Title

Author

Genre

Pages

157-195

DOI

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Language

English

Key words

Cantonese, CS polar questions, interrogative particles, IS constituent questions, sentence-final particles

Abstract

Traditionally, Cantonese interrogatives are classified into four types: (1) yes-no questions, (2) A-not-A questions, (3) disjunctive questions, and (4) wh-questions (e.g., Gao 1980). However, recent studies propose a binary classification, dividing interrogatives into confirmation-seeking (CS) and information-seeking (IS) questions, a theory successfully applied to Mandarin, Xiang (Sinitic), English, and other languages (Her et al. 2022). This paper first points out that the traditional four-way classification lacks precision and overlooks universal patterns in interrogatives, advocating for a binary division for Cantonese. Specifically, we argue that yes-no questions stand alone as CS questions, while A-not-A belongs to the disjunctive type, which is, in turn, a subcategory of IS constituent questions together with wh-questions. Furthermore, the paper discusses several sentence-final particles, suggesting that 呀 aa4 and 嚱 he2 form CS polar questions, whereas 話 waa6 and 先 sin1 appear in IS questions. Additionally, we demonstrate that 未 mei6, found in the so-called VP- Neg question, should be analyzed as a kind of A-not-A question involving an implicit disjunction.