scholarly journals Arabic Lexical Phrases

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 52
Author(s):  
Abdullah S. Al-Dobaian
Keyword(s):  
Semantic Information ◽  
Syntactic Structure ◽  
Construction Grammar ◽  
Linguistic Theory ◽  
Adequate Account ◽  
Basic Construction ◽  
Traditional Grammar ◽  
Correspondence Rules ◽  
Lexical Phrases

The Arabic traditional grammar as well as Chomsky’s mainstream theory may not be able to provide a good analysis of some fixed Arabic phrases. The challenge of such data directly stems from the fact that the general syntactic rules assumed by the two opposing theories cannot explain the syntactic and the semantic aspects of the fixed Arabic data. I argue that the Construction Grammar provides an adequate account that does not rely on syntactic structure alone, as assumed by the mainstream theory or the Arabic traditional grammar, but rather it links phonological, syntactic, and semantic information together in one basic construction by means of some correspondence rules. The Arabic data proves that there is a strong need for a linguistic theory that takes into consideration all data of different range of productivity.

Language and creativity: a Construction Grammar approach to linguistic creativity

2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Hoffmann
Keyword(s):  
Construction Grammar ◽  
Linguistic Theory ◽  
Human Cognition ◽  
Evolutionary Adaptation ◽  
Theory Construction ◽  
Conceptual Blending ◽  
Cognitive Linguistic ◽  
Explanatory Account ◽  
The Way

AbstractCreativity is an important evolutionary adaptation that allows humans to think original thoughts, to find solutions to problems that have never been encountered before and to fundamentally change the way we live. One particular domain of human cognition that has received considerable attention is linguistic creativity. The present paper discusses how the leading cognitive linguistic theory, Construction Grammar, can provide an explanatory account of creativity that goes beyond the issue of linguistic productivity. At the same time, it also outlines how Construction Grammar can benefit from insights from Conceptual Blending.

Towards a Compositional Semantics for Locative Modifiers

1995 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. 237
Author(s):  
Claudia Maienborn
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Data ◽  
Large Range ◽  
Syntactic Structure ◽  
Linguistic Theory ◽  
Exact Nature ◽  
Compositional Semantics ◽  
Semantic Composition ◽  
Verb Phrases ◽  
German Data

Within linguistic theory, very little effort has been devoted so far to a comprehen­sive theory of the syntax and semantics of modifiers. It is predominantly assumed that modifiers make a constant semantic contribution to the meaning of the constituent that is modified, irrespective of any conceivable syntactic differentiations. This account cannot cope with a multitude of empirical data and should therefore be replaced by a theory of modification that pays more attention to the exact nature of a given syntactic configuration and its impact on semantic composition. The approach advocated here is illustrated with locative modifiers of verb phrases. It will be shown that these expressions have a large range of meaning variability. Using German data, it is argued that differences in meaning can be correlated with diffe­rences in syntactic structure. On this basis, a compositional semantics for locative modifiers is proposed.

scholarly journals Learning Improved Semantic Representations with Tree-Structured LSTM for Hashtag Recommendation: An Experimental Study

Information ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 127 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rui Zhu ◽  
Delu Yang ◽  
Yang Li
Keyword(s):  
Deep Neural Networks ◽  
Semantic Information ◽  
Syntactic Structure ◽  
Text Representation ◽  
Neural Models ◽  
Textual Features ◽  
Real World Datasets ◽  
Core Idea ◽  
Significant Attention ◽  
Better Than

A hashtag is a type of metadata tag used on social networks, such as Twitter and other microblogging services. Hashtags indicate the core idea of a microblog post and can help people to search for specific themes or content. However, not everyone tags their posts themselves. Therefore, the task of hashtag recommendation has received significant attention in recent years. To solve the task, a key problem is how to effectively represent the text of a microblog post in a way that its representation can be utilized for hashtag recommendation. We study two major kinds of text representation methods for hashtag recommendation, including shallow textual features and deep textual features learned by deep neural models. Most existing work tries to use deep neural networks to learn microblog post representation based on the semantic combination of words. In this paper, we propose to adopt Tree-LSTM to improve the representation by combining the syntactic structure and the semantic information of words. We conduct extensive experiments on two real world datasets. The experimental results show that deep neural models generally perform better than traditional methods. Specially, Tree-LSTM achieves significantly better results on hashtag recommendation than standard LSTM, with a 30% increase in F1-score, which indicates that it is promising to utilize syntactic structure in the task of hashtag recommendation.

