Why do we say walked to express the past tense of walk? And what is the reason for saying brought as past tense of ‘to bring’ instead of *bringed? Where is the origin of what we know as irregular and regular verbs in Present-Day English? And how do we decide which tense is needed in certain situations? Which role do adverbials play in combination with past tense formation and usage? These are the questions which lead us through our term paper.
Table of Contents
1 Introduction
2 Periods of the English Language
2.1 Old English
2.2 Middle English
2.3 Early Modern English
2.4 Present-Day English
3 Past Tense in PDE
3.1 Time and Tense
3.2 Ways to express Past Tense
3.3 The Role of Adverbials
3.4 The Formation of Past Tense
4 Changes in the Verbal System
4.1 Previous Periods – {-ed} vs. Ablaut
4.1.1 Strong Verbs
4.1.2 Weak Verbs
4.1.3 Other Verbs
4.2 The Tense System: An Overview
5 Conclusion
6 References
Research Objectives and Key Topics
This academic paper examines the evolution and current state of past tense formation in the English language, specifically analyzing the transition from Old English to Present-Day English to understand the historical development of regular and irregular verb systems.
- Historical progression of English language periods (OE, ME, EMnE, PDE).
- Linguistic categorization and formation of regular versus irregular verbs.
- The impact of phonological and morphological changes on verbal systems.
- Syntactic and semantic functions of tense, aspect, and adverbials in PDE.
- The role of analogy and mental lexicon in the storage of irregular verb patterns.
Excerpt from the Book
3.4 The Formation of Past Tense
On the one hand, the formation of past tense is a morphological operation because all English verbs form the past tense. On the other hand, it can also be described as a morphological process because verbs form their past tense in different ways.
Regular verbs mark the simple past with the addition of the suffix {-ed}. The suffix {-ed} is pronounced in different ways. This alternation is called phonological allomorphy as it can be explained by a phonological rule [INT4].
After voiceless consonants, the suffix {-ed} is pronounced as a voiceless alveolar plosive [t], i. e. kissed. After voiced consonants, it is pronounced as a voiced alveolar plosive [d] as in stayed. But if the suffix precedes either a voiced or a voiceless dental fricative, it is pronounced as [Id] as in waited [INT4].
Furthermore, the addition of the suffix {-ed} may change the spelling of the stem. These types of morpho-graphemic alternation concern the regular formation of simple past:
- e-deletion: a unpronounced {-e} at the stem is dropped before the addition of the suffix {-ed}as in shave – shaved.
- y-to-i-change: the final ‘y’ changes to ‘i’ if the preceding is neither ‘i’ nor ‘a’ as in carry – carried.
- consonantal doubling: a single consonant at the end of the base is doubled if the preceding vowel is stressed as in oc’cur - oc’curred.
In contrast to regular verbs, irregular verbs do not use regular {-ed} inflection to form past tense and past participle. In comparison to thousands of regular verbs there are only about 200 irregular verbs (Bybee 1982:265). 22 of the 30 frequent used past-tense forms are irregular (Bybee 1982:265).
Summary of Chapters
1 Introduction: Introduces the core research questions regarding the origins of regular and irregular verbs and sets the scope for the historical and linguistic analysis.
2 Periods of the English Language: Provides a chronological overview of the English language development, focusing on the external and internal factors that influenced linguistic shifts.
3 Past Tense in PDE: Details the current morphological and syntactic mechanisms used to express past tense in modern English, including the role of aspect and adverbials.
4 Changes in the Verbal System: Analyzes the historical shift from the Indo-European inflectional system to modern verb categories, specifically comparing strong and weak verbs.
5 Conclusion: Summarizes findings on the persistence of irregular patterns and the morphological evolution of the English verb system.
6 References: Lists the academic sources used to support the linguistic analysis.
Keywords
Past Tense, English Language History, Morphology, Syntax, Regular Verbs, Irregular Verbs, Ablaut, Phonological Allomorphy, Verb Inflection, Old English, Middle English, Present-Day English, Verbal System, Adverbials, Mental Lexicon
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the fundamental subject of this research paper?
The paper focuses on the development of the English past tense system, investigating how verbs transitioned from historical forms to the current distinction between regular and irregular verbs.
What are the primary thematic fields covered?
The work covers historical linguistics, morphological development, the phonological evolution of verb suffixes, and the syntactic categorization of tense and aspect in English.
What is the core research objective?
The objective is to explain why English has regular and irregular verbs and how the linguistic "rules" for past tense formation have shifted from Old English to the present day.
Which scientific methods are employed?
The author utilizes historical analysis, descriptive linguistics, and comparative study of morphological patterns, citing established linguistic research to validate observations.
What does the main body address?
The main body breaks down the language into its historical periods, analyzes specific verb classes, describes the role of time adverbials, and examines the morpho-graphemic rules for regular verb formation.
What keywords define this work?
Key terms include Past Tense, Morphology, Ablaut, Strong Verbs, Weak Verbs, Linguistic Change, and the English historical timeline.
How do strong and weak verbs differ historically in this paper?
Strong verbs historically relied on root vowel alternations (ablaut), while weak verbs developed the use of dental suffixes, which eventually became the standard regular inflectional method.
What does the author conclude about the "future" of irregular verbs?
Citing Steven Pinker, the author concludes that despite the logical pressure toward regularizing all verbs, irregular patterns are persistent and "refuse to die" in the mental lexicon.
- Arbeit zitieren
- Lisa Sangmeister (Autor:in), 2008, Past Tense in English, München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/122404
