Gã complement-taking verbs

Allotey's Gã verbs that embed clauses are Verb entries whose frames are the clause frames of Fragments/Ga/Clause and whose ni-frame reading carries the control relation. Several verbs alternate between frames: kai 'remember' takes the controlled ni-clause (ex 43) or a finite akɛ-clause (ex 89a), kɛɛ 'say' takes akɛ (exx 47–49) or an object-controlled ni-clause (ex 117b). Complementizer selection is the paper's first non-finiteness diagnostic (§5.5.1, exx 104–108); the selection relation itself is Verb.Takes over Ga.complementizers.

Implementation notes

An implication signature in Karttunen's sense (Verb.implicative) is recorded where it is textbook; the paper uses implicativity for the contrast of ex 89, where the irrealis marker is absent exactly under the implicatives, but does not classify the verbs itself. Vendler class stays unset, the convention for clause-embedding verbs. Identifiers are ASCII (see Fragments/Ga/Clause); the IPA orthography is in form.

References

• [All21]
• [Kar71a]
• [WL23]
• [Wur24]

def Ga.niReading (c : ControlType) (size : Option Clause.Size := none) : Verb.Reading

The reading of the controlled ni-frame under control relation c carries the complement's sort in the classification of [WL23] where [Wur24] classes the verb.

Equations

• Ga.niReading c size = { frame := Ga.niFrame, control := some c, size := size }

def Ga.akeReading : Verb.Reading

The reading of a finite akɛ-frame is a proposition.

Equations

• Ga.akeReading = { frame := Ga.akeFrame, size := some Clause.Size.proposition }

Subject control

def Ga.tao : Verb

tao 'want' is a subject-control verb whose ni is optionally overt (ex 34: Mi-i tao (ni) ma na bo 'I want to see you'), and its embedded 1SG is the irrealis portmanteau má (exx 88, 100).

Equations

• Ga.tao = { valency := Verb.Valency.ofFrame Ga.niFrame, readings := [Ga.niReading ControlType.subjectControl (some Clause.Size.situation)], morphs := [Morphology.Morph.root "tao"] }

def Ga.sumo : Verb

sumɔ 'like' is a subject-control verb with no complementizer under negation (ex 3a: Dida sumɔ-ɔɔ e-na bo 'Father is reluctant to see you') and with ni in the future (ex 92), and its embedded pronoun cannot be obviative.

Equations

• Ga.sumo = { valency := Verb.Valency.ofFrame Ga.niFrame, readings := [Ga.niReading ControlType.subjectControl], morphs := [Morphology.Morph.root "sumɔ"] }

def Ga.hiekano : Verb

hiɛ-kã-nɔ 'hope' (lit. 'face-place-upon') is a subject-control verb whose ni is obligatory (ex 35: Mi hiɛ-kã-nɔ ni ma ya skul gbi ko 'I hope to go to school one day').

Equations

• Ga.hiekano = { valency := Verb.Valency.ofFrame Ga.niFrame, readings := [Ga.niReading ControlType.subjectControl], morphs := [Morphology.Morph.root "hiɛ-kã-nɔ"] }

def Ga.hiekpano : Verb

hiɛ-kpa-nɔ 'forget' (lit. 'face-stop-upon') is a subject-control verb whose ni is obligatory (exx 37–38: O hiɛ-kpa-nɔ ni o kɔ aspaatere lɛ 'You forgot to pick up the shoe'). It is a negative implicative by the textbook classification, forget to entailing the complement unrealized, and its ni-clause duly carries the irrealis marker (exx 102–103).

Equations

• One or more equations did not get rendered due to their size.

def Ga.miamihie : Verb

mia-mi-hiɛ 'try' (lit. 'squeeze-my-face') is a subject-control verb whose ni is obligatory (exx 36, 60a: 'I tried to close the door').

Equations

• Ga.miamihie = { valency := Verb.Valency.ofFrame Ga.niFrame, readings := [Ga.niReading ControlType.subjectControl (some Clause.Size.event)], morphs := [Morphology.Morph.root "mia-mi-hiɛ"] }

def Ga.kai : Verb

kai 'remember' is a positive implicative with subject control in the ni-frame (exx 42–43: Mi kai ni ma he wolo 'I remembered to buy a book'). It alternates into a finite akɛ-frame 'remember that', whose realis past complement excludes the irrealis marker (ex 89a); under matrix negation the ni-frame keeps it (ex 117a).

Equations

• One or more equations did not get rendered due to their size.

def Ga.nye : Verb

nyɛ 'manage' is a positive implicative with subject control, whose ni is optionally overt (ex 39: 'The children managed to buy a home'). It is also attested with a bare realis past complement that excludes the irrealis marker (ex 89b), a frame outside the three-way clause typology.

