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Deconstructing the shì … de construction

Abstract This article re-examines the controversial shì … de construction, which is shown to involve different types of structures, with different syntactic properties. The core of the analysis proposed in this article is twofold: (a) shì is a copula, which selects a small clause (with a subject and a predicate), and (b) de marks the presence of two different non-overt operators (a generalized lamba-operator, and an assertion operator). It is argued that the focus reading connected with shì is simply related to its copular/verbal property. Furthermore, Mandarin allows an in-situ focus strategy using phonological prominence; this strategy interacts with shì and its postverbal constituent.