Predicate Catenae: A Dependency Grammar Analysis of It-Clefts

Abstract

This manuscript proposes a syntactic analysis of it-cleft sentences in English in dependency syntax. The connectivity effects of it-clefts are addressed in terms of the catena unit. A central claim is that despite the presence of two finite clauses, the matrix predicate of it-clefts, which is a catena, reaches into the embedded clause to include the primary predicate residing there. This means that despite the presence of two finite verbs, it-clefts are in fact mono-clausal in a central way. Given this essentially mono-clausal status of it-clefts, the widely discussed connectivity effects that appear in them are not surprising.