Date: Mon, 7 Oct 1996 16:15:49 -0500

From: Michael Linn mlinn[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]D.UMN.EDU

Subject: Re: drop off



Dennis,



You are right about the German, but the "want to come with" can also be a

literal translation from Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, and Finnish as

well. That is why it is so common in Minnesota.



Mike



On Mon, 7 Oct 1996, Dennis R. Preston wrote:



Dale,



You're right about the Germanness of the 'come with'; my Milwaukee wife has

it solidly.



Any number of things you seem to be able to rather freely delete in

'transitive' object position, I can't. Smells like age to me (since it

can't hardly be prescriptivism on my part). I hope to get a student to play

with this. Since the minimalists tell us all the grammar is in the lexicon,

it ought to be easy to show generationally.



Best,



Dennis



( Dennis-



Now I find myself flipping through the entire lexicon trying to figure out

what I can and can't say... take off, take down, put off, put down, get down,

pipe down... You ask about:



the parent would be expected to drop off and go back home



When I think about it, I would normally say "Drop them off" but I guess

intransitive "drop off," though not the usual construction, is comparable to

pick up:



When shall I pick them up?

What time is pick up?

When shall I pick up?



None of which get the asterisk for me.



However, in a different construction, I've got a friend from California who

makes me shudder every time she says:



Do your kids want to come with?



Where I would say,



Do they want to come with us?



Maybe German influence from mitkommen- Kommen die Kinder mit?



Also consider...To everything there is a season...A time to drop off and a

time to pick up.



Dale Coye

Princeton, NJ



Dennis R. Preston

Department of Linguistics and Languages

Michigan State University

East Lansing MI 48824-1027 USA

preston[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]pilot.msu.edu

Office: (517)432-1235

Fax: (517)432-2736