'Escalate' As Time-Phased Qualitative Process

'Mean' As Qualitative Process

See Halliday & Matthiessen (2014: 271).

Lexis Vs Function Structure: Quality Strawberries

she	smells
Carrier	Process: attributive: qualitative

she	smells	delicious
Carrier	Process: attributive	Attribute: quality

she	smells	of strawberries
Carrier	Process: attributive	circumstantial Attribute: quality

she	smells	like strawberries
Carrier	Process: attributive	circumstantial Attribute: comparison

she	smells	strawberries
Senser	Process: mental: perception	Phenomenon

she	likes	strawberries
Senser	Process: mental: emotion	Phenomenon

A Stylistic Use Of Verbal Assignment

'We were practising for the panto Captain Ransom puts on at Christmas.'  Danny now seemed more confident.

'I can confirm that.'  Sandy confirmed it.

I	can confirm		that	Sandy	confirmed		it
Attributor	Process	Attribute	Carrier	Attributor	Process	Attribute	Carrier

Here confirm is interpreted as 'say (as) true' — the verbal assignment of an attributive relation.  It could also be interpreted as a verbal Process, though this would be less informative.

In using confirm, the author has identified the more delicate category of statement (speech function) realised by each of the clauses.

Instead of construing a projection nexus such as 'I can confirm that' said Sandy, the author has presented a quote juxtaposed with an agnate report.   In doing so, the relation between the two is effected cohesively rather than structurally: by anaphoric reference (that < it) and lexical cohesion (repetition of confirm).

This might also be seen as an ingenious way of getting around the absence of projection as a cohesive conjunctive relation.