1.1 What is grammar? Grammar is the system of a language, by which words are formed and put together to make sentences. To put it more academically, grammar is the study of the internal structure of words (morphology 形態學 ) and the use of words in the construction of phrases and sentences (syntax 句法 ). It is not the “rules” of a language because we don’t start with grammar first, and then the language. We start with the language first, and then we figure out the grammar (the system) of that language. Languages were started by people making sounds which evolved into words, phrases and sentences. And all languages change over time. So grammar as a reflection of a language at a particular time, also changes over time. (Morphology is a big word, like syntax, that tends to scare off students. What it is, the internal structure and changes of words, is of things you all are quite familiar with already. Eg. use - useless, useful, ...