Find in Library

Spanish requires number agreement in noun phrases. Nonetheless, the relationship between semantic and morphosyntactic plurality is more complex than the mere use of the morpheme (-s/-es), the most common structure. This case study offers a qualitative analysis of the issue of the acquisition of plural expression in Spanish by two learners who do no mark plurality morphemically in their native language and have not had formal teaching of Spanish. The study shows that, even though speakers of Chinese Immigrant Spanish do not use plural morphology, they have a complex system to express semantic plurality consisting of transferred and creative strategies. The system does not show acquisition of the L2 system; however, the strategies employed are reinforced by structures allowed by Spanish grammar.