Found:
Complementizer deletion
SYNTAX: the process of deleting a complementizer as in (i). Also: deletion in COMP.
(i) a I know that he is here
b I know _ he is here
This deletion has also been taken to apply to wh-words in relative clauses as in (ii).
(ii) a the man whom I have seen
b the man _ I have seen
The underlying assumption is that the wh-word is in the COMP position. This assumption has been abandoned with the introduction of CP. Now the empty slot '_' in (ii)b is usually analyzed as an empty operator.
See that-trace effect.
| LIT. | Haegeman, L. (1991) Riemsdijk, H. van and E. Williams (1986) |