Some notes on the distribution of the quantifier all in Middle English
-
Tomohiro Yanagi
Abstract
Through a study of the Penn-Helsinki Parsed Corpus of Middle English, Second Edition (PPCME2), this paper reveals that the quantifier all in Middle English (ME) exhibits the following distributional properties: it almost never follows noun phrases, regardless of whether they are subjects or objects; ME all cannot precede object pronouns; and with subject pronouns both the “all-pronoun” and the “pronoun-all” orders are observed with approximately the same frequency. The present paper proposes that the grammatical person of subject pronouns and the clause type have an effect on the choice between the “all-pronoun” and the “pronoun-all” orders: e.g. the first/second person subject favors the “pronoun-all” order, whereas a third person pronominal subject tends to follow the quantifier all. The results also show that the distribution by grammatical person is statistically significant.
Abstract
Through a study of the Penn-Helsinki Parsed Corpus of Middle English, Second Edition (PPCME2), this paper reveals that the quantifier all in Middle English (ME) exhibits the following distributional properties: it almost never follows noun phrases, regardless of whether they are subjects or objects; ME all cannot precede object pronouns; and with subject pronouns both the “all-pronoun” and the “pronoun-all” orders are observed with approximately the same frequency. The present paper proposes that the grammatical person of subject pronouns and the clause type have an effect on the choice between the “all-pronoun” and the “pronoun-all” orders: e.g. the first/second person subject favors the “pronoun-all” order, whereas a third person pronominal subject tends to follow the quantifier all. The results also show that the distribution by grammatical person is statistically significant.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- List of abbreviations vii
- Introduction 1
-
Corpus linguistics today and tomorrow
- Can’t see the wood for the trees? 13
- Spelling variation in Middle English manuscripts 31
-
Aspects of language change
- The development of compound numerals in English Biblical translations 49
- The complements of causative make in Late Middle English 59
- The pragmaticalization and intensification of verily , truly and really 75
- Concept-driven semasiology and onomasiology of CLERGY 93
- ANGER and TĒNE in Middle English 109
-
Middle and Modern English case studies
- The subjunctive vs. modal auxiliaries 127
- Some notes on the distribution of the quantifier all in Middle English 141
- Interjections in Middle English 157
- Why and what in Early Modern English drama 177
- Colloquialization and not -contraction in nineteenth-century English 191
-
Wright’s English Dialect Dictionary and thereafter
- The complexity and diversity of the words in Wright’s English Dialect Dictionary 209
- Etymology in the English Dialect Dictionary 225
- Towards an understanding of Joseph Wright’s sources 241
- The importance of being Janus 257
- ... ging uns der ganze alte Dialektbegriff in eine Illusion auf 269
- Index 285
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- List of abbreviations vii
- Introduction 1
-
Corpus linguistics today and tomorrow
- Can’t see the wood for the trees? 13
- Spelling variation in Middle English manuscripts 31
-
Aspects of language change
- The development of compound numerals in English Biblical translations 49
- The complements of causative make in Late Middle English 59
- The pragmaticalization and intensification of verily , truly and really 75
- Concept-driven semasiology and onomasiology of CLERGY 93
- ANGER and TĒNE in Middle English 109
-
Middle and Modern English case studies
- The subjunctive vs. modal auxiliaries 127
- Some notes on the distribution of the quantifier all in Middle English 141
- Interjections in Middle English 157
- Why and what in Early Modern English drama 177
- Colloquialization and not -contraction in nineteenth-century English 191
-
Wright’s English Dialect Dictionary and thereafter
- The complexity and diversity of the words in Wright’s English Dialect Dictionary 209
- Etymology in the English Dialect Dictionary 225
- Towards an understanding of Joseph Wright’s sources 241
- The importance of being Janus 257
- ... ging uns der ganze alte Dialektbegriff in eine Illusion auf 269
- Index 285
