Degree comparison without degree abstraction1

This paper argues that Mandarin Chinese fills a gap in the typology of comparative constructions in natural language. Beck et al. (2004) proposes that languages may vary in whether or not they allow for degree abstraction, and Kennedy (2007) proposes a distinction between comparative constructions with degree-denoting standards and individual-denoting standards. Based on these parameters, we expect to find languages that lack degree abstraction yet allow for degree comparison, but such languages have not been attested in the literature. I argue that Mandarin Chinese instantiates such a language. I show that the derivation of the Mandarin bǐ comparative involves two instances of the predicate in syntax—one which composes with the target and one which composes with the standard—in order to form two degree descriptions. I posit an obligatory ellipsis operation to yield the final word order, and show that various properties of bǐ comparatives fall out of general constraints on ellipsis parallelism. Finally, I argue that the computation of bǐ comparatives does not—and cannot—involve abstraction over a degree argument. Gradable predicates in Mandarin take their degree argument last, allowing for degree comparison without using degree abstraction.