Third-person singular present tense inflectional variation in Medieval and Early Modern English scientific texts

A corpus-based study

Bibliographic Data

ID21463117
AuthorsAna Mondéjar-Pérez (0000-0003-3954-7700, Universidad de Murcia, corresponding author)
Year2025
Volume59
Issues46-s1
Pages103-129
Publication date2025-11-25
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueFolia Linguistica (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0165-4004 • E-ISSN: 1614-7308
PublisherWalter de Gruyter GmbH (PUBLISHER • DE)
DOI10.1515/flin-2025-2014
OpenAlexW4410613172
LanguageEN
References cited30

The present study analyses the morphological variation of the third-person singular present tense inflection in English scientific texts from the Late Middle English to the Early Modern English period. This study delves into the historical development of this inflectional variation, focusing first on the rivalry between the interdental fricative -(e)th and the alveolar fricative -(e)s , by examining how these inflections competed and evolved in scientific prose, particularly medical recipes and treatises. Data retrieved from The Málaga Corpus of Late Middle English Scientific Prose and The Málaga Corpus of Early Modern English Scientific Prose allows the analysis of the use, distribution and frequency of these inflections from the fifteenth to the seventeenth century. The results shed light on the importance of period development and text-type in the process of morphological standardisation

Art · Astronomy · Linguistics · Literature · Physics · History · Lexicography and Language Studies · linguistics and terminology studies · Natural Language Processing Techniques · Philosophy

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