE /kæt/)
13. /s/ swim /swɪm/ (AmE/swɪm) Diphthongs
14. /z/ zoo /zu:/ (AmE /zu:/) 37. /ɪə/ near /nɪə/(AmE /nɪr/)
15. /ʃ/ sheep /ʃiːp/ (AmE ʃiːp/) 38. /ʊə/ tour /tʊə/(AmE /tʊr/)
16. /ʒ/ pleasure /ˈpleʒ·ə/ (AmE /ˈpleʒ.ɚ/ ) 39. /aɪ/ my /maɪ/(AmE /maɪ/)
17. /m/ man /mæn/ (AmE /mæn/) 40. /ɔɪ/ toy /tɔɪ/(AmE /tɔɪ/)
18. /n/ not /nɒt/ (AmE /nɑːt/) 41. /əʊ/ snow /snəʊ/(AmE /snoʊ/)
19. /ŋ/ bring/brɪŋ/ (AmE /brɪŋ/) 42. /eə/ hair /heə/(AmE /her/)
20. /h/ how /haʊ/ (AmE (/haʊ/) 43. /aʊ/ now /naʊ/(AmE /naʊ/)
21. /l/ leg /leg/ (AmE (/leɡ/) 44. /eɪ/ say /seɪ/(AmE /seɪ/)
22. /r/ red /red/ (AmE /red/)
23. /w/ wet /wet/ (AmE /wet/)
24. /j/ yes /jes/ (AmE //jes/)
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Preface
This is a short introductory course which aims to:
1. Introduce you to linguistics, the scientific study of language.

2. Introduce you to the major aspects of language study: Phonetics, Phonology,
Morphology, Syntax, Semantics
In addition to the introductory unit [Unit1], which introduces you to linguistics, this Course Book
is divided into 5 major blocks reflecting levels of linguistic description. These blocks are spread
over 13 units as follows:
BLOCK UNITS THEME/TOPIC DETAILS
I 2-4 Phonetics the study of the production of sounds
II 5-6 Phonology & the study and identification of significant

sounds.
Prosody word stress, rhythm, intonation
III 7-8 Morphology the study of the structure of words
IV 9-11 Syntax the study of sentence structure
V 12-13 Semantics & the study of meaning

Pragmatics
The phonetic and phonological components of the course [units 2-6] are practical in nature where
you will be trained in:
1. Identifying and recognising English sounds,

2. Listening to English sounds produced by native speakers of the language,
3. Looking up the pronunciation of words in pronouncing dictionaries,
4. Using phonetic symbols to transcribe English words, and
5. Marking stress on syllables.
Of particular relevance to this component are some important online resources. These are useful
sources that you should take seriously if you want to improve your listening and pronunciation.
After all, what is the point in your getting a university degree in English language and literature if
you do not possess the necessary skills in understanding English spoken at normal speed by native
speakers as well as in speaking English with a reasonable accent? Furthermore, the sites that you
will be referred to include a wealth of information on English sounds that constitute an integral
part of this course and thus will be included in your mid-term and final exam. We advise you to
familiarize yourself with these sites before you go to your first tutorial. They are described in
Online Resources (p.6) below.
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All in all, the course is meant to prepare you to the study of more advanced language and
linguistic courses which you will be required to study in upcoming years.
The Course Guide (CG) gives you detailed information about this course:
 course aims,
 course description,
 course structure/organization,
 course assignments, tutorials, and exams,
 online resources, and
 course calendar.
We advise you to read the CG before you go to your first tutorial. Of special importance to your
starting the course is to know the Course Learning/Teaching Material. Please make sure that you
receive all materials before you go to your first tutorial.
There will be tutorials for this course. We advise you to take an active role in these tutorials. We
also advise you to make use of the office hours which your tutor will set aside for meeting with
you on individual bases to help you with the course, answer your questions, and give you guidance
in preparing for all types of assessment.
This Second Edition was edited by Leila Lakhoua, Manar Shalaby and Fatma Fayez. It was
revised by Najib Al-Shehabi
The amendments in this second edition sought to:
 Enhance the content in general.

 Omit the final unit on Discourse as this will be dealt with in detail in other ELL courses.
 Add a unit on Pragmatics, a concept which will be studied in detail in higher level courses.
 Add a few concepts in the introduction.
 Simplify and clarify the main difference between derivational and inflectional morphemes.
 Move the section on word formations processes from semantics to morphology where it is
more appropriate.
 Omit the section on tenses in Syntax 1 as this is more related to pedagogic grammar than
to linguistics and syntax.
 Simplify the section on finite/non-finite verbs in Syntax 2.
 Add more practical drills.
 Move the answer key to the exercises to the end of the book in Appendix I.
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Table of Contents
Unit No & Title Page
Phonetic Symbols 2
Preface 3-4
Table of Contents 5
Online Resources 6-8
Unit 1: Introducing Linguistics 9
Unit 2: Phonetics 1 17
English Sounds and Letters
Unit 3: Phonetics 2 25
English Consonants
Unit 4:Phonetics 3 41
English Vowels and Diphthongs
Unit 5: Phonology 49
Unit 6: Prosody 57
Unit 7: Morphology 67
Unit 8: Word Classes 77
Unit 9: Syntax 1 83
What is Syntax?
Unit 10: Syntax 2 101

Sentence Types and Classes
Unit 11: Syntax 3 111

Sentence Structures and Patterns
Unit 12: Semantics 129
Unit 13: Pragmatics 137
Appendix I: Answer Key to Exercises 149
Appendix II: Additional Practice Drills 159
Appendix III: Additional Practice Drills (Answer Key) 174
References 182
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ONLINE RESOURCES
You will be regularly referred to some free online resources, particularly when learning about
English sounds.
Below are details about these sites.
1. BBC Learning English

http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/multimedia/pron/
This very useful site provides recordings of all English sounds. It also compares sounds that are
similar to each other in pronunciation. You will be frequently referred to this site in Chapters 2-4.
In fact, many of the exercises and activities in these chapters are extracted/adapted from or this
site.
The following is a list of the main topics discussed and exemplified [with exercises] on the BBC
Learning English:
- Introduction
- Resources
- The sounds of English
- Radio programmes 1-3
- Similar sounds
o Unit 1: Key & Pin
o Unit 2: Book & Do
o Unit 3: Door & Coat
o Unit 4: Egg, Cat & Cup
o Unit 5: Sock & Coat
- Sounds and spelling
- Schwa
- Connected speech
2. Cambridge Dictionaries Online

https://dictionary.cambridge.org/
[Search in: Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary]
This online dictionary gives both meaning and pronunciation [in phonetic transcription] of words.
It also shows US pronunciation in case it is different from British pronunciation.
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The Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary (CALD) contains easy-to-understand definitions
and guidewords to help you find the meaning you want fast. It also gives the phonetic transcription
of the word you look up.
You will be using the CALD throughout this course.
At this point, do not worry about the phonetic symbols [transcription] which you are not familiar
with. You will be introduced to them gradually in units 2, 3, and 4 below.
All the phonetic transcriptions used as examples in this book are extracted from this free site. The
following is an example:
Phonetics /fəˈnet.ɪks/ noun:

The study of the sounds made by the human voice in speech
3. English Pronouncing Dictionary

[With instant sound]
http://www.howjsay.com.
This is a pronouncing dictionary. All you need to do is type in the word you want to listen to and,
after clicking, submit, each time the cursor (arrow) is pointed at it, you can hear how the word is
spoken by native speakers.
4. English Language Pronunciation Practice

[With Minimal Pairs and Instant Sound]:
http://shiporsheep.com/
This is a free online ESL pronunciation practice using minimal pairs. It contrasts over 400 pairs of
English vowels and consonants used in words.
5. Phonetics: The Sounds of Spoken Language:

The University of Iowa
https://eresources.eli.lsa.umich.edu/university-of-iowa-phonetics-flash-animation-project/
This site, housed on the University of Iowa official site, contains an interactive diagram of the
articulatory anatomy [organs of speech] which would be necessary for units 2-4 which deal with
the production of English sounds.
For each consonant and vowel there is an animated articulatory diagram showing the place and
manner of articulation.
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This is done through a step-by-step description accompanied by video-audio illustration of the
sound spoken in context.
6. Speech Internet Dictionary (SID)

http://blogjam.name/sid/
This is useful, not as a pronouncing dictionary, but as a glossary of phonetic terms. It is arranged
alphabetically for ease of access to various phonetic terms. Some chapters have additional online
resources.
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UNIT 1
INTRODUCING LINGUISTICS
Unit Sections
1. Introduction
2. What is Linguistics?
3. What is Language?
Online Resources:
Cambridge Dictionaries Online: http://dictionary.cambridge.org/
 Unit Aims
This introductory unit aims to provide in a simple manner answers to the following basic questions
about language, phonetics, and linguistics:
2. What is Language?
3. What is the relationship between linguistics and other fields of study?
1. Introduction
As pointed out above, this introductory unit aims to provide you with an overall view of the
contents of this course through asking and answering some basic questions which a layman would
usually ask.
In addition to the three questions listed under Unit Aims above, this chapter will also introduce
you briefly to:
o The Main branches of linguistics
2.1. Defining linguistics

Linguistics is often defined as the “scientific study of language”. But what do we mean by the
two terms ‘language’ and ‘scientific’?
By the term ‘language’, we mean either 'human language’ as opposed to animal communication
or a ‘specific language’: English, Arabic, Chinese, etc. The two terms are explained in upcoming
sections below.
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Now, what do we mean by the term ‘scientific’? Do we mean that linguistics is a pure science like
chemistry or biology? The answer is no. We mean that linguists employ scientific methods and
principles in their descriptions and analyses. This means that a linguistic description or analysis
should meet certain standards. The following are the main characteristics of a scientific approach:
1. It must be objective [not subjective]: There is no room for personal liking or disliking; no
generalizations not supported by facts; etc. Consider the following examples:
I like French. It’s a beautiful language!

I think Arabic is a very rich language
Chinese is a difficult language!
Is there any scientific evidence to prove the above statements?

They are based on the subjective judgment of the speaker. They are, therefore considered as
fallacies and rejected by linguistics.
2. It must be consistent: This means using the same methodology throughout; using the same
terms; using the same symbols as in any other scientific discipline.
3. It must be explicit [clear]: Terms used in the analysis/description should be clearly defined;
the method used in the analysis should be defined in a clear manner; nothing should be left to
the intelligence of the reader, etc.
4. It must be comprehensive [complete]: For example, if a linguist gives a description of
“English sounds”, he should give a description of all sounds.
5. Wherever applicable, a linguistic description should be based on concrete evidence [proof].
For example, if we describe a dialect variation between AmE and BE we have to produce actual
recordings of authentic speakers.
In the above sense, linguistics may be described as a social or human science like sociology and
psychology.
It must be pointed out, however, that certain aspects of linguistic investigation can be conducted
in the laboratory. For example, nowadays there are different types of equipment that can give
accurate visual details about human sounds; e.g., whether they are short or long; whether they are
produced with the air going out through the mouth or through the nose; etc.
2.2. Online resources on linguistics

The following site provides essential information for this unit and for forthcoming units. It is
accessible free of charge:
Cambridge Dictionaries Online:

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/
Search in: Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary [CALD].
You will be using the CALD throughout this course. At this point, you should not worry about the
phonetic symbols [transcription] that you are not familiar with. You will be introduced to them
gradually in units 2, 3, and 4 below.
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The following are examples extracted from the CALD. They relate to the new terms introduced
above: linguistics, linguistic, linguist, language:
 Linguistics/lɪŋˈɡwɪs·tɪks/[noun]
The systematic study of the structure and development of language in general or of particular
languages
 Linguistic/lɪŋˈɡwɪs·tɪk/ [adjective]
Connected with language or the study of language:
e.g. - I'm particularly interested in the linguistic development of young children.
 Linguist/ˈlɪŋ·ɡwɪst/ [noun]
Someone who studies foreign languages or can speak them very well, or someone who teaches or
studies linguistics
 Language /ˈlæŋ·ɡwɪdʒ/[noun]
A system of communication consisting of sounds, words and grammar, or the system of
communication used by the people of a particular country or profession: e.g.
- She does research into how children acquire language.

- Do you speak any foreign languages?
- I'm hopeless at learning languages.
- The English language
- Legal/technical language
- The language of business
Activity (1):
Look up the following words and phrases. Use academic online sources relevant to the topic.
All you need to do is type the word or phrase in the search box in the left-hand column and clicks
go.
 dead language
 lingua franca
 first language
2.3. Approaches to the study of language
As pointed out above, linguists employ scientific techniques/procedures in their analyses and
investigations. In doing so, linguists adopt different approaches determined by the objectives of
their investigations/analyses of different aspects of language.
The main approach to study language is general/theoretical linguistics. It is briefly described

below.
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I. General (or theoretical) linguistics: Language knowledge
What do we mean when we say we know a language?
a. We mean that we know the sounds that make up this language. These sounds differ from one
language to another. This is why some speakers find it difficult to pronounce some sounds in
a foreign language.
For example, Arab speakers find difficulties in pronouncing [p] often pronounced as [b]
Do you know why?
In the same way English speakers find it hard to pronounce some Arabic sounds. Can you
mention any?
The French pronounce this and that like [zis] and [zat]. Explain why?
Each approach has branches. The branch of general linguistics which studies the description
of sounds is called phonetics: which sounds make up a language and how these sounds are
produced.
You will know more about phonetics in chapters 2-4
b. We also know that some sound combinations are possible in one language but not in another.
For example Arabic words can end with the sound [h], can English words do the same? Can
*nma be an English word? Can you tell why?
The branch of general linguistics which studies the meaning and combination of sounds is
called Phonology. You will know more about phonology in chapter 5.
c. Once we know the sounds and how they contribute to meaning, we will put them together to
make up longer meaningful units or words. The study of how words are formed to make
meaning is called Morphology. This aspect of language study shows how words are structured
and how they can be modified by adding more meaningful units e.g.+ kind+ness. We shall
return to discuss morphology in chapters 7 and 8
d. Now that we know how to make words we combine words together to make up sentences. The
first rule we know about the English sentence is that it has the following word order:
My mother watered the plants .SVO

But
The my watered the plants mother* is not accepted because it breaks the above rule
We can also make a sentence longer by adding and combining more units together
Example: The man you saw waiting for the bus yesterday and who was wearing a kepi
hat is my cousin.
The study of the internal structure of sentences is called Syntax, which will be discussed in
detail in chapters 9-11
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e. Some sentences can have a good syntax i.e. the appropriate word order but they are still
unacceptable:
My little brother ate an elephant*

Can you say that? Why not?
It does not make sense!
The study of the meaning of words [lexical semantics] and how words combine to make
meaningful sentences is called semantics. You will know more about semantics in Unit 12.
II. Other approaches of linguistics

Linguistics as a science started to be considered as a discipline on its own since the 1950s, and
it has led to many types and subdivisions of linguistic approaches and specializations. We will
focus on the three main branches which you will study further in your ELL BA programme:
 Sociolinguistics: the study of language use in society
 Corpus Linguistics: the study of language using a computer software
 Applied Linguistics: the application of linguistic knowledge to areas like language
teaching and learning, speech therapy, dictionary making and translation.
3. Why is language unique to humans?
Language is often defined as a human faculty [mental ability] that distinguishes human beings
from animals. This means all normal human beings have at least one language which they use to
communicate with people in their community. In fact it is claimed that by the age of 5 or 6 all
normal children will acquire [learn] a human language if they are exposed to that language [live
with people using the language and thus continually hear people speaking it].
Read the following hypothetical situation and answer the questions that follow:
An English child was born in China and by the age of one his [English] parents were killed in
a car accident and he was looked after by a Chinese family, who spoke Chinese only. By the
age of six, the child, whose name is Bill, was sent to London to live with his grandparents.
There he began to learn English at home and at school.
Questions:
1. Will Bill acquire Chinese in exactly the same way as Chinese children do?
2. Will he find difficulty in learning Chinese?
3. Will he find difficulty in learning English at a later stage [at the age of six]?
4. Which of the two languages would be easier for him to use later on in his life, let us say, by
the age of 15?
Discussion:
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1. Bill will acquire Chinese exactly like Chinese children because he was exposed to this language
while living with the Chinese family. In this sense, Chinese is his first (mother) language because
most children master their first [or native] language by the age of five or six. They learn the
language unconsciously through listening to it used by other people.
2. Obviously Bill acquired Chinese in a natural and unconscious way in exactly the same way Arab
children learn Arabic.
3. When Bill started learning English at the age of six, he already had in his mind the linguistic
system [rules] of the Chinese language. Therefore, he found certain English sounds difficult
because they do not exist in Chinese. He also found certain English structures difficult to learn.
4. The answer to this question is not easy as it depends on various factors like:
 Whether or not Bill continued to use Chinese after he settled down in Britain,
 Whether he learnt to read and write Chinese.
 Whether he continued his school education in Britain, etc.
 Whether he gained a native-like competence in English; i.e. use English as a native speaker
The conclusions to be drawn from the above discussion are:
1. A child will learn any human language to which he is exposed regardless of his race or origin
and regardless of who his parents are. If a human is not exposed to language, he/she will not
learn any language. Unlike animals which learn to communicate even if left alone. Put a new
born bird in a cage. Will it sing and fly like any other bird?
The answer is yes because this is innate and genetically transmitted, whereas human language
needs a social and cultural environment to be acquired. Therefore, language is culturally
transmitted.
2. It is deduced from the above that there are as many languages as there are varied cultures.
However, animals use the same ‘language’ everywhere. Does a dog bark differently in Egypt
and in Malaysia?
3. Human languages are similar because children can learn them in a natural way. No one teaches
a child to learn his first language. The child learns his first language unconsciously through
listening to other people using it and through his mother talking to him.
4. What do languages have in common?
Despite the diversity of languages, all human languages share some universal features:
1. All languages are made of sounds that combine together to make meaning in the following
manner:
 Sounds combine together to make small units of meaning [morphemes]

 Morphemes combine together to make words,
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 Words combine together to make phrases and clauses,
 Phrases and clauses combine together to make meaningful sentences.
This explains why we describe human language as a “system of sounds and a system of meaning".
2. All languages have rules for:
 Combining sounds together to make words [phonological rules],

 Combining words together to make phrases, clauses, and sentences [syntactic rules]1.
3. All spoken languages have consonants and vowels.
4. All languages have categories like: nouns, verbs, adjectives, etc.
5. In any language, there will be distinct terms for BODY, HEAD, ARM, EYES, NOSE, and MOUTH.
6. All human languages are used for communication as shown in the following examples:
 All languages are spoken except for some dead languages like Latin.
 All languages are capable of serving the communicative needs of their speakers. There is no
language that cannot express the needs of its speakers.
 New vocabulary items and expressions can be added [coined] to take care of [accommodate]
new social developments [e.g. advances in sciences, economy, industry, etc.]; e.g. the Arabic
word tilfa:z for TV.
 In communication, native speakers of any language can ask questions, express likings and
dislikings, deny rumours, agree/disagree, give orders, apologize, etc.
 All languages have expressions that refer to actions/events as well as to time and place.
Activities
1. Can you think of five English sounds that exist in Arabic?
2. Can you think of two Arabic sounds that do not exist in English?
3. English has passive sentences like: The window was broken by the children. Does Arabic have
passive sentences?
4. How do you react to the following statements?
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 I think the first language spoken by humans is Arabic because it is the language of Abraham
the father of Islam?!
 Germans find English easier than Turkish
 Women talk more than men?!
Do the above assumptions meet the criteria of scientificness in linguistics?
5. Rounding Up
5.1. New Terms
New terms are contained in this unit. However, the following are the basic terms which we
expect you to understand and remember.
 applied linguistics
 dead language
 linguistics, linguist, linguistic
 morpheme
 morphology
 phoneme
 phonetic transcription
 phonetics
 phonology
 phrase
 semantics
 sociolinguistics
 speech therapy/pathology
 syntax
 theoretical linguistics
5.2. What You Have Learnt in This Unit:
We expect you to have learnt:

 proprieties/characteristics of human language
 definition and scope of linguistic science
 language levels/components [sounds, morphemes, words, sentences, meaning]
 levels of linguistic description: phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics
UNIT 2
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PHONETICS 1
ENGLISH SOUNDS & LETTERS
Unit Sections
1. English Letters
2. English Sounds and Letters
3. Same Letter Having Different Pronunciations
4. Same Sound Represented by Different Letters
5. Rounding Up
Online Resource:
http://www.howjsay.com
 Unit Aims
The aims of this unit are to:
1. Explain to you the difference between letters and sounds,
2. Show you that English sounds outnumber English letters,
3. Show you how the same sound can be represented by different letters,
4. Demonstrate that the same letter or letter combinations may have different pronunciations,
and
5. Train you to look up the pronunciation of English words in a pronouncing dictionary.
1. English Letters
How many letters does the English language have? Make a guess:
a. 24 letters
b. 26 letters
c. 28 letters
The correct answer is: English has 26 letters as in the following table:
English a b c d e f g h i j k l m
letters n o p q r s t u v w x y z
Notes:
1. The 26 letters make what is known as the English Alphabet.
2. Quite often each LETTER STANDS for [represents] one SOUND in speech, but, as we shall
see below, this is not always true. For example, the letter C may be pronounced as a /k/ sound as
in the following words: cat, cattle, crop, cart, etc. On the other hand, it may be pronounced as a
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/s/ sound as in the following words: city; cinema; centre; etc. We shall return to discuss this
phenomenon below.
Questions:
1) Can you think of another letter that can stand for more than one sound?
The answer to the first question is the letter s. This letter may be pronounced as /s/: e.g. sand;
sorry; person; etc., or as /z/: e.g. has; easy; bags; etc.
2. English Sounds and Letters
In writing we say that a word consists of [or is made up of] letters, whereas in speech we say that
a word is made up of sounds. For example, the word laugh is made up of 5 letters: l; a; u; g; h.
This is not the case in speaking. This word is made up of 3 sounds only:
 /l/
 /ɑː/
 /f/
The symbols between slant lines or slashes [/ /] above are referred to as the SOUNDS. Sometimes
square brackets [ ] are used. We return to this matter below.
The first part of this course [Units 2-4] deals with the various types of English sounds. This is what
we refer to as English Phonetics. Notice that the word phonetics is derived from the noun phone,
which means “sound”. Thus, “phonetics” may be defined as the study of the sounds of language.
Question:
Are there more SOUNDS or LETTERS in English?
The English language has more sounds than letters. As you will see in the forthcoming units,
English has 44 sounds, whereas it has 26 letters only. What does this mean?
Below is a list of what is called consonant sounds [opposite vowel sounds]. Have a quick look at
this list. If you face any difficulty in pronouncing the words used as examples, consult:
http://www.howjsay.com.As pointed out in the introductory unit above, this is a pronouncing
dictionary. All you need to do is type in the word you want to listen to and, after clicking submit,
you can hear how the word is spoken by a native speaker.
Now look at the table again and try to find answers to the question that follows it. You will find
some unfamiliar symbols in the second column, but you should not worry. You will begin to learn
these symbols gradually as you proceed through this unit and the forthcoming units.
No Sound Letter(s) Example Additional Remarks

Symbol
1. /b/ b bank
2. /p/ p park
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3. /d/ d day
4. /t/ t tin
5. /f/ f fat
6. /v/ v vase
7. /g/ g give The letter g is sometimes pronounced as
/ dʒ /as in the first sound in giant
8. /k/ k Kuwait The letter x represents two sounds /k/+/s/.
q quick
c cat
ch chemistry
9. /l/ l late
10. /m/ m man
11. /n/ n night
12. /s/ s sin
13. /dʒ/ j judge This sound can be represented by a
combination of two letters: d+g as in judge
14. /z/ z zoo The /z/ sound can be represented by the
letter s as in the word bags.
15. / ʒ/ s leisure This sound can be represented by the letter
g as in beige [name of colour].
16. /r/ r rat
17. /h/ h hat
18. /j/ y yes
19. /w/ w win
20. /ð/ th this
21. /θ/ thin
22. /ŋ/ ng bang
23. /tʃ/ ch cheap ch can also represent the /k/sound as in
chemist.
24. /ʃ/ sh sheep This sound is sometimes represented by the
letter S as in the first sound in sugar and
sure.
Question:
What is the difference between the sounds in the shaded part of the above able (nos. 20-24) and
those in the non-shaded part (nos. 1-19)?
The answer to this question is this:

The sounds in the shaded portion are commonly represented by a combination of letters, that is
to say they are not represented by a single letter:
19
1. /ð/ and /θ/ [t + h]: this ; thin
2. /tʃ/ [c+ h] : chimney, church
3. /ʃ/ [ s + h] : shirt ; wash
4. /ŋ/ [n + g ]: sing; singing
If we look again at the above table, we observe that:
1. Some letters commonly stand for a certain sound. For example, the letter k usually stands
for the sound /k/. The same is true of the letters: b, l, and m.2
2. Some letters may be pronounced in more than one way. For example, the letter s may stand
for the sound /s/ as in sat, slim, kicks, etc., but it also stands for the sound /z/ as in the following
words; has; bags; etc.
3. There are certain consonant sounds in English that have no single letter to stand for them.
They are represented by a combination of two consonants as we have seen above. For example,
the sound /θ/, which is similar to the first sound in the Arabic name Thabet, is generally
represented by the two letters th as in the first sound in the following words: thin, think, thing.
The conclusion to be drawn from this section is that there is no one-to-one correspondence
between letters and sounds in English.
Question:
Is there a one-to-one correspondence [agreement] between a letter and its sound in Arabic?
3. Same Letter Having Different Pronunciations
The following table shows examples of letters and letter combinations that have different ways
of pronunciation in speech. We have referred to this phenomenon above.
Letter(s) Sound examples Remarks
c /k/ cat consonant letters
2
Notice, however, that the letters k and b may sometimes be silent [not pronounced] as in the following two
examples: knight; lamb.
20
/s/ city
s /s/ slim
/ / sugar
/z/ dolls
/ / pleasure
g /g/ give
/ / giant
th / / thin; Thursday combination of
/ / then; there consonant sounds
ch /k/ chemist
/ / cherry
Note:
Like the consonant letters in the above table, some vowel letters [like o; e; u; etc.] are also
pronounced in more than one way, depending on context. We shall return to discuss vowel sounds
in Unit 3 below.
4. Same Sound Represented by Different Letters
We have seen above several examples where the same letter or letter combination is pronounced
as different sounds in speech.
In this section, we shall look at the letter-sound relationship from the opposite direction, namely
the representation of SOUNDS by LETTERS.
Generally speaking, a sound is represented by the same letter in all cases in which it occurs. For
example, the sound /b/ is generally represented by the letter b. There are, however, several sounds
that do not have a single [or unique] letter representation. The following two tables show examples
of sounds that are represented by different letters or letter combinations. The first table deals with
VOWEL sounds whereas the second deals with CONSONANT sounds.
We shall discuss the difference between CONSONANTS and VOWELS in Unit 2 below. For the
time being, it is useful to remember that out of the 26 letters in the English Alphabet, only five are
vowel letters. These are: a, e, o, i, u.
4.1. Vowels and Consonants: sounds and letters
(i) Vowels: sounds and letters
Sound Letter & Letter examples Remarks

Combination
/i:/ e he A vowel sound represented by
different vowel letters and
21
i: police different combinations of vowel
letters
ea sea
ee seek
ei receive
ey key
ie grief
(ii)Consonants: sounds and letters
Sound Letter & Examples Remarks

Letter Combination
/f/ f fat Consonant sounds
ff effort represented by different
ph photo consonant letters or
gh enough different combinations
/s/ s sat of consonant letters
c cinema
sc scene
ss class
/t/ t tent
tt attain
d walked
/k/ k keep
c cattle
ch mechanic
ck back
q queen
sh shame
/ʃ/ s sugar
ss mission
/z/ z zero
s boys , rose
/ tʃ / ch cheese, China
tu picture, lecture
tch Match, watch
Exercise (1)
22
The letter combination ch can be pronounced as either /k/ or / tʃ /. In which word is the letter
combination pronounced differently? If uncertain, check the pronouncing dictionary mentioned at
the beginning of this unit.
1. chest; 2. chimney; 3. chair ; 4. channel; 5. challenge; 6. cherry; 7. cheese; 8. chorus.
Exercise (2)
Match the sounds of the underlined letters in the first column with the sounds in the second column.
Remember that, as pointed out above, some letters are silent; i.e. they are not pronounced. The
letter k in the word knight is a silent letter. If uncertain about the pronunciation of some words,
check the pronouncing dictionary mentioned at the beginning of this unit.
1. watches /t/
2. walked /r/
3. smiled /z/
4. write /s/
5. paints /zero/ [not pronounced, silent letter]
6. cereals /f/
7. half /d/
8. cough /l/
9. tools
10. caught
5. Rounding Up
5.1. New Terms
 consonant
 correspondence between letters and sounds
 letter
 letter combination
 phonetic symbol
 phonetics
 silent letter
 sound
 vowel
5.2. What You Have Learnt in This Unit

In this unit, you have learnt that:
 English letters are different from English sounds,
 English sounds outnumber English letters,
 The same sound can be represented by different letters,
 The same letter or letter combinations may have different pronunciations,
 Phonetics is the study of the sounds of language, and
 The English alphabet consists of 26 letters: 5 vowel letters and 21 consonant letters.
23
24
UNIT 3
PHONETICS 2
ENGLISH CONSONANTS
Unit Sections
1. Revisiting Sounds & Letters
2. Organs of Speech
3. Consonants: Manner of Articulation
4. Consonants: Place of Articulation
5. Rounding Up
Online Resources:
- BBC Learning English: http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/multimedia/pron/
- Cambridge Learner's Dictionary: http://dictionary.cambridge.org
- Pronouncing Dictionary: http://www.howjsay.com:
- Speech Internet Dictionary: http://blogjam.name/sid/
 Unit Aims
This unit aims to:
1. Explain to you how speech sounds are produced,
2. Show you the differences between consonants and vowels,
3. Explain to you the manner in which consonants are produced,
4. Explain to you the place at which consonants are produced,
5. Give you more training in sound recognition and in phonetic transcription, and
7. Acquaint you with the terms that are used in describing consonants.
1. Revisiting Sounds and Letters
As pointed out in the preceding unit, phonetics (from the Greek word phone = sound/voice) deals
with the study and description of human sounds; sounds which we make when we speak our first
language or a foreign language.
 Phonetics /fəˈnet.ɪks/
- is the study of the sounds made by the human voice in speech. It is a fundamental branch of
Linguistics,
 Linguistics /lɪŋˈɡwɪs·tɪks/ (also called linguistic science or language science)
-is often defined as the scientific study of language.
Reminder:
As pointed out in Unit 1 above,
25
(i) This course is primarily concerned with how and where speech sounds are produced by the
organs of speech; i.e. Articulatory Phonetics.3
(ii) When we refer to writing, we say that words consist of letters, whereas when we talk about
the spoken language, we say that words consist of sounds.
Letters on their own do not have meanings. The following letters have no meaning whatsoever: t,
d, q, etc.4
However, although letters have no meaning on their own, when they combine with each other,
they make words that have meanings: e.g. r + a + t = rat.
Now, if we replace the first letter in this word by another letter, the meaning of the word changes
as in the following examples:
FIRST LETTER 1 2 3 WORD

REPLACED
by one letter r a t rat
c cat
f fat
h hat
s sat
m mat
b bat
by 2 letters having ch chat
one sound th that
Similarly, if we replace the last letter in this word [rat] by another letter, the meaning of the word
changes as in the following examples:
FINAL LETTER 1 2 3 WORD

REPLACED
by one letter r a t rat
m ram
n ran
g rag
k rak
y ray
w raw
by 2 letter shaving one sh rash
sound ck rack
ng rang
3
The adjective articulatory is derived from the verb articulate, which means to express ideas and meanings in words
[i.e. speech]; articulation means the way of pronouncing words.
4
However, one letter has meaning when it stands alone. This is the letter I. [Corresponding to plural pronoun we].
26
Activity (1):
Check the pronunciation of the words in the above two tables in the English Pronouncing
Dictionary: http://www.howjsay.com
Activity (2):
Copy the phonetic transcription for the words listed in the above two tables from the Cambridge
Advanced Learner's Dictionary [CALD]
http://dictionary.cambridge.org
Like letters, sounds have no meaning on their own. However, when they combine together to form
words, they become significant; that is to say, if we replace one sound by another, the meaning is
changed.
Study the words in the following table and see how the meaning of the word is changed if the
middle sound in the word is replaced by another. Note that the middle sounds in the words listed
in the table below are vowel sounds.
SOUNDS Word Phonetic

1 2 3 Transcription
/h/ /ɪ/ /t/ hit / hɪt /
/æ/ hat / hæt /
/iː/ heat /hiːt/
/ɒ / hot /hɒt/
/ʌ/ hut /hʌt/
/ɑː/ heart /hɑːt/
/ɜː/ hurt /hɜːt/
Activity (3):
Link to: BBC Learning English and listen to the seven vowel sounds in the above
table.http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/multimedia/pron/
Follow the following steps:
Step 1: CLICK ON: The Sounds of English
Step 2: CLICK ON: Sound Symbol Chart [Chart pops up]. The chart contains the symbols
representing all English sounds [phonemic alphabet].
Step 3: CLICK ON: the phonetic symbol to hear the sound it represents.
Exercise (1) [from: BBC Learning English]

Look at the words below and put them into the correct column based on the number of sounds each
word has. Note that the number of letters and the number of sounds is always different in these
words.
27
No Word 2 sounds 3 sounds 4 sounds 5 sounds 6 sounds
1. horse
2. caught
3. cow
4. carrot
5. heart
6. through
7. island
8. know
9. chemist
10. singer
11. judge
12. daughter
13. business
14. treasure
15. thorough
16. enough
17. knowledge
18. singing
19. thinking
20. door
21. sugar
22. cupboard
23. more
24. laugh
25. check
Check your answers at BBC Learning English.

