| Revision as of 22:19, 15 September 2006 view sourceReywas92 (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users, Page movers, Pending changes reviewers, Rollbackers81,000 edits →Sentence construction: redundancy← Previous edit | Revision as of 22:23, 15 September 2006 view source Altenmann (talk | contribs)Autopatrolled, Extended confirmed users, Pending changes reviewers217,176 edits similar examplesNext edit → | ||
| Line 2: | Line 2: | ||
| '''Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo''' is a ] ] used as an example of how ]s can be used to create complicated constructs. It featured in ]'s 1994 book '']'',<ref name="Pinker">]. 1994. '']'' p210. ISBN 0060958332.</ref> but is known to have been around before February 1992 when it was posted to ] by William J. Rapaport.<ref name="Linguistlist">Rapaport, William J. ] ]. "". Accessed ] ].</ref> | '''Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo''' is a ] ] used as an example of how ]s can be used to create complicated constructs. It featured in ]'s 1994 book '']'',<ref name="Pinker">]. 1994. '']'' p210. ISBN 0060958332.</ref> but is known to have been around before February 1992 when it was posted to ] by William J. Rapaport.<ref name="Linguistlist">Rapaport, William J. ] ]. "". Accessed ] ].</ref> | ||
| Sentences of this type, although not in such a refined form, have been known for a long time. |
Sentences of this type, although not in such a refined form, have been known for a long time. A classical example is a ] "Don't trouble trouble until trouble troubles you". | ||
| ==Sentence construction== | ==Sentence construction== | ||
| Line 19: | Line 20: | ||
| #The example has the structure of a ], i.e., the sentence that cannot be parsed by reading one word at a time without backtracking. | #The example has the structure of a ], i.e., the sentence that cannot be parsed by reading one word at a time without backtracking. | ||
| #The length of the sentence reaches the limitations of human ability to parse structure and meaning | #The length of the sentence reaches the limitations of human ability to parse structure and meaning | ||
| ==Similar examples== | |||
| *A ], in which a ], when asked how long will the train stay at the station, answered "From two to two to two two". | |||
| *"If the sentence that had ''had had'' had had ''had'', it would have been correct." | |||
| ==References== | ==References== | ||
Revision as of 22:23, 15 September 2006
Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo is a grammatically valid sentence used as an example of how homophones can be used to create complicated constructs. It featured in Steven Pinker's 1994 book The Language Instinct, but is known to have been around before February 1992 when it was posted to Linguist List by William J. Rapaport.
Sentences of this type, although not in such a refined form, have been known for a long time. A classical example is a proverb "Don't trouble trouble until trouble troubles you".
Sentence construction
The sentence uses three possible meanings of the word "buffalo":
- An American Bison, white buffalo, or African buffalo
- Buffalo, New York, the second-largest city in the state of New York
- A verb meaning to confuse, deceive, or intimidate
Using these definitions, the sentence could be rewritten:
- Buffalo bison Buffalo bison intimidate intimidate Buffalo bison.
Other than the obvious confusion caused by the homophones, the sentence is difficult to parse for several reasons:
- The use of "buffalo" as a verb is not particularly common
- The removal of syntactically significant words ("the", "that", etc.) to such a degree is not a common linguistic approach
- The omission of punctuation makes it difficult to read the flow of the sentence
- The example has the structure of a garden path sentence, i.e., the sentence that cannot be parsed by reading one word at a time without backtracking.
- The length of the sentence reaches the limitations of human ability to parse structure and meaning
Similar examples
- A joke, in which a conductor, when asked how long will the train stay at the station, answered "From two to two to two two".
- "If the sentence that had had had had had had, it would have been correct."
References
- Pinker, Steven. 1994. The Language Instinct p210. ISBN 0060958332.
- Rapaport, William J. 19 February 1992. "Message 1: Re: 3.154 Parsing Challenges". Accessed 14 September 2006.
External links
- "Buffaloing buffalo" at Language Log, 20 January 2005
- Easdown, David. "Teaching mathematics: the gulf between semantics (meaning) and syntax (form)" Template:Pdf.