Word order

We have to have some sort of structure to organise words if we are to communicate. That structure is a big part of grammar. Linguists use a term – syntax – to describe word order.

The Activity page appears in the menu entitled 'This Unit' in the upper right. The Activity page can be displayed using a projector or smart board, or printed for distribution to students. Students should take a look at the sentence pairs on the slide in the Activity page. In each pair, the words are exactly the same but they are in a different order. Ask students why the word order is important using the following questions:

  • How does word order affect the meaning? 
  • How can we explain the relationships between particular meanings and particular word orders?
  • Can we describe patterns or rules for the word order in the examples and the meanings conveyed?

Welcome!

Englicious is totally free for everyone to use!

But in exchange, we ask that you register for an account on our site.

If you’ve already registered, you can log in straight away.

Since this is your first visit today, you can see this page by clicking the button below.

CLOSE

Englicious (C) Survey of English Usage, UCL, 2012-21 | Supported by the AHRC and EPSRC. | Privacy | Cookies