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Demonstrative Pronouns (3): Dummy Pronouns
Most demonstrative pronouns point to an object (‘I want this.’) and so agree with the number and gender of what this refers to. Phrases with dummy demonstrative pronouns (DDP) do not specify the gender of the referent but in one way or another do specify the number of the referent. DDPs have the same form…
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Demonstrative Pronouns (2): We don’t always agree.
When a word modifies another word it generally copies some of the grammatical features of that word. For example, French tableFSg ‘table’ is feminine and singular. A word modifying it must also be in its feminine and singular form: laFSgtable ‘the table’, cetteFSgtable ‘this table’. This process is called ‘agreement‘. It’s a huge topic but…
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Demonstrative Pronouns (1): Keep Your Distance
The ability to refer to an object according to its distance from the speaker is a universal feaure of the mIE languages. Demonstrative pronouns (DP) both assert the existence of an object and they indicate proximity of the object to the speaker: this farmhouse (near) or that farmhouse (far). Some languages have DPs that distinguish…
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Personal Pronouns (3): Formal ~ Informal