Covert Pied Piping in English Multiple Wh Questions
In this article, we argue for the existence of covert pied piping in wh questions through a previously unnoticed pattern of intervention effects in Superiority obeying English multiple wh questions. We show that the preference of covert pied piping, unlike that of overt pied piping, is for movement of larger constituents. We argue that this discrepancy stems from conflicting requirements of PF and LF: overt pied piping feeds both LF and PF, but covert pied piping feeds LF only. The study of covert pied piping thus reveals the true preference of LF and narrow syntax with regard to pied piping: larger pied piping constituents are preferred over smaller ones. This preference can be overridden by certain PF constraints that apply to overt pied piping.
Linguistic Inquiry