On the Integration of Dative Adjuncts into Event Structures in Yapa Languages

Warlpiri and Warlmanpa (Ngumpin-Yapa languages of Australia) exhibit a complex predicate construction in which a class of preverbs introduces a single argument that is not shared by the argument structure of the inflecting verb, nor is there necessarily any shared event structure. This is problematic for many theories of linking structures of complex predicates, since no arguments or events are shared between the predicative elements of the complex predicate. The same grammatical relation is instantiated by a beneficiary adjunct. In light of new research in event and argument structure, I propose a lexical rule which introduces an applicative argument to account for the beneficiary construction; and that the preverbs take another predicate as one of their arguments to account for the complex predicates. The applicative rule and the preverbs both introduce an argument of the same grammatical relation, leading to interesting interactions, given that two grammatical relations of the same type are not expected to co-occur within a single clause.

Analyzing Complex Predicates in Karo Language using Syntactic Parsing

This study characterized the complex predicate and multiple events where the multi-verb single clause realises a single event in syntax and examined the complex sentences containing multiple verbal predicates. This study used the descriptive qualitative method. The data sources used were sentences containing karo sentence clauses and was classified based on the elements of complex Predicates in a tree diagram and the RRG account of nexus-juncture relations theory by Nolan, 2005 & Van Valin, 2005. The findings showed that event, argument, and semantic could be realized in syntactic meaning to reveal complex predicates. The tightest syntactic linkages embodied the closer semantic relations and it was signaled by word order. Most of the complex predicates in Karo language have an embedded object. The core in the nucleus could be appeared not only as one core but two or more complex predicates and it followed by an argument with the form V+V+N and in the form of V+V+N. One argument (Participant/Actor) that involved one core. It assumed that there might be one participant in two events, and there may be two participants in one event. All of Karo language sentences have at least one NP + one VP and they consisted of more than one complex predicates.

Diagnostics of the ability to understand mathematical texts by school graduates

The ability to understand the text plays a leading role among the basic educational competencies of students. In this paper the technology for diagnosing the ability to understand mathematical texts by school graduates is presented. The discussed technology is built in accordance with the requirements of ontological diagnostics, which makes the diagnostic result unambiguously interpreted, that is, the tools used in this diagnosis meet the validity requirement. Ontological diagnostics is based on the method of “dialectical deduction” (Hegel’s method), which assumes the choice of an initial predicate for its sequential morphologization with a specific content. In the work, the concept of ontological diagnostics is being clarified as a methodological basis for constructing a conceptual and technological scheme for diagnosing the ability to understand mathematical texts. The construction of a system of postulates that provide the formation of a conceptual and technological scheme of the considered diagnostics is discussed. On the basis of this study, a list of abilities was obtained that provide an adequate understanding of mathematical texts by respondents. As a result, the proposed diagnostics makes it possible to reveal the presence or absence of the certain abilities to understand mathematical texts from this list: the ability to choose a basic predicate corresponding to the proposed subject of thought, i. e. ego; the ability to construct complex predicates by the addition and refinement method based on the selected basic predicates; ability to construct the content of the predicate; the ability to read the content of the predicate and the ability to compare the content of the predicate with ego for their identity. A brief description of the conceptual-technological scheme of the regarded diagnostics is given, and a specific example of the constructed technology application is considered for diagnosing the ability to understand mathematical texts by school graduates.

Simple Monotransitive and Complex Dative Alternation Predicates in Spanish Monolingual Child Acquisition Data

This work analyzes the acquisition of simple and complex constructions in Spanish monolingual children’s data. It examines the emergence and the role played by adult input in child production of simple monotransitive constructions when compared to two types of complex predicates that undergo dative alternation (DA), namely, a/para-datives and dative-clitic doubled (DCLD) structures. In order to shed light on these issues, we have analyzed data from Spanish monolingual children and from the adults that they interact with, as available in CHILDES (MacWhinney, Brian. 2000. The CHILDES project: Tools for analyzing talk [Dataset], 3rd edn. Mahwah: Lawrence Erlbaum. http://childes.talkbank.org (accessed 20 October 2019)). The results show that there is an order in the onset of simple and complex predicate constructions, as reflected in the earlier emergence of monotransitives when compared to DA constructions. The latter also show a subsequent order of first occurrence, namely, DCLDs before a/para-datives. Thus, the degree of syntactic complexity seems to have played a role in the acquisition of simple and complex constructions, as measured by the number of Case assignment relations between the verb and its internal argument(s). Moreover, the differences in the Spanish monolingual children’s incidence of the three structures under analysis do not appear to be explained by the relative frequency of exposure in the adult input.

