Word Generation

This assignment will test your understanding of word generation principles and your ability to apply them across different languages and grammatical features.


Assignment 1: Hindi Word Generation

Complete the word generation table for the following Hindi words. For each word, generate the appropriate forms based on the given features:

Word: लड़का (laDkaa) - "boy"

Root: लड़क Category: noun Gender: male

Number Case Generated Form Explanation
singular direct लड़का Base form, no change needed
singular oblique लड़के Delete आ, add ए
plural direct लड़के Delete आ, add ए
plural oblique लड़कों Delete आ, add ओं
Word: लड़की (laDkii) - "girl"

Root: लड़की Category: noun Gender: female

Number Case Generated Form Explanation
singular direct लड़की Base form, no change needed
singular oblique लड़की Feminine noun, unchanged
plural direct लड़कियाँ Add इयाँ for feminine plural
plural oblique लड़कियों Add इयों for oblique plural
Word: बच्चा (bachchaa) - "child"

Root: बच्चा Category: noun Gender: male

Number Case Generated Form Explanation
singular direct बच्चा Base form, no change needed
singular oblique बच्चे Delete आ, add ए
plural direct बच्चे Delete आ, add ए
plural oblique बच्चों Delete आ, add ओं

Assignment 2: English Word Generation

Generate the appropriate word forms for the following English words based on the specified features:

Word: "play" (verb)

Root: play Category: verb

Tense Person Number Generated Form Explanation
present 1st singular play Base form for 1st person
present 3rd singular plays Add -s for 3rd person singular
past any any played Add -ed for past tense
present participle any any playing Add -ing for present participle
Word: "boy" (noun)

Root: boy Category: noun

Number Generated Form Explanation
singular boy Base form
plural boys Add -s for plural
Word: "happy" (adjective)

Root: happy Category: adjective

Degree Generated Form Explanation
positive happy Base form
comparative happier Change y to i, add -er
superlative happiest Change y to i, add -est

Assignment 3: Cross-Linguistic Word Generation

Compare word generation patterns between English and Hindi for the same concepts:

Task A: Plural Formation

Generate plural forms for the following words in both languages:

Concept English Root English Plural Hindi Root Hindi Plural
Child child children बच्चा बच्चे
Girl girl girls लड़की लड़कियाँ
Boy boy boys लड़का लड़के
Task B: Verb Conjugation

Generate present tense forms for the verb "to play" in both languages:

Person English Hindi
1st singular I play मैं खेलता/खेलती
2nd singular you play तुम खेलते/खेलती
3rd singular he/she plays वह खेलता/खेलती

Assignment 4: Advanced Word Generation

Task A: Feature Combination

Given the root "लिख" (likh - "write"), generate all possible forms by combining different features:

Gender Number Person Tense Generated Form
masculine singular 1st present लिखता
feminine singular 1st present लिखती
masculine plural 1st present लिखते
feminine plural 1st present लिखतीं
Task B: Irregular Patterns

Identify and explain irregular word generation patterns:

  1. English Irregular Plurals: Why does "child" become "children" instead of "childs"?
  2. Hindi Suppletive Forms: Why do some words use completely different roots for different forms?

Assignment 5: Practical Application

Task A: Sentence Generation

Generate grammatically correct sentences using the words you've created:

English Example: "The boys are playing in the garden."

  • Generated words: boys (plural of boy), playing (present participle of play)

Hindi Example: "लड़के बाग में खेल रहे हैं।"

  • Generated words: लड़के (plural of लड़का), खेल रहे (present continuous of खेल)
Task B: Error Analysis

Identify and correct the following word generation errors:

  1. English: "I plays football" → Should be "I play football"
  2. Hindi: "लड़का खेलता" (referring to a girl) → Should be "लड़की खेलती"