Constructions transitives et causative attributive du verbe faire

French sentence structure N faire de N N is shown to present a three-way ambiguity, according to the use of the verb faire: ordinary transitive and support (or light) faire constitute a transitive structure, but the third one, “causative operator faire”, makes a peculiar one in which a direct nominal (N) functions, not as a direct object, but as a indirect object (de N) complement. As an operator, the verb takes as “operand” a particular type of copular sentence, i.e. identificational type, on the contrary to rendre and mettre, well-known causative verbs, applied only to predicational type. faire, rendre and mettre are in complementary distribution. Different possibilities of causative operators for different types of copular sentences are also discussed.

Published online: 06 September 2013
https://doi.org/10.1075/lis.29.06nak