SYNTAX I - PHRASE

STRUCTURE

continuation...

Discussant: Ma. Clarisse G. Domagtoy

6.4 PHRASE STRUCTURE
AND AMBIGUITY
What is Phrase Structure in English
Grammar?

_ a particular kind of grammar that have been highly influencial in linguistics.

_ emphasis on hierarchical structure.

- introduced by Noam Chomsky in the late 1950s.

- functions as the base component in the classic form of transformational

grammar.
“The underlying structure of a sentence or a phrase is
sometimes called its phrase structure or phrase
marker”. . . .

Phrase structure rules provide us with the underlying

syntactic structure of sentences we both produce and
comprehend. . . .
PHRASE STRUCTURE RULES
General schema:

S NP VP

1) NOUN PHRASE
2) VERB PHRASE

This says that an S (for ‘sentence’) may consist of a noun

phrase followed by a verb phrase...
 NOUN PHRASE STRUCTURE
RULES

Phrase structure rule for NPs:

NP (Det) (Adj) N (PP)

(where ‘()’ indicates optionality)

Noun Phrase (NP)
1. Ali N

2. The Boy Det. N

3. A Little Boy Det. Adj. N

4. A Boy in a Bubble Det. N PP

NOUN PHRASES
(TREE STRUCTURES)
Friend
car
yard
PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE
STRUCTURE RULE

Phrase structure rule for PPs:

PP P(NP)
PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE
(TREE STRUCTURE)

bag
VERB PHRASE STRUCTURE
RULES

Phrase structure rule for VPs:

VP V (NP) (PP) (Adv)

 Verb Phrase (VP)

1. ate V

2. ate the cake V NP

3. ate the cake hungrily V NP Adv

4. ate the cake under the tree V NP PP

5. fell into the pond slowly V PP Adv
VERB PHRASES
(TREE STRUCTURES)

cake
car
slowly
bank
AMBIGUITY

When a word, phrase or sentence has more than one meaning, it is ambiguous.

Ambiguous

- means that there are two or more distinct meanings available.

- another of those words that has a specific meaning in linguistics: it doesn’t

just mean that a sentence’s meaning is vague or unclear.
6.5 Heads and Modifiers
 HEAD
The HEAD of a phrase is the element that the phrase is
CENTRED on.

In linguistics, the head of a phrase is a word that determines the

syntactic type of that phrase.

Ex.
The head of the noun phrase boiling hot water is the noun
water.
Analogously, the head of a compound is the stem
that determines the semantic category of that
compound.

Ex.
The head of the compound noun handbag is
bag, since a handbag is a bag, not a hand.
The syntactic category of the head is used to name the category
of the phrase, for example:

A phrase whose head is a noun is called a noun phrase.

A phrase whose head is a verb is called a verb phrase and
so on.

The remaining words in a phrase are called the dependents of

the head.
In the following phrases the head-word or head is bolded:

too slowly Adverb phrase (AdvP); the head is an adjective

very happy Adjective phrase (AP); the head is an adjective

the massive dinosaur Noun phrase (NP); the head is a noun

at lunch Preposition phrase (PP); the head is a preposition

watch TV Verb phrase (VP); the head is a verb

MODIFIERS
A modifier is an optional element in phrase structure or clause structure.

A modifier is so called because it is said to modify (change the meaning of)

another element in the structure, on which it is dependent.

Ex.
This is a red ball.

(The adjective red is a modifier, modifying the noun ball).

 Types of Modifiers
The two principal types of modifiers are:

1. adjectives (and adjective phrases and adjectival clauses), which

modify nouns;

2. adverbs (and adverbial phrases and adverbial clauses), which

modify other parts of speech, particularly verbs, adjectives and
other adverbs, as well as whole phrases or clauses.
 Example of the Types of Modifiers in
English

It was [a nice house]. (adjective modifying a noun, in a noun

phrase)

[Only the dog] was saved. (adverb modifying a noun phrase)

[Put it gently in the drawer]. (adverb in verb phrase)

He was [very gentle]. (adverb in adjective phrase)

She set it down [very gently]. (adverb in adverb phrase)

6.6 PARSING AND SENTENCES
 PARSING
A grammatical exercise that involves breaking down a text into its
component parts of speech with an explanation of the form,
function, and syntactic relationship of each part so that the text
can be understood.

In linguistics, to parse means to break down a sentence into its

component parts so that the meaning of the sentence can be
understood.
traditional methods of parsing
Take note of the sentence elements and their parts of speech
(whether a word is a noun, verb, adjective, etc.)

