Understanding Syntax (Understanding Language)

Assuming no prior knowledge of linguistics, it discusses and illustrates all the major terms and concepts essential to the study of sentence structure in the world's languages. 'Noun' and 'verb' are explained, and the properties of these categories are discussed. The reader discovers what a finite verb is, what 'first person singular' means and what relative clauses look like. Concepts such as 'subject', 'object', 'gender', 'case', and 'subordination' are introduced and exemplified. Initial illustration is from English whenever possible, with extensive additional material from several other languages. 'Exotic' constructions not found in related European languages are fully covered, so that verb serialization, ergative languages and head-marking languages are all included.

Reference

Tallerman, Maggie

Foreign Language Study & Reference

Hodder Education Publishers

The author introduces students to the main categories, constructions, terminology and problems associated with syntax, in order to provide a basis from which students can proceed to more advanced work using one or other of the major theories. By discussing basic concepts, students are given a thorough introduction to the subject, not usually found in other textbooks about syntax.

Assuming no prior knowledge of linguistics, it discusses and illustrates all the major terms and concepts essential to the study of sentence structure in the world's languages. 'Noun' and 'verb' are explained, and the properties of these categories are discussed. The reader discovers what a finite verb is, what 'first person singular' means and what relative clauses look like. Concepts such as 'subject', 'object', 'gender', 'case', and 'subordination' are introduced and exemplified. Initial illustration is from English, with extensive additional material from several other languages. 'Exotic' constructions not found in related European languages are fully covered, so that verb serialization, ergative languages and head-marking languages are all included. This new edition has been updated and revised to meet the needs of today's students. Difficult points are given fuller explanation, a glossary of technical terms is included, and additional exercises have been introduced to enable students to consolidate what they have learnt.

Assuming no prior grammatical knowledge, Understanding Syntax explains and illustrates the major concepts, categories and terminology involved in the study of cross-linguistic syntax. Taking a theory-neutral and descriptive viewpoint throughout, this book: <ul>
<li>introduces syntactic typology, syntactic description and the major typological categories found in the languages of the world;</li> <li>clarifies with examples grammatical constructions and relationships between words in a clause, including word classes and their syntactic properties; grammatical relations such as subject and object; case and agreement processes; passives; questions and relative clauses;</li> <li>features in-text and chapter-end exercises to extend the reader’s knowledge of syntactic concepts and argumentation, drawing on data from over 100 languages;</li> <li>highlights the principles involved in writing a brief syntactic sketch of language.</li> </ul> This fifth edition has been revised and updated to include extended exercises in all chapters, updated further readings, and more extensive checklists for students. Accompanying e-resources have also been updated to include hints for instructors and additional links to further reading. Understanding Syntax is an essential textbook for students studying the description of language, cross-linguistic syntax, language typology and linguistic fieldwork.

Dictionaries & Thesauruses

Routledge

Words, Language & Grammar

Assuming no prior knowledge, Understanding Syntax illustrates the major concepts, categories and terminology associated with the study of cross-linguistic syntax. A theory-neutral and descriptive viewpoint is taken throughout. Starting with an overview of what syntax is, the book moves on to an explanation of word classes (such as noun, verb, adjective) and then to a discussion of sentence structure in the world’s languages. Grammatical constructions and relationships between words in a clause are explained and thoroughly illustrated, including grammatical relations such as subject and object; function-changing processes such as the passive and antipassive; case and agreement processes, including both ergative and accusative alignments; verb serialization; head-marking and dependent-marking grammars; configurational and non-configurational languages; questions and relative clauses. The final chapter explains and illustrates the principles involved in writing a brief syntactic sketch of a language, enabling the reader to construct a grammatical sketch of a language known to them. Data from approximately 100 languages appears in the text, with languages representing widely differing geographical areas and distinct language families. The book will be essential for courses in cross-linguistic syntax, language typology, and linguistic fieldwork, as well as for basic syntactic description.

Welsh, like the other Celtic languages, is best known amongst linguists for its verb-initial word order and its use of initial consonant mutations. However it has many more characteristics which are of interest to syntacticians. This book, first published in 2007, provides a concise and accessible overview of the major syntactic phenomena of Welsh. A broad variety of topics are covered, including finite and infinitival clauses, noun phrases, agreement and tense, word order, clause structure, dialect variation, and the language's historical Celtic background. Drawing on work carried out in both Principles and Parameters theory and Head-driven Phrase Structure Grammar, it takes contemporary colloquial Welsh as its starting point and draws contrasts with a range of literary and dialectal forms of the language, as well as earlier forms (Middle Welsh) were appropriate. An engaging guide to all that is interesting about Welsh syntax, this book will be welcomed by syntactic theorists, typologists, historical linguists and Celticists alike.

The Syntax of Welsh (Cambridge Syntax Guides)

Willis, David

Borsley, Robert D.

Cambridge University Press

Science and Social Science: An Introduction

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Books by Tallerman, Maggie

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Tallerman, Maggie. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Understanding Syntax (Understanding Language)

Understanding Syntax (Understanding Language)

Understanding Syntax (Understanding Language)

Understanding Syntax (Understanding Language)

Understanding Syntax (Understanding Language)

Understanding Syntax (Understanding Language)

Understanding Syntax (Understanding Language)

The Syntax of Welsh (Cambridge Syntax Guides)

Understanding Syntax (Understanding Language)

Science and Social Science: An Introduction