Semantic Effects of Long-Distance Wh-Scrambling in Japanese

Abstract

This paper investigates the semantic effects of long-distance wh-scrambling in Japanese. Through qualitative analysis, it demonstrates that long-distance scrambling is a semantically vacuous movement in declarative sentences where a wh-phrase undergoes radical reconstruction for interpretation. It is demonstrated that it need not flow into semantic interpretations, in contrast to wh-movement. Long-distance wh-scrambling, on the other hand, has an impact on sentential readings in interrogative sentences since the wh-phrase must draw scope from its nearest question marker, which must be understood through the c-command relationship. The difference is discovered to originate from a processing technique, with each alternative interpretation being more prominent in both the jumbled sentence and the canonical form. This study provides a syntactic-semantic perspective and offers new insights into the semantic implications of scrambling, thus contributing to the existing literature.