Form and Function Mapping in English Syntax: A Construction Grammar Perspective

This book presents a construction-based approach to understanding English syntactic constructions that challenge traditional form-function relationships, exploring complex linguistic phenomena that have posed empirical and analytical puzzles in grammatical research. The volume establishes theoretical foundations before examining how unusual mapping relations between form and function manifest in complex English constructions. Drawing exclusively on attested data, the book investigates constructions with unpredictable form-meaning relationships, developing an innovative framework that enables broader predictions about specific phenomena and related grammatical structures. The approach advances understanding of English grammar while maintaining methodological rigor through emphasis on empirical evidence. The book offers a mathematically robust grammar from a construction-based perspective while minimizing formal representations to ensure accessibility across theoretical frameworks. It provides fresh insights into form-meaning mismatches across diverse complex grammatical phenomena. The author strikes an optimal balance between data and theory, grounding analyses in authentic language use to ensure theoretical contributions are empirically sound and practically applicable. Examples illuminate broader insights into complex form-function mappings in English, paving the way for future research in construction grammar and syntactic theory. This book will interest students and scholars in linguistics, syntax, construction grammar, and theoretical linguistics.