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Language Acquisition 3: Grammar in Writing Summary
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This is a summary of all the lectures and readings of the course Language Acquisition 3 given at Leiden University.
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LANGUAGE ACQUISITION 3; Grammar in WritingChapter 1
Definition of noun:
- Burton-Roberts (2016, p. 29) -> "Any phrase that can function as a subject is a noun phrase."
(NP) - (With pronouns), category of word that can replace an NP
- Mackenzie (2014, p. 115) -> "The basic function of nouns is to name the participants in states of
affairs."
Nouns -> Words that point to the things or phenomena around us: people, animals, and objects.
- Proper nouns -> Names of persons and places (written with an initial capital letter)
- Common nouns -> all other nouns
- Concrete nouns -> physical objects, persons and animals
- Abstract nouns -> abstract things (love, hatred, happiness)
Countable nouns (Count nouns)-> They can take a/an as an article and they can be plural
Uncountable nouns (Mass nouns) -> They can’t take a/an or be made plural
Some singular words in Dutch are plural only in English and vice versa.
- Singular in Dutch, plural in English: D. broek > E. trousers, pants; D. verordening > E. byelaws
- Plural in Dutch, singular in English: D. vorderingen > E. progress; D. zaken > E. business
Plural nouns
Noun end in Plural
<s>, <ss>, <sh>, <z>, <x>, <ch> <es>
Consonant + <y> Consonant + <ies>
Other nouns <s>
Plural-only nouns -> Usually articles of clothing, appliances, and tools consisting of two main parts. They
cannot combine with the singular (indefinite) article and are followed by a plural verb.
Looks plural but singular -> Usually subjects taught in school, areas of activity, and games. A singular
verb is used.
Concord
- Grammatical concord; The number of the subject dictates the number of the corresponding
finite verb. Form of the subject determines number of the verb. Also called subject-verb
agreement.
- Semantic concord; Perception of a subject as singular or plural determines the number of the
verb. Nouns that refer to a group of people (police, government, team) are in singular form, but
refer to a plural entity. Plural and singular verb are both correct.
Differences between Dutch and English:
- Forty per cent of the population are insane.
- Veertig procent van de bevolking is krankzinnig.
1
,Correlatives or paired conjunctions: either…or, neither… nor, both…and, not only…but also
They link two nouns together and thus create plurality. So, a singular or plural verb? Depends on which
conjunction it is:
- Coordinating conjunction: These conjunctions add or create plurality -> Both…and -> Always
plural verb.
- Disjunctive conjunction: These conjunctions state alternatives -> Either…or -> If the second (or
last) noun is plural, the verb is plural and if the second (or last) noun is singular, the verb is also
singular (proximity rule).
Gerunds (Nominalisation)
A verb that is turned into a noun. It turns an action into a general, frequently repeated phenomenon. It
is less active then the verb but it hasn’t completely lost its activeness (more active than a noun). A
gerund is a noun and can therefore be preceded by the or a(n), and adjective or possessives. A gerund is
used:
- After the following verbs:
- After prepositions, including to when it is a preposition proper rather than part of the infinitive:
We’re looking forward to welcoming you as a student.
- Certain phrases are always followed by the gerund: it’s no good…, it’s no use…, it’s not worth….
It’s no use crying over spilt milk.
- The modal need + gerund has a passive meaning:
My car badly needs servicing.
- The perfect gerund can be used to express past actions:
I admit to having made a mistake
Chapter 2
Pronouns: words that can replace or take over the function of an entire noun phrase. They are a great
tool for avoiding repetition.
- Subject pronouns; I, you, he, she, it, we, you, they.
- Object pronouns; me, you, him, her, it, us, you, them.
In English, both subject and object pronouns can be used in subject complements, although it generally
prefers object pronouns -> That is me: professor Chaos. – That is I: professor Chaos.
It-clefts: the subject is replaced by it and the actual subject is postponed to the subject-complement
position. In English, you can use either pronoun, but again, the preference goes to the object
Pronoun -> It was me who raised the question. – It was I who raised the question.
Exception -> In conditional sentences, an object pronoun must be used -> If I were her, I’d shut up.
Reflexive pronouns: word that puts extra emphasis on a noun phrase, more specifically the subject of a
clause; myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves.
Since reflexive pronouns modify the subject, agreement between the number and person of the subject
and the number and person of the reflexive pronoun must be present. The difference between singular
and plural is in the suffix -> -self (singular and -selves (plural).
Certain verbs need a reflexive pronoun to avoid ambiguity -> Hans pinches hard. – Hans pinches himself
hard. In the second sentence it is clear who is being pinched.
2
, Reciprocal pronouns: used to refer to two different persons in a sentence who have to perform the
exact same action -> Each other/ one another (two persons), one another (more than two persons).
Demonstrative pronouns: replace a noun phrase when you want to indicate that something is near
(proximal: this, these) or distant (distal: that, those).
Interrogative pronouns: used to introduce open-ended questions as opposed to yes-no questions. They
can be subject or object pronouns.
Interrogative pronoun refers to Interrogative pronoun replaces Interrogative pronoun used
things subject personal pronoun which/what
object personal pronoun which
persons subject personal pronoun who
object personal pronoun whom/who
possessive pronoun whose
Possessive interrogative pronouns: whose is the car? – Whose car is it? – Whose children are they?
Chapter 3
Determiners: Grammatical words that give information about whether the noun that they precede is
familiar to the speaker of hearer (definiteness) and about the quantity of the noun.
- Definite article; the -> used to indicate that a noun is specific; that it has a unique referent or
that is has been mentioned or referred to before.
- Indefinite articles; a/an -> used to indicate that a noun is used in a general, non-specific way. A
is used when the noun is pronounced with a consonant and an is used when the noun is
pronounced with a vowel.
Demonstrative determiners: Point to persons or objects close by or far away. They modify nouns. Their
function is deictic.
- Proximal: this/these
- Distal: that/those
Quantifiers
- Much and many; used for expressing a large quantity -> Many is used for count nouns and much
is used for mass nouns. If they are not modified by an adverb both can be replaced by the noun
phrases a lot of or lots of.
- Some and any; used for expressing a smaller quantity -> Some is used in an affirmative sentence
and any is used in negative or interrogative sentences. However, some can be used in
interrogative sentences to extend an invitation, to encourage or when making a request (where
the expected answer is “yes” or “certainly”).
- A few or a little; used for expressing a small quantity -> A few is used when the noun is
countable and a little is used when the noun is uncountable. You can also use few and little
when expressing an even smaller quantity. For even smaller quantities only can be used.
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