Equations

• One or more equations did not get rendered due to their size.

def Ga.kpleno : Verb

kplɛnɔ 'agree' is a subject-control verb whose ni-frame requires the irrealis marker (exx 52, 89c, 109, 122a). It alternates into akɛ with a subjunctive complement, 'agree that' (ex 105: Osa kplɛnɔ ni/akɛ Taki á-tsɛ́ Momo).

Equations

• Ga.kpleno = { valency := Verb.Valency.of [(Ga.niFrame, [0, 1]), (Ga.akeFrame, [0, 1])], readings := [Ga.niReading ControlType.subjectControl], morphs := [Morphology.Morph.root "kplɛnɔ"] }

def Ga.kpang : Verb

kpaŋ 'plan, decide' is a subject-control verb whose complement only ni introduces (ex 106), with the irrealis marker obligatory (ex 89d).

Equations

• Ga.kpang = { valency := Verb.Valency.ofFrame Ga.niFrame, readings := [Ga.niReading ControlType.subjectControl (some Clause.Size.situation)], morphs := [Morphology.Morph.root "kpaŋ"] }

def Ga.kpagbe : Verb

kpã-gbɛ 'expect' is a subject-control verb (ex 53: Ajele kpã-gbɛ ni e-ye jweremɔ lɛ 'Ajele expects to win the prize'), infelicitous when Ajele does not self-ascribe winning, which is the de se diagnostic.

Equations

• Ga.kpagbe = { valency := Verb.Valency.ofFrame Ga.niFrame, readings := [Ga.niReading ControlType.subjectControl (some Clause.Size.situation)], morphs := [Morphology.Morph.root "kpã-gbɛ"] }

def Ga.dweng : Verb

dwɛŋ 'think' takes a finite complement with a low-tone, freely referring subject (exx 110–111: 'Aku thought s/he bought the book', under akɛ or a low-tone ni), and a controlled ni-clause with the high-tone anaphoric subject (ex 112: 'Aku thought to buy a book').

Equations

• One or more equations did not get rendered due to their size.

Object control

def Ga.wa : Verb

wa 'help' is an object-control verb (exx 44, 54: Mi wa Ama ni e-ya skul 'I helped Ama to go to school'). Whether help is implicative has been contested since [Kar71a], so it is left unclassified.

Equations

• Ga.wa = { valency := Verb.Valency.ofFrame Ga.niFrame, readings := [Ga.niReading ControlType.objectControl], morphs := [Morphology.Morph.root "wa"] }

def Ga.kenya : Verb

kenya 'urge, encourage' is an object-control verb (exx 55, 60b).

Equations

• Ga.kenya = { valency := Verb.Valency.ofFrame Ga.niFrame, readings := [Ga.niReading ControlType.objectControl], morphs := [Morphology.Morph.root "kenya"] }

def Ga.dai : Verb

dai 'force' is an object-control verb (ex 56: 'I forced Kofi to go to school'), and affirmed it implies its complement, as force does ([Kar71a]).

Equations

• One or more equations did not get rendered due to their size.

def Ga.laka : Verb

laka 'persuade, coax, deceive', its sense depending on context (fn 4), is an object-control verb (exx 57–58).

Equations

• Ga.laka = { valency := Verb.Valency.ofFrame Ga.niFrame, readings := [Ga.niReading ControlType.objectControl], morphs := [Morphology.Morph.root "laka"] }

def Ga.bi : Verb

bi 'ask' is an object-control verb (ex 59: 'I asked Ayele to tell me a story').

Equations

• Ga.bi = { valency := Verb.Valency.ofFrame Ga.niFrame, readings := [Ga.niReading ControlType.objectControl], morphs := [Morphology.Morph.root "bi"] }

def Ga.kee : Verb

kɛɛ 'say, tell' is the paper's utterance verb, taking a finite akɛ-clause (exx 47–49: Jojo kɛɛ akɛ … 'Jojo said that …'), and an object-control verb in the ni-frame, 'tell someone to' (ex 117b: John é-kee-ee Mary ni é he noko-noko 'John didn't tell Mary to buy anything').

Equations

• One or more equations did not get rendered due to their size.

Finite complements only

def Ga.le : Verb

le 'know' takes a finite kɛji-clause for if/whether complements (exx 104, 108: 'know if they will be coming', 'know whether you or he bought the book').

Equations

• One or more equations did not get rendered due to their size.

def Ga.verbs : List Verb

The clause-embedding verbs attested in the paper's examples.

Equations

• Ga.verbs = [Ga.tao, Ga.sumo, Ga.hiekano, Ga.hiekpano, Ga.miamihie, Ga.kai, Ga.nye, Ga.kpleno, Ga.kpang, Ga.kpagbe, Ga.dweng, Ga.wa, Ga.kenya, Ga.dai, Ga.laka, Ga.bi, Ga.kee, Ga.le]