In English grammar, a word class is a set of words that display the same formal properties, especially their inflections and distribution. The term «word class» is similar to the more traditional term, part of speech. It is also variously called grammatical category, lexical category, and syntactic category (although these terms are not wholly or universally synonymous).
The two major families of word classes are lexical (or open or form) classes (nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs) and function (or closed or structure) classes (determiners, particles, prepositions, and others).
Examples and Observations
- «When linguists began to look closely at English grammatical structure in the 1940s and 1950s, they encountered so many problems of identification and definition that the term part of speech soon fell out of favor, word class being introduced instead. Word classes are equivalent to parts of speech, but defined according to strict linguistic criteria.» (David Crystal, The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language, 2nd ed. Cambridge University Press, 2003)
- «There is no single correct way of analyzing words into word classes…Grammarians disagree about the boundaries between the word classes (see gradience), and it is not always clear whether to lump subcategories together or to split them. For example, in some grammars…pronouns are classed as nouns, whereas in other frameworks…they are treated as a separate word class.» (Bas Aarts, Sylvia Chalker, Edmund Weiner, The Oxford Dictionary of English Grammar, 2nd ed. Oxford University Press, 2014)
Form Classes and Structure Classes
«[The] distinction between lexical and grammatical meaning determines the first division in our classification: form-class words and structure-class words. In general, the form classes provide the primary lexical content; the structure classes explain the grammatical or structural relationship. Think of the form-class words as the bricks of the language and the structure words as the mortar that holds them together.»
The form classes also known as content words or open classes include:
- Nouns
- Verbs
- Adjectives
- Adverbs
The structure classes, also known as function words or closed classes, include:
- Determiners
- Pronouns
- Auxiliaries
- Conjunctions
- Qualifiers
- Interrogatives
- Prepositions
- Expletives
- Particles
«Probably the most striking difference between the form classes and the structure classes is characterized by their numbers. Of the half million or more words in our language, the structure words—with some notable exceptions—can be counted in the hundreds. The form classes, however, are large, open classes; new nouns and verbs and adjectives and adverbs regularly enter the language as new technology and new ideas require them.» (Martha Kolln and Robert Funk, Understanding English Grammar. Allyn and Bacon, 1998)
One Word, Multiple Classes
«Items may belong to more than one class. In most instances, we can only assign a word to a word class when we encounter it in context. Looks is a verb in ‘It looks good,’ but a noun in ‘She has good looks‘; that is a conjunction in ‘I know that they are abroad,’ but a pronoun in ‘I know that‘ and a determiner in ‘I know that man’; one is a generic pronoun in ‘One must be careful not to offend them,’ but a numeral in ‘Give me one good reason.'» (Sidney Greenbaum, Oxford English Grammar. Oxford University Press, 1996)
Suffixes as Signals
«We recognize the class of a word by its use in context. Some words have suffixes (endings added to words to form new words) that help to signal the class they belong to. These suffixes are not necessarily sufficient in themselves to identify the class of a word. For example, -ly is a typical suffix for adverbs (slowly, proudly), but we also find this suffix in adjectives: cowardly, homely, manly. And we can sometimes convert words from one class to another even though they have suffixes that are typical of their original class: an engineer, to engineer; a negative response, a negative.» (Sidney Greenbaum and Gerald Nelson, An Introduction to English Grammar, 3rd ed. Pearson, 2009)
A Matter of Degree
«[N]ot all the members of a class will necessarily have all the identifying properties. Membership in a particular class is really a matter of degree. In this regard, grammar is not so different from the real world. There are prototypical sports like ‘football’ and not so sporty sports like ‘darts.’ There are exemplary mammals like ‘dogs’ and freakish ones like the ‘platypus.’ Similarly, there are good examples of verbs like watch and lousy examples like beware; exemplary nouns like chair that display all the features of a typical noun and some not so good ones like Kenny.» (Kersti Börjars and Kate Burridge, Introducing English Grammar, 2nd ed. Hodder, 2010)
Form class and function class words
Traditional grammar classifies these form class and function words into parts of speech. They include:
1. Noun
2. Pronoun
3. Adjective
4. Verbs
5. Adverbs
6. Prepositions
7. Conjunctions
8. Interjections
9. Determiners /articles
Form class & function class words
Words are classified generally into two different kinds or classes. According to their use and work they do
in a sentence. They are:
1. Form class words or the content words
2. Function class words or the structure words
The form class words or the content words are words with greater semantic content. They are also called
open class words because more and more words can be added to this category of words.
