scholarly journals Non-relational Embedding Verbs: Quotes and Reports

2020 ◽  
Vol 28 ◽  
pp. 163-175 ◽  
Author(s):  
José María García Núñez ◽  
Aroa Orrequia-Barea
Keyword(s):  
Direct Speech ◽  
Clausal Complementation ◽  
Transitive Verbs ◽  
Semantic Treatment ◽  
Embedded Clauses ◽  
Referential Expressions ◽  
Clausal Complements

Some verbs cannot have their clausal complements replaced by referential expressions salva congruitate and/or veritate. This makes it difficult to analyse them as denoting relations of the type expressed by run-of-the-mill transitive verbs. The main goal in this work is to find an explanation for why some English embedding verbs are relational while others fail to be so. The question is, why can the latter, but not the former verbs have their embedded clauses replaced by direct speech complements? A comparison in the relevant contexts of the related categories of direct and indirect quotation reveals an important degree of coincidence that calls for (a) an overlapping semantic treatment, and (b) an interpretation of their often invoked differences as due to the contrasting semantic requirements of the class of verbs that fails to express a relation, non-relational ones. For us, the key distinguishing factor is utterance denotation, the differences between the two main classes of verbs identified in the work deriving from reliance on either the form or the content of the utterances involved. In order to account for these facts, we propose a substantial revision of the Davidsonian approach to clausal complementation.

scholarly journals Intensional Transitive Verbs and Abstract Clausal Complementation

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcel den Dikken ◽  
Richard Larson ◽  
Peter Ludlow
Keyword(s):  
Clausal Complementation ◽  
Transitive Verbs ◽  
Clausal Complements

There is a correlation between intensionality and syntax: intensionality manifests itself with all clausal complement constructions. For example, “Max imagined that Boris was approaching”. Although pervasive, there are apparent counterexamples. Sentences featuring intensional transitive verbs such as “Max wanted Boris” and “John imagined a unicorn”, exhibit intensionality effects but do not appear to have clausal complements. This chapter defends a view of intensional transitive constructions which is intuitive and quite familiar, but one which has also been widely discounted. Specifically, the defense is of the proposal deriving from Quine and Montague that despite surface appearances, intensional transitive constructions are not transitives at all, but rather clausal complement constructions containing concealed material.

THE STUDY OF COMPLEMENTARY COMPLEXES IN MODERN GRAMMAR SCHOOLS

2019 ◽  
pp. 75-86
Author(s):  
O. Tuhai
Keyword(s):  
Noun Phrases ◽  
Internal Argument ◽  
Subordinate Clauses ◽  
Part Of Speech ◽  
Theoretical Approaches ◽  
The Status ◽  
Clausal Complementation ◽  
Communicative Approach ◽  
Clausal Complements ◽  
Form Feature

The article focuses on the basic theoretical approaches to the analysis of complementary complexes in modern grammar paradigms. The phenomenon of clausal complementation has been presented. Subordinate sentences are characterized as object clausal complements with the status of a core internal argument of the main predicate. Grammatical configuration and functioning of finite/infinitive complementary sentences in English have been revealed. Grammatical status of clauses under the study is postulated as object predication or the internal verbal complement in the function of an object. Grammatical indicators of finite sentences are analyzed considering specific that/wh- markers of complementation, semantics of matrix verbs as well as temporal tense-form feature in a verbal phrase. Grammatical configuration of infinitive sentences is denoted by to-/wh-markers and noun phrases in a certain case. Identifying criteria of verbal clausal complements have been distinguished. Morphology of the predicate, internal/external syntax of a complementary construction are grounded as leading features of their definition. Typology of verbal complementation in terms of transitivity, complement attachment to the perculia part of speech, functional communicative approach has been reviewed. General monotransitive, complex-transitive and ditransitive complementation has been outlined. When being attached to a particular language constituent a clause is determined as nominal, adjective or verbal complement. Due to communicative peculiarity finite subordinate clauses are positioned as content declarative, interrogative and exclamative.

