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Pavel Grashchenkov and Vita G. Markman
185-193 (complete pdf)
The paper addresses the status of non-core dative arguments in nominal and verbal predication. Non-core dative arguments (N-CDA) can be added to some verbal predicates in English (e.g. John bought (me) a pie). However, in English N-CDAs are impossible with nominal predicates (e.g. *He was me a friend). In contrast, Russian allows N-CDAs in verbal and nominal predication; i.e. the analogue of 'He was me a friend' is grammatical in Russian. By treating N-CDAs in nominal and verbal predication as High and Low Applicatives respectively, the paper explains (a) why N-CDAs are necessarily interpreted as possessors in nominal but not in verbal predication and (b) why English forbids N-CDAs in nominal predication, but allows them with verbal predicates.
Published in:
Proceedings of the 27th West Coast Conference on Formal Linguistics
edited by Natasha Abner and Jason Bishop
Table of contents
ISBN 978-1-57473-428-7 library binding
vii+466 pages
publication date: 2008
published by Cascadilla Proceedings Project, Somerville, MA, USA