2.1. The syntactic realization of argument structure
A sentence consists of a predicate and a certain number of arguments. The predicate is the core of the event or situation, and the arguments take part in this event or situation. Depending on the lexical meaning of the predicate, the arguments are assigned different semantic roles. Some semantic roles are agent, theme, causer, source, goal, beneficiary, instrument, and experiencer. These semantic roles are associated with the grammatical functions subject, object, and oblique object, all of which are described in [Syntax – 2.2.]. However, semantic roles are independent of grammatical functions. There is no one-to-one match between semantic roles and grammatical functions. Semantic roles are also independent of the complement-adjunct distinction [Syntax - 2.2.2.], where a complement is a syntactically required element in a clause. On the other hand, an adjunct is an optional element which contributes additional information, such as the time of the event expressed in the sentence or the manner in which an action was performed.
The syntactic realization of argument structure involves several factors. First, it involves knowing how many obligatory arguments a predicate requires. For TİD, this ranges from zero to three. Next, the description requires what categories can be a predicate. Verbs, nouns, adjectives, and possessive Noun Phrases can be predicates in TİD. Another relevant factor is the expression of arguments, which interacts with both the morpho-syntax and information structure properties of the language. The syntactic realization of argument structure interacts with morpho-syntax because some forms of verbs more readily allow arguments to be left unexpressed while others do not. It involves discourse because even if morphology would allow the elision of an argument, the information status of an argument may independently determine if one can omit the argument or not [Pragmatics – 4.].
Concerning the expression of an argument, one can express an argument by using a Noun Phrase, a pronoun, or another clause. The order of the expressed arguments may change depending on several factors that are discussed in [Syntax – 2.3. & Pragmatics – 4.].
The same morphological form of a predicate can be associated with more than one argument structure. Such predicates are called labile predicates. Labile predicates display what is called a transitive-inchoative alternation, which includes a similar event with one vs. two obligatory arguments. One can also express such a valency alternation by changing the morphological form of the predicate with a whole entity-handling classifier pair. We describe these alternations in [Syntax - 2.1.1.1.]
In serial verb constructions with a resultative part, an argument is related to more than one theta role. The direct object of the main clause is affected by the main event, and it also hosts the resultant state in such clauses. We talk about resultative clauses in [Syntax – 2.1.1.1.].