What is syntax? Discuss the major syntactic processes elaborately.

Answer

What is syntax? Discuss the major syntactic processes elaborately.

The Syntax is derived from the Greek word ‘syntaxis,’ which means ‘ordering together’ or ‘together arranging.’ Syntax is a branch of linguistics that studies how words are arranged to form phrases, clauses, and sentences. Every language has its own Syntax. Correct Syntax makes meaning very clear. Wrong Syntax can confuse the reader. By studying Syntax, we learn how sentences are built.

Definition of Syntax: According to the Cambridge Dictionary, Syntax is “the grammatical arrangement of words in a sentence.” For example, in English, we say, “The cat is sleeping,” rather than “Sleeping cat the is.”

Major Syntactic Processes: Syntactic processes are part of Syntax. They help us make correct sentences. They help join or change words. The main syntactic processes are Agreement, Subordination, Coordination, Negation, Interrogation, Passivization, Ellipsis, and so on. Let us discuss them in detail below.

Agreement: Agreement means matching words together. Mainly, subject and verb must agree. If the subject is singular, then the verb should be singular too.

• Example: He walks to school daily.

Here, “He” is singular, so “walks” fits. If the subject is plural, then the verb must also be plural.

• Example: They walk to school every day.

Here, “They” is plural, so we use “walk”. Wrong agreement makes the sentence incorrect.

• Example: “He walk to school.” This sentence is wrong.

This is why agreement is important. It keeps the sentence grammatically correct and smooth.

Subordination: Subordination joins two different clauses. One clause is the main or independent. The other is a dependent clause. A dependent clause cannot stand alone.

• Example: She stayed because it rained.

Here, “Because it rained” gives a reason. It explains why “She stayed” happened. It cannot stand alone with meaning. Words like because, if,