Complementary distribution
Encyclopedia
Complementary distribution in linguistics
is the relationship between two different elements, where one element is found in a particular environment and the other element is found in the opposite environment. It often indicates that two superficially different elements are in fact the same linguistic unit at a deeper level.
In some instances, more than two elements can be in complementary distribution with one another.
, where similar phones in complementary distribution are usually allophone
s of the same phoneme. For instance, in English, [p] and [pʰ] are allophones of the phoneme
/p/ because they occur in complementary distribution. [pʰ] always occurs when it is the syllable onset and followed by a stressed vowel
(as in the word pin). [p] occurs in all other situations (as in the word spin).
There are cases where elements are in complementary distribution, but are not considered allophones. For example in English [h] and [ŋ] (engma, written with the digraph <-ng> in English) are in complementary distribution, since [h] only occurs at the beginning of a syllable and [ŋ] only at the end. But because they have so little in common in phonetic terms they are still considered separate phonemes.
). Two different word forms (allomorph
s) can actually be different "faces" of one and the same word (morpheme
). For example, consider the English indefinite articles a and an. The usages an aardvark and a bear are grammatical. But the usages *a aardvark and *an bear are ungrammatical (marked with "*" in linguistics).
The forms an and a function to work together like a team, in order to take care of every instance (environment) where the English indefinite article is needed. This is why we say that they are two different "forms" of the same "word", instead of saying that they are "two different words".
Linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....
is the relationship between two different elements, where one element is found in a particular environment and the other element is found in the opposite environment. It often indicates that two superficially different elements are in fact the same linguistic unit at a deeper level.
In some instances, more than two elements can be in complementary distribution with one another.
In phonology
Complementary distribution is commonly applied to phonologyPhonology
Phonology is, broadly speaking, the subdiscipline of linguistics concerned with the sounds of language. That is, it is the systematic use of sound to encode meaning in any spoken human language, or the field of linguistics studying this use...
, where similar phones in complementary distribution are usually allophone
Allophone
In phonology, an allophone is one of a set of multiple possible spoken sounds used to pronounce a single phoneme. For example, and are allophones for the phoneme in the English language...
s of the same phoneme. For instance, in English, [p] and [pʰ] are allophones of the phoneme
Phoneme
In a language or dialect, a phoneme is the smallest segmental unit of sound employed to form meaningful contrasts between utterances....
/p/ because they occur in complementary distribution. [pʰ] always occurs when it is the syllable onset and followed by a stressed vowel
Vowel
In phonetics, a vowel is a sound in spoken language, such as English ah! or oh! , pronounced with an open vocal tract so that there is no build-up of air pressure at any point above the glottis. This contrasts with consonants, such as English sh! , where there is a constriction or closure at some...
(as in the word pin). [p] occurs in all other situations (as in the word spin).
There are cases where elements are in complementary distribution, but are not considered allophones. For example in English [h] and [ŋ] (engma, written with the digraph <-ng> in English) are in complementary distribution, since [h] only occurs at the beginning of a syllable and [ŋ] only at the end. But because they have so little in common in phonetic terms they are still considered separate phonemes.
In morphology
The concept of complementary distribution is applied in the analysis of word forms (morphologyMorphology (linguistics)
In linguistics, morphology is the identification, analysis and description, in a language, of the structure of morphemes and other linguistic units, such as words, affixes, parts of speech, intonation/stress, or implied context...
). Two different word forms (allomorph
Allomorph
In linguistics, an allomorph is a variant form of a morpheme. The concept occurs when a unit of meaning can vary in sound without changing meaning. The term allomorph explains the comprehension of phonological variations for specific morphemes....
s) can actually be different "faces" of one and the same word (morpheme
Morpheme
In linguistics, a morpheme is the smallest semantically meaningful unit in a language. The field of study dedicated to morphemes is called morphology. A morpheme is not identical to a word, and the principal difference between the two is that a morpheme may or may not stand alone, whereas a word,...
). For example, consider the English indefinite articles a and an. The usages an aardvark and a bear are grammatical. But the usages *a aardvark and *an bear are ungrammatical (marked with "*" in linguistics).
- The form an is used "in the environment" before a word beginning with a vowel sound.
- This linguistic environment can be notated as "__ V".
- The form a is used in the environment before a word beginning with a consonant sound.
- This can be notated as "__ C".
- The "distribution" (usage according to environments) of the forms an and a is "complementary" because of three factors --- an is used where a is not used; a is used where an is not used; when you take the environment where an is used, and the environment where a is used, the two environments together cover every legitimate potential environment for the word.
The forms an and a function to work together like a team, in order to take care of every instance (environment) where the English indefinite article is needed. This is why we say that they are two different "forms" of the same "word", instead of saying that they are "two different words".
See also
- AllomorphAllomorphIn linguistics, an allomorph is a variant form of a morpheme. The concept occurs when a unit of meaning can vary in sound without changing meaning. The term allomorph explains the comprehension of phonological variations for specific morphemes....
- AllophoneAllophoneIn phonology, an allophone is one of a set of multiple possible spoken sounds used to pronounce a single phoneme. For example, and are allophones for the phoneme in the English language...
- Contrastive distributionContrastive distributionContrastive distribution in linguistics, as opposed to complementary distribution or free variation, is the relationship between two different elements, where both elements are found in the same environment with a change in meaning.-Phonology:...
- Free variationFree variationFree variation in linguistics is the phenomenon of two sounds or forms appearing in the same environment without a change in meaning and without being considered incorrect by native speakers...
- PhonemePhonemeIn a language or dialect, a phoneme is the smallest segmental unit of sound employed to form meaningful contrasts between utterances....
- Minimal pairMinimal pairIn phonology, minimal pairs are pairs of words or phrases in a particular language, which differ in only one phonological element, such as a phone, phoneme, toneme or chroneme and have distinct meanings...