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According to usage-based linguistics, language variation addresses a functional need of the language user. That functional need may be dependent on the lexical realization of the varying constructions. For instance, while it may be useful to have an argument structure alternation express a particular semantic distinction for particular verbs or themes, that same distinction may be less relevant for other verbs or themes. As such, it has been argued that language variation should be investigated at low levels of schematicity, e.g. by studying argument structure alternations separately for various verbs, themes, etc. In this paper, we develop a data-driven procedure to do so, based on Memory-based Learning (MBL). The procedure focusses on generating hypotheses, is scalable, and can work with small datasets. It consists of three steps: (i) choosing features for the MBL classifier, (ii) running MBL analyses and selecting which analyses to put under further scrutiny, and (iii) inspecting which features were most useful in predicting the choice of variant in these analyses. Finally, the hypotheses that are inferred from these features are put to the test on separate data. As an example study, we investigate the Dutch naar-alternation.

One limitation of corpus-based research into the epicentre hypothesis is that it only provides information on structural similarity/difference of varieties but not on the role that attitudes may play in the choice of variants in a pluricentric language. In our case study on verb complementation patterns, we use simulation as a complementary methodology. We build an agent-based model for two speaker communities with English as a second language (ESL) which allows for attitudes towards American and British English to affect the choice of verb complementation. This approach enables us to gauge the likely effect that attitudes towards potential epicentres might have on the choice of variants and to predict patterns of variation we should see in language use. We provide preliminary data from the News On the Web corpus to test whether the predictions are, in fact, borne out. only published online, no volume/issue number ispartof: World Englishes vol:41 issue:3 pages:377-399 status: Published online

ispartof: Neerlandistiek.nl pages:1-3 status: Published online

ith a large number of quite diverse Dutch verbs, the language user has a choice to express the object argument as a direct object (1) or a prepositional object (2). (1) Dirk zoekt zijn sleutels. (2) Dirk zoekt naar zijn sleutels. 'Dirk is searching his keys.' (1) De koning regeert zijn volk. (2) De koning regeert over zijn volk 'The king rules his people.' This project will investigate what makes the language user opt for (1) or the alternative in (2). In doing so, we will consider a wide range of possible factors: e.g. a subtle difference in meaning, a number of linguistic parameters or even language-external factors, such as the nationality of the language user and formality of the situation. To find these factors, we will look for patterns in huge digital collections of natural Dutch language material. This will involve the use of statistical models such as logistic regression, as well as distributional techniques, which infer an expression's meaning from its context. Although this project's main aim is to advance (usage-based) theoretical models of how language functions, its findings will also serve a direct use. Until now, second language learners of Dutch can only be told that the choice between (1) and (2) is a matter of 'feeling for the language'. This project however, will quantitatively show what determines this linguistic feeling. status: published

ispartof: Woorden om te bewaren. Huldeboek voor Jacques Van Keymeulen pages:433-449 ispartof: pages:433-449 status: published

Corpus-based Approaches to Construction Grammar presents eight studies whichaim to advance Construction Grammar theory by applying a range of corpus techniques.One of its keywords could be ‘coherent variation’. The book offers variationin the languages and phenomena studied; there are studies on Dutch, English,Italian and Spanish, adult and child language, synchronic and diachronic data.In addition there is variation in the granularity of the methods used, which rangefrom the use of simple corpus examples and frequencies over association measuresto various more advanced multivariate techniques. Finally, language variationitself of course presents a recurrent theme. Meanwhile, the book manages tomaintain coherence in several ways. First, all studies subscribe to the frameworkof Construction Grammar, and the questions posed and answers given by all studiescontribute to theoretical progress within this framework. Second, there is coherencein the type of data source, with all studies drawing on corpora. Finally,there is coherence in coupling each research question to the appropriate choice ofcorpus-based method, which may very well constitute the hardest task of a corpuslinguist. Striking this balance between variation and coherence, i.e. providingenough diversity to be inspiring to the reader and to be representative for the entirefield of corpus-based approaches to Construction Grammar, while not losingall sense of cohesion, is hard, yet this book succeeds in it ispartof: Constructions and Frames vol:9 issue:2 pages:329-336 status: published

ispartof: Over Taal issue:3 pages:6-8 status: published

In present-day English, Dutch, and most of their Germanic siblings, the verbal weak inflection offers a well-established and regular strategy for forming the past tense. In contrast, the strong inflection seems to present no more than a diminishing rubble of vowel sub-rules and irregularities (Harbert 2007: 277). Still, things were once different. As an innovation specific to Proto-Germanic, the fledging weak dental suffix had to compete with a sturdy strong ablaut-system inherited from Proto-Indo-European, which is assumed to have been both clearly regular and dominant in frequency (Bailey 1997: 8). Earlier computational models of this competition have either focused exclusively on language acquisition (Rumelhart and McClelland 1986; Pinker and Prince 1988; Marcus et al. 1995; Taatgen and Anderson 2002), on the role of acquisition in language change when the weak inflection was already well-established (Hare and Elman 1995; Yang 2002), or have explicitly disregarded the regularity of the strong system (Colaiori et al. 2015; Pijpops and Beuls subm.). However, these models don’t address how a nascent weak inflection could have possibly gained enough momentum to overthrow a both regular and dominant strong system. To explain this enigma, several proposals have been put forward in the historical literature (Ball 1968: 164; Bailey 1997: 17). The first states that the dental suffix is in principle applicable to all verbs, while each separate strong vowel alternation is not. That is, the strong system presents a broken formation of several vowel alternations against a single dental suffix. The second holds that even as a whole, the strong system was not applicable to some particular verbs, which would then create a safe nest for the weak inflection to mature. The last posits that the regularity of the strong system was being undermined by sound changes, allowing the weak inflection to take advantage of the created irregularities. To investigate whether these causes can indeed be responsible for the ascent of the weak inflection, an agent-based model was created in which the focus lies on language use rather than acquisition (cf. Croft 2000; Bybee 2010). The model has been integrated into the Babel2-framework (Loetzsch et al. 2008), and the competing constructions have been implemented in the Fluid Construction Grammar formalism (Steels 2011; van Trijp et al. 2012). The model’s behavior showed that, in the long run, the first explanation alone already suffices to explain the rise of the weak inflection, even if each separate vowel alternation starts out more frequent than the weak inflection. This finding of course does not say that the second and third proposals did not help in creating more optimal conditions for the weak inflection to start its ascent. It does mean, however, that the disintegration of the strong system might be the result and subsequent catalyst rather than the original cause of the rise of the weak inflection. That is, perhaps both are related through a push chain, rather than a drag chain.

This paper presents a corpus study of the alternation between the reflexive and transitive argument constructions of the Dutch psych verbs ergeren (‘to annoy’), interesseren (‘to interest’), storen (‘to disturb’) and verbazen (‘to amaze’), as in Jij ergert je aan mij vs. Ik erger jou (both ‘I annoy you’). Logistic regression analysis revealed that the choice of the language user was driven by – in order of decreasing importance – the choice of verb, the morphological form of the stimulus, the animacy of the stimulus, the morphological form of the experiencer, and a number of nuisance variables. However, verbs whose lexical meaning entailed a more agentive experiencer did not more often realize this experiencer in subject position than other verbs, nor could the preference of the verbs be predicted by looking at their etymology. ispartof: pages:5-5 ispartof: Proceedings of the 6th Conference on Quantitative Investigations in Theoretical Linguistics pages:5-5 ispartof: Quantitative Investigations in Theoretical Linguistics location:Tuebingen date:4 Nov - 6 Nov 2015 status: published