Noun, verb, adjectives & adverbs belongs to this category.
But function words are closed class words as they exist to explain or create grammatical or structural
relationship into which the content words may fit. They are limited or fewer in number when compared to
the content words .they are words that signal how content words relate to each other in a sentence.
Prepositions, pronouns, determiners, auxiliary verbs and conjunctions belong to this group of
words.
To which category a word belongs depends upon the function it performs in a sentence. The same
word can perform the role of a noun in one sentence, verb in another sentence, adjective and adverb in
other sentences and so on
Eg:-
I gave him a present. [Noun]
You are advised not to travel in the present circumstances. [Adjective]
She presented him a lap top. [verb]
She will be here presently. [adverb]
This is a fast train. [Adjective]
He walks fast. [adverb]
Muslims fast during Ramzan. [verb]
She went on a two-day fast last week. [noun]
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- Dictionary
- F
- Form class
Transcription
-
- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
-
- [fawrm klas, klahs]
- /fɔrm klæs, klɑs/
-
- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
-
- [fawrm klas, klahs]
- /fɔrm klæs, klɑs/
Definitions of form class words
- noun form class a class of words or forms in a given language that have one or more grammatical features in common, as, in Latin, all masculine nouns in the nominative singular, all masculine singular nouns, all masculine nouns, or all nouns. 1
- noun form class a group of words distinguished by common inflections, such as the weak verbs of English 0
- noun form class a class made up of words that occur in a distinctive position in constructions and have certain formal features in common, as the form class noun in English, made up of all words to which both the plural and possessive suffixes may be added 0
- noun form class (taxonomy) A collection of organisms that is given formal recognition at the rank of class with a taxonomic name, but which is known to be an artificial group rather than a natural one. 0
Information block about the term
Origin of form class
First appearance:
before 1920
One of the 12% newest English words
First recorded in 1920-25
Historical Comparancy
Parts of speech for Form class
form class popularity
A pretty common term. Usually people know it’s meaning, but prefer to use a more spread out synonym. About 34% of English native speakers know the meaning and use word.
According to our data about 69% of words is more used. This is a rare but used term. It occurs in the pages of specialized literature and in the speech of educated people.
See also
- All definitions of form class
- Sentences with the word form class
- The plural of form class
Matching words
- Words starting with f
- Words starting with fo
- Words starting with for
- Words starting with form
- Words starting with formc
- Words starting with formcl
- Words starting with formcla
- Words starting with formclas
- Words starting with formclass
- Words ending with s
- Words ending with ss
- Words ending with ass
- Words ending with lass
- Words containing the letters f
- Words containing the letters f,o
- Words containing the letters f,o,r
- Words containing the letters f,o,r,m
- Words containing the letters f,o,r,m,c
- Words containing the letters f,o,r,m,c,l
- Words containing f
- Words containing fo
- Words containing for
- Words containing form
- Words containing formc
- Words containing formcl
- form class
English-Russian dictionary of computer science and programming.
2013.
Смотреть что такое «form class» в других словарях:
-
form class — ☆ form class n. Linguis. a class made up of words that occur in a distinctive position in constructions and have certain formal features in common, as the form class noun in English, made up of all words to which both the plural and possessive… … English World dictionary
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form class — form′ class n. gram. a class of words or other forms in a language having one or more grammatical features in common, as all plural nouns … From formal English to slang
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form class — noun one of the traditional categories of words intended to reflect their functions in a grammatical context • Syn: ↑part of speech, ↑word class • Hypernyms: ↑grammatical category, ↑syntactic category • Hyponyms: ↑major form class … Useful english dictionary
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form class — noun A collection of organisms that is given formal recognition at the rank of class with a taxonomic name, but which is known to be an artificial group rather than a natural one. All fungi for which sexual reproduction is unknown are assigned to … Wiktionary
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form-class — (formґklas″) an artificial taxonomic category comparable to a class, to which organisms are provisionally assigned, as are imperfect fungi until their perfect (sexual) stages are identified. Form classes are subdivided into form orders,… … Medical dictionary
-
form class — noun Date: 1921 a class of linguistic forms that can be used in the same position in a construction and that have one or more morphological or syntactical features in common … New Collegiate Dictionary
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form class — Gram. a class of words or forms in a given language that have one or more grammatical features in common, as, in Latin, all masculine nouns in the nominative singular, all masculine singular nouns, all masculine nouns, or all nouns. [1920 25] * * … Universalium
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form class — /ˈfɔm klas/ (say fawm klahs) noun Linguistics a class of words or forms in a language with one or more grammatical features in common, as (in Latin) all masculine nouns in the nominative singular, or all masculine singular nouns, or all masculine …
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form class — noun Linguistics a part of speech or subset of a part of speech … English new terms dictionary
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Girard form class — is a form quotient calculated as the ratio of diameter inside bark at the top of the first 16 foot log to the diameter outside bark at breast height (DBH). Girard form class is the primary expression of tree form in the United States.To allow for … Wikipedia
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major form class — n. (Grammar) Any of the {parts of speech} of traditional grammar. [WordNet 1.5] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
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PRONUNCIATION OF FORM CLASS
GRAMMATICAL CATEGORY OF FORM CLASS
Form class is a noun.
