clausescapable

Clausescapable is a neologism in linguistics used to describe a lexical item or construction that can introduce or embed a clausal constituent. A clausescapable element is one that may govern clausal complements such as that-clause or infinitival clauses, or host relative clauses within a larger sentence.

Origin and scope: The term blends clause with capable and -able. It appears in discussions of valency, complementation, and subcategorization. As a technical label, it is not yet standardized; some authors prefer "clause-taking" or "clausal complementation" for similar ideas.

Usage and examples: The verb think is clausescapable because it accepts clausal complements: Think that the policy will pass. The verb claim is clausescapable as it takes infinitival complements: claim to have finished the work. By contrast, intransitive verbs like sleep are typically not clausescapable and cannot host embedded clauses within their immediate structure.

Limitations and interpretation: Clausescapable does not imply that all possible clausal forms are allowed with a given item; the set of permissible clausal complements is determined by subcategorization frames and the broader syntax of the language.

See also: clausal complement, embedded clause, subcategorization, valency.