Grammar_Rules_Units

1. Rules and Units of Grammar

PhD. Akmarzhan Nogaibayeva, SDU University

2. Learning Objectives

Define grammar from a linguistic perspective
Distinguish between prescriptive and descriptive
grammar
Identify major grammatical units
Explain the functions of parts of speech
Analyze phrase and sentence structure
Understand constituent analysis
Explain agreement and grammatical relations
Apply grammatical analysis to linguistic examples

3. Lecture Overview

The lecture examines:
Concept of grammar
Traditional and descriptive approaches
Parts of speech
Agreement
Constituent analysis
Phrase and sentence structure
Syntax and grammatical organization

4. The Concept of Grammar

Grammar is concerned with the structure of phrases
and sentences.
Grammar allows speakers to combine words, create
sentences, express relationships, and communicate
systematically.
Example:
The student completed the assignment.
Completed assignment the student.

5. Grammar as Unconscious Knowledge

Modern linguistics views grammar as unconscious
linguistic knowledge.
Native speakers recognize grammatical patterns
without formal training.

6. Traditional Grammar

Developed from Latin and Greek.
Focuses on correctness, parsing, classification of
words, and standard language use.

7. Prescriptive Grammar

Rules about how language should be used.
Examples:
Do not split infinitives
Do not use double negatives
Do not end sentences with prepositions

8. Descriptive Grammar

Studies how language is actually used.
Linguists observe authentic usage and describe
patterns rather than judging correctness.

9. Prescriptive vs Descriptive Grammar

Prescriptive: correctness, standards, textbooks.
Descriptive: observation, actual use, linguistic
analysis.

10. Units of Grammar

Hierarchy:
Morphemes → Words → Phrases → Clauses →
Sentences

11. Morphemes

Smallest meaningful unit.
Examples: book, house, teacher.
Unhappiness = un + happy + ness

12. Free Morphemes

Can stand alone as words.
Examples: work, language, student

13. Bound Morphemes

Cannot stand independently.
Examples:
un-, -ed, -ing, -s
walk + ed = walked

14. Parts of Speech

Nouns, Verbs, Adjectives, Adverbs, Pronouns,
Prepositions, Conjunctions

15. Nouns

Refer to people, objects, places, concepts and
institutions.
Functions: subject, object, complement.
Example: The professor explained grammar.

16. Verbs

Express actions, states and processes.
Examples: analyze, study, teach, understand.

17. Adjectives

Modify nouns and provide descriptive information.
Examples: difficult examination, linguistic analysis,
interesting lecture.

18. Adverbs

Modify verbs, adjectives and clauses.
Examples: carefully, linguistically, quickly.

19. Pronouns

Replace nouns to avoid repetition.
Examples: he, she, they, it.

20. Prepositions

Express location, direction, time and relationships.
Examples: in, under, during, between.

21. Conjunctions

Connect words, phrases and clauses.
Examples: and, but, because.

22. Phrases

Groups of words functioning as grammatical units.
Types: noun phrase, verb phrase, adjective phrase,
prepositional phrase.

23. Noun Phrases

Example: The highly motivated student.
Headword: student
Modifiers: the, highly, motivated

24. Verb Phrases

Contain a main verb and auxiliaries.
Example: has been studying
Express tense, aspect, voice and modality.

25. Prepositional Phrases

Example: in the classroom
Express place, direction, time and circumstance.

26. Clauses

Contain a subject and predicate.
Types: independent and dependent
clauses.

27. Independent Clauses

Can stand alone.
Example: The students completed the task.

28. Dependent Clauses

Cannot stand independently.
Example: because the lecture was
difficult.

29. Sentence Types

Simple, Compound, Complex, Compound-Complex
sentences.

30. Agreement

Grammatical matching between sentence
elements.
Examples:
She writes well.
They write well.

31. Grammatical Gender

Masculine, Feminine and Neuter categories.
English has limited grammatical gender compared
with French, German and Russian.

32. Structural Analysis

The students completed the assignment.
NP + VP
Helps identify grammatical hierarchy.

33. Constituent Analysis

The talented student | passed the difficult
examination.
NP + VP structure identifies phrase boundaries.

34. Syntax

Study of sentence structure, word order and phrase
organization.
English pattern: Subject + Verb + Object.

35. Phrase Structure Rules

Sentence → NP + VP
NP → Determiner + Noun
Explains sentence construction.

36. Recursion

Structures repeat within larger structures.
Enables creativity, complexity and infinite sentence
generation.

37. Deep and Surface Structure

The dog chased the cat.
The cat was chased by the dog.
Different forms but related meanings.

38. Functions of Grammar

Grammar organizes language, structures meaning,
clarifies relationships, enables coherence and
supports intelligibility.

39. Summary

Grammar studies phrase and sentence structure
Descriptive grammar studies actual language
use
Grammar consists of hierarchical units
Syntax studies sentence organization
Agreement ensures coherence
Recursion allows infinite generation

40. References

Yule, G. (2010). The Study of Language (4th ed.).
Cambridge University Press.
Jean Aitchison
Hugh Buckingham