On pseudo-coordination in Spanish

• Main Author: Ana Bravo
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Septentrio Academic Publishing 2020-05-01
• Series: Borealis: An International Journal of Hispanic Linguistics
• Subjects: coordination; pseudo-coordination; auxiliary verbs; construction; grammaticalization; aspect
• Online Access: http://nopos.eu/index.php/borealis/article/view/5365

Abstract. Pseudo-coordination, that is, sequences of a least two verbs of the form <V1 + and + V2> raise a number of problems that stem from the fact that they share properties with a wide range of different syntactic phenomena. As regards Sp. <V1 + and + V2> schema, in this paper I address the discussion of whether it qualifies as a verbal periphrasis or not. A number of arguments are provided that show that the relation between V1 and V2 is not that of auxiliarization. Likewise, it is argued that its meaning is not aspectual. Instead, a stance is taken in favour of the analysis that argue that it is discourse related. In addition to this, it is shown that Sp. pseudo-coordinatives are subject to a high variation. Namely, V1 verbs may be divided into two big classes: go-class verbs, highly grammaticalized and, take-class verbs, less grammaticalized and with an agentive meaning. In addition to this, va y lit. goes and functions as an adverb, similarly to puede que lit. can that, ‘maybe’.