Previous sections show that the distribution of minimizers in VO and OV is constrained by various synchronic constraints including negation, focus, and existential structures. In addition to these factors, diachronic factors also contribute to the distribution.
Two types of minimizers in VO and OV
Mandarin ‘one’-phrases can be divided into two major types, non-fixed and fixed ‘one’-phrases, based on the relationship between the measure words/classifiers and the NPs associated with them. The two types are distinguished based on whether the UW slot between 一 yī ‘one’ and the NP can be freely occupied by different unit words, including various classifiers and measure words. The fixed type allows only 點 diǎn ‘dot’ in the UW position, whereas the non-fixed type can accommodate different UWS. The sequences of the two types of ‘one’-phrases are shown in (54). Based on the Academia Sinica Ancient Chinese Corpus, the fixed ‘one’-phrases are later developments than the non-fixed ones, and they are both highly productive in Modern Mandarin.
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(54)
a. non-fixed ‘one’-phrase: yī ‘one’-UW-noun
b. fixed ‘one’-phrase: yì ‘one’- 點 diǎn ‘dot’-noun
The distribution of fixed ‘one’-phrases in Modern Mandarin provides more evidence to reveal the tight connection between pragmatic effects and the employment of syntactic constructions.
Non-fixed and fixed ‘one’-phrases have different degrees of sensitivity toward negative polarity. Non-fixed ‘one’-phrases under negation in VO are not exclusively minimizers, as discussed in Section 3. However, when fixed ‘one’-phrases appear under negation in VO, they must be understood as minimizers are shown in (55) and (56). Fixed ‘one’-phrases can designate a dot-shape smallest unit, as in (55), where the shape of a water splash is specified. However, they are frequently used to refer to the smallest quantity of the referents which lack a concrete shape, as in (56). According to the data, the fixed ‘one’-phrases in VO all include their basic three components: the numeral ‘one’, the unit word diǎn ‘dot’, and a noun.
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(55)
沒濺起一點水花 [Chinese Gigaword]
méi__jiàn__qǐ__[yì__diǎn__shuǐhuā]
NEG__splash__up__one__dot__sprinkle
…did not splash a bit.
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(56)
不冒一點風險 [Chinese Gigaword]
bú__mào__[yì__diǎn__fēngxiǎn]
NEG__adventure__one__dot__risk
…does not take any risk.
When Modern Mandarin ‘one’-phrases as minimizers are grouped by the division of fixed and non-fixed ‘one’-phrases, it can be observed that the majority of ‘one’-phrases as minimizers in VO belong to the non-fixed type, as shown in Fig. 4.
In contrast, the proportion of ‘one’-phrases regarding the fixed and non-fixed division in OV with the scalar particle YE or DOU is reversed. The fixed ‘one’-phrases constitute the majority of the tokens of ‘one’-phrases as minimizers in the preverbal object position, as shown in Fig. 5.
The distribution is associated with the difference in terms of the degrees of behaving as a novel construction. Fixed ‘one’-phrases have undergone changes in semantics, morphology, and collocation, so that they have different features from those of numeral phrases. The process of constructionalization, which refers to the process of creating novel constructions (Traugott 2008; Traugott and Trousdale 2013), will be discussed in Section 5.2. The diachronic factors provide further evidence on the relation between pragmatic effects and syntactic construals, which will be discussed in Section 5.3.
Constructional differences of the two types of minimizers
The emphatic nature of minimizers is present in their preferred syntactic construals. In OV, the NUM-UW combinations of the two types of minimizers tend to stay adjacent to the scalar particle in order to increase saliency. Despite the fact that the two types of ‘one’-phrases behave alike in OV, the two categories differ greatly regarding the degree of constructionalization. The NUM-UW combination of non-fixed ‘one’-phrases still maintains its nominal property as a numeral phrase. Since it belongs to the nominal category, it is treated as a grammatical object in OV. For instance, sentence (57) can be paraphrased in VO, as shown in (58) and (59). The non-fixed ‘one’-phrases in (58) and (59) are the grammatical objects of the predicate. This fact shows that the NUM-UW part of non-fixed ‘one’-phrases adheres to the subcategorization of the predicate, so the syntactic and semantic relations to the predicate remain unchanged.
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(57)
台北員工一個也沒裁 [Chinese Gigaword]
táiběi__yuángōng__[yí__ge]__yě__méi__cái
Taipei__employee__one__CLF__FOC__NEG__fire
Not a single employee is fired in Taipei.
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(58)
沒裁一個台北員工
méi__cái__[yí__ge__táiběi__yuángōng]
NEG__fire__one__CLF__Taipei__employee
Not a single employee in Taipei is fired.
