A study of English nouns derived from verbs and ending in "-ee" is outlined. The objective was to determine whether those nouns exhibit verbal characteristics (aspectual, temporal, or modal) that can be attributed to their derivation from verbs. The study examined 209 nouns. Progress made in the investigation of four hypotheses is described. The hypotheses are: (1) the suffix "-ee" is the surface reflex of an underlying case role combined with the basic verb from which the noun is derived; (2) deverbal nouns in "-ee" contain certain aspectual markers as part of their meaning; (3) an "-ee" noun is coined, together with its corresponding agent noun in "-er/-or," as the ad hoc name of one of the participants in a situation, the human being who is in some way acted upon; and (4) with some important exceptions, "-ee" nouns denoting persons subject to a change of status are most likely to be idiomatized. (MSE)