Slide 1: Introduction to Phrase Structure o This sentence can have two

Grammar meanings:

Script: 1. The missionary is hungry

“Today, we’re diving into Phrase Structure and ready to eat food.
Grammar, a key concept in the study of syntax—
how words come together to form sentences. 2. The missionary is about to
Instead of just looking at individual words, we’ll be eaten (by someone or
explore the underlying structures that shape something).
sentence formation. o The deep structure would show
One important approach to syntax is Generative these two different meanings, even
Grammar, which was developed in the 1960s. though the surface structure looks
This framework has evolved over time, but we will the same.
focus on the version that is most useful for 2. Visiting relatives can be tiresome.
practical and educational purposes rather than
highly abstract theories.” o This can mean:

Slide 2: Key Concepts of Generative 1. It is tiring to visit relatives.

Grammar (Visiting is an action.)

Script: 2. The relatives who are

“In Generative Grammar, sentence structure is visiting can be tiring.
built using two main types of rules: (Visiting relatives describes
the relatives.)
1. Phrase Structure Rules: These rules
create the deep structure (D-structure) o The deep structure helps clarify
of a sentence, which determines the basic which meaning is intended.
order of words, their grammatical
3. The tourists objected to the guide
categories, and hierarchical relationships.
that they couldn’t hear.
2. Transformational Rules: These modify
o Two possible meanings:
the deep structure to form different
surface-level variations, called surface 1. The tourists objected to the
structure (S-structure), without changing guide (as a person).
the meaning.
2. The tourists objected to the
For example, a structurally ambiguous sentence fact that they couldn’t hear
like We bought the house on the hill could mean the guide.
either ‘the house that is located on the hill’ or ‘we
bought the house while standing on the hill.’ o Without understanding deep
structure, this sentence could be
Similarly, sentences with different surface confusing.
structures, like The dog uncovered the bone and
The bone was uncovered by the dog, have the Chomsky’s theory helps explain why sentences
same meaning but different word arrangements can be ambiguous and how grammar structures
due to transformational rules.” affect meaning.

Slide 3: Contributions of Noam Chomsky

Script:
“Noam Chomsky introduced the idea that
sentences have two levels: deep structure (the
basic meaning) and surface structure (how the Script:4
sentence appears). “Phrase structure rules are the foundation of
sentence structure in linguistics. They are
He showed that some sentences look similar but
rewrite rules, meaning they show how a
have different meanings, while others look
sentence is built step by step.
different but mean the same thing.
For example, a simple rule like A → B + C means
For example:
that A consists of B followed by C. These rules
help explain how words and phrases fit together
to form meaningful sentences.”
 The missionary is ready to eat. → Is he
eating or about to be eaten? Script:
“To better visualize phrase structure rules, we use
 Visiting relatives can be tiresome. → Are tree diagrams.
the relatives visiting, or is visiting them
tiring? Here’s an example:

These examples show why understanding deep Each node represents a part of the sentence.
structure is important in grammar.”
 A is the parent of B and C, which are
1. The missionary is ready to eat. sisters.
  A dominates B, C, and D, meaning it is Each set of brackets represents a constituent,
the highest-level category that contains just like a tree diagram, but in a linear format.
them. While useful, most people find tree diagrams
easier to understand.”
 Tree diagrams help us see the structure of
a sentence clearly.” Script:8
"A constituent is a group of words that function
Script: 5
together within a sentence. Sentences have a
“Phrase structure rules allow for optional and
hierarchical structure, meaning smaller units
exclusive choices:
combine into larger ones. Not all word sequences
 Optional elements: A → (B) C → B is are constituents—it depends on the context. For
optional, but C is required. example, beautiful flowers is a constituent in I
received beautiful flowers for my birthday, but
 Mutually exclusive elements: A → {B, not in Though they are beautiful, flowers cause
C} → You can choose either B or C, but not me to sneeze."
both.
Script:8
For example, if we have:
A → ({B, C})D We can identify constituents using four tests.
We get: Movement: If we can move the phrase, like It was
beautiful flowers that I received, it’s a
 A→BD constituent. Replacement: If we can replace it
with a pronoun, like I received them, it’s a
 A→CD
constituent. Deletion: If removing it keeps the
 But NOT A → B C D sentence meaningful, it’s a constituent.
Conjunction: If we can join it with another phrase,
This flexibility allows for different sentence
like beautiful flowers and chocolates, it’s a
variations while maintaining structure.”
constituent. These tests help us understand
Script: 6 sentence structure."
“In phrase structure rules:
Script:9
 Terminal symbols are words or symbols "In every sentence, we find two main
that don’t expand further. They appear at components: the subject, which tells us what or
the bottom of a tree diagram. who the sentence is about, and the predicate,
which provides information about the subject.
 Recursive symbols allow infinite Subjects can take different forms, including noun
sentence generation. phrases and pronouns, while predicates typically
contain verbs."
For example, if we define:
"We can define sentence structure with a simple
A → B + C + (A)
rule: a sentence consists of a noun phrase (NP) as
This means A can expand into itself, leading to
the subject and a verb phrase (VP) as the
potentially endless sentences.
predicate. While this works for declarative
Recursion explains why language allows sentences, other types—like questions and
complex, nested structures, like: commands—require additional rules."

