Sentence Position Research Articles

The Predicate Restriction in Najdi Arabic: A Theoretical Perspective

Abstract One of the grammatical properties of the existential sentence is the predicate restriction, which states that only stage-level predicates are allowed in the coda position of the existential sentence; individual-level predicates are disallowed. This restriction has shown to be available in some languages but absent in others. The purpose of this theoretical study is twofold: firstly, to explore the availability of the effect of the predicate restriction in the existential sentence of Najdi Arabic; and secondly, to provide an account for its interesting behaviour. Assuming that the phrasal coda is a secondary predicative adjunct, it has been concluded that the predicate restriction is available in Najdi Arabic existential sentence. Only stage-level predicates are permitted in the coda position, whereas individual-level predicates are disallowed. The paper goes on to show that the ostensibly possible occurrence of individuallevel predicates in the existential sentence of Najdi Arabic may be ascribed to the fact that these adjective phrases are postnominal modifiers, rather than secondary predicates.

Syntactic Analysis of Nominal Clauses Based on Chomsky’s Generative Grammar and Implications for Language Teaching

Nominal clause is a clause with nominal feature and syntactic analysis is the study of laws of sentence constructions. And Chomsky’s Generative Grammar is a very useful method to analyse a sentence in an explanatory way. This paper aims to focus on how to understand a nominal clause under Generative Grammar (GG) for the explanatory adequacy. In doing so, it will give a brief explanation to the generative mechanisms of simple sentence under GG, then move on to the similar mechanisms of complex sentence, here, it will focus on nominal clauses. On the syntactic analysis of nominal clauses, there are two steps: first recognizing its position in the whole sentence, then picking a proper connective for the nominal clause. Notice this paper will analyse a complex noun sentence for two sentences, one is the whole sentence, and another is the small clause, namely, the nominal clause within the whole sentence. Thus, it can conclude a way to analyse nominal clauses syntactically, and understand their inner constructions. Furthermore, it can explain why a nominal clause form like this and have a better understanding of complex sentences. More importantly, such method can play its role in linguistics and foreign language teaching, which would help language teachers build up a better understanding of the nature of language and the process of language learning.

A Study on the Discourse Markers of "Wo Gei Ni Shuo" in Modern Chinese

The discourse mark "wo gei ni shuo" is very important in natural dialogue. This study explores the position, pragmatic function and formation of the discourse mark "wo gei ni shuo". Discourse mark "wo gei ni shuo" has three kinds of position in sentences, among which the highest frequency of use found in middle of sentences, and the semantic meaning is mostly directed to the following information unit; The discourse mark "wo gei ni shuo" has four pragmatic functions of emphasizing information, subjective cognition, suggestion evaluation and imperative. The formation of discourse markers is the result of both lexicalization and grammaticalization. Studying the use position, pragmatic function and formation of discourse marker "wo gei ni shuo" is helpful to the development of text teaching and international Chinese teaching.

A completive adverbial as a subordinator sequencing two (sub)events: TSIT-E in Taiwanese Southern Min

As a completive adverbial meaning ‘in a short time’, the Taiwanese Southern Min (TSM) ts̍ıt ‘one’ plus the verbal classifier ē sequence can be used in a preverbal but post-subject position to encode clausal dependency. This usage of ts̍ıt-ē is often translated as ‘immediately after’ or ‘as soon as’. While Adverbial ts̍ıt-ē(-á) (ts̍ıt-ē + the delimitative suffix -á) and tsin kín ‘very quickly’ in the sentence-initial position of an independent sentence establish backward linking with the preceding sentence, the subordinator ts̍ıt-ē regulates forward linking of two successive (sub)events. As a completive adverbial, the subordinator ts̍ıt-ē is subject to the telicity requirement, and it also encodes a speaker’s subjective evaluation that marks (un)expectedness. The low attachment of the subordinator ts̍ıt-ē in the subordinate clause accounts for the asymmetries observed in the three environments for how the telicity requirement is satisfied (e.g., whether completion or inchoativity has to be overtly marked): (a) an independent sentence with completive ts̍ıt-ē(-á), (b) a SUB ts̍ıt-ē clause, and (c) the main clause following a SUB ts̍ıt-ē clause. Finally, the fact that a SUB ts̍ıt-ē clause can only precede the main clause, and must be lower than a reason clause calls for further investigation.

