Verbal polysemy of hakka piong3 to put`: Frames and constructions

Abstract

The verb piong3 `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.