Scribd
Upload
641 views2 pages

Ten Rules of Asl Grammar From Internet

Just like other languages, American Sign Language (ASL) has a set of grammatical rules that govern its structure and usage. The document outlines 10 common rules of ASL grammar - including topics like tense, pronouns, questions, and negation - and provides an example sentence for each rule along with a written English translation. It also notes that students often use the mnemonic "TRIPSTONCL" to help remember the order of the 10 rules.

Uploaded by

Rex Lim
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOC, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
641 views2 pages

Ten Rules of Asl Grammar From Internet

Just like other languages, American Sign Language (ASL) has a set of grammatical rules that govern its structure and usage. The document outlines 10 common rules of ASL grammar - including topics like tense, pronouns, questions, and negation - and provides an example sentence for each rule along with a written English translation. It also notes that students often use the mnemonic "TRIPSTONCL" to help remember the order of the 10 rules.

Uploaded by

Rex Lim
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOC, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 2

Ten Rules of ASL Grammar

Topic/Comment || Tense With Time || Simple Yes/No || Long Yes/No ||


Information Seeking || Pronominalization || Rhetorical || Ordering of Simple
Sentences || Conditional || Negation
Just like most other languages, American Sign Language has a set of rules
that it follows when being signed. You will be tested various times on your
knowledge of the rules, as they are key to learning true ASL. A tool you can
use to remember the rules is "TRIPSTONCL", you've probably heard about it
in class, and it goes like this:
1. Topic/Comment
2. Rhetorical
3. Information Seeking
4. Pronominalization
5. Simple Yes/No
6. Tense With Time
7. Ordering of Simple Sentences
8. Negation
9. Conditional
10.Long Yes/No

Below are the definitions of each grammatical rule, and an example of each
written in English Gloss (and then put into English).
Topic/Comment - In a simple topic/comment sentence, the topic is
described first, followed by the comment.
Example: HER MONEY LOST, SHE UPSET
English: She's upset that she lost her money
The topic was described first (her money was lost) and then the comment
followed (she was upset).
Tense with Time - The time sign is placed at the beginning or near the
beginning of a sentences.
Example: YESTERDAY, ME STAY HOME
English: I stayed home yesterday.
The time sign was "yesterday" and was located near the beginning of the
sentence.
Simple Yes/No - Short sentences that ask a yes/no question. The order of
the signs varies.
Example: EXERCISE YOU WANT YOU? with eyebrows raised
English: Do you want to exercise?
The sentence given was short and the answer would be a yes or a no; the
order of the signs could be moved around as well and mean the same thing.
Long Yes/No - Long yes/no questions, sometimes they use a topic/comment
format.
Example: CAT BLACK TREE CLIMB, YOUR? with eyebrows raised
English: Is that black cat climbing the tree yours?
The question was longer than that of a simple yes/no; the topic was
described before the comment (which was the "your" part).

Information Seeking - Simple questions that ask for information. They can
have variable sentence structures, and rely sometimes on non-manual
signals to distinguish them from a declarative sentence.
Example: OLD++ YOU? with eyebrows squeezed
English: How old are you?
The question was short and simple, the sentence structure doesn't really
have much to change though. Normally, non-manuals would be used in all
three question situations.
Pronominalization - Pronouns are indicated by pointing to either a person
or thing that is present, or a place in the signing spage that is used as a
referent point for a person or thing. Pointing is mostly done with the index
finger, but eye gazing and other handshapes are sometimes used.
Example: MY BROTHER VISIT-ME
English: My brother is visiting me.
In this case, the pronominalization was when "he" was used; you could either
be pointing at the brother or a spot in your signing space to refer to as "he".
Rhetorical - In a rhetorical question, the signer asks a question and then
answers it.
Example: ME KNOW ASL? YES.
English: I know ASL.
The signer asked his or her question, and then answered it; by doing so, we
knew he or she knows ASL.
Ordering of Simple Sentences - In simple sentences, the verb can be
placed before or after the object of the sentence.
Example: GAME ME PLAY
English: I'm playing a game.
The sentence was short and simple, and we were allowed to move around
the verb and not have it change the sentence.
Conditional - In a conditional sentence, the condition is described first, then
the outcome of the condition is described.
Example: SUPPOSE SHE SEE ME, ME HAVE-TO LEAVE
English: I will have to leave if she sees me.
In most conditional statements, the word "suppose" is used; the condition
was said first (suppose she sees me), and then the outcome came afterward
(I'll have to leave).
Negation - You can negate a thought by placing a negative sign before the
verb or by first describing a topic and then signing the appropriate negative
sign, or by giving a negative head shake.
Example: ME NOT WATCH FOOTBALL GAME.
English: I'm not watching the football game.
In this case, the word "not" was the negation portion of the sentence, making
the sentence negative.

You might also like

pFad - Phonifier reborn

Pfad - The Proxy pFad of © 2024 Garber Painting. All rights reserved.

Note: This service is not intended for secure transactions such as banking, social media, email, or purchasing. Use at your own risk. We assume no liability whatsoever for broken pages.


Alternative Proxies:

Alternative Proxy

pFad Proxy

pFad v3 Proxy

pFad v4 Proxy