Editing Lexical semantics (section)

=== Lexicalist theories in the 1980s ===
Lexicalist theories became popular during the 1980s, and emphasized that a word's internal structure was a question of [[morphology (linguistics)|morphology]] and not of [[syntax]].<ref name=ReferenceA>{{cite journal|last1=Scalise|first1=Sergio|last2=Guevara|first2=Emiliano|title=The Lexicalist Approach to Word-Formation|date=1985}}</ref> Lexicalist theories emphasized that complex words (resulting from compounding and derivation of [[affixes]]) have lexical entries that are derived from morphology, rather than resulting from overlapping syntactic and phonological properties, as Generative Linguistics predicts. The distinction between Generative Linguistics and Lexicalist theories can be illustrated by considering the transformation of the word ''destroy'' to ''destruction'':

* '''Generative Linguistics theory''': states the transformation of ''destroy'' → ''destruction'' as the nominal, ''nom'' + ''destroy,'' combined with [[phonological rule]]s that produce the output ''destruction''. Views this transformation as independent of the morphology.
* '''Lexicalist theory''': sees ''destroy'' and ''destruction'' as having idiosyncratic lexical entries based on their differences in morphology. Argues that each morpheme contributes specific meaning. States that the formation of the complex word ''destruction'' is accounted for by a set of ''Lexical Rules,'' which are different and independent from syntactic rules.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>

A [[lexical entry]] lists the basic properties of either the whole word, or the individual properties of the morphemes that make up the word itself. The properties of [[lexical item]]s include their category selection ''c-selection'', selectional properties ''s-selection'', (also known as semantic selection),<ref name="WILEY Blackwell"/> phonological properties, and features. The properties of lexical items are idiosyncratic, unpredictable, and contain specific information about the lexical items that they describe.<ref name="WILEY Blackwell"/>

The following is an example of a lexical entry for the verb ''put'':
{|
|-
| 
 ''put:'' V DP<sub>''agent''</sub> DP<sub>''experiencer''</sub>/PP<sub>''locative''</sub>
|}

Lexicalist theories state that a word's meaning is derived from its morphology or a speaker's lexicon, and not its syntax. The degree of morphology's influence on overall grammar remains controversial.<ref name="WILEY Blackwell"/> Currently, the linguists that perceive one engine driving both morphological items and syntactic items are in the majority.