Dog Might Provide Clues on How Language Is Acquired - NYTimes.com

[jess tauber]

Perhaps distinct word classes are a late development in the evolution of language- there are still discussions of issues about the distinction yet lurking about in the literature. Some languages let most nouns act as verbs, or vice versa; in others the inflectable verb class has shrunk to almost nothing. Carved in stone? Or just evolved there?

For a retriever, 'getting' is the most used verblike notion in the context, so perhaps its presence is assumed by the animal? How would a pointer fare?

Jess Tauber