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(59)
台北員工沒裁一個
táiběi__yuángōng__méi__cái__[yí__ge]
Taipei__employee__NEG__fire__one__CLF
Not a single employee is fired in Taipei.
In contrast, the NUM-UW combination yì diǎn ‘one dot’ cannot function as the postverbal object in most cases, as reflected in the ungrammaticality of (60) and (61). This suggests that the NUM-UW combination of the fixed ‘one’-phrase is not the object of the predicate.
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(60)
*他不相信一點
*tā__bù__xiāngxìn__[yì__diǎn]
he__NEG__believe__one__dot
Intended reading: He does not believe even a little bit.
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(61)
商場沒察覺一點
*shāngchǎng__méi__chájué__[yì__diǎn]
commercial center__NEG__realize__one__dot
Intended reading: The commercial center did not even realize a little bit.
In OV, it is noteworthy that although the combination yì diǎn ‘one dot’ seems to occupy the grammatical object position in OV, it is not part of the argument structure of the predicate. For instance, the main verbs ‘shrink’ in (62) and ‘regret’ in (63) are intransitive in Mandarin Chinese and therefore do not take an object argument. In these cases, the phrase yì diǎn ‘one dot’ functions as an adverbial modifier of extent or degree for its following verb phrase. What makes the adverbial phrase seem to be a preverbal object is the occurrence of the scalar particles, DOU and YE, which can serve as an indicator of the OV construction. The similarity of the nominal and adverbial yì diǎn indicates their diachronic connection.
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(62)
數量及種類一點也沒縮水 [Chinese Gigaword]
shùliàng__jí__zhǒnglèi__[yì__diǎn]__yě__méi__suōshuǐ
quantity__and__kind__one__dot__FOC__NEG__shrink
The quantity and kinds do not shrink even a little bit.
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(63)
他哥哥一點都不後悔 [Chinese Gigaword]
tā__gēge__[yì__diǎn]__dōu__bú__hòuhuǐ
he__brother__one__dot__FOC__NEG__regret
His brother does not regret even a little bit.
The modifying function of yì diǎn ‘one dot’ can also be observed in the clause where the verb is transitive and its argument structure is fully satisfied. As shown in (64)–(65), the transitive verbs ‘have’ in (64) and ‘cherish’ in (65) have their object immediately following them. Although the phrase yì diǎn ‘one dot’ looks as if it occupies the position of the preverbal object, it is not the argument selected by the verb.
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(64)
對當時的情景一點也沒有印象 [Chinese Gigaword]
duì__dāngshíde__qíngjǐng__[yì__diǎn]__yě__méi__yǒu__yìnxiàng
to__then__scene__one__dot__FOC__NEG__have__impression
(He) does not have even a little bit of memory of the scene of the incident.
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(65)
似乎一點也不珍惜這種成就 [Chinese Gigaword]
sìhū__[yì__diǎn]__yě__bù__zhēnxí__zhè__zhǒng__chéngjiù
seem__one__dot__FOC__NEG_cherish__this__kind__achievement
(He) seems not to cherish even a little bit of this kind of achievement.
Example (64) can be paraphrased with yì diǎn ‘one dot’ as part of a nominal phrase as in (66). In this case, the whole nominal phase in the bracket in (66) should allow the alternation between VO and OV. As shown in (67), the same phrase is allowed in the postverbal position. The contrast between (64) and the pair of (66) and (67) shows that yì diǎn ‘one dot’ in (64) syntactically differs from that in (66) and (67).
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(66)
對當時的情景一點印象也沒有
duì__dāngshíde__qíngjǐng__[yì__diǎn__yìnxiàng]__yě__méi__yǒu
to__then__scene__one__dot__impression__FOC__NEG__have
(He) does not have even a little bit of memory of the scene of the incident.
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(67)
對當時的情景沒有一點印象
duì__dāngshíde__qíngjǐng__méi__yǒu__[yì__diǎn_yìnxiàng]
to__then__scene__NEG__have__one__dot__impression
(He) does not have a little bit of memory of the scene of the incident.
Similarly, the fact that yì diǎn ‘one dot’ is not part of the nominal phrase can be supported by the paraphrase of (65) in (68). The ungrammaticality shows that yì diǎn ‘one dot’ does not belong to the postverbal nominal phrase.
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(68)
*似乎不珍惜一點這種成就
*sìhū__bù__zhēnxí__[yì__diǎn]__zhè__zhǒng__chéngjiù
seem__NEG__cherish__one__dot__this__kind__achievement
(He) seems not to cherish even a little bit of this kind of achievement.
The contrasts in alternations indicate that yì diǎn ‘one dot’ in (64)–(65) actually modifies its following clause. The modifying function of the phrase yì diǎn ‘one dot’ is clear if the clause contains an adjectival predicate. In (69)–(70), what follows the negator is an adjectival predicate, such as ‘romantic’, ‘fresh’, and ‘unfamiliar’. In this case, the phrase yì diǎn ‘one dot’ is undoubtedly not the object even though it seems as though it is in the preverbal object position.
