Thematic and Argument Structures of Mandarin Si-V and V-Si Compound Verbs

Abstract

Mandarin compound verbs containing si ‘die’ are numerous and intriguing with varying meanings of si. This study investigates the meanings, functions, and thematic structures of all si-compounds. It was found that there are five basic categories of verbal si-compounds. The most common type is the resultative si-compound with the prototypical meaning of ‘to die.’ The three types have the grammaticalized si meaning of ‘to the extreme degree,’ ‘persistence,’ and ‘motionless and fixed state.’ The last type is one derived through a process of causative construction either from unaccusative si-compounds or from lexical re-mapping of theta roles in a composite causal-caused event. The five types of si-compounds all show a systematic relation among themselves either via the grammaticalization of si, or via the syntactic process of resultativity and causativity. The former causes the meaning of si to change, and the latter, the thematic structure alternation in compound verbs.