LIN102H5 Introduction to General Linguistics: Words, Sentences, and their Meaning

University of Toronto Mississauga - Fall 2020

FINAL TERM TEST: Written

Friday, December 4, 2020
Submit for 9:15 pm EST

1. Binding (4 points). Consider the following sentence:

The book about the presidenti might bother heri.

a. What kind of pronoun occurs in the sentence above?

b. What binding principle governs its possible antecedents?

c. Explain why the pronoun can be bound by the noun president (i.e., why president can be its
antecedent). In your explanation, relate the binding principle to the specific structural position
of the antecedent and its relevant relation to the pronoun.

2. Aspectual Class (5 points). Consider the following sentence:

They released the hostages from captivity.

Identify the aspectual class of the VP. Define the aspectual class in terms of the three contrasts
static/dynamic, telic/atelic, durative/instantaneous. Finally, justify your answer by
demonstrating a test that confirms the contrast – as discussed in the lecture. Your tests should
be introduced by a prediction and followed by a demonstration of the test.

3. Sentence Relations (6 points). Consider the following pair of sentences:

p. Jin ate an apple.

q. Jin ate a piece of fruit.

This is an example of entailment.

a. What test demonstrates that p entails q?

b. Apply this diagnostic test to the pair of sentences.

c. What property involving truth values distinguishes logical entailment from presupposition?

d. Apply a diagnostic test to demonstrate that p does not presuppose q.

e. What properties or elements drive the entailment? Your explanation must relate concepts
and specific terminology to the example.
 LIN102H5 Introduction to General Linguistics: Words, Sentences, and their Meaning
University of Toronto Mississauga - Fall 2020

4. Sentence Relations (5 points). Consider the following exchange.

A. What happened to my roastbeef sandwich?.

B. Well, the dog looks pretty happy.

a. What is the conversational implicature of B’s answer? In other words, B asserts that the dog
looks happy, but their intention is to communicate that…

b. Explain the line of reasoning that would lead A to arrive at the correct implicature of of B’s
answer, as demonstrated and discussed in the textbook and the lecture. Be clear and logical in
your explanation.

5. Xˈ-Schema (10.5 points). Provide the Deep Structure and Surface Structure for the following
sentence.
à You may draw DPs as triangles.

Where did you say that we would meet?

6. Xˈ-Schema (18 points). Provide the Deep Structure and Surface Structure for the following
sentence.
à DO NOT draw DPs as triangles in this structure.

The boy who is sleeping had been saved from the storm.