Minigrammars forTime Expressions

in English

(Construction Grammar Light)

C.J.Fillmore

OR: pity the poor language learner

We seek precise ways of characterizing the structure and meaning of words and phrases that provide temporal modifiers of event clauses.

In this presentation the grammatical part of the descriptions will specify only the constituency and the semantic requirements on the constituents. Real construction grammar, of course, would also have to supply details on the relevant syntactic properties.

Two Types of Time Expressions

Semantically defined:

• 1. “Vector” Construction(expressing directed distance in time from some temporal reference point)

• 2. Calendar Unit Constructions(locating the time of an event within some “calendric” period)

Vector Construction

• Locating a Target(in our case, the time of an event)

• at a Distance(distance in time)

• in a Direction from (before or after)

• some Landmark(event or date or other relevant reference point)

Landmark

Distance

DirectionTarget

Landmark

Distance

DirectionTarget

two years before Beethoven was born

Landmark

Distance

DirectionTarget

two years before Beethoven was born

Landmark

Distance

DirectionTarget

two years before Beethoven was born

Landmark

Distance

DirectionTarget

two years before Beethoven was born

But first:Some needed concepts.

Concepts for Temporal Expressions

• deictic TODAY, NOW, THIS YEAR

Anchored in the moment of speaking,the “now”. Today is the calendar daycontaining “now”; two minutes ago istwo minutes before “now”.

Concepts for Temporal Expressions

• deictic today, now, this year• anaphoric THE NEXT DAY, AFTER THAT

Anchored to temporal references in theongoing discourse. “I met Julie at your. graduation party. The next day she asked me out.”

Concepts for Temporal Expressions

• deictic today, now, this year

• anaphoric the next day, after that

• absolute ON APRIL 2, 1928

Anchored in time reckoning established by some real-world institution. “We are now in 5766.”

Concepts for Temporal Expressions

• deictic today, now, this year

• anaphoric the next day, after that

• absolute on April 2, 1928• existential ONE FINE DAY, ONCE

Unanchored time reference.

Concepts for Temporal Expressions

• deictic today, now, this year

• anaphoric the next day, after that

• absolute on April 2, 1928

• existential one fine day, once• generic ON FRIDAYS, NIGHTS

Of events associated with recurrenttime periods.

There’s More.

Types of Time Period Words

• metric unit year (time extent)

• calendric unit year (calendar period)

• divisions Monday; spring; May

• recurrences Christmas; birthday

VECTORDomain: [ ]Location of Target:[at Distance: [ ],in Direction: [ ],from Landmark: [ ]]

Text: [ ]

VECTORDomain: [ ]Location of Target:[at Distance: [ ],in Direction: [ ],from Landmark: [ ]]

Text: [ ]The “Text” field isthe location of the word or phrase being described.

This informationneeds to bespecified for avector time expression.

VECTORDomain: [ ]Location of Target:[at Distance: [ ],in Direction: [ ],from Landmark: [ ]]

Text: [ ]

For time expressions,the “Domain” istime; the associatedgrammar is also foundwith other domains.

It’s possible for a single word to specify all such information.

VECTORDomain: [ ]Location of Target:[at Distance: [ ],in Direction: [ ],from Landmark: [ ]]

Text: [ ]

VECTORDomain: [time]Location of Target:[at Distance: [short],in Direction: [before],from Landmark: [prag or now]]

Text: [recently]

VECTORDomain: [time]Location of Target:[at Distance: [short],in Direction: [after],from Landmark: [prag or now]]

Text: [soon]

“prag” versus “now”

• If the landmark (LM) is identified as now, that refers to the time of speaking.

• If the LM is identified as prag, that means it is the narrative time given in the context.

• The words recently and soon allow the LM to be either prag or now.

Landmark as “prag” or “now”

• Your brother was here recently. (LM=now)

• He had recently remarried. (LM=prag)

• She’ll be here soon. (LM=now)

• She would soon understand it. (LM=prag)

Phrasal Versions

In a common phrasal version, the information is presented in two parts:

LEFT

Distance

RIGHT

Direction & Landmark

VECTORDomain: #1[ ]Location of Target:[at Distance: #2[ ],in Direction: #3[ ],from Landmark: #4[ ]]

DISTANCEDomain: #1[ ]Distance: #2[ ]]

Text: [ ]

DIRECTION & LANDMARKDomain: #1[ ]Direction & Landmark:[Direction: #3[ ],Landmark: #4[ ]]

Text: [ ]

Unification Indices

The unification indices (“#1”, etc.) show how information (i.e., values of particular attributes) introduced by the parts is transmitted to the whole.

