Dream Deep

Hi frienda –

I have just added to my profile the way to read some of my papers: put in Google

haj papers

That will take you to a page where you will find around 50 papers on poetics, syntax, semantics and deep learning.

But if you would like to try to unravel any one of several thousand linguistic mysteries, mostly syntactic or semantic ones, then go directly to

Squibnet is at: http://www.umich.edu/~jlawler/haj/Squibnet/

where you will find a whole buncha squibs (puzzles, riddles, baffling linguistic facts, which cry out for some smart person to disentangle them.
I hope you are such a person.

May you have more fun than a barrel of otters.

Peace –

Haj

P. S. If you solve some uvm, lemme know: haj@unt.edu

S Q U I B S f r o m 1 9 9 6
10jul1996
CLEFTS AS IMPERFECT BEINGS, THE TENSE OF THE “BE” OF CLEFTS: [there is no] PERFECT IN (PSEUDO)CLEFTS, p. 1
It { ?has been / is / *was } in France { that we have lived / that we have been living }.
Where we have { been living / *lived } has been in France.
Es { war in Berlin / *ist in Berlin gewesen }, dass wir uns kennengelernt haben. [Ger. ‘It was in Berlin that we met.’]
[Haj] 11jul1996
It’s not that “be” can’t be a compound tense:
OK: Vai ser a LA que a gente vai morar.
It will be in LA that we will work.
With imperfect, only “era”
{ Era / *E } em LA que trabal hava.
It has been X S- [yin-yang] wh S- has been X
Only when the main V (?) in S- is “have been V-ing.”
10jul1996
[No title.]
*Ça a été Max. [Fr. ‘That was Max.’]
Wo er wohnte { war in LA / *ist in LA gewesen }. [Ger. ‘Where he lived was in LA.’]
c.13jul1996
[No title.]
observe z / ?s
observation z / s
observant z / *s
exhume gz / *ks
exhaust gz / *ks
exhale *gz / ks
15jul1996
CLEFTS AS IMPERFECT BEINGS
Pres. | Pres.
What happens { *was / is / *will be } that he { *went / goes / *will go } home.
[“will go”]–OK if = ‘insists on.’
Past | Pres./Past
What happened { was / is / *will be } that he { went / *goes / **will go } home.
[“goes”]–maybe OK if historical present.
Fut. | Pres./Fut.
What will happen { *was / is / will be } that he { *went / ?*goes / will go } home.
Check!
It must be that it is on Saturday that he { goes / went }.
It { may / might / must / could } be that S.
What must happen is for him to leave.
15jul1996
CLEFTS ARE IMPERFECT BEINGS[:] THE LOOPHOLE
What is the restriction?
What I have { been believing / *believed } that he { was eating / eats / ?ate } has been eggs.
What I have { *told them that / been telling them that } you are reading has been _Time_.
What he seems to have been telling them that he { reads / is reading / *read } has ben _Time_.
So: there must be a higher “have been V-ing”; there can’t be an intervening past?
What I have been believing that you { ?knew that he reads / know that he reads / *had found out that he reads } has been _Time_.
21jul1996
THIS MOMENT, ALL MOMENTS
What gives us now this moment
and gave the one before
is bottomless as air
behind a door another door
Haj
Baie St Paul
26jul1996
DNP’S: RC’S ON “PLACE”
The place { ?to which / where / that } we went was desolate.
Toni left from the place { to which / where / *(*that) } we went. [sic]
26jul1996
DNP’S: RC’S ON PUREBREDS -> RC’S ON DNP’S
The day { on which / when ≥ / ??that } I arrived was a long one.
Terry left (on) the day { *on which ≤ / ?when / (that) } I arrived.
This suggests, does it not:
A. The modifier of a purebred requires a relative pronoun which indicates that the target NP was worthy of subordinating itself to so lofty a one–nothing scuzzy like an immolated preposition or missing relative pronoun.
The day { which / ?*__ } Thursday precedes is popular in offices.
B. Probably a lot more stuff too.
1aug1996
“SURE” TAGS & INTERSPEAKER RULES, p. 1
Rosalia: “A lot of fog tonight.”
Haj: “Sure is.”