The Oxford Turkish Grammar

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gerjan van Schaaik
Keyword(s):  
Relative Clauses ◽  
Noun Phrases ◽  
Syllable Structure ◽  
Sentence Structure ◽  
Verbal System ◽  
Embedded Clauses ◽  
Complex Words ◽  
Clausal Complements ◽  
Point Of Departure ◽  
Basic Level

The point of departure of this book is the fundamental observation that actual conversations tend to consist of loosely connected, compact, and meaningful chunks built on a noun phrase, rather than fully fledged sentences. Therefore, after the treatment of elementary matters such as the Turkish alphabet and pronunciation in part I, the main points of part II are the structure of noun phrases and their function in nominal, existential, and verbal sentences, while part III presents their adjuncts and modifiers. The verbal system is extensively discussed in part IV, and in part V on sentence structure the grammatical phenomena presented so far are wrapped up. The first five parts of the book, taken together, provide for all-round operational knowledge of Turkish on a basic level. Part VI deals with the ways in which complex words are constructed, and constitutes a bridge to the advanced matter treated in parts VII and VIII. These latter parts deal with advanced topics such as relative clauses, subordination, embedded clauses, clausal complements, and the finer points of the verbal system. An important advantage of this book is its revealing new content: the section on syllable structure explains how loanwords adapt to Turkish; other topics include: the use of pronouns in invectives; verbal objects classified in terms of case marking; extensive treatment of the optative (highly relevant in day-to-day conversation); recursion and lexicalization in compounds; stacking of passives; the Başı-Bozuk and Focus-Locus constructions; relativization on possessive, dative, locative, and ablative objects, instrumentals and adverbial adjuncts; pseudo-relative clauses; typology of clausal complements; periphrastic constructions and double negation.

Clausal complementation in Norwegian

2004 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 61-95 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helge Lødrup
Keyword(s):  
Structure And Function ◽  
Web Pages ◽  
Functional Grammar ◽  
Lexical Functional Grammar ◽  
Text Corpora ◽  
Clausal Complementation ◽  
Syntactic Properties ◽  
And Function ◽  
Clausal Complements

The purpose of this article is to give a description of the syntax of clausal complementation in Norwegian within the framework of Lexical-Functional Grammar (LFG). The data are mostly authentic sentences from text corpora and web pages. The description given is rather different from traditional descriptions. An important point to be made is that Norwegian (finite and non-finite) clausal complements are not homogeneous with respect to their syntactic properties. Even if most clausal complements behave like objects, Norwegian also has clausal complements that do not behave like objects. This phenomenon is well known from other languages, but has never been observed in the literature on Norwegian. The structure and function of non-object clausal complements are discussed, and the traditional idea that they are PP obliques is rejected.

scholarly journals Remarks on prepositional object clauses in Germanic

Nordlyd ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
pp. 69-91
Author(s):  
Lutz Gunkel ◽  
Jutta Hartmann
Keyword(s):  
Limited Evidence ◽  
West Germanic ◽  
Clausal Complementation ◽  
Prepositional Object ◽  
Clausal Complements ◽  
Germanic Languages

This paper analyses the variation we find in the realization of finite clausal complements in the position of prepositional objects in a set of Germanic languages. The Germanic languages differ with respect to whether prepositions can directly select a clause (North Germanic) or not and instead need a prepositional proform (Continental West Germanic). Within the Continental West Germanic languages, we find further differences with respect to the constituent structures. We propose that German strong vs. weak prepositional proforms (e.g. drauf vs. darauf) differ with respect to their syntax, while this is not the case for the Dutch forms (ervan vs. daarvan). What the Germanic languages under consideration share is that the prepositional element can be covert, except in English. English shows only limited evidence for the presence of P with finite clauses in the position of prepositional objects generally, but only with a selected set of verbs. This investigation is a first step towards a broader study of the nature of clauses in prepositional object positions and the implications for the syntax of clausal complementation.

scholarly journals Responsive predicates are question-embedding: evidence from Estonian

2018 ◽  
Vol 61 ◽  
pp. 271-288
Author(s):  
Tom Roberts
Keyword(s):  
Semantic Treatment ◽  
Embedded Clauses ◽  
Complement Selection ◽  
Interrogative Clauses

The proper semantic treatment of the complements of Responsive Predicates (ResPs),those predicates which may embed either declarative or interrogative clauses, is a longstandingpuzzle, given standard assumptions about complement selection. In order to avoidpositing systematic polysemy for ResPs, typical treatments of ResP complements treat theirarguments either as uniformly declarative-like (propositional) or interrogative-like (question).I shed new light on this question with novel data from Estonian, in which there are verbsthink-like meanings with declarative complements and wonder-like meanings with interrogativecomplements. I argue that these verbs’ meaning is fundamentally incompatible with aproposition-taking semantics for ResPs, and therefore a question-taking semantics is to be preferred.Keywords: responsive predicates, embedded clauses, interrogatives, contemplation, Estonian.

