Verbal polysemy of Hakka piong3 (放) ‘to put’: Frames and constructions
客语放置类动词「放」之多重语义:框架语义与构式语法的互动
Huei-ling Lai; Wan-jyun Luo 赖惠玲; 罗婉君
Abstract 摘要
The verb piong3 (放) ‘to put’ in Hakka is endowed with an abundance of related meanings. In line with the theory of constructions and the idea of frame
semantics, this study submits the following claims. First, the basic meaning of piong3 designates a common pattern of human experience: An animate entity
exerts manual force upon a physical object and causes the object to move. It is argued that the verbal polysemy latent in piong3 can allow for its semantic
compatibility with various syntactic structures: phrasal structure (i.e., [VN]/[VA] constructions, where N stands for a noun phrase, including an object
noun, location or a temporal expression and where A refers to a cover term for complements such as adjectives and adverbs), and sentential structure (i.e.,
TUNG constructions, locative inversion, deprofiled object constructions etc). Second, the extended meanings of piong3 are linked to its typical use through
the use of various metaphors and metonymies such as CONTAINER, CHANGE OF STATE AS CHANGE OF LOCATION metaphors and through ACTION FOR RESULT metonymy.
Finally, the findings reveal that certain frequently-used [VN]/[VA] constructions are examples of the process of lexicalization aligned to certain degree of
grammaticalization. This study also supports the suggestion that the knowledge of language greatly hinges upon personal experience and daily use and as such
is context-dependent and social-interactional.
Keywords 关键词
Frames 框架语义 Constructions 构式语法 Metaphor 隐喻 Metonymy 转喻 Lexicalization 词汇化 Hakka piong3 客语「放」字
Journal of Chinese Linguistics volume 38 (ISSN 0091-3723)
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