英语语法总论

这是一篇读书笔记，读的是 TKT ^[1] 的 Unit 1 Grammar。

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语法理论

1. 语法描述了「人们是如何使用语言的」。
   Grammar refer to how we combine, organise and change parts of words, words and groups of words to make meaning.

2. 语法结构描述了「词汇如何组织成一种语言」。
   Grammatical forms (语法结构,语言的组织形式) refer to how words are made up and presented in speech or writing.

3. 我们可以通过 词性、句子结构 和 构词法 来理解「词汇是如何组织成语言的」。
   We can identify grammatical forms in parts of speech, grammatical structures and words that contain prefixes and suffixes.

4. 词性(词类)决定了「词汇能够以何种身份出现在句子中」。
   A part of speech or word class describes how words behave in sentences.
   一种词性/词类 (a part of speech or word class) 指代那些在句中具有相同语法功能的一类词构成的集合。例如，名词是一类词，其中的每个词都可以在句子中充当主语或宾语；形容词也是一类词，其中大部分词既可以在句中充当表语、也可以在句中充当定语，其中有的词只能充当表语，有的词只能充当定语。

有时候，一类词的长相会发生变化，当这类词表达一些略微有差别的意思的时候。例如，对 old 这个可分级形容词 (graded adjective) 来说，old 是原级，older 是比较级，oldest 是最高级。
The form of some parts of speech varies according to the function the parts of speech have in sentence.

5. 我们还可以通过句子结构来识别语言的组织形式。
   We also see different grammatical forms in a grammatical structure (句子结构,语言结构), i.e. the arrangement of words into patterns which have meaning. We find grammatical structures not just in different forms of the parts of speech but also at the level of sentences, phrases and clauses.

• 构词法跟词性有关，因而也可以被看作语法的讨论范围。
  We can also talk about how words are formed through the use of two kinds of important way in which English forms words is through the use of two kinds of affixes (词缀): prefixes and suffixes.

• 一堆词汇，只有结构化成句子，才能传递信息。
  Grammatical uses refer to how grammatical structures are used to convey (or communicate) meaning. A particular grammatical structure does not always have the same meaning. Its meaning or use comes from the context in which it is used.

语法教学者，谨记：

1. 注意，语法一直在使用中发生着变化。
   Grammar rules describe the way that language works, but language changes over time, so grammar rules are not fixed. They change, too. But grammar rules and grammar books don't always change as quickly as the language, so they are not always up-to-date. Teachers need to keep up-to-date with what parts of the language are changing and how.

• 注意，学习语法并不是对每一个第二语言学习者都有帮助。
  Learning some grammatical rules and terms makes language learning easier for some learners. Other language learners, e.g. young children, may not find it useful at all.

• 注意，语言的主要价值在于使用它。
  How to communicate is the main purpose of language. So, much language teaching nowaday focuses on functions, language skills, fluency and communication.

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下图是根据「第1单元 FOLLOW-UP ACTIVITIES 第2题」画出的词汇树 (vocabulary trees)。

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1. The TKT Course: Modules 1, 2 and 3 (2nd edition; 2011).　TKT = Teaching Knowledge Test (剑桥英语教学能力认证考试). ↩