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Article published In:
Constructions and Frames
Vol. 15:1 (2023) ► pp.1–58

From data to theory

An emergent semantic classification based on the large-scale Russian constructicon

| UiT The Arctic University of Norway
| UiT The Arctic University of Norway
| UiT The Arctic University of Norway
| Lomonosov Moscow State University | Institute of Linguistics of the Russian Academy of Sciences
| National Research University Higher School of Economics
The semantic classification of over 2,200 constructions in the Russian Constructicon has emerged objectively from empirical analysis. The resulting semantic classification comports with and goes beyond frame semantics, revealing complex patterns of related constructions verified against corpus data and by a panel of native speakers. Our model of a constructicon can inform and complement existing approaches with additional findings. We detail our discovery procedure and the semantic relationships that link constructions. While our methods and findings are based on a single language, they can serve as a basis for cross-linguistic comparison in the field of Construction Grammar and constructicography research.
Keywords: Construction Grammar, constructicon, Russian, semantics, corpus
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.The data: The Russian Constructicon resource
  • 3.The methodology: Behind-the-scenes of semantic annotation of constructions
    • 3.1Collecting constructions
    • 3.2Semantic classification informed by various approaches and at various levels
    • 3.3Semantic annotation as a team effort
  • 4.The system of semantic types
    • 4.1The superordinate class “Qualia”
    • 4.2The superordinate class “Modality and its neighborhood”
    • 4.3The superordinate class “Subjectivity”
    • 4.4The superordinate class “Discourse”
    • 4.5The superordinate class “Parameters”
  • 5.Conclusions
  • Acknowledgments
  • Notes
  • References
Published online: 19 October 2023
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/cf.00066.jan
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