Generative Grammar: Definition and Examples

In linguistics, generative grammar is grammar (the set of language rules) that indicates the structure and interpretation of sentences that native speakers of a language accept as belonging to their language.

Adopting the term generative from mathematics, linguist Noam Chomsky introduced the concept of generative grammar in the 1950s. This theory is also known as transformational grammar, a term still used today.

Definition of Generative Grammar

Grammar refers to the set of rules that structure a language, including syntax (the arrangement of words to form phrases and sentences) and morphology (the study of words and how they are formed). Generative grammar is a theory of grammar that holds that human language is shaped by a set of basic principles that are part of the human brain (and even present in the brains of small children). This "universal grammar," according to linguists like Chomsky, comes from our innate language faculty.

In Linguistics for Non-Linguists: A Primer With Exercises, Frank Parker and Kathryn Riley argue that generative grammar is a kind of unconscious knowledge that allows a person, no matter what language they speak, to form "correct" sentences. They continue:

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Transformational Grammar (TG) Definition and Examples

By Richard Nordquist

"Simply put, a generative grammar is a theory of competence: a model of the psychological system of unconscious knowledge that underlies a speaker's ability to produce and interpret utterances in a language ... A good way of trying to understand [Noam] Chomsky's point is to think of a generative grammar as essentially a definition of competence: a set of criteria that linguistic structures must meet to be judged acceptable," (Parker and Riley 2009).

Generative Vs. Prescriptive Grammar

Generative grammar is distinct from other grammars such as prescriptive grammar, which attempts to establish standardized language rules that deem certain usages "right" or "wrong," and descriptive grammar, which attempts to describe language as it is actually used (including the study of pidgins and dialects). Instead, generative grammar attempts to get at something deeper—the foundational principles that make language possible across all of humanity.

For example, a prescriptive grammarian may study how parts of speech are ordered in English sentences, with the goal of laying out rules (nouns precede verbs in simple sentences, for example). A linguist studying generative grammar, however, is more likely to be interested in issues such as how nouns are distinguished from verbs across multiple languages.

Principles of Generative Grammar

The main principle of generative grammar is that all humans are born with an innate capacity for language and that this capacity shapes the rules for what is considered "correct" grammar in a language. The idea of an innate language capacity—or a "universal grammar"—is not accepted by all linguists. Some believe, to the contrary, that all languages are learned and, therefore, based on certain constraints.

Proponents of the universal grammar argument believe that children, when they are very young, are not exposed to enough linguistic information to learn the rules of grammar. That children do in fact learn the rules of grammar is proof, according to some linguists, that there is an innate language capacity that allows them to overcome the "poverty of the stimulus."

Examples of Generative Grammar

As generative grammar is a "theory of competence," one way to test its validity is with what is called a grammaticality judgment task. This involves presenting a native speaker with a series of sentences and having them decide whether the sentences are grammatical (acceptable) or ungrammatical (unacceptable). For example:

• The man is happy.
• Happy man is the.

A native speaker would judge the first sentence to be acceptable and the second to be unacceptable. From this, we can make certain assumptions about the rules governing how parts of speech should be ordered in English sentences. For instance, a "to be" verb linking a noun and an adjective must follow the noun and precede the adjective.

Sources

• Parker, Frank, and Kathryn Riley. Linguistics for Non-Linguists: A Primer With Exercises. 5th ed., Pearson, 2009.
• Strunk, William, and E.B. White. The Elements of Style. 4th ed., Pearson, 1999.