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surface structure

noun

Linguistics.
  1. 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.
  2. the string of words that is actually produced.

surface structure

noun

  1. 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 structure Compare deep structure
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Word History and Origins

Origin of surface structure1

First recorded in 1960–65
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