Studies of copular forms are extremely relevant to issues in philosophy, psychology, and linguistics. Psychologists have recently argued that the most distinctive aspect of human language is its combinatorial nature (e.g., Gentner, 2003; Spelke, 2003). They argue that this linguistic component might be what separates human from animal cognition.…

Although both Chinese and Japanese allow resultative compounds of the form V/cause-V/result, Japanese resultative compounds do not show the semantic ambiguities seen in Chinese compounds. An argument that three factors explain this difference supports the claim that many differences among languages can be accounted for with universal principles…

In Black English (BE), in addition to the motion verb "come," there exists a modal-like "come" which expresses speaker indignation. This "come" is comparable to other modal-like forms, identical to motion verbs, which occur in Black and non-Black varieties of English, and which signal various degrees of disapproval.…

Discusses key points raised in the articles in this special issue of the journal. Suggests progress is being made in using complementary theories of the role of lexical representation, prediction, and crosslinguistic variation to get a full picture of this complex area of lexico-morhposyntactic knowledge. (Author/VWL)

Certain apparently deviant, inverted forms of the French imperative (e.g. "pas touche!" for "ne touche pas!") are analyzed. A number of phonosyntactic explanations that focus on phonological order, rhythm, and intonation are examined. The strength of the imperative intention is also considered. (MSE)

Examines the variable presence/absence of third person plural marking on French verbs in the speech of French immersion students. Considers both linguistic and social factors that condition variation and compares results with those found for native speakers of French. (Author/VWL)