Title: Understanding Grammar and Grammatical Competence

Prepared by: Darlene Joy B. Onita, LPT

Subject: Advanced Grammar and Composition

Objectives:
• To explore the definitions of grammar
and grammatical competence.
• To understand their relevance in
language use and communication.
What is
Grammar comes
from the Greek
word, meaning
“craft of letters”.
Grammar is
the system of
rules that
govern the
structure of
sentences in
a language.
COMPONENTS
OF
GRAMMAR
COMPONENTS OF GRAMMAR
A. Phonology Speech sounds
System of word
B. Morphology
formation
Patterns of word
C. Syntax
arrangements
Literal meaning of the
D. Semantics
words
 PHONETICS

DEFINITION :

• The study of the

production, transmission and
reception of speech sounds.
What is an IPA
Chart?
- the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) was
invented in order to have a system in which there was
a one-to-one correspondence between each sound in
language and each phonetic symbol .
- a type of notation for various sounds used in
language.
 Main Branches of Phonetics
Main Branches of Phonetics
Auditory
Articulatory Acoustic
Phonetics
Phonetics Phonetics

-focuses on how the vocal -focuses on the -focuses on how

tract produces the physical properties listeners perceive the
sounds of language of the sounds of sounds of language
language
 PHONOLOGY
It is the scientific study of the sound system.
It pertains to the speaker’s knowledge of the sound system of a
particular language.
EXAMPLES :

In the English language, we

cannot have */ lp / at the But we have */ pl / in English with
beginning of the word, such words like
*lpay, *lpace, *lpague etc. *play, place, plague etc.
 PHONOLO
GY
The study and discovery of phonological rules.
Speed sound will change depending on its position in
various speech environments.
An example of one such rule
would be the understanding
EXAMPLE : that the words “eight” and
“butter” both have the letter
[t], but they are pronounced
differently based on the other
letters around them.
MORPHOLOG
Y
MORPHOLOGY is the branch of
linguistics that studies word
structures and forms of the words
in a language.
 TWO TYPES OF MORPHOLOGY
DERIVATIONAL
INFLECTIONAL MORPHOLOGY
MORPHOLOGY It refers to changes that
Is the functional or can be added to words
grammatical change in the to change their word
word. class or their original
meaning.
EXAMPLE EXAMPLE

Cat + s = Cats
Compete (verb)
Compete + ition =
Competition (noun)
MORPHEME is the building block of
morphology and is the smallest unit
of language that makes up the word
Types of Morphemes
Morphemes can be classified into two main types:
Free Morphemes: These can stand alone as words. For example, the
word "dog" is a free morpheme because it has meaning by itself.

Bound Morphemes: These cannot stand alone and must be

attached to other morphemes. For instance, the prefix "un-" in
"unhappy" or the suffix "-s" in "dogs" are bound morphemes
because they modify the meaning of the words they are attached to
Examples of Morphemes
•Free Morphemes:
• "cat"
• "run"
• "happy“

•Bound Morphemes:
• "un-" (as in "unbreakable")
• "-able" (as in "readable")
• "-s" (as in "cats" to indicate plural)
 TWO TYPES OF MORPHEMES

FREE MORPHEMES BOUND

MORPHEMES
A morpheme that can A morpheme that cannot
stand by itself. stand by itself.

EXAMPLE EXAMPLE
“dog” or “house” in
doghouse The “-s” in “dogs”
SYNTAX
 Definition
It is the order or arrangement of words and
phrases to form proper sentences. The most
basic syntax follows a subject + verb + direct
Exampl object formula
• Word order: The book is on the table.
e * Table book on the the.
• Agreement: subject and verb, determiner and noun
I want these books.
*I want this book

