ABSTRACT

The problem of structural disambiguation stems from the fact that a sentence may have several parses. Hirst (1987, p. 135) suggested the following list to summarize attachment ambiguities in English: PP attachment—to noun or verb? - Ross insisted on phoning the man with the limp. - Ross insisted on washing the dog with pet shampoo. PP attachment—to which noun? - the door near the stairs with the “Members Only” sign Relative clause attachment—to which noun? - the door near the stairs that had the “Members Only” sign PP attachment—to which verb or adjectival phrase? - He seemed nice to her. PP attachment—to which verb? - Ross said that Nadia had taken the cleaning out yesterday. Adverb attachment—to verb or sentence? - Happily, Nadia cleaned up the mess Ross had left. Participle attachment—to surface subject or sentence? - Considering his situation likely to go from bad to worse, he decided to offer his resignation. - Considering the deficiencies of his education, his career has been extraordinary.