VECTORDomain: #1[ ]Location of Target:[at Distance: #2[ ],in Direction: #3[ ],from Landmark: #4[ ]]

DISTANCEDomain: #1[ ]Distance: #2[ ]]Text: [ ]

DIRECTION & LANDMARKDomain: #1[ ]Direction & Landmark:[Direction: #3[ ],Landmark: #4[ ]]Text: [ ]

VECTORDomain: #1[ ]Location of Target:[at Distance: #2[ ],in Direction: #3[ ],from Landmark: #4[ ]]

DISTANCEDomain: #1[ ]Distance: #2[ ]]

Text: [ ]

DIRECTION & LANDMARKDomain: #1[ ]Direction & Landmark:[Direction: #3[ ],Landmark: #4[ ]]

Text: [ ]

Simplest two-part version

Either of the two constituents can be expressed as one word. (The word long, but not short, can express a temporal extent.)

VECTORDomain: #1[time]Location of Target:[at Distance: #2[great],in Direction: #3[before],from Landmark: #4[now]]

DISTANCEDomain: #1[time]Distance: #2[great]]

Text: [long]

DIRECTION & LANDMARKDomain: #1[time]Direction & Landmark:[Direction: #3[before],Landmark: #4[now]]

Text: [ago]

Complex Phrases

And either part can be expressed as a phrase.

Begin with the “Distance” part.

VECTORDomain: #1[ ]Location of Target:[at Distance: #2[ ],in Direction: #3[ ],from Landmark: #4[ ]]

DISTANCEDomain: #1[ ]Distance: #2[ ]]

Text: [ ]

DIRECTION & LANDMARKDomain: #1[ ]Direction & Landmark:[Direction: #3[ ],Landmark: #4[ ]]

Text: [ ]

Phrasal Structure for Distance

As a Quantity of Units:

three days

seven years

several hours

Notice: Quantity expressions do not require Domain specification; quantity expressions can themselves be complex: a few, thirty seven, a great many, …

DISTANCEDomain: #1[ ]Distance: [Units: #2[ ], Quantity: #3[ ]]QUANTITY

Quantity: #3[ ]

Text: [ ]

UNITSDomain: #1[ ]Unit: #2[ ]]

Text: [ ]

DISTANCEDomain: #1[time]Distance: [Units: #2[day], Quantity: #3[3]]QUANTITY

Quantity: #3[3]

Text: [three]

UNITSDomain: #1[time]Units: #2[day]]

Text: [days]

VECTORDomain: #1[ ]Location of Target:[at Distance: #2[ ],in Direction: #3[ ],from Landmark: #4[ ]]

DISTANCEDomain: #1[ ]Distance: #2[ ]]

Text: [ ]

DIRECTION & LANDMARKDomain: #1[ ]Direction & Landmark:[Direction: #3[ ],Landmark: #4[ ]]

Text: [ ]

Phrasal Structure for Direction From Landmark

In which the Direction and Landmark are introduced as separate constituents.

DIRECTION & LANDMARKDomain: #1[ ]Direction & Landmark: [Direction: #2[ ], Landmark: #3[ ]]

DIRECTIONDomain: #1[ ]Direction: #2[ ]

Text: [ ]

LANDMARKDomain: #1[ ]Landmark: #3[ ]

Text: [ ]

DIRECTION & LANDMARKDomain: #1[time]Direction & Landmark: [Direction: #2[before] ], Landmark:#3[Christmas]] DIRECTIONDomain: #1[time]Direction: #2[before]

Text: [before]

LANDMARKDomain: #1[time]Landmark: #3[Christmas]

Text: [Christmas]

Landmark Syntax

The Landmark can be realized:

- as a NP

three days after my arrival in Geneva

- as a Gerund

three days after arriving in Geneva

- as a Clause

three days after I arrived in Geneva

Four-Part Tree Structure for Phrasal VersionsVector Expression

Distance Direction & Landmark

Quantity Units Direction Landmark

This structure is more general than what we need for temporal

expressions.

