Questions tagged [inflectional-morphology]
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57
questions
2
votes
3answers
78 views
Can “Targetings” be a plural form of “Targeting” as a noun?
I understand words like "surrounding" can be "surroundings", or "binding" can be "bindings".
But is it appropriate with "targeting" as a noun?
Here is a recent headline - "UN chief calls for probe ...
1
vote
1answer
46 views
A Inquiry About Infinitive-To and Its Role As A Subordinator or An Auxiliary
If you're interested in grammar, as I am, I am sure you have delved into a thought process about infinitive to, and like me, you have probably questioned what it is, or what it could be defined as. My ...
5
votes
5answers
984 views
What is the grammatical term for “‑ed” words like these?
In English we say things like:
a calibrated device
a distributed product
a founded company
a destroyed house
Those ‑ed words there all signify that some verb (here respectively cali...
4
votes
1answer
452 views
He/Him/His VS She/Her/Her
How did her become the female equivalent of both him and his instead of only being a possessive pronoun like his? Is there a reason?
For example:
She likes him and his dog.
He likes her and her dog.
3
votes
1answer
102 views
Shouldn't “some of the phenomenon” be plural?
The paragraph:
Our team conducts fundamental research in Philosophy, trying to push
the boundaries of what is possible with new techniques, and also trying
to understand and formalize some of ...
2
votes
1answer
297 views
Why do 'vomit/limit' use single 't' while emit/omit use double 't'? A study case of relations between etymology and verb inflections
One comment gave me a great link for musing the answer: "Focussed" or "focused"? Rules for doubling the last consonant when adding -ed
However, my question is the rule in doubling ...
-2
votes
1answer
125 views
What is the difference between -en and {-en} in morphology notation?
So there is this question of the example:
The referee has blown his whistle many times today.
The question of the example above is, "What type of allomorph is in the past participle form of the word ...
1
vote
2answers
412 views
Why isn't 'oranger' correct even though it follows being a one- or two-syllable word for adding the comparative inflection?
So 'orange' is either can be a one- or two-syllable word, however it would incorrect to say something is "oranger". But why?
It follows the rule of being adding the comparative {-er} but it is not ...
6
votes
4answers
4k views
Is the correct pronunciation of “Have you seen Mary's book” “Mary book”?
So there is this question about the pronunciation of the noun possessive inflection.
A certain text states that a zero allomorph is used by certain American English speakers for the noun possessive ...
3
votes
1answer
79 views
Be we all here?
The passage below is taken from Life's Little Ironies by Thomas Hardy. My question concerns "Now be we all here?". I understand that it means "Now are we all here?". The writer might have left the ...
6
votes
3answers
1k views
Insight into the pronunciation of the word algae?
Can anyone provide some insight into the pronunciation of the word algae? Various dictionaries give either the /g/ version as in gear or the /dʒ/ version as in jeep. For example:
https://dictionary....
3
votes
1answer
115 views
Morphology, conversion type confusion! [closed]
I am currently doing an assignment. I am having difficulty understanding this phenomenon.
If the verb "taking" is in a passage would it be considered a conversion process, as "taking" can also be a ...
2
votes
1answer
1k views
Is “-ed” an inflectional or derivational morpheme in “the stressed syllables”?
In the word "stressed" in the following sentence, is the -ed an Inflectional or a Derivational suffix? Would you please explain to me why?
The sentence is:
This is one of the stressed syllables.
...
2
votes
4answers
291 views
Does the “-s” change the word class of “it”? [closed]
The word it is a pronoun. When I add an s to it, does it change the word class?
For example in the following sentence:
The gift is still in its box.
My questions are:
Does the "S" change ...
0
votes
2answers
5k views
Is it correct to say “You be the best”? [closed]
This phrase is in constant use by many lately , just to appreciate a person in something.
But I personally feel there's some problem in this - "You are the best" makes better sense.
Is this even ...
27
votes
6answers
11k views
Is it true that English has no future tense?
I'm a native English speaker and I consider myself to have a very competent understanding of English grammar.
Recently, I have started believing that there is no future tense in English grammar.
...
