On the Syntax and Semantics of the English Causative Make

Abstract

This paper is centrally concerned with the syntax and semantics of the English causative make taking an adjective complement (e.g. make the room clean). It is argued that the complement immediately combines with the causative to form a predicate. The resulting complex predicate is a grammatical and semantic unit that is separable at surface for an object. In support of this argument, the paper offers idiomatic expressions (e.g. make sure/certain) and -ing nominals (e.g. the making safe of bombs). It also proposes an analysis of the causative make-plus-adjective (make-A) combination as a lexical construction that denotes the constructional meaning of direct causation. The construction is held in the lexicon as a template with causative-make and is unified with an adjective therein by means of fusion. The proposed model serves as a basis for an analysis of causative make-plus-noun (make-N) combinations (e.g. make Mark Captain) and for a solution to one old problem in the study of causative make-plus-verb (make-V) combinations (e.g. make Eve go).