1. Asymmetry in English multi-verb sequences: A corpus-based approach
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John Newman
Abstract
The English V and V construction provides an ideal opportunity to study asymmetry in the properties of the verbs which enter into each of the two verb slots of this construction. This paper explores the asymmetry evident in this construction by utilizing two corpora of spoken and written New Zealand English (the Wellington Written Corpus and the Wellington Spoken Corpus). The most striking asymmetry which emerges from the corpus data is the dominance of motion verbs and change of position verbs as V1 and their absence in V2. The V2 position shows a preference for verbs referring to activities involving a stationary position. The corpus leads us, therefore, to recognize move (in order) to do as the primary meaning associated with the V and V construction. While speakers of English may sense that this meaning is commonly associated with the V and V construction, only a corpus-based study such as this one is able to quantify the degree to which this meaning is, in fact, present in this construction. The paper also considers the nature of the semantic integration associated with the construction. Examples such as go and tell andgo and visit, though superficially similar, illustrate different kinds of semantic integration. Coordinated verbs, in general, present a typical grammaticalizing context, exemplified by the try and V construction in English, as well as examples such as go and prove me wrong typical of spoken language.
Abstract
The English V and V construction provides an ideal opportunity to study asymmetry in the properties of the verbs which enter into each of the two verb slots of this construction. This paper explores the asymmetry evident in this construction by utilizing two corpora of spoken and written New Zealand English (the Wellington Written Corpus and the Wellington Spoken Corpus). The most striking asymmetry which emerges from the corpus data is the dominance of motion verbs and change of position verbs as V1 and their absence in V2. The V2 position shows a preference for verbs referring to activities involving a stationary position. The corpus leads us, therefore, to recognize move (in order) to do as the primary meaning associated with the V and V construction. While speakers of English may sense that this meaning is commonly associated with the V and V construction, only a corpus-based study such as this one is able to quantify the degree to which this meaning is, in fact, present in this construction. The paper also considers the nature of the semantic integration associated with the construction. Examples such as go and tell andgo and visit, though superficially similar, illustrate different kinds of semantic integration. Coordinated verbs, in general, present a typical grammaticalizing context, exemplified by the try and V construction in English, as well as examples such as go and prove me wrong typical of spoken language.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Introduction vii
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Part I: Event chains and complex events
- 1. Asymmetry in English multi-verb sequences: A corpus-based approach 3
- 2. Asymmetries for locating events with Cora spatial language 25
- 3. Spanish (de)queisimo: Part/whole alternation and viewing arrangement 53
- 4. What does coordination look like in a head-final language? 87
- 5. Verb serialization as a means to express complex events in Thai 103
- 6. Notional asymmetry in syntactic symmetry: Connective and accessibility marker interactions 121
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Part II: Subordination, nominalization, modification
- 7. Subordination in Cognitive grammar 137
- 8. Asymmetric events, subordination, and grammatical categories 151
- 9. Asymmetry reversal 173
- 10. Transparency vs. Economy: How does Adioukrou resolve the conflict? 195
- 11. Relating participants across asymmetric events: Conceptual constraints on obligatory control 209
- 12. The Portugese inflected infinitive and its conceptual basis 227
- 13. The periphrastic realization of participants in nominalizations: Semantic and discourse constraints 245
- 14. Asymmetries in participial modification 261
- Author index 283
- Subject index 285
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Introduction vii
-
Part I: Event chains and complex events
- 1. Asymmetry in English multi-verb sequences: A corpus-based approach 3
- 2. Asymmetries for locating events with Cora spatial language 25
- 3. Spanish (de)queisimo: Part/whole alternation and viewing arrangement 53
- 4. What does coordination look like in a head-final language? 87
- 5. Verb serialization as a means to express complex events in Thai 103
- 6. Notional asymmetry in syntactic symmetry: Connective and accessibility marker interactions 121
-
Part II: Subordination, nominalization, modification
- 7. Subordination in Cognitive grammar 137
- 8. Asymmetric events, subordination, and grammatical categories 151
- 9. Asymmetry reversal 173
- 10. Transparency vs. Economy: How does Adioukrou resolve the conflict? 195
- 11. Relating participants across asymmetric events: Conceptual constraints on obligatory control 209
- 12. The Portugese inflected infinitive and its conceptual basis 227
- 13. The periphrastic realization of participants in nominalizations: Semantic and discourse constraints 245
- 14. Asymmetries in participial modification 261
- Author index 283
- Subject index 285
