Theoretical Implications of Consonant Sequence Constraints

Seven constraints on consonant sequences in Israeli Hebrew, which are the modern reflexes of older Semitic constraints, are discussed in relation to three levels: (i ) as Morpheme Structure Conditions imposed on the underlying consonantal root morpheme; (ii) as Surface Phonetic Constraints imposed on the word regardless of morphemic content; (iii) as Morpheme Sensitive Surface Constraints, which as the name suggests, are placed on words, but are sensitive to morphemic structure and categorization. The third set of constraints has not been seriously considered in the recent literature, yet at least some of the seven different constraints must be regarded as morpheme-sensitive. The root level is seen to play little or no role in determining these constraints.