Ways in which grammatical change has occured

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  • Created by: MRH__98
  • Created on: 25-05-16 20:49
How has grammatical change affected verbs?
The past tense of some irregular verbs used to be formed differently - over time the stem vowels have changed. Auxiliary verbs started to be used more in Late Modern English, affecting word order.
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How has grammatical change affected adjectives?
Comparative and superlative inflections exist in PDE as they did before. But in the 19th century superlatives like 'properest' were also grammatically acceptable. Double comparatives (combining comparative & superlatives) are no longer used.
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How has grammatical change affected nouns?
Nouns were capitalised more frequently until the 18th century. The definite article is now used less often with certain nouns.
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How has grammatical change affected syntax?
Since 1700, there's been a trend towards sentences being shorter and syntax has become less complicated. The number of subordinate clauses used in sentences has generally reduced and simpler punctuation tends to be used.
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How has grammatical change affected word order?
Use of auxiliary verbs has increased, impacting word order. Interrogatives didn't always include auxiliary verbs and were often formed with the verb at the start.
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How has grammatical change affected negative constructions?
In Present Day English, the negative 'not' is placed before a verb rather than after one. A dummy auxiliary is used, which isn't really necessary for the meaning of a phrase to be understood.
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How has grammatical change affected contractions?
Proclitic contractions (contractions at the start of words) are used less. Past participles are not contracted like before. Contraction is generally used less, particularly in formal texts.
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How has grammatical change affected double negatives?
Double negatives are now deemed grammatically incorrect and have consequently fallen out of use.
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How has grammatical change affected word functions?
Conversion has occured, converting nouns to verbs. Adjectives often take the place of adverbs.
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Card 2

Front

How has grammatical change affected adjectives?

Back

Comparative and superlative inflections exist in PDE as they did before. But in the 19th century superlatives like 'properest' were also grammatically acceptable. Double comparatives (combining comparative & superlatives) are no longer used.

Card 3

Front

How has grammatical change affected nouns?

Back

Preview of the front of card 3

Card 4

Front

How has grammatical change affected syntax?

Back

Preview of the front of card 4

Card 5

Front

How has grammatical change affected word order?

Back

Preview of the front of card 5
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