Which linguistic theory turned attention from meaning to the rules that govern sentence construction?

Which linguistic theory turned attention from meaning to the rules that govern sentence construction?

• A. Transformational grammar
• B. Generative semantics
• C. Functional grammar
• D. Structural linguistics

Answer: (A)

Transformational grammar. This approach focuses on the rules that generate sentences—how a deep structure representing meaning is transformed into the surface forms we speak. It shifts attention from what a sentence means to how its word order and structure are produced by formal syntactic rules and transformations. Chomsky’s idea of transformations showing how one underlying structure can yield many different sentence patterns is the key feature here, illustrating a grammar that generates sentence forms rather than just analyzing meanings. Generative semantics moves toward semantics and how meaning drives structure, functional grammar emphasizes language use and function in context, and structural linguistics concentrates on describing language as a system of units and their interrelations without the emphasis on transformational rules.

Transformational grammar. This approach focuses on the rules that generate sentences—how a deep structure representing meaning is transformed into the surface forms we speak. It shifts attention from what a sentence means to how its word order and structure are produced by formal syntactic rules and transformations. Chomsky’s idea of transformations showing how one underlying structure can yield many different sentence patterns is the key feature here, illustrating a grammar that generates sentence forms rather than just analyzing meanings.

Generative semantics moves toward semantics and how meaning drives structure, functional grammar emphasizes language use and function in context, and structural linguistics concentrates on describing language as a system of units and their interrelations without the emphasis on transformational rules.