WHAT'S A BUNCH? INTEGRATING AND APPLYING SYNTACTIC, SEMANTIC, AND SOCIOLINGUISTIC ANALYSES TO EXPLAIN THE PARTITIVE CONSTRUCTION IN ENGLISH

This dissertation explains the structure, meanings, and uses of the partitive construction in English. Partitive constructions are phrases such as bunch of, herd of, gallon of, or boatload of. Partitives premodify and specify nouns and noun phrases. Partitives are shown to be of two syntactic classes: nominal and quantifier. The syntactic structure of each class of partitives is analyzed and illustrated in some detail. Next, the lexical semantic meanings of partitives are discussed. Partitive meanings are shown to be systematically interrelated and categorizable according to a limited number of dimensions. Third, a subset of the English nominal partitives is shown to be a nominal classifier system--a language-specific instance of a language universal feature. Fourth, results are presented from a study of partitive acquisition in five English-speaking children. The database used in the present study consists of transcripts of extensive audiotaping of these five preschool children and their caregivers. These transcripts were accessed and analyzed through the Child Language Data Exchange System (CHILDES). The development of partitive use in children is then considered in light of overall development of classification and categorization during childhood. Results from surveys on adult use and understanding of partitives are presented and analyzed in terms of the pragmatic functions of partitives in English. Finally, the relevance of this dissertation to applied linguistics, English lexicography, and English language teaching and related research is commented on, and suggestions are made for more focused future research on partitives.