Grammar and Usage

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Grammar and Usage


               English and each language have their own systematic ways through which words and sentences are assembled to convey meanings. This called grammar. But there is a usage which is a much more slippery concept than grammar. It has to do with habitual or customary practices in spoken or written language. There are difference between English grammar and usage. 

          Grammar describes the way in which a language puts together the smallest units of meaning to make words (morphology), and the way it puts words together to make sentences (syntax). Usage is a less tightly defined concept, describing the way in which members of a language community use language, within the grammatical framework, to achieve their communicative purpose, particularly when several options are available. If the mistake contravenes a generalizable rule for all members of that word class, then it is a grammar mistake. Otherwise it is a usage mistake.


For example:


·      He live in Frankfurt contravenes the rule that verbs in the 3rd person singular present simple tense require an -s (with the exception of modals), and is hence a grammar mistake.


·      My grandfather is a very high man is a usage mistake. We can formulate a rule that high applies to mountains not people. But the rule applies to one member of the word class only and hence the mistake is one of usage.




These errors are grammar errors:


·        I play tennis yesterday.


·        Do you have dog?


·        I live in Frankfurt since 10 year. (3 errors)




And these are usage errors:


·        I always enjoy to sleep late on Sundays.


·        What is the reason of your lateness?


·        She replied she didn't know the answer.




         In conclusion, grammar can be defined as the set of underlying rules that make possible meaningful utterances in that language. It refers to the way words are put together to make units of meaning. However, usage refers to the way language is used.                                                                                                                                                               

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