03743nam 2200697 a 450 991078612340332120230801230358.03-11-027952-510.1515/9783110279528(CKB)2670000000337951(EBL)893188(OCoLC)829462264(SSID)ssj0000906906(PQKBManifestationID)11504962(PQKBTitleCode)TC0000906906(PQKBWorkID)10856285(PQKB)10522285(MiAaPQ)EBC893188(DE-B1597)175411(OCoLC)840441302(DE-B1597)9783110279528(Au-PeEL)EBL893188(CaPaEBR)ebr10661454(EXLCZ)99267000000033795120130307d2012 uy 0engur||#||||||||txtccrThe English it-cleft[electronic resource] a constructional account and a diachronic investigation /by Amanda L. PattenBerlin ;Boston De Gruyter Mouton20121 online resource (279 p.)Topics in English linguistics,1434-3452 ;79Topics in English Linguistics [TiEL] ;79Description based upon print version of record.3-11-027780-8 Includes bibliographical references (p. [249]-265) and index.Front matter --Acknowledgements --Contents --Chapter 1. Introduction and background --Chapter 2. A model of language structure and language change --Chapter 3. Specificational copular constructions --Chapter 4. It-clefts as specificational copular sentences --Chapter 5. Other varieties of it-cleft --Chapter 6. The it-cleft and earlier periods of English --Chapter 7. The it-cleft's development over time --Chapter 8. The it-cleft and constructional change --Chapter 9. Conclusions --Corpora and data sources --References --IndexThis book examines the structure and function of the English it-cleft configuration from within the framework of construction grammar. It defends a straightforward extraposition-from-NP analysis (on which the cleft clause is a restrictive relative, modifying the initial it) and claims that all types of it-cleft involve nominal predication. Support for this analysis comes from three main areas: (a) the central role of definiteness in the creation of specificational meaning, (b) the existence and makeup of predicational (and proverbial) it-clefts, and (c) the early, historical it-cleft data. In addition, the book contains a sizeable diachronic component, drawing data from the Penn Parsed Corpora of Historical English and from the International Corpus of English - Great Britain. This investigation informs and advances what is an otherwise simple account of the English it-cleft, explaining how and why the configuration has developed an assortment of peculiar, construction-specific properties over time.Topics in English linguistics ;79.It (The English word)English languageWord orderEnglish languageSyntaxConstruction Grammar.English Linguistics.Historical Linguistics.It-Cleft.Specificational Sentences.It (The English word)English languageWord order.English languageSyntax.415Patten Amanda L1559900MiAaPQMiAaPQMiAaPQBOOK9910786123403321The English it-cleft3825459UNINA