Supplemental relative clauses: Internal and external syntax

2012 ◽  
Vol 48 (3) ◽  
pp. 573-608 ◽  
Author(s):  
RUSSELL LEE-GOLDMAN
Keyword(s):  
Internal Structure ◽  
Linear Order ◽  
Relative Clauses ◽  
Syntactic Structure ◽  
Construction Grammar ◽  
Syntactic Structures ◽  
Order Constraints ◽  
Syntactic Constraints ◽  
Restrictive Relative Clauses

The internal syntactic structures of restrictive and non-restrictive relative clauses are largely identical. This paper argues that despite a uniform internal structure, the external distributions – specifically, linearization with respect to the head – of non-restrictive relative clauses are subject to several conditions. In particular, sentential non-restrictive relative clauses with which and what can appear to the left of their heads in limited (and distinct) syntactic contexts. These lexical and syntactic constraints are represented within the framework of Sign-based Construction Grammar. In light of these observations, the paper revisits claims about the internal structure of parenthetical as-clauses. Prior claims that as cannot be a relativizer are shown to be unfounded, and new data are presented in favor of treating them as relative clauses with the external distribution of sentential adverbials. This is possible given the ability to state separately specifications of construction-internal syntactic structure and construction-external linear-order constraints.

The Polyvalence of ἀφίημι and the Two Cognitive Frames of Forgiveness in the Synoptic Gospels

2015 ◽  
Vol 57 (2) ◽  
pp. 136-158 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rikard Roitto
Keyword(s):  
Present Article ◽  
Construction Grammar ◽  
Linguistic Theory ◽  
Synoptic Gospels ◽  
Cognitive Frames ◽  
Linguistic Conventions

Depending on whether God or a human is the forgiving agent in the Synoptic Gospels (and beyond), the verb valence of ἀφίημι, “forgive,” differs in several ways. The present article argues that the differences are reflections in linguistic conventions of the cognition that only God can remove the substance of sin, while both God and humans can remit the moral debt of sin. Construction grammar, a linguistic theory which assumes that syntax and semantics are inseparable, is used in the analysis. Theological implications are discussed.

scholarly journals The importance of being modular

2004 ◽  
Vol 40 (3) ◽  
pp. 593-635 ◽  
Author(s):  
PIETER A. M. SEUREN
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Review Article ◽  
Construction Grammar ◽  
Linguistic Theory ◽  
The Other ◽  
Large Majority ◽  
Syntactic Theory ◽  
Oxford University ◽  
The One ◽  
Radical Construction

William Croft,Radical Construction Grammar: syntactic theory in typological perspective. New York: Oxford University Press, 2001. Pp. xxviii+416.My reason for writing this review article is that I want to highlight a particular basic opposition in linguistic theory and methodology. On the one hand, we have what is usually called COGNITIVISM, represented in the book under review by the new theory of Radical Construction Grammar, henceforth RCG. On the other hand, there is a variety of schools, together forming a large majority in the field, whose theoretical overlap may be characterized by the term MODULARITY. I argue against cognitivism and in favour of the modularity view, and I am using the book under review as an opportunity to define the issue and put forward the arguments.

scholarly journals The Syntax and Prosody of Weak Pronouns in Chamorro

2003 ◽  
Vol 34 (4) ◽  
pp. 547-599 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandra Chung
Keyword(s):  
Syntactic Structure ◽  
Linguistic Theory ◽  
Mutual Interaction ◽  
Prosodic Structure ◽  
Austronesian Language ◽  
Independent Components ◽  
Prosodic Phrase ◽  
Phonological Phrase

In the modular linguistic theory assumed by many generative linguists, phonology and syntax are interconnected but fundamentally independent components of grammar. The effects of syntax on phonology are mediated by prosodic structure, a representation of prosodic constituents calculated from syntactic structure but not isomorphic to it. Within this overall architecture, I investigate the placement of weak pronouns in the Austronesian language Chamorro. Certain Chamorro pronominals can be realized as prosodically deficient weak pronouns that typically occur right after the predicate. I showthat these pronouns are second-position clitics whose placement is determined not syntactically, but prosodically: they occur after the leftmost phonological phrase of their intonational phrase. My analysis of these clitics assumes that lexical insertion is late and can affect and be affected by prosodic phrase formation-assumptions consistent with the view that the mutual interaction of phonology and syntax is confined to the postsyntactic operations that translate syntactic structure into prosodic structure.

scholarly journals Construction Grammar and the corpus-based analysis of discourses

