This study is an attempt to show that language is a multidimensional phenomenon and an adequate account of language use can be achieved only by a comprehensive analysis from all those dimensions: phonological, semantic, syntactic, discourse and pragmatic. It uses the ba-construction (ba-c) in contemporary Mandarin Chinese as an example.; The ba-construction, which can move NP{dollar}sb2{dollar} from the normal post-verbal position to the pre-verbal position, is usually presented as:{dollar}{dollar}{lcub}rm Np{rcub}sb1{lcub}-{rcub}bcheck a{lcub}-{rcub}rm NPsb2{lcub}-{rcub}VP{dollar}{dollar}For decades, linguists in and outside of China have tried to explain the special structure within various linguistic frameworks. However, none of the theories developed can account for all the uses of the ba-c, and most of them are full of ad hoc rules with many exceptions. The language teaching materials developed so far are based on these rules. They tell the students very little in terms of how to use this construction and can sometimes be misleading.; The present study used natural data, a computer program and controlled experiments to investigate the factors that are relevant to the application of the ba-c. The basic corpus consisted of 10,008 verb phrases divided equally among conative, representational and expressive functions and between spoken and written modes. The findings of the study reveal that the obligatory use/non-use as well as the optional use of the ba-c are rule-governed. Syntactic, semantic, phonological, discourse and pragmatic constraints all play an important role in the decision whether to use the construction. In Mandarin Chinese especially, phonological factors have an impact that may not be present to the same degree in some Western languages. These findings can help to remedy some of the inadequacies in teaching the construction specifically and in teaching Mandarin Chinese as a foreign language in general.
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