Your brain uses the exact same 'grammar' to build a complex sentence as it does to reach out and grab a tool.
April 17, 2026
Original Paper
Reaching for domain-general syntax: Sentence processing and tool-use reach-to-grasp share neural patterns in the basal ganglia
bioRxiv · 2025.10.17.683107
The Takeaway
For decades, we assumed that human language was a special, high-level skill housed in its own unique department of the brain, separate from basic physical movement. This study flips that on its head by proving the basal ganglia use identical neural patterns to process the hierarchical structure of a sentence and the physical reach-to-grasp motion of using a tool. Essentially, your brain doesn't see a fundamental difference between the logic of a complex 'who-did-what' sentence and the physical sequence of muscles needed to operate a screwdriver. It turns out that 'grammar' isn't just for words; it’s a universal operating system the brain uses to organize any complex, multi-step action. This means your ability to speak eloquently and your ability to be a skilled craftsman are actually powered by the same ancient neurological hardware.
From the abstract
Are actions organized like sentences? Recent evidence showed reciprocal transfer between tool use and syntactic comprehension, reflecting shared basal ganglia resources for action and language. The proposed mechanism is that embedding a tool into the motor plan increases the hierarchical structure of actions, paralleling the organization of sentences. If so, overlap with linguistic computations should emerge specifically during the initiation and/or reach-to-grasp phase, when tool embedding dyna