Author Type

Graduate Student

Date of Award

1970

Document Type

Thesis

Publication Status

Version of Record

Submission Date

October 2026

Thesis/Dissertation Advisor [Chair]

Resnick, Melvyn C.

Abstract

By reexamining the concept of regularity and irregularity as applicable to the Spanish verb, a set of rules has been devised and presented here to enable the regularization of the vast majority of the Spanish traditionally termed irregular verbs. To accomplish such regularization, we have introduced or redefined several terms. The dichotomous division of verbs into regular and irregular is reexamined, and a third group of verbs is formed and treated as REGULABLE, Six constituents have been distinguished in each verb form as followsa Stem, STEM MODIFIER, theme vowel, THEME VOWEL MODIFIER, TENSE-MOOD-STRESS MARKER, and person-number marker. These are used to permit the consistent use of phonologically predictable paradigms for almost all Spanish verbs including the vast majority of the so-called irregular verbs in the language, The stem and theme vowel of each verb are always constant to enable identification and classification of all verbs from these two constituents. No two forms out of the fifty finite forms which constitute each paradigm are identical (excluding defective verbs and those with more than one paradigm); distinction between two generated forms is never based on stress alone. Furthermore, the stress distribution, tense and mood are always predicted by tense-mood-stress constituent. The thesis contains seventy-four tables, five charts, and three appendices. However, neither defective verbs (unless the defective verbs follow a definite regulable pattern) nor non-finite forms have been treated here. These rules demonstrate that the apparent arbitrariness of many Spanish verb irregularities are reasonable consequences of phonological principles.

Extent

171 p.

Comments

Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters|Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 1970.|FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection|Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters

Identifier

FA00000945

Format

pdf

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