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Understanding English Grammar

3.7 out of 5 stars 9

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"Language is primarily a tool for communication, yet many textbooks still treat English grammar as simply a set of rules and facts to be memorised by rote. This new textbook is made for students who are frustrated with this approach and would like instead to understand grammar and how it works. Why are there two future tenses in English? What are auxiliaries and why are they so confusing? Why are English motion verbs hard to use? Why are determiners so important in English? These and many other frequently asked questions are answered in this handy guide. Student learning is supported with numerous exercises, chapter summaries and suggestions for further reading. An accompanying website offers further resources, including additional classroom exercises and a chance to interact with the author. It is the essential grammar toolkit for students of English language and linguistics and future teachers of English as a Second Language"--

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Editorial Reviews

Review

'A superb introduction to English syntax, its internal variation and typological background, combining rigorous argumentation with a functional approach.' Bernard Comrie, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology and University of California, Santa Barbara

About the Author

Thomas E. Payne is a Research Associate in the Department of Linguistics at the University of Oregon.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Cambridge University Press (December 9, 2010)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 452 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0521757118
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0521757119
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.14 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7.49 x 0.83 x 9.6 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    3.7 out of 5 stars 9

About the author

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Thomas Edward Payne
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My central professional interest is in facilitating the preparation of descriptive materials (grammars, dictionaries and text collections) of the many underdescribed languages of the world. My main job currently is International Linguistics Consultant for SIL International. My personal website can be found at http://pages.uoregon.edu/tpayne.

Current estimates are that about 3,000 of the 6,000 or so natural human languages now spoken will become extinct during the present century, unless some positive action is taken. When a language dies without written records, all potential for enriching human experience embodied in the oral tradition and wisdom of that culture is lost forever. Many have argued that the loss of diversity that language extinction represents is a scientific and human tragedy.

Though no language will survive unless speakers themselves want it to, descriptive linguistics is an essential component of any program of language documentation and preservation. The mere existence of a good dictionary and grammatical description confers a certain status on a language that may have previously been considered to be of little importance, by speakers and non speakers alike. Furthermore, the products of descriptive linguistic research constitute part of the reference material necessary to develop indigenous educational materials and written literature. Good linguistic research communicates to minority language speakers and to surrounding groups that the minority language is worthy of respect.

Finally, from a scientific perspective, good linguistic descriptions constitute the raw data for much research into the organization of the human mind. The tension between universality and diversity of language constitutes the subject matter for the science of linguistics. The central questions are: "How are all languages alike?" and "What are the limits to their variation?" Needless to say, from this perspective, a corpus of reliable and usable data from as many languages as possible is essential. With every language that becomes extinct, the potential data source for this enterprise becomes narrower.

Linguistics is a technical field with a very human face -- it appeals both to "techies" and "fuzzies." While languages exhibit a great deal of regularity and predictability, they are always subject to the idiosyncracy and originality that accompany any human social phenonenon. If you are a student looking for an undergraduate major, I would encourage you to take an introductory linguistics class. But don't stop there. Be sure to take at least a couple of more advanced courses. Even as learning a second language can be difficult at first, so linguistics can seem overwhelming -- until you get in "deep enough for the fun"!

Customer reviews

3.7 out of 5 stars
3.7 out of 5
9 global ratings

Top review from the United States

Reviewed in the United States on October 22, 2014
I was looking for an introduction to Linguistics and this fit the bill. Well written book with clear explanations and good examples.
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Octavio Alonso González
1.0 out of 5 stars Pésima impresión y papel de baja calidad
Reviewed in Mexico on September 15, 2020
Hace un par de años compré una edición de este libro con tapa blanda. El papel era de buena calidad y la impresión era a color.

Esta nueva impresión que acabo de recibir (septiembre 2020) es de baja calidad. La calidad de papel bajó muchísimo y el libro está impreso en escala de grises.

¡Qué lamentable que ediciones de Cambridge tengan tan baja calidad!
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Octavio Alonso González
1.0 out of 5 stars Pésima impresión y papel de baja calidad
Reviewed in Mexico on September 15, 2020
Hace un par de años compré una edición de este libro con tapa blanda. El papel era de buena calidad y la impresión era a color.

Esta nueva impresión que acabo de recibir (septiembre 2020) es de baja calidad. La calidad de papel bajó muchísimo y el libro está impreso en escala de grises.

¡Qué lamentable que ediciones de Cambridge tengan tan baja calidad!
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書斎
5.0 out of 5 stars 上級者向けの優れた文法書
Reviewed in Japan on September 1, 2017
Valence theory, participant reference, complementationなどの英語学の知識を要求されるレベルのやや高い文法書である。その分類書にない、あるいは類書以上の情報が得られる。たとえば、与格移動が可・不可の一覧表は評者には大きな収穫だった(数例あげた程度の文法書ははいくらでもある)
与格移動が可の動詞:give (e.g. give her the money), hand, tell, show, get, lend, find, make, build, fling, toss, haul, bowl, pitch, heave, lob, fetch, roll, shoot, roll, sling, push, kick etc.
与格移動が不可の動詞
donate (e.g. * donate her the money), distribute, recount, explain, express, demonstrate, reveal, expose, project, purchase, obtain, acquire, contribute, discover, assemble, construct, catapult, propel etc.
もちろん、いつも可・不可のようにきれいに分かれるものではない。 ネイティブスピーカーによって意見が分かれるときもある(特にexplain)。大まかに言えるのは、多音節語は与格移動を許さない傾向にあるということである。『ジーニアス英和辞典』第5版にはHe purchased a Cadillac for his mother.(彼は母親のためにキャデラックを買った)の例あるが、語法注記に「*He purchased his mother a Cadillacとはいわない(→buy1b)」を加えれば完璧だろう。
有益な書である。一読をお薦めする。
One person found this helpful
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Luiz Montezuma
2.0 out of 5 stars Apenas para linguistas
Reviewed in Brazil on March 16, 2015
Livro muito teórico, de pouca utilidade para aqueles que não tem grande conhecimento da língua inglesa. O texto apresentado na Amazon para introduzir o livro não é adequado. Se fosse o caso de recomendá-lo, acredito que talvez possa ter utilidade para professores de inglês de cursos de nível avançado.