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Chapter 8. Category change in construction morphology

  • Geert Booij and Jenny Audring
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Category Change from a Constructional Perspective
This chapter is in the book Category Change from a Constructional Perspective

Abstract

Morphological constructions can be formalized as schemas that specify semantic and formal output properties of complex words. Such schemas impose these output properties on their constituent words through various coercion mechanisms. In this article we focus on coercion-by-override and the concomitant category change. Our data are mainly from Dutch.

The meaning of a syntactic or morphological construction can override the lexical meaning of a word in that construction. Morphological schemas may therefore change the semantic class of the base word. Semantic coercion may be accompanied by changes in word class.

Morphological schemas may receive a higher degree of productivity within certain syntactic constructions, a phenomenon known as embedded productivity. Thus, morphological schemas contribute to the creativity and flexibility of the language system.

Abstract

Morphological constructions can be formalized as schemas that specify semantic and formal output properties of complex words. Such schemas impose these output properties on their constituent words through various coercion mechanisms. In this article we focus on coercion-by-override and the concomitant category change. Our data are mainly from Dutch.

The meaning of a syntactic or morphological construction can override the lexical meaning of a word in that construction. Morphological schemas may therefore change the semantic class of the base word. Semantic coercion may be accompanied by changes in word class.

Morphological schemas may receive a higher degree of productivity within certain syntactic constructions, a phenomenon known as embedded productivity. Thus, morphological schemas contribute to the creativity and flexibility of the language system.

Chapters in this book

  1. Prelim pages i
  2. Table of contents v
  3. Acknowledgements vii
  4. Part I. Introduction
  5. Chapter 1. Category change from a constructional perspective 3
  6. Part II. Category genesis
  7. Chapter 2. Category genesis in Chitimacha 15
  8. Chapter 3. Derivation without category change 47
  9. Part III. Category change in syntactic constructions
  10. Chapter 4. Grammaticalization, host-class expansion and category change 93
  11. Chapter 5. Why would anyone take long ? 119
  12. Chapter 6. Category change in the English gerund 149
  13. Chapter 7. The emergence of a new adverbial downtoner 179
  14. Part IV. Category change in morphological constructions
  15. Chapter 8. Category change in construction morphology 209
  16. Chapter 9. Evaluative morphology in German, Dutch and Swedish 229
  17. Chapter 10. Constructional change on the contentful-procedural gradient 263
  18. Part V. Discussion
  19. Chapter 11. Change in category membership from the perspective of construction grammar 291
  20. Construction index 309
  21. Subject index 311
https://doi.org/10.1075/cal.20.08boo

Chapters in this book

  1. Prelim pages i
  2. Table of contents v
  3. Acknowledgements vii
  4. Part I. Introduction
  5. Chapter 1. Category change from a constructional perspective 3
  6. Part II. Category genesis
  7. Chapter 2. Category genesis in Chitimacha 15
  8. Chapter 3. Derivation without category change 47
  9. Part III. Category change in syntactic constructions
  10. Chapter 4. Grammaticalization, host-class expansion and category change 93
  11. Chapter 5. Why would anyone take long ? 119
  12. Chapter 6. Category change in the English gerund 149
  13. Chapter 7. The emergence of a new adverbial downtoner 179
  14. Part IV. Category change in morphological constructions
  15. Chapter 8. Category change in construction morphology 209
  16. Chapter 9. Evaluative morphology in German, Dutch and Swedish 229
  17. Chapter 10. Constructional change on the contentful-procedural gradient 263
  18. Part V. Discussion
  19. Chapter 11. Change in category membership from the perspective of construction grammar 291
  20. Construction index 309
  21. Subject index 311
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