Prosodic Weight Effect on Focal Accent of Standard Chinese

This study investigates the phonetic performance of narrow information focus, as compared to broad focus, within different sentential positions of the Chinese Subject-Verb-Object (S+V+O) syntax structure. Three acoustic parameters of focus, including the pitch range ratio, duration ratio, and intensity ratio, were taken to explore the ranking among these parameters and to analyse the impact of focus position on their interrelationships. The results showed that (1) Chinese, as a tonal language, exhibits a prosodic ranking characterized by duration > pitch range > intensity; (2) Chinese speakers tend to emphasize verbs within the S+V+O syntax structure, particularly when verbs are positioned in the middle of sentences. The prosodic ranking observed was Fmiddle > Finitial > Ffinal; (3) Pitch range and duration display interdependence as acoustic parameters, whereas intensity stands as an independent parameter. These results contribute to a deeper understanding of phonetic nuances within Chinese prosody, shedding light on the intricate interplay between focus, syntax, and prosody.

The Flexibility of Placing the Subject in Arabic Sentences: A Study of Syntactic Word Order Restrictions and their Application to Arabic Grammar

This research addresses the possibility of placing the subject in a pre-verb position in verbal sentences in Arabic, without necessarily stipulating that if the subject is preposed before the verb, it becomes a topic. In this way, the subject is a non-overt pronoun positioned within or after the verb, because the subject is conventionally acknowledged by grammarians to move freely to various post-verbal positions, but never pre-verbally. The research considers the views and opinions of linguists and grammarians who have dealt with this issue in detail, presenting a discussion of these views to reveal the strict restrictions imposed on the movement of the subject. It is hoped that this will contribute to the facilitation of teaching and learning Arabic grammar. It will also revitalize the discussion of views in Arabic grammatical traditions to try to establish new grammatical principles that contemporary linguists may adopt when reformulating the rules of Arabic grammar. This endeavor may simplify the task of learning rules and contribute to presenting them more flexibly and plausibly.

Applaying Method of Grammer and Translation to Develop the Readingskill of Ninth Grade Students at The Islamic Middle School" Tauhidiyah 2" Gondang - Bojonegoro

Arabic has four language skills. Reading skills (maharah al-qiro'ah) are one of the four skills that are quite difficult for students to master. In this skill, apart from students having to be able to sound out letters and words well, students also have to be able to understand the content of the text they read. To overcome these problems, various efforts are needed in an effective teaching process. The research aimed to improve the reading skills of Class IX students at MTS Tauhidiyah 2 Gondang Bojonegoro using the Qowaid Wa Tarjamah method. The qualitative approach focused on the design, use, management, and evaluation stages. The research revealed that the Qowaid Wa Tarjamah method has both supporting and inhibiting factors. Supporting factors include its ability to help students determine sentence positions and translate them, its detailed nature, its ability to understand grammatical rules, and its ability to improve Arabic language abilities. However, inhibiting factors include a lack of time efficiency in learning, students' understanding of sentence meanings, and the difficulty of grammatical analysis. The study also found that the Qowaid Wa Tarjamah method can be challenging for those who don't understand the language, as it may be more about learning about the language than the language itself. Overall, the research provides valuable insights into implementing the Qowaid Wa Tarjamah method in Arabic language education.Keywords: Qowaid Wa Tarjamah method, qualitative approach, Reading skills

The Use of Particles in Ngapak Bumiayu Language: A Study of Systemic Functional Linguistics

