clf: classifier
See also issue 878.
Some examples with classifiers (CLF). Thai words are replaced with English words for readability but the Thai word order is preserved. There is a NUM, a DET and a relative clause together with a CLF.
- book two CLF this that I buy stay on table → The whole sentence means “these two books that I bought are on a table.” And the Thai words for “book” and “CLF” in this sentence are not the same word.
From this sample, some words can be omitted:
- book CLF this that I buy stay on table → meaning “this book that I bought is on a table.”
- book two CLF that I buy stay on table → meaning “two books that I bought are on a table.”
- book CLF that I buy stay on table → meaning “the book that I bought is on a table.”
- book this that I buy stay on table → meaning “this book that I bought is on a table.” This structure (with no CLF) can be used, esp in speaking. However, some CLF cannot be omitted when it is used with some noun.
- book that I buy stay on table → meaning “a book that I bought is on a table.”
- *book two this that I buy stay on table → this is ungrammatical because no CLF is used when NUM is used. (However, in colloquial language on social networks, classifiers are sometimes omitted even when numerals are used.)
- *book two that I buy stay on table → this is still ungrammatical because of no CLF.
- *book two stay on table → this is also ungrammatical because no words are modified by “two” in this context. (There are exceptional contexts in which book two would be acceptable and grammatical but we omit them here.)
Sometimes 2 same classifiers can be used in the same sentence. For example,
- book CLF1 big two CLF2 this that I buy stay on table → meaning “these two big books that I bought are on a table.” The classifier CLF 1 is modified by “big”, and the CLF2 is modified by “two”, “this”, and “that I buy”. And the whole NP (two CLF2 this that I buy) modifies the NP (CLF1 big). And the whole NP (CLF1 big two CLF2 this that I buy) modifies “book” which is a head noun.
There are constructions where it is not obvious whether a noun should be considered a classifier. For example,
- cat CLF1 big two CLF2 this cute → meaning “these two big cats are cute.” CLF1 and CLF2 are the same word with same spelling. They have the same POS which is NOUN, but we are not sure if CLF1 would be a classifier or not. Some native speakers prefer to see it as an ordinary noun. BTW, “cute” is this Thai sentence is a verb, not adjective. This sample is different from the sample above with 2 CLFs. But CLF2 must be a classifier because “two” is used with CLF2. Both CLF1 and CLF2 are nouns.
However, if “two CLF2 this” is omitted, CLF1 is a classifier.
In the sample above with 2 CLFs, “CLF1 big” could be seen as a noun phrase (if “big” is an adj) modifying “cat”. And the relation will not be clf. Plus, when we move “CLF1 big” and place it after “this”, it somehow changes the structure and POS, probably also meaning. Changing the order of a nominal with or without CLF in a sentence will change the meaning of the sentence slightly. It is like modifying different things, and UD annotations will be different too.
- In Thai, a modifier is always placed after the modified noun, except quantity words and numbers expressing amount.
- This is why NUM modifies the classifier, not the head noun.
- Whenever a NUM is used to quantify a head noun (a numeral expressing amount, i.e., a cardinal numeral), a classifier is required; without the classifier, the sentence would be ungrammatical. The numeral is placed between the counted noun and the classifier: student three CLF. “A numeral expressing amount is always placed before the noun to be modified” — this statement (presumably taken from the Thai grammar) would entail that the numeral modifies the classifier and not the counted noun. But this would only hold if UD accepts this notion of “modification”. Since the numeral never occurs with the counted noun without the classifier, there are no other examples demonstrating that the numeral precedes its “modified noun”; therefore, it is still possible to say that the numeral modifies the preceding (counted) noun and the classifier depends on either the numeral or the counted noun. The classifier is selected based on semantic qualities of the counted noun. For example, student, which is a human being, requires the classifier which is used for persons / human beings.
- If
NUMis not used, CLF is not required. We may or may not use it in the nominal. The reason to use or not use it is if we want to optionally emphasize the semantic qualities of the head noun. Plus, using CLF without NUM indicates some sense of definiteness. - A Thai grammar book suggests that classifiers in Thai are used to classify both nouns and verbs. Their purpose is to mark focus. It is not clear whether the grammar book uses the term classifier for the same set of words that we would want here. The “classifiers” of verbs might actually be adverbs.
- When CLF is the same word (same spelling and meaning) as the head noun, and NUM is used also, the head noun can be deleted. For example,
- finger two CLF → (meaning “2 fingers”), and CLF in this NP is the same word as the head noun “finger”.
- When “finger” is omitted, as in “two CLF”, it is still grammatical and understandable. The reason is that the head noun and CLF are the same word, and one of them can be omitted. Using both of them would be to emphasize what is discussed.
- However, from this, one may ask whether the remaining finger is still a classifier. It could be simply the counted noun and we could say that in this case the classifier is omissible, and the numeral exceptionally occurs before the counted noun.