In order to make this baby work, we need:
1. Subject Deletion (OPT)
(for stuff like “sings loud.”) Condition: subject is coreferential pro [?] or some expletive:
a lot of muggings
raining a lot
??possible that will be
2. Auxiliary Cleanup (OBL)
Hey! This is another reason for SOME feature like [ +Aux ]…but
*shave himself poorly every day
(so Tns won’t zap)
(*is) singing loud tonight
(*has) written a lot of good stuff recently
(*will) do just fine
why OK:
(might) have been cleaning up
N.b.
been cleaning up
*Sure might
3. Across-turn deletions
4. Wild: these [3] have to have access to earlier stages of derivations.
1aug1996
“SURE” TAGS & NEG, p. 2
Not many flies.[–]Sure aren’t.
Few flies.[–]Sure { *are / *aren’t }.
Uh-oh
No stars.[–]Sure { aren’t / *are }.
[Haj] 7:12am
More is required: VP Deletion is, for all practical, and no theoretical, reasons, OBL.
A lot of mist.[–]Sure is ({ ?a lot / ??a lot of it / *a lot of mist }).
OK: Sure IS a lot of mist.
Which is like:
A: “Barbara is a real Marxist.”
B: “Sure DOES read a lot of Leninist stuff.”
1aug1996
“SURE” TAGS & “VP” DEL, p. 3
Thus “sure”-tags provide a test for VP Del.–they show that all of these processes are the same:
Max is singing. Sure is (*singing).
Max likes grout. Sure { does / *likes it }.
Max is a sweetheart. Sure is (?*one).
and
There are nuts in LA. Sure are { ?some there / ?*in LA / some }.
What actually is OBL? How much VP has to go?
Tex might have been being set up. Some might (have (been (*being (*set up)))).
So: the minimal VP (the VP which contains no smaller VP) must go. Hm. Causatives? Complements?
Max seems to want to leave. Sure does (seem to (?want to (*leave))).
1aug1996
“SURE” TAGS & “NOT” HOPPING, p. 4
I { don’t think / ?*doubt that } he is rich. Sure isn’t.
Max claims to have gone to LA. Sure { did / has }.
This [“have gone”] is ambig.
Max plans to go to LA. *Sure will.
9aug1996
*(IM)PERFECT & POINT PAST
Thoughts after talking with Margot [?]
Gestern { war Hans in Berlin / ??ist Hans in Berlin gewesen }. [Ger. ‘Yesterday H. was in B.’]
Hier Jean { était / ?a été } dans l’hôtel. [Fr. ‘Yesterday J. was in the hotel.’]
Yesterday Tom { was / *has been } in Berlin.
So are (pseudo)clefts bad with perfects for this reason? They don’t like points?
I { was / have been } happy all day.
Ich { war den ganzen Tag glücklich / *bin den ganzen Tag glücklich gewesen }.
14aug1996
SQUATITIVES
Paul suggests: NPs are always islands, so their failure to be pierced by “squat” is expectable. But:
I didn’t take (*any) pictures of squat.
It’s not that preceding “any”s zap “squat”:
I didn’t give anyone squat.
B.t.w. “picture of X” is an NP:
Pictures of X were taken.
14aug1996
(PSEUDO)CLEFTS–THE ADVERBS THAT MODIFY “BE”
In 1994, it was beans that I ate { in March / [1]*in 1995 / [2]*that year }.
[on 1] how stopped?
[on 2] Gurk
Often it is Bill who seldom swims.
16aug1996
“ABOUT” ITSELF
[ Much about calculus ] is { known / *fondled }.
Gurk! This [bracketed portion] must be an NP–and only in NPs of V which take “about + NP” can there be “about + NP” modifiers.
What is giving?
17aug1996
“SURE” THINGS, p. 1
{ Though / Since / *If } he sure cooks well
1 “sure” per assertion:
He sure is sick and she sure is well.
Tom, who sure eats a lot, sure likes cheese.
“Sure” only goes in assertions. [ +presupposed ]?–non-emotive factives.
*I’m surprised that he sure went.
Why:
*I don’t think that he sure is nice.
I { think / said / knew / *doubt(ed) / *hope } that Fatty sure was [?].
Why bad?
*Tom claims that he sure is sick.
People who (*sure) were sorry left.
The men *(,) who sure were drunk *(,) burped.
??Tony didn’t realize that Zeb sure was pissed off.
Wow!
People who { think / say / know / *hope } that he sure is sick left.
Neg. usually Zaps it:
Tom will (*not) say that she sure was sick.
