ADJECTIVES IN MODERN GREEK - AN INSTANCE OF PREDICATION, OR AN OLD ISSUE REVISITED

In the present article the problem of the position of the adjectives i n the noun phrase in Modern Greek is addressed. Rather than starting f rom their alleged 'asymmetrical' distribution, according to which post nominal adjectives are only allowed in indefinite DPs, I concentrate o n the possible interpretations that the adjective can have relative to the noun. The differences between prenominal and apparently postnomin al adjectives in indefinite DPs suggest a predicative reading of the l atter. This semantic account motivates a corresponding syntactic one, according to which the noun moving upwards to a head DEF, formally dis tinct from D, enters a predicative relationship with the AP generated uniquely prenominally. Such a movement is precluded in definite DPs, b ecause the DEF position is occupied by the definite article. In this w ay, a number of differences observed between definite and indefinite N Ps, as far as 'postnominal' adjectives are concerned, are seen as cons equences of their predicative nature and the way this interacts with t he definiteness/indefiniteness of what serves as their subject.