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(69)
這件事他們一點都不浪漫 [Chinese Gigaword]
zhè__jiàn__shì__tāmen__[yì__diǎn]__dōu__bú__làngmàn
this__CLF__thing__they__one__dot__FOC__NEG__romantic
Regarding this matter, they are not romantic at all.
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(70)
所以今天跳起探戈一點也不陌生 [Chinese Gigaword]
suǒyǐ__jīntiān__tiào__qǐ__tàngē__[yì__diǎn]__yě__bú__mòshēng
therefore__today__dance__up__Tango__one__dot__FOC__NEG__unfamiliar
Therefore when he danced Tango today, it was not unfamiliar to him at all.
The discussion of the phrase yì diǎn ‘one dot’ with DOU and YE so far shows that it deviates from the nominal category and instead functions as an adverbial modifier. This development has been shaped by the construction where it occurs. When the phrase yì diǎn ‘one dot’ functions as an adverbial, it collocates with a scalar particle, DOU or YE, and a negator, as shown in (62)–(70). The combination of the NUM-UW phrase, a scalar particle, and a negator is similar to the form of the typical OV construction containing ‘one’-phrases as minimizers, as illustrated in Fig. 6. The presentation of form and meaning pairing is adapted from Croft and Cruse (2004: 258). The NUM-UW combination yì diǎn ‘one dot’ appears precisely in the object position of the OV construction despite the fact that yì diǎn ‘one dot’ may not be the true grammatical object.
Based on Fig. 5, there are more fixed ‘one’-phrases as minimizers in OV than in VO in Modern Mandarin. The tendency is a reflection of the high frequency of fixed ‘one’-phrases in the preverbal object position. When the class expansion occurred in the predicate position of the construction, reanalysis of the construction was subsequently activated. The predicate gradually expanded from transitive verbs to intransitive verbs and even to adjectival predicates. Importantly, class expansion happened only in the cases where the fixed ‘one’-phrases omit the noun, as exemplified in (62) and (63). If the noun remained in the fixed ‘one’-phrases, its salient nominal property greatly reduced the chances of class expansion in the predicate. When the verb position is filled with predicates which do not belong to the category of transitive verbs, the relation between yì diǎn ‘one dot’ and the predicate is reanalyzed as the relation between an adverbial modifier and its modified element. The adverbial-predicate relation emerged partly due to the syntactic and semantic similarities to the adverbial-predicate relation in Mandarin Chinese, wherein the adverbial modifiers generally precede their modified elements. As shown in (71), the adverb 根本 gēnběn ‘simply’ must precede the negator. It is noteworthy that 根本 gēnběn ‘simply’ in (71) and 絲毫 sīháo ‘shred and hair’ in (72) are adverbial NPIs (Hsiao 2002). Unlike fixed ‘one’-phrases as minimizers, they do not require a scalar particle.
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(71)
根本不漂亮
[gēnběn]__bú__piàoliàng
simply__NEG__beautiful
simply not beautiful at all
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(72)
絲毫不在意
[sī__háo]__bú__zàiyì
shred__hair__NEG__care
does not care at all
The adverbial function of yì diǎn ‘one dot’ is absent in Old Chinese and Middle Chinese according to Academia Sinica Ancient Chinese Corpus. It can only be dated back to the period of Early Mandarin Chinese. Notably, the scalar particles DOU and YE must occur in the cases where yì diǎn ‘one dot’ behaves as an adverbial modifier in the majority of cases, as shown in (62)–(65) and (69)–(70). The requirement of the scalar particle for fixed ‘one’-phrases instead of other adverbial NPIs supports the hypothesis that the reanalysis has occurred in the OV construction. As illustrated in (73), the scalar particles are reminiscent of the OV construction. The scalar particle and yì diǎn ‘one dot’ are generally viewed as a unit by native speakers due to their mandatory collocation. Their combination as a whole behaves as a strict NPI, which must appear with negation and cannot occur in other types of NPI-licensing environments.
Constructional changes are hypothesized to precede and enable constructionalization (Traugott and Trousdale 2013). The constructional changes before constructionalization typically involve expansion of pragmatics, semanticization, and distributional changes, as shown in the development of the nominal yì diǎn ‘one dot’ toward an adverbial modifier. Such a combination with a negator has become a fixed expression, which can even be used as a short negative answer, as shown in (74). The whole phrase reinforces negation, which evokes strong scalar inferences than a bare negation does.