This study explores the use of particles in Ngapak Bumiayu, a Javanese dialect spoken in Bumiayu, Brebes, Central Java, using Michael A.K. Halliday's Systemic Functional Linguistics theory. Data was collected from everyday conversations of native speakers using a descriptive analysis method. The identified particles—kok, lho, kok ya, toh, wis, and bar—each have unique roles in sentence structure and meaning. The ideational metafunction shows that these particles enrich the information in sentences. Without particles, sentences present straightforward facts, but with particles, they carry additional nuances that enhance the message. For the interpersonal metafunction, particle placement affects meaning. Kok can be in any sentence position, conveying surprise or emphasis. Lho emphasizes attention. Kok ya, typically at the beginning or middle, shows wonder and affirmation. Toh, usually at the end, indicates finality. Wis, in the middle or end, signifies completion or agreement. Bar indicates ongoing or recent actions. The textual metafunction highlights particles' role in maintaining text coherence and cohesion. They ensure consistency and continuity in discourse through repetition, serving as connectors (referential cohesion), and maintaining consistent meanings across contexts (lexical cohesion). These particles are essential for structuring and organizing information in sentences and conversations. These findings illustrate the significant role of particles in enhancing communication, structuring information, and providing nuanced meanings in the Ngapak Bumiayu language.

Classifying deceptive reviews for the cultural heritage domain: A lexicon-based approach for the Italian language

Nowadays, the spread of deceptive reviews is a problem that has reached critical dimensions, having a significant economic impact on business activities. This paper aims to estimate – at the quantitative and qualitative levels – the possibility of using particular words to disambiguate between truthful and deceptive text, focusing on reviews produced in the cultural heritage domain. For this purpose, a lexicon-based methodology has used two different lexicons: sentiment information, intensifiers, downtoners, and negation operators. As known in the literature, these elements are crucial in a classification process related to deceptiveness. The evaluation phase has considered quantitative metrics such as accuracy and F1 score and ad hoc developed metrics that consider specific linguistic parameters such as polarity and tone of voice intensifiers. A qualitative analysis of a subset of the corpus has also been carried out to understand better factors that impact the classification of deceptive review. Several linguistic features have been considered, ranging from the number of intensifiers to their type and position in phrases and sentences. A comparison between the performances of two different lexicons used has been added to the analysis.

Perceptual weighting of acoustic cues to contrastive prosody for sentences in quiet and in noise

Prosody is used to mark important information in speech, yet despite this important role in everyday communication it is not a customary part of speech recognition testing in routine audiometry. Listeners might fail to perceive meaningful emphasis on a specific word signaled by prosodic cues despite repeating the words correctly. This study introduces a new paradigm for assessing perception of prosodic cues that are used to signify new/corrective information in a sentence. Stimuli consisted of spoken sentences where one word (in various sentence positions) was emphasized through acoustic modifications across the entire utterance, in a manner that corrected wrong information. Participants used a visual analog scale to mark the timing and degree of emphasis aligned with the target words. Perceptual data in this study are linked with acoustic measures of voice pitch contour, intensity, and duration to characterize how contrastive stress cues are recovered by listeners with and without cochlear implants, who are especially at risk for poorer pitch perception. Follow-up conditions used stimuli where acoustic cues (F0, duration, intensity) were manipulated independently to explore perceptual cue weighting, and the perseverance of these cues through background noise.

Interrogatives of reason in Tibeto-Burman languages of Sichuan

Abstract This is a typological study of the why-interrogative expressions in Tibeto-Burman languages, or the non-Chinese Sino-Tibetan languages, in Sichuan, southwest China. After examining 22 languages/dialects, the interrogative category of reason is grouped into three types, viz. the distinct why-type, the how-type, and the what-type, according to the interrogative categories from which they are derived. It is discovered that the what-type is the dominant strategy for languages in Sichuan to derive the reason category. It is also common for Tibeto-Burman languages to use verbal interrogatives, namely interrogative verb phrases and interrogative words with verbal origins, dominantly in the sense of ‘to do what’ and ‘to become what’, to ask for reason. After a focused investigation of the verbal interrogatives, it is found that Tibeto-Burman languages in Sichuan distinguish purpose from cause via word/phrase distinction, sentential positions and semantic differences. A path of grammaticalization of the verbal interrogatives is thus proposed and analyzed. Finally, the derivation maps of interrogatives in Cysouw (2005) and Hölzl (2018) are complemented with a refined distinction between purpose and cause.