 The book that the teacher recommended Now that we've established noun phrases and
was interesting. verb phrases as the two major components of a
sentence, let's take a closer look at what makes
 The book that the teacher that I met
up these phrases
recommended was interesting.”
Noun phrases and verb phrases are the main
Script: 7
parts of a sentence. Each phrase has a head—its
“Recursion is what makes human language so
most important word. In a noun phrase, the head
powerful.
is a noun, and in a verb phrase, the head is a
For example: verb. Other words, like adjectives or prepositional
phrases, can modify or add details to the head
 The dog chased the cat. → Simple
sentence. Script:10

 The dog that the boy owns chased the cat. A noun phrase (NP) is a group of words built
→ A more complex sentence. around a noun. It can be just a noun or include
other words to add more details.
 The dog that the boy that I met owns
chased the cat. → Even more complexity! Examples:

Without recursion, we would be limited to very  Dogs (N)

simple sentences. Instead, language allows
 The dogs (Det + N)
infinite sentence construction.”
 The large dogs (Det + A + N)”
Script:
“Besides tree diagrams, we can use labeled N-bar (N¯ ) is an intermediate level in the
bracketing to show sentence structure. structure of noun phrases (NPs) between the
noun (N) and the full noun phrase (NP). It
Example:
helps show how modifiers (like adjectives and
prepositional phrases) group together within a  two minutes before my arrival"
noun phrase.
Ditransitive Verbs & Indirect Object
Breaking It Down: Movement

 N (Noun) → The core word (e.g., dogs) What are Ditransitive Verbs?

 N¯ (N-bar) → The noun + its modifiers Ditransitive verbs take two objects:
(e.g., large dogs)
 Indirect Object (NP1) → who receives
 NP (Noun Phrase) → The full phrase,
 Direct Object (NP2) → what is given
including determiners (e.g., the large
dogs) Sentence Structures:
Why Use N-bar? 1. Henk sent Olga roses. (NP1 NP2)
 It explains how determiners apply to 2. Henk sent roses to Olga. (NP2 PP[to/for
the whole phrase, not just the noun. NP1])
 It shows grouping and substitution Indirect Object Movement Test:
(e.g., large dogs → ones).
✅ Jerry sent a letter to Elaine. → Jerry sent Elaine
 It makes phrase structure rules clearer a letter.
in grammar analysis. ❌ Jerry sent a letter to Toronto. → (Wrong!
"Toronto" is a place.)
 Adverb Phrase
 The adverb phrase (AdvP) can be Pronoun Rule:
expanded as in Table 7.3a.We note that
Deg is an optional ❌ I gave it to her. → (Wrong! I gave her it.)
 modifier and that the Adv is head; our ✅ I gave the book to her. → (Correct! I gave her
rule for AdvP is thus formulated as the book.)
follows:
 AdvP→(Deg) Adv Script for Copulative (Copula) Verbs Slide

Copulative verbs, also called linking verbs, do

The incorrect structure treats very, fiercely, and not show action but instead connect the subject
barking as if they all independently modify dog, to a subject complement (sC), which provides
which doesn't make sense. Instead, very fiercely more information about the subject. Common
forms an adverb phrase (AdvP) that modifies copulative verbs include be, become, seem,
barking, and very specifically modifies fiercely. appear, feel, grow, and look.
This hierarchical structure properly represents the
meaning: The complement after a copulative verb can take
different forms:
 "Very" modifies "fiercely" (how intense  A noun phrase (NP) to identify the
the fierceness is). subject (e.g., Priya is a chemist.)
 "Very fiercely" together modifies
"barking" (describing how the dog is  An adjective phrase (AP) to describe
barking). the subject (e.g., Priya seems tired.)
 "Barking" modifies "dog" (describing the  A prepositional phrase (PP) to locate
type of dog). the subject (e.g., Priya is in a good mood.)

