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The Syntactic Disguises of the Predication Operator
Author(s) -
Eide Kristin M.,
Åfarli Tor A.
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
studia linguistica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.187
H-Index - 28
eISSN - 1467-9582
pISSN - 0039-3193
DOI - 10.1111/1467-9582.00043
Subject(s) - verb , operator (biology) , linguistics , phrase , verb phrase , unitary state , projection (relational algebra) , computer science , mathematics , philosophy , noun phrase , algorithm , biochemistry , chemistry , noun , repressor , political science , transcription factor , law , gene
Taking Bowers (1993) as our point of departure, we argue that natural language employs a predication operator that may be lexicalised and constitute the head of a syntactic projection. First, following Bowers' suggestion that the English particle as may lexicalise the predication operator, we show that the corresponding particle som of certain clauses in Norwegian serves the same function. Then, departing from Bowers, we argue that the copula and certain prepositions may lexicalise the predication operator as well. Last, we argue against Bowers' non‐unitary construal of the verb phrase as made up of a V‐projection and an independent predication projection. Instead, we adduce evidence that the predication operator is directly lexicalised by the main verb, in effect claiming that the unmarked verb phrase is a unitary VP, with V′ constituting a Fregean unsaturated function exactly in virtue of having the predication operator incorporated into the main verb.