Degree semantics for Russian verbal prefixes: The case of pod- and do-

Abstract

This paper proposes a formal semantic approach to Slavic verbal prefixes. A hypothesis is put forward according to which a verbal prefix imposes a relation between two degrees on a scale. One is a degree associated with the event denoted by the verbal predicate. The other one is the standard of comparison, contributed by a linguistic expression that appears in the sentence, or by the context. The scale to which the prefix applies is most typically contributed by the linguistic environment in which the prefix appears. The paper demonstrates how the proposed analysis applies to two specific morphemes in Russian: the prefixes pod- and do-.

On binding, lexical and superlexical prefixes, andsiin the Baltic verb

“…Superlexical prefixes “are like adverbs or auxiliary verbs” and contribute “aspectual or quantificational meanings” (Svenonius 2004: 205). Thus, when scalarity of meaning is emphasized (e.g., Kagan 2012 and references there; Tolskaya 2015), 33 the need to distinguish between lexical and superlexical prefixes is called into question, given their phonological equivalence. Since in Baltic languages the structural distinctions between prefixes are much clearer and since, if relevant, scalarity will remain the property holding within either class of prefixes, but never both classes at the same time, I will not pursue this issue further 34…”

Вариативность В Глагольной Префиксации: Дериваты На До- И Пере-

“…О разграничении комплетивного и аддитивного до-и о семантике аддитивного до-см. подробнее[Kagan 2012;2015].…”