0
votes
3answers
358 views
Differentiating between verb-ing and gerunds [duplicate]
In sentences like, "I'm dying to get to you and "I'm learning to live again" and "i was preparing to go for surgery when you called" what are "dying", "learning" and "preparing" functioning as? Are ...
2
votes
1answer
293 views
Third person present and past in King James Bible
I am currently reading the Gospel According to John in a King James Version of the Bible, and I cannot understand the use of the third person singular in some of the verses:
1:38 Then Jesus turned, ...
2
votes
1answer
398 views
Why do we need different auxiliary verbs (“is”, “are”, “am”) for different pronouns? [duplicate]
What is the purpose of having different auxiliary verbs ("is", "are", "am") for different pronouns ("He", "You", "I"...) instead of simply using "is" for all pronouns?
It seems like the pronoun always ...
2
votes
2answers
276 views
Does being in the accusative case guarantee the existence of a direct object?
I want to clear this matter up once and for all. Even though I have already asked a few questions on the site related to the nominative case and the accusative case, I still get confused by one ...
2
votes
0answers
80 views
When did the South start using the +es third person, present tense verb inflection in Middle English?
In Middle English the Northern speakers started using the +es inflection whilst the South continued to use the Old English form +eð/+eth. When did the South finally catch up with the North and use the ...
0
votes
2answers
683 views
Why is it “Who be ye?” and not “Who are ye?” in archaic forms of English?
When I was looking for “ye” in a dictionary, I stumbled upon the phrase “Who be ye?”. But why is it “Who be ye?” and not “Who are ye?”? The modern equivalent of “ye” would be “you”, wouldn’t it? “Who ...
8
votes
1answer
2k views
Logical/Etymological reason for unique conjugation of third person singular present tense
In most English verbs, there is a consistent pattern in the conjugation of present and past tense. For past tense, the same inflection is used for each grammatical person, but in present tense, third ...
3
votes
0answers
94 views
Rules for pronuciation [closed]
What are the pronunciation rules for words ending with the 's" sound ? I simply can not remember these rules and can not seem to find the answer in any of my text books. Can anyone by chance help or ...
0
votes
1answer
395 views
How does the pronunciation change in verbs that end with “‑e” or “‑ie” for their “‑ing” forms?
How do you pronounce the ‑ing forms of verbs that originally end with -e or ‑ie?
Although the rules for writing such verbs that end with ‑e or ‑ie are сlear:
make > making (take off "-e" + "‑ing")
...
1
vote
1answer
543 views
categories of verb inflections
Hi I'm working on a software project for work that inflects english words into their various derived forms. e.g. work (verb) -> works, working, worked. My main problem at the moment is that I need to ...
2
votes
1answer
583 views
Use of -s at the end of verb when using ”would”? [closed]
I want to know how the -s is supposed to be used with she/he/it + would.
While trying to say that it would be great for someone/something to allow something, I came up with this sentence, which I ...
1
vote
2answers
1k views
After third person pronouns: verbs with or without “-s”? (special case involving “if”)
I don't know what's going on with me lately. I've never had this question before and it was never an issue for me while writing something but two weeks ago I started to think about whether I should ...
1
vote
0answers
165 views
One dare not disobey? [duplicate]
When a mystery is too overpowering, one dare not disobey.
This is a sentence from The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. I am not sure why dare is in the infinitive, not the third person ...
0
votes
1answer
58 views
Recoined is it a real word? [closed]
'coined' is past tense of 'coin'
Is recoined a real word? It is not listed in Oxford dictionary.
4
votes
2answers
279 views
How do native speakers know which morphological variations are possible in cases where word-evidence is sparse?
In this interesting answer to a 4 year old question (which, ironically, I found by browsing unpopular questions on Meta), we find this tidbit:
Just as in Japanese, not only is the "non-native" ...
-1
votes
1answer
390 views
Replacing proper noun “-y” suffix to match plural case [duplicate]
For a proper noun, in this case let's say Morty, would one replace the "-y" suffix when using the plural case with "-ies" or keep it as an unaltered "-ys"?
-1
votes
1answer
176 views
List of English word subjunctives
I'm working on a word cloud application and thought it would be useful to group different forms of the same word together. For example, "rides", "ride", "riding", and "rode" would all be grouped as "...
