grammar en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- grăm'ər (Canada, General-American)
- [ˈɡɹɛəm.ɚ] (Canada, General-American)
- /ˈɡɹæm.ɚ/ (Canada, General-American)
- (California) audio
- /ˈɡɹæm.ə(ɹ)/ (Australia, Received-Pronunciation)
- [ˈɡɹam.ɚ] (Canada)
- [ˈɡɹæːm.ɚ] (Canada)
Etymology
From Middle English gramere, from Old French gramaire (“classical learning”), from unattested Vulgar Latin *grammāria, an alteration of Latin grammatica, from Ancient Greek γραμματική (grammatikḗ, “skilled in writing”), from γράμμα (grámma, “line of writing”), from γράφω (gráphō, “write”), from Proto-Indo-European *gerbʰ- (“to carve, scratch”). Displaced native Old English stæfcræft; a doublet of glamour, glamoury, gramarye, and grimoire. Piecewise doublet of grammatic.
Meanings
- (countable, uncountable) A system of rules and principles for the structure of a language, or of languages in general.
- (uncountable) A system of rules and principles for the structure of a language, or of languages in general. ▸ The study of such a system.
- (uncountable) Actual or presumed prescriptive notions about the correct use of a language.
- (countable) A book describing the grammar (noun sense 1 or noun sense 2) of a language.
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(countable) A formal system specifying the syntax of a language.
Because real lexicons are big and complex, from a software engineering perspective it is best to write simple grammars that have a simple, well-defined way, of pulling out the information they need from vast lexicons. That is, grammars should be thought of as separate entities which can access the information contained in lexicons. We can then use specialised mechanisms for efficiently storing the lexicon and retrieving data from it.
2006, Patrick Blackburn · Johan Bos · Kristina Striegnitz, Learn Prolog Now!, §8.2
- (countable) A formal system defining a formal language.
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(countable, figuratively) The basic rules or principles of a field of knowledge or a particular skill.
We must learn a new grammar of power in a world that is made up more of the common good – or the common bad – than of self-interest or national interest.
2011, Javier Solana; Daniel Innerarity, Project Syndicate, The New Grammar of Power:
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(UK, archaic, countable) A book describing these rules or principles; a textbook.
a grammar of geography
To turn this sort of mixture of a gossip and a gospel into anything like a grammar of Distributism has been quite impossible.
1926, G[ilbert] K[eith] Chesterton, “VI: A Summary”, in The Outline of Sanity, London: Methuen & Co. Ltd., →OCLC:
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(UK, abbreviation, alt-of, countable, ellipsis, informal, uncountable) Ellipsis of grammar school.
alt of grammar school
He’s the old man’s only son. Some baby! Yep, right behind ya. Nope, he donno me. I was in Grammar when he was in High.
1932, Grace Livingston Hill, chapter 6, in The Patch of Blue, Toronto, Ont.: The Copp Clark Company, Limited, published in the 20th century, →OCLC, page 128:
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(countable) A set of component patterns, along with the rules for connecting them, which can be combined to form more complex patterns such as large still lifes, oscillators, and spaceships.
Within a few hours of finding the first period 2 ship, Dean had discovered a grammar for constructing an infinite number of different short, wide, period 2 spaceships. A grammar is an "alphabet" of "components", along with rules for the possible sequences of connections between components. Components are simply the identifiable pieces of a ship which reappear over and over in different ships in different combinations.
1992 August 27, David Bell, “Spaceships in Conway's Life (Part 2a)”, in comp.theory.cell-automata (Usenet):Hickerson has a computer program which found a spaceship with speed c/3. In fact a whole grammar of them.
1991 April 4, Bill Gosper, “LIFELINE:in search of the newsletter”, in comp.theory.cell-automata (Usenet):Dean's discovery included a much more plentiful family than just the light, medium, and heavy weight spaceships that have been known since the beginning, which he was able to organize into a series of tiles and a grammar for them.
1994 January 21, Harold McIntosh, “de Bruijn diagrams”, in comp.theory.cell-automata (Usenet):
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| grammary | alternative, archaic | lexicographic | |
| grammars | Number=Plur | lexicographic | |
| grammer | alternative, obsolete | lexicographic |
Deriveds
dependence grammar · grammarize · nongrammar · relational grammar · grammar checker · metagrammar · subgrammar · compositional grammar · protogrammar · Montague grammar · cryptogrammar · construction grammar · grammar police · ethnogrammar · case grammar · context-free grammar · generative grammar · grammar school · grammarlike · universal grammar · dependency grammar · grammar-oriented programming · natural grammar · grammarless · categorial grammar · lexicogrammar · grammar Nazi · grammarese · transformational grammar · grammeme · grammarism · formal grammar · grammar cop · grammar nazi · grammarian · grammar induction
Descendants
Hyponyms
Turing-complete grammar · finite-state grammar · normative grammar · context-sensitive grammar
Relateds
Synonyms
glomery (study & field of study in medieval Latin contexts)
Translations (274)
wuu 語法 /语法 (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ko 문법 (rules for speaking and writing a language) · sv grammatik (study of internal structure and use of words) · et grammatika (rules for speaking and writing a language) · sh gramàtika (in computing: formal system specifying the syntax of a language) · tg дастури забон (rules for speaking and writing a language) · la grammatice (study of internal structure and use of words) · es gramática (rules for speaking and writing a language) · bcl balanghayan (rules for speaking and writing a language) · tr gramer kitabı (book describing grammar) · rue ґрама́тіка (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ang stæfcræft (rules for speaking and writing a language) · syc ܓܪܡܛܝܩܝ (rules for speaking and writing a language) · nb grammatikk (book describing grammar) · el γραμματική (study of internal structure and use of words) · vi văn phạm (rules for speaking and writing a language) · sk gramatika (rules for speaking and writing a language) · nrf grammaithe (rules for speaking and writing a language) · vi ngữ pháp (rules for speaking and writing a language) · syc ܬܘܪܨ ܡܡܠܠܐ (rules for speaking and writing a language) · be грама́тыка (study of internal structure and use of words) · fi kielioppi (rules for speaking and writing a language) · el γραμματική (rules for speaking and writing a language) · it grammatica (study of internal structure and use of words) · mn ᠬᠡᠯᠡᠨ ᠦ ᠵᠦᠢ (rules for speaking and writing a language) · hi व्याकरण (rules for speaking and writing a language) · de Sprachlehre (book describing grammar) · pa ਵਿਆਕਰਨ (rules for speaking and writing a language) · be грама́тыка (rules for speaking and writing a language) · nl spraakkunst (rules for speaking and writing a language) · as ব্যাকৰণ (rules for speaking and writing a language) · kl oqaasilerissutit (rules for speaking and writing a language) · bg грама́тика (study of internal structure and use of words) · zea grammaotica (rules for speaking and writing a language) · sh грама̀тика (book describing grammar) · pt gramática (study of internal structure and use of words) · ga gramadach (rules for speaking and writing a language) · pl gramatyka (study of internal structure and use of words) · da grammatik (rules for speaking and writing a language) · oc gramatica (rules for speaking and writing a language) · gl gramática (book describing grammar) · de Grammatik (study of internal structure and use of words) · hy քերականություն (rules for speaking and writing a language) · enm gramere (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ps پښويه (rules for speaking and writing a language) · izh grammatikka (rules for speaking and writing a language) · pt gramática (rules for speaking and writing a language) · te నామవాచకం (rules for speaking and writing a language) · am ሰዋሰው (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ckb ڕێزمان (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ba грамматика (rules for speaking and writing a language) · dng йүфа (rules for speaking and writing a language) · cmn 語法 /语法 (in computing: formal system specifying the syntax of a language) · rm grammatica (book describing grammar) · sh сло́вница (rules for speaking and writing a language) · fi kielioppikirja (book describing grammar) · kn ವ್ಯಾಕರಣ (rules for speaking and writing a language) · sv grammatik (in computing: formal system specifying the syntax of a language) · lb Grammaire (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ca gramàtica (rules for speaking and writing a language) · et keeleõpetus (rules for speaking and writing a language) · id ilmu nahu (study of internal structure and use of words) · rm grammatica (in computing: formal system specifying the syntax of a language) · za yijfaz (rules for speaking and writing a language) · el γραμματική (book describing grammar) · sv grammatik (rules for speaking and writing a language) · fr grammaire (in computing: formal system specifying the syntax of a language) · ko 문법책 (book describing grammar) · fr grammaire (study of internal structure and use of words) · ar نَحْو (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ar عِلْم قَوَاعِد (study of internal structure and use of words) · ar قَوَاعِد (book describing grammar) · bo བརྡ་སྤྲོད་ཀྱི་གཞུང (rules for speaking and writing a language) · mwl gramática (rules for speaking and writing a language) · mfe gramer (rules for speaking and writing a language) · sl slovnica (study of internal structure and use of words) · mk граматика (study of internal structure and use of words) · lt gramatika (rules for speaking and writing a language) · de Sprachlehre (rules for speaking and writing a language) · nn grammatikk (book describing grammar) · th ไวยากรณ์ (rules for speaking and writing a language) · sq gramatikë (rules for speaking and writing a language) · mn ᠬᠡᠯᠡ ᠵᠦᠢ (rules for speaking and writing a language) · sh грама̀тика (rules for speaking and writing a language) · cmn 文法 (rules for speaking and writing a language) · uk грама́тика (book describing grammar) · rw ikibonezamvugo (rules for speaking and writing a language) · gl gramática (rules for speaking and writing a language) · sv grammatikbok (book describing grammar) · bg уче́бник по грама́тика (book describing grammar) · hak 語法 /语法 (rules for speaking and writing a language) · my သဒ္ဒါ (rules for speaking and writing a language) · tg грамматика (study of internal structure and use of words) · cs mluvnice (rules for speaking and writing a language) · gu વ્યાકરણ (rules for speaking and writing a language) · uk грама́тика (rules for speaking and writing a language) · he דִּקְדּוּק (rules for speaking and writing a language) · vo gramat (rules for speaking and writing a language) · sh грама̀тика (in computing: formal system specifying the syntax of a language) · fa-ira گِرامِر (study of internal structure and use of words) · br yezhadur (rules for speaking and writing a language) · id paramasastra (study of internal structure and use of words) · kk грамматика (rules for speaking and writing a language) · mr व्याकरण (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ast gramática (rules for speaking and writing a language) · sh gramàtika (study of internal structure and use of words) · id tata bahasa (study of internal structure and use of words) · ia grammatica (rules for speaking and writing a language) · lad gramatika (rules for speaking and writing a language) · mk граматика (book describing grammar) · fa-ira دَسْتورِ زَبان (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ml വ്യാകരണം (rules for speaking and writing a language) · gd gràmar (rules for speaking and writing a language) · mi wetereo (study of internal structure and use of words) · ro gramatică (rules for speaking and writing a language) · sw sarufi (rules for speaking and writing a language) · et grammatika (book describing grammar) · eo gramatiko (rules for speaking and writing a language) · fa-ira گِرامِر (rules for speaking and writing a language) · it grammatica (in computing: formal system specifying the syntax of a language) · syc ܩܢܘܢܐ ܕܠܥܙܐ (rules for speaking and writing a language) · new व्याकरण (rules for speaking and writing a language) · nl grammatica (rules for speaking and writing a language) · bo སུམ་རྟགས (rules for speaking and writing a language) · gl gramática (in computing: formal system specifying the syntax of a language) · yi גראַמאַטיק (rules for speaking and writing a language) · nrf grammaithe (in computing: formal system specifying the syntax of a language) · lb Grammatik (rules for speaking and writing a language) · sm kalama (rules for speaking and writing a language) · cdo 語法 /语法 (rules for speaking and writing a language) · cs gramatika (rules for speaking and writing a language) · pga kawaayid (rules for speaking and writing a language) · tr dil bilgisi kitabı (book describing grammar) · ia grammatica (book describing grammar) · rm grammatica (study of internal structure and use of words) · nl spraakkunstboek (book describing grammar) · de Sprachlehre (study of internal structure and use of words) · pt gramática (book describing grammar) · os грамматикӕ (rules for speaking and writing a language) · sh gramàtika (book describing grammar) · uz grammatika (rules for speaking and writing a language) · gv grammeydys (rules for speaking and writing a language) · se giellaoahppa (rules for speaking and writing a language) · mk граматика (in computing: formal system specifying the syntax of a language) · fo mállæra (book describing grammar) · fr grammaire (rules for speaking and writing a language) · mi tikanga wetereo (rules for speaking and writing a language) · fo mállæra (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ar قَوَاعِد (in computing: formal system specifying the syntax of a language) · eu gramatika (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ja 文法 (study of internal structure and use of words) · it grammatica (rules for speaking and writing a language) · mi pukapuka wetereo (book describing grammar) · is málfræði (rules for speaking and writing a language) · nrf grammaithe (book describing grammar) · la litteratoria (study of internal structure and use of words) · mn ᠳᠦᠷᠢᠮ (rules for speaking and writing a language) · sl slovnica (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ko 문법학 (study of internal structure and use of words) · ilo alagadan (rules for speaking and writing a language) · tr dil bilgisi (study of internal structure and use of words) · ta இலக்கணம் (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ne व्याकरण (rules for speaking and writing a language) · sv språklära (book describing grammar) · tl balarila (rules for speaking and writing a language) · nan-hbl 文法 (rules for speaking and writing a language) · pl gramatyka (rules for speaking and writing a language) · cmn 語法 /语法 (rules for speaking and writing a language) · sa व्याकरण (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ja 文法 (rules for speaking and writing a language) · gl gramática (study of internal structure and use of words) · fa-ira دَسْتورِ زَبان (study of internal structure and use of words) · fy grammatika (rules for speaking and writing a language) · yue 文法 (rules for speaking and writing a language) · km វេយ្យាករណ៍ (rules for speaking and writing a language) · mn хэлний зүй (rules for speaking and writing a language) · sq gramatikë (study of internal structure and use of words) · la grammatica (study of internal structure and use of words) · sh сло́вница (book describing grammar) · bg грама́тика (in computing: formal system specifying the syntax of a language) · is málfræði (book describing grammar) · lv gramatika (study of internal structure and use of words) · mn хэл зүй (rules for speaking and writing a language) · mt grammatika (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ps ګرامر (rules for speaking and writing a language) · pl gramatyka (in computing: formal system specifying the syntax of a language) · af grammatika (rules for speaking and writing a language) · id gramatika (study of internal structure and use of words) · mn дүрэм (rules for speaking and writing a language) · id tata bahasa (rules for speaking and writing a language) · gv lioar ghrammeydys (book describing grammar) · ko Korean: 문법 (study of internal structure and use of words) · ur قَواعِدِ زَبان (rules for speaking and writing a language) · sh грама̀тика (study of internal structure and use of words) · ps صرف و نحو (rules for speaking and writing a language) · tt грамматика (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ru грамма́тика (in computing: formal system specifying the syntax of a language) · sh slóvnica (rules for speaking and writing a language) · rm grammatica (rules for speaking and writing a language) · grc γραμματική (rules for speaking and writing a language) · mk граматика (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ru грамма́тика (study of internal structure and use of words) · hu nyelvtan (rules for speaking and writing a language) · nb grammatikk (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ia grammatica (study of internal structure and use of words) · kmr rêziman (rules for speaking and writing a language) · tg грамматика (rules for speaking and writing a language) · tr gramer (study of internal structure and use of words) · an gramatica (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ja 文法書 (book describing grammar) · ha nahawu (rules for speaking and writing a language) · es gramática (study of internal structure and use of words) · pt gramática (in computing: formal system specifying the syntax of a language) · bg грама́тика (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ru грамма́тика (rules for speaking and writing a language) · mi wetereo (rules for speaking and writing a language) · sh slóvnica (book describing grammar) · az qrammatika (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ms tatabahasa (rules for speaking and writing a language) · fr grammaire (book describing grammar) · sh gramàtika (rules for speaking and writing a language) · oc gramatica (book describing grammar) · grc γραμματική (study of internal structure and use of words) · si ව්යාකරණ (rules for speaking and writing a language) · tr gramer (rules for speaking and writing a language) · yue 語法 /语法 (rules for speaking and writing a language) · la litteratio (study of internal structure and use of words) · nn grammatikk (rules for speaking and writing a language) · es gramática (book describing grammar) · ps ژبدود (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ps ګړپوهنه (rules for speaking and writing a language) · hif vyakaran (rules for speaking and writing a language) · fi kielioppi (in computing: formal system specifying the syntax of a language) · tr dil bilgisi (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ka გრამატიკა (rules for speaking and writing a language) · cv грамматика (rules for speaking and writing a language) · lv gramatika (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ja 文法 (in computing: formal system specifying the syntax of a language) · sgs gramatėka (rules for speaking and writing a language) · mfe gramer (book describing grammar) · nan-hbl 語法 /语法 (rules for speaking and writing a language) · gd gràmar (study of internal structure and use of words) · de Sprachkunst (study of internal structure and use of words) · ca gramàtica (study of internal structure and use of words) · lo ໄວຍະກອນ (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ru грамма́тика (book describing grammar) · cs gramatika (in computing: formal system specifying the syntax of a language) · ms parmasastera (rules for speaking and writing a language) · it grammatica (book describing grammar) · fi kielioppi (study of internal structure and use of words) · ca gramàtica (book describing grammar) · rsk ґраматика (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ar قَوَاعِد (rules for speaking and writing a language) · de Grammatiktheorie (study of internal structure and use of words) · tg дастури забон (study of internal structure and use of words) · hi ब्याकरण (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ur قَواعِد (rules for speaking and writing a language) · cy gramadeg (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ru уче́бник по грамма́тике (book describing grammar) · de Grammatik (in computing: formal system specifying the syntax of a language) · tk grammatika (rules for speaking and writing a language) · lv gramatika (book describing grammar) · de Grammatik (rules for speaking and writing a language) · nrf grammaithe (study of internal structure and use of words) · ug گرامماتىكا (rules for speaking and writing a language) · is málfræðibók (book describing grammar) · bn ব্যাকরণ (rules for speaking and writing a language) · el γραμματική (in computing: formal system specifying the syntax of a language) · qu simi kamachiy (rules for speaking and writing a language) · acw قَواعِد (rules for speaking and writing a language) · ky грамматика (rules for speaking and writing a language) · sv grammatik (book describing grammar) · sl slovnica (book describing grammar) · de Grammatik (book describing grammar)