17aug1996
“SURE” THINGS, CLEFTS & PREPOSEES, p. 2
{ Into THIS lake / Into the lake } he (sure) poured a lot of oil.
How beautifully he (*sure) drives!
In France he (sure) drank.
Into the lake he (*sure) drove.
Carefully he (*sure) cut the cheese.
The lake he (sure) dove into.
Wow!
* in CQs:
It’s odd where he (*sure) fishes.
Uh-oh:
What he sure likes is pizza.
Can’t be in islands?
That he (sure) is tall was { reported widely / mentioned by Greta }.
~ [diamond] [there are] other AdvSent:
{ ??Certainly / *Perhaps / ?*Allegedly } he sure was hungry.
??What he likes sure is pizza.
But
It sure was Mary who kissed me.
19aug1996
“SURE” THINGS
Serena is sure *(working hard).
What is stopping VP0 here? Same with the others:
Maximilian is likely *(hard of hearing).
Dennis has perhaps *(gone to bed).
Frederike will certainly *(give you a hand).
Toni has { too / ??also }
Ted { certainly has / *has certainly }.
23aug1996
VP DELETION: [there must be] LEFT ENVIRONMENT
So:
APi -> Ø / APi … { be __ / *seems __ / *grow __ / *became __ }.
Tom became richer than Mike is.
Mike is richer than Tom became.
25aug1996
THE NON-EXISTENCE OF SO-CALLED VP DELETION
It’s two rules. In coordinate structures, much more goes:
I saw many people stand up but I didn’t see many animals ??(stand up).
but not
The boy who had seen many people stand up did not see many animals *(stand up).
26aug1996
PARTICLES ≠ PREPOSITIONS
P always (?) delete when their object is zeroed:
I approved (*of).
Possible exceptions:
Kommst du mit (uns)? [Ger. ‘Are you coming with (us)?’]
Der nahm eine Pistole mit (sich). [‘He took a pistol along.’]
But particles must stay (if in fact [there are] DOs of V + Part that can be zeroed…):
Tom kept *(on) Ø.
26aug1996
“VP” DELETION
I { *kept / *got / *avoided / *liked / *enjoyed }.
*agree (to) Ø
Why OK?
ceased
continues
tried
continued
Max wants to leave–stop him from { leaving / *Ø }.
Rule: include as many [ V, +Aux ] as possible.
Max seems to have written a sonata & John seems to { have __ too / Ø __ Ø }.
29aug1996
PICTURE N & SI’S
They are selective islands! This explains (no you jerk it doesn’t): ?(16) & *(2)
(1) the cars { (a) of which the pictures came out clear / (b) ?which the pictures of came out clear }
*the cars of which I doubt that he bought pictures.
29aug1996
COMPLEX LOCATIVES (CL) & SELECTIVE ISLANDS
Hey! Maybe “on top of X, inside of X” etc. as SIs!
*The car of which I put the bolts { on top / inside }.
Thus! The crumminess of
What did you put mice inside *(of)?
is due to a derivational constraint: once a PP always a PP! This is also what explains the weird behavior of “out (through).”
What did he go out *(through)?
though:
the door through which we { went out / *didn’t go out }.
30aug1996
PATHS–ORDER OF LEGS
Why bad?
*How many m.p.h. a drive did they take?
The fronter the shittier:
We drove 20 m.p.h. (?from LA to SF).
We drove __ from LA to SF at 20 m.p.h.
a 20-m.p.h. LA to SF drive
a[n] LA to SF { *at 20 m.p.h. / *20 m.p.h. } drive
So: mirror order, and eat P to [?]
So look: nothing { “incorporates” / preposes } if it’s prepositioned:
*(in) Miami weather
the (*on) Friday party
the 20-day wait.
30aug1996
[No title.]
a 20-ft-long cobra
How long a cobra did you see?
Why out?
*How many feet long a cobra did you see?
30aug1996
VERY [-ADJ], MERE, PRINCIPAL, ETC.
These guys have to be nude to the left of a bare N:
the very (*opposite) window I told you about
The mere physical facts belie this assertion.
But
the very { on-campus restaurant / Miami weather / Tuesday meeting } that we complained about
Why this [inequality]?
the very { high-level / *interesting } meeting.
1sep1996
PICTURE N & EMPTY V
It was to this door that I { *dreamed of / bought } the key.
