On the syntax/semantics interface in peripheral phenomena in English and Japanese

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

The aim of this study was to verify the validity of the generalization about the correlation between formal markedness and functional specialization (abbreviated as "FMFS") proposed by Konno (2005) : If a grammatical form is marked with reference to the grammatical convention of a given language, then the function of that form is more specialized than that of the corresponding unmarked form(s). Investigating the English middle construction and the Japanese adjectival conjugational ending drop construction, the study showed that the two constructions give further credence to the FMFS.