How French works
Grammar is the traditional term referring to the rules that govern our use of language. Grammar can be divided into two main areas. The first is the study of word structure, which looks at those units within words which have an effect on its meaning. This area is called morphology and the units or morphemes are the most elemental unit of grammatical form. For example, in the word conditional the morpheme -al changes the noun condition into an adjective . Alternatively, in the word conditions the morpheme -s changes the noun from singular to plural . This type of morpheme coming at the end of a word is called a suffix . A morpheme can also feature at the beginning of a word (as in unconditional), in which case it is called a prefix.
The second area of grammar is the study of sentence structure, which looks at the role that words play within a sentence. This area is called syntax, and is the focus of this unit.
When we talk or write, we do not think in terms of grammar, parts of speech and so on, but in terms of meaning. Grammar is simply a sort of code, a way in which we arrange words so that we can express our thoughts in written or spoken form usually for communicative purposes. We use grammar because we wish to express something; meaning motivates grammar, not the other way round. Consequently, in order to understand the structures underlying language (i.e. grammar) it is important first to gain an understanding of the structures underlying the meaning of language.
When in speech or in writing we make observations about the world about us or express our inner feelings, we tend to do so in portions of information called propositions, each containing one fundamental idea. For example, imagine a scenario the essential action of which could be described in the sentence The postman is walking up the path. Such a scenario could be said to contain a single proposition, one which relates the postman, the path and activity of walking.
Central to any proposition is the unit of information within it relating to what is called process. For example in the scenario the process involved is the activity of walking. However, the process involved in a proposition need not only relate to a physical activity, but can also relate to a mental activity (as with said in I said the postman is walking up the path), or else it can have a linking function (as with is in the sentence the letter is on the table).
Naturally, this process cannot happen on its own. All processes need a participant causing the process to happen, as with the postman in The postman is walking up the path. This participant is called the actor. All propositions then, must have an actor and a process.
Most propositions also include other units of information. Some contain one or more participants which are directly or indirectly affected by the process. These are called the affected participants. For example, in the sentence The postman gave me the letter, both me and the letter are affected participants. Some propositions contain units of information serving to describe the actor or affected participant. These are called attributes. For example, in the sentence The letter was interesting, interesting is an attribute. Finally some propositions contain units of information serving to give information about the circumstances in which the process is happening, as with up the path in The postman is walking up the path.
How, then, does this relate to language and its underlying grammatical structures? The words mentioned above are all semantic terms, that is they relate to meaning. Now the linguistic terms with which most people are familiar are those such as noun , adjective and adverb that serve to categorize words according to their grammatical characteristics. These are most commonly called parts of speech (see section 4 below). But grammar also has a set of terms which tell us not what a word is, but what it does in any given sentence. Amongst these terms are the five clause elements and these correspond very closely to the semantic functions outlined above:
| Semantic function (Proposition) | Syntactical function (Clause) |
|---|---|
| Actor | Subject |
| Process | Verb phrase |
| Affected participant | Object |
| Attribute | Complement |
| Circumstances | Adverbial |
A clause is a specific pattern of linguistic elements comprising at least a subject and a verb, and usually also an object, complement or adverbial.
The subject is the element of a clause about which something is presented. For example, in the sentence I gave the money to my mother, the pronoun I is the subject of the verb gave.
The verb phrase is one or a group of verbs that expresses the action or state of that which is being presented about the subject . For example, in the sentence I gave the money to my mother, gave is the verb, expressing the action carried out by the subject I. For information about the difference between a verb and a verb phrase, see 5:1.
A direct object is one which experiences the direct action of a verb: in the sentence I gave the money to my mother, the money is the direct object of the verb gave.
An indirect object is one indicating the recipient or beneficiary of the action of a verb and its direct object. In English an indirect object is usually introduced by the preposition to: in the sentence I gave the money to my mother, my mother is the indirect object of the verb gave. In French an indirect object is introduced by the preposition à or de or is replaced by an indirect object pronoun.
A subject, direct object or indirect object of a sentence can consist of:
A complement is an element of a clause that expresses a characteristic of or which mirrors the subject or object . It follows verbs such as to be, to become or to appear which are called linking verbs (they can also be called intensive or copular verbs). For example, in the sentence Sara is a teacher, the noun teacher is a complement (and not the direct object ) of the verb is.
More generally, the term complement is used to mean a word, phrase or clause which is added to another word, phrase or clause to complete or modify the sense.
For example, in the sentence He threw the ball against the window, the word ball is the direct object complement (more usually called the direct object) of the verb threw. In the same sentence the word window serves to complement the preposition against, combining with it to form the adverbial against the window.
In French the term complément is commonly used in this sense, e.g. direct / indirect object = complément d'objet direct / indirect or COD / COI.
An adverbial is the element of a clause that describes the circumstances in which the action of the verb in its clause occurs. For example, in the sentence I gave the money to my mother on Monday after I had gone to the bank, the words on Monday form an adverbial phrase and after I had gone to the bank an adverbial clause . The adverbial is the only clause element that can be repeated.
As has been mentioned above, parts of speech are categories of words which tell us what a word is, that is how it behaves in general. There are eight fundamental parts of speech:
A noun is a word which names an entity such as a person, thing, place, substance or state.
A verb is a word such as to give or to be which can serve either to express a process such as an action or state, or else to modify another verb by giving information regarding tense (I will go) aspect (he is standing), voice (she was informed) or mood (you must hurry).
An adjective is a word that gives information about a noun . Most often adjectives indicate a quality possessed by a noun, and these are called qualificative adjectives. For example, in the phrase the red book, the qualificative adjective red modifies the noun book. The remaining adjectives fall under the category of determiner (see below).
An adverb is a word that can modify most parts of speech apart from a noun :
A determiner is a word appearing before a noun that gives information about the scope of reference of that noun. They include the articles the and a, and certain non-qualificative adjectives:
A pronoun is a word which stands in the place of a noun or something that functions as a noun. It can be:
A preposition is a word that is placed in front of a noun phrase or infinitive (hence the term preposition, meaning "placing in front of") and which expresses the relationship between the noun phrase or infinitive and the rest of the sentence.
Prepositions have two basic functions. First (usually involving to or of) to provide a transparent link between two words, as in to manage to do or the rate of inflation. And second to express a distinct relationship between a noun phrase or pronoun and the rest of its sentence (as in He put the book on the table).
A conjunction is a word like but, and or because that connects words, phrases or clauses.
Sometimes parts of speech can function like other parts of speech. For example in both English and in French nouns often function as adjectives:
a career profile
un profil de carrière
Verbs often function as nouns:
Managing a company is not easy
Diriger une entreprise n'est pas facile
And in French especially, adjectives often function as nouns:
- Laquelle des deux robes préfères-tu ? - Je préfère la brune
- Which of the two dresses do you prefer ? - I prefer the brown one
It is sometimes useful to illustrate the structure of a sentence by means of a diagram. Through diagramming a sentence for both parts of speech and clause elements it is possible to see clearly the differences between the two sets of terms:
