The parameters that help learners decipher imperfective usage (particularly KF) in Russian are described. Subcategories of KF which do not overlap are analyzed through their contextual usage in detective stories. Suggestions are made for helping learners decode KF in speech and writing. (PMJ)

Notes the advantages of using a structuralist approach in poetry instruction. Shows how a structuralist approach makes the reader conscious of operating within a network of signifying systems, and of the relation of those patterns to larger, "external" signifying systems. (RL)

Presents examples of syntactic structures that may confuse children when reading. Suggests ways in which teachers can help overcome problems presented by these structures. (FL)

Discusses the difficulty in recognizing and expressing the formation of concession and counter-assertion. Words like "although" and "if," while familiar in other contexts, present problems when used for these functions. While the markers for concession are interchangeable, those for counter-assertion are not. Two different types of…

"Bu" can negate noun phrases. This article attempts to determine what the parent structures are from which noun-bu-noun is derived, to describe the general property of N-bu-N, to examine the conditions under which N-bu-N is used, and to contrast it with other structures of similar usage. (Author/PJM)

Based on a morpho-phonological study of about 800 French adjectives ending in "-esque," this article suggests that the patterns found derive from several partially contradictory surface constraints, with the processes that would tend to eliminate dysphonic configurations (hiatus, repetition) sometimes being blocked by the need to conserve a…

Argues that Abbott's reservations arise largely from assuming that the term "hearer-new" must be restricted to its original use as defined in Prince (1992). Also argues that if "hearer-new" may be extended to encompass a wider range of "entities" (including events, attributes, etc.) and greater flexibility in its potential applications, then many…

Proposes that one theorist's challenge to the discipline of linguistics, which claims that linguistic structure is temporal and the study of language is a political activity, reflects the influence of philosophical deconstructivism that has heavily influenced other disciplines. The deconstructivist view of language is contrasted with competence…

Examines the structures present in the writing samples of bilingual respondents to written questions in Spanish in order to determine which forms represent a departure from standard Spanish; discusses the patterns that develop; and offers insights into the factors underlying this systemic departure from standard written Spanish. (26 references)…

Event-related potentials (EPRs) were employed to compare word category and verb inflection violations in Spanish. A similar frontal negativity was found between 250-400 ms for both violation types, suggesting that they equally disrupt initial syntactic analyses. These and other findings are discussed in detail. (VWL)

Highlights similarities and variation in both form and function of English pidgins the world over. It is argued that English pidgins are related more by socio-historical conditions and directions of development than by details of their formal structure. Reference list includes 68 citations. (Author/DJD)

Reviews and compares the main published repertoires of French verbs. By combining the material from these different sources, one can construct a database of approximately 10,300 formally distinct verbs. It is suggested that analysis of such a wide corpus may reveal structures not yet acknowledged. (Author/LMO)

Describes DLT, the multilingual machine translation system that uses Esperanto as an intermediate language in which substantial portions of the translation subprocesses are carried out. The criteria for choosing an intermediate language and the reasons for preferring Esperanto over other languages are explained. (Author/DJD)

Discusses prominent base units of discourse analysis designed for dealing with structural characteristics of second-language discourse, and offers arguments in favor of selecting the utterance as a valuable base unit. (95 references) (GLR)

Analyzes the "easy to be V" structure in terms of the semantic features of sentences with this structure. These sentences can be classified into types, ranging from the "prototype" with the most features contributing to its transparency, to the "peripheral" with the fewest of such features. (Author/CB)