The Semantics of Spanish Morphology

The role of semantics in morphology has received little attention, which makes the study of morphology incomplete. Designed to fill this gap, the slot structure model is an approach based on Lexical Conceptual Structure that explains regular word formation in Spanish, and is based on the notion of lexical entries instantiated in a slot structure. Using the mechanisms of subcat/select and percolation, the model unifies the processes that take place during derivation, allowing for predictions to be made about the behavior of features. The model accounts for regular inflection, as well as the regular derivational morphology of languages genetically unrelated to Spanish, which suggests that its components are universal constructs. Irregular morphology is accounted for on the basis of the dual-route hypothesis. The model is compatible with the Parallel Architecture and can be incorporated into this framework. It compares favorably with other models of morphology, including those based on coindexation (or binding). This book is for anyone interested in the study of morphology and semantics, and should be especially useful to researchers involved in the development of morphological models