Contrastive distribution in linguistics, as opposed to complementary distribution or free variation, is the relationship between two different elements in which both elements are found in the same environment with a change in meaning.
In phonology, two sounds of a language are said to be in contrastive distribution if replacing one with the other in the same phonological environment results in a change in meaning. If a sound is in contrastive distribution, it is considered a phoneme in that language.
For example, in English, the sounds [p] and [b] can both occur word-initially, as in the words pat and bat (minimal pairs), which are distinct morphemes. Therefore, [p] and [b] are in contrastive distribution and so are phonemes of English.
Note that two sounds that are in contrastive distribution in one language can be in complementary distribution or free variation in another. These sounds occur in English, as in the word team[tʰiːm] and steam[stiːm], but their occurrence is purely dependent upon phonological context. Therefore, in English, [tʰ] and [t] are not in contrastive distribution but in complementary distribution.
Morphology
In morphology, two morphemes are in contrastive distribution if they occur in the same environment, but have different meanings.
For example, in Korean, noun phrases are followed by one of the various markers that indicate syntactic role: /-ka/, /-i/, /-(l)ul/, etc. /-ka/ and /-i/ are in complementary distribution. They are both used to indicate nominative case, and their occurrence is conditioned by the final sound of the preceding noun. If the noun ends in a consonant, /-i/ occurs; otherwise, /-ka/. /-(l)ul/, on the other hand, occurs in the same position as /-i/ or /-ka/ and is also conditioned by the immediately previous sound, but it indicates the accusative case. Therefore, /-(l)ul/ and the set {/-i/, /-ka/} are in contrastive distribution.
Syntax
In syntax, the requirements are similar. In English, the expression of the indicative and the subjunctive moods is contrastive:
(1) If I am a rich man, then I have a lot of money.
(2) If I were a rich man, then I would have a lot of money.
The change from non-past first-person singular indicative am to the subjunctive were results in a change in the grammatical mood of the sentence.
contrastive, distribution, this, article, contains, phonetic, transcriptions, international, phonetic, alphabet, introductory, guide, symbols, help, distinction, between, brackets, transcription, delimiters, linguistics, opposed, complementary, distribution, f. This article contains phonetic transcriptions in the International Phonetic Alphabet IPA For an introductory guide on IPA symbols see Help IPA For the distinction between and see IPA Brackets and transcription delimiters Contrastive distribution in linguistics as opposed to complementary distribution or free variation is the relationship between two different elements in which both elements are found in the same environment with a change in meaning Contents 1 Phonology 2 Morphology 3 Syntax 4 See alsoPhonology EditIn phonology two sounds of a language are said to be in contrastive distribution if replacing one with the other in the same phonological environment results in a change in meaning If a sound is in contrastive distribution it is considered a phoneme in that language For example in English the sounds p and b can both occur word initially as in the words pat and bat minimal pairs which are distinct morphemes Therefore p and b are in contrastive distribution and so are phonemes of English Note that two sounds that are in contrastive distribution in one language can be in complementary distribution or free variation in another These sounds occur in English as in the word team tʰiːm and steam stiːm but their occurrence is purely dependent upon phonological context Therefore in English tʰ and t are not in contrastive distribution but in complementary distribution Morphology EditIn morphology two morphemes are in contrastive distribution if they occur in the same environment but have different meanings For example in Korean noun phrases are followed by one of the various markers that indicate syntactic role ka i l ul etc ka and i are in complementary distribution They are both used to indicate nominative case and their occurrence is conditioned by the final sound of the preceding noun If the noun ends in a consonant i occurs otherwise ka l ul on the other hand occurs in the same position as i or ka and is also conditioned by the immediately previous sound but it indicates the accusative case Therefore l ul and the set i ka are in contrastive distribution Syntax EditIn syntax the requirements are similar In English the expression of the indicative and the subjunctive moods is contrastive 1 If I am a rich man then I have a lot of money 2 If I were a rich man then I would have a lot of money The change from non past first person singular indicative am to the subjunctive were results in a change in the grammatical mood of the sentence See also EditAllomorph Allophone Complementary distribution Free variation Minimal pair Phoneme Sociolinguistics Variable rules analysis Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Contrastive distribution amp oldid 1130266749, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
