Complementizer

Overview

A complementizer is a grammatical element, typically a word, that introduces a subordinate clause. It functions to connect a dependent clause to a main clause, often indicating the clause’s role within the larger sentence structure.

Key Concepts

Complementizers are crucial for building complex sentences. They signal that what follows is a clause that cannot stand alone as a complete sentence. Common examples include ‘that’, ‘if’, and ‘whether’.

Functions of Complementizers

• Introducing noun clauses (e.g., “She said that she was tired.”)
• Introducing adverbial clauses (e.g., “I will go if you come.”)
• Introducing interrogative clauses (e.g., “He asked whether it was true.”)

Deep Dive

In linguistics, the term ‘complementizer’ refers to a category of words or morphemes that head a complementizer phrase (CP). This phrase typically contains a clause and is embedded within a larger sentence. The presence of a complementizer is a defining characteristic of subordinate clauses in many languages.

Types of Complementizers

While some languages have dedicated complementizer words (like ‘that’ in English), others use inflectional endings or specific sentence structures to mark subordination.

Applications

Understanding complementizers is vital for parsing sentence structure, language acquisition, and natural language processing. They help disambiguate meaning and identify the hierarchical relationships between different parts of a sentence.

Challenges & Misconceptions

A common misconception is that complementizers are always conjunctions. While they often function similarly, their specific role is to introduce a clause that complements the main verb or another element in the sentence.

FAQs

What is the most common complementizer in English?

The most common complementizer in English is ‘that’.

Can a sentence start with a complementizer?

Generally, subordinate clauses introduced by complementizers do not start a sentence independently, but they can appear at the beginning of a complex sentence if the entire subordinate clause precedes the main clause.