interrogative construction
[/ɪnˌtɛrəɡətɪv kənˈstrʌkʃən/]
nounpl: interrogative constructions
construção interrogativa
1. A grammatical structure or syntactic pattern used to form questions in a language
In English, 'Do you like pizza?' is an interrogative construction using subject-auxiliary inversion.
Em português, 'Você gosta de pizza?' é uma construção interrogativa que usa entonação para indicar a pergunta.
2. The arrangement of words, phrases, and clauses designed to elicit information or express inquiry
The interrogative construction 'What time is it?' employs a question word at the beginning of the sentence.
A construção interrogativa 'Que horas são?' coloca a palavra interrogativa no início da frase.
3. In linguistics, any syntactic pattern that marks a clause as interrogative rather than declarative
Different languages employ different interrogative constructions; Portuguese often uses simple intonation changes.
Diferentes línguas empregam diferentes construções interrogativas; o português frequentemente usa mudanças simples de entonação.
In Brazilian Portuguese education, 'construção interrogativa' is a fundamental concept taught in grammar classes. The language typically marks questions through intonation rather than word order inversion (as in English), making the study of interrogative constructions important for learners of the language. In Portugal, the term is used similarly but may be accompanied by more formal linguistic terminology.
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