Syntax Revision (MEC by Wekker and Haegeman: chapter 4 Part 1)
Fill in (only one word)
1. Inserting pronominal elements rather than full lexical ………Ps is referred to as a
2. The three main operations which relate questions to basic sentence patterns are: subject-auxiliary inversion,………-insertion and ………movement. 3. The operation which changes the order of elements in a sentence, for example, to get from I shall show you my rude drawings to shall I show you my rude drawings? is called a ……………………………. . 4. In order to form a yes-no question we move the first …………….to the left and place it in front of the Subject. 5. The moved auxiliary may be a modal auxiliary (shall, must, can), perfect have, progressive be, or passive be; all these auxiliaries are marked for either …………………..or past tense. 6. If a contracted negator -n’t is attached to the………….. auxiliary, it must be moved along to the left. 7. The morpheme –n’t is not an ……………………… word; it must attach to the auxiliary. 8. The uncontracted not, on the other hand, is independent and does not move along with the ………………………….. . 9. The operation described above (yes-no questions) is generally referred to as ……………..-AUX ………………….., or SAI for short. 10. The transition from you like my drawings to do you like my drawings? Involves two changes: SAI (the tense element is moved out of the VP and placed in front of NP/Su …………….. is inserted. 11. Tense can never occur on its own; it must always be attached to a ……………..or auxiliary. 12. SAI and ……..-insertion are triggered by the presence of negative VP-Adjuncts such as no sooner, never and on no account. 13. The verb assassinate is a verb which is subcategorized as taking an ….....P. 14. After the movement of a wh-phrase to the WH slot (i.e. wh-movement) a…………………. is left behind. We can find its original filler in the special sentence- initial slot. 15. Wh-questions are formed by moving a ………………….containing a wh-word into the WH slot in front of the sentence, and by ……………., with or without do- insertion. 16. The transformation called wh-movement typically leaves a gap bound by the ………….-word. The wh-word is called the ……………….or the wh-operator. The gap marks the original position (i.e. the extraction site) of the wh-word.
1 Answer
1. What would be the underlying structure or deep structure of the basic
sentence Jane gave this book to Bill on Saturday? Can you bracket it or draw a tree? 2. What additional operations can we perform on the deep structure of the basic pattern of sentence 1 above? 3. Can you mention the different types of questions possible in English? 4. Can you discuss the Wh-movement in the sentence whom did the terrorists assassinate? 5. Can you specify the gap corresponding to (or bound by) the Wh-word or phrase in the following sentences? Where did you go after the film? Who did you meet there? What did you drink? How good a president was J.F.K? Who did you say John introduced you to after the party? What did you say Mary wants to buy for John? How far away were you? Why did you measure it?