84 Carol Ge.ne.ttl and Kristine Hildebrandt
represented in (i8b), where CS indicates 'copula subject' and CC indicates 'copula
complement':
(18) (a) 4pholpA. 3tar/=ko ithe imo imu
frog pot=DEF empty COP EVID
"The frog pot was empty.'
(b) \4pholpA3tar/=ko]cs [ithe]cc [imo imu]pRED
This structure is syntactically identical to that of ascriptive constructions, where
the copula complement slot is filled by a noun, as in (19) and (20):
(19) [2tso=ko]cs [2mi]cc [imo]cop
PROX=DEF eye COP
'It is an eye.'
(20) [2shiy 3yalka]cc [la-hin imi:]pRED,
wood branch NEG-COP EVID,
[4$hew=ko 3$ru]cc [ihin imi]pRED,
deer=DEF horn COP EVID
'It was not a branch, but it was a deer horn.'
Both the ascriptive and the adjective constructions have the structure: CS CC COP,
where CC is a copula complement (see Dixon, Ch. i).
To convey entrance into a state, both adjectives and nouns appear as comple-
ments of the copula itA 'become', rather than as complements of the copula imo.
Such sentences with itA are structurally identical to those with the copula imo,
including as arguments a copula subject and a copula complement. Examples with
it A are given in (21-22):
(21) With adjective
[ikhi]cs [3kathe]cc [itA,-pA\pp.ED
3sg thin become-NR
'He is (still) becoming thin.'
(22) With noun
\2kyu 2tso=ko]cs [2thi]cc [itA.-tsi\PKED
water PROX=DEF lake become-PERF
"This water became a lake.'
To negate a copular clause with imo, whether the complement slot is filled by a
simple adjective or a noun, the suppletive negative copula la-re is used in place of
(or in conjunction with) imo:
(23) With adjective
in myukyu=ko imleykyA m-re (imo)
DIST.DEM dog=DEF black NEG-COP COP
"That dog is not black.'