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Volume 27, Issue 1
  • ISSN 1606-822X
  • E-ISSN: 2309-5067
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Abstract

The purpose of the paper is twofold: (1) to argue that one type of the Mandarin construction can be treated as a new form of passive construction (the -passive); and (2) to explore how it differs from the Chinese passive. In previous studies, the construction has been treated as a transitive structure in which ‘receive, endure’ takes an event nominal as its complement. This study reveals that another type of the construction — the passive — has emerged, in which takes a verbal complement involving movement. Comparison with passives shows that the -passive can also be divided into two types — short or long passives — while exhibiting two distinct properties. -passives reject idiom chunk subjects and do not select an Experiencer. These distinctions result from the lexical composition of (i.e., Become and Have/Undergo) and the early stage of grammaticalization, which requires every component to be projected. The similarities and differences suggest that the grammaticalization of -passives is underway, but not yet completed.

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2025-09-15
2026-05-08

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A new form of Chinese passives
Language and Linguistics 27, 134 (2026); https://doi.org/10.1075/lali.00249.yan
/content/journals/10.1075/lali.00249.yan
/content/journals/10.1075/lali.00249.yan
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  • Article Type: Research Article
Keyword(s): bei; Chinese passives; grammaticalization; HAVE; reanalysis; shou

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