Coordination and referential dependencies: a dependency grammar account in terms of predicate-valent structures

Abstract The present paper explores the nexus of coordination and referential dependencies, focusing on sentences such as ‘Max and Lucie talked about him’, in which it is hardly possible for Max and him to be co-valued. Previous accounts claim that such referential dependencies are in fact possible on a collective reading. It will be demonstrated here, however, that informants consistently judge the co-valued reading in such cases to be either strongly marginal or unavailable, regardless of whether a collective or distributive reading obtains. It is claimed that the manner in which referential dependencies interact with coordinate structures can be addressed insightfully in terms of ‘predicate-valent’ structures (as opposed to ‘predicate-argument structures’). A constraint in this regard will be proposed: the ‘Conjunct Referential Dependency Constraint’ (CRDC). The CRDC is couched in a Dependency Grammar (DG) approach to syntax.