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The construction of meaning in relative clauses

Indeterminacy and constraints
  • Kiki Nikiforidou
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Aspects of Meaning Construction
This chapter is in the book Aspects of Meaning Construction

Abstract

Greek relative clauses introduced by pu have been described as structurally determined constructions in which interpretation is precisely guided by the syntax of the clause. In contrast to this oversimplified view, I show that pu relatives regularly underspecify the intended interpretation, incorporating instead a great deal of indeterminacy (in the sense of Langacker) in the way(s) the meaning of the head is integrated with the content of the relative clause. The factors which influence the construction of meaning include the lexical (in frame semantic terms) and constructional properties of the head and the relative clause predicate, but extend further to completely pragmatic and context-specific motivations; in the latter case, the head and the overt constituents in the relative clause function simply as clues for the final interpretation. The inherent indeterminacy of the relative construction can be captured in terms of conceptual integration theory, where the blended space may be shown to contain more structure than that in the input spaces and/or the alternate construals of a sentence may yield more than one blend. Finally I suggest that, while indeterminate, the interpretation of pu relatives is sensitive to constraints deriving from the prototypical meaning of restrictive relatives and from conceptual structure as such.

Abstract

Greek relative clauses introduced by pu have been described as structurally determined constructions in which interpretation is precisely guided by the syntax of the clause. In contrast to this oversimplified view, I show that pu relatives regularly underspecify the intended interpretation, incorporating instead a great deal of indeterminacy (in the sense of Langacker) in the way(s) the meaning of the head is integrated with the content of the relative clause. The factors which influence the construction of meaning include the lexical (in frame semantic terms) and constructional properties of the head and the relative clause predicate, but extend further to completely pragmatic and context-specific motivations; in the latter case, the head and the overt constituents in the relative clause function simply as clues for the final interpretation. The inherent indeterminacy of the relative construction can be captured in terms of conceptual integration theory, where the blended space may be shown to contain more structure than that in the input spaces and/or the alternate construals of a sentence may yield more than one blend. Finally I suggest that, while indeterminate, the interpretation of pu relatives is sensitive to constraints deriving from the prototypical meaning of restrictive relatives and from conceptual structure as such.

Chapters in this book

  1. Prelim pages i
  2. Table of contents v
  3. List of contributors ix
  4. Introduction. The construction of meaning in language 1
  5. Part I: Metonymy and metaphor
  6. Experiential tests of figurative meaning construction 19
  7. High-level metaphor and metonymy in meaning construction 33
  8. The role of metonymy in meaning construction at discourse level 51
  9. Chained metonymies in lexicon and grammar 77
  10. Arguing the case against coercion 99
  11. When Zidane is not simply Zidane, and Bill Gates is not just Bill Gates 125
  12. Collocational overlap can guide metaphor interpretation 143
  13. Part II: Mental spaces and conceptual blending
  14. Constructing the meanings of personal pronouns 171
  15. The construction of meaning in relative clauses 189
  16. Constraints on inferential constructions 207
  17. The construction of vagueness 225
  18. Communication or memory mismatch? 247
  19. Brutal Brits and persuasive Americans 265
  20. Index of authors 283
  21. Index of subjects 285
  22. Index of metonymies and metaphors 289
https://doi.org/10.1075/z.136.13nik

Chapters in this book

  1. Prelim pages i
  2. Table of contents v
  3. List of contributors ix
  4. Introduction. The construction of meaning in language 1
  5. Part I: Metonymy and metaphor
  6. Experiential tests of figurative meaning construction 19
  7. High-level metaphor and metonymy in meaning construction 33
  8. The role of metonymy in meaning construction at discourse level 51
  9. Chained metonymies in lexicon and grammar 77
  10. Arguing the case against coercion 99
  11. When Zidane is not simply Zidane, and Bill Gates is not just Bill Gates 125
  12. Collocational overlap can guide metaphor interpretation 143
  13. Part II: Mental spaces and conceptual blending
  14. Constructing the meanings of personal pronouns 171
  15. The construction of meaning in relative clauses 189
  16. Constraints on inferential constructions 207
  17. The construction of vagueness 225
  18. Communication or memory mismatch? 247
  19. Brutal Brits and persuasive Americans 265
  20. Index of authors 283
  21. Index of subjects 285
  22. Index of metonymies and metaphors 289
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