10
votes
2answers
18k views
Can adjectives get plural s?
Are the following sentences correct grammatically?
1- The war had two hundred woundeds. (And not wounded soldiers)
2- There are two modals in that sentence. (And not modal verbs)
That is, can we ...
2
votes
2answers
1k views
Difference between gerund and present participle [duplicate]
What is the difference between a gerund and present participle? When should we use a gerund and when should we use a present participle ?
31
votes
3answers
174k views
“Programming” versus “programing”: which is preferred?
I was surprised that my spell checker did not complain for programing with one m, so I Googled it, and found on free dictionaries that both forms were acceptable.
Which one is more common? Does it ...
asked May 4 '15 at 7:11
Ciro Santilli 新疆改造中心996ICU六四事件
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3
votes
1answer
1k views
What purpose does third-person verb conjugation serve or used to serve?
There is one thing in English that doesn't make sense to me: adding 's' (or 'es') to verbs when the subject is a third person. It seems redundant and adds no extra information to the sentence.
"I ...
2
votes
2answers
1k views
Why is “be” the only English verb that inflects for grammatical person, not just for grammatical number like all the rest of them?
Why do we say “I am a teacher” instead of “I is a teacher” considering that I is a singular pronoun not a plural pronoun? Don’t singulars always take -s forms? Why does be work differently?
0
votes
3answers
600 views
I keep on finding exceptions of the rule that changes from present tense to past [closed]
I keep on finding exceptions that doesn't fit into the rule that a grammar book suggests.
One of them is about changing regular verbs to past simple.
It says, if the verb ends in a vowel + a ...
-1
votes
1answer
167 views
The word foresaw and its morphemes
I need help with the word foresaw. I know that the morphemes for foresaw are {fore} and {saw} but what kind of morpehmes are they (derivational/inflection) and what are their category and function
2
votes
1answer
23k views
When to use more or -er [duplicate]
Is there a rule as to when I use "more" in a sentence or "-er"? For example, "I think it would be more fun/funner if we stayed home tonight." I know the correct usage in this sentence but is there a ...
2
votes
3answers
39k views
What’s the opposite of “wider”? [closed]
What is the opposite of wide and wider?
For instance, is the corresponding opposite to sentence one below really sentence two?
The Ipad2 is wider than the iPad Air.
The iPad Air is narrower than ...
5
votes
1answer
115k views
Plural of table leaf
In the context of a table leaf, what is the correct plural term, "table leafs" or "table leaves"?
24
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4answers
303k views
Conundrum: “cleverer” or “more clever”, “simpler” or “more simple” etc
I know the rule for making the comparative and superlative form for two-syllable words
ending in y, replace the -y with i and use -er and -est:
hap.py → happier → (the) happiest
ti.dy → tidier → (...
3
votes
5answers
2k views
In how many inflectional forms can a verb be written English?
I want to know the number of inflectional forms of a verb.
I came to know from one of my colleagues that a verb has 13 inflectional forms ('conjugations,' that's what he named it). Is it true?
0
votes
1answer
156 views
Is the expression “What hath alienators wrought” correct, concordance-wise? [duplicate]
I have seen the phrase "What hath alienators wrought" in the name of an article. Searching throught the web I learned that "hath" is the version of "has" in old English, but in the singular case (...
1
vote
3answers
1k views
Usage of third person form for first person
Recently, I discovered the following sentence in a Terry Pratchett book (which was not a typing error, since it appeared several times):
I sees what he's doing.
Presumably, the wrong usage of the ...
12
votes
5answers
22k views
Is “criterions” a valid plural for “criterion”?
Is criterions a valid plural for criterion?
Dictionary.com says it is, but Oxford does not confirm or reject it.
0
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4answers
10k views
Why does the 3rd-person of verbs that end in -y follow the rule for plural nouns instead of verbs?
I don’t understand why the 3rd-person of verbs that end in -y such as cry, try, or fly follow the rule for pluralizing nouns like fly. Why do they become cries, tries, and flies instead of crys, trys, ...
10
votes
4answers
31k views
Pluralization of names
If I were to use the sentence "There are lots of John Smiths" in the world, would that be the correct use for saying that there are a lot of people named John Smith in the world?
I don't think there ...
