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Preceding modal infinitival, without complementiser om for, with object gap
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The adjective is preceded by an infinitival clause with an object gap. The infinitive has a modal interpretation. An example is given below:

1
De wyn is net te sûpen, sa soer
the wine is not to drink so sour
The wine is too sour to drink
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The following construction is characterised by an infinive with modal interpretation, by the presence of negation, and by the absence of the complementiser om for. Furthermore, the modal infinitival clause precedes the combination of degree word and adjective. The modal infinitival clause contains a gap in the position of a direct or a prepositional object. In this construction, the argument of the adjectival predication is identical to the object gap in the infinitival clause, and the subject of the infinitival clause is pragmatically identified as the person responsible for the judgment expressed. The modal infinitive can be followed by the phrase sa so + adjective. The construction has a collocational character:

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a. De wyn is net te sûpen, sa soer
the wine is not to drink so sour
The wine is too sour to drink
b. [Net te sûpen sa soer] is de wyn
not to drink so sour is the wine
The wine is too sour to drink

The modal infinitive can also be used attributively with sok such, provided no articles are present. The example with sa so is acceptable to the extent that this interference from Dutch is accepted by individual speakers:

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a. Net te sûpen sokke soere wyn
not to drink such sour wine
The wine is too sour to drink
b. *De net te sûpen sokke soere wyn
the not to drink such sour wine
The wine is too sour to drink
c. ?De net te sûpen sa soere wyn
the not to drink such sour wine
The wine is too sour to drink

Nowadays, the attributive form of sa is sa'n, which did not occur in 17th and 18th century Frisian. Instead, the forms sok, sok in and sokke were used. The complementiser om for may not be present:

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a. *De wyn is niet om te sûpen, sa soer
the wine is not for to drink so sour
The wine is too sour to drink
b. *Om net te sûpen sokke soere wyn
for not to drink such sour wine
The wine is too sour to drink

The modal infinitival clause requires the presence of negation, as shown by the contrast in the following sentences:

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a. De wyn is net te sûpen, sa soer
the wine is not to drink so sour
The wine is too sour to drink
b. *De wyn is hiel goed te sûpen, sa lekker
the wine is very good to drink so tasty
The wine is quite drinkable

The infinitival clause cannot have the form of an Imperativus pro Infinitivo (IPI):

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*De wyn is niet en sûp sa soer
the wine is not and drink so sour
The wine is too sour to drink
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