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# -path=.:../romance:../abstract:../../prelude

French Lexical Paradigms

Aarne Ranta 2003

This is an API to the user of the resource grammar for adding lexical items. It give shortcuts for forming expressions of basic categories: nouns, adjectives, verbs. Closed categories (determiners, pronouns, conjunctions) are accessed through the resource syntax API, resource.Abs.gf.

The main difference with MorphoFre.gf is that the types referred to are compiled resource grammar types. We have moreover had the design principle of always having existing forms, not stems, as string arguments of the paradigms.

The following modules are presupposed:

  resource ParadigmsFre = 
    open Prelude, (Types = TypesFre), SyntaxFre, MorphoFre, 
    ResourceFre in {

Parameters

To abstract over gender names, we define the following identifiers.

  oper
    masculine : Gender ;
    feminine  : Gender ;

To abstract over number names, we define the following.

    singular : Number ;
    plural   : Number ;

To abstract over case names, we define the following. (Except for some pronouns, the accusative is equal to the nominative, the dative is formed by the preposition à, and the genitive by the preposition de.)

    nominative : Case ;
    accusative : Case ;
    dative     : Case ;
    genitive   : Case ;

Nouns

Worst case: two forms (singular + plural), and the gender.

    mkN  : (_,_ : Str) -> Gender -> N ;   -- oeil, yeux, masculine

Often it is enough with one form. Some of them have a typical gender.

    nReg    : Str -> Gender -> N ; -- regular, e.g. maison, (maisons,) feminine
    nEau    : Str -> Gender -> N ; -- eau, (eaux,) feminine
    nCas    : Str -> Gender -> N ; -- cas, (cas,) masculine
    nCheval : Str -> N ;           -- cheval, (chevaux, masculine)

Nouns used as functions need a case and a preposition. The most common is de.

    funPrep : N -> Preposition -> Fun ;
    funCase : N -> Case -> Fun ;
    funDe   : N -> Fun ;

Proper names, with their gender.

    mkPN : Str -> Gender -> PN ; -- Jean, masculine

On the top level, it is maybe CN that is used rather than N, and NP rather than PN.

    mkCN  : N -> CN ;
    mkNP  : Str -> Gender -> NP ;

Adjectives

Non-comparison one-place adjectives need three forms in the worst case. A parameter tells if they are pre- or postpositions in modification.

    Position : Type ;
    prepos   : Position ;  
    postpos  : Position ;  
  
    mkAdj1 : (bon, bonne, bons, bien : Str) -> Position -> Adj1 ;

Usually it is enough to give the two singular forms. Fully regular adjectives only need the masculine singular form.

    adj1Reg  : Str -> Position -> Adj1 ;
    adj1Cher : (cher, chère : Str) -> Position -> Adj1 ;

Two-place adjectives need a preposition and a case as extra arguments.

    mkAdj2 : Adj1 -> Preposition -> Case -> Adj2 ;  -- divisible par

Comparison adjectives may need two adjectives, corresponding to the positive and other forms.

    mkAdjDeg : (bon, meilleur : Adj1) -> AdjDeg ;

In the completely regular case, the comparison forms are constructed by the particle plus.

    aReg : Str -> Position -> AdjDeg ;     -- lent (, plus lent)

On top level, there are adjectival phrases. The most common case is just to use a one-place adjective.

    apReg : Str -> Position -> AP ;

Verbs

The fragment only has present tense so far, but in all persons. These are examples of standard conjugations are available. The full list of Bescherelle conjugations is given in MorphoFra.gf, with all forms (their type is Verbum). The present-tense forms can be extracted by the function extractVerb.

    vAimer   : Str -> V ;
    vFinir   : Str -> V ;
    vDormir  : Str -> V ;
    vCourir  : Str -> V ;
    vVenir   : Str -> V ;
  
    extractVerb : Verbum -> V ;

The verbs 'be' and 'have' are special.

    vEtre  : V ;
    vAvoir : V ;

Two-place verbs, and the special case with direct object. Notice that a particle can be included in a V.

    mkTV  : V -> Preposition -> Case -> TV ;
    tvDir : V -> TV ;

The idiom with avoir and an invariable noun, such as peur, faim, and a two-place variant with de + complement.

    avoirChose   : Str -> V ;
    avoirChoseDe : Str -> TV ;

The definitions should not bother the user of the API. So they are hidden from the document.