Abstract
AbstractThis paper examines the semantic and morphosyntactic complementation patterns of perception verbs in Brazilian Portuguese. Using the framework of Functional Discourse Grammar, five semantic complement types are identified. It is subsequently shown that these five types are in an implicational relationship, such that the set of semantic complement types that a certain perception verb in Brazilian Portuguese may take occupies a contiguous segment on a hierarchy of semantic complement types. The morphosyntactic complements of perception verbs in Brazilian Portuguese include noun phrases, finite, and non-finite clauses, the latter comprising progressive1 and infinitival forms. The second part of the study shows that the choice for one of these types can to a high extent be predicted from the semantics of the complements, using the same hierarchy of semantic complement types.
Highlights
The aim of this paper is to give a systematic description of the complementation patterns exhibited, both semantically and morphosyntactically, by perception verbs in Brazilian Portuguese within the framework of Functional Discourse Grammar (FDG, Hengeveld & Mackenzie 2008)
This paper examines the semantic and morphosyntactic complementation patterns of perception verbs in Brazilian Portuguese
The predictions concern the distribution of semantic complement types with perception verbs on the one hand, and the way in which the morphosyntactic complement types of perception verbs may be predicted from their semantics on the other
Summary
Perception verbs, like see and hear, specify a relation between an individual (the perceiving entity) and different kinds of the representational/interpersonal categories introduced above, according to the nature of what is perceived. In Dik and Hengeveld (1991), a description of the different kinds of perception verb complements is given within the Functional Grammar framework, accounting for the many subtle semantic differences between them. From this section onwards we will use Brazilian Portuguese examples. All these examples were obtained through internet searches using the Google search engine.
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