ABSTRACT
This chapter shows the importance of syntactic analysis in the definition of the three basic word classes. That syntactic criteria are important can be seen if one examines Ibn Malik's definitions of nouns, verbs and particles. The chapter argues that syntactic criteria are of particular significance, examining the question from two perspectives. It looks at the role of syntactic criteria in the definition of word categories most particularly as elaborated by grammarians from Mubarrad's time on. Among the most famous tenets of Arabic grammar is the division of words into verbs, nouns and particles. What is perhaps given less attention is the fact that the Arabic grammarians defined each of these according to criteria from all levels of linguistic analysis—phonological, morphological, syntactic and semantic/pragmatic. Given that syntactic criteria imply a formal conceptualization of grammatical structure, it will be informative to exatine in more detail to what extent Arabic grammarians follow formal methods in defining word classes.
