C connects subordinating conjunctions and certain verbs and adjectives with subjects of clauses. It is therefore used only in embedded and subordinate clauses, not main clauses. The CV link plays an analogous role, except that it connects to the main verb of the clause. Thus, the C link always forms a cycle with the CV link. See CV for more details.
+---C--+ +-C-+
| | | |
I told him I was angry Call me when you are ready
Every noun, nominative pronoun, and every other potential
subject has a C- conjoined with its S+ connector
(but not its O-, J-, etc.). The C- is
directly disjoined with a Wd-,
which is used in main clauses, and R-, used in certain
relative clauses:
dog: ({C- or Wd- or R-} & S+) or O- or J-...
When a dependent clause is begun, the subject usually makes a C connection to the left. There are two exceptions. When an object-type relative clause occurs with an omitted relative pronoun (The man you met is here), the subject of the relative clause makes an R- connection, not a C- connection. The reason for this concerns the use of CO: see CO. Secondly, in indirect object-type questions, the subject of the indirect-question clause makes no left connection at all. The (C- or Wd- or R-) complex on nouns must therefore be optional.
Ce is used for verbs that take clausal complements, also known as embedded clauses: tell, assume, think, etc.. Such verbs therefore have Ce+ disjoined with their other complement connectors (TH+, TO+, O+, etc.). TH+ connects to the word that which then connects to an embedded clause. All verbs that carry Ce+ also carry TH+: I assumed we would go, I assumed that we would go. The reverse is not true, however: I asserted/whispered/retorted that we should go; *I asserted/whispered/retorted we should go.
Many adjectives which take embedded clauses as complements also carry Ce+. Again, some require that, and therefore carry TH+, but some do not: I am glad you are here. A very few nouns also take Ce+, like day and way: I still remember the day I saw him, I like the way you do that. Most nouns taking clauses require that, however.
Cs is used in several kinds of subordinate clauses. It is used with certain conjunctions, like when and after: The man I saw after I left your party is here. (Some other conjunctions do not take Cs; see W.) Usually conjunctions that take Cs+ can either precede or follow the clause they modify (When I saw you, I left; I left when I saw you. They thus take Cs+ & (MVs- or CO+).
In many cases, such conjunctions may also take noun-phrases or participles as objects: The man I saw ( after lunch / after running ) is here; thus they have Cs+ or J+ or Mv+ or Mg+, as appropriate. Some conjunctions that take nouns as objects can modify nouns also: The party after the lecture was good. In this sense, they are essentially acting as prepositions, and take Mp-. This raises the question of whether they can take Mp- and Cs+ in conjunction: ?The party after Fred graduated was excellent. We allow this, but the expressions could easily be rewritten to prevent it.
Cs is also used for certain nouns that take clausal complements, like way and time: I remember the time I went to London. Such nouns therefore have Cs+ or @M+...., conjoined with their main S+ or O+... complex. Cs is also used in where/when/how indirect questions: I wonder where they will live. Such question words therefore have QI- & Cs+. (In direct questions of this kind, s-v inversion must take place; therefore no C connection is made. See W: Questions.)
The reason for making the distinction between Ce and Cs relates to bounded domains. In relative clauses and questions (direct and indirect), a transitive verb can make a B connection to a preceding noun-phrase; however, there are constraints on how this may be done. A B link may be made to a word within an embedded clause (I wonder who Joe thinks Bill hit), but not to a word within a subordinate clause (*I wonder who Joe cried when Bill hit.), nor to a word within a relative clause or indirect question. To enforce this, Ce connectors (found in embedded clauses) start 'e' domains, Cs connectors (found in conjunction-linked subordinate clauses, and some indirect questions) start 's' domains; we then dictate that B links can extend out of 'e' domains, but not 's' domains. See B: B links involving dependent clauses for further explanation.
A B link may not be made to a word within a subordinate clause, from outside that clause. However, it is perfectly fine to have a conjunction-connected subordinate clause within a relative clause, as long as the B link is not inside it:
*The man I cried when John hit is here The man I hit when John cried is here
Ca is used in indirect adverbial questions:
+-QI-+--EEh-+--Ca-+
| | | |
I wonder how quickly Jane ran
Adverbs that can be used in this way have EEh- & (Ca+ or Qe+ or MVa-...). (Qe is used in direct adverbial questions.) Ca can only be used in indirect questions. This is enforced because if the sentence must connect to the wall, and can only do so through how. (How could make a direct W connection to the wall, but this would trigger post-processing constraints which would prevent Ca from being used.) Like Cs connectors (used in other indirect questions), Ca starts an 's' domain, thus putting the indirect question clause in its own group.
Cc is used with comparatives. See MV: Comparatives V.
Ci is used on verbs or adjectives taking subordinate clauses in cases where filler-it is required as the subject. See SF: filler-it. In other respects, Ci is similar to Ce, and starts an unbounded e domain.
+SFsi+--Paf--+-Ci-+
| | | |
it is well-known I was angry
Cr is used only in one rather obscure construction. See B: Noun-Modifying Prepositional-Object Relative Clausess.
Ct and Cta are used with comparatives so that 'than' links to the relative clause:
+----AFd---+
+-MVta-+-Cta-+-Ss-+
| | | |
John is bigger than Dave is
+----Bc---+
+-Ct-+-Ss-+
| | |
John wants more cookies than Dave wants .
Rw is used similarly to Ct, Cta, and Rn to link question words to the relative clauses that follow them.
Grammar Documentation Page.