Semantics - Sentences as arguments

1. Sentences as Arguments

2. 1. Full statement clauses
2. Question clauses
3. Infinitive clauses
4. Gerund clauses
5. Non-factual clauses
6. Verbal nouns
7. Comparing types of clauses
8. Syntactic ambiguity
Sentences
as
Arguments

3. Sentences
as
Arguments
Predicates that have embedded sentences as a
theme include the following, those that express:
a) knowledge or ignorance of a possible fact
Ivan KNOWS (that) we are here.
(b) an attitude or orientation toward a fact or possible fact
Jean is DISAPPOINTED (that) you can’t join us.
c) causing, allowing, or preventing the occurrence of a fact
Jerry HAD the barber trim his mustache.
(d) perception of a fact
I SAW Mr Hall come out of the garage.
(e) saying something about a fact or possible fact
Lily SAYS (that) she’ll be a little late.
(f) the beginning, continuing, or termination of a possible event
Suddenly it STARTED to rain.

4. 1. Full Statement Clauses
The clause is introduced by the meaningless word that, which may or may not be present. The rest of the clause,
following that, is identical with a sentence standing alone

5. Full
Statement
Clauses
Ivan knows the answer.
Ivan knows (that) we are here.
Sally forgot her appointment.
Sally forgot (that) Sara was waiting for her.
The judges announced their decision to the eager contestants.
The judges announced to the eager contestants that they had reached a
decision.
Sentence Structures:

6. Full
Statement
Clauses
What is a full clause?
• Subject pronoun as subject
I-he-she-we-they, not me- him-her-us-them,
• Full possibility of verb modifications
Adjectives may have a clause as complement, in which
case the preposition disappears.
We weren’t aware (that) the meeting had been canceled.
Jean is disappointed (that) you can’t join us.
I’m sorry (that) the election involved so few real issues.

7. Full
Statement
Clauses
Some other adjectives that can be followed by a clause (with the
preposition dropping out):
afraid-of, aware-of, (un)certain-about, confident-of, disappointed-in, doubtful-
of/about and sure-of
Structure of sentences that can be followed by a clause:
Jean is disappointed (that) you can’t join us.

8. Full
Statement
Clauses
Clauses can also occur in subject position. Let’s start again with noun
phrases that can be replaced by clauses.
• That Jean came to the party surprised everybody.
• It surprised everybody that Jean came to the party.
• That Mr. Goodson remembers so many things is unbelievable.
• It is unbelievable that Mr. Goodson remembers so many things.

9. 2. Question Clauses
Questions, as well as statements, are embedded in other sentences. They may be information questions or yes-no
questions.

10. Question
Clauses
1. Information questions, as in the following examples:
• I wonder when the concert was. (When was the concert?)
• Robert doesn’t know what time it is. (What time is it?)
• Do you remember where you put the tickets? (Where did you put
the tickets?)
• He asked me when the concert was

11. Question
Clauses
2. A yes-no question. The word that introduces the embedded clause is if,
which, unlike that, is not deletable.
• I doubt if George knows the answer. (Does George know the answer?)
• Please tell us if you feel ill. (Do you feel ill?)
A yes-no question may present two or more alternatives:
• Will your friends stay or leave?
When such an alternative question is embedded, it is introduced with the word
whether.
• I wonder whether your friends will stay or leave.
The second alternative does not need to appear in a sentence.
• Do we get a holiday or not?
• Have you heard whether we get a holiday (or not).

12. 3. Infinitive Clauses

13. Infinitive
Clauses
A. The Eagles expect the Hawks to win the game
B. The Eagles expect to win the game
Sentence A B
Infinitive
clause
The Hawks win the game The Eagles win the game
The subject of
the clause
Overt subject Tacit subject.

14. Infinitive
Clauses
Sentences with infinitive clauses that have tacit subjects:
• I intend to get a haircut.
• Martin decided to ask for help.
• Joyce likes to sing.
• The children pretended to be asleep.
Certain adjectives also occur with an infinitive clause as complement. One of them
is anxious:
• David’s parents are anxious for him to succeed, and David, too, is anxious to
succeed.
If the clause has an overt subject, it is introduced with the preposition for.
Other adjectives that take infinitive clauses are all of which have human subjects:
Afraid, content, eager, glad, happy, impatient and sorry.

15. Infinitive
Clauses
When an infinitive clause is the object of a certain small group of verbs, the
preposition to does not appear:
• Jerry had the barber trim his hair.
• Mummy let Miriam hold the baby.
• I helped Ted and Tom (to) change a tire.

16. 4. Gerund Clauses
A gerund clause has a verb with the suffix -ing.

