A Student's Introduction to English Grammar

Exclamatives vs open interrogatives

Exercises 181

In main clauses, exclamatives may be distinguished from open interrogatives solely
by the absence of subject-auxiliary inversion, but since such inversion doesn't nor­
mally occur in subordinate interrogatives there may be ambiguity between excla­
mative and interrogative content clause constructions:

[17] Do you remember how big it was? [ambiguous: exclamative or interrogative]

". The exclamative interpretation presupposes it was remarkably big and asks

whether you have recollections of that.

The interrogative content clause interpretation doesn't presuppose any size; it

asks whether you remember the answer to the question "How big was it?". It may

have been anywhere on the scale from extremely small to extremely big.

Exercises

1. Classify the following subordinate clauses
   (underlined) as finite or non-finite.
   i They told us not to start without them.
   ii Why peQple behave like that is a mystery
   to me.
   iii They insisted that eveO'one have eQual
   voting rights.
   iv We object to their being given mecial
   privileges.
   v Everyone knows YOU cringe when she
   walks by.


2. In each of the following pairs, embed a
   subordinate counterpart of the main clause
   [a] in the position marked '[ ... ]' in [b], and
   identify the clause type and function of the
   subordinate clause.
   i a. Why did she resign?
   b. It's not clear to me [ ... ].
   ii a. It was a hoax.
   b. Few people believe the rumour [ ... ].
   iii a. Is it a serious threat?
   b. [ ... ] remains to be seen.
   iv a. Who originated the idea?
   b. No one knows [ ... ].
   v a. They moved to Boston.
   b. I met them several times befo re [ ... ].
   vi a. What a bargain it was.
   b. She told me [ ... ].
   vii a. Yo u will get your money back.
   b. I'm determined [ ... ].

viii a. Can we rely on them?

b. I'm not certain [ ... ].

ix a. It was a serious mistake.

b. [ ... ] is now indisputable.

x a. Do you have any idea how much it

cost?

b. I'm not sure [ ... ].

3. For each of the lexemes below, say whether

or not it can license the following types of

content clause complement: (a) mandative;

(b) other declarative; (c) closed interroga­

tive; (d) open interrogative; (e) exclama­

tive. (Note that closed interrogatives some­

times occur more readily in non-affirmative

than in affirmative contexts: before giving a

'no' answer for (c), therefore, test with a

negative matrix clause as well as a positive

one.) Give an example to support each 'yes'

answer.

i advise vi idea

ii ask vii inquire

iii convince viii learn

iv doubt [verb] ix realise

v fo rget x sense [verb]

4. Here is another selection of complement­
   taking lexemes; the instructions are the same
   as for the previous exercise, except that for
   the two adjectives the issue is whether they
   license the various kinds of content clause as
   subject (or as extraposed subject).