Definition
An oblique object is a grammatical relation proposed for a noun phrase clause constituent with the following characteristics:
- Its nature and behavior are more readily describable in semantic terms than syntactic.
- It is likely to be the most constrained in the semantic roles it may individually express.
- It is likely to be marked by an adposition or case affix.
- It is not likely to be a target of syntactic rules, such as
- agreement with the verb, or
- strategies of relativization.
Examples
English prepositional phrases, as clause constituents, can be considered oblique objects.
- She was bitten by a spider.
Sources 2
- Andrews, A. 1985, 81–82, 92, 127–128
- Comrie 1989, 66, 179