–not adverbs alone
It was that door that I { lost / *described / *painted } the key to.
*Chicago I like it in.
*In Chicago I like it.
*It is LA that it in __ is muggy.
So: “picture” N are islands, unless [diamond] [there is] pragmatic condition of effect/influence between object of “picture” N & the subject (or object):
It was this door that I { gave / *envied } the key to.
Yuki’s facts! Why can’t Ps strand when modifying Nadv? What of the facts with:
The morning { that he left I arrived / on which I left was long }.
if head N is nominal.
Selective islands:
??The boy a picture of whom I regret that you stole is tall.
2sep1996
PICTURE N–KIND OF
We were selling a kind of marbles.
He mended it with a kind of paste.
*What could you mend it with a kind of?
*Any paste a kind of which you could buy there would be fine.
[ a kind of N-def ]
cf.
*a kind of the ink you like
Which damage can we measure the extent of?
8sep1996
X BUT NOT Y, NOT X BUT Y
Both of these work only for X & Y being the same phrase type:
*The range but not under the sink was filthy.
Thus
even Tom but not only Tom
argues that “even Tom” [symbol] “only Tom” where [symbol] means ‘is the same phrase type as.’
down behind X but not { only behind X / over by Y / all around Z / here in the tubby / far into the murk }
All [symbol].
11sep1996
EAT PP’S, NOT XP’S
It’s rotgut which I got stone drunk on.
5oct1996
[No title.]
He said despite the bad weather *(that) he was sick.
What he said { was / [1]*seems to be } { “I’m sick” / he was sick }.
“I’m sick” seems to have been what he said.
What he put in the soup { was / [1]*seems to have been } he put ink in it.
Hey! A parallel! [1:1]
5oct1996
“THAT”-LESSNESS
The unrippability of “that”-less clauses is no general thing.
?It was to go home that he wanted.
I want to go & she to stay.
5oct1996
DIRECT QUOTES, “THAT”-LESSNESS & GESTURES & “RESPECTIVELY”
Max & Tony said { that S1 & S2, resp. / * “S1” & “S2,” resp. / *S1 and S2, resp. }.
7oct1996
DIRECT QUOTES, “THAT”-ZAPPEES & GESTURES [p. 1]
General contrast OK:
I told her there were 50 & SHE told her there were 40.
I said { ??to Bill / *only to Bill } I would help.
I said { only / even } { *I would help / *there were monsters in Loch Wet }.
Ditto if the intensifier has been moved:
I { only / even } said there were monsters in Loch Wet.
Who did you tell { ?that / *__ } you were sick?
Wow! ¡Vau!
*Who did you tell “I’m sick”?
vs
When did you tell her “I’m sick”?
7oct1996
DIRECT QUOTES, “THAT”-ZAPPEES & GESTURES [p. 2]
So: Quotes -> “that”-zappees. Hey: there are a few things (PPs only?) that “that”-zappees can follow:
O1. I was told there were no more toothbrushes.
It seems to me he’s an idiot.
Bill confided (**to me) he had stolen 16 billion Reichsmarks.
A1. I said { to Harold ?(that) we would be / ??on the porch __ we would be } back at 4.
It was reported { he was in Bologna / by the NYT ?*(that) he was in Bologna }.
Janice learned (?*from Erik) we would be on duty tonight.
B1. I said today he’ll be in Ankara tomorrow.
C1. ??I mentioned guardedly he would be available for interviews.
?≠
D1. Sandra learned from Bob & then she told me *(that) Oscar the Otter is in Oswego.
Now let’s try these with the others:
O2. I was told “We have no more toothbrushes.”
A2. Pete said { to Judith / on the porch }, “I’m ready as a bear.”
*It was repeatedly said by Nixon, “I’m not a crook.”
B2. Pete said today “I wonder where the yellow went.”
C2. Tony whispered guardedly, “My fly has been dusted for fingerprints.”
11oct1996
NO PERFECT IN (PSEUDO) CLEFTS
This is true when
have, avoir, être, haben, sein, [?] etc. are = “perfect” (whatever that is), not when they = past.
What he has eaten { *has been / might have been } the turk.
12oct1996
NEGATIVES
?Couldn’t what he said have been that he was wasted?
>
?Could what he said not have been that he was wasted?
>
?*Could what he said have not been that he was wasted?
