The Syntax of Yes and No

Frontmatter
Contents
Acknowledgements
List of abbreviations
1. Introduction
1.1 Answers are derived by ellipsis
1.2 Answer by particle or verb
1.3 How to answer negative questions
1.4 Some terminological details
1.4.1 Questions, answers, rejoinders
1.4.2 On ungrammatical answers
1.5 On the data
2. The syntax of questions
2.1 The meaning of questions
2.2 Alternative questions and disjunction
2.3 Wh-questions
2.4 Chinese disjunctive yes–no questions
2.5 Yes–no questions in Finnish
2.6 On focus in questions
2.7 Yes–no questions in English
2.8 Negative questions
2.9 Yes–no questions in Thai
2.9.1 Introduction: Final question particles
2.9.2 Questions with Type 1 particles
2.9.3 Questions with Type 2 particles
2.10 Conclusions
3. The syntax of answers
3.1 Introduction: Answers are full sentences
3.2 Identity and ellipsis
3.3 On disconfirming the negative alternative proposition of a negative question
3.4 Alternatives to answer particles
3.5 Verb-echo answers: General
3.6 Verb-echo answers among the languages of the world
3.7 The syntax of verb-echo answers: The significance of inflection
3.8 Pro-drop and VP-ellipsis or big ellipsis?
3.9 Testing for pro-drop: The indefinite subject test
3.10 Another parameter: One verb or a string of verbs?
3.11 A case study: Welsh
3.12 The structure of Finnish answers
3.12.1 Some basic facts. The syntax of clauses in Finnish
3.12.2 The structure of answers to yes–no questions in Finnish
3.12.3 Deriving verb-echo answers in Finnish without remnant movement
3.12.4 Affirmative particles in Finnish
3.13 The structure of answers in Thai
3.13.1 General properties of questions and answers
3.13.2 The derivation of answers in Thai
3.13.3 Questions and answers with Type 2 particles
3.14 Answering questions with coordination
3.15 Conclusions
4. How to answer negative questions
4.1 The two systems for answering negative questions
4.2 The global distribution of the two systems
4.3 The English answering system
4.4 Negation in the polarity-based system
4.5 Swedish: A language without low negation
4.6 Finnish: Another language without low negation
4.7 Thai and the (in-)significance of low negation
4.8 Answering questions with high negation
4.8.1 Positive and negative bias
4.8.2 Tag questions
4.8.3 Positive-bias negative questions
4.9 Chinese negative questions and their answers
4.10 Japanese positive-bias negative questions
4.11 Another type of biased question
4.12 Other accounts of positive-bias questions
4.13 Conclusions and some typological implications
5. Some further issues
5.1 Yes and no as rejoinders expressing agreement or disagreement with statements
5.2 Answering yes–no questions with narrow focus
5.2.1 Some cross-linguistic observations
5.2.2 The derivation of narrow-focus questions and their answers in Finnish
5.2.3 Negative answers to narrow-focus questions
6. Conclusions
References
Descriptive grammars
Index of Subjects and Authors
Index of Languages