Public Policy Implications for Language Education: A Case Study of the 'v qian v hou' Iterative Construction in Chinese
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.52152/2878Keywords:
v qian v hou; Iterative Construction; Collostructional analysis; Prototypical meaningAbstract
This study investigates the semantic clustering of distinctive collexeme verbs in the iterative construction "v qian v hou" based on the BCC corpus using collostructional analysis. By incorporating prototype category theory and image schema, the study explores the prototypical semantics and extension mechanisms of this construction. The research reveals that the prototypical meaning of this construction is " (the subject) repeated and continuous movement forward and backward", with motion verbs being the prototype verbs, carrying the meanings of repetition and continuity. Through spatial image schemas, metonymy, metaphor, and other mechanisms, the semantic extension to "universal meaning" and "modal meaning" is achieved. The semantic structure of the construction “v qian v hou” is formed under the influence of dual internal factors. On one hand, it generates prototypical and extended semantics through mental scanning methods of sequential and summary scanning; on the other hand, from a cognitive perspective, it combines factors such as encyclopedic knowledge and construction context to jointly form the semantic structure of this construction.
References
Chao,Y.R.A Grammar of Spoken Chinese [M].California:University of California Press,1968:108.
Chen, A. P. (2006). A Multifaceted Study of Verb Reduplication. Ningxia University Journal (Humanities and Social Sciences Edition), Vol. 27(5), pp. 21-25.
Chen, L. M. (2005). On the Grammatical Meaning of Verb Reduplication. Chinese Language, Vol. 2, pp. 110-122+191.
Chen, P. (1998). On the Triadic Structure of the Modern Chinese Tense System. Chinese Language, Vol. 6, pp. 401-421.
Chen, Q. R. (2002). An Examination of the Chinese Repetition Aspect. In Grammar Research and Exploration (Vol. 11). The Commercial Press.
Chen, Q. R. (2008). Typological Perspectives on Chinese Aspect Studies. The Commercial Press, Beijing.
Chen, Z. N., & Zhang, X. M. (2021). Corpus-based Analysis of the “V+up” Construction and Exploration of Constructional Semantic Extension. Corpus Linguistics, Vol. 8(1), 30-43+164.
Croft,W.Verbs:Aspect and Causal Structure[M].Oxford:Oxford University Press,2012.
Cusic, David Dowell. Verbal plurality and aspect[D]. Stanford University, 1981.
Dowty, David R. Word meaning and Montague grammar: The semantics of verbs and times in generative semantics and in Montague's PTQ. Vol. 7. Springer Science & Business Media, 2012.
Goldberg,A.Constructions at Work: The Nature of Generalization in Language[M].Oxford ＆ New York:Oxford University Press,2006.
Goldberg,A.Constructions:A Construction Grammar Approach to Argument Structure[M].Chicago:The University of Chicago Press, 1995.
Gries,S.Coll.analysis3.5[CP].A script for R to compute perform Collostructional analyses,2014.http://www.linguistics.uscsb.edu/faculty/stgries/teaching/groningen/coll.analysis/r
Guo, Q. (2016). A Study on the Quantitative Features of Modern Chinese Verbs. Shanghai Normal University.
Hopper,P.Emergent grammar[J].Berkeley Linguistic Society,1987,(13): 139-157.
Hu, J., & Zhang, J. Y. (2012). The Integration of Cognitive Linguistics and Corpus Linguistics: Constructional Collocation Analysis. Foreign Languages (Journal of Shanghai International Studies University), Vol. 35(4), pp. 61-69.
Institute of Linguistics, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences Dictionary Editorial Office. (2016). Modern Chinese Dictionary (7th Edition). The Commercial Press.
Lakoff G. Women, fire, and dangerous things: what categories reveal about the mind [M]. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1987.
Langacker R. Foundations of Cognitive Grammar: theoretical prerequisites [M]. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1987.
Li, J. R. (2007). Several Issues in the Study of the Quantity Category in Chinese. Ningxia University Journal (Humanities and Social Sciences Edition), Vol. 29(5), pp. 1-7.
Li, S. X. (2003). A Study on the Expression of “Subjective Quantity” in Chinese. Graduate School of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.
Li, Y. H. (2018). The Compound Construction of Parallelism in Chinese and the Category of Quantity. Language Teaching and Research, Vol. 5, pp. 96-104.
Li, Y. M. (1996). On the Meaning of Word Reduplication. World Chinese Teaching, Vol. 6(1), pp. 11-20.
Li, Y. M. (1998). Several Syntactic Issues of Verb Reduplication. Chinese Language, Vol. 2, pp. 83-92.
