This study examines the special “V+X+O” structures in Taiwanese performance language, drawing on popular song lyrics, glove-puppet theater,
and koa-á songbooks. These include “V+tioʔ8+O” to mark ongoing action, and “V+tioʔ8+O,” “V+liau2+O,” and “V+kue3+O” to indicate completed actions with resulting situational change. The paper further considers unusual patterns where tioʔ8, liau2 and kue3 follow prepositions. Such structures differ significantly from natural spoken Taiwanese. * Though their historical origins vary, these structures share a convergent
trajectory of development. The paper first analyzes the detailed uses of “V+tioʔ8+O,” “V+liau2+O,” and “V+kue3+O,” revealing their parallel functions. It then situates these forms within the historical evolution of similar structures in Classical and early modern Chinese, arguing that the “V+X+O” patterns in Taiwanese performance language inherit grammatical traits from the Song– Yuan period while also displaying internal variation. Next, it explains these grammatical shifts in light of the narrative demands of performance. Finally, it compares usage across lyricists of different eras and glove-puppet performers of different generations, highlighting generational variation in the narrative use of tioʔ8, liau2 and kue3.
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