2.2.2. Classes of word groups

Word groups (WG) are classified according to the class of word operating as the main (or 'head') element:

Nominal Groups (NG) wonderful films by Fellini

Verbal Groups (VG) is going to return

Adjectival Groups (AdjG) very good at languages

Adverbial Groups (AdvG) more fluently than before

Units such as groups, which centre round one main element and proto-typically cannot be omitted, are said to be 'endocentric'. However, there is the fifth type of a word group that is recognized as a group structure which is not endocentric, but 'exocentric' (that is, consisting of two elements neither of which is subordinate to the other). This is the Prepositional Group (PrepG) as in just around the corner, in the neighborhood, etc.

In an endocentric structure, the main element can replace the whole structure: cf. films, good and fluently can have the same syntactic functions as the whole group. In a PrepG, by contrast, neither the preposition (e.g. round) nor its completive (e.g. the corner) can have the same syntactic functions as the whole unit round the corner. However, since the two elements combine to function as a single element, we are justified in giving the combination the grammatical status of a 'group'. Moreover, since it is the preposition which characterizes this particular combination of words, it is regarded as the main element and uses its name to label the group.

2.2.3. Classes of words

Words are classified grammatically into classes of noun, verb, adjective, adverb, preposition, pronoun, article and conjunction, etc. Each group is characterized with some common features that differentiate one class from another. Words are made up of morphemes, and their constitutional structure may vary from a one to four or five components. Belonging to different grammatical classes words are characterized by formal grammatical markers together with general (categorial) meanings: for ex. the ending –s /es marks the grammatical meaning of plurality added to the main (lexical) part of English nouns and singularity for English verbs (3^rd p. sing.) whereas the suffixes –ous, -ful, -y, etc. present quality in English adjectives. Each class of words may be viewed as a unity of sub-classes with differentiating categorial feature: for ex. a class of nouns represents various types of substance and consists of sub-classes of proper and common nouns, concrete, abstract, collective etc., each class having a slightly or evidently serious differences in grammatical properties. It’s important to mention that each class of words is characterized by specificity of word-formation patterns and a set of morphological pattern.

2.2.4. Classes of morphemes

The morpheme is considered to be an abstract category which has a lexical or/and grammatical meaning (or their combination) and is represented in a set of forms that perform different functions within the word structure (e.g. roots, affixes, flexions). As it has been indicated, a word is viewed as consisting from a lexical morpheme with one or more affixal ones, for ex. effects can be considered as formed from the lexical morpheme {effect} + the {plural} morpheme. These abstract categories are embodied in morphs such as effect and -s, the actual segments of written and spoken language, respectively. Since the further study of words and morphemes takes us out of syntax and morphology into phonology, the scope of this course does not allow for further treatment of these units.