In certain theories of
syntax, an R-expression (short for ''referring expression'') is a category in the three-way classification of
noun phrases
In linguistics, a noun phrase, or nominal (phrase), is a phrase that has a noun or pronoun as its head or performs the same grammatical function as a noun. Noun phrases are very common cross-linguistically, and they may be the most frequently o ...
in binding theory, the other two being
anaphors and
pronominal
In linguistics and grammar, a pronoun (abbreviated ) is a word or a group of words that one may substitute for a noun or noun phrase.
Pronouns have traditionally been regarded as one of the parts of speech, but some modern theorists would not co ...
s. According to
principle C of binding theory, R-expressions must be free. R-expressions include names (e.g. Mary, John) and definite DPs (e.g. the cat).
In
Chomsky
Avram Noam Chomsky (born December 7, 1928) is an American public intellectual: a linguist, philosopher, cognitive scientist, historian, social critic, and political activist. Sometimes called "the father of modern linguistics", Chomsky is ...
's
government and binding theory
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state.
In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is ...
, an R-expression is an overt NP analysed as
a. -p(not anaphor and not pronominal), and hence subject only to Principle C of the Binding Theory, namely, that it be free (unbound) in all domains. Examples of typical R-expressions are "Lisa", "the dog", "my pet unicorn", "the last chapter of the book", and "Janel's cigarettes". The name is derived from the phrase ''
referring expression
In linguistics, a referring expression (RE) is any noun phrase, or surrogate for a noun phrase, whose function in discourse is to identify some individual object. The technical terminology for ''identify'' differs a great deal from one school of ...
'', used in semantics for the largest class of NPs, but the GB usage is not synonymous with the semantic sense.
[ R. L. Trask; A Dictionary of Grammatical Terms in Linguistics]
References
{{Formal semantics
Generative syntax
Semantics