See: Pronunciation Exercise: Sounds and spelling
28
2. Organs of Speech
Link to: The University of Iowa

https://eresources.eli.lsa.umich.edu/university-of-iowa-phonetics-flash-animation-project/
This is a very useful and interesting free site that contains an interactive diagram of the
articulatory anatomy [organs of speech] which is necessary for this section.
There is also an animated articulatory diagram, a step-by-step description, and video-audio of the
sound [spoken in context] for each consonant and vowel.
Although this site deals with the sound of American English, it is very useful as it will give you a
step-by-step description of how each vowel and consonant is produced.
It also shows both the place and manner of articulation for each sound.
29
2.1. Introductory notes
You know how to produce letters; you simply write them down on a piece of paper or on a board
or on your PC. However, do you know how you produce speech sounds? The following section
provides an answer to this question.
Speech sounds are produced by air coming from the lungs and passing through the mouth or
through the nose. When air [the flow of breath] is pushed out of the lungs, it goes through the
windpipe on its way out of the mouth or the nose.
We make speech sounds when we modify the air flow [or airstream] passing through the mouth or
nose by moving the tongue and other organs (e.g. lips) in and around the mouth. The muscles
and organs that take part in producing sounds are called organs of speech.
1.2. Vocal tract
The term vocal tract refers to the cavities in the head and neck associated with the production of
speech. These are:
- the oral cavity,
- the nasal cavity and
- the pharynx.
The following are the major/main organs of speech [in addition to the lungs].
Link to: Phonetics: The Sounds of Spoken Language: The University of Iowa:
https://eresources.eli.lsa.umich.edu/university-of-iowa-phonetics-flash-animation-project/.
Click: Articulatory Anatomy. This will show you an interactive diagram comprising all organs
of speech. Do not feel upset if you do not know the pronunciation or the meaning of some terms.
Just try to have an overall view of what is called the vocal tract.
1. Windpipe [Trachea] /trəˈkiː.ə/: It is the tube which carries air out from the lungs to the larynx
and the vocal tract [see below]. In breathing it carries the air that has been breathed in from the
upper end of the throat to the lungs:
2. The Larynx /ˈlær.ɪŋks/: The larynx is known as Adam’s apple or “voice box”. It is a box-like
organ that is placed at the top of the wind pipe. The chief importance of the larynx in speech is
that it contains the vocal cords.
3. Vocal Cords: They are a pair of folds [muscles] placed inside Adam’s apple. Their edges move
quickly backwards and forwards and produce sound when air from the lungs moves over them.
Sounds produced when the vocal cords vibrate are called voiced sounds, as opposed to those in
which the vocal cords are apart, which are called unvoiced or voiceless sounds.
4. The Pharynx /ˈfær.ɪŋks/: The Pharynx is the soft part at the top of the throat which connects
the mouth and nose to the larynx .
30
5. Oral Cavity [mouth] /ˈɔː.rəl ˈkæv.ə.ti/: The mouth contains the following organs that play an
important role in modifying the passage of the air flow coming from the lungs.
(i) The Tongue /tʌŋ/: active articulator

The tongue is the most important organ of speech because it can perform many movements that
modify the air flow and thus produce different sounds. It is very flexible: it can be raised or lowered
at different points: front part, centre, back part. This is why it is called active articulator Different
parts of the tongue articulate against other organs of speech in the oral cavity: lips; upper teeth;
different parts of the roof of the mouth. For purposes of describing sounds the tongue is divided
into five points/parts [when the tongue is in rest position and the jaw is closed]:
 Tip
 Blade: lies below the alveolar ridge
 Front : lies below the hard palate
 Back: lies under the velum
 Root: the farthest point from the tip.
Any of these points can be moved to modify the air stream passage thus producing different
sounds.
(ii) Roof of the Mouth: passive articulator

The tongue may be raised towards different points in the roof of the mouth. This movement
modifies the air stream and thus controls the quality of the sound produced.
For purposes of describing sounds, the roof of the mouth is divided into three parts or points at
which the tongue articulates:
 The alveolar ridge: immediately behind the upper front teeth
 The hard palate: the area behind the alveolar ridge
 The velum [or soft palate]: the back part of the roof of the mouth
 The uvula: a small soft muscle dangling from the velum
The roof of the mouth is fixed; the different parts do not move; this is why it is called the passive
articulator.
(iii) The Lips /lɪps/

Like the tongue, the lips play an important role in modifying and controlling the air flow: they can
be closed, spread, or rounded. These different shapes/positions of the lips greatly affect the quality
of the sound produced.
6. The Nasal /ˈneɪ.zəl/ Cavity: The nasal cavity extends from the upper part of the pharynx to the
nostrils [nose openings]. When the velum [soft palate] is lowered, the airstream can pass through
the nose producing nasal sounds like /m/ and /n/.
Important Note: None of the speech organs is used exclusively for the production of sounds; they
have more basic functions as in the case of animals.
31
2.3. How do phoneticians describe sounds?
A phonetician is a person who studies and describes human sounds. But how does he do that? In
articulatory phonetics the phonetician describes HOW [Manner] & WHERE [Place] the sound is
made by the organs of speech described above. We shall return to discuss the manner and place of
articulation in Section 3 and Section 4 below, respectively. Before moving to discuss those two
aspects, it is necessary to distinguish between too major classes of sound, namely: (i) consonants,
and (ii) vowels, as well as between (i) active articulators, and (ii) passive articulators.
(i) Consonants /ˈkɒn·sə·nənts/:

Consonants are pronounced by stopping the air from flowing freely through the mouth, e.g. by
closing the lips or touching the teeth with the tongue. For example, in producing the following
sounds the air is stopped completely by the two lips then released quickly: /b/; /p/; /m/. Section
4 and Section 5 below present a detailed discussion of English consonant sounds.
(Ii) Vowels:/vaʊ·əlz/
A vowel is a speech sound produced when the air flows out through the mouth without being
blocked by the teeth, tongue or lips. The middle sounds in the following words are vowel sounds:
teach; books; pool; sun. Unit 4 below deals exclusively with the description and classification of
vowel sounds in English.
 Active and Passive Articulators:

It is important to note that two articulators [organs] are generally involved in the production of
sounds: an active articulator and a passive articulator. It is the active member that moves
towards the passive one. For example, when a certain part of the tongue is raised towards the roof
of the mouth, the tongue is the active articulator and the roof of the mouth the passive one.
III. Consonants: Manner of Articulation
Phoneticians recognize 24 English consonant sounds. These are divided into seven classes
according to the manner in which they are produced:
1. Stop/Plosive [6 sounds]: /p/, /b/, /t/, /d/, /k/, /g/

2. Fricative [9 sounds]: /f/, /v/, /θ/, /ð/, /s/, /z/, /ʃ/, /ʒ/, /h/
3. Affricate [2 sounds]: /ʧ/, /ʤ/
4. Nasal [3 sounds]: /m/, /n/, /ŋ/
5. Approximant [or glide] [2 sounds]: /w/, /j/
6. Lateral approximant [1 sound]: /l/
7. Frictionless continuant [1 sound]: /r/
Below is a description with examples of these seven classes.
Link to: The University of Iowa: https://eresources.eli.lsa.umich.edu/university-of-iowa-

phonetics-flash-animation-project/ to see how consonants are produced.
32
1. Stop/Plosive [6 sounds in English]
Stops or plosive sounds are produced when the air stream is completely stopped at certain points
in the vocal tract. In such a case there is a complete closure of two articulators. For example in
the production of the sounds /p/ and /b/, the two articulators [i.e. the upper lip and the lower lip]
are completely closed for a moment, then after air pressure builds up, the airstream is released
causing some sort of explosion.
There are other points of “closure” in the vocal tract, which result in producing other consonant
stops/plosives.
Question:
In English, there are six stop/plosive consonants. Can you list them?
2. Fricative [9 sounds in English]

In the production of fricative consonants, there is no complete closure of the air passage; it is rather
narrowed so the air rubs against the organs of speech. This results in some friction. e.g.
 When you rub your hands together, you can hear the friction.
For example, in producing the two sounds /f/ and /v/, the lower lip rubs against the upper teeth,
but notice that the airstream is not blocked or obstructed as in the case of stops/plosives.
Questions:
1. There are other points in the vocal tract where fricative consonants are produced. In fact, there
are 9 fricative consonants in English. Can you name two of them?
2. Which of the following two groups of sound contains fricative sounds and which has
stops/plosives?
1. /t/; //k/; /g/
2. /s/; /z/; /ʃ/ [as in the first sound in shine]; /ð/ [as in the first sound in these]
3. Affricate [2 sounds in English]

There are two affricate consonants in English. These are:
 / / as in the first and last sounds in the word church /tʃɜːtʃ/, and
 / / as in the first and last sounds in the word judge /dʒʌdʒ/
In the production of these two sounds there is first a total closure [obstruction] of the airstream and
then air is allowed to pass out through a narrow passage, but it does so slowly, not suddenly as in
the case of stops/plosives. In other words, the production of affricate consonants resembles the
production of both (i) stops/plosives and (ii) fricatives.
33
4. Nasal [3 sounds]
There are three nasal consonants in English:
 /m/ as in the first and final sound in the word mum /mʌm/
 /n/ as in the first and final sound in the word nine/nɑɪn/
 /ŋ/ as in the final sound in the word sing /sɪŋ/
In the production of nasal consonants, the soft palate is lowered so that the airstream flows out
through the nose [because the oral cavity is closed]. Sounds produced in this manner are thus called
nasal sounds.
5. Approximant [or glide; also referred to as semi-vowel] [2 sounds]

There are two approximant sounds in English:
 /j/ as in the first sound in the word yesterday/ˈjes·tə·deɪ/
 /w/as in the first sound in the word water /ˈwɔː·tər/
In the production of these sounds the active articulator moves close towards the passive articulator
but without a point of contact. In other words, there is no closure; the air glides in the space left
[without friction]. The verb glide means ‘to move easily without stopping and without effort or
noise.’
Question:
Which part of the tongue moves close to the roof of the mouth in the production of the sound /j/?
Check your answer in Section 4 below.
6. Lateral /ˈlæt.rəl/ Approximant [1 sound]

The term “lateral” means relating to the sides of the tongue. This refers to the production of the
sound /l/ which begins and ends the word lull /lʌl/ where the air flows through the two sides of the
tongue. The word lateral itself begins and ends in /l/.
7. Frictionless /ˈfrɪk.ʃənles/continuant [1 sound]

A frictionless continuant is neither a fricative nor a stop. It is a speech sound in which the closure
of the vocal tract is incomplete, allowing the continuous passage of the breath. There is one
frictionless continuant sound in English. Examples are the /r/ in red, in write and in rang.
Now study carefully the following table and see how the 24 consonant sounds are grouped
according to the manner in which they are articulated.
34
Consonants: Manner of Articulation
1. Stop/Plosive p b t d k g
2. Fricative f v θ ð s z ʃ h
3. Affricate tʃ ʤ
4. Nasal m n ŋ
5. Approximant w j
6. Lateral
approximant l
7. Frictionless
continuant r
4. Consonants: Place of Articulation

phonetics-flash-animation-project/ to see where in the vocal tract consonants are produced.
As pointed out above, consonants are described according to two parameters:
(i) Manner of Articulation, which we discussed in Section 3 above

(ii) Place of Articulation, which we shall discuss in this section.
A place of articulation refers to the point at which the two articulators meet or come close to each
other. Below is a list of the major points at which articulators meet to produce English consonants.
Obviously, there are many other points where articulators meet to produce consonants of other
languages like the sound /X/ in Arabic, as in the first sound in the word Khalil.
1. Bilabial /ˌbaɪˈleɪbiəl/ [the two lips]:

The two articulators that take part in producing bilabial sounds are the two lips. Examples of
bilabial sounds are /p/; / b/; /m/.
2. Labiodental /ˌleɪbiəʊˈdentəl/ [lip and teeth]:
35
The active articulator is the lower lip and the passive articulator is the upper front teeth.
Labiodental sounds in English are /f/ and / v/.
3. Labial-velar [or Labio-Velar] /ˌleɪbiəʊˈvi:lə/:

In the production of labio-velar sounds, there are simultaneous strictures [closure of the two
organs at the same time] at the lips and between the back of the tongue and the soft palate. The
sound /w/ is labio-velar. See also the term Velar below.
4. Dental /ˈdentl/:
The active articulator is the tongue tip and the passive articulator is the upper front teeth. Dental
English sounds are /θ/ [the first sound in thick] and /ð/ [the first sound in that].
5. Alveolar /ˈælviəʊlə/:
The active articulator is the tip or blade of the tongue and the passive articulator is the alveolar
ridge. Alveolar sounds in English are /t/; /d/; /n/; /s/; /z/; /l/; /r/.
6. Post-alveolar /ˈpəʊst ˈælviəʊlə/:

The active articulator is the blade of the tongue, and passive articulator is the back part of the
alveolar ridge. Post-alveolar sounds in English are: /ʃ/, tʃ/, /ʒ/ and /ʤ/. Post-alveolar consonants
are sometimes classed as Palato-alveolar.
7. Palatal /ˈpælətəl/:
The active articulator is the front of the tongue and the passive articulator is the hard palate. The
sound/ j/ as in the first sound in the word yesterday is a palatal consonant/ˈjes·tə·deɪ/.
8. Velar /ˈviː.lər/:
The active articulator is the back of the tongue and the passive articulator is the soft palate. The
following are the velar sounds in English: /k/; /g/; /ŋ/.
9. Glottal /ˈɡlɒtl/:
The articulators that take part in producing glottal sounds are the vocal cords. The sound /h/ is
an example of a glottal sound. Remember that the adjective 'glottal' is derived from the noun
'glottis', which is the opening between the vocal cords.
Reminder: Received Pronunciation [RP]:

Received Pronunciation refers to an accent of British English. RP has been thought to be a high
prestige accent, though less so in recent times. It is the accent which is most frequently used as a
model for teaching English as a second or foreign language [from Speech Internet Dictionary:
http://blogjam.name/sid/.
The following table shows the distribution of the 24 English consonants used in the Received
Pronunciation [RP] of British English according to the place of articulation. Study it carefully
and then do the activities and exercises that follow.
36
Place & Bi- Labio- Labio- Post-
Dental Alveolar Palatal Velar Glottal
Manner labial dental velar alveolar
1. Stop/ plosive p b t d k g
2. Fricative f v θ ð s z ʃ ʒ h
3. Affricate tʃ ʤ
4. Nasal m n ŋ
5. Approximant w j [w]
6. Lateral
l
approximant
7. Frictionless
r
continuant
Activity (4):
In the table below, provide two extra examples of words for each of the consonant sounds listed
in the table. The first sound /p/ is done for you.
No Symbol Example (1) Example (2) Example (3)
1. /p/ pit pot park
2. /b/ bit
3. /t/ tin
4. /d/ din
5. /k/ cut
6. /g/ gut
7. /tʃ / cheap
8. / ʤ/ jeep
9. /m/ map
10. /n/ nap
11. /ŋ/ bang
37
12. /f/ fat
13. /v/ vat
14. /θ/ thin
15. /ð/ then
16. /s/ sap
17. /z/ zap
18. / / she
19. / / measure
20. /h/ ham
21. /w/ we
22. /r/ run
23. /j/ yes
24. /l/ left
Exercise (2):
Write the manner and place of articulation of the RP consonants in the table below. Also, indicate
whether the sound is voiced or voiceless.
Reminder: As pointed out above, in the production of voiced sounds like [b], the vocal cords are
vibrating whereas in the production of voiceless sounds, they are not. The first sound is done for
you.
No Sound Example Voicing Place of Manner of

Symbol Articulation Articulation
1. /f/ fine voiceless labiodental fricative
2. /v/ verb
3. /s/ sit
38
4. /z/ zoo
5. wish
/ʃ/
6. / / measure
7. /θ/ thin
8. /ð/ there
9. /p/ pin
10. /b/ /box/
11. /t/ master
12. /d/ drive
13. /k/ catch
14. /g/ bigger
15. /tʃ/ watch
16. /dʒ/ bridge
17. /m/ swim
18. /n/ name
19. /ŋ/ sing
20. /l/ low
21. /h/ happy
22. /r/ read
23. /j/ yet
24. /w/ water
5. Rounding Up
5.1. New Terms

 Active articulator
 Affricate
 Alveolar
 Approximant
 Articulation/Articulator
 Articulatory phonetics
 Bilabial
 Dental
 Fricative
 Glottal
 Labio-dental
 Labio-velar
 Lateral approximant
 Manner of articulation
39
 Nasal
 Palatal
 Passive articulator
 Received Pronunciation [RP]
 Place of articulation
 Post-alveolar
 Stop/plosive
 Frictionless continuant
 Velar
 Voiced /Voiceless

In this unit, you have learnt:
 how speech sounds are produced,
 the differences between consonants and vowels,
 the manner in which consonants are produced (manner of articulation),
 the place at which consonants are produced (manner of articulation),
 to look up the pronunciation of words as well us to transcribe them, and
the terms that are used in describing consonants.
40
UNIT 4
PHONETICS 3
ENGLISH VOWELS AND DIPHTHONGS
Unit Sections
1. Defining Vowel Sounds
2. Classes of Vowel Sounds
3. Short Vowels
4. Long Vowels
5. Diphthongs
6. Rounding Up
Online Resources:
- BBC Learning English: http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/multimedia/pron/
- Cambridge Learner's Dictionary: http://dictionary.cambridge.org
- Pronouncing Dictionary: http://www.howjsay.com:
- Speech Internet Dictionary: http://blogjam.name/sid/.
 Unit Aims
This unit aims to:
1. define vowel sounds,
2. explain to you how vowel sounds are produced,
3. describe and classify vowel sounds in English,
4. give you more training in sound recognition and in phonetic transcription, and
5. acquaint you with the terms that are used in describing vowels.
1. Defining Vowel Sounds

A Vowel sound has three characteristics/qualities:
1. Unlike consonants sounds, which can be voiced or voiceless, vowel sounds are
commonly voiced.
2. A vowel occupies the nucleus of a syllable. [See Unit 5 below]
3. In the production of vowel sounds there is no complete closure and no stricture
[narrowing] close enough to cause friction [as in the case of consonants]. In other
words, in producing vowel sounds the airstream passes out freely through the vocal
tract.
41
Although there are only 5 vowel letters5 in the English Alphabet, phoneticians recognise, as we
shall see in this section, over 20 significant vowel sounds in speech.
Now let us return to the concept of “significant sound”, which we mentioned above. What do we
mean by it? A significant sound: is a sound that changes the meaning of the word if it is used
instead of another sound as in the following examples which we repeat from Unit 3 above for
convenience.
SOUNDS Word Phonetic

1 2 3 Transcription
/h/ /ɪ/ /t/ hit / hɪt /
/æ/ hat / hæt /
/iː/ heat /hiːt/
/ɒ / hot /hɒt/
/ʌ/ hut /hʌt/
/ɑː/ heart /hɑːt/
/ɜː/ hurt /hɜːt/
Sounds that affect meaning in words are called phonemes. All the vowel sounds in the above table
are phonemes: /ɪ/, /æ/, /iː/, /ɒ /, /ʌ/, /ɑː/ and /ɜː/. So we need to correct the statement about the
number of vowel sounds in English. It should read like this: English has over 20 vowel phonemes
[not vowel sounds].
Question: How can five letters give us over 20 vowel phonemes?
The answer to this question is very simple. First, the same letter may be pronounced in different
ways, depending on the phonetic context in which it occurs. For instance, the letter U is
pronounced in at least six different ways as in the examples in the following table:
No Sound Where? / Context Example Transcription

1. /ʌ/ medial sound hut /hʌt/
2. /j/ initial sound unit /ˈjuː.nɪt/
3. /ə / initial sound upon /əˈpɒn/
4. /ɜː/ initial sound urgent /ˈɜː.dʒənt/
5. /u/ medial sound full /fʊl/
6. /u:/ medial sound junior /ˈdʒuː.ni.ər/
Secondly, the same vowel letter, for example the letter O, may combine with other vowel letters
to form different vowel phonemes as in the examples in the following table;
5
The five vowel letters in English are: a, e, i, o, u.
42
No Letter- Letter- Example Sound Transcription
(1) (2)
1. o o foot /u/ /fʊt/
2. o food /u:/ /fuːd/
3. o door /ɔː/ /dɔːr/
4. u founder /aʊ/ /ˈfaʊn.dər/
5. u four /ɔː/ /fɔːr/
6. u soup /u:/ /suːp/
7. u tourism /ʊə/ /ˈtʊə.rɪ.zəm/
8. a road /əʊ/ /rəʊd/
9. a board /ɔː/ /bɔːd/
10. i boil /ɔɪ/ /bɔɪl/
11. i coiffure /wɒ/ /kwɒfˈɜːr/
The examples in the preceding tables show that:

1. A vowel letter may have different pronunciations.
2. The same combination of two vowel letters (e.g. o + u) may have different
pronunciations.
The above facts explain why we have more vowel sounds than vowel letters in English.
Note: The following two symbols /u/and /ʊ/refer to the same sound as in foot.
2. Classes of Vowel Sounds
In this section and the upcoming two sections, we consider:

 how vowel sounds are produced,
 how they can be described, and
 how they are commonly classified.
2.1. IPA Chart

Our starting point for the discussion of how vowel sounds are made is the IPA Chart. The
abbreviation IPA stands for the International Phonetic Association or for International
Phonetic Alphabet.
The IPA Chart is a “reference chart” which phoneticians use to describe the sounds of various
human languages. The points on the IPA are standard points according to which all vowel sounds
in any human language can be described. The IPA is available at
https://www.internationalphoneticassociation.org/redirected_home.
The following, however, is a chart of short and long vowels in RP English:
43
i: heat u: food
ɪ hit ʊ foot
ɔː sort
e head ɜː learn
ə above
ʌ hut
ɒ hot
æ hat ɑː car
The chart above represents the production of the most common English vowel sounds.
Vowels are produced in a relatively small area of the mouth. The tongue and the lips play an
important role in producing vowel sounds:
(i) The tongue may be further to the front or to the back of the mouth or in the centre of
the mouth
(ii) The tongue may be very high or very low in the mouth, or midway between high or
low.
(iii) The lips may be rounded or unrounded in the production of vowel sound
Rounded vowels mean that the lips take a rounded shape in the production of those sounds. All the
remaining vowels are unrounded [lips spread].
(iv) The colon [:] after a vowel indicates that the vowel is long
Vowels can thus be classified according to:
(i) Tongue height in the mouth:

This refers the position of the highest point of the tongue in forming the vowel and here
phoneticians distinguish three positions:
 High: It is close to the roof of the mouth, as for [i:] in seen , i.e. with the tongue as
near the roof of the mouth as it can get without causing friction, or
 Low: It is open as for /ɑː / as in farm[with the tongue as low in the mouth and the
jaws as wide open as possible; or
 Mid: It is intermediate [half-close or half-open] between these two as for /ɜː/ in
bird
(ii) Tongue position in the mouth:

This refers to how far forward or back the highest point of the tongue is. It can be:
44
 Front - such as /i:/ in seen,
 Back - such as /uː/ in pool ; or
 Central, like the /ɜː/ sound in English bird
(iii) Lips position (or shape):

Here two major positions are recognised:
 Rounded: as in the vowel sound in horse/ɔː/.
 Unrounded [or spread]: as in the vowel sound in ship /ɪ/
Thus, for example, we could describe the English /i:/ in words like sleep as: High [or Close];
Front; and Unrounded.
Vowel sounds are further classified according to whether they are:

 Short, or
 Long, or
 Diphthong
3. Short and Long Vowels

There are 7 short vowel sounds in RP as in the following table:
FRONT CENTRAL BACK

symbol example symbol example symbol Example
ɪ ship ə above ʊ foot
e head ʌ cup ɒ sock

æ hat
There are 5 long vowel sounds in RP as in the following table:
FRONT CENTRAL BACK

symbol example symbol example symbol Example
iː sheep uː cool
ɜː bird ɔː horse
ɑː farm

phonetics-flash-animation-project/ to see how short vowels are produced.
Activity (1):
45
Link toBBC Learning English and listen to the above vowel sounds

 Step 1: CLICK ON: The Sounds of English
 Step 2: CLICK ON: Sound Symbol Chart [Chart pops up].
 Step 3: CLICK ON: the phonetic symbol to hear the sound it represents.
Activity (2): Vowel Contrast: Minimal Pairs

A minimal pair is a pair of words which differ in one vocalic sound.
Visit Sounds of English: [https://www.soundsofenglish.org].
Now observe the vowel contrasts in the following minimal pairs
Minimal Pairs Simplified IPA Symbols

tin/ten i/e
bet/bat e/æ
bet/bait e/eɪ
cat/cut æ/ʌ
Activity (3):
Link toBBC Learning English and listen to the above vowel sounds

 Step 3: CLICK ON: the phonetic symbol to hear the sound.
Activity (4): Vowel Contrast: Minimal Pairs

Visit Sounds of English [https://www.soundsofenglish.org] and listen to vowel contrasts in the
following minimal pairs containing short and long vowels.
No Minimal Pairs Simplified IPA Symbols
1. sheep/ship iː / i
2. cat/cart æ / ɑː
3. cart/cut ɑː / ʌ
46
4. cut/curt ʌ / ɜː
5. look/loop /
6. cart/caught /
7. caught/cot /
8. caught/curt /
4. Diphthongs
phonetics-flash-animation-project/
A diphthong is a complex vowel sound, usually the combination of two vowels, which changes its
quality within a single syllable. A diphthong has an initial quality and a different end quality. For
example, in the production of the diphthong sound/aɪ/ [as in the word eye] the tongue moves from
the position of the sound [æ] as in the word [hat] and before finishing the production of this sound,
it moves to the position of the vowel [ɪ] as in [ship].
There are 8 diphthongs in RP as in the following table:-
Diphthong Symbols The sounds in words Transcriptions
/ɪə/ near /nɪə/

/ʊə/ tour /tʊə/
/eə/ hair /heə/
/aɪ/ my /maɪ/
/ɔɪ/ toy /tɔɪ/
/əʊ/ snow /snəʊ/
/aʊ/ now /naʊ/
/eɪ/ say /seɪ/
Activity (5): Link toBBC Learning English and listen to the above vowel sounds
 Step 3: CLICK ON: the phonetic symbol to hear the sound it represents.
Exercise (1):
Which of the following statements is true and which is false;
47
1. All vowel sounds are voiced.
2. There is a complete closure in the vocal tract in the production of some English vowel
sounds.
3. Vowel sounds are less than consonant sounds in RP.
4. There are no rounded vowels in RP.
5. The vowel sound in the word heat is long.
6. There is only one nasal consonant in RP.
7. The vowel sound in the word mile is a diphthong.
8. English letters outnumber English sounds
9. Most consonant sounds in English are fricative.
10. The difference between the /b/ sound in the word bark and the /p/ sound in the word park
has to do with place of articulation.
11. The Arabic word mashi [walking] begins with a nasal consonant.
12. In producing lateral sounds the airstream passes through the front of the tongue.
13. All the vowel sounds in the following words are identical [the same]: word; world; girl;
hurt; burn.
14. The following transcribed word /ˌsəʊ.siˈɒl.ə.dʒi/ stands for the word psychology.
15. In producing labio-dental consonants the lower lip articulates against the upper teeth.
16. In producing back vowels the front of the tongue moves towards the soft palate.
17. Arab students have some difficulty with the consonant /p/ because it is not part of the
phonological system of Arabic.
18. The vowel sound /ɜː/ as in bird is a back vowel.
19. The consonant /g/ in bigger is a voiced velar plosive/stop.
20. The vowel sound in the word boy is a short vowel.
5. Rounding Up
5.1. New Terms
 back vowels
 central vowels
 high vowel
 diphthongs
 IPA Chart
 long vowel
 minimal pairs
 low vowel
 rounded & unrounded vowels
 short vowel