Li, Y. M. (2000). A Review of the Types of Chinese Reduplication. In Central China Normal University Language and Language Education Research Center (Ed.), Hubei Linguistic Studies (Vol. 2). Ministry of Education Language and Script Information Management Department.
Li, Y. M. (2002). On Repetition. Chinese Language, Vol. 3, pp. 210-216+286-287.
Liu, H. Y., Zhang, Q. W., & Gu, Y. (2013). Semantic Features and Morphosyntactic Expressions of the Iterative Aspect. Foreign Language Teaching and Research, Vol. 45(1), pp. 24-35+159.
Long, Q. R., & Hu, L. (2007). Types and Characteristics of Intertextual Idioms. Rhetoric Learning, Vol. 2, pp. 62-64.
Qi, H. Y. (2007). Modern Chinese. The Commercial Press.
Qian, N. R. (2000). The Iterative Aspect in Modern Chinese. Language Teaching and Research, Vol. 4, pp. 1-9.
Shi, J., & Yang, H. (2016). The Iterative Aspect in Ming and Qing Chinese and Its Origins. Chinese Language Journal, Vol. 4, pp.11-18+95.
Stefanowitsch.A.＆S.Gries.2003.Collostructions: Investigating the interaction between words and construc-tions［J］．International Journal of Corpus Linguistics，( 2) : 209－243．
Sun, Y. Z. (2006). The Grammatical Meaning of the AABB Reduplication of Verbs and the Characteristics of Verbs. Language Teaching and Research, Vol. 1, pp. 66-72.
Tian, Z., Duan, D., & Han, L. (2016). Semantic Opposition of Synonymous Constructions in Constructional Network: An Empirical Study Based on the Existential Constructions of “V-ing” and “V-ed”. Journal of PLA University of Foreign Languages, Vol. 39(5), pp. 56-64.
Wang, N. (2010). Semantic Analysis of the Iterative Format “V-ing back and forth”. Journal of Hubei Correspondence University, Vol. 23(1), pp. 74-75.
Wang, Y. (2007). Cognitive Linguistics. Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press.
Wang, Y. (2009). Constructional Suppression, Lexical Suppression, and Inertia Suppression. Foreign Languages and Foreign Language Teaching, Vol. 12, pp. 5-9.
Wang, Z. Y. (2010). A Multi-Angle Examination of the Fixed Phrase Format “X-ing back and forth”. Shanghai Normal University.
Wu, W. S. (2007). Cognitive Linguistics and Chinese Studies. Fudan University Press.
Xun, N.-D., Rao, G.-Q., Xiao, X.-Y., & Zang, J.-J. (2016). Dashuju Beijing xia BCC yuliku deyanzhi [The construction of the BCC corpus in the age of big data]. Yuliaoku Yuyanxue[Corpus Linguistics], 3(1), 93–109.
Yang, P. (2003). The Basic Meaning of Verb Reduplication. Language Teaching and Research, Vol. 5, pp. 8-16.
Yu, J. (2001). An Overview of Verb Reduplication Research. Chinese Language Learning, Vol. 1, pp. 35-39.
Zeng, C. N. (1998). The Iterative Aspect of the Continuous Aspect of Modern Chinese Verbs. Journal of Huazhong Normal University (Humanities and Social Sciences), Vol. 5, pp. 85-90.
Zhang, D. (2018). An Empirical Study on the Prototype Semantic Pattern of the Double Object Construction in Chinese Based on Corpus. Foreign Languages and Foreign Language Teaching, Vol. 5, pp. 79-88+149.
Zhang, J. (2021). Interactive Study of the Iterative Construction “V-ing back and forth” in Chinese. Chinese Linguistics, Vol. 2, pp. 77-92.
Zhang, X. F. (2014). Cognitive Basis for the Polysemy of the “V-ing back and forth” Construction. Journal of Tianjin Foreign Studies University, Vol. 21(5), pp. 23-28.
Zhao, N. N. (2018). Comparative Study of “V-ing back and forth” and “V-ed and then V-ed again” . Huaibei Normal University.
Zhao, Y. (2020). Antithesis and Universal Quantification. Journal of Guizhou Engineering and Applied Technology College, Vol. 38(4), pp.1-12.
Zhou, M. Z., & Zhang, Y. F. (2011). The Cognitive Basis of Reduplication in Chinese. Theoretical Monthly, Vol. 8, pp. 134-138.
Zhu, D. X. (1982). Lectures on Grammar. The Commercial Press.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Lex localis - Journal of Local Self-Government
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
