Introduction to Ling ...

Transformational rules operate on the output of PS  rules: they depend on the application of PS rules. Such rules do not involve the division of sentences into smaller units, but the alteration or rearrangement of a structure in various ways. They convert one string into another, or we say they “derive” one structure from another and assign to it another P-marker. TRs are more heterogeneous and more complex than PS rules. TRs take the following form: A+B+C+D+E --------- a+b+c+d+e (a string of elements appears on the left of the arrow, and another on the right). TRs have many types.

•  Affix hopping (affix shift/ flip-flop transformation)

This rule places affixes (endings/ inflections, like tense, en, ing )in the position to which they belong

•  Negative transformation

This rule places “not” after the tense and the first element of the auxiliary

• Yes-No question transformation

This rule takes the tense and the first element of the auxiliary and moves them to the front of the string.

•  Do-insertion transformation

This rule inserts “do” after tense in some negative and interrogative sentences.

•  The contraction transformation

This rule attaches the contracted negative (n’t) to the element that proceeds “not”. It is applied after affix hopping.

•  The passive transformation

It changes the position of NPs, adds (be+en) before the main verb and it introduces “by” in the surface structure before the second NP.

•  The particle movement (permutation)

This rule changes the place of the particle in two-constituent verbs to the right of the object.

•  Indirect object movement

This rule changes the position of the indirect object to the end of sentence and inserts “to” or “for” before it.

• The restrictive clause transformation.

This rule replaces the NP in the embedded sentence which is identical to an NP in the matrix sentence by a relative pronoun and moves it to the front of S2

•  The infinitive transformation

This rule changes S into a (to-infinitive)