You have learnt in this unit:
 distinction between vowel and consonant sounds
 how to describe vowels and diphthongs
 classes of vowel sounds
 the spelling of vowel sounds
 how to listen to and identify/recognise vowel sounds
48
UNIT 5
PHONOLOGY
Unit Sections
1. Introduction
2. Phonemic Analysis
3. Assimilation and Other Phenomena
4. Aspiration
5. Consonant Clusters and Syllable Structure
6. Rounding up
Online Resources:
http://www.howjsay.com
http://dictionary.cambridge.org
 Unit Aims
This unit aims to:
1. introduce you to phonology,
2. acquaint you with phonemic analysis,
3. explain to you the difference between phonemic and phonetic transcription,
4. explain to you minimal pairs,
5. define, describe and exemplify assimilation and aspiration, and
6. describe and classify consonant clusters and syllabic structure.
1. Introduction
While articulatory phonetics attempts to describe how isolated speech sounds are produced and
how they are classified, phonology studies how they are combined, or merged into each other, to
produce words and utterances. It also studies the functional patterns of such merging. This is why
phonology is sometimes called functional phonetics.
Phonology deals with the rules governing how phonemes are combined in a given language to
produce words. It is amazing how a limited number of phonemes (44 in English) can produce such
a large number of words like what you have in dictionaries.
2. Phonemic Analysis
2.1. Phonemes and allophones

Phonemic analysis is concerned with phonemes and allophones.
49
Phonemes are meaningful sounds, i.e. if one is used instead of the other in a word, its meaning
will change. The actual number of possible speech sounds is very large, but the number of sounds
which are meaningful or significant in a certain language is relatively small.
Allophones are the varieties of a phoneme. They do not change the meaning of a word if one is
used instead of the other (See the examples in the next section).
2.2. Phonemic vs. phonetic transcription

These are two different methods of transcribing sounds.
In phonemic transcription, only the phonemes (the 44 significant sounds of English) are
considered. To make things clear, look at the following examples of the clear and dark ‘l’. When
you hear an RP speaker say the word little, /litl/, you feel that the /l/ sound at the beginning (known
as clear ‘l’) is slightly different from the /l/ at the end (known as dark ‘l’). You will hear the
difference if you listen carefully to the word little on howjsay (online English Pronouncing
Dictionary). These two varieties of /l/ are allophones not phonemes, because if one of them is
replaced by the other, there will be no change in the meaning of the word little. The rule for the
two types is:
- The clear /l/ is heard before vowels (including word-initial positions),
- The dark /l/ is heard before consonants and in word-final positions.
In a phonemic transcription such differences which are not meaning changing are not represented.
In other words the two allophones of /l/ will be represented as one sound. However, these slightly
different allophones will be represented when someone is undertaking a phonetic or allophonic
transcription.
Questions:
1. Which /l/ in the following words is clear and which is dark?
1. enlighten, 2. layman, 3. animal, 4. while, 5. ailing, 6. slave, 7. milk.
Tips:
1. clear /l/ in: 1,2,5,6; dark /l/ in: 3,4,7.
2.3. Minimal pairs

The phonemes of a language are established through a process which uses a pair of words that
differ only in a single sound as you had seen in units 3 and 4 above. In a minimal pairs test, we
take off a sound in a word and replace it by other sounds. When the meaning changes, we come to
the conclusion that the replacement is a phoneme.
To make things clearer, consider the example site /saɪt/. If we replace the sound /s/ by /f/ we will
have fight /faɪt/, a different word with a new meaning. Therefore, the two words, /saɪt/ and /faɪt/,
are a minimal pair. If we continue to substitute sounds for /s/, we will see that several phonemes
can be established:
1. /m/ as in might /maɪt/,
2. /k/ as in: kite /kaɪt/,
3. /h/ as in: height /haɪt/,
4. /w/ as in: white /waɪt/,
50
5. /b/ as in: bite /baɪt/,
6. /r/ as in: right or write /raɪt/,
7. /t/ as in: tight /taɪt/,
8. /n/ as in: night /naɪt/, and
9. /l/ as in: light /laɪt/.
Notice that each change produced a different word with a new meaning. Thus, with one minimal
pair we managed to establish/confirm the existence of eleven phonemes of English. With different
pairs the remaining phonemes (consonants, vowels and diphthongs) can be established.
Exercise 1:
Choose a, b, or c
1. The function of the sound system of a particular language is the main focus of:
a) Phonetics
b) Phonology
c) Both types of study
2. A statement such as: “/p/ is a voiceless bilabial plosive.” is typically made in:
a) Phonetics
b) Phonology
3. A statement such as: “While the phonemes /str-/ appear at the beginning of an English word,
/trs-/ do not." is typically made in:
a) Phonetics
b) Phonology
4. The number of RP English phonemes is:
a) 24, b)44, c)54
5. A minimal pair of English words is:
a) Any two words
b) Two words from different languages
c) Two words made different by a single phoneme.
Exercise 2:
Choose a, b, or c [when applicable]:
1. In continuous (or connected) speech, sounds are
a) made one at a time.
b) made with an abrupt movement of the vocal organs.
c) made with a continuous movement of the vocal organs.
2. The following statement: The /k/ in keep is the same as the /k/ in school is
a) true
b) false
3. The following statement: The /l/ in leaf differs from the /l/ in cool is:
a) true
b) false
4. The sound that influences /k/ in keep is:
a) the sound /i:/
51
b) the sound /p/
5. The sound that influences /l/ in cool is:
a) the sound /k/,
b) the sound /u:/
Exercise 3:
Choose a or b:
1. The following statement: "The two /k/ sounds in keep and school are allophones" is:
a) true
b) false
2. The following statement: “The two /l/ sounds in light and milk are phonemes” is:
a) true
b) false
3. Assimilation and Other Phenomena

This section deals with the effect of neighbouring sounds on each other. These phenomena are
discussed briefly below.
3.1. Assimilation
All sounds, vowels, diphthongs and consonants are influenced by surrounding sounds. This
influence usually leads to sound changes. Such changes are examples of assimilation. Thus,
assimilation happens when a sound changes as a result of being next to another sound. In other
words, assimilation is defined as the changing of sound A into sound B under the influence of a
neighbouring sound C (which may be the same as B or different from it).
Some of what follows are examples from the BBC Learning English website:
Browse the material in Radio programmes 2 and 3. They are accessed from the right-hand column
under Resources on the Pronunciation Tips page of the site. The above link takes you directly to
this page. Access details for assimilation are: Radio Programme 3: Sounds change
(assimilation). The following are two of the examples of assimilation which you will find. Observe
how the last sound /d/ in good becomes /g/ in the first example, and becomes /b/ in the second
example under the influence of the following sound in both cases.
 Good girl. She's a good girl. /goog girl/
 Good boy. He's a good boy. /goob boy/
3.2. The Linking ‘r’

In connected RP speech, when a word ends in the schwa /ə/ and the next word begins with any
vowel, a linking /r/ sound is commonly heard between them as in the examples:
 later on /'leɪ.tər'ɒn/;
 dear Allen /'dɪər'a.lən/;
 higher up /'haɪ.ər'ʌp/.
More examples of the linking ’r’ are available at the same BBC website page described above and
accessed from the lower part of the right-hand column in the separate link titled: connected
speech, and also in Radio Programme 2 on the same page.
52
3. 3. The Intrusive ‘r’
Sometimes the ‘r’ is inserted even when the previous word does not end in [r], as in:
 idea of /aɪ.'dɪərəv /;
 Asia and Africa /'eɪ.ʃərənd'a.frɪkə/.
This ‘r’ is called the intrusive ‘r’.
3.4. Aspiration
Put a lit candle in front of your mouth and say key. The flame will start to flicker after /k/ is
pronounced. This flickering, made with a puff of air, is called ‘aspiration’ and /k/ is thus termed
‘aspirated’. The same happens when you say piece or tea. The rule is:
 A voiceless plosive [/k/, /p/ or /t/] is pronounced with a following puff of air when it is
used at the beginning of a stressed syllable and before a vowel.
Examples of aspiration are [where the [h] represents aspiration]:

- /p/ in peep, pronounced [phi:p];
- /t/ in tie, pronounced [thai]; and
- /k/ in keen, pronounced [khi:n],
You can hear this puff of air by listening to the examples on the Howjsay online English
Pronouncing Dictionary. However, no aspiration occurs when the three voiceless plosive
consonants /p, t, k/ come after the /s/ sound as in speed, steed, skied, pronounced: /spi:d, sti:d,
ski:d/, respectively.
Examples of aspiration are found on the BBC Learning English website on the right-hand column
under Similar sounds.
Exercise 4:
1. Which of the following statements is true?
a. Aspiration occurs only in some voiceless RP consonants.
b. Aspiration occurs in all English varieties.
c. Aspiration can occur when /k/ is followed by a consonant.
2. In which word(s) is /p/, /t/, or /k/ aspirated?
key /ki:/, scheme /ski:m/, sleep /sli:p/, price /praɪs/, peace /pi:s/, Mike /maɪk/, meter /mi:tə/,
teacher /ti:tʃə/.
5. Consonant Clusters and Syllable Structure

5.1. Consonant clusters/groups
As noted earlier, phonology deals with how sounds are combined together to form words. In
English words, two, three or more consonants may be grouped together to form clusters or groups.
Here are some examples,6 of consonant clusters in word-initial, medial, and final positions:
6
Extracted, adapted and expanded from Ali A. Hajjaj, Phonetics and Pronunciation, Al Quds University: 2001.
53
(i) Two consonants: word initial position:
 /s/ + /p, t, k, f, m, n, l, w, / as in: spare, steam, sky, sphere, smile, sneer, slow, swear
 /t/ + /r, w, j/ as in: trim, twin, tune
 /k/ + /l, r, w, j/ as in: Clive, crime, queen, queue
 /b/ + /l, r, j/ as in: blame, bright, beautiful
 /d/ +/r, w, j/ as in: dry, dwell, duty
 /g/ + l, r/ as in: glare, gross
 /f/ + / l, r, j/ as in: flare, frame, few
 /θ/ + /r, w/ as in: three, thwart
 /ʃ/ + /r/ as in: shrink , shrimp
 /v, m, n, h/ + /j/ as in: view, mute, news, huge
 /p/+/l, r, j/as in: play, pray, pew
Notice that 9 English consonants, /tʃ,/dʒ/, /ŋ/, /l/, /r/, /w/, /ð/, /z/, /j/, are not used at the start of
consonant clusters.)
(ii) Three consonants: word initial position:

 /spr-/ as in: spray, spread, spring
 /str-/ as in straw, struggle, stress
 /skr-/ as in: scream, screen, script
 /stj-/ as in: student, steward, stew (pronounced /stu:/ in American English)
 /skj-/ as in: skew (rare cluster)
 /spl-/ as in: splash, splendid, split
 /skw-/ as in: squad, square, squash
Notice that that all the above examples begin with /s/.
(iii) Word medial position:

/-st-/ as in: instant /instənt/ (two consonants)
/-kstʃ-/ as in: exchange /ɪkstʃeɪndʒ/ (three consonants)
/-kstr-/ as in: extract/ɪkstrækt/ (four consonants)
(iv) Word final position:

/-sp/ as in: crisp /krɪsp/ (two consonants)
/-ldz/ as in: fields /fi:ldz/ (three consonants)
Four or more consecutive consonants are heard across word boundaries, for example:
long street /lɒŋ.stri:t/ , twelfth strike /twelfθ.straɪk/ (the dot [.] marks a new syllable.)
5.2. Syllable structure

As you already know, English words are made up of one or more syllables and each syllable
consists of one or more sounds, generally consonants and vowels. As a rule, the English syllable
54
commonly contains a vowel or a diphthong regardless of the number of consonants used in it. In
fact one vowel or diphthong can be a whole syllable (called minimum syllable) as in the word or
/ɔ:/, or the word eye /aɪ/. This rule will make it easy for you to find the beginning and end of a
syllable in words that consist of more than one syllable as in the examples cited below.
An exception to this rule can be seen in cases like the two words mutton /mʌtn/and cattle /kætl/.
Although there is one vowel in each word, the number of syllables is two: the final /n/ in the first
and the /l/ in the second are called syllabic, meaning that each one stands for a syllable, i.e. they
stand out as stronger and louder than consonants.
Question: which of the following words end in a syllabic consonant?
1. Team; 2. lone; 3.rotten; 4.fine; 5.fiddle; 6.hill; 7.sole; 8.shuttle

Tip: 3, 5, 8
Can you state the rule of syllabic consonants?
Rule: when an alveolar stop [t, d] is followed by an alveolar lateral [l] or an alveolar nasal[n] and
occurs at the end of a word they make up a syllabic consonant.
Think of more examples in English?
When a syllable consists of a vowel or a diphthong preceded and followed by one or more
consonants on each side, it is termed ‘closed’ as in the first example below. Meanwhile, in an
‘open’ syllable [as in the second example below] the vocalic sound has one or more consonants
on one side only, e.g.
 bed (CVC), trim (CCVC), test (CVCC) (where C stands for consonant and V for vowel
or diphthong).
 way (CV), cry (CCV), up (VC), act (VCC).
A word which has a single syllable is called mono-syllabic as in the first set of words below. If it
has more syllables, it is termed multi-syllabic as in the second set of words:
 rich, smart, soon, at, etc.

 repeat /rɪ.pi:t/; understand /ʌn.də.'stænd/; happily /'hæ.pɪ.lɪ/; consequently
/'kɒn.sɪk.wənt.lɪ/.
Exercise 5
Mark the following statements as either true or false.
1. Sounds are influenced by surrounding sounds.
2. When we speak, we produce sound segments.
3. Assimilation is a puff of air.
4. At the beginning of a stressed syllable and before a vowel, /t/ is aspirated.
5. Aspiration can be heard after the voiceless plosives.
6. A linking ‘r’ links consonants.
7. An intrusive ‘r’ is an inserted sound.
55
8. A phoneme is a meaningful sound.
9. Minimal pairs are used to discover the phonemes of a language.
10. A syllable may consist of one vowel.
11. A syllabic sound is located at the beginning of a syllable.
12. Phonetics is called functional phonology.
Activity (1)
Transcribe the following words and mark the stressed syllable in them. Check your answers in the
Cambridge Advanced Learners Dictionary (CALD): 1. phonetics; 2. phonology; 3. associate
(verb); 4. associate (noun); 5. association; 6. recognize; 7. recognition; 8. compose; 9. composition;
10. address (verb)
Activity (2)
The following are place names whose pronunciation is not quite predictable. Mark the stressed
syllable in them with the primary stress mark ['], and mark each syllable with a dot. They can be
heard on the howjsay online dictionary: 1. Derby; 2. Edinburgh; 3. Los Angeles; 4. Chicago; 5.
Leicester; 6. Yorkshire; 7. Thames; 8. Worcester; 9. Durham; 10. Warwick
6. ROUNDING UP
6.1. New Terms
 Allophone - Allophonic transcription
 Aspiration
 Assimilation
 Intrusive ‘r’ - Linking ‘r’
 Minimal pair
 Minimum syllable
 Phoneme -Phonemic transcription
 Syllabic consonant

In this unit you have learnt
 What phonology means.
 How to distinguish between phoneme and allophone.
 What assimilation and aspiration mean
 What a linking ‘r’ is and what an intrusive ‘r’ is.
 What consonant clusters are and how they are classified.
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UNIT 6
PROSODY
Unit Sections
1. Introduction
2. Stress
3. Rhythm and Intonation
4. Rounding up
Online Resources:
1. English Pronouncing Dictionary: http://www.howjsay.com
2. Cambridge Dictionaries Online: http://dictionary.cambridge.org
3. BBC Learning English:
 Unit Aims
The unit aims to:
1. introduce you to prosody,
2. define and exemplify stress in words and in connected speech,
3. acquaint you with rhythm, and
4. define and exemplify intonation.
1. Introduction
Prosody is the name of the speech elements of stress, rhythm and intonation. These elements
extend over stretches of utterances longer than segments (phonemes). In some studies, especially
in the USA, prosodies are termed ‘suprasegmental features’, or features beyond the sound segment.
In what follows, we will discuss the elements of prosody.
Training in prosody requires a keen ear and a determined effort to listen to how words, sentences
and utterances are made, especially as we now have online material in the form of specialized
websites and pronouncing dictionaries. In discussing the issues of prosody, we must place double
emphasis on ear-training through continuous listening.
All the elements of prosody, stress, rhythm and intonation, are used in the spoken forms of
language to represent speakers’ feelings or attitudes.
2. Stress
This section looks at stress with the intention of defining it, describing its basic types and providing
exercises whose purpose is to allow you to acquire the basic rules of stress. There are two types
of stress: (i) word stress (also called lexical stress) and (ii) stress in connected utterances or
connected speech (also called sentence stress). Below is a discussion of the two types.
57
2.1. Word stress
Word stress may be defined as the degree of breath force placed on each syllable in a word. Strong
stress is represented by the ['] placed before the stressed syllable. Other factors such as loudness
and higher pitch are involved in making a stressed syllable prominent. Here are some simple
notions concerning word stress:
1. Each word has only one primary stress marked by the superscript marker [']. The primary
stress is what we mostly deal with in this unit.
2. Some longer words may have a secondary degree of stress usually marked by a subscript
[ֽ].
3. Unstressed syllables are not marked.
4. As a rule, the number of stressed syllables in a word corresponds to the number of vowels
and diphthongs in it. As pointed out in Unit 5 above, an exception to this rule is that in
limited cases syllabic consonants may stand for syllables.
The following are some word stress rules:
(i) Stress is placed on the first syllable of most nouns and adjectives consisting of two syllables:
e.g.
Nouns Adjectives
Absence /ˈæb.səns/ Absent /ˈæb.sənt/
Object /ˈɒb.dʒɪkt/ Windy /ˈwɪn.di/
Cyprus /ˈsaɪ.prəs/ Careful /ˈkeə.fəl/
India /ˈɪn.di.ə/ Final /ˈfaɪ.nəl/
(ii) The majority of verbs consisting of two syllables are stressed on the last syllable: e.g.
Verbs
Record /rɪˈkɔːd/
Except /ɪkˈsept/
Protest /prəˈtest/
Report /rɪˈpɔːt/
(iii) Stress is placed on the second from last syllable in words with –ic ; –tion; or
–sion at the end as in:
–ic at the end –tion or –sion at the end

magic /ˈmædʒ.ɪk division /dɪˈvɪʒ.ən/
syntactic /ˈsɪn.tæks/ provision /prəˈvɪʒ.ən/
fantastic /fænˈtæs.tɪk/ exhibition /ˌek.sɪˈbɪʃ.ən/
semantic /sɪˈmæn.tɪk/ revision /rɪˈvɪʒ.ən/
As you may have already noted, in many English words consisting of two syllables, the changing
of stress alters the grammatical classification of the word as in the following table:
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Word Verb Noun
contract /kənˈtrækt/ /ˈkɒn.trækt/
object /əbˈdʒekt/ /ˈɒb.dʒɪkt/
protest /prəˈtest/ /ˈprəʊ.test/
consort /kənˈsɔːt/ /ˈkɒn.sɔːt/
The table above shows clearly that when stress goes to a different syllable in all the examples
given, a change in the grammatical class of the word ensues – verb to noun or noun to verb. There
is also a change in some of the vowels/diphthongs.
In the following table, which also illustrates the same trend, the change of stress alters grammatical
classification but does not change any vowel or diphthong. In other words the examples in the
second and third column are pronounced in the same way except for the stress.
Word Verb Noun

import /ɪmˈpɔːt/ /ˈɪm.pɔːt/
insult /ɪnˈsʌlt/ /ˈɪn.sʌlt/
discount /dɪˈskaʊnt/ /ˈdɪskaʊnt/
increase /ɪnˈkriːs/ /ˈɪn.kriːs/
incense /ɪnˈsens/ /ˈɪn.sens/
2.2. Stress in connected utterances

This type of stress is related to sentences (not words).It is also called sentence stress. It is used in
English where some words, normally content words (nouns, adjectives, main or lexical verbs and
adverbs), are stressed and other words, usually the smaller function words, are not stressed.
Function words are also called grammatical words. They are: pronouns, definite and indefinite
articles, prepositions, auxiliaries, and conjunctions7.
When a syllable is not stressed (i.e. weak) in English, the schwa /ə/ is a very likely sound. The
following are illustrative examples:
Word Strong form Weak form

but /bʌt/ /bət/
can /kæn/ /kən/, /kn/
could /kʊd/ /kəd/
was /wɒz/ /wəz/
must /mʌst/ /məst/
not /nɒt/ /nt/
shall /ʃæl/ /ʃəl/, /ʃl/
should /ʃʊd/ /ʃəd/
would /wʊd/ /wəd/, /əd/, /d/
7
See Unit 7 below.
59
some /sʌm/ /səm/, /sm/
than /ðæn/ (rare) /ðən/, /ðn/
do (Aux) /du:/ /dʊ/, /də/, /d/ (Aux)
does (Aux) /dʌz/ /dəz/, /z/, /s/(Aux)
had (Aux) /hæd/ /həd, /əd/, /d/ (Aux)
have(Aux) /hæv/ /həv/, /əv/, /v/
of /ɒv/ /əv/
them /ðem/ /ðəm/, /əm/, /m/
and /ænd/ /ənd, /nd/, /ən/, /n/
has /hæz/ /həz/, /əz, /z/, /s/
us /ʌs/ /əs/, /s/
In the following table, the weak form has a shortened vowel:
Word Strong form Weak form

he /hi:/ /hɪ/
be /bi:/ /bɪ/
been /bi:n/ /bɪn/
me /mi:/ /mɪ/
she /ʃi:/ /ʃɪ/
we /wi:/ /wɪ/
you /ju:/ /jʊ/
do /du:/ /dʊ/
who /hu:/ /hʊ/
Now, go to the BBC Learning English website:

Firstly, access schwa under Building knowledge in the right-hand column. Then read the
material and do the exercises where you have listening material.
Secondly, access Radio programme 1 also in the right-hand column for illustrative examples of
this very common sound (the schwa /ə/) which never occurs in a stressed syllable. However,
unstressed syllables may have other vocalic sounds (vowels or diphthongs).
2.3. Elision
Another feature of connected speech is elision. Elision is defined as the omission of a final or
initial sound across word boundary or in the same word. When the sound /t/ or /d/ is used between
two consonants, it is often omitted. Representative examples are:
60
Elision across word boundary Elision in the same word
bes(t) man pos(t)man
ol(d) farm win(d)mill
.
Activity (1)
Go to the BBC Learning English website, Radio Programme 2. Click the Sounds disappear link
and browse the material in this link.
2.4. Sentence focus

When you want to emphasize a certain part of a sentence, perhaps for contrast or in answer to a
previous question, you use extra stress or focus. In English, contrast is realized by laying extra
stress on the element/word which the speaker wishes to emphasize. For example, in a sentence
such as:
 John found the key,
you can emphasize any of the three elements John, found, or key. This is done by making the
required element prominent or stressed. But this will depend on the meaning you intend to convey:
e.g.
 If you overstress John, this will normally be understood as meaning that John, not
someone else found the key.
 If you lay extra stress on found, it will be in contrast with another action such as lost.
 If the word key is overstressed, the meaning will become different: it will imply that the
key, not something else, was found by John.
Exercise 1:
1. Mark the stressed syllable in the following words with the stress mark [' ] placed before it:
1. render; 2. artist; 3. reveal; 4. announce; 5. reduce; 6. rector; 7. derive;
8. diction; 9. doctor
2. Transcribe into phonetic symbols the words: render, announce, rector, and doctor
from the above list and mark the stressed syllable in them.
3. What do you conclude about the occurrence of the schwa (ə) in them?
Exercise 2:
Listen to the words below on the online dictionary http://www.howjsay.com and mark the
strongly stressed syllable in the following words. Write X in the right box
stress 1st 2nd 3rd 4th

word syllable syllable syllable syllable
photograph
photography
photographic
photographer
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Exercise 3:
Look again at the examples in Exercises 1 and 2 and browse their answer in Appendix I. How do
you describe the nature of stress in English words? Is it fixed or free? Now, look up the answer
to this exercise.
Exercise 4:
Match the sentences in the first column with the sentence focus in the second column. Words in
italics are emphasized.
Sentence Focus
1. My father repaired the car a. as opposed to doing something else
2. My father repaired the car b. as opposed to repairing something else
3. My father repaired the car c. as opposed to someone else
4. Rhythm and Intonation

3.1. Rhythm defined
Rhythm can be defined as a regular pattern of stress beats. This pattern is repeated in a tempo-like
fashion. It is achieved in English chiefly through the patterning of stressed and unstressed syllables
as in poetry. For example, the syllables which are given strong stress in the following are:
My 'sis.ter had been 'off.ered a 'good 'job 'ear.lier,

 the first syllable in sister,
 the first syllable in offered,
 the syllable in good,
 the syllable in job and
 the first syllable in earlier.
Observe that the stressed words are what we call ‘content words’ meaning major words: nouns
(like sister), main verbs (like offer), adjectives (like good), and adverbs (like earlier). Also observe
that non-content words (called ‘function words” or ‘grammatical words’) such as pronouns (like
my), auxiliary verbs (like had and been) and articles (like a and the) are unstressed. Note that the
dot (.) marks syllable boundary in words consisting of more than one syllable.
English is classified as a stress-timed language because in speech roughly the same time is needed
for a native speaker to proceed from each stressed syllable to the next one, no matter how many
unstressed syllables exist between them. Thus, in the example given above it takes a native speaker
the same time to go from offered to good, as from good to job, although between good and job
there are no intervening syllables.
Similar examples are:
62
 I don’t 'know e.'nough a.bout why this 'sto.ry 'makes me 'sad.
 The 'book you have been 'read.ing is 'rea.lly out.'da.ted.
Exercise 5:
Which words are stressed in the following sentence: The best jewel in the world has been stolen.
3.2. Intonation defined
When a person speaks, not only does he/she stress syllables, but the pitch of his/her voice continues
to rise and fall. Pitch changes when the vocal cords change the frequency of their vibration. This
means when the vocal cords vibrate faster, the pitch rises and when their vibration slows down the
pitch falls. Intonation deals primarily with the rise and fall of voice pitch.
Changes in intonation are used for expressing numerous shades of meaning. Spoken with falling
intonation on the word coming, the sentence:
 He’s coming,
has a completely different meaning than when coming is said with rising intonation or rising pitch.
In the former case, the meaning of the sentence is that of a statement, but in the latter case, the
meaning is that of a question. This means that in such examples, the intonation not only reveals
the attitude of the speaker, but also determines the grammatical classification of the sentence:
declarative or interrogative.
Personal attitudes are frequently mirrored by the intonation contour: the attitude of the speaker
who says fine with falling intonation is that of satisfaction or appreciation. However, the same
word pronounced with a fall followed by a rise reflects a disbelieving attitude.
The basic unit of intonation is a tone unit (also called intonation unit, or tone group). Each tone
unit corresponds to a unit of information, marked by a pause, a change of tone or both.
3.3. Intonation groups

An intonation group generally corresponds to a clause. This means that the boundary of an
intonation group is usually the boundary of a clause. Each group is normally marked by this bar
marker: \ placed before and after the clause. The term ‘tone group’ is sometimes used instead of
the term intonation group. The main pitch movement (fall/rise/fall-rise/rise-fall) is normally
carried by the last stressed syllable in the intonation group. It is called the nuclear tone (or the
nucleus).
An utterance like the following consists of one intonation group:

 \What are you reading?\
63
However, if one says:
 \What?\\Are you reading?\,,
the same string of words now consists of two intonation groups, each represented by a separate
clause asking a different question.
 \What?\
 \Are you reading?\,
Exercise 6
1. Which syllable in an intonation group carries the main pitch movement?
2. What is it called?
3. Choose a or b
What are the functions of prosody like?
a) They are like marks on paper.
b) They are like punctuation marks.
Exercise 7
Underline the nucleus in the following utterances: (Tip: it is the last stressed syllable)
1. We’ve done this together.
2. The story is not over.
3. What I like to do is find a good dictionary.
4. No harm is meant to you.
Exercise 8
Which of the following statements is true or false?
1. Prosodies can be used to signal given and new information.

