Syntactic expletive
Encyclopedia
Syntactic expletives are words that perform a syntactic role but contribute nothing to meaning. Expletive subjects are part of the grammar
of many non-pro-drop language
s such as English, whose clauses normally require overt provision of subject
even when the subject can be pragmatically inferred (for an alternative theory considering expletives like there as a dummy predicate
rather than a dummy subject
based on the analysis of the copula see Moro 1997 in the list of references cited here). Consider this example:
Following the eighteenth-century conception of pronoun
, Bishop Robert Lowth
objected that since it is a pronoun, it should have an antecedent. Since it cannot function like that in Latin
, Lowth said that the usage was incorrect in English
. By this approach, the correct phrasing (with the omission of the syntactic expletive "it") would be:
Contrast it is necessary that you ... with its Latin equivalent oportet tibi, meaning more or less 'necessitates for you'. Since subject pronouns aren't used in Latin except for emphasis, neither are expletive pronouns and the problem doesn't arise.
Whether or not it is a pronoun here (and linguists today would say that it is one), English is not Latin; and the sentence was and is fully acceptable to native speakers of English and thus was and is grammatical. It has no meaning here; it merely serves as a dummy subject
. (It is sometimes called preparatory it or prep it, or a dummy pronoun
.)
Bishop Lowth did not condemn sentences that use there as an expletive, even though it is one in many sentences, for example:
The nomenclature used for the constituents of sentences such as this is still a matter of some dispute, but there might be called subject, are copula, and ten desks predicate nominal. Meanwhile here is an adverbial phrase that conveniently reveals the semantic vacuity
of there in this example.
There is some disagreement over whether the it in such sentences as
is an expletive. Whereas it makes no sense to ask what the it means in "It is important that you work hard for the exam", some people might say that the dummy
it in "It is raining now" means the weather (even if the word weather has not previously been mentioned). Thus the it in such sentences is sometimes called expletive, sometimes a weather "it". Compare with weather verb.
Grammar
In linguistics, grammar is the set of structural rules that govern the composition of clauses, phrases, and words in any given natural language. The term refers also to the study of such rules, and this field includes morphology, syntax, and phonology, often complemented by phonetics, semantics,...
of many non-pro-drop language
Pro-drop language
A pro-drop language is a language in which certain classes of pronouns may be omitted when they are in some sense pragmatically inferable...
s such as English, whose clauses normally require overt provision of subject
Subject (grammar)
The subject is one of the two main constituents of a clause, according to a tradition that can be tracked back to Aristotle and that is associated with phrase structure grammars; the other constituent is the predicate. According to another tradition, i.e...
even when the subject can be pragmatically inferred (for an alternative theory considering expletives like there as a dummy predicate
Predicate (grammar)
There are two competing notions of the predicate in theories of grammar. Traditional grammar tends to view a predicate as one of two main parts of a sentence, the other being the subject, which the predicate modifies. The other understanding of predicates is inspired from work in predicate calculus...
rather than a dummy subject
Subject (grammar)
The subject is one of the two main constituents of a clause, according to a tradition that can be tracked back to Aristotle and that is associated with phrase structure grammars; the other constituent is the predicate. According to another tradition, i.e...
based on the analysis of the copula see Moro 1997 in the list of references cited here). Consider this example:
- "It is important that you work hard for the exam."
Following the eighteenth-century conception of pronoun
Pronoun
In linguistics and grammar, a pronoun is a pro-form that substitutes for a noun , such as, in English, the words it and he...
, Bishop Robert Lowth
Robert Lowth
Robert Lowth FRS was a Bishop of the Church of England, Oxford Professor of Poetry and the author of one of the most influential textbooks of English grammar.-Life:...
objected that since it is a pronoun, it should have an antecedent. Since it cannot function like that in Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
, Lowth said that the usage was incorrect in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
. By this approach, the correct phrasing (with the omission of the syntactic expletive "it") would be:
- "That you work hard for the exam is important."
Contrast it is necessary that you ... with its Latin equivalent oportet tibi, meaning more or less 'necessitates for you'. Since subject pronouns aren't used in Latin except for emphasis, neither are expletive pronouns and the problem doesn't arise.
Whether or not it is a pronoun here (and linguists today would say that it is one), English is not Latin; and the sentence was and is fully acceptable to native speakers of English and thus was and is grammatical. It has no meaning here; it merely serves as a dummy subject
Subject (grammar)
The subject is one of the two main constituents of a clause, according to a tradition that can be tracked back to Aristotle and that is associated with phrase structure grammars; the other constituent is the predicate. According to another tradition, i.e...
. (It is sometimes called preparatory it or prep it, or a dummy pronoun
Dummy pronoun
A dummy pronoun is a type of pronoun used in non-pro-drop languages, such as English....
.)
Bishop Lowth did not condemn sentences that use there as an expletive, even though it is one in many sentences, for example:
- "There are ten desks here."
The nomenclature used for the constituents of sentences such as this is still a matter of some dispute, but there might be called subject, are copula, and ten desks predicate nominal. Meanwhile here is an adverbial phrase that conveniently reveals the semantic vacuity
Vacuity
Vacuity can refer to:*Emptiness*Śūnyatā, the Buddhist term about the impermanent nature of form*Vacuity , an alternative rock band from Kitchener, Ontario...
of there in this example.
There is some disagreement over whether the it in such sentences as
- "It is raining now."
is an expletive. Whereas it makes no sense to ask what the it means in "It is important that you work hard for the exam", some people might say that the dummy
Dummy pronoun
A dummy pronoun is a type of pronoun used in non-pro-drop languages, such as English....
it in "It is raining now" means the weather (even if the word weather has not previously been mentioned). Thus the it in such sentences is sometimes called expletive, sometimes a weather "it". Compare with weather verb.
Further reading
- Everaert, M.; van Riemsdijk, H; Goedemans, R. (eds) 2006 The Blackwell Companion to Syntax, Volumes I–V, Blackwell, London: see "existential sentences and expletive there" in Volume II.
- Moro, A.Andrea MoroAndrea Moro is an Italian linguist.Moro is currently full professor of general linguistics at the Institute for Advanced Study IUSS Pavia, Italy...
1997 The Raising of Predicates. Predicative Noun Phrases and the Theory of Clause Structure, Cambridge Studies in Linguistics, 80, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, England.