The major ways in which the YCOE differs from the PPCME2

• In the YCOE case is a major formal category, in some cases replacing the function labels of the PPCME2, in other being used in conjunction with them. Case is labelled at both word and phrase level. It is important to note that we do not label every inflected word and phrase for case. Our system of case labelling is based on formal identification and we do not resolve certain kinds of ambiguities, resulting in an underspecified system of labelling. This means that some NPs (and other nominal categories) do not have a case label despite the fact that they are inflected for case (whether or not the case can be determined from context). Thus a search for NP-ACC (accusative NP), for instance, will not extract all accusative NPs from the corpus; some accusatives may just be labelled NP with no case-label. The idea is that all NPs (etc.) labelled accusative are definitely accusative, but we make no claims about NPs without a case label. They may or may not be accusative (or dative or genitive).

  Nominative NPs, on the other hand, are always identified by case, at least at the phrasal level, because, as in the PPCME2, subjects in the YCOE have special status. Every complete finite clause has a subject (overt or empty), and it is always possible to distinguish the subject argument from all others.

  The summary in the YCOE Lite manual of our system of case-labelling will be sufficient for most investigations. If, however, case is crucial to the investigation, then the detailed explanation in the POS Manual should be consulted.

  
  

• Mood is labelled on verbs when it is unambiguous: VBPI: present tense indicative, VBDS: past tense subjunctive, VBD: past tense ambiguous for mood. See the POS Manual: Mood.

  
  

• The part-of-speech label for proper nouns in the YCOE is NR (rather than NPR as in the PPCME2). This change was introduced to remove the confusions that arise when using NP* as a search-term (it matches both NPs (noun phrases) and NPRs (proper nouns), generally not a desirable combination). See the POS Manual: Proper nouns.

  
  

• The YCOE distinguishes between complete and incomplete clauses more explicitly than the PPCME2. In both corpora a system of equal-sign coindexing is used to indicate clauses in which elision has taken place. Thus, in the PPCME2, a clause label ending in =# (where # stands for any number, e.g., IP-SUB=1) is an incomplete clause patterned on a clause with a matching -# index (IP-SUB-1). In the YCOE the same system is used (although for technical reasons the index is always =0, =00 or =000); however, the clause label of the incomplete clause is also different being, IPX (or CPX) rather than IP (or CP). This is simply to make it easier to distinguish complete and incomplete clauses when searching. Using IP-* in a search will only extract complete clauses, while IP* will extract all clauses, complete or incomplete. See the Reference Manual: Complete and incomplete clauses for the definitions of "complete" and "incomplete".

  
  

• In the PPCME2 adverbial clauses are headed by prepositions taking CP-ADV complements.

  (PP (P swa)
      (CP-ADV (C +t+at)
             (IP-SUB ...)))
  
  

  In the YCOE all such clauses are headed by CP-ADV and the preposition is incuded in the CP. This change was introduced purely for ease of searching and has no theoretical import. It makes it possible to access the preposition without searching outside the CP. See the Reference Manual Adverbial clauses headed by a preposition.

  (CP-ADV (P swa)
          (C +t+at)
          (IP-SUB ...))
  
  

  
  

• Conjunct subordinate clauses are labelled IP-SUB-CON. This additional label was introduced for ease of searching since it makes it possible to distinguish subordinate conjunct clauses without searching outside the IP. In matrix conjunct clauses the conjunction is included within the IP and is thus accessible in any case.

  (CP-THT (C +t+at)
          (IP-SUB (IP-SUB (...))
  		(CONJP (CONJ and)
  		       (IP-SUB-CON (...)))))
  
  

  
  

• The label IP-IMP is not used in the YCOE. Since imperatives are sometimes ambiguous with subjunctives all clauses with imperative (or imperative/subjunctive ambiguous) verbs are simply labelled IP-MAT. See the Reference Manual: Imperatives.

  
  

• In both corpora expletive subjects whether overt or empty are coindexed with an extraposed subject clause. In the PPCME2 this indexing is numerical; in the YCOE, for technical reasons, the index is always -x on both expletive and clause. See the Reference Manual: Expletive constructions.

  
  

• There are major differences in the treatment of comparatives between the two corpora; see the Reference Manual: Comparative clauses. Additionally, SWA clauses in the YCOE are not treated in exactly the same way as AS clauses in the PPCME2. See the Reference Manual: SWA +T+AT and FOR+TON +TE purpose/result/cause/degree clauses and Temporal SWA clauses including SONA SWA.

  
  

• The YCOE uses a formal category, participle phrase (PTP), to cover the three functional categories, adjunct participial (IP-PPL), participial absolute (IP-ABS) and reduced relative (RRC) of the PPCME2. The labels IP-PPL and IP-ABS do not occur at all in the YCOE, and RRC is fairly rare and is only used in cases where the reduced relative has no verbal material at all (Claudius, once emperor in Rome). Adjunct participials and reduced relatives are both labelled PTP with case if applicable, thereby obviating the need to distinguish between them, while absolutes are labelled PTP-CASE-ABS (where CASE = NOM, ACC, DAT). See the Reference Manual: Participle phrases

  
  

• The label for non-complement infinitives in the YCOE is IP-INF-NCO. While most of these are purpose infinitives (IP-INF-PRP in the PPCME2), no effort is made to distinguish types.

  
  

• In the PPCME2 post-head modifiers always project a phrase. The situation in the YCOE is rather more complicated and the section on Modifiers in the Reference Manual should be consulted.

  
  

• In the PPCME2 the QP label never occurs at IP-level; it is always dominated by an NP. In the YCOE floated and adverbial quantifiers are labelled QP at IP-level. See the Reference Manual: Quantifier phrases.

  
  

• In the YCOE arbitrary PRO subjects are not indicated in infinitives as they are in the PPCME2.

  
  

• In the YCOE THERE is always taken as locative and never as presentational expletive THERE.

  
  

• In the YCOE all pronouns except possessives that are coreferent with the subject of the clause are labelled reflexive (-RFL). In the PPCME2 reflexives that act as arguments are labeled according to function and only the reflexive pronoun with inherently reflexive verbs is labelled NP-RFL. See the Reference Manual: Reflexives.

  
  

• The class of adjuncts is less finely divided, and there are some differences in the functions represented. See the Reference Manual: Arguments vs. adjuncts.

  
  

• In the PPCME2 free relative clauses are always surrounded by another set of labels which indicate function. In the YCOE, bare CP-FRL clauses are complements of the verb (subjects are labelled CP-FRL-SBJ), while all non-argument free relatives have a function label attached directly to the CP-FRL label (e.g., CP-FRL-LOC a locative free relative). See the Reference Manual: Free relative clauses.

  
  

• There are some differences in the use of the empty verb/VP constituent (VB *). See the Reference Manual: The generic empty category.

  
  

• All negative words in the YCOE have a POS tag beginning with NEG; e.g., (NEG+Q^N nan), (NEG+ADV^T neauer), (NEG+ADV na) in order to facilitate searching for them. See the POS Manual: Negation.

  
  

• Wh-quantifiers, which are much more common in Old than Middle English, are labelled Q at word-level, rather than as wh-words as in the PPCME2. See the POS Manual: Quantifiers.

  
  

• The YCOE uses a function label -EXT (extent) which is not synonymous with the PPCME2 label -MSR (measure). See the Reference Manual: NPs of extent.