More on (the lack of) reconstruction in tough-constructions
Ethan Poole, Stefan Keine, Jon Ander Mendia
August 2022 

This squib presents three new arguments that the matrix subject in English tough- constructions cannot reconstruct into the embedded gap. The first two arguments reexamine data in the literature purported to show such reconstruction. Upon closer scrutiny, we argue that these data in fact involve short reconstruction below a modal or generic operator in the matrix clause, and not genuine long reconstruction into the embedded gap. The third argument is that property positions, which independently require reconstruction, are unable to host tough-gaps. This ban on long reconstruction in English tough-constructions follows without further ado on a base-generation analysis.

Format:	[ pdf ]
Reference:	lingbuzz/003702 (please use that when you cite this article)
Published in:	Linguistic Inquiry, to appear
keywords:	tough-constructions, reconstruction, genericity, english
previous versions:	v1 [October 2017]
Downloaded:	1076 times

 

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