Adjectives, Adverbs, Closed Classes & Function Words

What are content words?

carry most of the lexical/semantic meaning of a sentence.

Major content-word classes include:

• Nouns

• Lexical verbs

• Adjectives

• Adverbs

What are function words?

provide the grammatical glue that allows content words to form coherent sentences.

They:

• Specify properties

• Establish relationships

• Link content words

• Have relatively little lexical meaning on their own

What are the major function-word categories in English?

• Auxiliary verbs

• Prepositions

• Determiners

• Pronouns

• Conjunctions

What are some minor function-word categories?

• Interjections → e.g. yes, no

• Expletives → e.g. in fact, indeed

• Postpositions → rare in English

These generally serve more pragmatic/grammatical functions than semantic ones and often do not modify anything.

What is the main function of adjectives?

primarily modify nouns by describing a property or characteristic.

Examples:

• tall man

• happy woman

• black cat

What is the unmarked position of an adjective?

The typical position is immediately before the noun it modifies.

This is called the attributive position.

Examples:

• The tall man.

• The happy woman.

What are attributive adjectives?

Adjectives occurring before a noun.

They are typically restrictive, meaning they help identify a particular member of a category.

Example:

• The tall man.

"Tall" helps identify which man is being referred to.

Are all adjectives able to occur before nouns?

No.

A small number of adjectives generally cannot occur in the attributive position.

Examples:

• asleep

• afloat

• alive

 Where can an adjective occur after a noun?

An adjective can follow a noun when it is connected to the noun by a linking/copula verb

Common linking verbs include:

• be

• seem

• appear

Examples:

• It is good.

• He seems old.

• The cat appears happy.

What are predicative adjectives?

Adjectives that occur after a noun and are inked to it by a copula/linking verb

• The boy is tall

What is the difference between attributive and predicative adjectives?

Attributive:

• The tall boy.

• "Tall" helps identify the boy and may be a defining characteristic.

Predicative:

• The boy is tall.

• "Tall" provides additional information about the boy.

How can adjectives express degrees of a property?

Adjectives can have:

1. Standard

2. Comparative

3. Superlative

Example:

• near → standard

• nearer → comparative

• nearest → superlative

What does the comparative adjective express?

compares two or more entities.

Example:

• This house is nearer.

What does the superlative adjective express?

identifies the highest or lowest degree within a relevant group.

Example:

• This is the nearest house.

There can only be one superlative position within the relevant comparison.

What is the distinction between stative and dynamic adjectives?

The distinction concerns whether the person/entity has control or agency over the property.

Stative adjective:

• Property is inherent or not under the entity's control.

Dynamic adjective:

• Property can be deliberately adopted or controlled.

What are stative adjectives?

describe inherent characteristics over which there is little or no control.

Examples:

• tall

• red

• small

• big

Example:

• He is tall.

They generally cannot be used as deliberate instructions:

• *Please be tall.

• *Don't be tall.

What are dynamic adjectives?

describe properties over which an individual has control/agency.

Examples:

• careful

• shy

• calm

• cruel

• patient

• friendly

They can occur in instructions:

• Please be careful.

• Don't be shy.

 

What are adverbs?

modifiers that commonly modify verbs, but they are more versatile than adjectives.

They can also modify:

• Other adverbs

• Adjectives

• Prepositions

What can adverbs modify?

Verbs:

• He drove safely.

Other adverbs:

• very safely

Adjectives:

• quite soft

Prepositions:

• just by him

How mobile are adverbs in English?

Adverbs are among the most mobile word classes.

They have preferred/default positions, but many can move within a sentence.

Examples:

• He happily ate the cake.

• He ate the cake happily.

• Happily, he ate the cake.

What are degree adverbs?

modify the degree/intensity of adjectives or other adverbs.

Examples:

• awfully difficult

• quite nice

• very safely

• quite quickly

Can degree adverbs normally occur alone?

No.

They generally require something to modify.

Incorrect:

• *I drove the car very.

Correct:

• I drove the car very carefully.

 

What are predicative adverbs?

Adverbs that occur after be or another verb in a predicative position.

Examples:

• I am well.

• He is here.

• The floor is down.

 

How can you distinguish predicative adverbs from adjectives?

A predicative adverb can generally follow other verbs, whereas an adjective cannot in the same construction.

Adverb:

• I drove well.

• I drove here.

• I drove down.

Adjective:

• I drove *good.

• I drove *safe.

• I drove *quick.

What is a closed word class?

A closed class is a grammatical class with a limited membership that rarely admits new words.

Examples include:

• Pronouns

• Determiners

• Auxiliary verbs

• Prepositions

• Conjunctions

How do closed and open classes differ?

Open classes:

New words can easily be added.

Example:

• Nouns → selfie, emoji, influencer

Closed classes:

New members are extremely rare.

Example:

• Pronouns

Is it impossible to invent a new closed-class word?

No.

There is no inherent linguistic difficulty in inventing one.

The difficulty is getting speakers to accept and adopt it as part of the language.

 What is a lexical verb?

carries the main lexical meaning of the predicate.

Examples:

• eat

• think

• run

• write

It may be the only verb in the predicate.

If multiple verbs occur, the lexical verb is normally the last verb.

