scholarly journals English detached adjectival constructions with an explicit subject: A quantitative corpus-based analysis

2021 ◽  
Vol 72 (2) ◽  
pp. 465-474
Author(s):  
Viktoriia Zhukovska
Keyword(s):  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Construction Grammar ◽  
Functional Specification ◽  
Form Function ◽  
Grammatical Construction ◽  
Lexical Items

Abstract This article reports on the quantitative corpus-based investigation into the form-function interplay of the English detached adjectival construction with an explicit subject. Taking Usage-based Construction Grammar as its theoretical framework, this paper investigates the patterns of attraction of lexical items that appear in the main slots of the grammatical construction. The data obtained substantiate the constructional status of the construction and determine its semantic and functional specification in present-day English.

Theoretical framework

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Judith Huber
Keyword(s):  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Construction Grammar ◽  
Motion Verbs ◽  
Motion Event ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Constructionist Approach ◽  
Manner Verbs

Chapter 2 provides an introduction to the motion encoding typology as proposed by Talmy, Slobin, and others (manner- and path-conflating languages, different types of framing and their concomitant characteristics). It argues that this typology is highly compatible with a construction grammar framework, points out the differences, and shows that particularly from the diachronic perspective taken in this study, the constructionist approach has advantages over the originally lexicalist approach of the motion typology. The chapter also provides a discussion of the different categories of motion verbs used in this study (manner verbs, path verbs, neutral motion verbs, and verbs that do not evoke a motion event on their own, but can receive a contextual motion reading).

Rule and Construction: The Transitivity of Resultatives in English

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 107-130
Author(s):  
Yuzhi Shi
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Linguistics ◽  
Construction Grammar ◽  
Surface Structures ◽  
Semantic Relationship ◽  
Resultative Construction ◽  
Lexical Items

The resultative construction has been one of the focuses in exploring the interfaces between semantics and syntax. In the generativist tradition, constructions are regarded as the surface structures that are generated by a set of phrasal rules. In cognitive linguistics, especially the approach of construction grammar, constructions are viewed as the fixed pairings of forms and meanings that are regarded as symbolic like lexical items. This article argues that constructions are schemas determined by certain rules, and a set of subconstructions may be produced by a base construction. The article shows that the transitivity of the resultative construction is governed by the semantic relationship between the verb and the resultative phrase, which in turn determines concrete syntactic configurations. Grammar constructions consisting of two or more elements are essentially different from those atomic lexical items, a point distinguishing my analysis from construction grammar. Without the assumption of any underlying structures, unlike the generativist model, this article uncovers the surface rules that determine concrete constructions.

scholarly journals A constructional analysis of English un-participle constructions

2015 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 423-466 ◽  
Author(s):  
Doris Schönefeld
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Analysis ◽  
Construction Grammar ◽  
Past Participle ◽  
Developmental Studies ◽  
Form Function ◽  
Adjectival Passive ◽  
The Individual

AbstractThe present paper reports on an investigation into an English un-participle pattern that is called unpassive, or is described as an adjectival passive. The main characteristic of the pattern is an (adjectival) past participle prefixed by un-, which is used as a predicative complement to a verb. Besides the different terms used for the pattern, there is also some indeterminacy with respect to its particular form. All of the descriptions focus on the verb be, but mention is also made of go and remain. That is, the specifications of the pattern’s formal side differ to some extent. To provide information on this issue and to get hold of potential (verb-related) differences in the pattern’s function, we conducted an empirical analysis from a usage-based construction grammar perspective. Our focus is on the form-function interplay of the pattern in order to gain information about its constructional status and its exact formal and semantic make-up. The database selected for this study is the BNC, from which all occurrences of ‘verb plus un-participle’ were extracted. The data were submitted to collexeme and covarying collexeme analyses to identify the spectrum of meanings/functions associated with these forms, and distinctive collexeme analyses were carried out to see whether the un-participles found pattern differently with the individual verbs. The results indicate that, on closer examination, the un-participle construction does not represent a homogeneous category, but must be seen as a schematic template of related, though different, usage events that may have expanded analogously from a prototype construction. On the basis of our analyses and informed by findings from developmental studies, we suggest that the related constructions form a network.

scholarly journals Investigating the Meanings of Rīḥ (a wind) and Rīyaḥ (winds) and theirTranslation Issues in the Holy Qur'ān

