ENGLISH RELATIVE CLAUSE CONSTRUCTIONS

This paper sketches a grammar of English relative clause constructions (including infinitival and reduced relatives) based on the notions of construction type and type constraints. Generalizations about depende ncy relations and clausal functions are factored into distinct dimensi ons contributing constraints to specific construction types in a multi ple inheritance type hierarchy. The grammar presented here provides an account of extraction, pied piping and relative clause 'stacking' wit hout appeal to transformational operations, transderivational competit ion, or invisible ('empty') categories of any kind.