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explain example a little more, in anticipation of terminology used later
Notation used above:
Notation used above:
:The symbol "->" means "can be replaced by".
:The symbol "->" means "can be replaced by".
:When there are several items on the right hand side separated by commas, any one of these items can be selected.
:When there are several items on the right hand side separated by commas, just one of these items can be selected.
:The comments preceded by "#" are not part of the generative grammar, but hopefully will help folks understand the example a little better.
:The comments preceded by "#" are not part of the generative grammar, but hopefully will help folks understand the example a little better.
:The use of ''italics'' and '''boldface''' is merely a convenient way of indicating the difference between items which can be expanded further (e.g. concepts such as ''NounPhrase'') and items which can not be expanded further (e.g. words such as '''girl'''). In the linguistic literature, items which can be expanded further are referred to as 'non-terminal' items, while items which can't be expanded further are known as 'terminal' items.
By making appropriate substitutions we can generate such sentences as:
By making appropriate substitutions we can generate such sentences as:
:This example illustrates the difference between grammar/syntax and meaning/semantics.
:This example illustrates the difference between grammar/syntax and meaning/semantics.
Another problem when analysing a sentence is that many English words have multiple meanings, so that there may be more than one way to interpret a sentence. A simple example is the sentence: "Time flies". Is this an instruction to check how fast flies are flying, or an indication that time appears to be passing quickly? A varied and entertaining selection of such ambiguities has been compiled by Jeff Gray.
Another problem when analysing a sentence is that many English words have multiple meanings, so that there may be more than one way to interpret a sentence. A simple example is the sentence:
<ref>{{Cite web
:"Time flies."
:Is this an instruction to check how fast flies are flying, or an indication that time appears to be passing quickly?
:A varied and entertaining selection of such ambiguities has been compiled by Jeff Gray.<ref>{{Cite web
| title = Collection of Ambiguous or Inconsistent/Incomplete Statements
| title = Collection of Ambiguous or Inconsistent/Incomplete Statements
| url = http://www.gray-area.org/Research/Ambig/
| url = http://www.gray-area.org/Research/Ambig/
):
):
# a finite number of non-terminal concepts (e.g. ''VerbPhrase'' in the example, or anything else in ''italics''),
# a finite number of non-terminal concepts (e.g. ''VerbPhrase'' in the example, or anything else in ''italics''),
# a finite number of terminals (e.g. '''the''', '''girl''' in the example, or anything else in '''bold-face''').
# a finite number of terminal items (e.g. '''girl''' in the example, or anything else in '''bold-face''').
# a finite set of rules for transforming non-terminal items (e.g. the example has 6 rules).
# a finite set of rules for transforming non-terminal items (e.g. the example has 6 rules).
# a single starting point (e.g. ''Sentence'' in the example).
# a single starting point (e.g. ''Sentence'' in the example).