12oct1996
THE FROZEN PSEUDO-CLEFTEE CONSTRAINT
Cleftees can move:
{ Beans it is / What is it } that she ate.
Pseudo-cleftees can’t:
*I wonder what she thinks what he saw was.
*This house what we want to buy is not.
So: can’t we now show that some other Ss are pseudo-clefts in drag?
*That Bill & Al will win my belief is (not).
*Whether the center can hold the question is (not).
Hey! It can’t even be copied from!
A king cobra–{ *what he showed us was that / that was what he showed us }.
Who has the most money is the winner.
AMBIG
*The winner who has the most money is.
13oct1996
[No title.]
What was(*n’t) it that you ate?
What was it (*definitely) that fell?
These toys it was(*n’t) that fell.
13oct1996
IS ALL
What we need is a fork, is all.
Uh-oh.
15oct1996
LOSE [ +HUMAN ] = OBJ CAN’T FOLLOW
You lost me.
*I was lost by you.
These { quiz kids are tough to lose / inner-city kids are easy to lose }.
21oct1996
“THAT”-LESSNESS
What Tom says is he has no bread.
*What I wish is I were a wombat.
*I were a wombat is what I wish.
21oct1996
DIRECT QUOTES, “THAT”-LESSNESS & GAPPING
I told her “I quit” (*and him “Take your job and shove it”).
I told her (that) she should join and him *(that) he should drop out.
Wow!
He told me (that) there was beer in the fridge, & she *(that) there was wine.
She told me something incredible: { ?* “I’m rich” / OK: there are UFOs }.
?She says “I’m ill” more often than “I’m well.”
She said (that) there was beer in the fridge more often than *(that) there was wine.
22oct1996
“THAT”-LESS GERMAN CLAUSES & THE FP
Maria confirms (a “(?)” she gives it):
{ Dass er blöd sei / Er sei blöd }, habe ich nie gesagt. [Ger. ‘I never said that he was silly.’]
23oct1996
BANANAS, BONKERS, NUTS, SLANG ?= EXPRESSIVES
*Fred went bonkers & Ted { nuts / [1]ballistic }.
Is this [1] expressive?
*I want to hire somebody bananas.
23oct1996
DIRECT QUOTES, EXPRESSIVES & ONE-WORD VERB FRONTING
{ “You’re a ninny” / “Thbthbblfp” } { went / said } Calvin.
These contravene the FPC–we expect them to be totally frozen.
** “You’re a ninny” said Calvin and “I am not” Maria.
* “You’re a ninny” said Calvin later.
*Later, “you’re a ninny” said Calvin.
So: they’ve got to be at extremes!
I wonder when { a Merc was what he drove / what he drove was a Merc }.
I wonder when { what he will say is “I didn’t know” / ? “I didn’t know” is what he’ll say }.
Cool!
23oct1996
EXPRESSIVES & THE FP
*Puttputt cars no longer go.
*Cars & trucks go puttputt and vrmmm, resp.
Gapping is also no way.
23oct1996
GENERALIZED HAROLD KING
He { kən / ʔŋ } go today and I { kən / ʔŋ } go tomorrow.
He { kən / ʔŋ } go today and I { kʰæn / ?kən / ʔŋ } [micropause] tomorrow.
I [n] generally find answers.
>>
?I’ve papers to grade.
23oct1996
DEPREPOSITIONALIZING & TRANSITIVITY
Max worked (?on his thesis) { Friday / Fridays / twice }.
Max walked the boundary { Friday / Fridays / 6 times / my way / that time / 6 hours }.
Max walked along the boundary { ??Friday / ?*mornings / ?6 times / ?6 hours / ?my way / ?this way / ?that time }.
25oct1996
2B0 & BONKERS
Don’t Zap / __ expressives
Zack { was thought / seemed } { crazy / *bananas / *nuts }.
Somebody *(who is) bananas has a hard time getting hired.
Uh-oh: Why [is there]
that drove him { nuts / *bananas }.
3nov1996
GESTURES & GAPPING1+2
There are 2 kinds of Gapping–with & without pauses.
Gapping 1:
I went to LA & she to NY.
Gapping 2:
I went to LA & she … [i.e. pause] to NY.
But if it is possible to gap with gestures then only with a hefty pause:
Bill went [thumbs-up] & Sam { *[thumbs-down] / %[pause] [thumbs-down] }.