Vector Expression

Distance Direction & Landmark

Quantity Units Direction Landmark

twenty miles north of Berkeley

ten degrees warmer than Tokyo

30,000 feet above us

20 IQ points smarter than Chuck

two hours earlier [implicit]

Properties of the Construction• ‘direction’ is the head

• unification of ‘domain’ features (time, space, temperature, intelligence, etc.)

• for each head, obligatory vs. optional status of (1) Distance, (2) Landmark is specified

ago, hence : + Dist. LM implicit

before, after: Dist. LM

from: + Dist. + LM

All of this fits “standard” X-bar structure

X’’

X’

Spec-X X Complement

This is one of those disappearing constructions.

Transition

• The preceding structures can be easily reconciled with general features of the rest of the grammar of English, as long as we make good use of special lexical constraints.

• Can we be so lucky with the next phenomena?

Location in Calendar Units and Calendar Sub-Units

• CU’s repeat: when one ends, another unit of the same type begins. millennium, century, decade, year, month, week, day, hour

• CSU’s appear in chains: MTWTFSS;JFMAMJJASOND; SpSuAuWi; MAEN

TIME IN CALENDAR UNITLocation of Temporal Target:[CU-1 includes Target; CU-2 includes Landmark: [ ];CU-1 REL: [ ] CU-2;CUTYPE: [ ]]

Text: [ ]

CU Type: month, year, week, etc.Relation: precedes, follows, is_identical_to

TIME IN CALENDAR UNITLocation of Temporal Target:[CU-1 includes Target; CU-2 includes Landmark: [ ];CU-1 REL: [ ] CU-2;CUTYPE: [ ]]

Text: [ ]

Single-word Fillers

These are all deictic expressions, withLM = “now”.

TIME IN CALENDAR UNITLocation of Temporal Target:[CU-1 includes Target; CU-2 includes Landmark: [now];CU-1 REL: [identical to] CU-2;CUTYPE: [day]]

Text: [today]

TIME IN CALENDAR UNITLocation of Temporal Target:[CU-1 includes Target; CU-2 includes Landmark: [now];CU-1 REL: [precedes] CU-2;CUTYPE: [day]]

Text: [yesterday]

TIME IN CALENDAR UNITLocation of Temporal Target:[CU-1 includes Target; CU-2 includes Landmark: [now];CU-1 REL [follows] CU-2;CUTYPE: [day]]

Text: [tomorrow]

Notice

that the relations between CU-1 and CU-2 may be same, precedes, or follows.

TIME IN CALENDAR UNITLocation of Temporal Target:[CU-1 includes Target; CU-2 includes Landmark: [now];CU-1 REL: [identical to] CU-2;CUTYPE: [day]]

Text: [today]

TIME IN CALENDAR UNITLocation of Temporal Target:[CU-1 includes Target; CU-2 includes Landmark: [now];CU-1 REL: [precedes] CU-2;CUTYPE: [day]]

Text: [yesterday]

TIME IN CALENDAR UNITLocation of Temporal Target:[CU-1 includes Target; CU-2 includes Landmark: [now];CU-1 REL [follows] CU-2;CUTYPE: [day]]

Text: [tomorrow]

Phrasal Versions

Then there are phrasal versions

in which the first constituent is a selection from the words last, this, or next

Newly invented lexical category: “LTN”

TIME IN CALENDAR UNITDomain: [time]Location of Temporal Target:[CU-1 includes Target; CU-2 includes Landmark: [now ];CU-1 REL #2[ ] CU-2;CUTYPE: #4[ ]]

LTNDomain: [time]REL: #2[ ]

Text: [ ]

CALENDAR UNITDomain: [time]Calendar Unit:: #4[ ]

Text: [ ]

TIME IN CALENDAR UNITDomain: [time]Location of Temporal Target:[CU-1 includes Target; CU-2 includes Landmark: [now ];CU-1 REL #2[follows] CU-2;CUTYPE: #4[year]]

LTNDomain: [time]REL: #2[follows]

Text: [next]

CALENDAR UNITDomain: [time]Calendar Unit:: #4[year]