Embedded root phenomena and indirect speech reports

Linguistics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
José María García Núñez
Keyword(s):  
Speech Acts ◽  
Speech Act ◽  
Left Periphery ◽  
Direct Speech ◽  
Indirect Speech ◽  
Complement Clauses ◽  
Embedded Clauses ◽  
Speech Reports

Abstract This article analyzes the occurrence of performative root phenomena in complement clauses. I show that the clauses that host this kind of phenomena have the same distribution as direct speech complements. I argue that the correspondence is based on the fact that, due to their rich syntactic left periphery, these embedded clauses convey speech acts. This assumption receives further support by the grammatical behavior of what I argue are the two major classes of verbs subordinating direct speech and ERP-hosting embedded clauses: locutionary and illocutionary embedding verbs. I analyze illocutionary verbs as bearing an abstract illocutionary predicate selecting either a propositional or a speech-act type, and locutionary verbs as ordinary relational predicates selecting a speech-act type. Taken together, these elements allow for a straightforward syntax-semantics interface and explain the differentiated behavior of root phenomena in complements to locutionary and illocutionary verbs.

scholarly journals Clausal complementation in Ruuli (Bantu, JE103)

2020 ◽  
Vol 49 (1) ◽  
pp. 84-110
Author(s):  
Marie-Louise Lind Sørensen ◽  
Alena Witzlack-Makarevich
Keyword(s):  
Great Lakes ◽  
Direct Speech ◽  
Bantu Language ◽  
Linguistic Patterns ◽  
Clausal Complementation ◽  
Complement Clauses ◽  
The Subject ◽  
State Of Affairs

This paper describes the morphosyntactic and semantic characteristics of clausal object complementation in the Great Lakes Bantu Language Ruuli (JE103). In addition to providing an overview of the complementation strategies in Ruuli, parallels will be drawn to constructions described for related languages as well as common cross-linguistic patterns in clausal complementation. Ruuli employs several different complementation strategies, including indicative, subjunctive, and infinitive constructions. Complement clauses can be either unmarked or marked with a complementizer, the most common of which is nti. These two options are also available for direct speech. Other less common complementizers, which cannot be used to introduce direct speech complements include oba, nga and ni. As individual complement-taking predicates do not allow for every complementation strategy, we will explore the semantic and morphosyntactic conditions which predict the choice of complement. To this end, we consider several predictors. We investigate the restrictions imposed by various complement-taking predicate types, e.g. knowledge predicates, phasal predicates and utterance predicates. Then we consider whether the complement expresses a proposition (a truth-valued meaning unit) or a state-of-affairs (a non-truth valued meaning unit) and whether the subject arguments in the two clauses are identical.

Partner-Specific Communication Deficits in Individuals With Alzheimer's Disease

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-15
Author(s):  
Eun Jin Paek ◽  
Si On Yoon
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Referential Communication ◽  
Sorting Task ◽  
Audience Design ◽  
Healthy Older Adults ◽  
Communication Task ◽  
Design Skills ◽  
Referential Expressions

Purpose Speakers adjust referential expressions to the listeners' knowledge while communicating, a phenomenon called “audience design.” While individuals with Alzheimer's disease (AD) show difficulties in discourse production, it is unclear whether they exhibit preserved partner-specific audience design. The current study examined if individuals with AD demonstrate partner-specific audience design skills. Method Ten adults with mild-to-moderate AD and 12 healthy older adults performed a referential communication task with two experimenters (E1 and E2). At first, E1 and participants completed an image-sorting task, allowing them to establish shared labels. Then, during testing, both experimenters were present in the room, and participants described images to either E1 or E2 (randomly alternating). Analyses focused on the number of words participants used to describe each image and whether they reused shared labels. Results During testing, participants in both groups produced shorter descriptions when describing familiar images versus new images, demonstrating their ability to learn novel knowledge. When they described familiar images, healthy older adults modified their expressions depending on the current partner's knowledge, producing shorter expressions and more established labels for the knowledgeable partner (E1) versus the naïve partner (E2), but individuals with AD were less likely to do so. Conclusions The current study revealed that both individuals with AD and the control participants were able to acquire novel knowledge, but individuals with AD tended not to flexibly adjust expressions depending on the partner's knowledge state. Conversational inefficiency and difficulties observed in AD may, in part, stem from disrupted audience design skills.

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