On the Grammatical Properties of the Function Word ‘nikuwae(te)’

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Other Title
  • 〈追加〉を表す機能語「にくわえ（て）」の文法的性質
  • 〈ツイカ〉オ アラワス キノウゴ「ニクワエ（テ）」ノ ブンポウテキ セイシツ

Abstract

ʻNikuwae(te)ʼ is a Japanese compound particle which signifies the addition of similar elements to a given one. This paper aims to identify the following two points through an investigation of the grammatical properties of ʻnikuwae(te)ʼ. Firstly, ʻnikuwae(te)ʼ should be recognized as a grammaticalized function word in modern Japanese. Three specific instances support this claim: (1) the constituent verb ʻkuwaeruʼ loses its original grammatical properties as a verb, (2) ʻnikuwae(te)ʼ maintains morphological stability, and (3) it possesses distinct grammatical properties from expressions created by synonymous verbs such as ʻsoeruʼ, ʻkasaneruʼ and ʻtasuʼ. Secondly, by analyzing the properties of the construction ʻNP1+nikuwae(te)+NP2ʼ, which discussed in previous studies, the following observations can be made. (1) ʻNP1+nikuwae(te)+NP2ʼ cannot be analyzed as a single syntactic constituent, (2) NP1 and NP2 must be interpreted as participating in separate propositions. These properties, along with the requirement for the ʻNP1+nikuwae(te)ʼ phrase to always appear to the left of NP2, indicate that ʻnikuwae(te)ʼ does not syntactically connect nouns, but rather coordinates clauses. Based on the above results, this paper argues that, ʻnikuwae(te)ʼ should be syntactically considered as a clause level coordinating conjunction.

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