Immediate Grammar is not Free: A Time-Constrained Grammar

Abstract

This short paper examines word order in Immediate Grammar, a component of the Process Grammar Model. Although phrase order in spoken Japanese appears relatively free, examples involving reaction, discovery, self-correction, recall, confirmation, and continuation show that not all sequences are reversible. The paper proposes a set of candidate rules for Immediate Grammar and argues that these constraints arise from the temporal and sequential nature of utterance processing rather than from syntax alone. It proposes three principles: Immediate Grammar has temporal order; the position of a phrase depends on its function; and phrase order is relatively free, but the direction of connection is constrained. The central claim is that Immediate Grammar is strongly constrained by time.