2. Prosodies can be used to represent animals.
3. Prosodies can be used to signal persons.
4. Prosodies can be used to signal a question.
5. Prosodies can be used to represent our attitude.
64
Exercise 9:
Mark as either true or false.
1. lexical (or syllable) stress is the only type of stress.
2. A syllable receiving main stress is represented by a superscript.
3. A syllable receiving secondary or weak stress is represented by a subscript.
4. Intonation deals mainly with connected speech.
5. English is not a stress-timed language.
6. Intonation is not concerned with stress.
7. Prosodies are also called supra-segmental features.
8. There are different systems for representing prosodic features.
4. Rounding Up
4.1. New Terms

 Content (word)
 Elision
 Function (word)
 Intonation
 Nucleus/ Nuclear tone
 Pitch
 Prosody
 Rhythm
 Sentence focus
 Sentence stress
 Stress-timed (language)
 Strong form
 Supra-segmental
 Syllable-timed (language)
 Tone unit/group
 Weak form
 Word stress
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4.2. What Have You Learnt in This Unit?
 What prosodies are.
 How to use word and sentence stress patterns.
 What stress in connected speech is.
 How to distinguish rhythmic patterns.
 How intonation patterns operate.
66
UNIT 7
MORPHOLOGY
Unit Sections
1. What is Morphology?
2. Morpheme Types
3. Affixing, Prefixing, and Suffixing
4. Function of Affixes
5. Rounding Up
Unit Aims:
This unit aims to:
1. introduce you to basic morpheme types and the differences between them,
2. explain the functions of morphemes, and
3. identify the difference between inflectional and derivational affixes.
1. What is Morphology?
Morphology is the study of word formation. The basic unit in the study of morphology is the
morpheme. As explained in Unit One above, the relationship between words and morphemes is
like this:
 A word consists of at least one morpheme as in friend, but it may consist of three or more
morphemes as in the word uninteresting, which consists of three units [morphemes]: [un
+ interest + ing]
In terms of structure, words in English are of two types:

(i) a free single (basic) unit that has meaning as in the word house
(ii) a free unit that can be divided into smaller units as in the word houses [house +
es] or classroom [class + room].
Units that form words are called morphs or morphemes. These two terms are used interchangeably.
2. Morpheme Types
A morpheme or morph is often defined as the minimal meaningful unit. This definition means
two things:
67
1. The morpheme/morph has a meaning. For example, the word impossible consists of two
morphs im + possible. Each of these two morphs has a meaning. What is the meaning of
the prefix im-?
2. It is a minimal meaningful unit. This means that it cannot be subdivided into any more
meaningful units. This is true of the two morphemes in the word impossible. Neither of
them can be subdivided into more units.
Morphemes are two types: free and bound morphemes.
(i) Free Morphemes: like the word possible in the above example which has meaning and can
stand on its own. A free morpheme is also called a stem or a root. It is usually a lexical word, that
is, a word with lexical meaning: a noun, a verb, an adjective, or an adverb: e.g. run, cat, possible,
quickly.
(ii) Bound [not free] Morphemes: [like the prefix im- in the word impossible. These are
morphemes that cannot stand on their own, e.g. -s, -ed. These have to join another morph to become
meaningful.
Words in English can be structured in one of the following ways:
 free morph + free morph: e.g. black + bird = blackbird

 free morph + bound morph: e.g. cat + s = cats
 bound morph + free morph: e.g. un + happy = unhappy
 bound morph + free morph+ bound morph: e.g. un + kind + ness = unkindness.
.
Exercise 1
Categorize the following words into free or bound morphemes:
A. Camels
B. Player
C. Plant
D. Book
E. Truthful
F. Dreaming
Exercise 2
Divide the following morphemes into their free and bound morphs and state the type of
combination, for example: going = go [free] + ing [bound]
A. Housewife
B. Unpleasant
C. Recall
D. Boys
E. Painter
F. Something
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3. Word formation processes:
English words acquire new forms and new meanings in a variety of word formation
processes/methods. The most common of these are: affixation, compounding, clipping, blending
and acronyms. Below is a brief discussion of each of these processes together with examples.
3.1 Affixing, Prefixing, and Suffixing

As we have seen above, bound morphemes are units that need to attach to a root to become
meaningful. This process is called affixing.
Affixing can come at the beginning of a root word [un + kind] or at the end of it [kind + ness].
These are called "prefixes" and "suffixes" respectively.
(i) Prefixes: An Affix [bound morpheme] that is added at the beginning of a root word [e.g.
unhappy, unseen] is called a prefix.
(ii) Suffixes: An Affix [bound morpheme] that is added at the end of a root word [e.g. kind +ness
= kindness; teach + er = teacher] is called a suffix.
Sometimes a bound morpheme is affixed at the beginning of a root word and at the end, at the
same time e.g. un + kind + ness.
Exercise 3
Look at the sets of words and identify the odd one out of each pattern:
A. cat, player, train, land
B. happiness, forgetfulness, unpleasant
C. illiterate, irresponsible, studied
Exercise 4
Describe the type of affixing, whether prefixing or suffixing or both in the following words:
A. Unaware
B. Immobile
C. Truthful
D. Planted
E. Incomprehensible
F. Atypical
3.1.1. Functions of Affixes

I. Inflectional Affixes
As we have seen above, the bound morphemes that are affixed to a root word are not part of the
original word form. They are prefixed or suffixed to it. They do not have a lexical (meaning) value
on their own as in, for example, the plural suffix [“s”] added to singular nouns [boy + s = boys]
, or the past tense suffix [“ed”] added the base form of the verb [clean + ed = cleaned]. These are
called inflectional affixes. Consider the following examples:
69
(i) Number in Nouns:
The regular plural8 of the noun is always associated with the presence of the suffix “s” [cat + s =
cats] or "es" [wish + es = wishes].
Important Notes on Plural Suffixes:

The plural form is derived from the singular form through the addition of the suffix “s”
or “es” (e.g. boy --> boys; cat --> cats; match --> matches).
In phonetic terms this regular process can be illustrated as follows:

 /s/: Add the suffix /s/ if the base (i.e. singular form) ends in a voiceless sound (except
sibilants). e.g.: lip - -> lips; book --> books
 /z/: Add /z/ if the base ends in a voiced sound (except sibilants), e.g. dog --> dogs; boy -
-> boys
 /iz/: Add /iz/ if the base ends in a sibilant, e.g. church --> churches; wish --> wishes
Reminder: Sibilant sounds are /s/, /z/, /ʒ/, /ʃ/, /tʃ/, /dʒ/.
(ii) Tense in Verbs:

The regular past tense of the verb is always associated with the presence of the past tense marker,
"d" [smile + d = smiled] OR “ed” [paint + ed = painted].
(iii) comparative and superlative markers

big + er = bigger
great + est = greatest
So an inflectional morpheme is a bound morpheme that does not change the meaning nor
the grammatical category of the root. It has only a grammatical function to indicate: plural,
past, aspect: progressive (-ing) perfect (-ed) , comparative and superlative.
Note: all inflectional morphemes in English are suffixes. How about Arabic?
 Consider this example from Arabic
 ‫خرجن‬--------‫يخرج‬-------‫خرجت‬-------‫أخرج‬------‫خرج‬
Identify the inflectional morphemes. Are they all suffixes?
II. Derivational Affixes
In contrast some affixes change the class of the root word to which they are added. These are called
derivational affixes (deriving one word from another). The following are some examples:
(i) Suffixes added to nouns and adjectives change the noun or adjective into an adverb as in the
following examples:
8
There are irregular categories that will be discussed in the following section of this unit.
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 Noun into Adverb: hour → hourly, week → weekly
 Adjective into Adverb: quick → quickly , intelligent → intelligently
(ii) Suffixes added to verbs or adjectives change the verb or adjective into a noun as in the
following examples:
 Verb into Noun : teach → teacher, argue → argument

 Adjective into Noun: wise → wisdom ,kind → kindness
(iii) Suffixes added to adjectives change the adjective into a verb as in the following examples:
 length→ lengthen; wide→widen
Negating Adjectives:
Other prefixes indicate the opposite meaning of the root word as in the following examples:
 The prefix un- : e.g. happy → unhappy, lucky → unlucky,
 The prefixes in- & im-: direct → indirect; possible → impossible
 The prefixes il- & ir-: literate → illiterate; regular → irregular
So a derivational morpheme is a bound morpheme that changes the grammatical category

of the root or its meaning
Note: derivational affixes can be prefixes or suffixes in English.
Note: in the third example a morpheme is inserted within the root after the first syllable.
This affixation is special to Arabic and the derivational morpheme is called infix
The diagram below sums up the different morpheme types in English:
Word
one or more morphemes
morpheme
free bound
affix
prefix suffix
derivational derivational inflectional
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How about Arabic?
Consider these examples from Arabic.
 ‫سكوت‬------‫سكت‬
 ‫مسروق‬--------‫سرق‬
 ‫كاتب‬-------‫كتب‬
Identify the derivational morphemes and say if they are prefixes or suffixes?
Exercise 5
Prefix the following root words with the appropriate derivational morph:
A. happy
B. lucky
C. literate
D. do
E. sincere
F. mobile
Exercise 6
Suffix the following root words with the appropriate inflectional morpheme:
A. quick
B. lion
C. beauty
D. happy
E. plant
F. go
Exercise 7
The following list has free and bound morphemes. Determine the function of the bound morpheme:
Free +Bound bound morpheme Function: Derivational or

inflectional
A. Cat Cats s
B. Play Played ed
C. Eat Eats s
D. Happy Unhappy un
E. Train Trainer er
F. Swim Swimming ( N) ing
Exercise 8
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Look at the following words and determine the type of affixing whether inflectional or
derivational:
A. bound  unbound
B. truck  trucks
C. legal  illegal
D. arrive  arrival
E. deal  dealer
F. speed speedy
Exercise 9
Read the information and decide whether true (T) or False (F)
A. Morphemes are parts of a word.
B. Bound morphemes can exist on their own.
C. Suffixes come at the beginning of a word
D. Prefixes come at the beginning of a word
E. Inflectional morphemes change the meaning of the word when affixed to it.
F. Derivational morphemes work by changing word meaning or word class category.
Exercise 10
Break down the following words into their constituent morphemes. Identify the free morph.
A. unsuccessful
B. presentable
C. humorous
D. childish
E. manageable
F. luckily
3.2. Compounding
Compounds are made up of more than one word element [more than one root]. They are written
in three ways:
a) solid: written as one word, e.g. bedroom,
b) hyphenated: linked by a hyphen, e.g. tax-free,
c) open: written as separate words, e.g. reading material.
American English (AmE) tends not to use hyphenated compounds. In AmE, a new compound
remains open until it is commonly used, in which case it becomes solid or written as one word.
It is worth pointing out that the meaning of a compound is not always predictable from the
meanings of its parts [constituents]. For example hotdog cannot be predicted from the parts
forming it: hot or dog. Similar examples are:
 wildgoose in ‘a wildgoose chase’, meaning a chase getting nowhere,
 dogfight in ‘the two fighter jets were locked up in a dogfight’, meaning they were trying to
shoot down each other.
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3.3. Clipping
Clipping means removing one or more parts of a word. In a word like phone, the removed (or
clipped) part is (tele-) which stands at the beginning of the original word telephone. However, in
an example like lab, the clipped part is at the end of laboratory. In some special cases, clipping is
made of the first and last parts of a word, e.g.
 fridge in which the clipped parts are re- and -rator from the original word refrigerator.
3.4. Blending
Blending is achieved when two words are merged together (or blended) in order to coin a new
word. This is normally done by using a part of each word. Here are some examples:
 smog is made up of the two words smoke and fog.
 brunch is a blend of breakfast and lunch.
3.5. Acronyms
Acronyms are words formed from the initials of two or more words such as:
 VIP which is made up of the initial letters of the words: very important person.
Acronyms are classified into two types according to how they are pronounced:
1. The acronym is pronounced as one word: e.g.
 UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization)
 ALECSO (Arab League Educational, Cultural, and Scientific Organization)
2. The acronym is pronounced letter by letter, e.g.

 IMF (International Monetary Fund) pronounced as: /aɪ em ef/
 GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) pronounced as: /dʒi: si: si:/
 AOU (Arab Open University) pronounced as: /eɪ əʊ ju:/
There are many types of acronyms for different specializations. A glossary of common acronyms
prepared especially for you appears at the end of this Unit.
6. Rounding Up
This unit has introduced you to the study of morphology.
5.1 New Terms
 Affix
 Bound morpheme
 Derivational affixes
 Free morpheme
 Inflectional affixes
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 Lexical words
 Morph
 Morphology
 Prefix
 Root word
 Stem
 Suffix
 Acronym
 Blending
 Clipping
5.2 What you have learnt in this unit

In this unit you have learnt:
 Basic morpheme types and the difference between them.

 The functions of bound morphemes.
 The difference between inflectional and derivational morphemes.
 The different processes in word formation.
Some Useful Acronyms

AD anno Domini [after Christ]
AM ante meridiem [before noon]
AOU Arab Open University
ASAP As soon as possible
BA Bachelor of Arts
British Broadcasting
BBC
Corporation
BC Before Christ
BSc Bachelor of Science
C Celsius (centigrade)
CV Curriculum Vitae
FAQ Frequently Asked Questions
MA Master of Arts
MD Medicinae Doctor [Doctor of
Medicine]
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PhD Doctor of Philosophy
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UNIT 8
WORD CLASSES
Unit Sections
1.Introduction
2.MainWord Class Categories
3. Lexical and Grammatical Word Classes
4. Rounding up
 Unit Aims
This unit aims to:
1. explain to you categories of word classes and ways of grouping them
2. identify lexical word classes and their characteristics
3. discuss grammatical word classes and their function
1. Introduction
In unit 7 we saw how morphs are grouped into categories of bound and free morphemes and how
these constitute words. In this unit we are going to look at the category of words.
Words are language units that can occur on their own in both speech and writing. One of the
functions of grammar is to group similar items together to help the learners notice their
characteristics and function.
Words are grouped, therefore, into categories of nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions,
pronouns, articles, demonstratives, conjunctions, etc. This grouping is called grouping of word
class, i.e. words that have the same function or the same meaning or the same form are grouped
together as belonging to the same word class. Word classes are also labelled “parts of speech”.
Exercise 1
Can you group the following words into useful classes?
house; apple; went; school; found; juice; eat; car
Exercise 2
Select the odd one out of the following list of word classes
a. • boy • driver • painted • month
b. • carrot • fish • road • shut
c. • went • scored • played • city
d. • dived • player • farmer • manager
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Activity9
The word round can be a member of five different parts of speech as follows:
1. N ..........................................................................
2. V ...........................................................................
3. Adj .........................................................................
4. Adv ........................................................................
5. Prep ........................................................................
Use your dictionary to find the different uses and meanings of round. Find an example for each
use and write it down. Please remember that it is not easy to determine which part of speech a
given word (or word group) belongs to without seeing how it functions, how it is used in a
sentence10.
2. Main Word Class Categories

As we have seen above, word classes are groups of words that have the same function, or the same
meaning, or the same form.
 Nouns: refer to a class of words that identify people, things, places, animals or abstractions.
Nouns are grouped into two major categories: common nouns e.g. coffee, table, rabbit, boy
and proper nouns, e.g. Lebanon, Rula, The Red Sea. Proper nouns start with a capital letter.
 Verbs: refer to a class of words that identify actions or events e.g. drive, play or states of
affairs, e.g. like, hate.
 Pronouns: refer to a class of words that may replace a noun, e.g. he, she, it, them, I, etc.
 Adjectives: refer to a class of words used to describe something or someone, e.g. the heavy
bag, the bag is heavy.
 Adverbs: refer to a class of words used to describe a verb or add information to other
categories. The form of the adverb is distinguished by the –ly ending, e.g. hourly, beautifully,
basically, slowly. Some adverbs of place and adverbs of time do not end with -ly, e.g. now,
often, here, there. Adverbs that add information on manner (how things are done) are called
adverbs of manner, e.g. carefully, slowly. Adverbs that add information on place (where
things are) are called adverbs of place, e.g. here, there, near. Adverbs that add information
on time (when things are done) are called adverbs of time, e.g. now, then, before.
 Prepositions: refer to the class of words that function to link lexical words in the sentence,
e.g. in, on, up, down, under, at, before, etc.
 Articles: refer to the class of words used with the nouns to show if they are definite or
indefinite, e.g. the, a, an.
9 This activity is adapted from Mukattash, L. (1995). Structure I, Al Quds Open University. Amman.
10Mukattash, L. (1995). Structure I, Al Quds Open University. Amman.
78
 Demonstratives: refer to the class of words which indicate the distance of something or
someone, from the speaker. English demonstratives are: this, these (near) that, those (far).
 Conjunctions: also known as connectives, refer to the class of words which connect words,
phrases or sentences together, e.g. and, but, because, nevertheless, however, as, or …
Exercise 3
Adjectives are ways of describing people and things. We can use them in comparative (+er) and
superlative forms (+ est). Fill in the blank with the appropriate adjective:
• taller • empty • clever • longest •darkest • greener
A. She is a _____________ student.

B. This road is the _____________ .
C. My friend is _____________ than me.
D. The grass is _____________ in Europe where there is more rain.
E. The _____________ cup was washed.
F. She loves the ___________ colours.
Exercise 4
Identify words that belong to the adverb word class and state whether they are adverbs of time,
adverbs of place, or adverbs of manner.
A. We walked home slowly.
B. Tutorials are given weekly.
C. He went there.
D. Her birthday was two weeks ago.
E. Suddenly, it stopped raining.
F. She lives nearby.
3. Lexical and Grammatical Word Classes

As we have seen above, word classes can be grouped into two main categories:
1. Lexical words
2. Grammatical/Function words
(i) Lexical Words

Lexical words are both meaningful and can be used on their own. These are also called content
words. The main four lexical word classes are: nouns, verbs11, adjectives and adverbs [see below].
(ii) Grammatical Words
11
Verbs are divided into two types: (i) Lexical verbs or full verbs, and (ii) Auxiliary verbs or helping verbs. These
will be discussed in Unit 9 below.
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Grammatical word classes have little or no lexical meaning on their own. Word classes in this
category are also called function words. Words that belong to this category are: pronouns,
prepositions, articles, demonstratives, conjunctions, and interjections [see below]
Words are also classified as either (i) open word classes, or (ii) closed word classes.
(i) Open word classes: These are word classes that are open to the addition/creation of new items,
through suffixing or prefixing, e.g. friend → friendship. New words can be added to these classes
to match new changes in the society. Open word classes are defined as 'major' because they
carry most of the content or meaning of the sentence12. Open word classes include:
1. Nouns (N): John, boy, Ali, tree, idea, Cairo,
2. Verbs (V): write, drive, remember, eat,
3. Adjectives (Adj): nice, lazy, tall, lucky,
4. Adverbs (Adv): wisely, soon, frequently,
(ii) Closed word classes: They are word classes that are closed to addition of new items. They
cannot be affixed i.e. no morpheme can be added to the base. Closed word classes are defined as
'minor' because their structural role is more important than their meaning, and this explains why
some grammarians refer to them as Structural/Function Words. Closed word classes include:
1. Articles (Det): the, a, an
2. Demonstratives: this, that, these, those
3. Pronouns (Pro): he, we, they, him, yours , etc.
4. Prepositions (Prep): of, at, by, according to, etc.
5. Conjunctions (Conj): and, because, but, so that,
6. Interjections (Inter): ah, oh, aha, ouch.
Exercise 5
Assign the underlined words below to classes on the basis of their morphological and syntactic
properties. Say if the word is lexical/open or function/closed. Consult your dictionary if you
are not certain about the class membership of a word.
1. Home is where your friends and family are.

2. Someone who is deaf is unable to hear.
3. A linguist is someone who studies languages.
4. Cold food is not intended to be eaten hot.
5. They can can food in a can.
6. They are cooking apples.
7. The plane will be arriving soon.
8. His brother grew happier.
12
Mukattash, L. (1995). Structure I, Al Quds Open University. Amman.
80
9. His brother grew a beard.
10. The fire burnt furiously.
11. This castle was built during the twelfth century.
12. Many people enjoy walking in the rain.
13. It doesn't rain frequently in the summer.
14. I'm going to see Roy on Tuesday.
15. Sometimes I am neat; sometimes I am messy.
16. I saw Jim and Suzy.
17. She is really nice, but she can be nasty occasionally.
18. Who takes care of the baby?
19. They pulled the rope tight.
20. The following examples are explanatory.
5. Rounding up
5.1. New Terms
 adjective
 adverb
 adverb of manner
 adverb of place
 adverb of time
 article
 auxiliary verb
 closed word class
 conjunction
 content word
 demonstrative
 function word
 grammatical word class
 lexical word class
 open word class
 parts of speech
 preposition
 word classes
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5.2. What You have Learnt in This Unit
 Categories of word classes
 Lexical and grammatical word classes and their function.
 Differences between open and closed sets of word classes.
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UNIT 9
SYNTAX 1
WHAT IS SYNTAX?
Unit Sections
1. What is Syntax?
2. What is a Sentence?
3. Subject and Predicate
4. The Noun Phrase
5. The Verb Phrase
6. Rounding Up
 Units Aims
Upon completing units 9-11, you should be able to:
1. distinguish sentences from non-sentences,
2. analyse sentences in terms of subject and predicate,
3. recognize optional and obligatory elements (constituents) of a sentence,
4. identify functions of sentence constituents,
5. recognize word-classes and their formal/functional characteristics.
6. recognize sentence types and classes and use them appropriately,
7. recognize grammatical terms and use them correctly, and
8. know how noun phrases and verb phrases are constructed.
This unit consists of the following five sections:
Section 1: (What is Syntax?) gives you a brief idea about the scope of syntax as well as about
constituents and layers of language units.
Section 2: (What is a Sentence?) deals with the sentence as the major unit of grammatical
description. In particular, it will help you distinguish sentences from non-sentences.
Section 3: (Subject and Predicate): deals with how sentences are divided into subjects and
predicates and with the syntactic and semantic characteristics of subjects and predicates.
Section 4 & Section 5: (The Noun Phrase (NP) and the Verb Phrase (VP)): deal with how verb
phrases and noun phrases are constructed and described.
1. What is Syntax?
Syntax may be defined as the study of the ways in which sentences are constructed from smaller
units called constituents and how they are related to each other.
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It is important at this point to remind you of the fact that a sentence is not a string of words that
follow each other like beads in a rosary [string of beads]. Sentences are made up of blocks or
constituents. What does that mean?
Let us exemplify the concepts of blocks/constituents by looking at a concrete example like this:
(i) This building has three floors that consist of 12 rooms.
(ii) This building [MAJOR BLOCK] consists of three floors [BLOCK 2]. On each floor,
there are two flats [BLOCK 3]. Each flat has four rooms [BLOCK 4].
Obviously, the description in (ii) is far more revealing than that in (i). The information in (ii) can
be represented in the following table showing layers of constituents/blocks.
Level Constituents
Building 1 Building
Floors Floor 1 Floor 2 Floor 3
Flats F1 F2 F3 F4 F5 F6
Rooms R1 R2 R3 R4 R5 R6 R7 R8 R9 R10 R11 R12
Recapitulation:
We have seen in previous units that:
1. Words are made up of smaller units/constituents called morphemes: e.g.

- Class + room = classroom
- boy + Plural = boys
- possible + Negative = impossible
2. Morphemes are made up of smaller constituents called phonemes:

- /r/ + /ai/ + /t/ = write OR right
Constituents form layers or a hierarchy as in the following diagram:
Layers Constituents
Word 1 word : classmates
Morphemes Morph-1: class + Morph-2: mates

Morph-3 + Morph-4
mate [plural s]
Phonemes 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
k l a: s m ei t s
.
The information in the above table can be paraphrased in the following way:
(i) The word classmates consists of two free morphemes: class and mates and the morpheme
mates consists of two morphemes mate and the bound morpheme –s. In other words, the
word classmates consists of four morphemes.
(ii) The four morphemes consist of 8 phonemes:
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The same analysis applies to sentence structure.
 Sentences consist of Clauses
 Clauses consist of Phrases
 Phrases consist of Words
Let us see the constituents of the following sentence:

 The girls cooked and the boys washed the dishes
Sentence One Sentence

Clauses Clause-1 and Clause-2
Phrases Phrase-1 Phrase-2 Phrase-3 Phrase-4 Phrase-5
Words (W) W1 W2 W3 W4 W5 W6 W7 W8 W9
the girls cooked the boys washed the dishes
Activity:
Show the constituents of the following sentence: Our tutor has explained this unit very carefully.
This sentence consists of one clause that consists of four phrases:

 our tutor: Noun Phrase
 has explained: Verb Phrase
 this unit: Noun Phrase
 very carefully: Adverb Phrase
2. What is a Sentence?
In analyzing and describing the structure of a language, it is customary to begin with the sentence.
It is also the tradition in grammar books to begin by providing a definition of the sentence
and by listing the various types and classes of sentences. The following are some typical
definitions that are extracted from different grammar books and dictionaries:
(1) a. A sentence is a group of words containing a subject and a predicate and
expressing a complete thought.
b. A sentence is a complete unit of meaning.
c. A sentence is the largest grammatical unit consisting of phrases and/or clauses, used
to express a statement, question, command, etc.
d. A sentence is a set of words complete in itself, containing subject and predicate
... and conveying a statement, question or command.
e. A sentence is a group of words which express a statement, question, or command.
f. A sentence is a group of words beginning with a capital letter, and ending with a full
stop, question mark, or exclamation mark.
Note: You should not worry about the above definitions. Nor should you try to learn them by heart.
Simply try to see what these definitions have in common.
2.1. Meaning
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A sentence is often defined as a group of words expressing a complete thought. Obviously, it is
not easy to define what we mean by "compete thought". Suffice if for the moment to say that a
sentence must be meaningful (must make sense). All the following examples convey clear
meanings, even out of context:
(2) a. The Nile is the longest river in the world.
b. Kuwait is an oil-producing country.
c. Still waters run deep. (Proverb)
d. My friend told me that he had a terrible dream last night.
e. If you want to win, you should work harder.
f. English is the world's most widely used language.
Now consider the next examples. Notice that all examples are preceded by a question mark (?). A
question mark is used before a sentence to indicate that the sentence is odd; there is something
wrong with it. Try to explain why these sentences are odd.
(3) ?a. My cat loves grammar but hates milk.

? b. Colourless green ideas sleep furiously.
?c. Bill grew stones in his office.
Notice that these examples look like English sentences in structure and punctuation;
(i) They are made up of meaningful English words;
(ii) The words occur in the right position (i.e. word order is right);
(iii) All examples begin with a capital letter and end with a full stop.
However, none of these examples makes sense. What is wrong with the above examples?
2.2. Sentence constituents

Most of the definitions in (1) above describe (define) the sentence in terms of the constituents
(elements) that must be present in its structure. In other words, sentences are made up of
smaller units, which combine in some specific ways to convey meaning. The constituents that
are mentioned in the definitions in (1) above are:
(i) Subject,
(ii) Predicate,
(iii) Clause,
(iv) Phrase, and
(v) Word.
We shall return to discuss these terms below. It is important at this point to remember that, as
pointed out in Section 1 above, sentences are made up of clauses, and clauses are made of
phrases and phrases are made up of words as in this diagram:
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(4)
Sentence
Clauses
Phrases
Words
2.3 Communicative function

We communicate with each other by means of utterances. Such utterances may be short or
long, phrases or sentences, statements or questions, etc. The following brief exchanges (pieces
of conversation) clearly show that native speakers do not always use sentences in speaking to each
other:
(5) (informal)
A. Seen the accident?
B. Where?
A. Downtown?
B. Not really.
(6) (formal)
A. Good morning. Midland Bank.
B. Good morning. My name is Smith. Harry Smith. I am calling from London.
A. Yes, Mr. Smith. What can I do for you?
B. I am wondering whether it would be possible for me to make an appointment for tomorrow with
Mr. Lyons, the bank manager.
A. I am afraid you cannot see Mr. Lyons tomorrow. He will be out of town all day.
B. In this case I'd like to leave a message. Please, tell him that I've lost my cash card.
2.4 Orthographic criteria

As pointed out above, when we speak, our utterances may be short and we may use incomplete
sentences. Yet we can still convey meaning through intonation, pauses, stress, facial expressions
and gestures. In writing, these devices are not available, so our sentences must be structured and
punctuated properly. This is why some grammarians define the sentence from an orthographic
point of view: cf.
 A written sentence must begin with a capital letter and end with a full stop (.), a question
mark (?) or an exclamation mark (!).
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Exercise 1
Decide whether the following examples are sentences or non-sentences. Write S in front of a
sentence and NS in front of a non-sentence.
1. I have bought a raincoat.
2. Defeated the other great champions.
3. This flower smells nice.
4. A reference grammar for students of English as a foreign language.
5. Staying up all night to finish an article.
6. Put the rest in the tin.
7. Cabinet minister to resign soon.
8. No news good news.
9. The fact that Bill has failed the exam.
10. The idea of spending his life in prison.
2.5. Word order

In English the order of words is essential to the meaning of the sentence. A change in word
order in English sentences brings with it a basic change in meaning. Notice the difference in
meaning in these two examples:
(7) a. The hunter / has killed / the lion.
b. The lion / has killed / the hunter.
The difference in meaning results from the reordering of the two noun phrases (the hunter
and the lion). Now see what happens if the order of the verb phrase has killed is changed: cf.
(7) *c. Has killed / the hunter / the lion
*d. The hunter / the lion / has killed
Neither of the above strings of words is an English sentence although we understand the
meaning of the individual words in these strings. Note that the asterisk * indicates an
ungrammatical structure.
The problem with (7.c) and (7.d) is that they violate [do not follow] the rules of word order in
English. For example, in declarative sentences in English the positions of subject (S), verb (V),
and object (O) are relatively fixed; they normally occur in the following order: S+V+O. This is
why English is referred to as an S-V-O language.
In the two examples in (7.c) and (7.d) above we have moved the phrases (the hunter, has
killed and the lion) from their original positions. Obviously, some phrases are mobile, that is
they can be moved. Consider, for example, the variation in the position of the adverb phrase last
night in the following two sentences:
(7) e. The hunter / killed / the lion / last night /.
f. Last night / the hunter / killed / the lion /.
Similarly, words occur in a fixed order in phrases. Let us return to sentences (7.a) and see what
happens if we change the position of words (within phrases) without changing the position of the
phrase: cf.
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(7) *g. hunter the / killed has / lion the / night last.
Question:
Which is worse (7.g) or (7.c)?
We shall return to elaborate on this issue below. It is sufficient at this point to remember that:
(i) Phrases have a relatively fixed order within the clause.
(ii) Words have a very strict order within the phrase.
Exercise 2:
Which of the following two sentences do you prefer to use? Why?
 She decided to resign on Monday.
 On Monday, she decided to resign.
2.6. General criteria

Based on the above discussion, we can establish the following general criteria by which we can
judge whether a string of words is a sentence or not.
1) A sentence is made up of units (i.e. clauses and phrases) that have a relatively fixed
order.
2) Words have a fixed word order within phrases.
3) A sentence must have a subject and a predicate. (This issue will be discussed in detail
below).
4) A sentence must be meaningful.
5) A written sentence must begin with a capital letter and end with a full stop, a
question mark or an exclamation mark.
Activity:
Fill in the blanks in the following statements, which occur in this unit. Use one word for each
blank.
1. A ............ is the largest grammatical unit (for descriptive purposes).
2. A sentence must have a subject and a ............... .
3. A new sentence must begin with a capital letter and end with a ........., a ..............mark
or an ................... mark.
4. ..................order is essential to the meaning of the sentence.
5. ..................have a very strict order within the phrase.
6. A sentence is not just a .................of words.
7. Phrases consist of ................ .
3. Subject and Predicate

As pointed out above, a sentence normally has a subject and a predicate. If you look at the six
sentences in example (2) above, you will notice that each sentence has a subject. These examples
are repeated here for convenience:
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(2) a. The Nile is the longest river in the world.
b. Kuwait is an oil-producing country.
c. Still waters run deep. (proverb)
d. My friend told me that he had a terrible dream last night.
e. If you want to win, you should work harder.
f. English is the world's most widely used language.
The subject in each sentence has been underlined on purpose. Now, what happens if we delete the
subject in any of these sentences? Obviously, we will be left with a string of words that does
not constitute a sentence either in terms of meaning or in terms of structure.
Exercise 3:
Divide each of the following sentences into two parts (a subject and a predicate). Write S above
the subject and P above the predicate.
1. John has no job.
2. I posted the letter yesterday.
3. This is the introductory unit.
4. Leonardo da Vinci was a great artist.
5. Smoking is bad for your health.
6. Half a loaf is better than no bread.
7. The book which you bought yesterday is rather expensive.
8. To learn a foreign language would be an advantage.
9. That Bill doesn't visit his parents is odd.
10. Both my father and grandfather prefer buses to trains.
3.1. Subject [S]

