First Explorations In English Syntax A Reasoned Surface Analysis Of Some Frequent English Sentence Patterns

This book is the first attempt to describe the syntax of Contemporary English exclusively in terms of dependencies (most American works on the subject being in terms of phrase structure, or constituency). The three main features of it are: (1) a fully formal presentation, (2) a reasonably complete coverage of English surface syntax, and (3) an exposition oriented towards human readers (rather than computers). The book can be recommended for several categories of readers: specialists in English syntax, linguists interested in general and theoretical syntax, computational linguists, researchers in related fields (including psychology and artificial intelligence) concerned with automatic processing (both synthesis and analysis) of English texts.

English Sentence Analysis: An introductory course is designed as a 10-week course for students of English Language and Literature, Linguistics, or other language related fields. In 10 weeks the student will be proficient in English analysis at sentence, clause and phrase level and have a solid understanding of the traditional terms and concepts of English syntax. This introduction prepares for practical courses in grammar and writing skills and for theoretical courses in syntactic argumentation. The Course Book provides sentence structures in clear graphics; logically structured chapters with Introductions and Summaries; exercises with quotations and excerpts from English, American and Australian literature and pop songs. English Sentence Analysis: An introductory course has been classroom tested at various universities. The students seem to enjoy the ‘dreaded’ syntax course and pass rates have gone up significantly from 50 to 70%. Originally, this book was accompanied by a CD-rom with a Practice Program for Windows. The Practice Program on CD-rom is not updated anymore by its creators and as a result is no longer compatible with current Windows versions. For this reason, we have ceased to include it with the book.

The second edition of this invaluable introductory text takes account of developments in syntactic studies. Dealing with the whole range of syntax, this book explains, in a lucid and approachable way, why linguists have adopted certain solutions to problems and not others. This book introduces the basic concepts used in the description of syntax, independently of any single model of grammar. Profusely illustrated with diagrams, there are sets of exercises for every chapter which can be used in class or by students working independently.

This book is a guide to the development of English syntax between the Old and Modern periods. Beginning with an overview of the main features of early English syntax, it gives a unified account of the significant grammatical changes that occurred during this period. Four leading experts demonstrate how these changes can be explained in terms of grammatical theory and the theory of language acquisition. Drawing on a wealth of empirical data, the book covers a wide range of topics including changes in word order, infinitival constructions and grammaticalization processes.

This collection of pivotal issues about syntactic analysis bridges the gap between two extremes: Quirk et al.’s classic, yet voluminous standard grammar The Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language (CGEL, 1985) and slim booklets with sample solutions. Written for students and teachers alike, this textbook introduces basic concepts, deepens preexisting knowledge, prepares students for various exam contexts and provides hands-on teaching material. Each chapter provides theoretical explanations, which are immediately illustrated by numerous complete sample analyses of sentences taken both from the CGEL as well as from more recent British and American news articles. The final part of this textbook offers a comprehensive practice section for self-study using sentences which are divided into three levels of difficulty and come with model solutions.

Analysing Sentences is an accessible and student-friendly introduction to the practical analysis of English sentence structure. The book covers key concepts such as constituency, category and functions, and uses tree diagrams throughout to help the reader visualise the structure of sentences. The fifth edition of this best-selling textbook has been thoroughly updated and revised to feature new material, new example sentences and a more reader-friendly layout. The final chapter sets the analysis in its theoretical context and includes an introduction to constituency in X-bar syntax. The book is also supported by an updated companion website featuring extra exercises for students and a complete set of answers for instructors for the online activities and exercises in the book. Accessible and clear, this book is the perfect textbook for readers coming to this topic for the first time. Featuring many in-text and end-of-chapter exercises, it is suitable for self-directed study as well as for use as core reading on introductory syntax courses.

This study brings together many of the resources needed for the exploration of English historical syntax and deals with many of the important changes in English sentence structure from Old English to present. It also features a survey of published research from both classical and modern linguistic traditions, as well as new research by the author. Provides guidance on methodology, important reference materials, and the general history of the English language.