Metaphoric mapping and argument structure in semantic change: A case study

Abstract

It is a well-known fact that abstract meanings usually have their origin in concrete domains, which are extended due to a process of metaphoric transfer. Meanings are thus extended in a motivated way. The study of the historical development of groups of verbs ofmental activity, for example, shows that many of them derive from verbs originally referring to physical activity. Whereas cognitively-based inter-domain metaphorical connections are crucial in semantic change, the close links between syntax and semantics cannot be ignored either. This paper approaches the syntax-semantics interface by bringing together the study of metaphoric mapping and verb complementation. Its aim is to investigate the risp of new subcategorization frames connected to the extension of verb senses from the concrete to the abstract domain. Thus, we explore how the rise of the abstract senses in a verb of mental activity —ponder—conforms, interacts with and is reflected in the argument structure of this verb.