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Abstract

This paper examines the syntax and semantics of two types of exclamatives in Kirundi: property exclamatives, which express surprise at the extreme degree of some property of an entity, and proposition exclamatives, which express surprise at a proposition’s truth. Though most languages have canonical clause types for declaratives, interrogatives, and imperatives, only some further distinguish exclamatives (Sadock & Zwicky 1985). Drawing on fieldwork, I argue that the form and force of Kirundi exclamatives motivates their recognition as a true clause type. Notably, Kirundi exclamatives satisfy semantic criteria for exclamativity but take a unique form, lacking overt - and/or degree morphology. I propose a constructional account, in the spirit of Zanuttini & Portner 2003, in which exclamativity arises as the result of interaction between syntactic elements linked to factivity, general interrogative force, and focus. This paper has implications for exclamative typology and the analysis of illocutionary force at the syntax-semantics interface.

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2025-02-24
2026-06-13

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The form and force of Kirundi exclamatives
John Benjamins ; https://doi.org/10.1075/lv.24010.mye
/content/journals/10.1075/lv.24010.mye
/content/journals/10.1075/lv.24010.mye
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  • Article Type: Research Article
Keywords: degree ; focus ; clause types ; Kirundi ; speech acts ; Bantu ; exclamativity

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