Syntax Auxiliary verbs LING 400 Winter 2010 Overview

Syntax: Auxiliary verbs LING 400 Winter 2010

Overview n VP substitution (review) n Auxiliary verbs – Properties – Auxiliary verbs and movement – Subject NP For further learning about syntax, LING 461 please turn off your cell phone

Verb Phrases and substitution One possibility for VP: do so Robin plays the violin, and Lee does so as well. Robin plays the violin, and so does Lee. do so substitutes for entire VP

Sentences with have n Another VP pro-form: so – Robin has studied the violin. So has Lee. does this tell us about have? Ø have must not be part of the VP § What is have (and words like it)? n What

VP substitution possibilities do so Joyce has studied ASL. Julia has done so as well. so Joyce has studied ASL. So has Julia. as Joyce has studied ASL, as has Julia.

More pre-VP possibilities is Joyce is studying ASL, and so is Julia. will Joyce will study ASL, and so will Julia. should Joyce should study ASL, and so should Julia.

AUX my slides S NP (AUX) VP Contemporary Linguistics IP NP I’ I’ I VP AUX Modal have be I, ±Pst Modal will, would, can, could, may, might, must, should The dog might bite that man.

My slides

Contemporary Linguistics Why V’: never [drink alcohol and drive a car]

Properties of AUX Modals Joyce will study. have: + past participle Joyce has studied. be: + present participle/gerund Joyce is studying.

Rightmost AUX governs V form n Joyce AUX[should] VP[study ASL]. n Joyce AUX[should have] VP[studied ASL]. n Joyce AUX[should have been] VP[studying ASL].

Modal vs. non-modal AUX BE + -ing form (‘gerund’): ‘progressive’ construction is going: present progressive was going: past progressive will be going: future progressive HAVE + -ed form (‘past participle’): ‘perfect’ construction has gone: present perfect had gone: past perfect will have gone: future perfect

Modal vs. non-modal AUX Non-modals: 3 sg, infinitive, participle forms has, to have, having, had is, to be, being, been Modals like must do not have infinitival forms *to must do not inflect for 3 sg musts do not have participle forms *musting, *musted

Negation follows AUX positive negative free form: not bound form: n’t [ənt] has studied is studying will study has not studied is not studying will not study hasn’t studied isn’t studying won’t study

Aux + n’t n Some special negative forms – – – haven’t, hasn’t, hadn’t isn’t, aren’t (> ain’t), *amn’t, wasn’t, weren’t *willn’t (won’t) wouldn’t can’t couldn’t *mayn’t (may not) mightn’t mustn’t shouldn’t *shalln’t (shant, shall not)

Aux and yes/no questions Aux moves to the beginning of Q Joyce will study ASL. Will Joyce study ASL? *Will study Joyce ASL? Only leftmost Aux moves Joyce has been studying ASL. Has Joyce been studying ASL? *Has been Joyce studying ASL?

Aux movement

Contemporary Linguistics Inversion: Move I to C (see p. 175)

Properties of sentences with no Aux S NP (Aux) VP n “Do-support” (= Do Insertion, CL p. 177) n – In negative Ss and questions, if no Aux, then Aux do.

do-support Declarative sentence – Julia studies. Ø Negative – Julia doesn’t study. – *Julia studies not. *Julia studiesn’t. *Julia not n studies. Yes/no question – Does Julia study? – *Studies Julia? – (Julia studies? !) Ø Emphatic – Julia does study. Ø AUX, if any, inflects for tense.

do can be Aux or V n Declarative – Stephen did the homework. n Negative – Stephen didn’t do the homework. n Yes/no Q – Did Stephen do the homework? n Emphatic – Stephen did do the homework.

3 types of do n Main verb – Stephen did the homework. n AUX (< Do support) – Did Stephen do the homework? n Pro-form – Stephen finished the homework. Joyce did so as well.

be and have can be Aux or V n be – V: John is quiet. – AUX + V: John is being quiet. n have – V: Robin has doubts. – Aux + V: Robin has had doubts.

Refining AUX movement rule n “In questions, the leftmost constituent of Aux is moved to the beginning of the sentence. ” – Joyce has been studying ASL. – Has Joyce been studying ASL?

Sentences with more than one AUX n The person who is studying ASL has left the room. n Which Aux? n Not leftmost 1 2 Aux of sentence – *Is the person who studying ASL has left the room? n Has the person who is studying ASL left the room?

Subject NP n “In questions, the leftmost constituent of the highest AUX is moved to the beginning of the sentence. ” n ‘highest AUX’ – immediately dominated by root node Ø Movement delimits subject NP constituent

Syntax summary Sentences are not just strings of words n Structural ambiguity: structure determines meaning n Tests for constituency n – Coordination test: only constituents of same category can be conjoined – Substitution test: pro-forms can substitute for constituents – Movement test: only constituents can be moved n Some constituents identified: VP, Aux, Subject NP

Question In some language you know other than English, how are negative sentences formed? Where is the negative morpheme placed with respect to the verb?