17. Gerund
Clauses
• I saw Mr Hall coming out of the garage.
• She heard a baby crying.
• Did you notice a pretty girl walking by?
Verbs that occur in such sentences are perceptual verbs:
See, hear, smell, taste, feel, watch, notice and observe
Gerund clauses with tacit subjects are seen in the next group of sentences:
• I enjoy attending the theater.
• Edward denied opening the letter.
• Marilyn has quit smoking.

18. Gerund
Clauses
A small group of adjectives takes gerund clause complements, with a
preposition between adjective and gerund:
Who is responsible for doing this?
I’m grateful for your taking time off.
Other such adjectives are:
ashamed-of, aware-of, grateful-for, thankful-for
How about three-argument predicates with gerund clauses?
Deborah advised waiting.
Other verbs are;
Advise, allow, encourage, permit, forbid, propose, suggest and warn-against

19. 5. Non-factual Clauses

20. Non-factual
Clauses
A. I insist that Ronald works very hard.
B. I insist that Ronald work very hard.
C. I insist that Ronald should work very hard.
Ambiguity:
• I insist that they work very hard.
• I insist that they should work very hard.
And there is a clear distinction for any subject if the verb is be, whether
should occurs or not.
• We insist that your friends are early
• We insist that your friends (should) be early.
The factual clause can have various modifications for the verb:
We insist that your friends were late/had been late, etc.
The non-factual clause has no such modifications.

21. 6. Verbal Nouns

22. Verbal Nouns
The difference between gerund and verbal noun is in the kind of constructions
they appear in, the subject of the verbal noun is typically possessive, and the
object of the verbal noun is preceded by of
Overt subject:
They excused my opening of the letter.
Their development of the product took a long time.
Tacit subject:
I defended the opening of the letter.
The development of a new product is not easy.
however, verbal nouns are formed in a number of different ways but are always
distinct from gerunds; for example, discovery, explanation, improvement, response
versus discovering, explaining, improving, responding.
Gerund noun Verbal noun
We watched Mark winning the race We applauded Mark’s winning of
the race.

23. 7. Comparing Types of Clauses
Different kinds of clauses can present different kinds of meanings, but this is obvious only when the same predicate can
be accompanied by different kinds of clauses.

24. Comparing
Types of
Clauses
A. We agreed to meet again the next day.
B. We agreed that we would meet again the next day.
C. We agreed that prices are too high nowadays.
Some other verbs that can take a full clause or an infinitive clause are:
Decide, expect, hope and resolve:
A. We convinced Herman to throw away his smelly old pipe.
B. We convinced Herman that he should throw away his smelly old pipe.
C. We convinced Herman that he didn’t know what he was talking about.
A. Your son admitted breaking our window.
B. Your son admitted that he broke our window.
C. Your son admitted that this ball is his.
Similar verbs:
Confess, consider, deny, imagine, regret and report .
A. The museum wouldn’t allow us to photograph the exhibit.
B. The museum wouldn’t allow photographing the exhibit.

25. 6. Syntactic Ambiguity
Syntactic ambiguity may be in the surface structure of a sentence: words can cluster together in different possible
constructions. Syntactic ambiguity may also be in the deep structure: one sequence of words may have more than
one interpretation, generally because the rules of sentence construction allow ellipsis, the deletion of what is
‘understood.’

26. Syntactic
Ambiguity
Examples of surface ambiguity:
(a) Constructions containing the coordinators and and or.
1. John and Mary or Pat will go.
2. We’ll have bacon or sausage and eggs.
([John] and [Mary or Pat], [John and Mary] or [Pat]; [bacon] or [sausage and eggs],
[bacon or sausage] and [eggs])
(b) A coordinate head with one modifier:
1. The only people left were old men and women.
2. The postman left a letter and a package for Ellen.
([old men] and [women], old [men and women]; [a letter] and [a package for
Ellen], [a letter and a package] for Ellen)
(c) A head with a coordinate modifier:
1. Your essay should contain four or five hundred words.
([4] or [500], [400] or [500])

27. Syntactic
Ambiguity
(d) A head with an inner modifier and an outer modifier:
1. The sick pet was taken to a small animal hospital.
([small] [animal hospital], [small animal] [hospital])
(e) A complement and modifier or two complements:
1. Joe bought the book for Susan.
(f) Certain function words, including not, have possible differences in scope:
1. The tennis courts are open to members only on Thursdays.
([members only] or [only on Thursdays]

28. Syntactic
Ambiguity
Examples of deep structure ambiguity:
(a) Gerund+object or participle modifying a noun.
1. Overtaking cars on the main road can be dangerous.
(‘Overtaking cars is dangerous’ or ‘Cars overtaking are dangerous’)
(b) Adjective+infinitive, tied to subject or to complement:
1. The chicken is too hot to eat.
(‘Too hot to eat anything’ or ‘too hot for anybody to eat it’)
(c) Ellipsis in comparative constructions:
1. I like Mary better than Joan.
(‘Better than I like Joan’ or ‘better than Joan likes Mary’)

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