surface structure
noun Linguistics. (in transformational-generative grammar)
a structural representation of the final syntactic form of a sentence, as it exists after the transformational component has modified a deep structure.Compare deep structure.
the string of words that is actually produced.
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Origin of surface structure
First recorded in 1960–65
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
British Dictionary definitions for surface structure
surface structure
noun
generative grammar a representation of a string of words or morphemes as they occur in a sentence, together with labels and brackets that represent syntactic structureCompare deep structure
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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