In this paper, we will argue that, of the various grammatical and discourse
constraints that affect acceptability in verb phrase ellipsis (VPE), only the structural
parallelism constraint is unique to VPE.We outline (previously noted) systematic problems
that arise for classical structural accounts of VPE resolution, and discuss efforts
in recent research on VPE to reduce explanations of acceptability in VPE to general
well-formedness constraints at the level of information structure (e.g. Kehler in Linguist
Philos 23(6):533–575, 2000; Coherence, reference and the theory of grammar,
CSLI Publications, Stanford, 2002; Proceedings of semantics and linguistic theory,
vol 25, 2015; Kertz in Language 89(3):390–428, 2013). In two magnitude estimation
experiments, we show that—in line with Kehler’s predictions—degradation due to
structural mismatch is modulated by coherence relation. On the other hand, we consistently
find residual structural mismatch effects, suggesting that the interpretation
of VPE is sensitive to structural features of the VPE antecedent. We propose that
a structural constraint licenses VPE, but that sentences violating this constraint can
nevertheless be interpreted. The variability in acceptability is accounted for not by
additional constraints on VPE in the grammar, but by the numerous general biases
that affect sentence and discourse well-formedness, such as information structural
constraints (as proposed by Kertz 2013), discourse coherence relations (Kehler 2000),
sensitivity to Question Under Discussion structure (e.g. Ginzburg and Sag in English

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• The division of labor in explanations of verb phrase ellipsis