A Syntactic And Semantic Study On Noun-Noun Constructions

Under the circumstances of the worldwide study ofNoun-noun-Constructions (NNCs)in the ascendant and the growinginteraction and blending of domains, contents, methods and means, theauthor of this thesis draws the basic theories of "semantic grammar"and the achievements in the analysis of syntactic semantic sense into thestudy of constructions by exploring the semantic sense of syntax in greatdetails and deeply through a comprehensive use of induction, deduction,comparison, investigation, statistics, description, variation,segmentation and diagrammatization etc.The "syntactic structure" of NNCs is examined in this thesis. Theauthor probes into the features of the structure composed of a modifierand the modified, that of combination, the subject-predicate structureand appositive structure, expounds the reason why the same type ofconstruction is classified as different structures, summarizes thefunctions and recurring forms of NNCs and discusses the effects of wordorder and functional words on the syntax and the semantics of theconstructions.A focus is imposed on the discussion of the "semantic sense ofsyntax" of NNCs. First, the author describes the role relationship bydesigning a deductive formula for semantic match, inquires into theinternal relationship between the semantic structure, the implicitpredicate and the downgraded verbal form so as to seek the impetus forthe externalization of the "patient argument", makes a study into thesemantic reproduction and deduces a semantic model for the reproductionof NNCs. Besides, the author creates a doctrine of "semantic bridge",probing into the functional forms in the change of "the bridge" andshowing dynamically the semantic relationship in NNCs; He produces the doctrine of "semantic fold", thinking that the designation andassertion are interchangeable, similar to a two-way movement betweenpoint and line, i.e., between the semantic spreading and semantic folding.It is pointed out in this thesis that the vanishment of the semantic bridgeinto "zero" is optional and bound by many factors. The author attemptsto seek a test for the "visual interpreting mechanism" of NNCs by provingthat the positional bridge and the analogous bridge are the marksrespectively for the interpretation of relationship and attribute.Finally, the author summarizes the types and the causes of the ambiguiltyof NNCs, trying to find their form marks. The author assumes that theChinese language lacks an additional form of self-designation and thenature of the nominalization is homo-self-designation. The analogizationand displacement of the forms are two most effective ways to excavate theunderlying meaning.This thesis also deals with the influence and restriction of thesemantic relationship in NNCs on the "syntactic structures" The authortries to reveal the decisive roles of the semantic relationship in thetypes of constructions, explores the restriction of attributive semanticsense on the internal self-supply of syntactic structure and promulgatesthe effect of semantic differences between the two types of attribute onthe apparent forms, grammatical means, central implication and the choiceof classifiers by comparing them from various aspects.