Constructiecasus

Constructiecasus is a term used in linguistics, particularly within construction grammar, to describe a grammatical case or case-like marking that arises from construction-level semantics rather than solely from syntactic position. The name combines the Dutch words constructie (construction) and casus (case). In this framework, constructiecasus signals the role of a noun phrase inside a larger construction, such as a complex predicate or a multi-verb phrase, rather than within a single clause.

Origins and use: The notion emerged in discussions of how languages encode complex predicates and relations in construction-based analyses. It is not universally adopted; many researchers treat case as morphosyntactic marking tied to canonical grammatical relations. Constructiecasus is best described as a theoretical tool used in cross-linguistic studies or in analyses of constructed languages (conlangs) and experimental grammars.

Realization and function: In analyses that posit constructiecasus, the marking may appear as a suffix, a clitic, a particle, or a prepositional phrase. Its function is to indicate a participant’s status within the construction (for example, which noun participates in a light-verb construction or how a dependent clause relates to the main predicate). Its interpretation is linked to the semantics of the construction.

Reception and research: Proponents argue that constructiecasus helps account for cross-linguistic variation in complex predicates. Critics caution that the concept can be abstract or language-specific. Ongoing work examines how such markings interact with typological tendencies and diachronic change, and whether it can be operationalized in corpus-based or experimental studies.