Script: 15 To differentiate between a subject complement

(sC) and a direct object (dO), we use the
"A Prepositional Phrase (PP) consists of a passive transformation test:
preposition (P) as the head, followed by a
noun phrase (NP) as its object. The  A direct object can be moved to the
structure follows the pattern PP → P NP. subject position in a passive sentence
(Martina saw a lawyer → A lawyer was
For example: seen by Martina).
 P + NP → on the beach  A subject complement cannot be moved
 P + P + NP → from behind the door (Martina became a lawyer → ❌ A lawyer
was become by Martina).
 P + P + P + NP → out from under the
table Complex Transitive Verbs

Complex transitive verbs require two

complements: a direct object (dO) and an
Some PPs also include specifiers like right, object complement (oC). The object
straight, or time/space measurements to add complement describes, identifies, or locates
precision. the direct object.

Examples: For example:

 right after lunch  We consider him a fool. → "Him" (dO) is

described as "a fool" (oC).
 straight along this route
  She made him unhappy. → "Him" (dO) is  She argued with him about money. (Both
described as "unhappy" (oC). "with him" and "about money" are
necessary.)
Complex Transitive Verbs
 He conferred with his team on the
1. Non-locative verbs – These describe a
project.
state or identity of the object.
 They talked to her about the issue.
o Examples: consider, call, make,
regard, think, elect Without one of the PPs, the sentence feels
incomplete. This shows that both prepositional
o Example sentence: We consider complements are essential to the meaning of the
him a genius. verb.
2. Locative verbs – These describe the
location or position of the object. Latent Objects in Verbs

o Examples: put, place, lay, set, Some verbs can omit their direct object when the meaning is
hang, shoot clear from context. These are called latent objects because
they are understood but not stated explicitly.
o Example sentence: She placed the
book on the table. How to Identify Latent Objects?

Passive Test 1. If the verb changes meaning without an object →

It's intransitive.
 The direct object can become the
o The workers struck last month. (Means
subject in a passive sentence:
"went on strike.")
o He is considered a fool (by us). ✅ o The worker struck the match. (Means "hit
the match to light it.")
 The object complement cannot become 2. If the object is irrelevant → The verb is
the subject in a passive sentence: intransitive.
o Groucho smokes. (It doesn't matter what he
o ❌ A fool is considered him (by us). smokes.)
o Wyatt left yesterday. (Where he left from
isn’t important.)
3. If the object is predictable → It's a latent object.
Prepositional Verbs o She plays (the violin) very well.
o Hannah bathed (herself). → Hannah bathed
Prepositional verbs require a prepositional the baby.
phrase (PP) as a complement. The verb and
preposition form a fixed unit, meaning the Latent objects help us understand why some verbs seem
preposition cannot be changed or omitted without transitive in some cases but intransitive in others.
altering the meaning.
Explanation for Slide:
Types of Prepositional Verbs:

1. Locative Verbs – Indicate position or This slide illustrates how some verbs, like write and start,
movement. belong to multiple verb categories depending on context.

o Examples: stand, sit, lie, lean,  Write can be intransitive, meaning no object is
hang, flow necessary (Margaret writes = "She is a writer").
 It can be transitive when a direct object is required
o Example sentence: She sat on the (Margaret wrote a letter).
chair.  It can be ditransitive if an indirect object is implied
(Margaret wrote to George = "Margaret wrote a
2. Non-locative Verbs – Express abstract letter to George").
relationships or actions.
Similarly, start demonstrates how latent objects work.
o Examples: agree (to), depend (on),
refer (to), insist (on)  In Phyllis started the car, the subject (Phyllis) is
acting on an object (the car).
o Example sentence: They depend  In The car started, there is no object, and the verb is
on their parents. functioning intransitively, meaning the car itself
started.
The PP functions as a complement (pC), not
a modifier, meaning it is necessary to complete This distinction is important in understanding how verbs shift
the verb’s meaning. between categories based on context!

Diprepositional Verbs We have explored English phrase structure, tree diagrams, and
verb complements. These concepts help us understand
Diprepositional verbs require two prepositional
sentence structure and improve our language skills. Mastering
phrases (PPs) as complements to complete them enhances both comprehension and communication.
their meaning. Unlike regular verbs that take only Thank you for your time—I hope this has been a helpful
one complement, these verbs need both PPs to learning experience!
form a complete thought.

For example: