On preverbalzaiin Mandarin Chinese

Its Progressive and Prepositional Functions

Datos Bibliográficos

ID3989281
AutoresI-Hao Woo (University of Colorado Denver), I‐hao Woo (0000-0002-2485-1083, University of Colorado Denver, autor de correspondencia)
Año2021
Volumen59
Número3
Páginas513-539
Fecha de publicación2021-05-26
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaLinguistics (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0024-3949 • E-ISSN: 1613-396X
EditorialWalter de Gruyter GmbH (PUBLISHER • DE)
DOI10.1515/ling-2021-0044
OpenAlexW3155013287
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas1
Referencias citadas29

This study revisits the linguistic properties of preverbalzaiin Mandarin Chinese. Specifically, it examines the syntax of a prepositional phrase headed byzaifunctioning as an adjunct, as the main predicate of a sentence with a continuous reading, as well as a sentence containingzaiwith a progressive reading. It is argued that there is only onezaiand that it always functions as a preposition selecting either a Locative Phrase (LP) or a Zeit Phrase (ZP) as its complement. The study also claims that the different aspectual readings of sentences containingzaiare a result of the different types of complementszaiselects. It is argued that a sentence has a continuous reading whenzaiselects an LP and a progressive one when it selects a ZP as its complement. The proposed analyses not only provide a unified account of the linguistic functions ofzaibut also give a syntactic account of the close relation between the imperfective aspect (in particular, the progressive aspect) and locative elements that has been observed by many previous studies

Complement (music) · Linguistics · Locative case · Mandarin Chinese · Phrase · Predicate (mathematical logic) · Reading (process) · Sentence · Syntax · Computer Science · Language, Discourse, Communication Strategies · Linguistic Variation and Morphology · Philosophy · Syntax, Semantics, Linguistic Variation