LING 203: Interjections, Verbs, Tense, Aspect, Modality, Phrases, and Verb Complementation

INTERJECTIONS

A small, fixed class of words used mainly for pragmatic purposes rather than to express semantic (literal) meaning

INTERJECTIONS examples

• Hello!

• Hey!

• OMG!

• ROFL!

• Uh-huh!

• Oh-oh!

INTERJECTIONS what are the formal characteristics of interjections

• Have a limited, fixed form

• cannot be inflected

• allow little or no modification

—> unlike nouns and verbs, they do not change their form

INTERJECTIONS what are the functions of interjections

Pragmatic — they control language use in communicative situations

They can:

• express emotion

• control the flow of discourse

• emphasise a thought

INTERJECTIONS why are interjections considered grammatically independent

• They are not integrated into the grammar of larger sentences

• They can stand alone as complete utterances

  • Wow!

  • Oops!

  • Hey!

• Common in text messages and online communication because they help convey emotion

THE VERB Why are verbs described as “controlling”

• Determine what follows them (the predicate)

• Determine the nominal content that precedes them

Ungrammatical example:

• *The concrete vanished the aardvark

THE VERB What is verb agreement

Occurs when a verb changes its form to match a noun or pronoun

THE VERB English verb agreement

English verbs show limited agreement, mainly between singular and plural subjects

THE VERB What grammatical information do English verbs encode

• Tense: when something happens

• Aspect: how an action extends over time

• Modality: the speaker’s attitude towards an action

TENSE

Located an action relative to the time of speaking (ToS).

Languages distinguish between events that are:

• Present: happening now

• Past: completed before now

• Future: expected later

TENSE How many tenses are marked morphologically in English

Only two:

• Non-past: I jump

• Past: I jumped

→ English does not morphologically mark future tense

TENSE How does English express time

English uses a combination of:

• Verb inflection: He placed it on the table

• Time phrases: He put it there last week

TENSE What are the three English verb forms that indicate time

• Past: walked

• Non-past (3rd person singular): walks

• Non-past (all other forms): walkØ

Only the first two involve inflection

TENSE Why is there no future tense in English

Because future meaning is expressed through three constructions

• Will + infinitive: He will play

• Present form + time adverbial: His game starts at 3pm

• Going to + infinitive: He is going to play

TENSE When is the simple past used

• Actions completed in the past: She finished the work before lunch

• Past habits: They went there everyday

TENSE Is there a time limit on the simple past

No.

The simple past can describe events from seconds ago to millions of years ago.

Examples:

• He finished the cake two seconds ago.

• Trilobites lived 521 million years ago.

PRESENT TENSE What is the form of the English present tense

Only third-person singular is marked

PRESENT TENSE What are the uses of the present tense

• Eternal truths: water boils at 100°C.

• Habits: He goes to the gym twice a week

• Future events: I leave for France in two weeks

PRESENT TENSE What is the historical (narrative) present

It uses present-tense forms to describe past events

He goes there and stays for two hours

PRESENT TENSE historical (narrative) present purpose

• Creates immediacy

• Increases listener involvement

PAST TENSE How is the English past tense formed

Most verbs take -ed

• arrived

• googled

• texted

PRESENT TENSE What are irregular verbs

Verbs that do not follow the -ed pattern

Stem changes

• ate

• drank

• brought

• dreamt

Invariant forms

• hit

• put

• bet

PRESENT TENSE Does English past tense distinguish singular and plural

No, the same form is used for every person

ASPECT

Describes how an action extends across time

• unlike tense, it does not locate an event relative to the time of speaking

ASPECT How does English mark aspect

aux + lexical verb

ASPECT What are the two major aspects in English

• Perfect: complete ; They have eaten

• Progressive/continuous: ongoing ; They are eating

PROGRESSIVE/CONTINUOUS ASPECT What is the form of the progressive aspect

be + verb-ing

• Past: they were eating

• Present: he is going

• Future: he will be going

Tense is marked on the aux, not the lexical verb

PROGRESSIVE/CONTINUOUS ASPECTWhat does the progressive aspect emohasise

• Duration

• Ongoing activity

• Incompleteness

PROGRESSIVE/CONTINUOUS ASPECT What are the common uses of the progressive aspect

• Unknown or unimportant completion: They were reading a book

• Temporary states: We are studying aspect today

• Repeated activities: He is always eating a cake

PROGRESSIVE/CONTINUOUS ASPECT How does the progressive interact with the simple past

