Compound verbs in English revisited
Compound verbs in English revisited

Summary/Abstract: Compound verbs (CVs) raise a number of puzzling questions concerning their classification, their word formation properties, their basic onomasiological function and their transitory status between “relations” and “conceptual-cores”. Using the constructionist framework in the context of a usage-based network model of language, the paper develops a proposal for the classification of CVs and an account of the semantics of word formation niches of CVs created by analogy, which yield unified semantic analyses. A hypothesis is formulated concerning the acategorial nature of CV internal constituents, which naturally accommodates the proposed classification and word formation niche analyses. A hypothesis is formulated in this context concerning the intermediary status of CVs as language-cognition interface units collapsing the “relation-conceptual core” distinction. Conclusions are drawn relating to the transitory nature of most CVs as nonce creations performing a special function in communicative interaction.

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