BA-SENTENCES  REVISITED   

                     
Xianmin Liu
East Asian Studies, Vanderbilt University            

While teaching Chinese we have found that some ba-sentences sound awkward or even wrong although they include all the grammatical elements composing the disposal structure[Subj. + Ba-Referential/Specific Noun + Verb + Resultative Element].  For example,

1) *Ta ba mama de xin shoudao le.
2) *Ta meiyou ba na-ben shu kandao.
3) ?Zhang San ba Li Si ai-shang le.
4) ?Ta qunian ba laopo si le.
5) *Wo ba zhei-jian shi wangbuliao.
6) *Wo ba zhei-ge xiangzi banbudong.

In this study we suggest that with everything being in line structurally, the sense of disposal in ba-sentences still depends on two essential semantic features: agentivity and object change.

Through data analysis we will show that these two semantic notions distinguish between the typical ba-sentences and the atypical ba-sentences or
ungrammatical sentences.

We hope that our findings in this study could serve as some semantic criteria that not only explain why some ba-sentences are less acceptable than others but also enhance students' understanding of ba-sentences and enable students to use ba-sentences correctly and natually.