Descriptive Grammar
of English
Ed McCorduck
English 402--Grammar
SUNY Cortland
http://mccorduck.cortland.edu
slide 2: main units of analysis
• main units of analysis in descriptive grammar
o word
o phrase – made up of words or at least one word
o sentence – made up of phrases
English 402: Grammar
slide 3: main classes of words
• two main classes of words in descriptive grammar
o form classes
o structure classes
English 402: Grammar
slide 4: properties of form class words
o
form classes
 can change their form by adding an ending (a.k.a. an
inflection)
English 402: Grammar
slide 5: examples of form class endings
examples

nouns
dog – dogs
sissy – sissies
 verbs
take – taking

hurry – hurried
adjectives
hard – harder – hardest
fat – fatter – fattest
English 402: Grammar
slide 6: more features of form classes
 generally have a clear reference to something in the
“real” world
 occur in characteristic positions (a.k.a. slots) in
sentences
example
I saw the ______ .
noun
English 402: Grammar
slide 7: properties of structure class words
o
structure classes
 cannot change their form
 are closed classes (more words can’t be added to them)
(the form classes are open)
English 402: Grammar
slide 8: examples of structure classes and words
some structure classes:

prepositions
exx
in

through
beside
determiners
exx
a(n), the, this, those, my, their, many, each
English 402: Grammar