Simple Monotransitive and Complex Dative Alternation Predicates in Spanish Monolingual Child Acquisition Data

This work analyzes the acquisition of simple and complex constructions in Spanish monolingual children’s data. It examines the emergence and the role played by adult input in child production of simple monotransitive constructions when compared to two types of complex predicates that undergo dative alternation (DA), namely, a/para-datives and dative-clitic doubled (DCLD) structures. In order to shed light on these issues, we have analyzed data from Spanish monolingual children and from the adults that they interact with, as available in CHILDES (MacWhinney, Brian. 2000. The CHILDES project: Tools for analyzing talk [Dataset], 3rd edn. Mahwah: Lawrence Erlbaum. http://childes.talkbank.org (accessed 20 October 2019)). The results show that there is an order in the onset of simple and complex predicate constructions, as reflected in the earlier emergence of monotransitives when compared to DA constructions. The latter also show a subsequent order of first occurrence, namely, DCLDs before a/para-datives. Thus, the degree of syntactic complexity seems to have played a role in the acquisition of simple and complex constructions, as measured by the number of Case assignment relations between the verb and its internal argument(s). Moreover, the differences in the Spanish monolingual children’s incidence of the three structures under analysis do not appear to be explained by the relative frequency of exposure in the adult input.

‘Onvervreemdbaar bezit’ verschillend benaderd

In this paper I explain the difference between the notions possessive dative and possessive accusative as used by me and other linguists like Vandeweghe (e.g. 1986 and 1987) and the notions dative and accusative inalienable possessors as used in Broekhuis et al. (2015). It is not so much the difference in the descriptive system I want to focus on, but the difference in aim. Broekhuis et al. want to specify the syntactic encoding of ‘inalienable possession’ and come to the conclusion that the possessor of the inalienable possession is always the referent of an indirect object, be it on different syntactic levels. I want to explain why this is the case. This can be done by showing that the complex predicates in inalienable possession constructions are comparable to the dative verbs in constructions with a regular indirect object, due to the fact that they contain a constituent referring to inalienable possession. Our descriptions have much in common and if we see them as complementary, they can profit from each other.

Serial verb constructions and covert coordinations in Edo – an analysis in Type Logical Grammar

Based on both syntactic and semantic criteria, Stewart (2001) and, following him, Baker and Stewart (1999), distinguish two types of serial verb constructions (SVC) and one type of covert coordination (CC) in Edo. In this article, we present an analysis of these constructions, using Type Logical Grammar (TLG) with an event-based semantic component. We choose as base logic the non-associative Lambek calculus augmented with two unary multiplicative connectives (NL(◊, □)). SVCs and CCs are interpreted as complex event structures. The complex predicates underlying these structures are derived from simple verbs by means of a constructor. SVCs and CCs differ in terms of which part of the complex event structure is denoted. For SVCs, this is the sum of all events in the structure whereas for a CC this is only the first event in the sequence. The two verbs in an SVC and a CC are treated asymmetrically by assuming that the first verb has an extended subcategorization frame. The additional argument is of type vp (possibly modally decorated). Constraints on word order and the realization of arguments are accounted for using structural rules like permutation and contraction. The application of these rules is enforced by making use of the unary connectives.

Verb verb complex predicates in Old and Middle Japanese

This chapter describes the main features of Verb Verb complex predicates in Old and Middle Japanese (8th to 16th centuries) and discusses changes that took place between Old Japanese and Modern Japanese. Old Japanese had complex verbal predicate constructions which resemble the Modern Japanese Types 1–3, and in addition a V1 aktionsart verb construction, which is not found in later stages and which is hypothesized to have played a crucial role in the development of complex predicates in Japanese. The wordhood of complex verbal predicates is addressed. Verb Verb complex predicates did not constitute tight morphological units in Old and Early Middle Japanese, but developed into morphological words in Late Middle and Modern Japanese. It is proposed that the loss of subordinating function of the infinitive played an important part in this change. It is also observed that the Modern Japanese Type 4 (Vte V) is a Late Middle Japanese innovation which is not a prototypical complex predicate verb construction but rather an auxiliary verb construction.

The semantic differentiation of verb-te verb complexes and verb-verb compounds in Japanese

Japanese has two different formal types of complex predicates involving two verbs: V-te V complex predicates and V-V compound verbs. This chapter discusses the nature of the former in comparison to the latter. The examination reveals that the two kinds of multiverbal complexes similarly have two subtypes, one monoclausal and the other biclausal, but that they are different morphologically, syntactically, and semantically. The most interesting finding is that the two crucially differ in whether deictic and honorific verbs, which encode perspectival and interactional meanings, can participate in the complexes. Morphologically tighter V-V compounds require a same-subject relation between the two verbs and exclude perspectival or interactional meanings (except V1 in syntactic compounds). Loosely concatenated V-te V complexes allow different subjects, typically have perfective/resultative V1, and have V2 as a preferred slot for perspectival/interactional meanings. These observations suggest that Japanese does not have these two options meaninglessly; the different multiverbal complexes serve different purposes.