How can we tell that a certain word or group of words is the subject of a sentence? Most people
are taught in school that the subject of a sentence represents either what the sentence is about (i.e.
the theme/topic) or the doer of the action (i.e. the agent). This can be true of many but not all
sentences. For instance, the subject in each of the following sentences is both the topic/theme and
the agent (doer of action):
(1) a. Professor Smith has written a new book.
b. My brother parked the car in the car park.
c. Our new boss painted his office by himself.
Now, let us consider the following example:

(2) Professor Smith has been attacked by a stranger.
Sentence (2), like sentence (1.a), is about Professor Smith, but while Professor Smith is the agent
(doer of the action) in (1.a), he is not so in (2). In fact, he is the affected person (i.e. the object).
Some people might wish to argue that this is so (i.e. Professor Smith being the person affected by
the action) because sentence (2) is passive. However, we can find numerous examples of active
sentences where the subject of the sentence is not the agent.
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Here are some examples that demonstrate beyond any doubt that the subject is not always the
agent (i.e. doer of the action) in an active sentence:
(3) a. Glass breaks easily.
b. This shirt washes easily.
c. This essay reads clearly.
Finally, notice that there are many sentences in English which do not refer to actions or events. In
such cases as in the following examples, it would not be logical to talk about an agent (or doer of
action).
(4) John is sick.
(5) Mary resembles her mother.
(6) This carpet costs $500.
The examples cited above demonstrate that it is not always easy to define the subject of the
sentence in terms of notions such as topic and agent. This does not, however, mean that we cannot
identify the subject of a given sentence. In fact, we can, but we have to rely on structural/syntactic
criteria.
First, as pointed out above, the subject is an obligatory constituent of the sentence13, i.e. it is an
element that cannot be omitted. Indeed, all sentences, except imperative14 sentences, must have a
subject.
Secondly, the subject of the sentence, which usually goes before the verb, controls
(determines) the form of the verb. In other words, the verb must agree with the subject. This
subject-verb agreement is often called concord. The following examples are self-explanatory.
(7) a. I like cheese.
b. My wife likes cheese.
(8) a. I am the author of this book.
b. You are the reader of this book.
c. The Arab Open University is the publisher.
Activity:
Translate these two sentences into Arabic. Do they have the same meaning? Notice the form of
the verb in each sentence.
(i) Visiting strangers are boring.
(ii) Visiting strangers is boring.
The third structural/syntactic characteristic of the subject is that it changes its position as we go
from statement into question. This process is often called subject-verb inversion or subject-
auxiliary inversion:
(9) a. Frank is a clever engineer.
13
Notice that the subject is not necessarily the first word in the sentence: cf. Yesterday, Jane cooked a delicious meal.
14
In imperative sentences the subject is not mentioned directly (expressed), but it is implied (i.e. the pronoun you):
e.g. (You) open the door.
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Is Frank a clever engineer?
b. The children are playing in the garden.
Are the children playing in the garden?
3.2. The Predicate [Pred]

The predicate is the part of the sentence that tells something about the subject. It may consist of
just one verb or a verb preceded by auxiliaries as in (10) and (11) respectively:
(10) a. Birds fly.
b. We all breathe.
c. The moon rose.
(11) a. The taxi has arrived.
b. The wind is blowing.
c. I don't care.
Verbs like shine, laugh, disappear, arrive, etc., which do not take an object are called intransitive
verbs (V-intrans.). Thus we may define an intransitive verb as a verb that does not require an
object as in the examples in (10) and (11) above.
There are verbs that require one object or more. These are called transitive verbs (V/trans) and
fall into three classes:
(i) Monotransitive [v/mono-trans]: A monotransitive verb requires a direct object. This means
that the direct object (Od) is normally an obligatory element. Consider the following
examples, and notice that some examples are preceded by an asterisk (*).
The asterisk indicates that the sentence is ungrammatical.
(12)
S V/mono-trans Od
a. Bill loves poetry.
b. * Bill loves
(13)
S V/mono-trans Od
a. Mr. Jones repaired the car.

b. *Mr. Jones repaired
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(ii) Ditransitive [V/di-trans.]: A di-transitive verb takes two objects, a direct object (Od) and an
indirect object (Oi). Study the examples in the following table:
(14)
S V/di-trans. Oi Od
a. Bill gave Mary an apple.
b. Sam lent me some money.
c. Carl has bought Jane a present.
d. I will tell you the truth.
NOTE: The indirect object is usually (though not always) a noun referring to a person or to a
living (animate) being as in the examples in (14) above.
(iii) Complex transitive [V/comp-trans.]: A complex transitive verb (comp-trans) requires

both (i) a direct object and (ii) an object complement (Co). The object complement may be
defined as a word or a group of words that follows a direct object and identifies or describes
it. Consider these examples:
(15)
S V/comp-trans. Od Co
a. They appointed Bill chairman.
b. The class elected Mary president.
c. Mary made her husband miserable.
d. His jokes drive me crazy.
Notice that the object complement is either a noun or an adjective.
So far, we have distinguished between transitive and intransitive verbs. The major distinction
between the two is that while the former requires one object (at least), the latter cannot be followed
by an object.
There is yet a third type of English verb, namely the linking verb. A linking verb (V-link) is
followed by a word or a phrase that identifies, classifies or describes the subject. This word or
phrase is called a subject complement [Cs] because it completes the meaning of the subject and the
linking verb. The following are representative examples:
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(16)
S V/link Cs
a. Some snakes are poisonous.
b. Mary is a secretary.
c. I am hungry.
d. Chomsky is a linguist.
The sentences in (16) above show that a linking verb requires a subject complement (Cs). This
means that the subject complement is an obligatory constituent. Notice further that the subject
complement is either a noun (e.g. secretary and linguist in 16.b and 16.d) or an adjective (e.g.
poisonous and hungry in 16.a and 16.c).
Sometimes a linking verb is followed by an obligatory adverbial (ADV), in particular an adverb of

place as in the following examples:
(18)
S V ADV
a. Bill is in London.
b. Mary was in Hong Kong.
So far we have been describing verb classes and the compulsory constituents that follow them.
Before proceeding to discuss optional elements that can occur in the predicate, it is convenient to
present the above information diagrammatically. Diagram (19) below shows the various types of
verbs that occur in the predicate:
(19)
Intransitive Verb + ……..
Transitive monotransitive + Od
Verb
ditransitive + Oi + Od
V
Complex-transitive + Od + Co
Linking Verb + Cs
+ ADV
Exercise 4
Underline the predicate in the following sentences. Circle the verb and identify its class.
1. The eggplants were purple.
2. Jimmy has lost his ticket.
3. Mother telephoned the neighbours.
4. It grew darker and darker.
5. Our cat had eaten our sandwiches!
6. She is teaching her dog many tricks.
7. Bill chopped the firewood.
8. Robots are helpful.
9. People find robots fascinating.
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10. The show was a great success.
11. That bench in the garden looks comfortable.
12. Janet wrote me a letter.
13. I call this stupidity.
14. Interest rates are falling.
15. The mist has evaporated.
3.3. Expanding subject and predicate

As can be seen from the examples above, the subject may consist of one word only (a noun
or a pronoun) or it can consist of a group of words. Consider these examples:
(20)
S V Cs
a. Professors are absent-minded.
b. Some professors " "
c. Some old professors " "
d. Some old literature professors " "
e. Professors of literature " "
f. Some old literature professors whom
I know " "
As you can see, the subject can be expanded in different ways. In theory, there is no limit
on the number of elements that can be inserted in the subject position. Notice, however, that not
all elements in the subject position in (20) above are obligatory. Some elements can be deleted.
Questions:
1. What elements can be deleted from (20.f)?
2. What is the most important word in the subject position in (20.d)?
The word group in the subject position in (20.f) [some old literature professors whom I know] is
called a noun phrase (NP), because the most important word (headword) in this phrase is a noun15.
This is the reason why we cannot delete it.
The examples in the subject position in (20) above show that the subject may be expanded in three
different ways through:
(i) adding words before the headword as in (20, b, c, d).
(ii) adding words after the head word as in (20.e)
(iii) adding words before and after the headword as in (20.f).
We have looked at some ways in which the subject of a sentence can be expanded. The predicate
15
We shall return to give more details about the expansion of the Noun Phrase (NP) in Section 4 below.
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of a sentence can also be expanded in various ways. Quite often, the predicate can be expanded
through the addition of adverbs (adv.) and prepositional phrases (Prep P), which have an
adverbial function (ADV). In most cases, such adverbs and prepositional phrases are optional;
this explains why they are placed between brackets in the following examples:
Reminder: Remember these abbreviations:

 ADV/P Place Adverbial
 ADV/T Time Adverbial
 ADV/M Manner Adverbial
 ADV/F Frequency Adverbial
(21)
S V Od ADV/M ADV/P ADV/T

a. I wrote some letters - - (yesterday).
b. I meet my clients - (in my office). -
c. Bill lost his wallet - (on the bus) (last week).
d. John greeted me (warmly) (in the corridor). -
S V ADV/M ADV/P ADV/F Cs ADV/T

e. Gill stood (quietly) (behind the door).
f. It is - - (always) hot (in the summer).
We shall return to give more details about the construction and expansion of the Verb Phrase (VP)
in Section 5 below.
Exercise 5
Underline the words or word groups that have an adverbial function. Mention what kind of
adverbial it is. Write P, T, M, F. Place optional adverbials between brackets.
1. She dances gracefully.
2. Larry flew to Alexandria.
3. You should always speak naturally.
4. They searched the room carefully last night.
5. I'll see you at the Hilton tonight.
6. He died in Canada when he was sixteen.
Activity:
Fill in the blanks in the following statements. Use one word for each blank. The statements occur
in this section.
1. A ...... verb is followed by Cs or ADV/P.
2. An .......... verb cannot take an object.
3. A di-transitive verb requires a ...... ....... and an ............. .
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4. A ....... verb requires a direct object and an ........... complement.
5. The function ....... is an obligatory element in sentence structure. It determines the form
of the verb.
4. The Noun Phrase (NP)

The NP is a word (noun or pronoun) OR a GROUP OF WORDS whose HEAD is commonly a
NOUN. The HEAD NOUN (HN) may be preceded by other elements (e.g. articles, adjectives,
etc.). These elements are called pre-modifiers.
All the underlined constructions in the following examples are NOUN PHRASES. Notice that the
Head Noun is in italic type.
1. John is happy.
2. This is my wallet.
3. The tall boy is my nephew.
4. I have never met your youngest son.
5. I like that little striped kitten.
6. A large Egyptian trade delegation has arrived in London.
7. We need a very long sharp knife.
8. My wife has bought an elegant Persian carpet.
The HN in a noun phrase may also be followed by different types of elements that become part of
the phrase as in the following table. These elements are called post-modifiers. Note that the main
verb has the –s inflection if the HN is singular as in the first two examples.
Subject Predicate
Pre-Modifiers HN Post- Modifier Main Verb
The tall man in the corner speaks five languages.
That little dark kitten playing in the garden doesn’t like milk.
The fact that Bill lost the race surprised us.
All the documents which you have are faulty.
prepared
A person who cannot be kind and should not a doctor.
understanding become
Note: A noun phrase (NP) can be expanded in all grammatical positions, not only in the subject
position as in the following table:
Subject Verb NP
Pre-Modifiers HN Post-Modifier
We regret the fact that Bill has lost the race.
Ali bought a new book which deals with English syntax.
I don’t the idea that women are inferior to men.
accept
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Exercise 6:
Circle the HN in the underlined NPs in the following sentences:
1. The rumor that the university rector has resigned is unfounded.
2. The idea of spending his life in prison horrified him.
3. Do you know the boys sitting in the garden?
4. They made him a boss that does not rule.
5. I ignored all the remarks that he made during our meeting.
6. Get me those books on the table, please.
7. Lying is the thing that I hate most.
8. The fact that the manager has not accepted our offer should not bother you.
9. A large Egyptian trade delegation has arrived in London
10. Syntax is a level of language description that deals with sentence formation.
5. THE VERB PHRASE

5.1. Verb Forms
Most regular English verbs have five distinct forms, each having its function/functions. The
following table shows these forms and their basic functions:
Form Function Examples

1. base A. Simple present I speak English.
B. Infinitive form He wants to speak English.
2. –s form Simple present He/She speaks English.
3. past Simple past Bill painted the house.
4. –ing form: in Progressive tenses Bill is speaking English.
present participle We were watching TV.
5. –en form: A. in Perfect tenses Bill has done his homework.
past participle I have finished my task.
The car has been repaired.
B. in Passive verb phrases Ali was given a present.
Notice that in several cases the past form and the past participle form of the verb are identical. For
instance, in the following two examples the verb painted is simple past in the first example and
past participle in the second and third examples:
 We painted the house yesterday. (simple past)
 He has already painted the house. (past participle)
 The house has already been painted. (past participle)
5.2. Lexical Verbs & Auxiliaries

Verbs in English fall into two distinct categories, (i) Lexical (Full/Main) Verbs, and (ii) Auxiliary
(Helping) Verbs.
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5.2.1. Lexical Verbs:
Examples of lexical verbs are :
 base : eat, listen, walk, watch, write
 -s form: eats, listens, walks, watches, writes
 past: ate, listened, walked, watched, wrote
 present participle: eating, listening, walking, watching, writing
 past participle: eaten, listened, walked, watched, written
Auxiliaries, on the other hand, are words that precede (come before) lexical verbs. They are usually
divided into two classes:
(i) basic (or primary) auxiliaries: These are be, have, and do
(ii) secondary (or modal) auxiliaries: These include can, could, will, would, may, might, shall,
should , must, ought to, etc.
Lexical verbs occur without an auxiliary in the following examples:

 Ali likes English grammar.
 I work in a very spacious office.
 We missed our train this morning.
 Both of them sat quietly.
On the other hand, there are contexts where lexical verbs can or must be preceded by one auxiliary
or more than one auxiliary as in the following examples (in bold type):
 Bill has written a new short story. (1 auxiliary)
 When we arrived, they had left. (1 auxiliary)
 We are planning to invest in agriculture. (1 auxiliary)
 The children were singing when the electricity went off. (1 auxiliary)
 We have been waiting at this bus stop for over half an hour now. (2 auxiliaries)
 They will be driving into Beirut tomorrow morning. (2 auxiliaries)
 All mail will have been posted by the time you return. (3 auxiliaries)
5.2.2. BE, HAVE & DO:

The verbs BE, HAVE & DO can be used both as lexical verbs and as auxiliaries.
1. In the following examples BE, HAVE & DO are used as lexical verbs:
 This man is too fat. He must be a great eater.
 I was sick yesterday. Today I am much better.
 She has been a nurse for twenty-five years.
 I do my homework every day.

 We did quite a lot of work yesterday.
 We expect all students to do their TMAs on time.
 I usually have a bath every morning.
99
 She has several bank accounts in hard currency.
 We were having our dinner when suddenly the lights went off.
2. In the following examples BE, HAVE & DO are used as auxiliaries:

 Bill is watching TV in the sitting room.
 Your car was repaired yesterday.
 We were driving towards the racetrack when a police officer stepped in front of our
car.
 I have visited Cairo several times so far.

 She had been a nurse for several years when she decided to study music.
 I have been working for a Japanese company since 1999.
 He says that he does not like talkative people.

 Did you manage to see the boss yesterday?
 We do appreciate your sincere efforts.
6. Rounding Up
 The various definitions of the term ‘sentence
 How sentences are structured
 Classes of verbs and phrases
 How the subject and predicate can be expanded
 Relevant syntactic terminology [listed below]
 How VPs and NPs are constructed
6.2. New Terms
 Adjective Phrase  Mono-transitive Verbs

 Adverbial Phrase  Noun Phrase
 Agent / Actor  Object
 Auxiliary Verb  Phrases
 Clause  Post-Modifier
 Complex-Transitive Verbs  Predicate
 Constituents  Pre-Modifier
 Di-transitive Verbs  Prepositional Phrase
 Head Word  Primary Auxiliaries
 Intransitive Verbs  Subject
 Lexical Verb  Subject - Auxiliary
Inversion
 Linking Verbs  Syntax
 Modal Auxiliaries  Verb Phrase
100
UNIT 10
SYNTAX 2
SENTENCE TYPES AND CLASSES
Unit Sections
1. Sentence Complexity
2. Grammatical Form
3. Communicative Function
4. Rounding Up
Sentences are divided according to three parameters, namely:

(i) complexity,
(ii) grammatical form, and
(iii) communicative function.
In what follows we shall discuss the various types of English sentences and the syntactic and
communicative properties of each type.
1. Sentence Complexity
According to complexity, sentences are divided into four classes;

(i) the simple sentence,
(ii) the complex sentence,
(iii) the compound sentence, and
(iv) the compound-complex sentence.
Before we proceed to define and explain each type, let us consider the following examples:
(i) Simple Sentences
(1) a. Mary lives in London.
b. John and Mary study at the University of Wales.
c. Susan is an efficient nurse.
d. My father answered the phone.
e. Professor Sharp explained the situation to me.
(ii) Complex Sentences
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(2) a. I know [that Bill likes Mary].
b. Bill told me [that he was sick].
c. He will give her the money, [when she signs the contract].
d. They will retire [when their children are older].
(iii) Compound Sentences
(3) a. You can wait here, and [I will get the key].
b. Take this medicine one time and [you'll be fine].
c. Sit still or [I'll hit you].
d. John left school, but [Mary continued her studies].
(iv) Compound-Complex Sentences
(4) a. The students line up at 7:45 a.m. and [their teachers monitor them
[while they go to their classrooms]].
b. He gave her everything, and [she left him [as soon as she found a new
job]].
Questions:
1. What do the simple sentences in (1) have in common?
2. How do they differ from the sentences in (2) and (3)?
3. What do the sentences in (3) above have in common?
1.1. The Simple Sentence

A simple sentence consists of one and only one independent clause. It normally has one finite verb.
Before we elaborate on this definition, let us explain the terms used in this definition, namely the
terms (i) finite and (ii) clause.
As pointed out above, most verbs in English have five forms as in the following table:
(5)
Form Symbol Examples
1. base V I walk to work.
2. -s form V-s Bill walks to work.
3. past V-ed Bill walked to work.
4. present participle V-ing Bill is walking to work.
5. past participle V-en Bill has walked to work.
Verb forms are customarily divided into two classes: (i) finite (F), and (ii) non-finite (NF).
Finite Verbs:
A finite form has the following properties:
(i) It must show tense (i.e. present or past). All the underlined verbs in the following examples are
finite.
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(6) a. I take a shower every day. (present tense).
b. Bill speaks English fluently. (present tense).
c. We painted the house last week. (past tense).
(ii) It has person and number concord with the subject. This is obvious with the verb be.
(7) a. I speak English. (first person singular).
b. He speaks English. (third person singular).
(8) a. I am a professor.
b. He / She is a professor.
c. We/They/You are professors.
d. I was in London last week.
e. You were in London last week.
f. They were in London last week.
Non-Finite verbs
A non-finite verb has no tense and no direct preceding subject. Consider these examples:
the NF V is in bold and italics
a. Walking along the beach, I was admiring the sunset
b. Bill took the first flight offered to him, so excited to be home soon
c. The teacher was so angry that he thought to resign
So in English there are three NF Vs: present participle (a), past participle (b) and infinitive
A NF V is of course used in a NF clause.
What is a clause?
A clause can be defined as a group of words (i.e. unit) that can be analysed into the elements: S,
V, O, C, and ADV.
As pointed out in Section 2 above, sentences consist of clauses. A sentence that consists of just
one clause is a simple sentence. Thus, all the examples in (1) above, which we repeat here for
convenience, are simple sentences.
(10) a. Mary lives in London.
b. John and Mary study at the University of Wales.
c. Susan is an efficient nurse.
d. My father answered the phone.
e. Professor Sharp explained the situation to me.
As we shall see below, there are sentences that consist of two or more clauses. It is sufficient at
this point to remember that a simple sentence consists of just one clause and that it has a finite verb.
We are assuming, of course, that a clause must have a subject16 and a verb.
1.2. The Complex Sentence
16
As pointed out above, some imperative sentences do not contain an expressed (overt) subject. The subject is
suppressed, (implied) but it is understood to be the pronoun you.
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A complex sentence is a sentence that contains more than one clause, an independent (main)
clause and a dependent (subordinate) clause. Consider the following complex sentences. Notice
that the dependent clause is in italics.
(11) a. He will give her the money when she signs the contract.
The sentence above contains two clauses: a main clause and a subordinate clause. Each
clause can be analyzed into these (functions) elements: S, V, O, C, and ADV. Obviously, some
of these elements (functions) are obligatory and some are optional. Thus, the main
clause/independent in (11.a) can be analyzed as: S + V + Oi + Od: cf.
(11) b. S V Oi Od
He will give her the money
Similarly, the subordinate/dependent clause in the same sentence can be analyzed as: S + V +
Od:
(11) c. S V Od
when she signs the contract.
.
The function of the dependent clause in (11.a) above is obviously adverbial. It indicates the time
of the action expressed by the verb in the main clause, so it is a time adverbial (ADV/T). The
complex sentence can thus be analyzed in this way:
(11) d. S V Oi Od ADV/T
He will give her the money S V Od
when she signs the contract.
This analysis demonstrates that one of the functions in this sentence, namely ADV/T is realized by
a clause. It further demonstrates that this complex sentence contains two structures:
(i) the structure of the sentence as a whole (overall structure), which is:
S + V + Oi +Od + ADV/T, and
(ii) the structure of the subordinate clause, which is:
S + V + Od.
Reminder:
1. A complex sentence contains a main clause and at least one dependent (subordinate) clause,
where the dependent clause has a function in the overall structure of the sentence in which
it appears.
2. The dependent/subordinate clause cannot stand on its own:
cf. *when she signs the contract.
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Exercise 1
Underline the dependent (subordinate) clauses in the following complex sentences and mention
their functions.
1. I'll see you when I come back.
2. Since you can't use your car, I'll take you home.
3. If you work hard, you will pass.
4. Although he is five years old, Bill speaks five languages.
5. He can't go to work today because he is sick.
1.3. The Compound Sentence

A compound sentence consists of two or more coordinated independent clauses. In other
words, a compound sentence does not contain any dependent or subordinate clauses.
Consider the following example:
(12) a. You can wait here, and I will get the key.
This sentence contains two independent clauses coordinated by means of the coordinator
and: cf.
(12) b. You // can wait// here. (Clause-1): [S –V – ADV]
c. I // will get // the key. (Clause-2): [S-V-Od]
As can be seen from the above examples, each of these two clauses can be analyzed into the
functions: S, V, O, C, ADV: cf. The main coordinators that join two (or more) independent
clauses together are and, or, but.
1.4. The Compound-Complex Sentence

A compound-complex sentence is both compound (i.e. containing at least two coordinated
independent clauses) and complex (i.e. containing at least one subordinate clause). Consider the
following example which contains two coordinated sentences: a simple sentence and a complex
one:
(13) a. [The students line up at 7:45], and [their teachers monitor them
while [they go to their classes]].
The two coordinated sentences are:
b. The students line up at 7:45. AND
c. Their teachers monitor them when they go to their classes.
The first is a simple sentence (containing one independent clause) which can be analyzed in
terms of: S, V, O, C, ADV, as follows:
S V ADV/T
The students line up at 7:45.
The second sentence (i.e. c) is a complex sentence containing an independent clause and a
dependent (subordinate) clause, both of which can be analyzed in terms of: S, V, O, C, ADV, as
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follows:
ADV/T
e. S V Od
S V ADV/P
Their teachers monitor them when they go to their classes.
Notice that the function ADV in the complex sentence is realized by a clause (i.e. They go
to their classes).
Activity:
Which of the following sentences is: (a) simple, (b) complex, (c) compound, or (d) compound-
complex? Check your answers in the above sub-sections.
1. Professor Jones explained the situation to me.
2. My sister answered the phone.
3. If you do this, I'll tell the police.
4. Although my father is seventy years old, he still works hard on his farm.
5. Mary left school, but John continued his studies.
6. Bill does the cooking at night, and Mary does the washing up while she
watches the news in the kitchen.
7. She will give you the money as soon as you sign the agreement.
8. Bill washed the car but he didn't polish it.
2. Grammatical Form
According to grammatical form sentences are divided into four major syntactic classes:
(i) declarative sentences,
(ii) interrogative sentences,
(iii) imperative sentences, and
(iv) exclamatory sentences.
2.1. Declarative Sentences

In declarative sentences the subject normally precedes the verb: cf.
(14) a. The lion / is / a strong animal.
b. Larry / stayed / at home.
c. Chomsky / wrote / Syntactic Structures in 1957.
Notes:
(i) The subject in a declarative sentence can be preceded by adverbials: cf.
(15)
ADV S V Od
a. In three years' time I will have saved $3,000.
b. In London people prefer trains
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ADV S V ADV
c. Luckily the police arrived in good time.
(ii) Sometimes an adverb may intervene between the subject and the verb in declarative sentences:
cf.
(16)
S ADV V
a. Jim angrily slammed the door behind him.
b. We still haven't heard from them.
2.2. Interrogative Sentences

Interrogative sentences begin with an auxiliary verb or with a question word (e.g. when, where,
what, how, etc.). Like declarative sentences, interrogative sentences contain a subject, which in
most cases follows the auxiliary verb: cf.
(17)
Wh-word Aux S
a. ....... Can Bill speak English?
b. ....... Has he eaten yet?
c. Where does he live?
d. Why did they leave so early?
e. When will you arrive in London?
2.3. Imperative Sentences

Imperative sentences do not normally contain a subject. The subject of an imperative sentence is
often implicit, though it is understood to be the pronoun you. This explains why imperative
sentences contain one form of the verb (i.e. the base): cf.
(18) a. Open the door, please.
b. Do your homework at once.
c. Don’t interrupt me, please.
In some cases, the subject of an imperative sentence is overtly expressed: cf.
(19) a. You go in first.
b. You do what I say.
2.4. Exclamatory Sentences
In exclamatory sentences the subject always precedes the verb. Furthermore, exclamatory
sentences characteristically begin with the words how or what. Consider the following examples:
(20)
Wh-word Adj/N S V
How beautiful she is!
What a mess you are making!
What a slow bus this is!
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3. Communicative Function
The four syntactic classes of a sentence defined above correlate with different communicative
functions.
i. The typical function of a declarative sentence is to make a statement.
ii. The typical function of an interrogative sentence is to ask a question.
iii. Imperative sentences are typically used to make a command or give an order.
iv. Exclamatory sentences express a sudden feeling such a surprise, anger, etc.
It should be pointed out, however, that it is not always the case that a certain class of sentence
expresses always the same meaning.
First, a declarative sentence may be used in the spoken language to ask for information (i.e. to ask
a question), in which case it ends with rising intonation (in speech) and a question mark (in
writing): cf.
(21) a. He has not arrived yet?
b. They’ve spoken to you?
Declarative questions are identical in form to statements, but like questions, they end with a rising
tone.
Secondly, certain types of interrogative sentences are used not to ask a question or to inquire about
something, but to express annoyance or disappointment: cf.
(22) a. Can't you listen for a moment?
b. Aren’t you ashamed of yourself?
Thirdly, some interrogative sentences function like an exclamation. This is typically a yes/no
question with a falling (not rising) intonation. Consider the following examples inviting a yes
answer.
(23) a. Wasn't that a splendid party!
b. Isn’t that wonderful!
Fourthly, a declarative sentence can be used to make a command: cf.

