Object Length and Other Factors in Prepositional Variation: The Case of Speak, Talk and Write

• Authors: Sarnecki Mateusz
• Languages of publication: EN

Abstracts

The existence of prepositional variation in constructions such as speak about/of something can be motivated semantically in that about and of invite different construals of the topic they introduce. This article reports on a study carried out to test the hypothesis that the semantic distinction is reflected in the length of the object which complements the preposi- tion. The results suggest that object length might indeed play a part in the choice between about and of. The study also reveals additional factors which might influence speakers' choice of the topic-introducing preposition.

Keywords

EN

object; complementation; prepositional; communication verb; Time Magazine Corpus

• Publisher: Institute of English Studies, University of Warsaw
• Journal: Anglica. An International Journal of English Studies
• Year: 2016
• Issue: 25/2
• Pages: 43-56

Contributors

author

Sarnecki Mateusz

• Uniwersity of Warsaw

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