Chapter 7
Grammar
the whole system and structure of a
language or of languages in general,
usually taken as consisting of syntax
and morphology (including inflections)
and sometimes also phonology and
semantics.
People sometimes describe grammar as the "rules" of
a language, but in fact no language has rules. If we
use the word "rules", we suggest that somebody
created the rules first and then spoke the language,
like a new game. But languages did not start like
that. Languages started by people making sounds
which evolved into words, phrases and sentences.
No commonly-spoken language is fixed. All
languages change over time. What we call
"grammar" is simply a reflection of a language at a
particular time.