Scaffolding the sentential Ultimate construction into a word

Abstract In this paper, we propose a model that accounts for the change in the grammatical status of the members of the Hebrew Ultimate construction family, the only full sentences in Hebrew to undergo lexicalization, from extra-sentential elements to full-fledged words, specifically, flexible modifiers. We propose a specific type of contextual construction — the Anaphoric degree-adverb exclamative — and argue that it is this construction that enables both the grammatical change and the categorial flexibility of the newly evolved words by incorporating the members of the Ultimate construction family as subordinate clauses. Our analysis emphasizes the critical role of network links between the (various) constructions involved in this lexicalization process.