A noun is a type of word the meaning of which determines reality. Nouns provide the names for all things: people, objects, sensations, feelings, etc.
WHAT DOES FORM CLASS MEAN IN ENGLISH?
Homeroom
Homeroom or advisory is the classroom session in which a teacher records attendance and makes announcements. It can also be called Registration or Planning Period. The concept is used in schools around the world.
Definition of form class in the English dictionary
The definition of form class in the dictionary is a group of words distinguished by common inflections, such as the weak verbs of English.
Synonyms and antonyms of form class in the English dictionary of synonyms
Translation of «form class» into 25 languages
TRANSLATION OF FORM CLASS
Find out the translation of form class to 25 languages with our English multilingual translator.
The translations of form class from English to other languages presented in this section have been obtained through automatic statistical translation; where the essential translation unit is the word «form class» in English.
Translator English — Chinese
窗体类
1,325 millions of speakers
Translator English — Spanish
clase de formulario
570 millions of speakers
Translator English — Hindi
फार्म क्लास
380 millions of speakers
Translator English — Arabic
فئة النموذج
280 millions of speakers
Translator English — Russian
класс формы
278 millions of speakers
Translator English — Portuguese
classe de formulário
270 millions of speakers
Translator English — Bengali
ফর্ম বর্গ
260 millions of speakers
Translator English — French
classe de formulaire
220 millions of speakers
Translator English — Malay
Kelas borang
190 millions of speakers
Translator English — German
Formularklasse
180 millions of speakers
Translator English — Japanese
フォームクラス
130 millions of speakers
Translator English — Korean
폼 클래스
85 millions of speakers
Translator English — Javanese
Mbentuk kelas
85 millions of speakers
Translator English — Vietnamese
lớp mẫu
80 millions of speakers
Translator English — Tamil
படிவம் வகுப்பு
75 millions of speakers
Translator English — Marathi
फॉर्म वर्ग
75 millions of speakers
Translator English — Turkish
Form sınıfı
70 millions of speakers
Translator English — Italian
classe di form
65 millions of speakers
Translator English — Polish
Klasa forma
50 millions of speakers
Translator English — Ukrainian
клас форми
40 millions of speakers
Translator English — Romanian
formă de clasă
30 millions of speakers
Translator English — Greek
class μορφή
15 millions of speakers
Translator English — Afrikaans
vorm die klas
14 millions of speakers
Translator English — Swedish
formklass
10 millions of speakers
Translator English — Norwegian
skjema klasse
5 millions of speakers
Trends of use of form class
TENDENCIES OF USE OF THE TERM «FORM CLASS»
The term «form class» is quite widely used and occupies the 36.306 position in our list of most widely used terms in the English dictionary.
FREQUENCY
Quite widely used
The map shown above gives the frequency of use of the term «form class» in the different countries.
Principal search tendencies and common uses of form class
List of principal searches undertaken by users to access our English online dictionary and most widely used expressions with the word «form class».
FREQUENCY OF USE OF THE TERM «FORM CLASS» OVER TIME
The graph expresses the annual evolution of the frequency of use of the word «form class» during the past 500 years. Its implementation is based on analysing how often the term «form class» appears in digitalised printed sources in English between the year 1500 and the present day.