The progressive often sets the scene, while the simple past describes an interrupting event

• Example: I was reading a book when I heard a noise

PROGRESSIVE/CONTINUOUS ASPECT Which verbs resist the progressive aspect

• Copulas: *The weather is seeming good

• Lexical “have” (possession): *I am having two cats

• Cognition and perception verbs: know, believe, think, see hear

PROGRESSIVE/CONTINUOUS ASPECT When can normally stative verbs occur in the progressive

When they describe temporary states or behaviour

• You are being silly

• I am thinking about it

PERFECT ASPECT What is the form of the perfect aspect

have + past participle (-en form)

• Past: I had finished

• Present: She has gone

• Future: They will have eaten

PROGRESSIVE/CONTINUOUS ASPECT What does the perfect aspect indicate

Completion:

• in the distant past

• in the recent past

• in the future

PROGRESSIVE/CONTINUOUS ASPECT Why is the present perfect aspect often misunderstood

Many people treat it as a past tense, but it is actually:

Present tense + perfect aspect

PROGRESSIVE/CONTINUOUS ASPECT What is the function of the present perfect

It connects a past event to the present moment

• The event can have happened at any point in the past, provided it remains relevant now.

• I have undertaken similar tasks before

• Politicians have called for an end to…

NOTE: have is present tense!

How do tense and aspect combine? (examples)

• Present + progressive: they are eating

• Past + progressive: they were eating

• Present + perfect: They have eaten

• Past + perfect = They had eaten

Tense = a point in time

Aspect = an action across time

PROGRESSIVE/CONTINUOUS ASPECT What is the past perfect

It identifies the earlier of two past events

• I had eaten dinner when Jane got home

PROGRESSIVE/CONTINUOUS ASPECT Why can’t the past perfect stand alone?

It requires another lexical verb in a more recent past tense

• I had eaten when Jane arrived

• *I had eaten

FINITE & NON-FINITE CLAUSES why is tense obligatory in English

A simple sentence must contain a tensed verb

• The cat followed the mouse

FINITE & NON-FINITE CLAUSES must every verb in a sentence be tensed

No.

Complex sentences can contain non-finite verbs

• The cat followed the mouse going to the shop

FINITE & NON-FINITE CLAUSES what is a finite clause

A clause containing

• A tensed verb, or

• A modal auxiliary

• The cat jumped the fence

• The cat might jump the fence

FINITE & NON-FINITE CLAUSES what is a non-finite clause

A clause containing a non-tensed verb:

• to- or bare infinitives: I like to eat; She made them finish the work

• Gerund or participle: Eating the cake, he walked home ; Written in a day, the book sold

• Elided aux: The boy eating an apple is here ; The boy [who is/was eating an apple] is here

MODALITY What are modal verbs

Aux verbs that express the speaker’s judgement about an action

MODALITY What are grammatical properties of modal verbs

• always finite

• cannot be inflected

• cannot combine with tense

• are always the first auxiliary

• *I might jumped

• *I mights study

MODALITY What meanings do modal verbs express

• possibility

• probability

• ability

• permission

• obligation

MODALITY What are semi-modals

Express the same meanings as modals but behave differently grammatically

• need to

• dare to

• used to

• have to

• had better

MODALITY How do semi-modals differ from modals

• inflected for tense

• agree with person

• Modal: he must read this

• Semi-modal: he has to read this

MODALITY What is epistemic modality

The speaker’s judgment about the truth of a statement

• She may leave (observation)

• They must be wrong

MODALITY What is epistemic modality

Modality involving:

• obligation

• instructions

• permission

• She may leave (permission)

• They must finish now (instruction)

MODALITY What is dynamic modality

The ability to perform an action

• I can ride a bike

MODALITY Can one modal have multiple interpretations

Yes

“You may speak Icelandic.”