4nov1996
FOREST PRIMEVAL & INNERNESS
Not in (any) negatives:
(*not) higgledy-piggledy
bonkers
clickity clack
gestures
OK: “DQ” “that”-less.
8nov1996
-ABLE1 ≠ -ABLE2
-able1
V-able =
1. able to be V-en
2. Nominalizes in “-ity”
-able2
1. Stem + “-able”
miser
comfort
(only Latin?)
2. Nominalization in “-ness.”
9nov1996
THE PRIMEVAL FOREST & LICKETY-SPLIT
__ Billy __ ran __ home (very) rapidly.
__ *(,) Billy *__ ran *__ home (*very) lickedy-split.
–bad w/o comma.
*so lickedy-split that his dick fell off.
How Billy ran home was { rapidly / ?*lickedy-split }.
{ Rapidly / **Lickety-split } it was that Billy ran home.
{ ?Billy didn’t run home / ?*Few students ran home / *Billy seldom ran home } lickety-split.
*Tony went home slowly & Billy lickety-split.
12nov1996
QUOTES & NOMINALIZATIONS, NOUNINESS
{ For him to shout “I’m hungry” / Him shouting loudly “I’m hungry” / His shouting loudly “I’m hungry” / ?His loud shouting that he was hungry / *His loud shouting “I’m hungry” } was scandalous.
**his shout “I’m hungry”
Prediction: “lickety-split” should co-vanish
OK: { him / his } going home frequently lickety-split
??his { frequent going / drive } home { rapidly / lickety-split }
–also crummy.
15nov1996
GRAMMATICALIZATION, THE ROOTS
Only governed rules can be roots.
1. Whiz Deletion is a beginning, because of
hot dog, blackbird
2. Slifting is: cf. “maybe”
3. Equi must be: cf. “will”
4. Clitic Moving must be: cf. [Fr.] “s’en vouloir de”
5. Incorporation: cf. “window”
6. Of -> Ø: cf. “beside.”
17nov1996
IDIOMATIC V & GAPPING
Max went crazy & Tex *(went) blind.
*Tony hit the road & Jan the sack.
Eu levie uma bronca (get told off) e ele ferro (get shit on).
17nov1996
DNP’S & THE PRIMAL OOZE
DNPs (and expressives) are clause-final:
I gave { Jan a big [middle finger] / *a big [m.f.] to Jan }.
But
I paid $20 to Harry.
and
I set fire to the barn.
N.b.
*Fire to the barn was set.
This makes an interesting (false) prediction: there should be no article-less N in subjects. False:
School begins at 12.
or as first parts of objects–which seems true:
I attended college
is OK, but “college” never has anything after it.
Are all article-less N spatial?
to { bed / school / temple }
on edge
No:
in command.
17nov1996
EXPRESSIVES & NOUNINESS
The same (?) expressives that can’t be Gapping residues can’t form derived nominals:
*Tony’s { bonker(s) / banana(s) }ness
*the hotsy-{ totsiness / **totsity } of things.
19nov1996
IN IT/*THERE
This set has 15 elements { in it / *there }.
the chairs { in it / *there }
die Amerikaner { darin / ?in ihr / *dort } = in der Liste [Ger. ‘the Americans { thereon / on it / there }’ = ‘on the list’]
24nov1996
*BOTH OF OUR
Rosalia’s fact:
??the house of both of us
*both of { our / us’s } house
??It’s both of ours.
This is { ?*money of both of you / ?*both of your money }.
OK: both of { you / us }
both of the children’s money.
25nov1996
[ [ N of N’s ]N ]
Rosalia’s shit [?]
[1] *us both’s house
*them all’s friend
Hey! When Q Float happens, the hull dern thang is frozen:
*Them { all / both } I talked to.
{ *Them each / *The boys each } I gave a cookie.
Thus this [1] is explained if [there is] a Possessor Preposing rule!
25nov1996
[ [ N of N ] ‘s ]
That is a friend of { mine / Tom’s / ??Tom }.
Why “mine” here? We would expect “me” or “me’s.” “Mine” is prototypically “my + one/stuff”:
Mine runs.
What general rule puts “mine” here?
This is a { toe / kettle } of { Tom’s / *Tom / mine / **me }.
Tony showed me a poem { by Tom / of Tom*(‘s) / of your*(s) / of the children*(‘s) }.