(24) You will leave the classroom at once.
Exercise 2
Join the following pairs of simple sentences to make a compound sentence, by converting the
second sentence into a subordinate clause having an adverbial function as in the first example:
a. I met Bill
b. He was working in the library.
c. I met Bill while he was working in the library.
1. a. Bill went to bed.
b. He felt ill.
c. .................................. because............................. .
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2. a. Susan became ill-tempered.
b. She got married.
c. After ..................................... , ............................. .
3. a. You should inform the Police.
b. Your family is in trouble.
c. .................................... whenever............................
Activity:
Fill in the blanks in the following sentences with words, which occur in this unit:
1. A finite verb must show.........................
2. A ............ verb can occur alone as the verb element in a simple sentence.
3. In a .................sentence, one of the functions is always realized by a clause.
4. According to grammatical form, sentences are divided into four classes……………
5. According to complexity, sentences are divided into four types: ……………….
4. Rounding Up
 how to identify and distinguish various syntactic classes of sentences
 characteristics of different classes of sentences
 classes of verbs
 classes of clauses
 how to construct complex and compound sentences
4.2. New Terms

 Auxiliary Verb
 Communicative Function
 Complex Sentence
 Complex-Compound Sentence
 Compound Sentence
 Conjunction
 Coordinator
 Declarative Sentence
 Dependent Clause
 Exclamatory Sentence
 Finite/Non-Finite Verb
 Grammatical Form
 Imperative Sentence
 Independent Clause
 Interrogative Sentence
 Main Clause
 Obligatory/Optional Constituents
 Question Word
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 Simple Sentence
 Subordinate Clause
 Verb Forms ( base ; -s form; past ; present participle; past participle)
110
UNIT 11
SYNTAX 3
SENTENCE STRUCTURE AND PATTERNS
Unit Sections
1. Grammatical Units and Functions

2. Sentence Patterns
3. Optional Adverbials
4. Categories and Functions
5. Functions: Realizations and Characteristics
6. Multiple Class Membership
7. Rounding Up
1. Grammatical Units and Functions

The organization of a sentence can be described in two different ways:
I. It can be described according to the categories (classes) to which the constituents (phrases)
of the sentence belong. This type of description is called a categorial (or structural) description.
There are five phrases in English:
1. NP: Noun Phrase,
2. VP: Verb Phrase,
3. Adv-P: Adverb Phrase,
4. Adj-P: Adjective Phrase, and
5. Prep-P: Prepositional Phrase.
II. It can be described according to the functions which the constituents of the sentence have (in
that particular sentence). This type of description is called a functional description. As you already
know, five basic functions are used to describe sentences:
1. S: Subject,
2. V: Verb,
3. O: Object: (i) Od: Direct Object, and (ii) Oi: Indirect Object,
4. C. Complement: (i) Cs: Subject Complement, and (ii) Co: Object Complement, and
5. ADV: Adverbial.
In the categorial description of sentences, we make uses of phrases not words. This follows from
the fact that a simple sentence like:
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(1) a. The police have searched the room very carefully
consists of one finite main clause. This is why we call this sentence simple. The clause in this
sentence is made up of four phrases: cf.
(1) b.
NP VP NP ADV-P
The police have searched the room very carefully.
Each of the four phrases is made up of two words. Thus, it is necessary to describe a simple
sentence with reference to the phrases (not the words) it contains.
As pointed out above, In English we distinguish five types of phrases that correlate with five word
classes (parts of speech). A phrase is named after the class of the most important word it contains
(i.e. the head word, or governing word). The head word (or governing word) is an obligatory
element in phrase structure. In the examples that follow the head word is in italics:
Phrase Headword Example

1. Noun Phrase (NP) N the tall boy
2. Verb Phrase (VP) V has been eating
3. Adjective Phrase (ADJ-P) Adj so very important
4. Adverbial Phrase (Adv-P) Adj very carefully
5. Prepositional Phrase (Prep-P) Prep in the garden
Let us return now to sentence (1.a) above, and see how its structure can be described (represented)
in two ways (i.e. categorial and functional):
i. categorial description (CD)
NP VP NP ADV-P
(1)c. The police have searched the rooms very carefully.
ii. functional description (FD)
S V Od ADV
(1)d. The police have searched the rooms very carefully.
Notice that it is always possible to apply the two types of description to the same sentence. Thus,
the descriptions in (1.c) and (1.d) above can be combined together as in (1.e): cf.
S V Od ADV
e. The police have searched the rooms very carefully.
NP1 VP NP2 Adv-p
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As can be seen from the above table, the number of the constituents in a sentence is the same
regardless of the description we apply to the sentence. In the above example the sentence is
made up of four constituents.
Exercise 1:
Describe the structure of the following sentences functionally and categorially as in (1.e.) above.
Notice that the constituents of the sentence are separated from each other by means of slant lines
to help you in your analysis.
1. / The boys / will cook / the dinner / in the tent.
2. / Mr. Smith / has bought / his daughter / a new car.
3. / His reports / have been / very poor.
4. / John and Mary / are flying / to Damascus / next week.
Some grammarians believe that the best way to describe sentence structure is to combine both
functional and categorial descriptions as we did in sentence (1.e) above. This two-way description
is both explicit and revealing. Now let us consider the following cases and examples:
(i) Two sentences that have an identical categorial representation may have different
functional representations: cf.
FD S V Od
(3) The student didn't understand the lesson.
CD NP1 VP NP2
FD S V Cs
(4) That man is my supervisor.
CD NP1 VP NP2
The two sentences above have an identical categorial representation (i.e. NP1 + VP + NP2), but
they have two distinct functional representations: S+V+Od, and S+V+Cs respectively.
(ii) Two sentences that have an identical functional representation may have two different
categorial representations. The following two examples are self-explanatory:
FD S V Od ADV
5. My father rented a new office in London.
CD NP (1) VP NP (2) Prep-P
FD S V Od ADV
6. My father rented a new office last week.
CD NP (1) VP NP (2) NP (3)
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The two sentences above have an identical functional description, namely, S+V+Od+AdV, but
they have distinct categorial descriptions. The categorial description of the first sentence is:
NP1+VP+NP2+Prep-P, whereas that of the second sentence is: NP1+ VP + NP2 + NP3.
2. Sentence Patterns
We distinguish seven simple sentence patterns in English. Notice that the patterns described below
do not include optional elements.
Pattern 1: S + V-Intrans.
7. S V-Intrans
a. The sun is shining.
b. The child was laughing.
c. My head aches.
d. The car won't start.
Reminder: An intransitive verb cannot take an object. The following verbs are always intransitive:
come, disappear, go, die, etc.
Pattern 2: S + V-mono-trans. + Od
8 S V/ mono-trans Od
a. That lecture bored me.
b. Somebody caught the ball.
c. I have seen a horrible accident.
d. The workmen dug a deep hole.
e. We know that he is honest.
Notes:
(i) Some verbs are always transitive; they require a direct object. Amongst the verbs that are
always transitive are: like, love, respect, mention, say, describe, prove, suggest, want, cut, clean,
lose, produce, etc.
(ii) Some transitive verbs can be used intransitively, that is, they do not require an object.
Amongst these verbs are: eat, smoke, drink, ring, break, open, move, fly, burn, etc. Consider the
following pairs of sentences:
(9) a. I rang the bell.
b. The phone rang.
(10) a. He broke the window.
b. The window broke.
(11) a. Bill opened the door.
b. The door opened.
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(iii) Some transitive verbs take a noun clause as an object (see example 8.e above).
Pattern 3: S +Linking V + ADV
(12)
S V-link ADV
a. My office is in the next building.
b. Bill and Mary are with me.
c. He got through the window.
d. I stole into the manager's office.
e. They are living in a small village.
Nick is staying at a nearby hotel.
f.
Pattern 4: S + Linking V+ Cs
(13)
S V-link Cs
a. Your dinner seems ready.
b. Mary is kind.
c. He is getting angry.
d. His father is a lawyer.
Note: The subject in this pattern may be a noun clause as in the following examples:
(14)
a That Bill is an outstanding student is obvious.
b That Bill lost the game is a pity.
Pattern 5: S + mono-transitive V+ Od + ADV
(15)
S V Od ADV
a. You can put the dish on the table.
b. He got himself into trouble.
c. You should have your hands on the wheel.
d. They kept the child indoors.
Note: The use of the ADV is obligatory in all the above examples. The sentence will be
incomplete (unacceptable) if the ADV is omitted: cf.
115
(16) * You can put the dish.
(17) * He got himself.
Pattern 6: S + complex-transitive V+ Od + Co
(18)
S V Od Co
a. Most students have found her helpful.
b. We have proved him wrong.
c. They appointed him chairman.
d. They called him a fool.
e. The company made Bill redundant.
f. Loud music drives me crazy.
Pattern 7: S + ditransitive V + Oi + Od
(19)
S V Oi Od
a. He showed me the photo.
b. She gives him expensive presents.
c. I must send my parents an anniversary card.
d. I will read you the letter.
e. We wished him a safe journey.
Activity:
What patterns do these sentences belong to? You can find the answers in parts of this unit.
Write the structure above the sentence. Use symbols only.
(1) I put the plate on the table.
(2) My office is near the station.
(3) He is getting angry.
(4) The secretary showed me into the manager's office.
(5) We know that he is honest.
3. Optional Adverbials
As pointed out above, the seven patterns listed in the preceding subsection contain obligatory
elements only: they do not contain optional elements. But all of these patterns can be expanded by
the addition of various optional adverbials. Consider the following examples from the patterns
listed above. Note that optional adverbials are placed between brackets.
(20) a. Pattern 1: The sun is shining (this moment).
b. Pattern 2: The lecture bored me (last night).
c. Pattern 3: Mary is here (this morning).
d. Pattern 4: His father is a lawyer (in Damascus).
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e. Pattern 5: (As soon as I arrived), Sue showed me into the manager’s office.
f. Pattern 6: They (always) called him a fool (when he worked for the company)
g. Pattern 7: He (reluctantly) showed me the photo (a week ago).
4. Categories and Functions

The five functions that we have been using to represent (describe) sentence patterns are:
1) Subject: S
2) Verb: V
3) Object: O (i) Direct Object: Od, and (ii)Indirect Object: Oi
4) Complement: C (i) Subject Complement: Cs, and (ii) Object Complement: Co
5) Adverbial: ADV
On the other hand, we have distinguished so far five categories (classes) of phrases:
1) noun phrase [NP]
2) verb phrase [VP]
3) adjective phrase [Adj-P]
4) adverb phrase [Adv-P]
5) prepositional phrase [Prep-P]
On the level of the word, as shown in Unit 8 above, we distinguished nine classes:
1) Noun: N
2) Verb: V
3) Adjective: Adj
4) Adverb: Adv
5) Determiner: Det
6) Pronoun: Pro
7) Preposition: Prep
8) Conjunction: Conj
9) Interjection: Inter
Before we proceed any further, it would be convenient to remind you of some of the assumptions
that we made earlier: (i) Sentences consist of clauses; (ii) clauses (Cl) consist of phrases; and (iii)
phrases consist of words. For instance, the following sentence consists of two clauses: cf.
(21) The girls will cook and the boys will eat.
(22)
Sentence
CL1 CL2
The girls will cook and the boys will eat.
The two clauses (the girls will cook and the boys will eat) are immediate constituents of the
sentence (21). The first clause (CL1) consists of two phrases: cf.
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(23)
CL1
NP VP
The girls will cook
Thus the two phrases the girls and will cook are immediate constituents of the clause The girls will
cook. On the phrase level, we notice that each of the two phrases in (23) consists of two words: cf.
NP
(24)
Det N
the girls
(25)
VP
Aux V
will cook
This hierarchic relationship in sentence (21) can be represented by means of a tree-diagram as

follows:
(26)
SENTENCE
CL1 CL2
NP VP NP VP
Det N Aux V Conj Det N Aux V
The girls will cook and the boys will eat
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Activity
Consider the following sentence:
Mary put the cake in the cupboard

This sentence has the following PS structure (Phrase Structure)
S NP VP
NP Mary
VP V NP PP
VP put
NP det. N the cake
PP P NP in the cupboard
The corresponding tree diagram will be:
NP VP
V NP PP
Det N Prep NP
Det N
Mary put the cake in the cupboard
Now try to do the same with the following sentences:
a. The little mouse ran across the kitchen

b. The small boy saw George in the crowded park recently
Try on your own first then check with your peer and tutor
Function Vs Category
Other important assumptions that we made or referred to earlier are:

(27) The structure of a sentence can be represented in terms of functions (S, V, O, C, and ADV)
or in terms of categories (classes) (NP, VP, Adj-P, Adv-P, and Prep-P).
(28) There is no one-to-one correspondence between functional and categorial representations of
sentences.
In the ensuing subsection, we shall see how a certain function can be realized by different
categories. We shall also discuss, albeit briefly, the major syntactic characteristics of the
functions: S, V, O, C, and ADV.
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5 Functions: Realizations and Characteristics
5.1. Subject (S)
(i) Realizations
The function S is typically realized by a noun phrase or by a noun clause. Consider the following
examples:
(29) NP
a. John enjoys reading history books.
b. This stupid brother of yours gets on my nerves.
c. The idea of spending his life in prison horrified him.
d. This is not yours.
e. It is raining.
(30) CL
a. That he wants to blackmail you is quite obvious.
b. That the proposal will pass seems very likely.
c. That I had had to wait for such a long time bored me.
d. Bill's losing the race surprised us.
e. For you to learn another language would be an advantage.
(i) Syntactic Characteristics

We have already mentioned some of the syntactic features that characterize a subject, but we shall
repeat them here for convenience.
 The subject is an obligatory constituent of the sentence.
 It precedes the verb phrase in declarative sentences.
 It occurs immediately after the auxiliary in interrogative sentences.
 Where applicable, a subject determines concord in the verb phrase.
 A subject of an active sentence occurs in the by-phrase of the corresponding
passive sentence: cf.
(31) a. Professor Smith has evaluated these reports.

b. These reports have been evaluated by Professor Smith.
5.2. Direct Object (Od)

(i) Realizations
The function direct object (Od) is typically realized by a noun phrase or a noun clause. Consider
the following examples:
NP
(32) a. I have known Larry for ten years now.
b. Larry speaks five languages fluently.
c. Men usually don't like women who gossip.
d. I can't eat this steak.
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CL
(33) a. I know that she will try again.
b. Do you remember where he lives?
c. He mentioned that he had applied for a grant.
d. She can't bear seeing children treated cruelly.
e. Who doesn't enjoy having a good breakfast in bed?
(ii) Syntactic Characteristics

A direct object has the following characteristics:
a. It is an obligatory constituent in a sentence that contains a transitive verb.
b. It normally follows the subject and the verb phrase.
c. It can be the surface subject of a corresponding passive sentence as in b in the
following pair of sentences:
(34) a. We have painted the house white. [active]

b. The house has been painted white. [passive]
5.3. Indirect Object (Oi)
(i) Realizations
The function indirect object (Oi) is characteristically realized by a noun phrase: cf.
(35) a. They have not paid me the money yet.
b. Will you please pass me the salt.
c. He handed his wife the letter.
d. Will you give the boy in the corner some fruit?
(ii) Syntactic and Semantic Characteristics

The following are the major characteristics of the function Oi:
 The indirect object normally precedes the direct object.
 The indirect object normally corresponds to a prepositional phrase, which generally
comes after the direct object.
(36) a. I will send Jack a letter.

b. I will send a letter to Jack.
(37) a. He bought Jane a present.

b. He bought a present for Jane.
 The indirect object normally refers to a human being or to an animate being, that is, the
recipient of the action. There are, however, cases where the indirect object does not refer
to an animate being:
(38) I should give my car a good wash.
 The indirect object can function as (surface structure) subject in a corresponding passive
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sentence: cf.
(39) a. They have not paid me the money yet.

b. I have not been paid the money yet.
5.4. Subject Complement (Cs)
(i) Realizations
The subject complement (Cs) can be realized by (i) a noun phrase, (ii) an adjective (phrase),
or (iii) a clause. Consider the data below:
NP
(40) a. Bill is my cousin.
b. Susan will make a good wife.
c. This is certainly the man whom I saw yesterday.
Adj-P
(41) a. Martha is quite funny.
b. This coffee smells nice.
c. He is getting angry.
CL
(42) a. The fact is that Bill doesn't like Mary.
b. His hobby is collecting foreign stamps.
c. Her ambition is to become a pilot.

A subject complement has the following characteristics:
a. It normally follows the subject and the verb phrase.
b. It is an obligatory element.
c. It cannot be the subject of a passive sentence.
d. It can be realized by an adjective phrase.
5.5. Object Complement (Co)
(i) Realizations
The function object complement (Co) is typically realized by: (i) a noun phrase, and (ii) an
adjective phrase. The following are some representative examples:
NP
(43) a. She called Jimmy a beast.
b. Mary made Bill a servant.
c. They appointed him chairman.
Adj-P
(44) a. I find your suggestion quite unacceptable.
b. This music drives me crazy.
c. We painted the house navy blue.
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The following are the major syntactic characteristics of the function Co:
(a) It normally follows the direct object.
(b) The relationship between the object complement and the object is similar to the
relationship between the subject complement and the subject: cf.
(45) I find your suggestion quite unacceptable.

(46) Your suggestion is quite unacceptable.
5.6. Adverbial: (ADV)
(i) Realizations:
The functions ADV can be realized by: (i) an adverb (phrase), (ii) a prepositional phrase, (iii) a
noun phrase and (iv) a clause. Below are some representative examples of each category.
Adv-P
(47) a. He walks very slowly.
b. I will park the car over there.
c. He is waiting outside.
d. They will come soon.
Prep-P
(48) a. He left in a hurry.
b. I came here by bus.
c. We stayed at a small hotel.
d. They usually meet in the evening.
NP
(49) a. We discussed your application last week.
b. He might arrive any moment.
c. They left last month.
d. We have met many times.
CL
(50) a. If you work hard, you will pass.
b. I will give you the money as soon as you sign the contract.
c. Bill went to London to visit his mother.
d. Having done his homework, Bill went for a walk.
(ii) Syntactic Characteristics:

The following are the major syntactic characteristics of the function ADV:
(a) In most cases an ADV is an optional element [But see Patterns 3 and 5 above].
(b) It can often occupy more than one position in the sentence (initial, medial, final). cf:
(51) a. Bill left the room quietly.

b. Bill quietly left the room.
c. Quietly, Bill left the room.
Exercise 2:
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Which of these sentences is true and which is false. Write (T) in front of a true statement and (F)
in front of a false one and correct it.
1. The number of constituents in a sentence will be the same in both functional and categorial
descriptions.
2. The best way to describe a sentence is to combine both functional and categorial
descriptions.
3. There is no one-to-one correspondence between functions and categories.
4. A function may be realized by different categories.
5. A category may perform different roles (functions) in sentence structure.
6. NP and VP are categories.
7. S and Cs are functions.
8. An intransitive verb cannot be followed by an object.
9. A transitive verb cannot be used intransitively.
10. A transitive verb cannot take a noun clause as an object.
11. The use of ADV is always optional in English.
12. An object complement can be realized by an NP only.
13. Sentences are made up of clauses.
14. An indirect object is typically realized by an Adj-P.
15. A phrase can be identified on the basis of the (word) class of its most important
constituent.
6. Multiple Class Membership

Before closing this unit, it is convenient to remind you that there is no one-to-one correspondence
between form (category) and function. Even within the same class, a certain item may have
different uses in different linguistic contexts. For instance, how do we categorize the verb make?
Is it mono-transitive or a di-transitive verb, or a complex-transitive verb? Let us consider the
following examples:
 Monotransitive: followed by Od:

(52) You have made a mistake. (monotransitive),
 Di-transitive : followed by Oi& Od:

Oi Od
(53) I'll make you a cup of tea. (di-trans.)
 Complex-transitive: followed by Od & Co

Od Co
(54) Mary made her husband miserable. (complex-trans.)
The situation gets more complicated when we realize that the verb make can also be used as a
linking verb that requires a subject complement as in the following example:
Cs
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(55) She will make a good teacher. (linking V)
The examples with the verb make show that it is probably better to talk about different or multiple
uses of this verb, although some grammarians prefer to talk about multiple class membership
because this difference in use entails, as we have seen above, difference in the structure of the
sentence in which the verb is used.
By way of further exemplification, consider the following sets of examples with the verbs grow;
get; die; smell; go; break:
(56) a. Their influence is steadily growing. (intrans.)
b. He grew a moustache. (mono-trans.)
c. Some students were growing impatient. (linking)
(57) a. Don't get angry. (linking)

b. He got a prize. (mono-trans.)
c. He got mean Italian tie. (di-trans.)
d. He got his pajamas wet. (complex-trans.)
(58) a. The old man is dying. (intrans.)

b. He died a bachelor. (linking)
(59) a. The dinner smells good. (linking

b. The dog is smelling the bone. (mono-trans.)
(60) a. They have gone. (intrans.)

b. The meat has gone bad. (linking)
(61) a. The glass broke. (intrans.)

b. He broke the window. (mono-trans.)
c. One of the lions broke loose. (linking)
Multiple class membership can lend to ambiguity. Consider the following sentences:
(62) a. I found her an entertaining partner.
This sentence is two-ways ambiguous. That is to say, it can be interpreted as having two different
structures and thus two different meanings as shown below.
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(62) b. S V Oi Od
I found her an entertaining partner.
(62)c. S V Od Co
I found her an entertaining partner.
Under one interpretation (62.a) has the structure shown in (62.b) in the above table where the
verb found is di-transitive and takes two objects. In this sense, this sentence can be paraphrased
by:
 I found an entertaining partner for her.
Under the second interpretation the structure of (62.a) has the structure shown in (62.c) in the
above table where the verb found is complex-transitive requiring an object and an object
complement. Under this interpretation the sentence can be paraphrased by either of the following
two sentences:
(62) d. I / found / that she was an entertaining partner,

e. I found her to be an entertaining partner.
Now let us consider briefly other examples of ambiguity that arise from the fact that a word or a
phrase may belong to two different classes (i.e. multiple class membership MCM).
(63)
MCM Remarks
S V-link Cs - 'cooking apples' are apples used for

cooking to make pies; they are not 'eating
A They are cooking apples apples'.
- The word 'cooking' is an adjective.
- The word 'are' is a lexical verb.
B S V-Trans Od - The word 'cooking' is a lexical transitive

verb.
They are cooking apples - The word 'are' is an auxiliary verb.
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Exercise 3
Each of the following two sentences is two-ways ambiguous. Resolve the ambiguity by assigning
two different structural descriptions to each sentence as in (63) and (64) above.
1. They can fish.
2. Terry finally decided on the boat.
Exercise 4:
Give examples of the following.
1. S realized by a clause.
2. Od realized by a clause.
3. Cs realized by a clause.
4. Adv realized by a clause.
Exercise 5:
Give examples of NP realizing the following functions:
S; Od; Oi; Cs; Co; ADV:
7. Rounding UP

This unit has dealt with the following topics:
 Sentence properties
 Sentence constituents
 Sentence structure
 Sentence patterns.
 Syntactic Analysis
7.2. New terms

 Adjective Phrase (ADJ-P)
 Adverbial Phrase (Adv-P)
 Ambiguity
 categorial description
 functional description
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 Headword
 multiple class membership
 Noun Phrase (NP)
 Prepositional Phrases (Prep-P)
 Sentence Patterns
 Syntactic Characteristics:
 Verb Phrase (VP)
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UNIT 12
SEMANTICS
Unit Sections
1. Introduction
2. Word/Lexical Meaning
3. Meaning beyond the Word
4. Rounding up
Online Resources:
Cambridge Dictionaries Online: http://dictionary.cambridge.org/
 Unit Aims
This unit aims to:
1. introduce you to semantics.
2. describe and exemplify word/lexical meaning.
3. show you how new words are formed.
4. describe and exemplify meaning beyond the word.
5. acquaint you with collocation and phrasal verbs.
1. Introduction
The study of meaning in linguistics is called semantics /se'mæntɪks/. A specialist in semantics is

a semanticist.
Our aim in this unit is to provide you with an understanding of what semantics is and what it
encompasses.
It is customary and useful in semantics to begin with word/lexical meaning. This is detailed in
Section 2 below. In section 3, there will be an account of meaning beyond the word.
2. Word/Lexical Meaning
2.1. Introduction
This section deals with the meaning of words (also called lexical meaning).
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In discussing word meaning, one is bound to start by talking about how words are used in
dictionaries. The basic unit used for a dictionary entry is the called a ‘lexeme’. Lexemes are like
word families usually represented by capital letters.
 Example: FIND represents a number of words derived from it such as: find, finds, finding,
found.
All of the members of the family of FIND will be in the same dictionary entry, which will also
provide the different senses or meanings of a word in the entry of this lexeme. The common term
for lexeme used in many dictionaries is ‘headword’.
It is perhaps useful at this point to indicate that the theory and practice of compiling dictionaries
is termed lexicography (lexis means the stock of words of a language). The person who undertakes
this task is a lexicographer.
2.2 Word meaning
The following categories of words are distinguished in lexical, semantic and dictionary studies:
homonymy, polysemy, synonymy, antonymy and homography. Advanced dictionaries provide
entries, especially for synonyms and antonyms, besides word meanings.
Below is a brief discussion [with examples] of each of these categories.
2.3. Homonymy, Polysemy, Synonymy, Antonymy, Homography
(i) Homonymy
When two or more words are spelt and pronounced in the same way, they are termed ‘homonyms’.
(homo- is a Greek prefix which means the same.) For example:
 The two words left (opposite of right), and left (past tense of leave) are considered
homonyms.
 Other examples are words with different spelling but the same pronunciation: sail and sale,
alter & altar, ate & eight, and aisle & isle.
(ii) Polysemy
This is another semantic category used to name the phenomenon of attaching more than one
meaning closely related to each other to a single word. Poly- is a Greek prefix which means much,
many. For example, consider the ambiguity of the noun school, which means either a building or
an institution as the following two examples show respectively:
 I'll see you tomorrow at school. [building]
 Although he is very tall, he still goes to school. [institution]
Activity
Can you find out the different meanings of the word head?
Consult a dictionary for help
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(iii) Synonymy
When two or more words are considered to have the same or nearly same meaning, they are termed
‘synonyms’. For example, the two words in each of the following pairs are considered synonyms.
 wish & desire
 gift & present
 bright & intelligent
 community & society
There are some dictionaries that are specialized in giving synonyms. A dictionary of this type is
called a Thesaurus.17
(iv) Antonymy
Two words are considered antonyms if they express opposite meanings, e.g.
 front & back
 young & old
 buy & sell
Observe that many dictionaries provide antonyms and so does Microsoft word. Both synonyms
and antonyms are available as described above.
(v) Homography
Homography comes from homo (the same) + graph (written material). It means two words which
have the same spelling but which are pronounced differently and have different meanings. e.g.
 bow (N, pronounced /bəʊ/) meaning ‘a weapon for shooting arrows’, and bow (V,
pronounced /baʊ/) meaning ‘to move the head down or to bend’.
 lead (V, simple present pronounced as [li:d]) as in Professor Smith leads the discussion
every morning & lead (N, pronounced /led/: the name of a metal.)
Exercise 1
Read the following pairs of words and mark: (a) for homonym; (b) for antonym; (c) for
synonym; and (d) for homograph:
1. watch (look)/watch (small clock)
2. single/sole
3. come/go
4. right (side)/right (true)
5. prefix/suffix
6. close (verb)/close (adjective)
7. watch/observe
8. right/left
17In Microsoft Word, synonyms are provided by the thesaurus accessed from Tools→Language→Thesaurus (the word you need
synonyms for should be highlighted first). Another route is to right-click on a highlighted word. A drop-down list appears with the
word synonyms. Point the cursor at this word and a list of synonyms appears. The one you click will automatically replace the
highlighted word in your text.
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2.4. Metaphor and simile
The meaning of words is not always literal. They acquire metaphoric or figurative meanings as the
language user wishes. When a mother says to her daughter: “you are the sunshine of my life”, this
is metaphor. Metaphor is defined in the American heritage New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy –
Third Edition – as follows:
The comparison of one thing to another without the use of like or as.
Metaphor is a very common figure of speech used by literary writers. An enlightening example of
how life is described metaphorically in Shakespeare’s play Macbeth is the following (said by King
Macbeth immediately after he was informed that his wife had died):
Out, out, brief candle!
Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage
And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.
Here we observe that life is described metaphorically as: “a brief candle”, “a walking shadow”, “a
poor player”, an “hour”, and “a tale”.
Another common figure of speech is ‘simile’ (pronounced /'sɪməli:/) which is distinguished from
metaphor by expressing the likeness directly through using words such as like or as. The following
are illustrative examples:
Metaphor Simile
Life's but a walking shadow. Life’s like a walking shadow.
It is a strange tale. It is as strange as a tale.
2.5 Denotation and connotation

A word has usually one meaning/ literal meaning which is the first meaning provided in the
dictionary e.g.cat means literally a furry pet animal. This is the denotative meaning. However, it
can also mean a woman with bad reputation. Thus, the word cat will have a connotative meaning
in another social context
Connotation is frequently used in metaphors and idiomatic expressions
Can you think of the different connotations for the word home?
3. Meaning beyond the Word

3.1. Introduction
In this section, we shift our attention from the meaning of words to the meaning of the larger
structures of the phrase, the utterance and the sentence.
We begin with phrasal verbs and move on to discuss collocation, and thematic structure.
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3.2. Phrasal Verbs
In writing up a dictionary, the lexicographer encounters more problems with function words than
with lexical words. In different constructions, function words have different meanings and are
thus difficult to classify. For example, up in the following sentence is a preposition signifying the
direction of the action of running:
 He ran up the street.
However, up in the following sentence is a particle [part of the verb] and it does not signify the
direction of the action of waiting:
 Wait up!
A similar difference can be seen between in and on in the following pair of examples:
 Sit on the chair [on is a preposition of place]
 Turn on the light [on is a particle not referring to place]
.
This verb + particle/preposition structure is called phrasal verb, the topic we discuss next. When
a verb is used with a particle or a preposition, or both, it is called a phrasal verb. Some function
words like up, down, in, after can be used as particles or as prepositions. To differentiate between
them, remember that a particle is related to the verb used before it, while a preposition is related
to the noun/pronoun used after it. The following are examples:
1. Verb + particle:
 I looked up the new word. (look + up mean try to find, i.e. a meaning different from the
meaning of look.)
2. Verb + preposition:
 John is running after the cat. (after here is a preposition and is part of PP after the cat with
an adverbial function)
3. Verb + particle + preposition:

 The team will catch up with the bus. (catch+ up + with mean reach soon, i.e. something
different from catch.)
In the above examples, the phrasal verbs express a new meaning called ‘idiomatic’. Observe that
sometimes phrasal verbs do not provide a new or idiomatic meaning. Thus in: He walked up the
road, the phrasal verb walked up (similar to type 3 above) has a literal meaning, not a new
meaning.
In cases like sentence 3 above, the particle always precedes the preposition. This rule makes it
easy to distinguish the particle from the preposition when they occur together.
In sentences 1 and 2, we need a test to discover whether the function word is a preposition or a
particle. The test is the following:
Sentence 1 above can be rewritten as:
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 I looked the new word up, [where up has moved around the object].
This mobility is a feature of particles, not of prepositions.
The same test does not apply or cannot be done in the case of sentence 2 above. Notice the
unacceptability of:
 *John is running the cat after
Thus, after in this example is a preposition.
Exercise 2
To which sentence type 1, 2, or 3, do the phrasal verbs in the sentences (1-10) below belong?
Sentence Types
a) Verb + particle: I looked up the new word.
b) Verb + preposition: John is running after the cat.
c) Verb + particle + preposition: The team will catch up with the bus.
1. Stay with the guests.

2. Watch out!
3. The tutor brought up an important topic.
4. You must wait up for them.
5. Would you please stand in for me tomorrow?
6. She burst into tears when she saw her baby.
7. Please hold on to this rope.
8. The Smiths woke up to a big bang.
9. Little Liz made up her own bed.
10. Do stay out of it.
3.3. Collocation
This is how collocation is defined in the Cambridge Dictionaries Online:
a word or phrase which is frequently used with another word or phrase, in a way that sounds
correct to people who have spoken the language all their lives, but might not be expected from
the meaning: in the phrase 'a hard frost', 'hard' is a collocation of 'frost' and 'strong' would not
sound natural.
Meaning is determined not only by what a word refers to, but also by the company it keeps with
neighbouring words, i.e. its linear relations with these words. For example, in English the word
night collocates with the adjective dark. Thus, while ‘dark night’ is a common collocation, ‘black
night’ isn’t. Other examples are:
CORRECT WRONG
bits and pieces *pieces and bits
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bread and butter *butter and bread
cats and dogs (It’s raining cats *dogs and cats
and dogs)
cuts and bruises *bruises and cuts
likes and dislikes *dislikes and likes
nice and easy *easy and nice
on and off *off and on
once and for all *for all and once
pick and choose *choose and pick
sweet and sour *sour and sweet
time and again *again and time
tip top (shape) *top tip (shape)
up and down *down and up
Exercise 3
Mark the following collocations as true or false.
1. heavy meal // 2. fat meal // 3. data bank // 4. launch a missile // 5. shoot a missile // 6. make a
verdict // 7. reach a verdict // 8. score a goal // 9. shoot a goal // 10. school of fish// 11. school of
birds // 12. black night // 13. black tea
.4. ROUNDING UP
1.1. New Terms

 Antonymy
 Collocation
 Complex theme
 Conjunction
 Ellipsis
 Homography
 Homonymy
 Lexicographer / Lexicography
 Metaphor
 Phrasal verb
 Polysemy
 Rheme
 Simile
 Simple theme
 Synonymy
 Theme
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4.2. What Have You Learnt in This Unit?

 What semantics is.
 How homonymy, polysemy, synonymy, antonymy, and homography are differentiated.
 What metaphor is.
 What phrasal verbs and collocations are?
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UNIT 13
PRAGMATICS
Unit Sections
1. Introduction
2. The Cooperative Principle
3. Flouting the maxims
4. Cross-Cultural norms and the Gricean Maxims
5. Politeness Strategies
6. Face-threatening vs. face-saving
7. Flouting politeness conventions
8. Cross Cultural Pragmatic Failure
9. Activities
10. Rounding Up
Online Resources:
https://www.britannica.com/science/pragmatics
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._L._Austin
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Grice
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Searle
 Unit Aims
This unit aims to:
1. introduce you to pragmatics.

