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Spanish prepositions and silent PLACE
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In: Glossa: a journal of general linguistics; Vol 5, No 1 (2020); 123 ; 2397-1835 (2020)
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Abstract:
In this work I investigate the syntax and interpretation of two groups of spatial prepositions in Spanish: “small” Ps (e.g. bajo ‘under’) and “big” Ps (e.g. debajo ‘DE.under’). I show that small versus big Ps display a series of asymmetries, such as the (in)ability to take bare nominals and the (un)availability of coordination and adverb intervention. I propose that these contrasts can be derived under the hypothesis that small Ps select a single nominal complement, whereas big Ps select a more complex Possessor-Possessum structure, where the nominal occupies a specifier position, acting as the possessor of a silent PLACE element. Furthermore, I argue that unifying big Ps (but crucially not small Ps) with possessive structures accounts for the delimited versus non-delimited interpretation of these Ps.
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Keyword:
possession; prepositions; Romance languages; silent PLACE; Spanish; Syntax
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URL: https://www.glossa-journal.org/jms/article/view/1269 https://doi.org/10.5334/gjgl.1269
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