Interface interactions in the English iterative cycle

Abstract

This paper investigates the cyclical interaction between the adverb again and its predecessor eft ('again' in Old and Middle English) by focusing on the semantics-syntax interface in change. Building on the results of recent corpus studies it is argued that having both a structural and a lexical analysis at disposal makes correct predictions for both adverbs. Second, for the area at hand (viz. when the two adverbs are considered in tandem rather than individually), it is argued that pursuing the two-track analysis on a broader basis than had been done previously accounts for facts that so far have remained unexplained in the appearance of the adverb eft. Specifically, the paper explores the idea that two types of semantic analysis suggested for the so-called decompositional adverbs may be available not only transitioning one another, but also systematically during one and the same historical time span. Third, further new observations are made as to why again may have won the competition at the expense of a well-established adverb in the history of English. The relevant observations hinge on clearer conditions for the winning competitor at the syntax-semantics interface.