Analysing Sentences: An Introduction to English Syntax

by Noel Burton-Roberts

Overview

Analysing Sentences is an accessible and student-friendly introduction to the practical analysis of English sentence structure.

The book covers key concepts such as constituency, category and functions, and uses tree diagrams throughout to help the reader visualise the structure of sentences. The fifth edition of this best-selling textbook has been thoroughly updated and revised to feature new material, new example sentences and a more reader-friendly layout. The final chapter sets the analysis in its theoretical context and includes an introduction to constituency in X-bar syntax. The book is also supported by an updated companion website featuring extra exercises for students and a complete set of answers for instructors for the online activities and exercises in the book.

Accessible and clear, this book is the perfect textbook for readers coming to this topic for the first time. Featuring many in-text and end-of-chapter exercises, it is suitable for self-directed study as well as for use as core reading on introductory syntax courses.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780367633783
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	09/28/2021
Series:	Learning about Language
Edition description:	5th ed.
Pages:	292
Product dimensions:	6.88(w) x 9.69(h) x (d)

About the Author

Noel Burton-Roberts is Emeritus Professor of English Language and Linguistics at Newcastle University, UK.

Table of Contents

Preface to the fifth edition

Preface to the fourth edition

Preface to the third edition

Preface to the second edition

Preface to the first edition

Introduction

1 Sentence Structure: Constituents

2 Sentence Structure: Functions

3 Sentence Structure: Categories

4 The basic Verb Phrase

5 Adverbials and Other Matters

6 More on verbs: auxiliary VPs

7 The structure of Noun Phrases

8 Sentences within Sentences

9 Wh-Clauses

10 Non-finite Clauses

11 Languages, Sentences, and Grammars

Index

Editorial Reviews

"This is the go-to book for all students and teachers of English syntax. Rigorous and yet highly accessible, it guides the reader from phrasal analysis through to complex sentence structure, and is packed with lively examples and valuable practical exercises."
Siobhan Chapman, University of Liverpool, UK

"A welcome addition to the fourth edition of this excellent textbook is a very helpful website. The style remains very user-friendly, and the structure of the book is very well thought-out: Burton Roberts guides the reader step-by-step through increasing syntactic complexity, always building incrementally on what has come before. I have been teaching classes based on this book since 1986, and have found it invaluable. The final chapter remains a very good introduction to general issues about the nature of human language. I recommend it with great enthusiasm."
Philip Carr, University of Montpellier, France

From the Publisher