The study examines one component of the system of complementation in Palestinian Arabic. It is argued that the complementizer in question has an inherent semantics capable of influencing the meaning of sentences in which it is embedded. Specifically, its presence in a complex sentence communicates modal meanings distinct from those communicated by…

Two papers on linguistic theory are presented. The first examines the relationship between two subsystems of Danish grammar: (1) the morphology and meaning of the two passives (a morphological passive and a periphrastic passive); and (2) the word order rules and meanings attached to indefinite subjects, irrespective of voice. It is claimed that…

This paper proposes that a metaphor of linguistic levels, similar to that used in general linguistic theory, be applied to the study of levels within an essay. The linguistic conception of levels in a piece of writing is not sentence-paragraph-essay (which might be characterized as a rhetorical division) but rather (or in addition to)…

Papers included in this volume include the following: "Prosodic Aspects of Hearing-Impaired Children: A Qualitative and Quantitative Assessment" (Teresa Y. C. Ching); "The Role of Linear Order in the Acquisition of Quantifier Scope in Chinese" (Thomas H. T. Lee); "Some Neglected Syntactic Phenomena in Near-standard…

A 2-year project to develop a dictionary of modern Nepali is described. The Nepali-English dictionary was designed to include high-frequency vocabulary and to treat entries thoroughly, including associated collocations, semantic and/or grammatical restrictions, and other information essential to their use in sentences. Contents include 3,642 main…

It is proposed that in the teaching and testing of Chinese as a foreign language (CFL), emphasis should be placed on features that are universal to all languages rather than particular to Chinese. Shared properties of Chinese and other languages, particularly English, are illustrated through examination of three major language components:…

An integrated analysis of the syntax and semantics of serial verb constructions (SVCs) in a group of West African languages is presented. With data from Dagaare and closest relatives, a structural definition for SVCs is developed (two or more lexical verbs that share grammatical categories within a clause), establishing SVCs as complex predicates.…

An investigation of the relative speed with which listeners comprehend and answer subject- and object-questions in English, German, and Dutch is reported. The primary data are the times required to answer pairs of questions such as, "Who is chasing the boy?" and "Who is the boy chasing?" and their counterparts in Dutch and…

A study investigated the hypothesis that, for adult native speakers of English, increasing syntactic complexity would lead to increased salience of phonological properties of words. The study also examined whether syntactic simplicity would lead to a greater salience of semantic properties of words. Subjects were required to name a word presented…

One way to make it possible for students to write intelligible composition in a foreign language is to provide them with a knowledge and understanding of the bilingual dictionary at the beginning of the composition course. A unit on dictionary usage is presented that was designed for use with students in a third-year college Spanish composition…

The book is an attempt to create an appreciation of the complex Lushootseed language, spoken by American Indians in the area between Puget Sound and the Cascade Mountains northward to the Skagit River Valley. The book is divided into two parts: readings about Lushootseed life and a brief description of the Lushootseed language. The readings, taken…

A study examined sentence production errors and syntactic complexity in students' writing in two modes of discourse and at three grade levels. Subjects, average and high developmental students enrolled in seventh, ninth, and eleventh grade classes, each wrote two compositions, one in the descriptive the other in the persuasive mode. Data analysis…

The experimental evidence on the value of a sentence-combining approach to improving reading comprehension is still sparse, but the possibilities seem rich.

A discussion of two aspects of Hindi phonology, schwa deletion and vowel nasalization, compares two theories concerning the processes behind these phenomena. A non-linear analysis is compared with a more traditional, linear notation. Results indicate that in most cases, both sets of rules work equally well but in some, the linear explanation is…

Results of a study of the differences between standard French and Acadian French as spoken by Nova Scotian children are presented. The study had as subjects 24 school children, two each from first, second, and third grades from each of four geographic regions. The language corpus consisted of elicited descriptions of pictures and spontaneous…