This paper addresses special kinds of Japanese subordinate clauses which lack an explicit head predicate but are similar in interpretation to clauses headed by a suspensive form of suru ‘do’, iu ‘say’, or omou ‘think’. I discuss that these unheaded constructions are subject to certain syntactic and semantic constraints that do not apply to their headed counterparts, and develop a formal analysis within the framework of Sign-Based Construction Grammar, aiming to model these constraints without postulating a covert element in the place of the missing predicate.

This paper examines the eventive “X-ga aru” sentences, specifically focusing on sentences in which the X is a verbal noun (VN). Although the verb aru in the eventive “X-ga aru” sentences has been characterized as “dynamic,” which contrasts with the stative aru in existential sentences, I argue that the dynamicity of aru in sentences differs: Some are relatively weak, whereas some are relatively strong. Therefore, according to this linguistic fact, the eventive “VN-ga aru” sentences can be grouped into two types: General-Event Type and Inverse-Event Type. These two types are characterized multidimensionally by their sentence structures and meanings, the subjectivity of expression, the argument realization of the VN, the semantics of aru, and so forth. I also claim that the dynamicity and the argument licensing ability of aru are related to the functional property of the verb, with the aru of the General-Event Type being less functional (more lexical) and that of the Inverse-Event Type being more functional (less lexical).

Sakha has two forms in the hortative, one of which is used when the subject is in dual (two) and the other is used when the subject is in plural (more than two). The “plural” is formed by adding the suffix -(i)ŋ to the “dual.” This suffix also appears in the imperative; however, in this case, the “plural” (more than one) is formed by adding the same suffix to the “singular.” Previous studies have only focused on the number of subjects and result in an inconsistent analysis, where the suffix -(i)ŋ correlates with a dual/plural opposition in one case and a singular/plural one in another. However, this study provides a new analysis that proposes that the suffix -(i)ŋ should be considered as an indicator for a group of hearers, dissolving the “dual” category. The number of hearers is distinguished in the imperative, hortative, and greeting expressions because these expressions have a strong interaction with the addressee. Some neighboring languages are also sensitive to the number of hearers in greeting expressions.