2. inform you of the cooperative principle and its maxims.
3. describe cross cultural norms.
4. show how maxims are flouted (violated).
5. discuss politeness strategies.
6. give examples that show cross cultural pragmatic failure.
1. Introduction
Pragmatics is a subfield of linguistics whose focus is the study of language use in actual situations.
The word use is significant here, for pragmatics concerns itself with the intent of the speaker/writer
of the message rather than with merely the denotations of the lexical components that comprise
the message. That is, if semantics concerns itself with the denotations of words, pragmatics goes
beyond the surface meaning and endeavors to decipher the invisible meaning, i.e., the meaning
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intended by the speaker or writer. Put simply, semantics is meaning and pragmatics is use.
Consider the following exchange:
A: Good Morning.
B: Good Morning! Why are you so early?
A: I am sorry, but I missed the bus.
This exchange is a little ambiguous, for A is apologizing for being late, whereas B is saying that
he is so early. On the surface, there is nothing that calls for A's apology; however, if we happen to
know that A is an employee and B is his manager, we realize that the chief is being sarcastic and
that the real meaning of B's response can be read as follows: 'how come you are so late?' Thus, in
pragmatics, the focus is not on the literal or overt meaning of the components of the utterance, but
rather on the speaker's intended meaning, which could be rather difficult to decipher if considered
in isolation of its context.
Duranti and Goodwin (1992:3) define the notion of context as "a frame… that surrounds the event
being examined and provides resources for its appropriate interpretation…". Research conducted
by linguists and discourse specialists have laid emphasis on four types of context: physical,
epistemic, linguistic and social. The physical context is the immediate surrounding environment
where discourse takes place, while the epistemic context refers to the background knowledge of
the interlocutors pertinent to each other, to the topic under discussion, etc. The linguistic context
refers to the textual clues scattered throughout the text or the oral utterance that aid in deciphering
the intended or implied meaning. The social context refers to the norms that govern the linguistic
and extralinguistic behavior of the interlocutors, which reflect the expectations of their community,
etc. Of course there are other types of context including the context of situation (cf. Michael
Halliday’s Functional Grammar). The following figure shows the interaction of the different types
of context.
Figure (1)
Interaction of the different types of context
Linguistic
Epistemic Physical
Social Other
contexts
Viewed as such, context becomes the primary aspect to which interacting parties resort in their
endeavor to figure out the illocution (intended meaning) from the locution (the surface meaning).
Thus, if a speaker produces an utterance, we can ask two questions: 1) What does this utterance
mean? 2) What does the speaker mean by this utterance? The second question cannot be answered
without context, i.e., context here is key for decoding the conveyed message felicitously.
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Duranti and Goodwin (1992) reviewed Ochs's (1979) discussion of the contextual attributes or
parameters of context, which include:
1. Setting, i.e. the social and spatial framework within which encounters are
situated.
2. Behavioral environment, i.e. the way that participants use their bodies and
behavior as a resource for framing and organizing their talk…
3. Language as context. The way in which talk itself both invokes context and
provides context for other talk…
4. Extrasituational context. … Provides an extended demonstration of how the
appropriate understanding of a conversational exchange requires
background knowledge that extends far beyond the local talk and its
immediate setting… Duranti and Goodwin (1992: 6-8)
These four parameters serve as a brief synopsis of what makes context and what role it plays in
discourse. Put simply, elements such as who said the utterance, to whom, when, where, why as
well as relationship between the speakers, their background, nature of the topic, etc. are all vital in
determining the actual meaning intended or implied in the utterance. This should not strike us as
surprising, for we exercise this every day in our daily communication, but without realizing that
we are complying with the tenets of pragmatics. On many occasions, we hear people ask 'what do
you mean?' To which the answer sometimes can be 'you know what I mean,' or 'my intent is clear.'
This indicates that the speaker has certain assumptions when saying something and the receiver is
supposed to work out the intended meaning in light of what he knows about the speaker, the time,
place, background of the topic, among other contextual aspects. In a word, pragmatics is the study
of what is intended rather than what is actually said, and it is only through appropriate context can
we decipherer what the speaker implied or intended to convey.
2. The cooperative principle

Since the publication of John Austin's seminal Book How to do Things with Words, (1962) many
studies have been conducted to delineate the different scopes and ranges of Pragmatics. In his
seminal study "Logic and Conversation" (1975) Paul Grice argued that meaning is of two types,
straightforward, i.e., expressed, and implied, i.e. hinted. The implied meaning is the challenging
one, for it requires an active role on the part of the speaker and the hearer, with the latter exerting
a much more effort in an attempt to discern the implied (illocution) or additional meaning. Grice
suggested two types of implicatures, conventional and conversational. The conventional
implicatures "convey the same extra meaning regardless of context and which are always
lexicalized," whereas the conversational implicatures “convey different meanings according to
different contexts, i.e. are calculated afresh each time the Speaker and the Hearer interact” (Sorea
2012: 97).
After delineating his views regarding the conventional implicatures and conversational ones, Grice
(1975) introduced his most celebrated principle, namely the Cooperative Principle (CP) in
speaking. The CP claims that, as part of the social norms governing interaction, people cooperate
when they interact even when they argue. Indeed, cooperation in interaction is a universal
characteristic that exists everywhere, which leads us to think that humans are equipped with an
innate cognitive desire that motivates them to cooperate when interacting. Grice refers to this
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kind of cooperation as a kind of social contract that obliges interlocutors to cooperate, for failing
to do so is bound to create chaos. He sums up the focal point of his principle, saying:
"Make your conversational contribution such as is required, at the stage

at which it occurs, by the accepted purpose or direction of the talk
exchange in which you are engaged” Grice (1975: 45)
The CP comprises four maxims (rules) that explicate how people should act linguistically; they
are as follows:
Maxim of Quantity: say enough, no more no less.

Maxim of Quality: speak the truth; do not give knowingly
false information.
Maxim of Relation: be relevant to the current topic of
conversation.
Maxim of Manner: avoid ambiguity or obscurity in your
speech.
(See Grice 1975: 45-46 for more details about the
maxims)
Observing the maxim of quantity entails providing enough information as required, no more no
less. In other words, interacting parties are supposed to provide a satisfying amount of information
in response to one another's queries. If an interlocutor does not provide enough information, the
communication process might collapse. In daily communication, for instance, responding with too
short answers sometimes leaves the impression that the interlocutor is rude, aloof or rather
snobbish. On the other hand, if a person is garrulous, volunteering more information than is
needed, such a speaker is also violating the maxim of quantity as well as other maxims by wasting
the time of the listeners. In some cultures, however, the amount of information given by the
addressed might be evaluated differently, as we shall see below.
Observing the maxim of quality entails telling the truth to the best of the speaker's knowledge. Of
course, the normal practice and expected behavior in daily interaction is telling the truth and the
opposite is the exception. If the speaker is not sure about something or lacks supportive evidence,
then it is customary that the speaker utters expressions that indicate uncertainty such as "as far as
I know, I am not really sure, but… to be honest I am not quite sure, but…" These qualifying
statements convey the impression that the speaker is honest, for he admits that he is not absolutely
sure.
The maxim of relation is the one that is probably violated the most in daily conversations, school
lectures, seniors’ addresses, etc. For instance, some speakers have the tendency to jump from a
topic to another, which indicates lack of focus. Others would overwhelm their audience with
details that are not completely relevant to the main point of dialogue or discourse. In
conversations, listeners might comment, saying something like "Sir, you lost me here, how is this
related to the main point?" etc. In cases of speeches or addresses in work meetings, employees
could whisper to each other, wondering, "What on earth does this have to do with our current
topic?"
Finally, the maxim of manner entails being organized in presenting our thoughts, points, opinions
and or instructions, making sure that what we say is clear, not structurally or lexically ambiguous.
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For instance, using a language that involves archaic terms or jargons that are field specific (e.g.
medical or legal vocabulary), when interacting with non-specialists can result in vagueness and
inevitable ambiguity. Related to this is the unclear voice, which happens when a speaker mumbles
or speaks too softly.
To demonstrate the way these maxims operate, let us consider the following hypothetical example
A: Hey, you have a nice watch, where did you buy it?
B: Thank you, I got it at Al-Ansari's, Dubai.
In this short exchange, A admires B's watch and requests information related to the shop or mall
where he got it. B thanks A for the pleasant comments and tells him where he got it. This response
is clear (not ambiguous, thus observing the maxim of manner), precise (providing the information
required not any other information, thus observing the maxim of relevance), and to the point
(providing the right amount of information, thus observing the maxim of quantity). Finally, we
have no evidence that indicates that B is not telling the truth (observing the maxim of quality).
Now, suppose the addressed responded by saying the following:
A: Hey, you have a nice watch, where did you buy it?
B: Oh, thank you. I kept looking for a good watch for ages. It cost me
a fortune, but I like it, money is not everything. You know, it is
water resistant and I got a warrantee for five years from the shop.
In this case, we observe that B was not cooperative, for he violated at least three maxims: 1) that
of quantity by giving too much information, but no answer to the question; 2) that of relation by
giving information that was not pertinent to the topic; and 3) that of manner by being rather unclear.
3. Flouting the maxims
Flouting the maxims of the CP can be done overtly and on purpose to accomplish certain discourse
effects. That is, unlike the case in violating maxims, which is considered a problem in any
conversation, flouting maxims can be intentional to make the interlocutor focus on the illocution
of the message, or implied meaning. Consider the following example:
A: I love watching western movies.

B: I love drinking poison.
B's response is flouting the maxim of relation, for A is saying something but B is responding by
something completely irrelevant, as it appears. Yet, in scrutinizing this response, we find that B's
strange response is a way of expressing his absolute dislike of Western movies. Hence, B flouts
the maxim of relation for a reason and that is to convey his strongly negative attitude towards such
movies. The hearer recognizes that the speaker intends to convey something beyond the meaning
of the words in the utterance. In other words, by breaking the maxims here, the speaker achieves
the desired communicative effect.
Flouting the maxims occurs in everyday conversations and we do it consciously and
subconsciously. For instance, there are situations where speakers cannot be honest, yet they cannot
be accused of violating the maxim of quality. For instance, a friend greets you and asks 'how are
you this morning?' to which the normal response is 'fine.' Now, you might not be fine, and you
might have had a quarrel with somebody and so you are miserable, yet your response is always
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fine. If you try to answer the question literally, you will be violating the social norms, and you
will be wasting the time of your friend who might have no time to listen to your personal problems.
Therefore, using the socially accepted formulaic response here is what is expected, and this can be
a problem that is not accounted for by the CP in its current form.
In addition to the above examples, there are a myriad of situations, where interlocutors cannot
adhere to the spirit of the CP maxims, for they involve language use that speech community
recognizes as valid ways despite their apparent impeachment of the Gricean maxims. Consider
the following examples from our daily conversations:
a. I have been waiting for ages, why are you so late?

b. Your mobile was off last night—I called you a thousand times.
c. He wrecked his car this morning. The mechanic has just finished fixing the dent.
d. I am so hungry, I could eat a horse.
e. Red bull gives you wings.
f. Talking to this Manager is like talking to a brick wall.
g. It is raining cats and dogs.
These are just examples of sentences and expressions we use every day. We flout the maxims
when we exaggerate, advertise, when speaking figuratively, when being sarcastic or funny, etc.
Thus, when you agree to have coffee with a friend at a certain coffee shop, and you happen to be
10 minutes late, your friend could say, "what happened I have been waiting for ages?" This is just
an exaggeration that conveys your friend's wonder about your being late. Similarly, saying that
you have called someone a thousand times, does not really mean that you have literally called him
one thousand times, rather it is a way of saying you called many times, but your attempts were in
vain. Saying that somebody wrecked his car and later we discover that he just dented it is another
example or exaggeration, not in all cultures, though. It implies that the semantic meaning of the
word wreck is not taken literally. Similarly, drinking red bull will not literally give you wings; it
is merely a marketing style, which aims at alluring you to purchase this kind energy drink. Both
customers and manufacturers know that this is just a funny marketing slogan. Finally, 'raining cats
and dogs' has never happened; this is an idiom we use when it rains heavily. In short, flouting the
maxims serves many discourse functions and interlocutors do not fail to recognize the motives of
such flouts.
4. Cross-cultural norms and the Gricean Maxims

As has been noted, different cultures perceive speech situations differently and consequently what
appears to be violations of the maxims in one culture might be normal interacting behavior in
another. In English, for example, “how are you?" is a greeting and in some cases, a polite way of
saying to your friend hey "I do acknowledge your presence…, etc."
Deborah Tannen, in a lecture on conversational rituals, mentions an interesting example of
compliments or greetings in Burma where people ask questions such as "where are you going,"
not to meddle in one another's own business, but rather to greet, i.e., it is a social way of greeting.
The answer to this question is also formulaic or ritualistic: Thus, according to her, the exchange
goes on like this:
A: Where are you going?
B: Over there.
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With the expression "over there', indicating no specific place, but rather a social or ritual response
that is expected in such a situation. Another interesting question that is usually asked to imply
greeting is "hey have you eaten (your rice)?" In the American culture, this question is interpreted
by any American as an implied invitation for a meal, according to Tannen, but in Burma it is just
a social way of greeting. Thus, this exchange can proceed as follows:
A: Have you eaten (your rice)?
B: Yes, I have (eaten my rice).
The answer "yes, I have (eaten my rice)," is what is expected, whether the addressed has had their
lunch/dinner or not (see Deborah Tannen in http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lXLSL_P8ZQ).
Now, in a different context, answering this question this way can constitute a violation of the
Gricean maxim of quality, for the addressed is conveying false information. Nonetheless, this is
the socially acceptable and expected answer in the Burmese culture. In other words, the ritually
motivated answer: "yes, I have eaten my rice" is similar to the answer "I am fine" even if you are
not really fine, i.e. ritual answers that have their socially identified functions. Again, Grice's
maxims do not account for every aspect of conversations in our daily communication, particularly
those situations that have to do with compliments, etc. (more about this point below).
5. Politeness Strategies
Our discussion of the cooperative principle as a crucial social norm that governs our linguistic
behavior leads to a closely related social concept, namely politeness. The theory of politeness has
been the focus of a myriad of studies since its inception as a linguistic topic by Brown and Levinson
in 1978. Observing politeness norms is so essential in our daily discourse, formal or informal, that
the communication process will be doomed to failure if interlocutors fail to accord enough
attention to this highly vital social norm. More often than not, we find ourselves in situations
where a heated discussion is inevitable, yet we endeavor to exert a great deal of effort to control
our linguistic behavior by mitigating the tone of our responses. We do that when we express our
views, react to controversial remarks, refute unsubstantiated allegations, etc. For instance, if a
mother asks her son's teacher about the son’s performance in an exam, the teacher, who knows
that this student did terribly bad, can say something like, well, I am afraid his performance was
not very good' or can say: "well, his performance was terrible." Both responses are the same in
terms of meaning, yet the wording of the first accords civility to the feelings of the mother. The
following is a more problematic example:
A: Hey, look I have a new watch. Do you like it?
B: [the addressee does not seem to like it]. Well, hmm, it is nice.
Here the addressee responds by saying that the watch is nice, despite the fact that he does not seem
to like it. This means that the speaker is violating the Gricean maxim of quality by saying
something that he believes is not true. However, this violation is justified on politeness grounds,
for social norms necessitate being courteous or polite to your interlocutor, which reflects Lakoff's
maxims of politeness. Lakoff (1973:99) proposed a principle, which comprises three rules or
maxims (maxims of politeness). They are:
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1. Don't impose
2. Give options
3. Make your receiver feel good.
(Lakoff, 1973:99)
These three rules are important in communication. They mean that as interactants, we should not
force our opinions through during interactions. Second, we should not corner our receivers if we
are asking, requesting or proposing, but rather should make options and convey the impression
that it is up to them to satisfy our requests or to decline. Finally, it is socially important to make
your interlocutor feel good (See Lakoff 1973).
The following example complies with Lakoff's maxims of politeness.
A: [A friend, who needs a ride to the airport, approaches you, saying] "I am
sorry to bother you, but I need a ride to the airport this afternoon, do you
think you could possibly drop me by the airport at 3 pm?" If you are busy, I
understand.
B: Sure – I can give you a ride. I will come and pick you up at 3 pm.
A: Oh, thank you very much, I appreciate it -- you are helpful.
In phrasing the request this way, the requester leaves the impression that he is not imposing, but
rather politely hinting. Second, he gives his friend room to say no, if he is not willing to give him
a ride. Note that 'A' thanks his friend, telling him that he is helpful. Saying that he appreciates his
friend's help and telling him he is helpful makes him feel good, again complying with Lakoff's
rules of politeness.
House (1998:54) defines the concept of politeness as "a sociocultural phenomenon…appearing to
show consideration of others". Lakoff (cited in House, 1998: 54) considers politeness "a system
of interpersonal relations designed to facilitate interaction by minimizing the potential for conflict
and confrontation inherent in all human interchange." Mills (2003:6) defines politeness as the
"expression of the speakers' intention to mitigate face threats carried by certain face threatening
acts toward another."
5. Face-threatening vs. face-saving
In politeness, linguists usually talk about face, which refers to a person's linguistic and social
identity, or a person's "public self-image", using Yule (1996: 134) words. Goffman (1967)
proposed the term face and since then many studies have been conducted in the area of pragmatics
and politeness to delineate ways of face saving and face threatening. In virtually most languages
and cultures, people talk about face saving, face threatening and employ different approaches
conducive to face saving. If a person says something that threatens the self-image of the
interlocutor, this behavior is referred to as a face threatening act (FTA). Discourse practitioners
distinguish between two types of face: positive and negative. The former refers to the right of a
person to belong to a group, to be approved of, loved, respected, praised, etc., whereas the latter
refers to the person's freedom of action and right not to be imposed upon. In daily communication,
people, and as part of the social norms, attempt to be courteous to one another in order not to
threaten these two faces. Thus, if one asks his employer, who is speaking during a meeting to raise
his voice, saying "raise your voice, I can't hear you," this is face threatening, for he, as an employee,
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is not supposed to address his senior this way. In fact, acting as such implies that this employee is
upgrading himself or acting as if he were more important than his employer. Since employees do
not have the social power that enables them to give commands to their employers, we say that this
employee is performing a face-threatening act. However, if the employee states his request saying,
"Sir, could you speak a little louder, please?," in this case, the employee's request is acceptable,
for he is using a number of signs that indicate politeness. These signs include using the word 'Sir'
to indicate respect, using the past of can to create the right distance required between the employer
and the employee, using the adjective 'little' to lessen further the illocutionary force of the request,
and finally using the word 'please'. The soft intonation that is expected when enunciating the
request is also an important politeness marker. Now, stating the request as such mitigates the threat
of the request to the least possible degree, a linguistic behavior that is referred to as face-saving
act.
7. Flouting politeness conventions
Maintaining politeness in our daily interaction is essential as has been stressed, and violating it can
result in communication failure or, worse can lead to inevitable confrontations. Nonetheless, daily
discourse can show countless situations where politeness conventions are flouted in cases of close
friends, or when joking, teasing, etc. Again, if these conventions are flouted with no purpose, they
will definitely cause offense, i.e., face threatening.
8. Cross cultural pragmatic failure
It is worth stating at this juncture that cultures do not perceive politeness in the same manner. It is
true that universal norms exist, yet different cultures envisage reality differently, as Sapir-Worf's
hypothesis claims. In the Arabic culture, for instance, encouraging your guests to eat is a sign of
generosity, and shows your care and joy of their presence. However, in the American culture, for
instance, attempting to encourage your guest to eat is interpreted as a sign of being aggressive.
Saeed (2004) reported an episode of an Arab who invited his American teachers for dinner, and
wanting to show how happy he was, he kept tempting them to try this dish, and that one…etc.
Thus, he would say "Oh, you are not eating, please try this, how about this one, you will love it,"
"please take some more of this meat," etc. The following day, this student was puzzled when he
saw some of his guests passing by without saying even hi. Again, this emphasizes further the claim
that cultures do differ in the way they evaluate situations.
In some Arab countries, people decline invitations, even if they would love to accept them. This
is particularly so in virtually all the Arab countries in the Arabian Peninsula and the Levant region.
In these countries inviting can sometimes be a polite way of saying bye, for instance. For example,
if some people are walking toward their residents, the first to depart is expected to say to the others
'tifadal', 'please come home with me', or 'let's have lunch/dinner together." This, in fact, is not a
serious invitation; it is merely a polite expression used when departing, since the interlocutors are
in front of one's house. Therefore, the expected answer is 'Thank you', again, as an expected
declining ritual. Of course, if the inviter is serious, then he is expected to insist, as mentioned
above. Note that, in the American culture if you invite, the invitee will take the invitation
seriously. If he declines the invitation and you insist you will be stigmatized; you will be perceived
as pushy.
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9. Activities
What is meant by pragmatics? How is the notion of context closely related to pragmatics?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________.
Explain the following statement: Pragmatics is the study of what is intended rather than what is
actually said.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________.
Highlight the importance of the Cooperative Principle.

____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________.
Record a conversation that lasts 10 minutes and then analyze it, attempting to see to the extent to
which the interlocutors maintain or violate the maxims of the CP. Briefly, jot down you results
here.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________.
Give examples that show how maxims of the CP could be flouted.

____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________.
What is meant by face-threatening acts? Why is this expression important?

____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________.
Consider a dialogue in an English setting, such as a restaurant, party, etc., and then attempt to
translate this conversation pragmatically. To what extent are the politeness conventions in English
identical or similar to the Arabic ones?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________.
What is the difference between violating a maxim and flouting it? Give examples.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________.
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What maxim or maxims are flouted in each of the following? Explain the reason(s) for such flouts.
Father: How was your exam?
Son: Any more tea, father?
A: This University is great, don't you think?

B: It has nice buildings.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________.
In our discussion of maxims, we considered two ways of breaking them: violating and flouting.
There are other ways of breaking maxims, including: infringing a maxim, opting out of a maxim
and suspending a maxim. Browse the net for information about these types and write a short report
in which you define them. Make sure you provide illustrative examples.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
10. Rounding Up

 The definition of the term ‘pragmatics’

 The Cooperative Principle
 The Gricean Maxims
 Politeness Strategies
 Face-threatening vs. face-saving
 Flouting politeness conventions
 Cross Cultural Pragmatic Failure
10.2. New Terms
 Context parameters
 Context types
 Cooperative Principle (CP)
 Cross-cultural norms
 Face-saving
 Face-threatening
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 Flouting conventions
 Flouting maxims
 Imposing
 Maxim of Quality
 Maxim of Quantity
 Maxim of Relation
 Maxim of Manner
 Politeness strategies
 Pragmatic Failure
 Violating social norms
References of the Chapter
Austin, J. (1962). How to Do Things with Words. Oxford: Clarendon Press.
Brown, P. and Levinson, S. (1987). Politeness: Some Universals in Language Usage. Cambridge, England:
Cambridge University Press
Duranti and Goodwin (1992) (editors). Rethinking Context: Language as interactive Phenomenon. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press.
Grice, H. P. (1975) "Logic and Conversation." In Cole, P. and J. Morgan (eds.) Syntax and Semantics: Speech Acts.
New York: Academic Press. 41-59.
Lakoff, R. (1973) “The logic of politeness: Or, minding your p’s and q’s” In C. Corum, T. Cedric Smith-Stark, & A.
Weiser (Eds.), Papers from the 9th Regional Meeting of the Chicago Linguistic Society. Chicago Linguistic Society,
292-305.
House, Julian (1998). Politeness and Translation. In Leo Hickey (editor) The Pragmatics of Translation. Clevedon:
Multilingual Matters LTD.
Mills, S. (2003). Gender and Politeness. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Saeed, Aziz “L1 Culture Interference in L2 Learning.” In TESOL Arabia Conference Proceedings 2004, Dubai, UAE.
Sorea, Daniela (2012). Pragmatics. Some Cognitive Perspectives. Bucuresti: Contemporary Literature Press.
Tannen, Deborah. Speakers.com. In: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lXLSL_P8ZQ
Yule, George (1996). The Study of Language. 2nd edn). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
http://joys-english.gr/index.php/blog/5/face-threatening-acts-ftas-and-politeness-theory. Date of Access: January
2015.
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APPENDIX I
Answer Key to Exercises
UNIT 2: Phonetics 1: Letters and sounds
Ex. 1: The odd word is chorus

Ex. 2: 1. /z/ ; 2. /t/; 3. /d/ ; 4. /r/ ; 5. /s/ ; 6. /s/ ; 7. zero ; 8. /f/ ; 9. /z/ ; 10. /t/
UNIT 3 Phonetics 2: English Consonants

Ex.2
No Consonant Example Voicing Place of Manner of
Articulation Articulation
1. /f/ fine voiceless labiodental fricative
2. /v/ verb voiced labiodental fricative
3. /s/ sit voiceless alveolar fricative
4. /z/ zoo voiced alveolar fricative
5. wish voiceless palato-alveolar fricative
/ʃ/
6. /ʒ/ measure voiced palato-alveolar fricative
7. /θ/ thin voiceless dental or interdental fricative
8. /ð/ there voiced dental or interdental fricative
9. /h/ happy voiced/ glottal fricative
voiceless
10. /p/ pin voiceless bilabial plosive
11. /b/ /box/ voiced bilabial plosive
12. /t/ master voiceless alveolar plosive
13. /d/ drive voiced alveolar plosive
14. /k/ catch voiceless velar plosive
15. /g/ bigger voiced velar plosive
16. watch voiceless palato-alveolar affricate
/tʃ/
17. /dʒ/ bridge voiced palato-alveolar affricate
18. /m/ swim voiced bilabial nasal
19. /n/ name voiced alveolar nasal
20. /ŋ/ sing voiced velar nasal
21. /l/ low voiced alveolar lateral
approximant
22. /r/ read voiced alveolar trill
23. /j/ yet voiced palatal approximant
24. /w/ water voiced labio-velar approximant
voiceless
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UNIT 4: Phonetics 3: English Vowels and Diphthongs
Ex. 1:
All statements with “odd number” are true, the rest (i.e. even numbers) are false
Ex. 2-6:
Answers on BBC Learning English
UNIT 5: Phonology
Ex. 1:1.b; 2. a; 3. b; 4. b; 5. c
Ex. 2: 1. c; 2. b; 3. a; 4. a; 5. b;
Ex. 3:1. a; 2. b
Ex. 4:1. a; 2. In key /khi:/, peace /phi:s/, and /thi:tʃə/
Ex. 5:1. true; 2. false; 3. false; 4. true; 5. true; 6. false; 7. true; 8. true; 9. true; 10. true; 11. false;
12. false.
UNIT 6: Prosody
Ex. 1:
1.
1. 'render; 2. 'artist; 3. re'veal; 4.a'nnounce; 5.re'duce; 6. 'rector; 7. de'rive;
8. 'diction; 9.'doctor
2. /'rendə/; /ə'naʊns/; /'rektə/; /'dɒktə/
3. The conclusion is that the schwa does not occur in a stressed syllable.
Ex. 2:
stress 1st 2nd 3rd 4th

word syllable syllable syllable syllable
photograph /'fəʊtəgrɑːf/ X
photography /fə'tɒgrəfɪ/ X
photographic /ֽfəʊtə'grɑːfɪk/ X
photographer /fə'tɒgrəfə/ X
Ex. 3:
English is known to have a free type of stress placed on different syllables in different words, and
sometimes in the same word when its function changes, e.g. /'ɪnsʌlt/ (noun), /ɪn'sʌlt/ (verb).
Ex. 4:
150
1. c; 2. a; 3. b
Ex. 5
The 'best 'jewel in the 'world has been 'stolen
Not Not Not Not Not

Stressed; Stressed; Stressed; Stressed; Stressed; Stressed; Stressed; Stressed; Stressed;
article adjective noun preposition article noun auxiliary auxiliary main/

lexical
verb
Explanation: To proceed from 'best to 'jewel takes roughly the same time as from'jewelto
'world, although in the first case there are no intervening unstressed syllables, while in the second
one there are three intervening unstressed syllables: the second syllable –el in jewel and the two
unstressed syllables represented by the function words in and the. Also, roughly the same time is
needed to go from 'world to 'stolen .
Ex. 6:
1. last stressed syllable
2. nuclear tone or nucleus
3. b
Ex. 7:
2. We’ve done this together.
3. The story is not over.
4. What I like to do is find a good dictionary.
5. No harm is meant to you.
Ex. 8:
1. // 1. true; 2. false; 3. false; 4. true; 5. true
2. // 1. false; 2. true; 3. true; 4. true; 5. false; 6. false; 7. true; 8. True
UNIT 7: Morphology
Ex. 1
A. Camel (free) + s (bound)
B. Play (free) + er (bound)
C. Plant (free)
D. Book (free)
E. Truth (free) + ful (bound)
F. Dream (free) + ing (bound)
Ex. 2
151
A. house wife : house (free) + wife (free)
B. un pleasant : un (bound) + pleasant (free)
C. re call : re (bound) + call (free)
D. boys : boy (free) + s (bound)
E. painter : paint (free) + er (bound)
F. something : some (free) + thing (free)
Ex. 3
A. Player (different word class category)
B. Unpleasant (prefix)
C. Studied (suffix)
Ex. 4
A. Prefix
B. Prefix
C. Suffix
D. Suffix
E. Prefix and suffix
F. Prefix
Ex 5
A. Unhappy
B. Unlucky
C. Illiterate
D. Undo
E. Insincere
F. Immobile
Ex. 6
A. quicker
B. lions
C. beauties
D. happier
E. plants or planted
F. goes or going
Ex. 7
A. Inflectional
B. Inflectional
C. Inflectional
D. Derivational
E. Derivational
F. Functional
Ex. 8
152
A. derivational
B. inflectional
C. derivational
D. derivational
E. derivational
F. derivational
Ex. 9
B. T
C. F
D. T
E. F
F. T
Ex. 10
A. Un / success (free) /ful
B. Present (free) / able
C. Humour (free) / ous
D. Child (free) / ish
E. Manage (free) / able
F. Lucky (free) / ly
Ex. 11
Meaning of the prefix is underlined:
1. start again; 2. opposite of just; 3. opposite of active; 4. wrong interpretation; 5. exist together;
6. estimate more; 7. estimate less; 8. against racism; 9. for/supporting Arabs; 10. under the road
(tunnel); 11. before school; 12. after graduation (after first university degree); 13. one tone
(repeated tone); 14. self-drive.
Ex. 12
hopeful/hopeless; 2. manhood/manly; 3. relationship; 4. kingdom/kingly/kingship; 5. Chinese; 6.

