Contextually categorised adjective as predicate in Mandarin

Abstract

This paper revisits a well-known puzzle that adjectives in Mandarin generally require overt degree morphology to extend a positive interpretation. Based on the framework of Borer's Contextual Categorisation, I argue that this is because most Mandarin adjectives are category-less roots which need to merge in a position required to be A-equivalent by a functional node within the extended projections of AP. When degree morphemes are unavailable, roots can rely upon higher nodes in the extended projection line of AP as the head of CP. The analysis predicts that a language needs degree morphology for adjective predicates only when it has a large collection of category-less roots but no adjective markers, which rules English and Japanese out. Two observations support the root-categorisation assumption. One is the adjectival use of some words which are more typically interpreted as nouns. It's expected because roots naturally fit into positions of any kind. The other one is the lack of obligatory degree morphemes when adjectives are used as prenominal modifiers, since the modification marker de is an equally qualified categoriser for roots. The proposal indicates that Mandarin is not particularly special in the predicate domain, but just influenced by settings of universal modules.