What is zero anaphora?

Definition
	Zero anaphora is the use of a gap, in a phrase or clause, that has an anaphoric function similar to a pro-form.
	It is often described as “referring back” to an expression that supplies the information necessary for interpreting the gap.

Examples (English)
	There are two roads to eternity , a straight and narrow, and a broad and crooked.
	In this sentence, the gaps in a straight and narrow [gap], and a broad and crooked [gap] have a zero anaphoric relationship to two roads to eternity.

Generic
	Zero anaphora is a kind of
	What is anaphora?

Sources
	Hartmann and Stork 1972 258–259
	Crystal 1985 339

Context for this page:

Concept module: zero anaphora
In overview module: Glossary (Linguistics): Z
In modular book: Glossary of linguistic terms, by Eugene E. Loos (general editor), Susan Anderson (editor), Dwight H., Day, Jr. (editor), Paul C. Jordan (editor), and J. Douglas Wingate (editor)
In bookshelf: Linguistics

This page is an extract from the LinguaLinks Library, Version 5.0 published on CD-ROM by SIL International, 2003. [Ordering information.]

Page content last modified: 5 January 2004

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