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
AWEJ for Translation & Literary Studies ◽  
Abdul-Qader Khaleel Mohammed Abdul-Ghafour ◽  
Norsimah Mat Awal ◽  
Intan Safinaz Zainudin ◽  
Ashinida Aladdin
Keyword(s):  
Data Analysis ◽  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Qualitative Approach ◽  
English Translations ◽  
Lexical Items

This study investigates the meanings of ريح (a wind) and رياح (winds) and their translation issues in the Holy Qur'ān. It aims at identifying the contextual meanings of these words based on different exegeses of the Holy Qur'ān. Then, it explains the nuances that exist between the two lexical items. The study also examines how the shades of meaning of the Qur'ānic words are reflected in two English translations of the Holy Qur'ān, namely, Arberry (2003) and Irving (2002). The study adopts the RC-S approach by Murphy (2003) as a theoretical framework for data analysis. It also employs the qualitative approach to collect and analyze the data of the study. Different exegeses are consulted to identify the differences between the two words. The results reveal that there are some differences in meaning between these Arabic words in Holy Qur'ān and that the shades of meaning of these words are not reflected in the English translations. The study provides recommendations for readers and translators especially the translators of the Holy Qur'ān.

scholarly journals The Functions And Linguistic Analysis Of Metaphor In The Holy Qur’an

2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (14) ◽  
pp. 164 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ali Al-Ali ◽  
Ahmad El-Sharif ◽  
Mohamad Sayel Alzyoud
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Theory ◽  
Linguistic Analysis ◽  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Theoretical Background ◽  
Religious Discourse ◽  
Semantic Approach ◽  
Metaphorical Language ◽  
Cognitive Semantic ◽  
Lexical Items ◽  
And Function

The paper aims to tackle the function of metaphor in the Qur’an within the theoretical framework put forward by Lakoff & Turner (1989). This theory is known as the Cognitive Theory of Metaphor. It shows how the Qur’an is structured around the idea of the variety of meaning of lexical items, and how every correspondence between the two domains of “literal” and “non-literal” can fit into it. However, such an application of cognitive semantic approach can provide valuable insights. These insights enhance the overall aim of this paper which is to prove the linguistic creativity of the Qur'an through applying the cognitive theory of metaphor. This paper outlines the basis from which the Qur'an should be considered not only as a book of religious teachings, but also as a linguistic miracle for Arabs (Elsharif, 2011). The structure of this paper is presented as follows. First, we introduce the theoretical background and arguments of this study. Afterwards, we underline the significance of this study and its contribution to the field. In the following section, we present the definition and function of metaphor. Next, we embark on the linguistic analysis of metaphor in the holy Qur’an, metaphorical language and its use in discourse, and metaphor and Islamic religious discourse. Finally, we end the essay with a concluding paragraph.

Constructions in the Parallel Architecture

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ray Jackendoff
Keyword(s):  
Parallel Architecture ◽  
Construction Grammar ◽  
Crucial Issue ◽  
Lexical Items

This chapter discusses what the Parallel Architecture has taken from Construction Grammar and what it might contribute to Construction Grammar. After outlining the fundamentals of the architecture, it explains why rules of grammar should be formulated as lexical items encoded as pieces of structure: there is no hard line between words, constructions, and standard rules. The chapter also argues for a “heterogeneous” variety of Construction Grammar, which does not insist that every syntactic construction is invested with meaning. Finally, it discusses the crucial issue of semiproductivity, usually thought to be a property of morphology, showing that constructions too can be either productive or semiproductive.

Valency and English learners’ thesauri

2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 326-361 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jun Gao ◽  
Haitao Liu
Keyword(s):  
English Learners ◽  
Native Speaker ◽  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Lexical Information ◽  
Distinctive Features ◽  
Learner Corpus ◽  
Learner Corpora ◽  
Pragmatic Information ◽  
Chinese Learners ◽  
Lexical Items

