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Ask-A-Linguist - Message details
Subject: Ambiguous sentence?
Question:
Hi!

I have the sentence: I want one of the candies that is/are red. I read it with 'is', others with 'are'. My reason is that [CP [C of] [DP [D the] [NP [candies]]]] adjoins to N' of 'one' to form 'one of the candies'. This would preclude 'candies' as an antecedent of 'that', as there would not be a c-command relation. This begs the question, how is the sentence derived. I assumed it starts 'one is red', with the trace of one being spelt out as 'that' in PF.

I would be very grateful for your opinion.

Thanks in advance,

Peter

From: Peter Rodgers
Date: Sep-02-2009
Replies:
  1. Re: Ambiguous sentence? Elizabeth J Pyatt   (Sep-04-2009)
  2. Re: Ambiguous sentence? Susan Fischer   (Sep-03-2009)
  3. Re: Ambiguous sentence? John M. Lawler   (Sep-03-2009)
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Page Updated: 27-Nov-2009

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