Universals Archive
A database of proposed crosslinguistic laws and tendencies in grammar across the world’s languages. 2,029 published entries.
2,017 entries · page 17 of 41
| # | Standardized / Original | Domain | Type | Keywords |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 810 | IF a phonemic category is complex, THEN its capacity to split is weak. IF a phonemic category is simple, THEN its capacity to split is strong. |
phonology | mutual implication | phoneme, complexity |
| 811 | IF there are fricatives, THEN there will be stops. | phonology | implication | fricative, stop |
| 812 | IF there is vocalic opposition of wide vs. narrow, THEN there are two consonantal oppositions: nasal vs. oral stops and labials vs. dentals. | phonology | implication | narrow, wide, vowel, nasal, oral, stop, labial, dental |
| 813 | IF stress is used for semantic contrasts, THEN the language must be non-monosyllabic. | prosodic phonology | implication | stress, non-monosyllabic |
| 814 | IF there is cumulative stress, THEN there are reduced vowels. | prosodic phonology | implication | stress, cumulative, vowel, reduced |
| 815 | IF there is distributive stress, THEN there are no reduced vowels. | prosodic phonology | implication | stress, distributive, vowel, reduced |
| 816 | Sibilants of different types tend not to cluster, or only across morpheme boundaries. | phonology, morphology | unconditional | consonant cluster, final, sibilant, morpheme boundary |
| 817 | IF a vowel (or diphthong) is long and tone is present, THEN that syllable is stressed. | prosodic phonology | implication | stress, syllable, diphthong, long, vowel |
| 818 | IF moras matter [for what?], THEN the language is non-monosyllabic and tonal. | phonology, morphology | implication | mora, monosyllabic, tone |
| 819 | IF there are diphthongs, THEN there are or were long vowels. | phonology | implication | vowel, long, diphthong |
| 820 | IF voiced > voiceless neutralization occurs in positions other than final, THEN it will occur in final position. Voiced > voiceless neutralization never occurs intervocally. |
phonology | implication | voice, neutralization, intervocalic |
| 821 | Normal hierarchy of increasing markedness in vowels: /E / ⇒ /a/ ⇒ /e/ ⇒ /i/ ⇒ /ü/ ⇒ /ö/ ⇒ /œ / (front set), /E / ⇒ /a/ ⇒ /o/ ⇒ /u/ (back set). | phonology | implicational hierarchy | hierarchy, markedness, vowel |
| 822 | IF there are glottalized consonants, THEN there are corresponding aspirated consonants; IF there are aspirated consonants, THEN there are corresponding unaspirated consonants. |
phonology | implicational hierarchy | markedness, consonant, unaspirated, aspiration, glottalization |
| 823 | IF relative clause is prenominal, THEN relative pronouns are not used in the position relativized. IF relative clause is postnominal, THEN personal pronouns and relative pronouns are commonly used in position relativized. |
syntax | implication | relative clause, order, relative pronoun, personal pronoun |
| 824 | IF relative clauses are prenominal, THEN relativization is primarily by gapping. |
syntax | implication | relative clause, order, gapping |
| 825 | IF there are correlatives, THEN basic order is loosely verb-final. OR BY CONTRAPOSITION: IF basic order is not loosely verb-final, THEN there are no correlatives. |
syntax | implication | relative clause, correlative, order, verb-final |
| 826 | IF postnominal relative clauses contain a distinctive verbal affix, THEN the verb appears in clause-initial position. |
inflection, syntax | implication | relative clause, order, verbal affix, verb-initial |
| 827 | IF a relative clause contains an initial relative pronoun, THEN it does not contain a personal pronoun form of the same NP. | syntax | implication | relative clause, relative pronoun, personal pronoun |
| 828 | IF relative pronouns that are not interrogative in form occur in initial position in postnominal relative clauses, THEN either there are initial interrogative pronouns in questions or there is a general topicalization process that places thematic material in initial position. | syntax | implication | relative clause, relative pronoun, interrogative, order, topic |
| 829 | IF there are correlative relative constructions, THEN there are no prenominal ad-relative* clauses. | syntax | implication | relative clause, order, correlative |
| 830 | IF relative marker of the same form as interrogative pronoun is used, THEN relative clause is postnominal or correlative. | syntax | implication | relative clause, interrogative, order, correlative |
| 831 | IF basic order is rigidly OV, THEN there are prenominal relatives and no right-extraposed relative clauses. | syntax | implication | order, verb, object, relative clause |
| 832 | IF the verb normally precedes its objects, THEN there are no left-extraposed relative clauses. IF the verb normally precedes its objects and there are right-extraposed relative clauses, THEN there are postposed relative clauses |
syntax | implication | order, verb, object, relative clause |
| 833 | IF there are right-extraposed relative clauses, THEN there are either embedded or left-extraposed relative clauses. | syntax | implication | relative clause |
| 834 | In languages with two or more liquids, IF there is one non-lateral, THEN there will also be a lateral. | phonology | implication | lateral, liquid, non-lateral |
| 835 | IF there is any other lateral, THEN there will also be a voiced lateral approximant. | phonology | implication | lateral, approximant |
| 836 | In languages with two or more laterals, IF there is a contrast between them in manner, THEN there will not be a contrast between them in voice, and vice versa. | phonology | mutual implication | lateral |
