English and French [NN]<sub>N</sub>lexical units: A categorial, morphological and semantic comparison

Arnaud, Pierre; Renner, Vincent

doi:10.3366/word.2014.0054

Cited by 10 publications

(4 citation statements)

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“…Like other types of word-formation, compounds remain underrepresented in both contrastive and translation studies (Lefer and Grabar, 2015;Paillard, 2011). The available literature mainly concerns noun compounds, for which typological contrasts in synthetic and analytical tendencies have been extensively documented between Germanic and Romance languages (Arnaud and Renner, 2014;Van Goethem and Amiot, 2019). In English, [Noun+Noun] compounds are frequent, productive, and right-headed.…”

Section: Corresponding French Constructionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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From Crystal-clear to Limpide: Translating English [Noun+adj] Compound Adjectives with a Figurative-intensifying Noun into French

Prinzie

Suñer

Goethem

2022

RiL

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English [Noun+Adj] compound adjectives containing an intensifying metaphor (e.g. crystal-clear) pose particular challenges for French translation, due in part to the absence of a direct equivalent construction. Our study examines morphosyntactic and conceptual-semantic translation procedures that capture how these challenges are resolved. We also explore the little-investigated aspect of translation variation (the number of different solutions for each item). We analyze the potential effects of two factors: the presence or absence of figurative intensification and the items’ frequency of use in English. Our results indicate that translators prefer different morphosyntactic procedures for different compound subtypes. Overall, an adjective constituent is most frequently retained, although complete reformulations with a noun or verb also occur. Semantically, the intensifying meaning is often rendered non-figuratively, depending on what is available in idiomatic French usage. Intensification is also frequently dropped. Translation variation is remarkably high, due in part to extensive use of near-synonyms. High-frequency items do not appear to converge on a smaller number of translations, but instead provide more opportunities for diversification.

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Section: Corresponding French Constructionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…More frequently, French uses [Noun+Prep+Noun] constructions (e.g. sac à main "handbag"), [Noun+Adj] (conseil municipal "city council"), or derivational suffixation (théière "teapot"; Paillard, 2011;Arnaud and Renner, 2014). The status of the [Noun+Prep+Noun] constructions remains a matter of debate.…”

Section: Corresponding French Constructionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

From Crystal-clear to Limpide: Translating English [Noun+adj] Compound Adjectives with a Figurative-intensifying Noun into French

Prinzie

Suñer

Goethem

2022

RiL

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“… See Scalise and Bisetto (2009); andArnaud and Renner (2014) for an overview. 6 Subordinative units are characterized by the presence of a semantic nonhead-to-head relation between the source words (e.g.…”

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Lexical Blending as Wordplay

Renner¹

2015

Wordplay and Metalinguistic / Metadiscursive Reflection

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This article deals with wordplay in word-formation and centers on lexical blending. It claims that, because of their very formation process, lexical blends are instances of wordplay. Drawing on examples from a variety of languages, it offers a categorization of the different features which may be argued to increase wordplayfulness into five classes: formal complexity, structural transgression, graphic play on words, semantic play on words, and functional ludicity.

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“…Other scholars such asArnaud and Renner (2014) classify these two types of compounds as subordinate, where country house is relational because its meaning can be explained in terms of a predication with two arguments, and castle cloud is attributive because the semantic modification consists of attributing features of the nonhead to the head. However, this classification is problematic because I believe there is no need to treat these two compounds differently: in both cases the non-head should be treated as a modifier rather than a complement.…”

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The Semantics of Spanish Compounding: An Analysis of NN Compounds in the Parallel Architecture

Toquero-Pérez¹

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Noun-Noun compounds (NN) are a concatenation of two nouns that function as a single unit both morphosyntactically and semantically. One of the main challenges that a study of NN compounding faces is their semantics, and more precisely, identifying the implied semantic relations that hold between the two elements. One of the most recent frameworks that has been proposed to account for the semantic relations between the modifier and head in NN compounds is Jackendoff's (2009, 2016) basic functions model within the Parallel Architecture framework. In this model, a semantic relation between the head and modifier is established by using an external function F (X, Y), which given two nouns N1 and N2 meaning X1 and Y2 respectively, yields the meaning of the compound. Given that Spanish NN compounds are unproductive as opposed to languages like English, the aim is to demonstrate whether the model can be applied to Spanish, and if so, to identify the basic functions that hold in Spanish NNs organizing them in a hierarchy based on their frequency. Exploring these questions does not only have a potential to shed light on questions regarding the cross-linguistic applicability of Jackendoff's system, but can also allow us to determine whether the unproductivity of NN compounds in Spanish correlates with their semantic inflexibility. The study also provides a comparison of the semantic relations present in Spanish NN compounds to those attested in Spanish N de N constructions (i.e. buque de guerra 'ship of war' = war ship). Since the latter constructions are very productive in the language, if semantic flexibility correlates with compounding productivity, they are expected to exhibit a wider range of semantic relations as opposed to NNs. Moreover, if it turns out that N de N constructions can be successfully interpreted by the basic function model, we will have evidence that they should be treated as NN compounds semantically. The results show that the model proposed by Jackendoff can be successfully applied to Spanish. Despite the fact that almost all basic functions are attested in Spanish NN compounds, these functions are not equally frequent or common. In fact, there are significant differences with respect to the productivity of the functions in the language, as it becomes evident once they are arranged on a hierarchy according to their frequency. As for the N de Ns, most of the functions present in NNs are also attested in N de Ns but in a different hierarchical order. Last but not least, taking all the facts discussed in the thesis, it could be argued that semantics is a factor responsible for the peripheral nature of NN compounds in Spanish. Since NN compounds have fewer and less productive basic functions and express fewer semantic relations than alternative N de N construction, it seems that NN compounds are semantically restricted, which could be one reason for their unproductivity. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgments iv Chapter 1: Introduction 1 Chapter 2: Theoretical Background 3 2.1. What is an NN compound: def...

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English and French [NN]_Nlexical units: A categorial, morphological and semantic comparison

Cited by 10 publications

References 29 publications

From Crystal-clear to Limpide: Translating English [Noun+adj] Compound Adjectives with a Figurative-intensifying Noun into French

From Crystal-clear to Limpide: Translating English [Noun+adj] Compound Adjectives with a Figurative-intensifying Noun into French

Lexical Blending as Wordplay

The Semantics of Spanish Compounding: An Analysis of NN Compounds in the Parallel Architecture

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English and French [NN]Nlexical units: A categorial, morphological and semantic comparison

Cited by 10 publications

References 29 publications

From Crystal-clear to Limpide: Translating English [Noun+adj] Compound Adjectives with a Figurative-intensifying Noun into French

From Crystal-clear to Limpide: Translating English [Noun+adj] Compound Adjectives with a Figurative-intensifying Noun into French

Lexical Blending as Wordplay

The Semantics of Spanish Compounding: An Analysis of NN Compounds in the Parallel Architecture

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English and French [NN]_Nlexical units: A categorial, morphological and semantic comparison