ДИСКУРСИВНІ ФУНКЦІЇ ДАВНЬОГРЕЦЬКИХ ФОРМУЛ ПРИСЯГАНЬ У КОМЕДІЯХ АРІСТОФАНА

Background. This paper investigates the pragmatic and sociolinguistic features of oaths in the corpus of Aristophanes' comedies, with a particular focus on "Acharnians" and "Lysistrata." From a communicative perspective, oaths are part of a complex ritual that combines verbal and non-verbal actions to confirm the truthfulness of a declaration and ensure the fulfillment of promises through an appeal to a deity. Typically, concise formulas invoking higher powers generally introduce the declaration and only occasionally specify sanctions for breaking the oath. Thus, oaths function not only as commissives, expressing promises and commitments, but also as representatives, focusing on the truthfulness of statements; expressives, enhancing the emotional background; and declaratives, performing speech acts. Methods. This article employs structural and corpus methods, functional and discursive analysis, conversational analysis, and hermeneutic techniques. Results. Using constructivist approaches to language study, the article analyses multifunctional idiomatic units, considering their structural elements such as particles, theonyms, noun case forms, articles, and sentence position. The analysis reveals that variations in these elements create pragmatic and sociolinguistic implicatures related to the presence or absence of propositional or presuppositional negation, focus of attention, modification of the illocutionary force of the utterance, and representation of the speaker's socio-cultural identity. Specifically, gender, dialectal, thematic, and genre-stylistic markings of the formulas are identified. Conclusions. The application of constructivist and hermeneutic methods allows for the examination of idiomatic oath formulas on both the local and discursive levels, uncovering implicit meanings essential for comic effects that cannot always be reflected in translations. A corpus analysis of formula variability in dramatic genres highlights their stylistic predominance in comedy and conversational style in particular. The study concludes with a comprehensive examination of a fragment from "Lysistrata" (78-89) to reveal the contextually driven dynamics of the oaths.

Typology of Introductive Formulas in Kwakum Proverbs

Kwaèkuàm is a Bantu language of zone A according to Guthrie (1967: 496). It is listed A90. Its code is [463], Binam Bikoï (2012:141). Generally, when we want to produce a proverbial statement, the speaker does not surprise his audience. He prepares it using various introductory formulas. The same is true in the kwaèkuàm community. In doing so, our paper examines the formal introductory structures found in kwaèkuàm proverbs and which make it possible to delimit the “proverbial mold” and to identify a sentence as a proverb in a speech. Five hundred proverbs collected from ten speakers aged 50 and over constitute our corpus. From the categorization of the recurring motifs of the forms and rhythms of the proverbial saying, it emerges that the paremic initiation formulas are in the initial position of the proverbial sentence. The specificity of the proverbial statement is that it constitutes a “fixed” genre of oral literature. Moreover, this is what makes it recognized in a statement.

Boosting or inhibiting - how semantic-pragmatic and syntactic cues affect prosodic prominence relations in German.

In this exploratory study, we investigate the influence of several semantic-pragmatic and syntactic factors on prosodic prominence production in German, namely referential and lexical newness/givenness, grammatical role, and position of a referential target word within a sentence. Especially in terms of the probabilistic distribution of accent status (nuclear, prenuclear, deaccentuation) we find evidence for an additive influence of the discourse-related and syntactic cues, with lexical newness and initial sentence position showing the strongest boosting effects on a target word's prosodic prominence. The relative strength of the initial position is found in nearly all prosodic factors investigated, both discrete (such as the choice of accent type) and gradient (e.g., scaling of the Tonal Center of Gravity and intensity). Nevertheless, the differentiation of prominence relations is information-structurally less important in the beginning of an utterance than near the end: The prominence of the final object relative to the surrounding elements, especially the verbal component, is decisive for the interpretation of the sentence. Thus, it seems that a speaker adjusts locally important prominence relations (object vs. verb in sentence-final position) in addition to a more global, rhythmically determined distribution of prosodic prominences across an utterance.

The influence of emotional context on emotional word processing in discourse comprehension: evidence from event-related potential.

This research utilized event-related potential (ERP) recording technology to examine the effect of emotional context on the processing of emotional information in sentences. Three types of emotion-consistent discourse materials (neutral-neutral, positive-positive and negative-negative) were constructed to specifically express neutral, positive and negative emotions, respectively. Each discourse comprised two sentences, with the emotionally significant words embedded at the penultimate position of the second sentence. Participants were asked to read these texts, respond to reading comprehension questions and the ERP amplitude induced by the emotional words was recorded. The results indicated a tripartite interaction in the N400 and Late positive component amplitudes involving emotional context, emotional words and brain hemispheres, observed in both frontal and central brain regions. Notably, there was a significant difference in response to positive words between positive and negative contexts. The findings suggest that emotional context has a substantial effect on the processing of emotional words. Positive words, in comparison to negative ones, are more influenced by emotional context, particularly in the frontal and central regions of the brain.

