A Complex Predicate Approach to the Caused-Motion Construction in English

It is generally assumed within the tradition of Construction Grammar that the oblique grammatical function for the English caused-motion construction directly corresponds to a prepositional phrase (PP), such as in the jar in put the spoons in the jar. Opposed to the assumption, this paper argues that the oblique function actually narrowly corresponds to the noun phrase (NP) complement of the head preposition. On the other hand, the transitive preposition is an integral part of the predicate that it forms with a lexical verb, what we shall term a complex predicate. It is thus in phrasal syntax that the preposition, together with the oblique NP, forms or corresponds to the PP. This argument is supported by the class of phrasal verb constructions with so-called unpredicated particles, such as off in wipe off the table and wipe the table off (≠*The table is off). The paper also advances an alternative analysis of the construction with theoretical advantages.