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    9.3.3.Appositive use
    quickinfo

    The examples in (144) show that, like regular adjectives, participles can be used appositively when they form a larger phrase. Unlike the supplementives discussed in Section 9.3.2, they can be construed as reduced parenthetic clauses; see Section 6.4, sub III, for more discussion.

    144
    a. Emil, bestraft voor zijn ondeugendheid, verveelde zich dood in de schuur.
      Emil  punished for his naughtiness  bored  refl  dead  in the barn
      'Emil, punished for his naughtiness, was bored stiff in the barn.'
    b. Jan, bevend van de kou, trok een warme trui aan.
      Jan, trembling of the cold,  put  a warm sweater  on
      'Jan, trembling from cold, put on a warm sweater.'

    Like supplementive present participles, the present participle in (144b) expresses durative aspect and can therefore be considered verbal. Accordingly, appositively used present participles can be intransitive, transitive or accusative, as is illustrated in (145).

    145
    a. Jan, schreeuwend van de pijn, werd onmiddellijk geopereerd.
    intransitive
      Jan  crying of pain  was  immediately  operated
      'Jan, crying in pain, was operated on immediately.'
    b. Jan, een liedje zingend van vreugde, stond al te wachten.
    transitive
      Jan  a song singing of joy stood already  to wait
      'Jan, who was singing a song of joy, was already waiting.'
    c. Jan, struikelend over zijn eigen voeten, maakte een nerveuze indruk.
    unacc.
      Jan stumbling over his own feet  made a nervous impression
      'Jan, who was stumbling over his own feet, made a nervous impression.'

          Modal infinitives cannot be readily used in an appositive function, and can probably only perform this function in written language. Example (146a), taken in a slightly adapted form from the novel Haas by Paul Biegel (volume I, p.56), has a verbal/obligation reading. The constructed example (146b) has an ability reading.

    146
    a. Ze moesten een drijfjacht op luizen, levend en onbeschadigd te vangen, organiseren.
      they  had.to  a drive  on louses  alive and unharmed  to capture  organize
      'They [the ants] had to organize a raid on louses, which had to be captured alive and unharmed.'
    b. Zijn praatje, niet te volgen voor mij, ging over modale infinitieven.
      his talk  not  to follow  for me  went  about modal infinitives
      'His talk, which I couldnʼt follow, was about modal infinitives.'
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      About this article
      Author(s): Hans Broekhuis
      Category: Dutch Syntax
      Keywords: AdjectiveParenthetic ClauseParticipleSupplementive
      Version: 1.0, December 2015
      Version history:
      version editor(s) date remarks
      1.0 Hans Broekhuis December 2015
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