Geoff,

You probably did not have time to read "Frequency of Use and the Organization of Language" by Joan Bybee, in which the author, after decades of research, documents that language organizes itself, and that parts of speech or word classes are not an idiot's fantasy, but one way in which language acquires and shows structure. These word classes are real, and understanding them makes a great difference when one learns a language. That difference goes beyond boundaries, which are nothing more than points at which word classes intersect. To inflate the importance of  these points of intersection to a generality (which is a fallacy) shows lack of understanding of the role of morphology and syntax in the production and conveyance of meaning - the main functions of language.

Eduard 

----- Original Message -----
From: Geoffrey Layton <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Wednesday, September 15, 2010 16:13
Subject: Re: like
To: [log in to unmask]

> 
> Craig - I know we've had this discussion before, but my reaction 
> is "what difference does it make what we call it?"  I don't 
> see how you can have anything except flexible boundaries, which 
> then leads to the more interesting question of the rhetorical 
> effect of "shading" into a verb - what happens to the meaning of 
> the sentence? Labeling the choices as preopositions, adjectives 
> or verbs really doesn't go very far to answer this question.
> 
> Geoff Layton
>  
> > Craig,
> > 
> > My first reaction was that this use of "like" was adjectival, 
> but since you want a traditional treatment I checked the OED 
> Online and Merriam Webster Dictionary Online. Both treat as an 
> adjective, although MW doesn't have an example with BE.
> > 
> > Herb
>  
> > I am curious about how traditional grammar handles "like" in a 
> sentence like "One of these things is not like the others." (I 
> know; Sesame Street).
> > My instinct is to say "like the others" is prepositional 
> phrase, complement to "is", therefore referring back 
> (adjectivally?) to "One of these things." Would that be standard?
> > If it can be easily replaced by "resembles" (or "doesn't 
> resemble"), does that mean "be like" is shading into a verb like 
> status with "the others" as object? Are we OK with flexible 
> boundaries around our categories?
> > 
> > 
> Craig                                               
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