The reader also notices other elements such as the verb tense
(present tense, past tense, future tense, etc.)

Once the sentence is broken down, the reader can use their analysis
to interpret the meaning of the sentence.
 SENTENCES

A set of words that is complete in itself,

typically containing a subject and predicate
conveying a statement, question,
exclamation, or command, and consisting
of a main clause and sometimes one or
more subordinate clauses.
ENGLISH SENTENCE STRUCTURE
The following statements are true about sentences in English:

● A new sentence begins with a capital letter.

Ex. He obtained his degree.

● A sentence ends with punctuation ( a period, a question mark, or an exclamation point).

Ex. He obtained his degree.

● A sentence contains a subject that is only given once.

Ex. Smith he obtained his degree.

● A sentence contains a verb or a verb phrase.

Ex. He obtained hi degree.

● A sentence follows Subject + Verb + Object word order.

Ex. He (subject) obtained (verb) his degree (object).

● A sentence must have a complete idea that stands alone. This is also called an
independent clause.

Ex. He obtained his degree.

BASIC SENTENCE ELEMENTS:
Independent Clause

- An independent clause can stand alone as a sentence. It contains a subject and a verb and is a
complete idea.

● I like spaghetti.
● He reads many books.

Dependent Clause

- A dependent clause is not a complete sentence. It must be attached to an independent clause to

become complete, a.k.a subordinate clause.

● Although I like spaghetti...

● Because he reads many books,...
Subject
- A person, animal, place, thing, or concept that does an action. Determine the subject in a sentence by
asking the question “Who or what?”

● I like spaghetti.
● He reads many books.

Verb
- Expresses what the person, animal, place, thing, or concept does. Determine the verb in a sentence by
asking the question “What was the action or what happened?”

● He reads many books.

● The movie is good.
● Tim runs to work every morning.
Object
- A person, animal, place, thing, or concept that receives the action. Determine the object in a sentence
by asking the question “The subject did what?” or “To whom?/For whom?

● I like spaghetti.
● He reads many books.

Prepositional Phrase
-A phrase that begins with a preposition (i.e., in, at for, behind, until, after, of, during) and modifies a
word in the sentence. It answers one of many questions, “Where? When? In what way?”

● I like spaghetti for dinner.

● He reads many books in the library.
TYPES OF SENTECES
Simple Sentence
- contains a subject and a verb, and it may also have an object and modifiers. However, it may only
contains one independent clause.

● She completed her literature review.

● He oraganized his sources by theme.

Compound Sentence
- contains atleast two independent clauses combined with a comma, coordinating conjunction or with
a semicolon.

● She completed her literature review, and she created her reference list.
● He oraganized his sources by theme; then, he updated his reference list.
Complex Sentence
- contains at least one independdent clause and at least one dependent clause. Dependent clauses can
refer to the subject (who, which) the sequence/time (since, while), or the causal elements (because, if)
of the independent clause.

● Although she completed her literature review, she still needed to work on her methods section.
oNote the comma in this sentence because it begins with a dependent clause.

● Because he organized his sources by theme, it was easier for his readers to follow.
oNote the comma in this sentence because it begins with a dependent clause.

● They studied APA rules for many hours as they were so interesting.

oNote that there is no comma in this sentence because it begins with an independent clause.
Compound-Complex Sentence
- Sentence types can also be combined. A compound-complex sentence contains at least two
independent clauses and at least one dependent clause.

● She completed her literature review, but she still needs to work on her methods
section even though she finished her methods course last semester.

● Although he organized his sources by theme, he decided to arrange them

chronologically, and he carefully followed the MEAL plan for organization. 

● With pizza and soda at hand, they studied APA rules for many hours, and they decided that
writing in APA made sense because it was clear, concise, and objective.
 References
● Laurel J. Brinton, The Structure of Modern English: A Linguistic Introduction. John Benjamins, 2000
● R.L. Trask, Language, and Linguistics: The Key Concepts, 2nd ed., edited by Peter Stockwell. Routledge,
2007
● Trevor A. Harley, The Psychology of Language: From Data to Theory, 4th edition. Psychology Press, 2014
● Georgia M. Green and Robert D. Levine, Introduction to Studies in Contemporary Phrase Structure
Grammar. Cambridge University Press, 1999
● Halley, Ned. "The Wordsworth Dictionary of Modern English: Grammar, Syntax and Style for the 21st
Century." Wordsworth Editions, 2001.
 “BE HUMBLE, BE TEACHABLE
AND ALWAYS KEEP LEARNING.”
THANK YOU FOR
LISTENING! :)