Abstract
Adults have a collective tendency to choose certain adjective orderings in nominals with multiple adjectives. For example, English-speaking adults prefer the order big blue box over blue big box; they are uncomfortable with the latter ordering, yet they are unable to articulate why. Scontras, Degen & Goodman (2017) showed that subjectivity is a robust predictor of adjective ordering preferences in English. That is, less subjective adjectives are preferred closer to the noun. In the example big blue box, big is more subjective than blue, so it is preferred farther from the noun. This paper investigates adjective ordering preferences in Arabic, a language with post-nominal adjectives (i.e., a language where adjectives occur after the noun they modify). We have found that native speakers of Arabic have adjective ordering preferences, and, like English, these preferences are predicted by subjectivity. In addition to establishing the preference baseline in monolingually-raised Arabic speakers, we also ask what happens to ordering preferences in heritage speakers: bilinguals who shifted their language dominance from Arabic to English early in childhood.
Highlights
Adjective ordering preferences have received a lot of attention from the linguistics community
∗Authors: Zeinab Kachakeche, University of California, Irvine & Gregory Scontras, University of California, Irvine (g.scontras@uci.edu) structured as follows: We provide background on subjectivity-based adjective ordering preferences in English, the relevant background on the structure of adjectival modification in Arabic
We present the results of two experiments: the first measuring ordering preferences in native speakers of Arabic, and the second measuring adjective subjectivity in these speakers; comparing the results of the two experiments, we determine the predictive power of subjectivity in Arabic ordering preferences
Summary
Adjective ordering preferences have received a lot of attention from the linguistics community. The multi-adjective strings tested featured conjunctions of adjectives (e.g., blue and big box), which could be the reason for obtaining these results Indonesian, another post-nominal language, was shown to have adjective ordering preferences (Martin 1969). Adjective ordering preferences have been studied for a while and most of the research in this field arrives at the same finding: in multi-adjective strings, some adjectives are preferred closer to the modified noun than other adjectives. These findings are not limited to English, but have proven to exist cross-linguistically. COLOR adjectives are closer to the noun than SIZE adjectives, for example
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
