Research Article

Issues in the grammar of Turkish comparatives

Volume: 34 Number: 1 June 20, 2023
TR EN

Issues in the grammar of Turkish comparatives

Abstract

The paper investigates several issues in the syntax/semantics of comparison constructions in Turkish. We first show that although comparison constructions use nominalized constituents in marking the standard of comparison, they involve rich clausal structure under this nominalization. Second, we demonstrate that the interpretation of comparison constructions is constrained by syntactic structure, differing from languages that primarily thrive on contextual cues. We also address the grammatical nature of comparative standards, evaluating the options of a phrasal and a clausal comparative head. We provide evidence against a phrasal head, concluding that Turkish comparatives are clausal.

Keywords

Thanks

I would like to thank an anonymous DAD reviewer for their invaluable comments and criticisms, which improved the paper a lot. I would like to thank Carla Umbach, Stephanie Solt, Selçuk İşsever, and Murat Özgen for discussion. I am grateful to Asiye Tuba Özge for discussion and support.

References

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Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

Linguistics , Linguistic Structures (Incl. Phonology, Morphology and Syntax)

Journal Section

Research Article

Publication Date

June 20, 2023

Submission Date

October 6, 2022

Acceptance Date

May 17, 2023

Published in Issue

Year 2023 Volume: 34 Number: 1

APA
Özge, U. (2023). Issues in the grammar of Turkish comparatives. Dilbilim Araştırmaları Dergisi, 34(1), 57-79. https://doi.org/10.18492/dad.1185344