Examples of use in the English literature, quotes and news about form class
10 ENGLISH BOOKS RELATING TO «FORM CLASS»
Discover the use of form class in the following bibliographical selection. Books relating to form class and brief extracts from same to provide context of its use in English literature.
1
Wordsworth’s Profession: Form, Class, and the Logic of Early …
In exploring Wordsworth’s professionalization as a writer, the author’s interpretations are coordinated by a single, albeit highly ramified, critical hypothesis: that Romanticism’s aesthetic forms afforded the middle classes an imaginary …
We covered some of the more common and useful properties, methods, and
events of the Control class, and since the Form class is a descendent of the
Control class, all of the same properties, methods and events exist in the Form
class.
3
Visual Basic Programmer’s Guide to the .NET Framework Class …
NET Framework, the Form class is the primary object that you use to create and
manipulate forms. It is a representation of any type of window that you might need
to display in an application, from dialog boxes to resizable windows to MDI …
Lars Powers, Mike Snell, 2002
average form class in the stand. The form class varied considerably within the
same stand, especially in uneven-aged and open stands. We believe, however,
that in ordinary cruising it will be possible to judge the average form class outside
…
5
Modern English Structures, second edition: Form, Function, …
FIGURE 2.1 O FORM CLASS WORDS AND INFLECTIONS WORDS Native
speakers have an intuitive understanding of the words they use and what those
words mean. We look up words in dictionaries, read them on pages, and often
discuss …
6
Visual Basic.NET by Example
However, in order to help you understand the details of the System.Windows.
Forms.Form class, the examples start simple and progressively explain more and
more capabilities of forms. For your first example you’ll create a new Empty
project …
Gabriel Oancea, Robert P. Donald, 2002
7
Sams Teach Yourself Visual C++ .NET in 24 Hours
The Form class provides the foundation for displaying any window within your
application. It is capable of creating a standard, borderless, floating window. The
Form class also supports creating a multiple-document interface (MDI) frame and
…
Richard J. Simon, Mark Schmidt, 2002
8
Readings in Machine Translation
But, for all practical MT purposes, it is convenient to include all forms in the
operational form class of determinative «pro-adjectives,» not only those after
which the adjective follows the weak declension, but also those after which it has
strong …
Sergei Nirenburg, H. L. Somers, Yorick Wilks, 2003
9
Doing Objects in Visual Basic 2005
application, such as a particular icon or set of buttons, adding these to the base
form class may be useful. Any controls on the base form class appear on every
form that inherits from the base form class, providing visual inheritance.
Frequently …
10
Visual Basic 2008 Programming Black Book, Platinum Edition …
Next, we describe the members of the Form class. The Form class has only one
class property, ActiveForm, which holds the currently active form for the entire
application. If you want to determine which window is active, use the ActiveForm
…
Kogent Solutions Inc., 2009
10 NEWS ITEMS WHICH INCLUDE THE TERM «FORM CLASS»
Find out what the national and international press are talking about and how the term form class is used in the context of the following news items.
Major setback for intern rights as appeals court vacates 2013 “Black …
The “primary beneficiary” test is damaging beyond making it nearly impossible to form class action suits. The benefit an intern derives from their … «AMERICAblog, Jul 15»
The dramatic shift in south European politics
Radicalism, as grand “gesture politics,” is an entertaining, non-threatening response to capitalism since there is no concerted effort to form class alliances with … «Morning Star Online, Jun 15»
What size is your meal?