The sold me { a / the } statue of { Tom / you / the men }.
The statue of { Tom’s / ?you’s / the men’s } { foot / base [?] } was chipped.
26nov1996
Q FLOAT (OR SOMETHING)
*these all
exc. in subjects.
Tom’s conversion of { all of them / ??them all } into nuts
provide { ?all of them to Jake / ?them all to Jake / *Jake with them all / *Jake with all of them / guns to them all / them all with guns }
*Tony & they both & Sue left.
Either they both or Tony alone did it.
talk { to them all about these / to these about them all }
??Either Tom or the boys each will whistle.
give { them all guns / ??Jake them all / ?*Jake them both }
He was sent them both.
26nov1996
EACH FLOAT
I fed the boys a banana each.
I fed the boys each { *a banana / with a different fork }.
*I fed the boys with a different fork each.
I wrote the boys { *each a letter / a letter each / each about a course / each with a different pen / *with a different pen each }.
I fed the bananas each yesterday to a different boy.
I fed the bananas yesterday each to a different boy.
I fed the bananas yesterday to a different boy each.
26nov1996
QUANTIFIEE ASCENSION & MOVEMENT IN NP
Aha:
All the cities -> the cities all / [ Subj ]
some { Queens / *(*the) Bronx / *(*the) Hague } storms
some storms in { all of the cities / all of them / ?them all }
some { **all of the cities / **all of them / ***them all } storms
from { all of the cities / *the cities all / all of them / them all } { past / through / along } { all of them / all of the cities / *the cities all / ?them all / both } to { all of the cities / all of them / *the cities all / them all / them both }
28nov1996
EACH CABOOSING & EACH -> APIECE
The boys { each ate 2 cookies / ??ate each 2 cookies / ate 2 cookies each }.
The boys read { a book / 2 books } each.
The boys each read the book.
*The boys read the book each.
So: caboose “each” only if [there is] a numeral at the caboosable site:
The boys picked { a book (??each) out[1] / *a book out each / ?*one }.
[1] OK with big pause before “out.”
28nov1996
THEM ALL ≠ THE BOYS ALL
Paul tells me that Mark Baltin has observed stuff like:
Where did you tell the boys { *each / *all / *both } that you had put the onions?
How long did you tell the boys { *each / *all / *both } that the concert would last?
But these are, I note, OK with “them all.” What is:
all because of the rain
When did you tell { them / __ } all what to plant.
3dec1996
WH-WORD (IT WAS)
It’s fantastic { why (??it was that) he left / where (it was that) he slept }.
10dec1996
FUNCTION, p. 1
From Heine, Claudi, Hünnemeyer, “Grammaticalization: A Conceptual Framework,” p. 11: “An essential part of this model includes “construal rules” [a]whose function it is to resolve feature contradiction by means of creative language processes on the one hand and metaphor on the other.”
[a] Wazzat?!
(1) It is their[c] function { to resolve[b] / *resolving } feature contradiction.
The subject of this verb [b] is the possessor [c]:
My function is to shave myself.
(1) ?= [2]
(2) Their function is { to resolve / ?resolving } feature contradiction.
(2) ?= [3]
(3) { ?To resolve / Resolving } feature contradiction is their function.
Which is deepest? Not (1). N.b.
It was [ their function to dig holes ][d], which it now is not (*their function[e]).
So this [d] is a constituent? Or is there stuff deleted here [e]?
Aha! This (1) argues that there has been Extraposition!
What the hell is “to function”?
Tony functions as { a doorman / *doormen } to wake us up.
10dec1996
FUNCTION, p. 2
?*What he functions as is to fix things.
How he functions is to V.
Aha! So here is a wild N:
X’s function = how X functions
This is the only one like this that I have seen.
14dec1996
RIGHT WHERE
A. Free locative relatives:
I put the milk (right) where { the oil was / you put oil }.
B. Conjunctive Q:
I know { right / *down } where you live.
*C. Disjunctive Q:
I wonder (*right) where you live.
(thus information-seeking Qs)
I failed to discover (*right) where you live.
D. Reference “where”s (OK?)
{ Right / Down } WHERE will be fine?
E. Exclamatory Qs:
(Right) where did they build it?
F. “whatever”s
(Right) behind whatever you park, I’ll start to [?-tpu]
This [B-E] reminds me of Fatties.
But no:
We discovered (*far) behind what tree he had parked.