(*) asterisk before the sentence marks that SENTENCE is

UNGRAMMATICAL.
SEMANTICS
Semantics is the study of meaning in language,
focusing on how words, phrases, and sentences convey
meaning. There are several types of semantics, each
exploring different aspects of meaning.
 TYPES OF SEMANTICS
Formal Semantics
-this branch of
semantics utilizes Lexical Conceptual
symbolic logic, Semantics Semantics
philosophy, and
mathematics to -focuses on the –includes analysis
produce theories of both the
meaning of
of meanings for denotative (literal)
natural and words, and how
and connotative
artificial they are meaning of a word
languages. created as well as the
through connotative
Grammar Competence
• The mastery of the linguistic code. It is the ability to recognize lexical,
morphological, syntactical, and phonological features of a language
and to use these features effectively to interpret, encode, and decode
words and sentences.
• Grammatical competence is the ability to understand and express
meaning by producing and recognizing well-formed phrases and
sentence.
Nature of Grammar Competence
• It can be assumed that the grammatical competence in the context of
learning a foreign language is a set of theoretical knowledge (rules)
and language skills that are necessary and sufficient for students to
construct correct sentences, to understand them, to monitor
grammatical errors, to pass judgments about right and wrong
linguistic forms, and to perform language testing tasks.
 Key areas that fall under grammatical competence

 Sentence Structure
Definition: Sentence structure refers to the arrangement of words and
phrases to create meaningful sentences.
Types of Sentences:
Declarative: Statements that convey information (e.g., "The sky is blue.").
Interrogative: Questions that seek information (e.g., "What time is it?").
Imperative: Commands or requests (e.g., "Please close the door.").
Exclamatory: Sentences that express strong emotion (e.g., "What a
beautiful day!").

Importance: Understanding the different sentence types allows speakers to

express a variety of intentions and emotions effectively.
 Key areas that fall under grammatical competence
 Tense and Aspect
Definition: Tense indicates the time of an action, while aspect provides
information about the state or completion of that action.
Tense Types:
Present Tense: Describes current actions (e.g., "I walk to school.").
Past Tense: Describes actions that have already occurred (e.g., "I walked to
school.").
Future Tense: Describes actions that will occur (e.g., "I will walk to school.").
Aspect Types:
Simple Aspect: Indicates actions without additional information (e.g., "I eat.").
Continuous Aspect: Indicates ongoing actions (e.g., "I am eating.").
Perfect Aspect: Indicates completed actions (e.g., "I have eaten.").
Importance: Mastering tense and aspect allows speakers to communicate time-
related information clearly.
 Key areas that fall under grammatical competence

 Agreement
Definition: Agreement refers to the grammatical rule where subjects and
verbs (and nouns and pronouns) must match in number and person.
Types:
Subject-Verb Agreement: Singular subjects require singular verbs (e.g.,
"The dog barks"), while plural subjects require plural verbs (e.g., "The
dogs bark.").
Noun-Pronoun Agreement: Pronouns must match the nouns they refer to
in number and gender (e.g., "The girl lost her book" vs. "The boys lost
their books.").
Importance: Correct agreement enhances clarity and coherence in
communication.
 Key areas that fall under grammatical competence

Modifiers
Definition: Modifiers are words or phrases that provide additional
information about nouns and verbs.
Types:
Adjectives: Modify nouns (e.g., "The red apple.").
Adverbs: Modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs (e.g., "She
runs quickly.").
Placement: Modifiers usually appear close to the words they modify
to avoid ambiguity (e.g., "She only eats vegetables" vs. "Only she
eats vegetables").
Importance: Proper use of modifiers adds detail and precision to
language.
 Key areas that fall under grammatical competence
 Clauses and Phrases
Definition: Clauses are groups of words containing a subject and a verb, while
phrases are groups of words without a subject-verb component.
Types of Clauses:
Independent Clauses: Can stand alone as sentences (e.g., "She loves to
read.").
Dependent Clauses: Cannot stand alone and depend on independent clauses
(e.g., "Although she loves to read...").
Types of Phrases:
Noun Phrases: Act as subjects or objects (e.g., "The tall man").
Verb Phrases: Include the main verb and its auxiliaries (e.g., "has been
eating").
Importance: Understanding clauses and phrases helps in constructing complex
sentences and enhancing sentence variety.
 Key areas that fall under grammatical competence
Voice
Definition: Voice indicates the relationship between the action of the verb and
the participants in the sentence.
Types:
Active Voice: The subject performs the action (e.g., "The cat chased the
mouse.").
Passive Voice: The subject receives the action (e.g., "The mouse was chased
by the cat.").
Usage: Active voice is typically preferred for clarity and directness, while passive
voice can be used to emphasize the action or the recipient.
Importance: Knowing when to use active or passive voice affects the focus and
impact of the sentence.