모음 유형과 표준문단의 문장 위치가 음성장애 환자의 청지각적 및 켑스트럼 및 스펙트럼 분석에 미치는 효과

모음 유형과 표준문단의 문장 위치가 음성장애 환자의 청지각적 및 켑스트럼 및 스펙트럼 분석에 미치는 효과

Adverbs of Mobility: Usage Challenges Among Kri University Students

An adverb is used to indicate roughly how frequently a typical or usual action or event occurs. It is one of the fundamental English grammar structures that present challenges for students at KRI University. The aim of this paper was to investigate the challenges of the mobility of adverbs among KRI University students. The instrument used for data collection was the open-ended questionnaire created via a Google Form with a five-item structure shared with participants. SPSS version 21 software was used to analyze the data, which was deployed at five universities in KRI at the upper secondary level to evaluate how effectively the respondents used adverbs. The results were examined using simple percentages. Many of the respondents were found to often place adverbs in ways that led to illegible and unclear sentences. Additionally, some students were found to misuse classes of words, using one when they should use the other. Since adverbs cannot just be used in every sentence positions, the study concluded that adverbs and adverbials genuinely display restricted mobility occurring in just three positions: initial, middle and final. Accordingly, the result of the study of adverb movement depends largely on the adverb's subtype and nature which have a significant role in determining its mobility.

Possible Worlds as Propositions

Abstract Realists about possible worlds typically identify possible worlds with abstract objects, such as propositions or properties. However, they face a significant objection due to Lewis (1986), to the effect that there is no way to explain how possible worlds-as-abstract objects represent possibilities. In this paper, I describe a response to this objection on behalf of realists. The response is to identify possible worlds with propositions, but to deny that propositions are abstract objects, or indeed objects at all. Instead, I argue that realists should follow Prior (1971) and others in treating higher-order quantification (e.g. quantification into predicate or sentence position) as a genuine form of quantification in its own right, and so in particular, not to be analysed in terms of first-order quantification over abstract objects. I argue that from this ‘higher-orderist’ perspective, there is a relatively straightforward answer to the question of how possible worlds-as-propositions succeed in representing possibilities.

Semantic roles and the causative-anticausative alternation: evidence from French change-of-state verbs

Abstract Change-of-state verbs are heterogeneous with respect to their occurrence in the causative-anticausative alternation. While some of them are never used as anticausatives (e.g., destroy), others seem to largely favor the anticausative form (e.g., wither). On the basis of corpus data and statistical analysis for French change-of-state verbs, we show that there is a relationship between the anticausative use of a verb and the semantic role of its transitive subject: The more frequently the transitive subject of a verb is a cause (as opposed to agent or instrument), the more frequently the verb is used as anticausative (as opposed to transitive causative). In addition to presenting this novel empirical finding, we propose an account for the observed correlation: Depending on their semantic role, causers have different likelihoods to end up in the subject position of a transitive causative sentence, and the likelihood is lower for causes than for agents. Different factors are considered responsible for the observed correlation, including the asymmetry between agents and causes concerning salience as event participants, topic-worthiness, and the possibility of being expressed as anticausative adjuncts.

Wh-Movement in Iraqi Dialect

Changes in the word's position and the structure's construction are a system by which some words move from one position to another due to linguistic factors such as morphology and syntax. This movement is not limited to words alone; it is also possible in phrases. Constraints that regulate the movement process also govern these changes. The syntactic structure is a commonly influenced linguistic aspect in dialect languages. The sentence structure, including all types of sentences, varies according to dialect. The study of interrogatives, whether in Iraqi dialects or not, is significant. One of the two dominant dialects, Mosuli or Baghdadi, can serve as an excellent representative for the remaining subdialects. This paper will contribute to our understanding of the structure of interrogatives in the Iraqi dialect and the movement that occurs in various sentence positions.