Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
Reflexive verbs can have a variety of uses and meanings, which often escape consistent classification. Some language-common identified uses are outlined below. [4] For example, Davies et al. [2] identify 12 uses for Spanish reflexive constructions, while Vinogradov [5] divides Russian reflexive verbs into as many as 16 groups.
Although in many cases, either a reflexive or a reciprocal pronoun could appear in the same structural position, in some cases, the asymmetry occurs when a reciprocal may be bound to its antecedent, but a reflexive may not. The following examples from Lebeaux (1983) show that in some sentences, either type of anaphor could be used: (5) a.
It is utilized in a variety of Spanish grammar contexts, including the following forms: reflexive pronoun, reciprocal pronoun, replacive pronoun (direct and indirect object), intrinsic pronoun (without the pronoun, the structure is ungrammatical), "derivational" pronoun, and "stylistic" pronoun.
Autocausative refers to a type of reflexive that denotes "in an overwhelming majority of cases, change of location or motion which the (human) referent causes by his own activity." [ 1 ] In this kind of event, "the mind or will of an animate entity initiates some movement of their own body [...] or a part thereof."
A reciprocal construction (abbreviated RECP) is a grammatical pattern in which each of the participants occupies both the role of agent and patient with respect to the other. An example is the English sentence John and Mary criticized each other : John criticized Mary, and Mary criticized John.
The following three subsections consider the binding domains that are relevant for the distribution of pronouns and nouns in English. The discussion follows the outline provided by the traditional binding theory (see below), which divides nominals into three basic categories: reflexive and reciprocal pronouns, personal pronouns, and nouns (common and proper).
Spanish is an example of a modern language with a mediopassive voice, normally indicated by the use of a reflexive pronoun. This can variously have a middle-voice meaning (subject acting onto itself, or for its own benefit) or a passive-voice meaning (something acts onto the subject).
For example, if there is a stative verb to be large, the causative will mean to enlarge, to make grow. The reflexive form of the causative can then be used to mean to enlarge oneself, or even as a middle voice, to grow. As far as lexical causatives are concerned, English has at least 49 causative verbs.