{"title":"On the big silent appositive time in dà NP de construction in Chinese: A compositional approach.","authors":"Changsong Wang","doi":"10.1353/jcl.2017.0114","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"This article explores the compositionality of [<em>dà</em> NP <em>de</em>] construction in Chinese. The NP should be a direct time-denoting NP<sub>TIME</sub> or an indirect time-denoting NPI<sub>TIME</sub>. Following Kayne (2016), we assume there is a silent TIME following <em>de</em>. Meanwhile, a less-discussed use of <em>de</em>—that is, the equational/appositional use of <em>de</em> (Chao 1968), has been revived to link the silent TIME and NP<sub>TIME</sub>/NPI<sub>TIME</sub>. This analysis of <em>de</em> helps explain why the NP is preferably time-related, as it is easier for a time-denoting NP to establish an equational/appositional relation with the silent TIME. <em>Dà</em> ‘big’ is neither a size-denoting adjective, nor an evaluative morpheme. It is analyzed as an element like the restrictive adjective very (e.g., <em>the very book</em>) in English. <em>Dà</em> modifies the appositive conjunction phrase [NP <em>de</em> TIME], bringing emphasis to the construction, which in turn imposes certain semantic and pragmatic constraints on its subsequent clauses.","PeriodicalId":44675,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Chinese Linguistics","volume":" ","pages":"-"},"PeriodicalIF":0.2000,"publicationDate":"2022-05-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Journal of Chinese Linguistics","FirstCategoryId":"98","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1353/jcl.2017.0114","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"0","JCRName":"ASIAN STUDIES","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
This article explores the compositionality of [dà NP de] construction in Chinese. The NP should be a direct time-denoting NPTIME or an indirect time-denoting NPITIME. Following Kayne (2016), we assume there is a silent TIME following de. Meanwhile, a less-discussed use of de—that is, the equational/appositional use of de (Chao 1968), has been revived to link the silent TIME and NPTIME/NPITIME. This analysis of de helps explain why the NP is preferably time-related, as it is easier for a time-denoting NP to establish an equational/appositional relation with the silent TIME. Dà ‘big’ is neither a size-denoting adjective, nor an evaluative morpheme. It is analyzed as an element like the restrictive adjective very (e.g., the very book) in English. Dà modifies the appositive conjunction phrase [NP de TIME], bringing emphasis to the construction, which in turn imposes certain semantic and pragmatic constraints on its subsequent clauses.
本文探讨了汉语[dondonnp de]结构的组合性。NP应该是直接表示时间的NPTIME或间接表示时间的NPITIME。根据Kayne(2016)的观点,我们假设de之后有一个无声的TIME。与此同时,de的一种较少讨论的用法,即de的等号/对位用法(Chao 1968)被重新使用,将无声的TIME与NPTIME/NPITIME联系起来。这种对de的分析有助于解释为什么NP最好是与时间相关的,因为时间表示的NP更容易与沉默的时间建立相等/对应的关系。“big”既不是表示大小的形容词,也不是评价语素。它是作为一个元素来分析的,就像英语中的限制性形容词very(例如,这本书)一样。d修饰同位语连词[NP de TIME],强调结构,这反过来又对其后续从句施加一定的语义和语用限制。
期刊介绍:
Journal of Chinese Linguistics (JCL) is an academic journal, which comprises research content from both general linguistics and Chinese linguistics. It is edited by a distinguished editorial board of international expertise. There are two publications: Journal of Chinese Linguistics (JCL) and Journal of Chinese Linguistics Monograph Series (JCLMS).