Patient (grammar)
Encyclopedia
In linguistics
, a grammatical patient, also called the target or undergoer, is the participant of a situation upon whom an action is carried out. A patient as differentiated from a theme must undergo a change in state. A theme is denoted by a stative verb
, where a patient is denoted by a dynamic verb. At the very least, there is debate to this effect. Also, patient is the name of the thematic relation
with the above definition.
Typically, the situation is denoted by a sentence
, the action by a verb
in the sentence, and the agent by a noun phrase
.
For example, in the sentence "Jack ate the cheese", "the cheese" is the patient. In certain languages, the patient is declined
for case
or otherwise marked to indicate its grammatical role. In Japanese
, for instance, the patient is typically affixed with -o (the hiragana
を). Although Modern English
does not mark grammatical role, patienthood is represented irregularly in other ways; for instance, with the morpheme
s "-en", "-ed", or "-ee", as in "eaten", "used", or "payee".
The grammatical patient is often confused with the direct object. However, there is a significant difference. The former is based explicitly on its relationship to the verb
, whereas the latter is based primarily on its relationship to the subject
. For example, in the phrase "The dog
bites the man
", the man is both the patient and the direct object. By contrast, in the phrase "The man is bitten by the dog", the man is still the patient, but now stands as the phrase's subject; while the dog is only the agent
. The term "theme" is often used to describe the same relation as patient.
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....
, a grammatical patient, also called the target or undergoer, is the participant of a situation upon whom an action is carried out. A patient as differentiated from a theme must undergo a change in state. A theme is denoted by a stative verb
Stative verb
A stative verb is one that asserts that one of its arguments has a particular property . Statives differ from other aspectual classes of verbs in that they are static; that is, they have undefined duration...
, where a patient is denoted by a dynamic verb. At the very least, there is debate to this effect. Also, patient is the name of the thematic relation
Thematic relation
In a number of theories of linguistics, thematic relations is a term used to express the role that a noun phrase plays with respect to the action or state described by a sentence's verb. For example, in the sentence "Susan ate an apple", Susan is the doer of the eating, so she is an agent; the...
with the above definition.
Typically, the situation is denoted by a sentence
Sentence (linguistics)
In the field of linguistics, a sentence is an expression in natural language, and often defined to indicate a grammatical unit consisting of one or more words that generally bear minimal syntactic relation to the words that precede or follow it...
, the action by a verb
Verb
A verb, from the Latin verbum meaning word, is a word that in syntax conveys an action , or a state of being . In the usual description of English, the basic form, with or without the particle to, is the infinitive...
in the sentence, and the agent by a noun phrase
Noun phrase
In grammar, a noun phrase, nominal phrase, or nominal group is a phrase based on a noun, pronoun, or other noun-like word optionally accompanied by modifiers such as adjectives....
.
For example, in the sentence "Jack ate the cheese", "the cheese" is the patient. In certain languages, the patient is declined
Declension
In linguistics, declension is the inflection of nouns, pronouns, adjectives, and articles to indicate number , case , and gender...
for case
Grammatical case
In grammar, the case of a noun or pronoun is an inflectional form that indicates its grammatical function in a phrase, clause, or sentence. For example, a pronoun may play the role of subject , of direct object , or of possessor...
or otherwise marked to indicate its grammatical role. In Japanese
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
, for instance, the patient is typically affixed with -o (the hiragana
Hiragana
is a Japanese syllabary, one basic component of the Japanese writing system, along with katakana, kanji, and the Latin alphabet . Hiragana and katakana are both kana systems, in which each character represents one mora...
を). Although Modern English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
does not mark grammatical role, patienthood is represented irregularly in other ways; for instance, with the 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,...
s "-en", "-ed", or "-ee", as in "eaten", "used", or "payee".
The grammatical patient is often confused with the direct object. However, there is a significant difference. The former is based explicitly on its relationship to the verb
Verb
A verb, from the Latin verbum meaning word, is a word that in syntax conveys an action , or a state of being . In the usual description of English, the basic form, with or without the particle to, is the infinitive...
, whereas the latter is based primarily on its relationship to the subject
Subject (grammar)
The subject is one of the two main constituents of a clause, according to a tradition that can be tracked back to Aristotle and that is associated with phrase structure grammars; the other constituent is the predicate. According to another tradition, i.e...
. For example, in the phrase "The dog
Dog
The domestic dog is a domesticated form of the gray wolf, a member of the Canidae family of the order Carnivora. The term is used for both feral and pet varieties. The dog may have been the first animal to be domesticated, and has been the most widely kept working, hunting, and companion animal in...
bites the man
Man
The term man is used for an adult human male . However, man is sometimes used to refer to humanity as a whole...
", the man is both the patient and the direct object. By contrast, in the phrase "The man is bitten by the dog", the man is still the patient, but now stands as the phrase's subject; while the dog is only the agent
Agent (grammar)
In linguistics, a grammatical agent is the cause or initiator of an event. Agent is the name of the thematic role...
. The term "theme" is often used to describe the same relation as patient.