(toc) #title= (Table of Content)
Word
The word and morpheme are important concepts in morphology because one or more morphemes construct a word. The dictionary defines a word as a single unit of language that has meaning and can be spoken or written. It is also a lexical item that becomes meaningful when used in context or discourse, where it now possesses some grammatical properties. The word is the most fundamental unit of grammar in a language. It is an independent linguistic unit that has identifiable meaning and grammatical function, with emphasis on phonological shape. For example, the forms sing, sings, singing, sang, and sung are all forms of a single word, sing. Each of these forms has a unique environment in which it can occur, as well as the verbs (auxiliary) with which they can occur.
Characteristics of Words
Word, especially in the English language, has the following characteristics or features:
1. Syntactic information: Every word has its word class, indicating whether it is a noun, adjective, adverb, or verb. This helps us determine the appropriate environment for the word.
2. Semantic information: Every word has meaning, whether integral or contextual. This semantic meaning helps us understand whether we have been abused or commended.
3. Phonological information: Every word has its unique way of being pronounced by native speakers. Whether borrowed into the English language or not, and whether anglicized or not, phonological information aids pronunciation.
4. Pragmatic information: Every word has a particular context of usage, also referred to as situational usage of words.
5. Morphological information: Every word has its own peculiar internal structure or shape, involving the arrangement of phonemes and morphemes in the language. It assists us in knowing which combinations of items are permissible and which ones are not.
Functionally, words are classified into classes according to their features and the roles they play in building up other units of grammar. In total, there are eight word classes: nouns, verbs, pronouns, adverbs, adjectives, prepositions, conjunctions, and interjections.
A noun names entities, e.g., Lagos, Nigeria, Joy, etc.
A pronoun is used in place of a noun, e.g., He, She, they.
A verb asserts action, e.g., go, dance, run, etc.
An adjective describes a noun, e.g., happy, beautiful, etc.
An adverb modifies a verb, e.g., well, beautifully, etc.
A preposition shows relation, e.g., on, over, above, etc.
A conjunction joins, e.g., and, but, or, etc.
An interjection expresses emotion, e.g., oh!
SELF ASSESSMENT EXERCISE 1
Explain what you understand by words and their classes.
Group
The group is the unit next in rank above the word, made up of one or more words. It is called a phrase by transformational generative grammarians as well as traditional grammarians. A group is defined as a group of words that usually lacks a verb and does not make complete sense on its own. Hence, to make sense, it has to be attached to another element that makes sense or has the potential of making full sense. Every group has an optional modifier, a mandatory headword, and an optional qualifier. Hence, the structural formula for the group is (M) H (Q).
The English language identifies five groups:
1. Nominal word group (NWG) or (NG):
As a nominal group, a noun must be the headword. A non-noun like a verb or an adjective can play this role, provided it has been nominalized – made to become a noun to fit into this new role, and has become a gerundial or verbal noun. For example,
"The man is a thief" can be analyzed as:
"The man (NMG) Is (VBG) A thief (NMG)." 'The' and 'a' are modifiers, while 'man' and 'thief' are headwords, respectively. Thus, there are two groups in the sentence above, five words, and five morphemes.
Roles
The nominal group plays these roles:
- Subject of a sentence or verb, e.g., "The man"
- Object of a sentence or verb, e.g., "a thief"
- Subject complement or complement of the subject, e.g., "I myself did the assignment." 'Myself' refers back to 'I,' which is the subject of the sentence.
- Object complement or complement of the object, e.g., "They give him a bottle of coke." 'Him' is the object of the sentence, and 'a bottle of coke' is received by 'him.' Thus, 'a bottle of coke' is the complement of the object 'him'.
2. Verbal group:
This is a group headed by a verb. The auxiliary verbs, in most cases, serve as the modifier, while the functional lexical, whether lexical or auxiliary, plays the role of a headword. For example, "The thieves have run away."
Three groups:
- VBG
- M H
- aux Lex
- have run
3. Adjectival group:
This is a group headed by an adjective. For example, "The woman is very happy."
Three groups:
- ADJG
- M H
- Adv. adj.
- very happy
4. Adverbial group:
This is a group headed by an adverb. For example, "He did the job quite happily."
