There are two planes of language, namely, the plane of content and the plane of expression

TWO PLANES OF LANGUAGE.

THREE CONSTITUENT PARTS OF LANGUAGE.

Language consists of three constituent parts: phonological system, lexical system and grammatical system. Only the unity of these three elements forms a language; without any one of them there is no human language.

The phonological system determines the material (phonetical) appearance of its significative (значимый) units. The lexical system is the whole set of naming means of language, that is, words and stable word-groups. The grammatical system is the whole set of regularities determining the combination of naming means in the formation of utterances (высказывание) as the embodiment (воплощение) of thinking process.

Three constituent parts of language are studied by particular linguistic disciplines: phonology, lexicology, grammar.

We can speak of two types of grammar: practical and theoretical. Practical grammar gives practical rules of the use of the linguistic structures while theoretical grammar gives an analysis of the structures in the light of general principles of linguistics and the existing schools and approaches. The aim of theoretical grammar of a language is to present a theoretical description of its grammatical system, i.e. to scientifically analyse and define its grammatical categories and study the mechanisms of grammatical formation of utterances out of words in the process of speech making.

The plane of content comprises the purely semantic elements contained in language, while the plane of expression comprises the material (formal) units of language taken by themselves, apart from the meanings rendered by them. The two planes are inseparably connected, so that no meaning can be realised without some material means of expression. Grammatical elements of language present a unity of content and expression (or, in somewhat more familiar terms, a unity of form and meaning).

The correspondence between the planes of content and expression is very complex, and it is peculiar to each language. This complexity is clearly illustrated by the phenomena of polysemy, homonymy, and synonymy.

Taking into consideration the discrimination between the two planes, we may say that the purpose of grammar as a linguistic discipline is to disclose and formulate the regularities of the correspondence between the plane of content and the plane of expression in the formation of utterances out of the stocks of words as part of the process of speech production.

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