- But we cannot do the same transformation with e.g. two book. The Thai word “book” requires a classifier which is a different word with different spelling.
Temporary copy of the Chinese documentation of classifiers. Serves for comparison and will be removed once the Thai guidelines stabilize
The clf relation is used in noun phrases where a cardinal numeral (1,3), an ordinal numeral (2), or a determiner (4) modifying the head noun is accompanied by a classifier. The classifier is attached to the numeral if a numeral is present, or else to the determiner. Note that ordinal numerals are tagged ADJ and labeled amod in relation to the noun; they are the only words tagged ADJ that can be accompanied by a classifier.
# visual-style 1 2 clf color:blue
# visual-style 1 bgColor:blue
# visual-style 1 fgColor:white
# visual-style 2 bgColor:blue
# visual-style 2 fgColor:white
1 一 _ NUM _ _ 3 nummod _ one
2 團 _ NOUN _ _ 1 clf _ CL:sphere
3 火 _ NOUN _ _ 0 root _ fire
1 "a _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
2 ball _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
3 of _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
4 fire" _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
# visual-style 1 2 clf color:blue
# visual-style 1 bgColor:blue
# visual-style 1 fgColor:white
# visual-style 2 bgColor:blue
# visual-style 2 fgColor:white
1 第一 _ ADJ _ _ 3 amod _ one
2 位 _ NOUN _ _ 1 clf _ CL:person
3 老師 _ NOUN _ _ 0 root _ teacher
1 "the _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
2 first _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
3 teacher" _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
# visual-style 1 2 clf color:blue
# visual-style 1 bgColor:blue
# visual-style 1 fgColor:white
# visual-style 2 bgColor:blue
# visual-style 2 fgColor:white
1 這 _ DET _ _ 3 det _ this
2 本 _ NOUN _ _ 1 clf _ CL:book
3 書 _ NOUN _ _ 0 root _ book
1 "this _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
2 book" _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
# visual-style 2 3 clf color:blue
# visual-style 2 bgColor:blue
# visual-style 2 fgColor:white
# visual-style 3 bgColor:blue
# visual-style 3 fgColor:white
1 這 _ DET _ _ 4 det _ this
2 一 _ NUM _ _ 4 nummod _ one
3 場 _ NOUN _ _ 2 clf _ CL:spectator-event
4 友誼賽 _ NOUN _ _ 0 root _ goodwill-competition
1 "this _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
2 goodwill _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
3 competition" _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
Non-clf functions of Mandarin classifiers
In other constructions involving classifiers, they are annotated with other syntax relations. First, in Mandarin a classifier may also be considered to function as an indefinite determiner when a noun phrase consisting of a bare classifier accompanying a noun is in post-verbal position, as in (4).
1 切 _ VERB _ _ 0 root _ cut
2 個 _ NOUN _ _ 3 det _ CL:generic
3 梨子 _ NOUN _ _ 1 obj _ pear
1 "cut _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
2 a _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
3 pear" _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
Second, if a noun phrase does not have a regular noun, then the classifier is promoted to head of the noun phrase and any numeral or determiner would depend on the classifier, such as in (5) and (6).
1 給 _ VERB _ _ 0 root _ give
2 我 _ PRON _ _ 1 iobj _ 1SG
3 三 _ NUM _ _ 4 nummod _ three
4 分鐘 _ NOUN _ _ 1 obj _ minutes
1 "Give _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
2 me _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
3 three _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
4 minutes." _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
1 哪 _ DET _ _ 2 det _ which
2 位 _ NOUN _ _ 3 nsubj _ CL:person
3 找 _ VERB _ _ 0 root _ look-for
4 馬 _ PROPN _ _ 5 compound _ Ma
5 先生 _ NOUN _ _ 3 obj _ Mr.
1 "Who _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
2 (which _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
3 person) _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
4 is _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
5 looking _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
6 for _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
7 Mr. _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
8 Ma?" _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
If there is a genitive 的 de between the classifier and the noun, then the classifier is also treated as a head noun for the numeral, and it is labeled as an nmod dependent of the noun.
1 我 _ PRON _ _ 2 nsubj _ 1SG
2 買 _ VERB _ _ 0 root _ buy
3 了 _ AUX _ _ 2 aux _ PERF
4 一 _ NUM _ _ 5 nummod _ one
5 磅 _ NOUN _ _ 7 nmod _ CL:pound
6 的 _ PART _ _ 5 case _ GEN
7 肉 _ NOUN _ _ 2 obj _ meat
1 "I _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
2 bought _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
3 a _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
4 pound _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
5 of _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
6 meat." _ _ _ _ 0 _ _ _
Note that classifiers are tagged as NOUN. The feature NounType=Clf is recommended for distinguishing classifiers from regular nouns.
clf in other languages: [id] [swl] [th] [u] [yue] [zh]