syntactic complexity

[sɪnˈtæktɪk kəmˈplɛksɪti]
nounfemininepl: complexidades sintáticas
complexidade sintática
1. The degree to which a sentence or linguistic structure involves intricate grammatical arrangements, multiple clauses, embeddings, or hierarchical dependencies that make it difficult to parse and understand.
The syntactic complexity of modernist poetry often challenges readers to work through layered sentence structures.
A complexidade sintática da poesia modernista frequentemente desafia os leitores a trabalhar através de estruturas de sentença estratificadas.
2. In computational linguistics and natural language processing, the measure of structural intricacy in how words are organized according to grammatical rules.
Researchers use metrics to assess syntactic complexity in machine translation outputs.
Pesquisadores usam métricas para avaliar a complexidade sintática em saídas de tradução automática.
3. In language acquisition, the developmental progression of increasingly sophisticated grammatical structures in a learner's speech or writing.
Second language learners gradually increase their syntactic complexity as they gain proficiency.
Aprendizes de segunda língua aumentam gradualmente sua complexidade sintática conforme ganham proficiência.
In Brazilian and American academic contexts, 'syntactic complexity' is a formal term primarily used in linguistics, English language education, second language acquisition studies, and computational linguistics. It reflects the growing emphasis on linguistic rigor in education and the importance of understanding how language structure affects comprehension and communication effectiveness.
Synonyms / Sinônimos
structural complexitygrammatical complexitysentence complexitylinguistic complexity
Antonyms / Antônimos
syntactic simplicitygrammatical simplicityclaritystraightforwardness

Regional Variations

General Brazilian
complexidade sintática
Standard term used in linguistics, education, and language technology contexts
São Paulo
complexidade sintática
Commonly used in academic and technical discussions in major universities
Rio de Janeiro
complexidade sintática
Used in educational and research settings with same meaning as General Brazilian
Portugal
complexidade sintática
European Portuguese uses identical term; may also refer to 'complicação gramatical' in informal contexts

Related Words

syntaxclause embeddingparsinggrammatical structurelinguistic analysisreadability

Related Idioms & Phrases

unpack the syntactic complexity
reduce syntactic complexity
navigate syntactic complexity
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