Abstract
A number of intransitive verbs, particularly those indicating movement or change of state and those that have a presentational type meaning, are associated with a cluster of properties across the Romance languages, the most important of which are: 1. Selection of a ‘be’ perfect auxiliary, together with subject-participle agreement: modern Italian Sono arrivate delle lettere ‘Some letters arrived’, Old Spanish Salidos son de Valencia ‘They have left Valencia’ (Cid 1821). 2. Compatibility with absolute past participle constructions: Spanish Llegados los ninos… ‘Once the children had arrived…’, Italian Ritornati i Borboni sul trono di Napoli… ‘With the Bourbons returned to the Naples throne…’ 3. Compatibility with overt expletives in subject position: French Il est paru une nouvelle edition ‘A new edition has just come out’. 4. Compatibility with partitive cliticization from the subject: Italian Ne occorreranno molti di piu ‘Many more of them will be needed’, Catalan Va morir-ne un en accident ‘One of them died in an accident’. 5. Compatibility with postverbal bare subjects (in those languages that allow them): Spanish Entraban hormigas en la tienda ‘Ants were getting into the tent’, Italian Usciva fumo dal motore ‘Smoke was coming from the engine’.
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.