2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 291-323
Author(s):  
Nicholas Groom
Keyword(s):  
Conceptual Model ◽  
General Framework ◽  
Construction Grammar ◽  
Linguistic Theory ◽  
Research Traditions ◽  
Detailed Case ◽  
Cognitive Linguistic ◽  
Academic Discourses ◽  
The Way

Abstract Construction grammar (CxG) initially arose as a usage-based alternative to nativist theoretical accounts of language, and remains to this day strongly associated with cognitive linguistic theory and research. In this paper, however, I argue that CxG can be seen as offering an equally viable general framework for socially-oriented linguists whose work focuses on the corpus-based analysis of discourses (CBADs). The paper begins with brief reviews of CxG and CBADs as distinctive research traditions, before going on to identify synergies (both potential and actual) between them. I then offer a more detailed case study example, focusing on a usage-based analysis of a newly identified construction, the WAY IN WHICH construction, as it occurs in corpora representing six different academic discourses. The paper concludes by rebutting some anticipated objections to the approach advocated here, and by proposing a new conceptual model for constructionist approaches to CBADs.

Ellipsis in Head-Driven Phrase Structure Grammar

2018 ◽  
pp. 74-121
Author(s):  
Jonathan Ginzburg ◽  
Philip Miller
Keyword(s):  
Detailed Analysis ◽  
Semantic Information ◽  
Syntactic Structure ◽  
Phrase Structure ◽  
Phrase Structure Grammar ◽  
Argument Ellipsis ◽  
Alternative Version ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Syntactic Constraints ◽  
Broad Consensus

The chapter provides an overview of the types of analyses of elliptical phenomena that have been proposed in the literature on Head-Driven Phrase Structure Grammar (HPSG). First, it explains the central insights behind the analyses, which have concentrated on three classes of phenomena: (i) non-sentential utterances, (ii) argument or predicate ellipsis, and (iii) constructions involving unpronounced syntactic structure. HPSG is crucially non-modular. Constraints involving various levels can be easily stated, which benefits the framework for the analysis of ellipsis, because it allows one to express simultaneous semantic and syntactic constraints on ellipsis (explaining for instance the connectivity effects among non-sentential utterances) and provides means to integrate non-semantic information-information about the realization of utterances-into context. A more detailed discussion of the theory then follows. The chapter provides a more technically precise account of the syntax of argument ellipsis, an area which has received a considerable amount of analysis in HPSG, for which there is a broad consensus. Subsequently, more recent developments are introduced and a detailed analysis of non-sentential utterances is provided. In particular, we introduce an alternative version of HPSG, which allows the grammar to directly interface with dialogue context as conceived in the framework of KoS.

Discontinuous constituents or independent constructions?

2012 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 56-75 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tuomas Huumo ◽  
Jaakko Leino
Keyword(s):  
High School ◽  
Syntactic Structure ◽  
Construction Grammar ◽  
Intermediate Position ◽  
The Other ◽  
Cognitive Grammar ◽  
Grammatical Structure ◽  
The One ◽  
Formal Theories

In many formal theories of grammar, pairs of expressions such as the active and the passive are treated as variants of each other — the passive typically being a secondary construction derived from the active by operations that change the syntactic structure. Recent accounts based on Cognitive Grammar and Construction Grammar have questioned the validity of such an analysis, arguing that these “variants” are actually independent constructions with their own usage conditions and meaning. An important piece of evidence comes from so-called split constituents, discussed by Croft (2001: 191), who argues that expressions like A guy who I hadn’t seen since high school came in vs. A guy came in who I hadn’t seen since high school differ in their grammatical structure and usage. In this paper we discuss the Finnish split genitive construction where the assumed genitive modifier is separated from its head by intervening material, typically the finite verb. In many respects, the split genitive resembles constructions of external possession, but its range of usage is relatively limited, and in the grammatical system of Finnish it can be seen in an intermediate position between adnominal genitive constructions, on the one hand, and productive external possessor constructions based on local cases, on the other hand. Traditionally, the split genitive has been taken to be a discontinuous variant of a contiguous NP where the genitive is positioned next to its head. However, this study shows that the two constructions differ in pragmatic, semantic and grammatical terms. The split genitive construction is more limited in its usage, and it serves more specific semantic functions such as the topicalization of the genitive-marked element that carries the role of an experiencer. As in many external possessor constructions cross-linguistically, these constraints restrict the types of genitive modifiers that are available in the split genitive construction.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document