Structural Syntax: Immediate Constituents

All grammatical constructions can be analyzed into Immediate Constituents (ICs).

In the case of grammatical  coordination, constructions may have three or more ICs.  The construction pie, cake, cookies, and candy, for example, has four ICs and the coordinating conjunction and to connect  them.  Except in such cases, structural grammar analyzes syntax by dividing grammatical constructions into exactly two ICs.

More complex  structures can be analyzed by means of "Chinese boxes."

Structural grammar analyzes the suntax of a sentence by dividing the whole sentence into its ICs, and then dividing those ICs into their ICs, and so on--until the analysis reaches the level of individual words.

A more perspicuous way of diagramming this same structure uses a "tree."

Here the "equals" sign ( = ) indicates grammatical coordination.

The concept of the Immediate Constituent (IC) is one of two fundamental concepts in the structural analysis of syntax.  The other fundamental concept is the concept of the Grammatical Tie.

Click here for a brief explanation of the concept of the "grammatical tie."

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