| 837 | In languages with more than two r-types, IF there are any other contrasts between them, THEN there will also be a contrast of place; and If there is a contrast of place, THEN there is very likely also some other contrast. |
phonology | implication | /r/ |
| 838 | IF there is any other liquid, THEN there will be a liquid with both lateral and non-lateral allophones. | phonology | implication | liquid, lateral, non-lateral |
| 839 | IF there is a voiceless /l/, THEN there will be a voiced /l/. | phonology | implication | consonant, voice, lateral, liquid |
| 840 | IF basic order is VSO, THEN there is very likely to be verbal person-number inflection or both person-number and tense-aspect-mood inflection, but not verbal tense-aspect-mood without person-number inflection. | syntax, inflection | implication | order, VSO, verb, person, number, tense, aspect, mood |
| 841 | IF the relative clause is prenominal, THEN there is no clause-initial marker in these relative clauses. | syntax | implication | postnominal, relative clause, order, clause-initial marker |
| 842 | In relative clauses, IF there is a clause-initial marker, THEN the relative clause is postnominal. | syntax | implication | postnominal, relative clause, relative particle, order |
| 843 | IF there is a consonant cluster of length m (initially or finally), THEN there is at least one continuous subsequence of length m -1. | phonology | implication | consonant cluster |
| 844 | In all initial and final clusters, IF there are consonant clusters of length m and n and m > n, THEN the proportion of clusters of length m which only occur with internal morpheme boundaries is equal or greater than the proportion of such sequences which occur of length n. | phonology | no genuine implication; rather: provided that | consonant cluster, length |
| 845 | There are no initial or final clusters in which all obstruent combinations are heterogeneous in regard to voicing. | phonology | unconditional | consonant cluster, obstruent, heterogeneous, voice |
| 846 | In final clusters, IF there is at least one sequence consisting of a nasal (voiced or unvoiced) followed by a heterogenic obstruent, THEN there is at least one cluster consisting of a nasal (voiced or unvoiced) followed by a homorganic obstruent. | phonology | implication | consonant cluster, obstruent, homorganic, nasal, heterogenic, phoneme order, final |
| 847 | In initial clusters, IF there is at least one cluster consisting of a nasal (voiced or unvoiced) followed by a heterogenic obstruent, THEN there is at least one cluster consisting of a nasal (voiced or unvoiced) followed by a homorganic obstruent. | phonology | implication | consonant cluster, obstruent, nasal, heterogenic, homorganic, phoneme order, initial |
| 848 | In initial clusters, IF there is at least one combination of stop + stop, THEN there is at least one combination of stop + fricative. | phonology | implication | consonant cluster, initial, stop, fricative |
| 849 | In initial clusters, IF there is at least one combination of stop + stop, THEN there almost always the combinations of stop + fricative and fricative + stop. | phonology | implication | consonant cluster, initial, stop, fricative |
| 850 | In final clusters, IF there is at least one combination of stop + stop, THEN there is at least one combination of fricative + stop. |
phonology | implication | consonant cluster, final, stop, fricative, phoneme order |
| 851 | In initial clusters, IF there is at least one cluster consisting of liquid + nasal, THEN there is at least one cluster consisting of liquid + obstruent. | phonology | implication | consonant cluster, initial, liquid, nasal, obstruent |
| 852 | In initial clusters, IF there is at least one fricative + fricative combination, THEN there is at least one stop+ fricative combination or at least one fricative + stop combination. | phonology | implication | consonant cluster, initial, stop, fricative |
| 853 | In final clusters, IF there is at least one liquid + nasal cluster, THEN there is at least one liquid + obstruent cluster. | phonology | implication | consonant cluster, final, liquid, nasal, obstruent |
| 854 | In final clusters, IF there is at least one fricative + fricative combination, THEN there is at least one stop + fricative or at least one fricative + stop combination. | phonology | implication | consonant cluster, final, stop, fricative |
| 855 | In final clusters, IF there is at least one nasal + liquid cluster, THEN there is at least one obstruent + liquid cluster. | phonology | implication | consonant cluster, final, obstruent, nasal, liquid |
| 856 | IF an unvoiced stop is preceded immediately by a stop in an initial cluster, THEN they will not only differ in voicing. IF an unvoiced stop is immediately followed by a stop in a final cluster, THEN they will not only differ in voicing. |
phonology | no genuine implication; rather: provided that | consonant cluster, initial, final, stop, phoneme order, voice |
| 857 | In final clusters, an voiced stop can only be immediately followed by its counterpart if there is a morpheme boundary between them. | phonology | unconditional | consonant cluster, final, stop, voice |
| 858 | In final or initial clusters, a voiced consonant and its glottalized counterpart can only be adjacent if there is a morpheme boundary between them. | phonology | no genuine implication; rather: provided that | consonant clusters, initial, final, voice, glottalized |
| 859 | A voiced and glottalized consonant cannot be combined in either initial or final clusters. | phonology | unconditional | consonant cluster, initial, final, voice, glottalized |