This paper studies mood distribution in the complement of Spanish assertive matrices when the matrix subject is modified by the quantifier "poco/a/s". The focus of this study is solely complement clauses, and adjectival and adverbial clauses are not considered. Following Mejías-Bikandi's (1994, 1998) account that the distribution of mood…

Complements of causative predicates such as "hacer" in Spanish present a problem for analyses of mood that are based on semantic or pragmatic notions of assertion. The problem results from the fact that information expressed by these complements is presented both as true and new, and yet the complement verb appears in the subjunctive…

Isleno Spanish speakers maintain few contexts firmly in the subjunctive (for example, adverbial clauses with the conjunctions "para que" and "antes que" and nominal clauses with "querer"), with most other semantic or syntactic categories optionally licensing the subjunctive. This study will outline the obligatory and optional uses of present and…

The aim of a discourse-pragmatic approach to teaching the indicative/subjunctive contrast in Spanish is to engage students to move beyond grammar and semantics and enter the domain of language use in complete texts. Linguistics and Second Language Acquisition (SLA) research have mostly focused on the morphology, semantics and syntactic aspects of…

In this essay, I apply current linguistic theory to reanalyze earlier research on the acquisition of "ser" and "estar" (e.g., VanPatten 1985, 1987). Using insights from Roby and Schmitt ("Semi-Copulas"), for example, I argue that the acquisition of the copular verbs is an issue of the acquisition of their aspectual properties (see also Bruhn de…

Arguments and examples are given to show that there are neither syntactic nor semantic justifications for a separation of the Spanish subjunctive into two types. (KM)

Contrasts the hypothetical conditional or "modo potencial" in Spanish with the subsequence conditional. Passages from "El habla de la ciudad de Mexico" and from works by Carballido and Borges are cited as examples. Other grammatical studies of the Spanish conditional are reviewed. (LMO)

Discusses the meanings that may be expressed in Spanish by this verb. (RM)

Differences between Spanish "ir" and "irse" are explained. Use of these verbs is determined by the adverb used with them: an adverb of place will govern use of "ir," while an adverb of time will govern use of "irse.""Ir" also involves a return trip, while "irse" communicates only a going away. (CHK)

Attempts to redefine the meaning of the two Spanish verbs "saber" and "conocer" and explores some possible extralinguistic factors affecting their usage. Shows that "conocer" represents knowledge which is firsthand and that this type of knowledge is a building block for the more thorough, systematic knowledge represented by "saber." (SED)

Analysis of the indicative-subjunctive alternation in the compliment of interrogative utterances with the verb "creer" shows that the "modality of reserved epistemic" determines choice of subjunctive. This determination contributes to a hypothesis about the nature of the subjunctive in Spanish. (CP)