On the syntax and pragmatics of lexical categories: A comment on Mark Smith

While agreeing with Smith that the lexical categories cannot be defined pragmatically, I disagree with his implication that Baker 2003 is a pragmatic theory. Rather, I attempt to clarify my view that the definitional differences between nouns, verbs, and adjectives are primarily syntactic in nature. These syntactic differences stand in a natural correspondence to the pragmatic differences discussed in the literature in many cases, but when syntax and pragmatics go separate ways, category distinctions clearly follow the syntax. Given this, it stands to reason that the accuracy of the definitions can only be assessed if the syntactic structure of relevant examples has been accurately determined. I discuss a few suggestive examples of how this might be done in some "contentious" cases.