Text: [year]

LTNDomain: [time]REL: [follows]

Text: [next]

LTNDomain: [time]REL: [is identical to]

Text: [this]

LTNDomain: [time]REL: [precedes]

Text: [last]

Temporal Location in Calendar Sub-Units

CU’s connected with CSU’s

Year: Month Names; Season Names

Week: Weekday Names

Day: Day Part Names

TIME IN CALENDAR SUBUNITDomain: [time]Location of Temporal Target:[CSU: [ ] includes Target;CU-1 includes Target; CU-2 includes Landmark: [now ];CU-1 REL: [ ] CU-2;CUTYPE: [ ]]

Text: [ ]

Lexical Filler

(There’s only one.)

TIME IN CALENDAR SUBUNITDomain: [time]Location of Temporal Target:[CSU: [night] includes Target;CU-1 includes Target; CU-2 includes Landmark: [now];CU-1 REL: [identical to] CU-2;CUTYPE: [day]]

Text: [tonight]

Paraphrased:

If something happens tonight, it happens during the night of the day which includes “now”.

Phrasal Expansion

LTN word followed by a CSU name.

TIME IN CALENDAR SUBUNITDomain: [time]Location of Temporal Target:[CSU #1[ ] includes Target;CU-1 includes Target; CU-2 includes Landmark: [now ];CU-1 REL #2[ ] CU-2;CUTYPE: #3[ ]]

LTNDomain: [time]REL: #2[ ]

Text: [ ]

CALENDAR SUBUNITDomain: [time]Calendar Subunit: #1[ ]Calendar Unit: #3[ ]

Text: [ ]

TIME IN CALENDAR SUBUNITDomain: [time]Location of Temporal Target:[CSU #1[spring] includes Target;CU-1 includes Target; CU-2 includes Landmark: [now ];CU-1 REL #2[precedes] CU-2;CUTYPE: #3[year]]

LTNDomain: [time]REL:#2[precedes]

Text: [last]

CALENDAR SUBUNITDomain: [time]Calendar Subunit: #1[spring]Calendar Unit: #3[year]

Text: [spring]

Examples

• this April, last March, next October

• last spring, next fall, this summer

• last opera season, next football season

• this Tuesday, last Friday, next Thursday

• this morning, this afternoon, this evening, last night

Examples

• this April, last March, next October

• last spring, next fall, this summer

• last opera season, next football season

• this Tuesday, last Friday, next Thursday

• this morning, this afternoon, this evening, last night

BUT NOT: last M, A, E, next M, A, E, N

DAY cooperates, but only for the central deictic DAY, and that only

partly.

A New Construction

• involving DayNames and DayPartNames

• including Weekday Names and Deictic DayNames.

• Monday morning, tomorrow afternoon, etc.

DAY + DAYPARTDomain: [time]Target Location: [DayPart #2[ ] of Day #1[ ]]DAY

DayName: #1[ ]

Text: [ ]

DAYPARTDayPart: #2[ ]

Text: [ ]

DAY + DAYPARTDomain: [time]Target Location: [DayPart #2[ ] of Day #1[ ]]

DAYDayName: #1[Wednesday]

Text: [Wednesday]

DAYPARTDayPart: #2[morning]

Text: [morning]

What pre-empts what?

• For naming deictic periods, the lexicalization TODAY pre-empts *THIS DAY.

• For naming deictic dayparts, THIS MORNING

pre-empts *TODAY MORNING.

• The LTN pattern is pre-empted by lexicalizations for the DAY units; but the LTN pattern in turn pre-empts the lexicalizations for TODAY in CSU naming..

Encoding Perspective

We take the encoding perspective when we consider the meaning and ask about the manner of expressing it.

todayyesterday tomorrow

thisCU

lastCU

nextCU

works for everything but DAY

todayCSU

yesterdayCSU

tomorrowCSU

thisCSU

lastCSU

nextCSU

works for everything but TODAY

but . . . last night (*yesterday night) and tonight (*this night)

the CU before last

last CU this CU next CU the CU after next

the day

before

yesterday

yesterday today tomorrow the day after tomorrow

MAEN MAEN MAEN MAEN MAEN

single wordLTN

DN+DPN

THE DPN of DAY

So far we’ve only asked what these time-locating expressions mean.

