Overview

This book approaches the structure of English from a form-function perspective that is both theoretical and practical. It asks learners to consider meaning, structure, and use, in contrast to many grammars that focus mainly on structure, sometimes to the exclusion of use and even meaning. The book presents an extended introduction to areas of grammar that many would see as indispensable, such as participial and infinitive phrases. The analysis is achieved largely through form-function tree diagramming and extends the basic structures to include finite and nonfinite predicates.

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9781554815067

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Reviews

Written in exceptionally clear prose and elucidated with modern-day examples, A New Form-Function Grammar of English teaches students how form and function are inextricably linked in the analysis of language structure. This approach is a welcome one for educators who recognize the need for teaching both facets of grammar, and makes the textbook an ideal adoption for English, Rhetoric, Linguistics, Language Arts, and Education programs which focus on the stylistic choices expected in the college classroom (and beyond) and the underpinnings of language structure more broadly. End-of-chapter exercises provide excellent opportunities for students to apply the content and build on the subject matter. -- Dawn Nordquist, University of New Mexico

Author Information

K. Aaron Smith is Professor of English at Illinois State University and the author, with Susan Kim, of This Language, A River: A History of English (2017).

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