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(73)
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(74)
訪美行程有爭議, 錢復說:「一點也沒有。」 [Chinese Gigaword]
fang__měi__xíngchéng__yǒu__zhēngyì,__
visit__America__schedule__have__controversy__
qiánfù__shuō:__「yì__diǎn__yě__méiyǒu。」
Qianfu__say__one__dot__FOC__NEG.EXT
The schedule of visiting America seems controversial. Qiánfù said: “Not at all.”
This process reflects the principle that diachronic changes and grammaticalization do not occur only on a single lexeme, such as the numeral “one” or the unit word ‘dot’. Instead, the construction changes as a whole. Specifically, the numeral-unit word combination yì diǎn ‘one dot’ has been shaped by the construction where it frequently occurs. Its constructionalization also catalyzes other subsequent constructional changes, such as expansion of collocation. For example, the yì diǎn ‘one dot’ phrase in Modern Mandarin can modify a wider variety of predicates. In this case, constructionalization and constructional changes provide environments for each other.
Not all ‘one’-phrases as minimizers have undergone the same changes. These diachronic changes only occurred in the fixed ‘one’-phrases, not in the non-fixed ones, even though both types appear in the same environments. The asymmetry has to do with the flexibility of replacing the unit word. The unit word diǎn ‘dot’ has formed a strong association with the concept of a small quantity. It can be used to refer to a minimal amount for various categories of nouns. In this sense, it is more general than typical individual classifiers and unit words. General classifiers tend to undergo constructionalization because they lack a distinctive image and thus are weaker in identifying an object. In other words, they are more likely to shift to the modifying function. In non-fixed ‘one’-phrases, on the contrary, the numeral-classifier combination has maintained a salient nominal property because individual classifiers are inherently used to describe the gestalt characteristics of their associated nouns. Since the referencing function is strong, this function prevents the combination of the numeral ‘one’ and an individual classifier from shifting to another category.
The analysis so far shows that fixed ‘one’-phrases advance farther on the path of constructionalization, and they have developed a stronger connection with the minimizer interpretation as shown in the discussed examples. With this property, their distribution provides convincing evidence for the association between focal prominence encoded in syntactic construals and pragmatic effects.
The site of focus and the strength of pragmatic inferences
Fixed ‘one’-phrases serve as effective indicators for focal prominence due to their strong connection with negative polarity. The variation of their forms also associates with the importance of focal prominence in inducing scalar inferences. In OV, they appear in two forms. One is the canonical numeral phrase containing the three components: the numeral ‘one’, the unit word diǎn ‘dot’. and a noun, as shown in (75)–(76).
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(75)
對布希本人一點好處也沒有 [Chinese Gigaword]
duì__bùxī__běnrén__[yì__diǎn__hǎochù]__yě__méiyǒu
to__Bush__personally__one__dot__advantage__FOC__NEG.EXT
There is not even a bit of advantage to Bush himself.
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(76)
一點汗都流不出來 [Chinese Gigaword]
[yì__diǎn__hàn]__dōu__liú__bù__chūlái
one__dot__sweat__FOC__flow__NEG__out
(He) did not sweat even a little bit.
The other form is the combination yì diǎn ‘one dot’ without the noun. In OV, the combination yì diǎn ‘one dot’ is more frequently found than the form composed of three elements. Indeed, yì diǎn ‘one dot’ alone is often treated as a fixed unit, as shown in (77)–(78).
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(77)
購買世界杯相關產品的顧客一點也沒減少 [Chinese Gigaword]
gòumǎi__shìjièbēi__xiāngguān__chǎnpǐn__de__gùkè__[yì__diǎn]
purchase__World Cup__related__products__REL__customer__one__dot
yě__méi__jiǎnshǎo
FOC__NEG__diminish
The number of customers purchasing World Cup products does not diminish even a little bit.
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(78)
對中國的影響,不能說一點也沒有 [Chinese Gigaword]
duì__zhōngguó__de__yǐngxiǎng,__bù__néng__shuō__[yì__diǎn]__yě__méiyǒu
to__China__REL__influence__NEG__can__say__one__dot__FOC__NEG.EXT
It cannot be said that it does not affect China at all.
The omission of the noun of the ‘one’-phrase in OV is not found only in fixed ‘one’-phrases. As discussed in Section 4, non-fixed ‘one’-phrases as minimizers tend to appear as the minimal size and omit the modifiers in order to maximize the prosodic and semantic prominence. The preference of one form over the other of ‘one’-phrases is linked to the strategy for increasing focal effects.
Section 5 approaches the distribution of minimizers from a diachronic perspective. The type of fixed minimizers has a stronger tendency in OV than the other type of minimizers. In addition, they are more frequent in appearing as the smallest size. Due to their strong emphatic nature, their skewed distribution captures the different strengths of focal saliency of information structure in VO and OV.