Kuwaiti; 7. worker; 8. statement/statehood; happily; 9. clockwise
UNIT 8: Word Classes
Ex. 1
 Noun word class: house, apple, school, juice, car
 Verb word class: went, found, eat.
Ex. 2
A. painted
B. shut
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C. city
D. dived
Ex. 3
A. clever
B. longest
C. taller
D. greener
E. empty
F. darkest
Ex.4
A. slowly (manner)
B. weekly (time)
C. there (place)
D. ago (time)
E. suddenly (time)
F. nearby (place)
Ex.5
Use your dictionary to do this exercise.
UNIT 9: Syntax 1
Ex. 1:
1. S 2. NS 3. S
4. NS 5. NS 6. S
7. NS 8. NS 9. NS
10. NS
Ex. 2:
The second sentence is better, because the meaning is clear. In the first sentence,
we do not know whether the decision was made on Monday or whether the
resignation will take place on Monday.
Ex. 3:
1. S / P
John / has no job.
2. S / P
I / posted the letter yesterday.
3. S / P
This / is the introductory unit.
154
4. S / P
Leonardo da Vinci / was a great artist.
5. S / P
Smoking / is bad for your health.
6. S / P
Half a loaf / is better than no bread.
7. S / P
The book you bought yesterday / is rather expensive
8. S / P
To learn a foreign language / would be an advantage.
9. S / P
That Bill doesn't visit his parents / is odd.
10. S / P
Both my father and grandfather / prefer buses to trains.
Ex. 4:
1. The eggplants (were) purple. (V/link)
2. Jimmy (has lost) his ticket. (V/mono-trans.)
3. Mother (telephoned) the neighbours. (V/mono-trans.)
4. It (grew darker and darker) (V/link)
5. Our cat (has eaten) our sandwiches! (V/mono-trans.)
6. She (is teaching) her dog many tricks. (V/di-trans.)
7. Bill (chopped) the firewood. (V/mono-trans.)
8. Robots (are) helpful. (V/link)
9. People (find) robots fascinating. (V/comp-trans.)
10. The show (was) a great success. (V/link)
11. That bench in the garden (looks) very comfortable. (V/link)
12. Janet (wrote) me a letter. (V/di-trans.)
13. I (call) this stupidity. (V/comp-trans.)
14. Interest rates (are falling). (V/intrans.)
15. The mist (has evaporated). (V/intrans.)
Ex. 5:
1. She dances (gracefully). M
2. Larry flew to Alexandria. P
3. You should (always) speak (naturally). F; M
4. They searched the room (carefully) (last night). M; T
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5. I will see you (at the Hilton) (tonight). P; T
6. He died (in Canada) (when he was sixteen). P; T
Ex. 6: The HN is in bold type.

1. The rumor that the university rector has resigned is unfounded
2. The idea of spending his life in prison horrified him.
3. Do you know the boys sitting in the garden?
4. They made him a boss that does not rule.
5. I ignored all the remarks that he made during our meeting.
6. Get me those books on the table, please.
7. Lying is the thing that I hate most.
8. The fact that the manager has not accepted our offer should not bother you.
9. A large Egyptian trade delegation has arrived in London
10. Syntax is a level of language description that deals with sentence formation.
UNIT 10: Syntax 2
Ex. 1
1. ......When I come back. (ADV)
2. Since you can't use your car ....... . (ADV)
3. If you work hard .... (ADV)
4. Although he is five years old, .... (ADV)
5. ....... because he is sick. (ADV)
Ex. 2
1. Bill went to bed because he felt ill.
2. After she got married, Susan became ill-tempered.
3. You should inform the police whenever your family is in trouble.
UNIT 11: Syntax 3
Ex. 1:
1.
S V Od ADV
The boys will cook the dinner in the tent.
NP1 VP NP2 Prep-P
2.
S V Oi Od
Mr. Smith has bought his daughter a new car.
NP1 VP NP2 NP3
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3.
S V Cs
His reports have been very poor.
NP VP Adj-P
4.
S V ADV/P ADV/T
John and Mary are flying to Damascus next week.
NP1 VP Prep-P NP2
Ex. 2:
1. T
2. T
3. T
4. T
5. T
6. T
7. T
8. T
9. F/ It can be used intransitively (e.g. I don't drink.).
10. F/ It can (e.g. I know that Bill is honest.).
11. F/ Adverbs are sometimes obligatory (e.g. Mary is here.).
12. F/ It can be realized by an Adj-P (e.g. Mary made Bill miserable.).
13. T
14. F/ Oi is typically realized by NP.
15. T
Ex. 3:
S V-intrans.
1.A. They can fish.
(Aux) (V)
(i.e. they are able to fish)
B. S V-trans. Od
They can fish
(i.e. they put fish in cans)
157
S ADV V-intrans ADV/P
2.A. Terry finally decided on the boat.
(i.e. He took his decision while he was on the boat)
B. S Adv V-trans. Od
Terry finally decided on the boat.
(=chose)
(i.e. He chose the boat)
Ex. 4:
Give examples of the following.
1. S realized by a clause:
That Ali has failed the exam is surprising.
2. Od realized by a clause.
I know that Ali has failed the exam.
3. Cs realized by a clause:
The problem is that Ali has failed the exam.
4. Adv realized by a clause:
We shall cancel our party because Ali has failed the exam.
Ex. 5:
Give examples of NP realizing the following functions:
1. S: This book is quite useful.
2. Od: I’ve bought a new book.
3. Oi: I gave my brother the new book.
4. Cs: This man is a professor.
5. Co: We elected Ali a president.
6. ADV: I’ll see you tomorrow
UNIT 12 Semantics
Ex. 1:
1. a; 2. c; 3. b; 4 a.; 5. b ;. 6. d; 7. c; 8. b.
Ex. 2:
1. b; 2. a; 3. a; 4.c; 5. c; 6. b; 7. c; 8. c; 9. a; 10. c.
Ex. 3:
1. true; 2. false; 3. true; 4. true; 5. false; 6. false; 7. true; 8. true; 9. false; 10. true;
11. true; 12. false; 13. true.
158
APPENDIX II
Additional Practice Drills

Unit 2: Phonetics
Exercise 1: Identify the odd word out
1. sit - slim- shoe - illness

2. cry - cream - camera - circle
3. sure - issue - pressure - success
4. pledge - game - gym- genuine
5. bag - rag - shaggy - urge
6. furniture - future - mature - gesture
7. pleased - pleasure - measure - treasure
8. submission - mission - vision - profession
9. city - cinema - citation - cocktail
10. photo - palm - phonology - phone
Unit 3: Phonetics
(All the sounds discussed below are from the RP accent)
Exercise 1
Say whether the first underlined consonant in the following pair of words is the same (S) or
different (D).
Example:
now – pneumonia S
sun – sugar D
1. goose – gender
2. simple – shackle
3. curious – cereal
4. phonetic – fictional
5. wander – yesterday
6. those – Thursday
7. scissors – zipper
8. chromosome – chief
9. crystal- Christ
10. king - knight
159
Exercise 2
Choose the appropriate place of articulation of the first (underlined) consonant in the
following words
1. manners
a. alveolar
b. bilabial
c. palatal
d. dental
2. wicker
a. labio-dental
b. bilabial
c . alveolar
d. glottal
3. normal
a. alveolar
b. post palatal
c. interdental
d. labiodental
4. chestnut
a. alveolar
b. labiodental
c. palatal
d . post alveolar
5. baker
a. Labio-dental
b. interdental
c. alveolar
d. bi-labial
6. delegate
a. alveolar
b. interdental
c. bi-labial
160
d. palatal
7. happened
a. alveolar
b. palatal
c. glottal
d. labio-dental
8. usual
a. glottal
b. bi-labial
c. palatal
d. alveolar
9. painting
a. bilabial
b. labio-dental
c. alveolar
d. glottal
10. rich
a. palatal
b. interdental
c. labio-dental
d. alveolar
Exercise 3
Decide whether the underlined vowel in bold type is pronounced the same (S) or differently
(D)
1. primary – nutrition
2. heal – electricity
3. anywhere – cat
4. exposure – coaster
5. able - enjoyable
6. wave – irrigate
7. measure – heat
8. butter – tough
9. ship - sheep
10. caught - four
Exercise 4
1. Tick the words which start with a fricative consonant:
foreign, theatre, tidings, hospital, cassette, shroud
161
2. Tick the words which have an approximant:
winter, university, captive, ripe, little, mute
3. Tick the words which contain a back vowel:
boost, mute, rot, fraud, matter, hospital
4. Tick the words which start with a voiced stop consonant:

government, pottery, taxonomy, baby, photograph, sister
5.Tick the words which end in an alveolar consonant:

went, atom, far, column, multiple, garnish
Exercise 5
1. Write in phonetic symbols the sound with the following place and manner of
articulation: (e.g. voiceless affricate /ʧ/)
a) voiced affricate --------
b) palatal glide ----------
c) velar nasal ---------
d) glottal fricative -------
e) voiceless dental fricative --------
f) bilabial glide ---------
g) voiced bilabial plosive -------
h) palatal glide --------
i) voiceless velar stop --------
j) voiced labio-dental fricative ---------
2. Which of the following consonants are:
a) Bilabial:
b f g h l
m n p r s
162
b) Alveolar:
l m n p r
s t v d z
c) Labio-dental:
l m f p r
s t n w v
d) Plosive or stop:
m n p t d
k h b g f
e) Fricative:
v s r h f
z ʒ Ɵ ʃ ð
f) Nasal:
r w t k m
s z n f ŋ
Exercise 6
1. Underline the symbol that matches the sound in the underlined letters.
Example: word /ʌ/, /ɜ:/, /ɔː/
a) Weather /e/, /i:/, /æ/

b) Sugar /u:/, /ʊ/, /ʌ/
c) Woman /ɒ/ , /ɪ/ , /ʊ/
d) Women /ɒ/ , /ɪ/ , /ʊ/
e) Uncle /ʌ/, /æ/, /ɒ/
f) Half /ɑː/, /æ/, /ɔː/
2. Underline the word which does NOT contain the vowel sound on the left.
Example: /ɪ/ build, field, fill, women
a) /e/ leather friend break bread

b) /ʌ/ front rough won’t country
163
c) /ɒ/ clock wonder want wash
d) /æ/ angry hungry fax salmon
e) /i:/ cheese meal breath breathe
f) /u:/ spoon wooden zoo souvenir
g) /ɔː/ warm walk store work
h) /ɜ:/ world ferry early journalist
3. Put the words in the box in the correct group, according to their vowel sound. There
should be three words in each group.
people, pool, uncle, could, bury, build, lawn, aunt, match, fur, cough,
young, if, move, book, health, can’t, piece, bought, fill, watch, earth, tap,
wheel, horse, nut, word, stood, any, half, bottle, juice, tan.
a) /i:/ ----------------------------------------------
b) /ʌ/ ----------------------------------------------
c) /e/ -----------------------------------------------
d) /ʊ/ -----------------------------------------------
e) /u:/ ----------------------------------------------
f) /ɪ/ -----------------------------------------------
g) /ɒ/ -----------------------------------------------
h) /ɑː/ ----------------------------------------------
i) /ɜ:/ ----------------------------------------------
j) /æ/ ----------------------------------------------
k) /ɔː/ ----------------------------------------------
4. Write the suitable vowel according to the following description:
a) A vowel which is long, front, high -----------

b) A vowel which is short, front, mid-way ----------
c) A vowel which is long, back, low ----------
d) A vowel which is short, back, low ---------
e) A vowel which is long, back, mid-way ---------
f) A vowel which is short, back, high ---------
g) A vowel which is long, back, high ---------
h) A vowel which is short, central, mid-way ---------
i) A vowel which is long, central, mid-way ---------
164
Unit 5: Phonology
Exercise 1:
Create two minimal pairs in different word positions and identify the different phonemes
(Answers may vary.)
Initial Medial Final

Example:
tea, pea, charmer, charger seat, seal
Unit 6: Prosody
Exercise 1
Identify the vowel changes in the stressed syllables (spelt identically) of the following
morphologically related words.
1. derive – derivation
2. punitive – punishment
3. deduce – deduction
4. satire – satiric
5. serene – serenity
6. wild – wilderness
7. analyse - analysis
8. photo - photography
9. write- written
10. assume – assumption
165
Unit 7: Morphology
Exercise 1
Divide the following words into their morphemes. Indicate which morphemes are inflectional
and which are derivational.
a) mistreatment
b) deactivation
c) psychology
d) airsickness
e) terrorized
f) uncivilized
Exercise 2
For the following words, identify all the free morphemes (stem words).
dragged unassuming
bicycle redness
impossible auctioneers
thumbtack cloudiness
hopefully exceptionally
166
Exercise 3:
Put the words in the box below into the suitable cell according to the pronunciation of the
last phoneme.
Hugged, hoped, waited, wished, lived, wanted, talked, proved, departed, bewitched,
breathed, shouted, lunched, bathed, fitted, buzzed, added, reached, paused, founded,
brushed, managed, needed, judged, rushed, wounded, hushed, pulled, concluded,
minced, hummed, passed, added, missed, trimmed, hissed, turned, stuffed, spinned,
laughed, hanged, kicked, played, thanked, showed, scared, licked, cried, hopped.
Prices, caps, dogs, phases, robes, kisses, doves, prizes, lips, dolls, dishes, hats,
pens, cats, games, cakes, ashes, songs, racks, judges, fees, laws, cuffs, badges,
gulfs, taps, months, leads, inches, leaps, catches, digs, teethes, rejoices, hopes,
pulls, hums, dances, hits, pains, heats, excuses, kicks, rings, loses, likes, coughs,
wishes, goes, sniffs, lies, pushes, damages.
/t/ /d/ /Id/
/s/ /z/ /Iz/
167
Unit 8: Word Classes
Choose the right answer for the underlined word
1. The moon is full today.
a. Verb
b. Adjective
c. Noun
d. Adverb
2. This book is very thin.

a. Noun
b. preposition
c. Adverb
d. Adjective
3. This is too difficult for me.

a. Noun
b. Pronoun
c. Conjunction
d. Verb
4. She has a magic voice.

a. Adjective
b. Noun
c. Adverb
d. Preposition
5. The teacher explained the lesson carefully.

a. Verb
b. Noun
c. Adjective
d. Adverb
6. It has not rained for three months.

a. Adverb
b. Verb
c. Adjective
d. Conjunction
168
7. He is lazy but very clever.
a. Conjunction
b. Pronoun
c. Preposition
d. Verb
8. The dog jumped over the wall.

a. Adjective
b. Preposition
c. Conjunction
d. Noun
9. There is a shop round the corner.

a. Pronoun
b. Noun
c. conjunction
d. preposition
10. Although she tried very hard, she failed her exam.
a. Verb
b. Adverb
c. Adjective
d. Noun
169
Units 9-11: Syntax
Exercise 1
Decide if the following statements are True or False
1. A mono-transitive verb has one object.
2. A complex transitive verb has two objects.
3. An intransitive verb has no object.
4. A di-transitive verb has two objects.
5. An adverb cannot occur in a transitive clause.
6. A linking verb can be followed by a subject complement.
7. A linking verb cannot be followed by an adjective.
8. An adverb is an obligatory element in the clause.
9. The subject is an obligatory element in the clause.
10. The adverb never is an adverb of manner.
Exercise 2
Put (a) if the sentence is simple, (b) if it is compound, (c) if it is complex, (d) if it is compound
complex
1. I will go to UK when I finish my BA.
2. The children are playing in the garden and their mother is watching them while cooking
the dinner.
3. The lovely beaches are so wonderful these days.
4. The teacher explained the lesson and the students took notes.
5. The sea is polluted because people throw rubbish in it.
Exercise 3
Choose two answers for the underlined words showing the form - the grammatical category -
and the function
1. The manager is angry today
a. ADV PHRASE
b. Verb PHRASE
c. Adjective PHRASE
d. Prepositional PHRASE
e. Direct object
f. Indirect object
g. Subject complement
2. She gave me a nice present for my birthday

a. Noun Phrase
b. Adjective Phrase
c. Verb Phrase
170
d. Prepositional phrase
e. Subject
f. Direct object
g. Indirect object
h. Object complement
3. The students found the lecture very boring yesterday

a. Noun Phrase
b. Adverb Phrase
c. Adjective Phrase
d. Verb Phrase
e. Indirect object
f. Direct object
g. Object complement
h. Subject complement
4. My son is a lawyer
a. Adjective Phrase
b. Noun Phrase
c. Verb phrase
d. Adverb phrase
e. Direct object
f. Subject complement
g. Indirect object
h. Subject
5. She keeps her cat in a cage

a. Adverb Phrase
b. Prepositional Phrase
c. Noun phrase
d. Adjective phrase
e. Direct object
d. Indirect object
e. object complement
f. Adverb of place
h. predicate
171
Unit 12: Semantics
Exercise 1:
Complete the following definitions and give examples where appropriate
1. Semantics is the study of ...................
2 ……………… are words that are close in meaning.
3. ………………… means that the same word has more than one meaning.
4. ……………..... are two words that are identical in sound but with different spelling.
5 …………… are two words that are identical in spelling but have a different pronunciation.
6. Two words that have opposite meanings are………………….
7. The expression “you are my sunshine” is a………………….
Exercise 2:
Circle the correct words out of the two homonyms between brackets that match each
sentence.
1. I need some (flower/ flour) to bake the cake.
2. He ate the (whole/hole) cake.
3. We are going to (meat/ meet) our boss.
4. I (know /no) what the (right/ write) answer is.
5. She went to (you're /your) office, but she didn’t find you.
6. He collected some (would /wood).
7. I like to eat (deserts /desserts) so much.
Exercise 3:
Choose the correct meaning of the underline words.
1. My neighbor used a saw to cut the wood. (tool/watched/walked)
2. I saw a cat that was walking on the street. (tool/watched/walked)
3. What kind of soup is that? (type/nice/much)
4. That man is very kind. (type/nice/much)
5. He runs so fast to win the race. (quickly/stop eating/competition)
6. Muslims fast the month of Ramadan. (quickly/stop eating/competition)
7. It is not fair to take all my candies. (just/exhibition/plane).
8. I saw many people in the career fair. (just/exhibition/plane).
172
Exercise 4:
Choose the correct phrasal verbs in the following
1. She ______________ the dress instead of the jeans.

puts on puts off catches up
_________________________________
2. He ______________ his mother. He is similar to his mom.

takes after looks up looks at
__________________________________
3. I try to ______________ with the 9 am train.

catch up wait up take up
__________________________________
4. Can you ____________ this word in the dictionary?

look after look up look for
___________________________________
5. My car ____________ on the road.

Broke up broke down broke through
__________________________________
173
APPENDIX III
Additional Practice Drills (Answer Key)
Unit 2: Phonetics
Exercise 1
1 shoe; 2 circle; 3 success; 4 game; 5 urge; 6 mature; 7 pleased; 8 vision; 9 cocktail; 10 palm
Unit 3: Phonetics
(All the sounds discussed below are from the RP accent)
Exercise 1
1.D, 2 D ; 3D; 4 S; 5 D ; 6 D; 7 D; 8 D; 9 S; 10; D
Exercise 2
1b; 2b; 3a; 4d; 5d; 6 a; 7 c; 8 c; 9 a; 10 d
Exercise 3
1.D; 2D; 3D; 4S; 5D; 6S; 7D; 8S; 9D; 10 S.
Exercise 4
1. All except cassette and tidings
2. All except captive and mute
3. All except matter
4. Government and baby
5. Went and multiple
Exercise 5
1. Write the suitable sound with the following place and manner of articulation (e.g.
voiceless affricate //ʧ/)
a) voiced affricate /ʤ/
b) palatal glide /j/
c) velar nasal /ŋ/
d) glottal fricative /h/
e) voiceless dental fricative /Ɵ/
f) bilabial glide /w/
g) voiced bilabial plosive /b/
174
h) Palatal glide /j/
i) voiceless velar stop /k/
j) voiced labio-dental fricative /v/
2. Which of the following consonants are:
a) Bilabial:
b f g h l
m n p r s
b) Alveolar:
l m n p r
s t v d z
c) Labio-dental:
l m f p r
s t n w v
d) plosive or stop:
m n p t d
k h b g f
e) Fricative:
v s r h f
z ʒ θ ʃ ð
f) Nasal:
r w t k m
s z n f ŋ
Exercise 6
1. Underline the symbol that matches the vowel in the underlined letters:
Example: word /ʌ/, /ɜ:/, /ɔː/
a) weather /e/, /i:/, /æ/

b) sugar /u:/, /ʊ/, /ʌ/
c) woman /ɒ/ , /ɪ/ , /ʊ/
d) women /ɒ/ , /ɪ/ , /ʊ/
175
e) uncle /ʌ/, /æ/, /ɒ/
f) half /ɑː/, /æ/, /ɔː/
2. Underline the word which does not contain the vowel on the left.
Example:/ɪ/ build, field, fill, women
a) /e/ leather friend break bread

b) /ʌ/ front rough won’t country
c) /ɒ/ clock wonder want wash
d) /æ/ angry hungry fax salmon
e) /i:/ cheese meal breath breathe
f) /u:/ spoon wooden zoo souvenir
g) /ɔː/ warm walk store work
h) /ɜ:/ world ferry early journalist
3. Put the words in the box in the correct group, according to their vowel sound. There
should be three words in each group.
a) /i:/ people, piece, wheel
people, pool, uncle, could, bury, build, lawn, aunt, match, fur, cough,
young, if, move, book, health, can’t, piece, bought, fill, watch, earth, tap,
wheel, horse, nut, word, stood, any, half, bottle, juice, tan.
b) /ʌ/ uncle, young, nut

c) /e/ busy, health, any
d) /ʊ/ could, book, stood
e) /u:/ pool, move, juice
f) /ɪ/ build, fill, if
g) /ɒ/ cough, watch, bottle
h) /ɑː/ half, aunt, can’t
i) /ɜ:/ fur, earth, word
j) /æ/ match, tap, tan
k) /ɔː/ lawn, bought, horse
4. Write the suitable vowel according to the following description:

a) A vowel which is long, front, high /i:/
b) A vowel which is short, front, mid-way /e/
c) A vowel which is long, back, low /ɑː/
d) A vowel which is short, back, low /ɒ/
e) A vowel which is long, back, mid-way /ɔː/
f) A vowel which is short, back, high /ʊ/
g) A vowel which is long, back, high /u:/
176
h) A vowel which is short, central, mid-way /ʌ/
i) A vowel which is long, central, mid-way /ɜ:/
Unit 5: Phonology
Exercise 1
Answers are open and may vary
Unit 6: Prosody
Exercise 1
1. [aɪ] [ɪ]
2. [ju:] [ʌ]
3. [ju:] [ʌ]
4. [aɪ] [ ɪ]
5. [iː] [e]
6. [aɪ] [ɪ]
7. [aɪ] [ɪ]
8. [əu] [ɒ]
9. [aɪ] [ɪ]
10. [ju:] [ʌ]
Unit 7: Morphology
Exercise 1
1. Divide the following words into their morphemes. Indicate which

morphemes are inflectional and which are derivational.
a) mistreatment
treat (root) + mis- (derivational) + -ment (derivational)
b) deactivation
act (root) + de- (derivational) + -ive (derivational) + -ate (derivational) + -ion

(derivational)
c) psychology
psych- or psyche (root) + -ology (derivational)
d) airsickness
air (root) + sick (root) + -ness (derivational)
177
e) terrorized
terror (root) + -ize (derivational) + PAST (inflectional) if the word is a verb form
OR terrorized = terror (root) + -ize (derivational) + -ed (derivational) if the word

is an adjective
f) uncivilized
civil (root) + un- (derivational) + -ize (derivational) + -ed (derivational)
Exercise 2
For the following words, identify all the free morphemes (stem words).
Dragged drag Unassuming assume

bicycle cycle Redness red
Impossible possible Auctioneers auction
Thumbtack thumb, tack Cloudiness cloud
Hopefully hope Exceptionally except
Exercise 3
g) Put the following words into the suitable cell according to the pronunciation of
the last phoneme:
Hugged, hoped, waited, wished, lived, wanted, talked, proved, departed, bewitched,
breathed, shouted, lunched, bathed, fitted, buzzed, added, reached, paused, founded,
brushed, managed, needed, judged, rushed, wounded, hushed, pulled, concluded,
minced, hummed, passed, missed, trimmed, hissed, turned, stuffed, spinned,
laughed, hanged, kicked, played, thanked, showed, scared, licked, cried, hopped.
Prices, caps, dogs, phases, robes, kisses, doves, prizes, lips, dolls, dishes, hats,
pens, cats, games, cakes, ashes, songs, racks, judges, fees, laws, cuffs, badges,
gulfs, taps, months, leads, inches, leaps, catches, digs, teethes, rejoices, hopes,
pulls, hums, dances, hits, pains, heats, excuses, kicks, rings, loses, likes, coughs,
wishes, goes, sniffs, lies, pushes, damages.
178
/t/ /d/ /Id/
hoped hugged waited
wished lived wanted
talked proved departed
bewitched breathed shouted
lunched bathed fitted
reached buzzed added
brushed paused founded
rushed managed needed
hushed judged wounded
minced pulled concluded
passed hummed
missed trimmed
hissed turned
stuffed spinned
laughed hanged
kicked played
thanked showed
licked scared
hopped cried
/s/ /z/ /Iz/

caps dogs prices
lips robes phases
hats doves kisses
cats dolls prizes
cakes pens dishes
racks games ashes
cuffs songs judges
gulfs fees badges
taps laws inches
months leads catches
leaps digs rejoices
hopes pulls dances
hits hums excuses
heats pains loses
kicks rings wishes
likes goes pushes
coughs lies damages
sniffs teethes
179
Unit 8: Word classes
1:c; 2:d; 3:b; 4:a; 5:d; 6:b; 7:a; 8:b; 9:d; 10: b
Unit: 9-11 Syntax
Exercise 1
1. T; 2. F; 3. T; 4. T; 5. F; 6. T; 7. F; 8. F; 9. T; 10. F
Exercise 2
1. c; 2. d; 3. a; 4. b; 5. c
Exercise 3
1. c & g; 2. a & g; 3. c & g.; 4. b & f; 5.b & f
Unit 12: Semantics
Exercise 1
1. meaning; 2. synonyms; 3. polysemy; 4. homophones; 5. homographs; 6. antonyms; 7.

metaphor
Exercise 2
Homonymy
1. flour, 2. whole, 3. meet, 4. know/right, 5. your, 6. wood, 7. desserts
Exercise 3
Homography
1. tool, 2. watched, 3. type, 4. Nice, 5. quickly. 6. stop eating. 7. just, 8. exhibition.
180
Exercise 4
Phrasal verbs
1. puts on, 2. takes after , 3. catch up, 4. look up, 5. broke down .
181
REFERENCES
 Brown, P. and Yule, G., (1983) Discourse Analysis, C.U.P., Cambridge.
 Coulthard, Malcolm (1977). An Introduction to Discourse Analysis, Longman London.
 Fareh, Lina (2001). Illocutionary Forces of Imperative Sentences in English and Arabic:
A Contrastive Study, M.A. Dissertation, University of Jordan, Amman.
 Freeborn, Dennis, David Langford and Peter French (1986). Varieties of English,
Macmillan, London.
 Graddol, David, Jenny Cheshire and Joan Swan (1994). Describing Language, Open
University Press, Buckingham.
 Gumperz, John J. (1982) Discourse Strategies, C.U.P., Cambridge.
 Hajjaj, Ali (2001). Phonetics and Pronunciation , Al-Quds Open University, Amman.
 Halliday, M.A.K. and Ruquaiya Hassan (1976). Cohesion in English, Longman London.
 Hatim, Basil and Ian Mason (1990). Discourse and the Translator, Longman, London.
 Hymes, Dell (1971). On Communicative Competence, University of Pennsylvania Press,
Philadelphia.
 Mukattash, Lewis (19995). Structured I, Al-Quds Open University, Amman.
 Mukattash, Lewis (19995). Discourse Analysis, Al-Quds Open University, Amman.
 Quirk, R. et al. (1985). A Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language, Longman.
 Schiffrin, Deborah (1994). Approaches to Discourse, Blackwell, Oxford.
Other resources
In addition to all the on-line materials mentioned in different sections of the book the following
sources are also recommended for such an introductory course:
 Crystal, D. (2007). A Dictionary of Phonetics and Linguistics, Blackwell, Oxford.

 Fromkin, V. & Rodman, R. (2005). An Introduction to Language, Collins.
 Ohio State University (2004). Language Files, Ohio University Press.
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English Phonetics and Linguistics

An Introductory Course Book

Lewis Mukattash Najib Al-Shehabi Aziz Thabit Saeed Hayat Al-Khatib

© Arab Open University 2018

This is a short introductory course which aims to:

1. Introduce you to linguistics, the scientific study of language.

BLOCK UNITS THEME/TOPIC DETAILS

I 2-4 Phonetics the study of the production of sounds

II 5-6 Phonology & the study and identification of significant

IV 9-11 Syntax the study of sentence structure

V 12-13 Semantics & the study of meaning

1. Identifying and recognising English sounds,

The amendments in this second edition sought to:

 Enhance the content in general.

Unit No & Title Page

Online Resources 6-8

Unit 1: Introducing Linguistics 9

Unit 8: Word Classes 77

Unit 10: Syntax 2 101

Unit 11: Syntax 3 111

Unit 13: Pragmatics 137

Appendix I: Answer Key to Exercises 149

Appendix II: Additional Practice Drills 159

Appendix III: Additional Practice Drills (Answer Key) 174

Below are details about these sites.

1. BBC Learning English

2. Cambridge Dictionaries Online

[Search in: Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary]

You will be using the CALD throughout this course.

Phonetics /fəˈnet.ɪks/ noun:

3. English Pronouncing Dictionary

4. English Language Pronunciation Practice

5. Phonetics: The Sounds of Spoken Language:

6. Speech Internet Dictionary (SID)

Cambridge Dictionaries Online: http://dictionary.cambridge.org/

2.1. Defining linguistics

I like French. It’s a beautiful language!

Is there any scientific evidence to prove the above statements?

2.2. Online resources on linguistics

Cambridge Dictionaries Online:

- She does research into how children acquire language.

2.3. Approaches to the study of language

The main approach to study language is general/theoretical linguistics. It is briefly described

My mother watered the plants .SVO

My little brother ate an elephant*

II. Other approaches of linguistics

3. Why is language unique to humans?

The conclusions to be drawn from the above discussion are:

4. What do languages have in common?

 Sounds combine together to make small units of meaning [morphemes]

2. All languages have rules for:

 Combining sounds together to make words [phonological rules],

4. All languages have categories like: nouns, verbs, adjectives, etc.

4. How do you react to the following statements?

5.1. New Terms

5.2. What You Have Learnt in This Unit:

We expect you to have learnt:

2. English Sounds and Letters

No Sound Letter(s) Example Additional Remarks