Now we have to ask how they show up in English sentences as temporal modifiers.

How does the grammar use these expressions?

How do these expressions appear as temporal adverbials?

(How are they marked?)

no preposition preposition IN

preposition ON preposition AT

Some have no preposition

TODAY, YESTERDAY, TOMORROW

THIS WEEK, NEXT YEAR, LAST SUMMER

YESTERDAY AFTERNOON, TOMORROW MORNING

(all those that are anchored in ‘now’)

IN generally selects Periods

IN THE MORNING

IN AUGUST

IN 1929

AT generally selects “points”

AT MIDNIGHT, AT NOON

AT DAWN, AT DAYBREAK

Exception: AT NIGHT

DAY has its own private preposition: ON

(As everybody who studies English has to learn.)

ON WEDNESDAY

ON THE NEXT DAY

ON THANKSGIVING DAY

Prepositional Marking, cont’d

Deictic day names

stand alone

*(on) today,

*(on) yesterday,

*(on) tomorrow

Weekday names

allow but do not require

prepositions (U.S. Eng.)

(on) Monday,

(on) Tuesday

But . . .

IN the morning (day-part name)

ON Tuesday (day name)

ON Tuesday morning

What is the structure of these compounds? What’s the “head”?

yesterday afternoon

tomorrow night

Tuesday morning

Thursday evening

Friday afternoon

etc.

Evidence that DN is the head.

• YESTERDAY and TOMORROW can stand alone; so can YESTERDAY MORNING, TOMORROW

AFTERNOON, etc.• THURSDAY, FRIDAY, etc., can either stand

alone or take prepositional marking; the same with THURSDAY MORNING, FRIDAY

AFTERNOON, etc.• The preposition, for these, is ON, not IN.

But . . .

There are cases in which the Day-Part name is clearly the syntactic head, and you still get the preposition ON .

IN the morning

ON the morning of the next day

ON the afternoon of October 14

ON the evening of November 1, 2000

Furthermore, ...

• Modifiers like EARLY and LATE modify the day-part, not the day.

LATE THURSDAY MORNING

(not ‘late Thursday’ but ‘late morning’)EARLY TOMORROW EVENING

(not ‘early tomorrow’ but ‘early evening’)

From the BNC, with ON

[On the night before],

[On the afternoon of Saturday, 27 July],

[On the night of the full moon],

[On the morning of our departure],

[On the morning of Dobson’s funeral],

[On the night of the fatal attack],

From the BNC, with IN

[In the morning] they found him dead

[In the afternoon] he starts by sleeping

[In the morning] Lucy feigned sleep

[In the morning] Cameron fell exhausted

[In the morning] he awoke to find Amanda

[In the afternoon] breakfasts may be classical

Apparent Counter-example

on the morning of the next day

in the morning on the next day

Constituent Structure?

on the morning of the next day

[on [the morning [of the next day]]]

in the morning on the next day

[in the morning] [on the next day]

THE – THIS – THAT

THIS MORNING

IN THE MORNING

ON THAT MORNING

no preposition

preposition IN

preposition ON

(typically)

IN and ON with DAYS (plural)

IN coerces a time-span interpretation

IN THOSE DAYS WE WORE OUR HAIR LONG.

?IN EVEN-NUMBERED DAYS WE WENT TO THE GYM.

ON individuates the identified days

?ON THOSE DAYS WE WORE OUR HAIR LONG.

ON EVEN-NUMBERED DAYS WE WENT TO THE GYM.

Ignored Issues

prag-anchored “LTN” typesthe preceding day, that week, the following year

Hard vs. soft preemptions*next day, tomorrow; last night, *yesterday night; *this night, tonight

Clause position of temp adverbshe was recently/*yesterday here, she will soon/*tomorrow be here

Straddling CSUswinter and night

Ambiguities of “next” and “last”next Friday: the upcoming Friday or the Friday of next week

Summary Observations

The Vector construction is a normal part of “core” grammar, following general X-bar structure: [Spec [Head Comp]]

Calendric unit expressions require special dedicated constructions just for these purposes, exhibit complex “pre-emptions”.

Many aspects of the system reveal special constructional privileges of the category ‘day’.