The Affix-like Status of Certain Verbal Elements

This papers explains the syntactic behaviour of the verbal sequences of two verbs (Vl+V2) -and specifically the sequences haver + participle, va + infinitive, and modal epistemic verbs + infinitive- in Catalan as the result of the syntactic and morphological characteristics of V 1. These characteristics are given by the following specifications of affixal features: [+ syntacticl - morphological]. With these we predict the behaviour attested if we follow Baker (1988)'s theory of incorporation with the modifications in Roberts (1991) and his excorporation proposal. The consequence of the given specifications for the features is that the two verbal elements in the sequences are always adjacent in Catalan as long as we assume that V1 selects V2 and that this selection implies morphological subcategorization. The result of this type of subcategorization is the creation of a slot in the structure which requires substitution in the course of the derivation. Three crucial predictions follow from considering V1 an affix: (a) that V2 cannot move once it has incorporated unless there is another fi which may replace it (another V); (b) that the selecting element cannot move either (by the Stray Affin Principle ), and (c) that incorporation is compulsory.