Where do English auxiliary verbs occur?

occur before the lexical verb.

Examples:

• She was eating.

• He has gone.

English can have up to four auxiliaries in a verb group.

Example:

I might have been feeding the cat.

What are the three primary auxiliaries?

• Be

• Have

• Do

They can function either as:

• Auxiliary verbs

• Lexical verbs

How can BE, HAVE and DO function as lexical verbs?

As lexical verbs, they have their own meanings.

Have:

• I have a cat. → possession

Be:

• I am on the boat. → existence/location

Do:

• I do linguistics. → undertake an activity

How do primary auxiliaries function as auxiliaries?

They provide grammatical information.

Have:

• I have eaten a cake. → perfect/completion

Be:

• He is eating a cake. → progressive

Do:

• He did eat the cake. → emphasis

Can a primary auxiliary also function as a lexical verb in the same sentence?

Yes.

Examples:

• I had had some.

• He is being silly.

• I do do it.

The first element functions as an auxiliary; the second can be lexical.

Where does tense marking occur when a primary auxiliary is present?

Tense marking moves from the lexical verb to the auxiliary.

If there is more than one primary auxiliary, tense occurs on the first auxiliary.

What are modal auxiliaries?

a closed class of auxiliary verbs that always accompany a lexical verb.

Examples:

• may

• might

• can

• could

• should

• ought to

• will

• would

What meanings can modal auxiliaries express?

They can express:

• Ability

• Permission

• Certainty

• Probability

• Possibility

• Obligation

Examples:

• She will see it.

• I can't eat it.

• You should go.

• I mustn't eat it.

Where do modal auxiliaries occur?

A modal occurs before the lexical verb.

Example:

• She might leave.

If multiple auxiliaries occur, the modal is always first.

Examples:

• She might be going.

• She could have been here.

If modals cannot be inflected, how can they refer to different times?

Modals can refer to present, past, or future time depending on context and time expressions.

Examples:

• I could get it now. → present

• I could get it last week. → past

• I could get it next week. → future

 

What is the overall difference between primary and modal auxiliaries?

Primary auxiliaries	Modal auxiliaries
be, have, do	can, could, may, might, should, will, etc.
Can inflect	Cannot inflect
Can be lexical verbs	Always auxiliary
Carry tense	No overt tense inflection
Help form aspect, tense, emphasis	Express modality

What are prepositions?

function words that establish relationships between elements.

Despite being function words, they often have relatively clear meanings.

Example:

• up → movement toward a higher point

What kinds of information do prepositions commonly encode?

Spatial:

• in the hole

• under the table

• by the door

Temporal:

• during the day

• until tomorrow

• since last week

• in September

Directional:

• toward the sun

• from the house

• across the road

Can one preposition have different meanings?

Yes.

The meaning depends on its context.

In:

• in September → temporal

• in the cage → spatial

What other meanings can prepositions express?

Instrument:

• with a knife

• by train

Possession/relationship:

• the father of the bride

• the sides of the square

Comparison:

• taller than me

• talk like a parrot

What is a determiner?

grammatical category covering a range of words that precede a noun and identify/specify some property of it.

Where do determiners occur?

They occur before the noun and before any adjectives modifying that noun.

Basic structure:

Determiner + adjective(s) + noun

Examples:

• the cat

• the hungry, black cat

How many determiners can occur with a noun?

Usually:

• One determiner → the cats

• Two determiners → all the cats

Sometimes up to three:

• all the many cats

What are the English articles?

English has:

Definite article:

• the

Indefinite articles:

• a

• an

• Ø (zero article)

When is the definite article "the" used?

When the speaker assumes the listener/reader can identify which entity is being referred to.

Examples:

• Feed the cat.

• Feed the cats.

When are indefinite articles used?

When the speaker introduces something that the listener is not expected to already identify.

Singular:

• I saw a cat.

Plural:

• There were Ø cats outside.

 What is a generic noun phrase?

 an entire class or category, rather than a specific individual.

Examples:

• Ø Cats can be great companions.

• The cat is found around the world.

Both can refer to cats as a general species/category.

What are quantifiers?

specify quantity or number.

Examples:

• some

• any

• each

• every

• all

• no

• one

• two

• many

How does English distinguish count and non-count nouns with quantifiers?

Traditionally:

Count nouns:

• many cats

• fewer cats

Non-count nouns:

• much water

• less water

What is a pronoun?

a word that stands in place of or refers to a noun/noun phrase.

What are demonstrative pronouns?

 indicate distance from the speaker.

English has:

Proximal (near):

• this → singular

• these → plural

Distal (far):

• that → singular

• those → plural

 What do possessive determiners/pronouns express?

They indicate ownership or possession/association.

Examples:

• my dog

• his dog

• its fur

• their animals

Where can adjectives occur relative to determiners?

The usual structure is:

Determiner + adjective + noun

Example:

• My big cat

"My" = determiner

"big" = adjective

"cat" = noun

What are interrogative pronouns?

Pronouns used to create questions.

Examples:

• whose dog?

• which dog?

What does first person refer to?

The speaker.

• I

• we

 

What does second person refer to?

The listener/addressee.

• you

What does third person refer to?

Someone or something outside the immediate speaker-listener interaction.

• he

• she

• it

• they