“Precautioning purpose constructions in typological perspective: a functional trade-off between clause-linking devices and tense–aspect–mood (TAM) marking”
Journal of World Languages
Olguín Martínez, Jesús. 2025. Precautioning purpose constructions in typological perspective: A functional trade-off between clause-linking devices and TAM marking. Journal of World Languages (published online).https://doi.org/10.1515/jwl-2025-0050
The study investigates how languages indicate precautioning purpose relations (e.g., I said it so that the child would not touch it) in a sample of 71 languages, focusing on the interaction between clause-linking devices and tense–aspect–mood (TAM) marking. It shows that languages either employ specialized clause-linking devices (e.g. equivalents of lest) or rely on non-specialized purpose markers combined with negation. A systematic pattern emerges: specialized clause-linking devices tend to occur with no TAM marking or with actualized TAM, whereas non-specialized devices tend to occur with non-actualized TAM (e.g., irrealis) to convey a precautioning purpose meaning.
These findings contribute to linguistic theory by demonstrating that semantic over-specification is generally dispreferred in human language, and that compositional encoding plays a central role in expressing complex propositional meanings. More broadly, the study provides evidence that examining the interaction of syntax with other grammatical domains offers a more comprehensive typological understanding of grammatical organization.