Three groups:
- ADVG
- M H
- adv adv
- quite happily
5. Prepositional group:
This is a group headed by a preposition. For example, "I met my father in the house."
Two groups:
- PRG
- H Q
- prep M
- in the house
A group represents an important level of syntactic analysis and possesses four significant features:
a. It has internal syntactic and semantic cohesion.
b. It is an identifiable single unit.
c. It expresses a thought (though not complete).
d. It is named after its headword.
Groups have the characteristics of being widely distributed in clauses/sentences. For instance:
"The old man in this compound was killed late last year."
"The old man" - (NMG)
"In this compound" - (PRG)
"Was killed" - (VBG)
"Late last year" - (NMG)
SELF ASSESSMENT EXERCISE 2
State and discuss four important features of a group.
Clause
The clause is the unit next in rank above the group, made up of one or more groups. It is defined as a group of words that has a verb and may or may not make complete sense. It has the following characteristics:
1. It has a subject.
2. It has a verb.
3. It is a single thought unit.
4. It can occur in different parts of the sentence.
5. It is named after its headword, except for a relative clause.
The English language identifies two types of clauses: independent and dependent. The independent clause, or insubordinate or alpha, can stand on its own, while the dependent or subordinate or beta clause cannot. For example: "If it rains tomorrow, I will not come to school" comprises a dependent clause ("If it rains tomorrow") and an independent clause ("I will not come to school").
The following are subtypes of the dependent clause:
1. Nominal clause: It is usually headed by a noun.
2. Adjectival clause: It is usually headed by an adjective.
3. Adverbial clause: It is introduced by a relative pronoun like who, whose, which, that, how, etc.
General examples of clauses include:
1. When the girls get home, they usually visit their friends in the hostel.
- Dependent clause: When the girls get home
- Independent clause: they usually visit their friends in the hostel
2. If I had seen my mother, I would have greeted her.
- Dependent clause: If I had seen my mother
- Independent clause: I would have greeted her
3. The lecturer didn’t know what the students were planning for him.
- Independent clause: The lecturer didn’t know
- Dependent clause: what the students were planning for him
SELF ASSESSMENT EXERCISE 3
Discuss three types of dependent clauses.
Sentence
The sentence is the largest grammatical unit, made up of one or more clauses. It has the following features:
1. It can stand on its own; it is independent.
2. It embeds all other units.
3. It has a subject and a verb (predicator).
4. It cannot be subsumed by other units.
5. It begins with a capital letter and ends with either a full stop mark, question mark, or an exclamation mark.
Functionally, sentences are classified into four types:
1. Declarative
2. Interrogative
3. Imperative
4. Exclamatory
1. Declarative sentence:
It expresses a statement or declaration, affirming facts, experiences, or opinions. Examples include:
- My wife is a good cook.
- Bola died early last year.
- The journey of life is not rosy.
- The gate will be locked at 11 pm.
2. Interrogative sentence:
It asks a question, usually ending with a question mark. Types include yes or no questions, wh-questions, and tag questions. Examples:
- Have you eaten?
- What is your name?
- Would you mind talking with me?
3. Imperative sentence:
It commands, orders, makes a request, directs, or suggests actions. Examples:
- Will you do as I say?
- Obey the last order.
- Come here immediately.
4. Exclamatory sentence:
It expresses emotional feelings like sorrow, surprise, shock, wonder, or gratitude, often ending with an exclamation mark. Examples:
- That's a snake!
- My God, what is happening!
- What a big shame!
SELF ASSESSMENT EXERCISE 4
Discuss four functional types of sentences, giving two examples for each.
Structural Delineation of Sentences
Structurally, sentences are classified into five types:
1. Simple sentence: Contains just one independent clause.
2. Compound sentence: Contains at least two independent clauses linked by a coordinating conjunction.
3. Complex sentence: Contains at least one independent clause and at least one dependent clause linked by a subordinating conjunction.
4. Compound-complex sentence: Contains two or more independent clauses and two or more dependent clauses, with a combination of coordinating and subordinating conjunctions.
5. Multiple sentence: Comprises multiple independent or dependent clauses.
Each type of sentence structure serves to organize and convey meaning in different ways, contributing to the richness and complexity of language expression.
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