“Do you long for a world where linguistics is a popular sport? Here is a chart of hand signals used by syntax referees in that better world.” [Cascadilla Press via Book of Joe]
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“Do you long for a world where linguistics is a popular sport? Here is a chart of hand signals used by syntax referees in that better world.”

[Cascadilla Press via Book of Joe]

Commas in action.
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Commas in action.

Linguistics Micro Lesson: Prescriptive Grammar vs. Descriptive Grammar

In linguistics we often focus on descriptive grammar. This means that we describe how language is actually used by people when speaking or writing. Think of it as someone listening to people speak at a cafe and taking notes on how they say things.

This contrasts with prescriptive grammar that states how a language “should” be spoken or written. This is what most of us think of when we hear the word “grammar.” Think of it as English class lessons when you were in grade school.

Here’s an example of the same basic sentence as you’d see it in descriptive and prescriptive grammars:

  • Descriptive: Who are you going to invite to the party? (This is what people actually say)
  • Prescriptive: Whom are you going to invite to the party? (This is what people “should” say)
The mere fact that a sentence is long does not make it a run-on sentence; sentences are run-ons only when they lack proper separation between independent clauses, so the writer who is vigilant in the use of appropriate punctuation and sentence construction will violate no usage rule limiting the number of independent clauses that may be assembled in a single sentence, though stylistic concerns and a desire not to emulate the excesses of Edward Bulwer-Lytton and other profligate wordsmiths may suggest a certain prudence and counsel a sensible limitation of verbiage within the span of two periods, such as is not evidenced in this overlong, but nonetheless technically correct and run-on-free sentence.
From Wikipedia’s Run-on sentence page. Awesome.

English Double Contractions

A list of those lovely words in English like he’sn’t, they’d’ve, y’all’re, and many more.

Language Learning Foundations: The Infinitive

[This is the first in a series of short posts about things you should know that will help you learn languages faster and easier. These posts will discuss words and concepts that language-learning materials often mention but not always define.]

The infinitive form of a verb is the verb in its most basic form, without any grammatical inflection or conjugation. It’s the form of the verb as you’d see it in the dictionary.

Examples:

  • English: to eat (the “to” in English marks our infinitive)
  • Spanish: comer (-er, -ir, -ar suffixes mark infinitives)
  • Russian: кушать (-ть or -ти suffixes mark infinitives)

Note that since not all languages use verb conjugation, the concept is more necessary to understand in some languages than others. Chinese verbs, for example, do not change for tense or person; Chinese verbs don’t conjugate. Instead, adverbs (e.g., “yesterday”) and other additional words supply the necessary context.