Abstract
Chapter 9 deals with a particularly rich category of compounds, those with a verbal or a deverbal constituent. Special attention is given to structures combining a verb and a noun ([V N], [N V]) as well as to those where a verb is preceded by an adverb ([Adv V]). It is argued that [V N] compounds belong to exocentric formations, are inherited from Ancient Greek and are not productively built, at least in Standard Modern Greek. In contrast, the other two categories, [N V] and [Adv V], are endocentric, that is, they have a verbal head, and their formation displays a high degree of productivity, especially the [Adv V] ones. It is also shown that compounds with a deverbal head are productively created and that they exhibit a number of characteristics which differentiate them from the corresponding noun phrases involving the same constituents. Finally, the range of various theta/semantic roles that can be saturated within verbal or deverbal compounds are investigated, and a particular configuration is proposed for their structure.
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Notes
- 1.
philé:o ‘to love’ has changed meaning in MG: it means ‘to kiss’.
- 2.
In the particular examples, the stem allomorphs which are not marked for the perfective value would be xan- ‘lose’, alaz- ‘change’ and fevγ- ‘leave’. These allomorphs appear in the paradigm of the present tense:
-
(i)a.
xán-o, xán-is, xán-i, etc. ‘I lose, you lose, (s)he loses’, etc.
-
b.
alaz-o, alaz-is, alaz-i, etc. ‘I change, you change, (s)he changes’, etc.
-
c.
févγ-o, févγ-is, févγ-i, etc. ‘I leave, you, leave, (s)he leaves’, etc.
-
(i)a.
- 3.
Variation in the form of the deverbal nouns is due to stem allomorphy (see Chap. 7) and/or to phonology.
- 4.
For clarity reasons, the derivational suffixes are given with the inflectional endings, the latter being included in parentheses. Absence of parenthesis (e.g. -ia, -ma and -si) denotes a zero inflectional ending in the nominative singular form. Allomorphic variations of these suffixes are followed by overt endings in other paradigmatic forms, as for instance, in the plural number (e.g. iliovasilémat-a ‘sunset-PL’ (see Appendix 2)).
- 5.
The fact that in some languages more semantic roles can be satisfied has also been pointed out by Creissels (2008).
- 6.
- 7.
The idea of incorporation is an old one since it goes back to Sapir (1911).
- 8.
Di Sciullo (2005) has argued that the formation of compounds occurs in the grammatical domain of morphology. However, in her analysis, the suffix is situated at the left of the structure (as seen in the following simplified diagram), and the actual order of constituents is obtained by a constituent alignment process (flip operation, which takes place in p(honological) f(orm)).
(i)
    F
     / \
    α   F
      /  \
     Dsuf  V
        /   \
       V   Compl.
where α = variable.
- 9.
This is also the case with all verbal compounds, for example, laγοkimáme lit. rabbit sleep ‘sleep like a rabbit, sleep lightly’ (< laγ(ós) ‘rabbit’ + kimáme ‘sleep’), the stress of which always falls on the same position as that of the verbal constituent.
- 10.
The unvoiced /s/ becomes voiced (/z/) in front of the also voiced /m/.
- 11.
Filak- is a stem allomorph of the verb filás(o) which appears in the aorist tense and becomes the basis for the derivation of nouns (e.g. fÃlaksi ‘keeping’, filakà ‘jail’, fÃlakas ‘keeper, guard’).
- 12.
For clarity reasons, -as is given as a single suffix, combining derivation and inflection.
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Ralli, A. (2013). Verbal and Deverbal Compounds. In: Compounding in Modern Greek. Studies in Morphology, vol 2. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-4960-3_9
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