The classes we chose were one mid-band and one enrichment form class for both nine and ten year levels. With our surveys we wanted to … «Wanganui Chronicle, Jun 15»
Wole Soyinka Calls On African Leaders To Invest More In Education
… at the National Theatre for the 2014/2015 Annual Speech and Prize-giving Day for students graduating from the Upper Sixth Form Class. «Peace FM Online, Jun 15»
The Rise of the “Non Leftist Left”. The Radical Reconfiguration of …
Radicalism, as grand ‘gesture politics’, is an entertaining, non-threatening response to capitalism since there is no concerted effort to form class … «Center for Research on Globalization, Jun 15»
Hyndburn school set to welcome new students and parents next month
Pupils should come to the main entrance for 9am where they will meet their new form tutor, form class and have a day full of activities. «Lancashire Telegraph, Jun 15»
Bygones: Former Breadsall school pupil living in Canada adds …
IN response to the recent request for names of students in a photo of a fourth-form class at Breadsall Hilltop School, circa 1966, sent in by … «Derby Telegraph, Jun 15»
Roberts Court to Review Wage Theft Class Action Case
The Roberts Court on Monday agreed to consider limits on the ability of workers to form class-actions under the Fair Labor Standards Act. «RH Reality Check, Jun 15»
Bopara at cocksure best lifts Essex
So a distillation of his short form class was particularly timely. An innings of 57 off 48 balls provided it. If that seems a touch sedate by the … «ESPNcricinfo.com, Jun 15»
Fundraiser for popular Torfaen teacher
Daniel Berryman, aged 27, was in the form class for three years and said how a lot of pupils “got on with him really well”. “He was a very down … «South Wales Argus, May 15»
REFERENCE
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Presentation Transcript
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Form class words Nouns, Verbs, Adjectives, Adverbs
-
Two word classes • Structure Classes: • stable – changes little over time; about 1% of words in English; help put structure of sentences together • Examples– determiners, prepositions, pronouns, qualifiers, conjunctions, auxiliaries • the, of, they, very, and, would • Form Classes • Content words in English; most words in the language, carry meaning in sentences • Defined in terms of their Forms • Examples – noun, verb, adjective, adverb • committee, to define, yellow, quickly
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Nouns and Noun Phrases • A phrase is a group of words that functions as a unit in the sentence • A noun is a word that may be made plural or possessive (formal definition that focuses on the FORM of the word rather than its meaning) • “road” has a plural form “roads” and may be made possessive as in “the road’s surface” • A noun phrase has a noun as its headword • the yellow brick road • Some plurals are irregular (men or deer)
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Verbs and Verb Phrases • A verb is a word that has a third singular present “s” form (in most dialects) and an “ing” form (formal definition rather than one focusing on word meaning) • Every English verb has a regular present participle (“ing” form) • This definition treats all verbs alike, whether they express action “to dance” or a state of being “to become” • The verb is always the heart of the English sentence: verb form determines sentence structure
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Adjectives and Adverbs • Adjectives and Adverbs are words that have comparative and superlative forms • Comparative is “er” or “more” or “less” • better or taller or more beautiful or more quickly or less clever • Superlative is “est” or “most” or “least” • best or tallest or most beautiful or most quickly or least clever • Adjectives fit into the “adjective test frame” • The ______________ noun is very ______________ • Adverbs are movable. • Jane counted quickly / Jane quickly counted
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Structure Class Words • Words that do not belong to a FORM class are structure class words • Prepositions: about, among, over, under, etc • Conjunctions: and, because, neither. . . nor, etc. • Determiners: the, that, her, some, each, etc. • Qualifiers: rather, very, etc. • Interrogatives: who, what, how, when, etc. • And others . . . • Structure classes tend to be closed and to change little.
- Top Definitions
- Quiz
- British
This shows grade level based on the word’s complexity.
This shows grade level based on the word’s complexity.
noun Grammar.
a class of words or forms in a given language that have one or more grammatical features in common, as, in Latin, all masculine nouns in the nominative singular, all masculine singular nouns, all masculine nouns, or all nouns.
QUIZ
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Origin of form class
First recorded in 1920–25
Words nearby form class
formative, formative assessment, formative element, formboard, Formby, form class, form criticism, form drag, forme, formée, former
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
British Dictionary definitions for form class
noun
a group of words distinguished by common inflections, such as the weak verbs of English
Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
form class
n.
A set of words that have one or more grammatical or syntactic characteristics in common, such as the class of transitive verbs in English.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
form class
n
2. (Grammar) a group of words distinguished by common inflections, such as the weak verbs of English
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
form′ class`
n.
a class of words or other forms in a language having one or more grammatical features in common, as all plural nouns.
Random House Kernerman Webster’s College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
: a class of linguistic forms that can be used in the same position in a construction and that have one or more morphological or syntactical features in common
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web
Certain state laws, including the California Consumer Privacy Act, also allow individuals to sue companies and form class-action lawsuits over privacy breaches.
—
James Rundle, WSJ, 5 May 2021
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word ‘form class.’ Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1921, in the meaning defined above
Time Traveler
The first known use of form class was
in 1921
Dictionary Entries Near form class
Cite this Entry
“Form class.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/form%20class. Accessed 14 Apr. 2023.
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