Question 1

Assign a complete X-bar structure in the form of a tee-diagram to each example below:

1. That he will be present does not surprise anyone.
2. The continuous criticism of Jack’s project
3. The participants believe that the competition will be fair.
4. The players may ask if their manager will be in attendance.

Question 2

Assign an X-bar structure in the form of a tree-diagram to each example below and provide a formal account of the word order variation involving the underlined constituent in each pair of examples:

1. They quickly reacted to the situation.
2. They solved the problem quickly.
3. Presumably, they will consult the membership.
4. The critics have seen the film, presumably.

Question 3

For each example below, provide an X-bar structure in the form of a tree-diagram and a formal account of why it is ungrammatical:

1. Rarely snows in spring.
2. Megan loves.
3. Doesn’t like soccer.
4. Jennifer smiled Jack.

Question 4

For each example below,

(i) outline the structure and derivation with reference to an X-bar tree-structure

(ii) provide a formal, parameter-based account of the difference in the ordering of the finite verb between Spoken French and English