More about linguistics: What is syntax?

Syntax is the arrangement of words in phrases or sentences. Syntax is a term that is used in linguistics and grammar. It is dealt with in the broader study of semiotics which covers other forms of communication.

Syntax is the set of rules that governs how words are put together to form phrases and sentences in a language.

Structuralists agree that syntax has semantic, syntactic and phonological components. Syntax is often called a language's sentence structure or word order but this can be misleading because it is also the pattern of ordering words within a sentence.

The best example for the formula of syntax is the structure of subject + verb + direct object: "Marie joins the club." 

This only works if we're talking about the English language, of course! In learning German, for example, one will notice that the verb usually appears last in the sentence or first in a question. For example: Schreibst du heute? (Are you writing today?). When converted to English syntax, it becomes, "Writing you are today?"

Learning the syntax of a new language can be challenging because it doesn't always follow a set pattern. There are two main types of syntax: isolating and agglutinating.

Isolating syntax separates words, so you don't need to worry about adding suffixes or prefixes to words, like in English.

Agglutinating syntax means that words often have suffixes and prefixes attached to them. This type of syntax  strings morphemes to form words, such as the Turkish language. 

The study of syntax, the way in which words are put together to form phrases and sentences, is one of the most important aspects of language learning.

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