• Deontic: you are permitted to speak Icelandic

• Epistemic: You might know Icelandic

How can tense, aspect, and modality combine

• Present perfect progressive: I have been reading for 20 minutes

• Modal perfect progressive: I should have been cooking for 20 minutes

—> speakers deliberately combine auxiliaries to create precise meanings

PHRASE STRUCTURE What is a phrase

A grammatical unit that is larger than a word but smaller than a clause

• contains an obligatory head word

PHRASE STRUCTURE What is a head word?

The central, obligatory element of a phrase

PHRASE STRUCTURE What is a modifier

Adds information and narrows the meaning of the head word

“cats”

• happy cats

• the happy cats

PHRASE STRUCTURE Why isn’t a phrase a complete thought

It provides info, but does not express a complete event

Example:

“The happy cats” tells us:

• definiteness

• emotional state

• species

• number

But not what the cats are doing

PHRASE STRUCTURE What is an NP

A phrase whose head is:

• a noun

• a pronoun

• a name

PHRASE STRUCTURE How does modification affect noun phrases

More modification = more information

• Cats = generic, plural

• The cat = singular, definite

• The big cats = definite, size, plural

• A big cat at the zoo = indefinite, size, singular, location

PHRASE STRUCTURE What is NP co-reference

Two or more noun phrases referring to the same person, place, or thing

• pronouns often create co-reference

• they usually refer back to the most recent NP

PHRASE STRUCTURE What is internal modification (NPs)

Modification by closed-class words within a phrase

“The cat”

• “The” modifies “cat”

PHRASE STRUCTURE What is phrasal modification (NPs)

Modification by another phrase

“The big cat by the door”

• contains:

  • embedded AdjP

  • embedded PP

  • → embedded phrases are always optional

PHRASE STRUCTURE Why are PPs important in English

Because English has lost many noun inflections, it relies heavily on prepositions to express relationships.

PHRASE STRUCTURE Structure of PP

PP + NP

What can prepositional phrases modify?

Noun phrases

• The cat by the door

Verb phrases

• Ate with a knife

Sometimes they function nominally:

• After the meeting is the best time.

What is the structure of adjective phrases?

Degree adverb + adjective

Example:

• Very happy

What is the structure of adverb phrases?

Degree adverb + adverb

Example:

• Very quickly

What are the two major functional components of a clause?

Sentence = Subject + Predicate

Component	Phrase type
Subject	NP
Predicate	VP

What is phrase constituency?

Phrases function as constituents within:

1. Larger phrases

OR

1. Entire clauses

How do you test noun phrase constituency?

1. Remove the head noun.

2. Substitution test

Replace the NP with a pronoun.

• The noisy neighbours → They

3. Question test

Ask:

• Who left?

The answer is the complete NP.

How do you test verb phrase constituency?

1. Remove it.

The clause becomes ungrammatical.

2. Substitute another verb.

3. Ask:

• What did the NP do?

The answer is the VP.

What is complementation?

Complementation describes:

• The type of noun phrase that may precede a verb.

• The number and type of phrases that must or may follow it.

What are the four patterns of verb complementation?

Pattern	Example
No complement	The aardvark disappeared.
One obligatory complement	The chef brought cakes.
Two obligatory complements	The zookeeper put the alligator in the cage.
Optional complement	He has eaten (the cake).

Which verbs allow complement deletion (elision)?

Eat

Both are grammatical:

• He has eaten the cake.

• He has eaten.

The complement is optional and can be omitted when understood from context.