Abstract Learners’ thesauri do not simply offer an inventory of semantically related lexical items but explicate their nuances and furnish users with rich syntactic, semantic, and pragmatic information. Adopting the theoretical framework of valency, this study examines the distinctive features of two English learners’ thesauri, the Oxford Learner’s Thesaurus: A Dictionary of Synonyms (OLT) and the Longman Language Activator (LLA). Furthermore, the study, supported by learner corpus evidence, empirically assesses the usefulness of OLT and LLA in Chinese learners’ writing. The results demonstrate that learners’ thesauri can generally meet the practical needs of users in writing through providing a range of synonyms and syntactic patterns, including abundant information on semantic collocations, and offering rich pragmatic information regarding registers and emotive variables. The results also show some defects in OLT and LLA, such as their failure to present specific syntactic patterns, including those frequently used in Chinese learners’ compositions. It is then suggested that the compilation of learners’ thesauri draw upon the ways in which lexical information is presented in the English Valency Dictionary, and that learner corpora and native speaker corpora be combined to improve their usefulness.

Construction Grammar and Second Language Acquisition

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nick Ellis
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Statistical Learning ◽  
Construction Grammar ◽  
Learning Processes ◽  
Transfer Effects ◽  
Future Directions ◽  
Psychological Analysis ◽  
Form Function

This chapter analyzes second language acquisition in the context of Construction Grammar. It provides evidence for the psychological reality of constructions in a second language and presents a psychological analysis of the effects of form, function, frequency, and contingency that are common to both first and second language construction learning following statistical learning processes which relate input and learner cognition. The chapter also considers crosslinguistic transfer effects and possible future directions for research into constructional approaches to second language acquisition.

Construction Grammar as Cognitive Structuralism: the interaction of constructional networks and processing in the diachronic evolution of English comparative correlatives

2017 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 349-373 ◽  
Author(s):  
THOMAS HOFFMANN
Keyword(s):  
Language Change ◽  
Construction Grammar ◽  
Secondary Role ◽  
The Family ◽  
Type Frequency ◽  
Processing Effects ◽  
Constructionist Approach ◽  
Lexical Items ◽  
Correspondence Hypothesis

Following the Uniformitarian Principle, the Performance–Grammar Correspondence Hypothesis (PGCH; Hawkins 2004) predicts a directionality in language change: if the same content can be expressed by two competing structures and one of these is easier to process (see Hawkins 1999, 2004), then the simpler structure will be preferred in performance. Consequently, it will be used more often with a greater range of different lexical items, which increases its type frequency and ultimately leads to it being more cognitively entrenched than its alternative (see Hawkins 2004: 6). As an analysis of the diachronic evolution of the family of English comparative correlative constructions (the more iconiccause–before–effectC1C2 constructionthe more you eat, the fatter you getvs the less iconiceffect–before–causeC2C1 constructionyou get the fatter, the more you eat) shows, however, the PGCH only played a secondary role in the genesis of this set of constructions. In this article, I will present a usage-based constructionist approach that allows researchers to reinterpret the classical Structuralist notion of gaps in the system as gaps in the mental constructional network. This type of Cognitive Structuralist analysis accounts for the presence of the less iconic C2C1 structure (and the absence of the more iconic C1C2 structure) in OE, the genesis of C1C2 structures at the end of the OE period as well as the processing effects predicted by the PGCH once both the C1C2 and the C2C1 constructions were in competition during the ME period.

Inherent variability and Minimalism: Comments on Adger's ‘Combinatorial variability’

2007 ◽  
Vol 43 (3) ◽  
pp. 683-694 ◽  
Author(s):  
RICHARD HUDSON
Keyword(s):  
Social Groups ◽  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Minimalist Program ◽  
Equal Probability ◽  
Feature Analysis ◽  
General Tendency ◽  
Semantic Features ◽  
Subject Pronoun ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Lexical Items

Adger (2006) claims that the Minimalist Program provides a suitable theoretical framework for analysing at least one example of inherent variability: the variation between was and were after you and we in the Scottish town of Buckie. Drawing on the feature analysis of pronouns and the assumption that lexical items normally have equal probabilities, his analysis provides two ‘routes’ to we/you was, but only one to we/you were, thereby explaining why the former is on average twice as common as the latter. This comment points out four serious flaws in his argument: it ignores important interactions among sex, age and subject pronoun; hardly any social groups actually show the predicted average 2:1 ratio; there is no general tendency for lexical items to have equal probability of being used; the effects of the subject may be better stated in terms of the lexemes you and we rather than as semantic features. The conclusion is that inherent variability supports a usage-based theory rather than Minimalism.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document