Table 3.
Morphological Markers in Spanish
| Marker | Examples | English Translations |
|---|---|---|
| Article Use | ||
| Gender substitutions | * La gato corrió. | * The (DET fem) cat (masc) ran. |
| Target | EL gato corrió. | The (DET masc) cat ran. |
| Number substitutions | * El señores cantaban. | * The (DET sing) men were singing. |
| Target | LOS señores cantaban. | The (DET pl) men were singing. |
| Omissions | * Rana brincó. | * Frog jumped. |
| Target | LA rana brincó. | The frog jumped. |
| Verb Use | ||
| Number substitutions | * El niño van al parque. | * The child go to the park. |
| Target | El niño VA al parque. | The child goes to the park. |
| Person substitutions | * Los señores cantamos. | * The men sing (1st pl). |
| Target | Los señores CANTAN. | The men sing (3rd pl). |
| Tense/Mood substitutions | * Quiere que va afuera. | (She/he) wants (him/her) to go outside. |
| Target | Quiere que VAYA afuera. | |
| Omissions | * La rana brincando. | * The frog jumping. |
| Target | La rana ESTÁ brincando. | The frog is jumping. |
| Clitic Use | ||
| Number substitutions | * El niño las agarró. | * The child grabbed them (sing). |
| Target | El niño LA agarró. | The child grabbed it. |
| Gender substitutions | * El niño la agarró. | The child grabbed it (fem). |
| Target | El niño LO agarró. | The child grabbed it (masc). |
| Person substitutions | * Te lava su cara. | * She washes her face yourself. |
| Target | SE lava su cara. | She washes her face (herself). |
| Case substitutions | * La dijo “Vete.” | * (She/he) said her “Go away.” |
| Target | LE dijo “Vete.” | (She/he) said to her “Go away.” |
| Omissions of obligatory clitic | * El niño agarró a ella. | The boy grabbed her. |
| Target | El niño LA agarró a ella. | The boy (her) grabbed her. |
| * El barco hundió. | The boat sank. | |
| El barco SE hundió. | The boat (itself) sank. | |
*
Theme arguments may be expressed with noun phrases or clitic pronouns.
Fem, feminine; masc, masculine; sing, singular; pl, plural.