关键词: 零句, 指称/陈述, 主语/话题, 单句/复句, 典型性原则

Abstract: As an attempt to theoretically reflection on Chinese language itself, a “minor sentence” is a term introduced to Chinese by Mr. ZHAO Yuan-ren. This has opened up a research path independent of the Indo-European perspective. However, many details in the theory of a “minor sentence” are doubtful: (1) a single sentence is a full sentence with two minor sentences as the subject and the predicate; (2) the subject and the predicate of a single sentence are comprised of one question and one answer; (3) the subject scope is excessively enlarged; (4) a single sentence is the smallest complex sentence, and a clause of a complex sentence is also a subject. In order to solve these problems centering on a “minor sentence”, we can replace a “minor sentence” with a phrase with a broader meaning and establish the principle of typicality. The typicality of a single sentence is that “the subject/topic is a reference, while the predicate/description is a statement”. This is also a reasonable basis for the distinction between a single sentence and a complex sentence in Chinese.

Key words: minor sentence, reference, statement, subject/topic, single sentence, complex sentence, principle of typicality