Properties of the Arabic language
5.4 Testing Levin’s Alternations for Arabic
5.4.6 Possessor-Attribute factoring alternations
5.4.6.1 Possessor object alternation
(253) a. They praised the volunteer’s dedication.
b. The praised the volunteers for their dedication.
(Levin, 1993, 73–74) (254) Pah
˙abba ‘love’ verbs: Pacd
˙ama‘glorify’,Pacazza‘cherish’,Pa ˙gbat
˙a‘envy’, Pah˙abba ‘love’, Pat
˙aaqa ‘tolerate’, Paat
¯ara ‘prefer’, Pajalla ‘glorify’, Pallaha
‘idolize’,Panifa ‘reject’, Pb ˙gad
˙a ‘abhor’, caˇsiqa ‘love’, caafa ‘detest’, h
˙asada
‘envy’, fad
˙d
˙ala‘prefer’, ictabara ‘consider’, Pizdaraa ‘debase’, kariha ‘hate’, maqata ‘abominate’, . . .
(255) a. yuqaddiru l-mudiir-u camal-a l-mustaxdam-i.
appreciatesDEF-director-NOM DEF-work-ACC DEF-employer-GEN
‘The director appreciates the employer’s work’
b. yuqaddiru l-mudiir-u l-mustaxdam-a calaa appreciatesDEF-director-NOM DEF-employer-ACC for
camal-i-hi.
DEF-work-GEN-his
‘The director appreciates the employer for his work’
(256) madah
˙a‘praise’verbs: Pacd
¯˙ama‘glorify’,Pat
¯aaba‘recompense’,Paajara
‘recompense’, Pabbaxa‘decry’,Padaana ‘condemn’, Pajalla ‘honor’, Pannaba
‘castigate’, Paqd
¯aca ‘insult’,cad
¯˙d
¯˙ama ‘honor’,cad
¯ala ‘blame’, caaqaba ‘pun-ish’,cannafa ‘reprimand’, ˇsajaba ‘denounce’, ˇsakara ‘thank’, ˇsatama ‘insult’, h˙ayyaa‘greet’, d
¯amma‘reprimand’, bajjala‘praise’, bakata‘castigate’, hajaa
‘dispraise’, hannaPa ‘congratulate’, Pintahara‘rebuke’,Pintaqada ‘criticize’, Pistahjana‘reprove’, Pizdajara ‘rebuke’, jaamala ‘compliment’, jaaza ‘com-pensate’, madah
˙a‘praise’, qad
¯afa ‘insult’, saamah
˙a‘forgive’, sabba ‘insult’, wabbaxa ‘chasten’, zajara ‘rebuke’, . . .
(257) a. Padaanat l-munaddamat-u fasaad-a
denouncedDEF-organization-NOMcorruption-ACC
l-Pidaarat-i.
DEF-admnistration-GEN
‘The organization denounced the corruption of the admnistration.’
b. P-adaanat l-munaddamat-u l-Pidaarat-a calaa
denouncedDEF-organization-NOM DEF-admnistration-ACC for fasaad-i-haa.
corruption-DEF-her
‘The organization denounced the admnistration for its corruption.’
(258) Paraada ‘want’ verbs (most verbs): Pah
˙abba ‘like’, Paat
¯ara ‘prefer’, Paraada ‘want’, caaza ‘want’, h
˙abbad
¯a ‘prefer’, ba ˙gaa ‘desire’, fad
˙d
˙ala
‘prefer’, Piˇstahaa ‘seek’, Pih
˙taaja ‘need’, Pibta ˙ga ‘aim’, Piltamasa ‘want’, raama ‘want’, rajaa ‘hope’, tamannaa ‘wish’, wadda ‘want’, . . .
(259) a. yah
˙taaju kariim-un mahaaraat-a jaar-i-hi.
‘needs Karim skils-ACC neighbour-GEN-his
‘Karim needs the skills of his neighbour.’
a. yah
˙taaju kariim-un jaar-a-hu li-mahaaraat-i-hi.
‘needs Karim neighbour-ACC-his skils-GEN-his
‘Karim needs his neighbour for his skills.’
(260) * raPaa ‘see’ verbs: Pabs
˙ara ‘discern’,Padraka ‘notice’, ˇsamma ‘smell’, Piˇstamma ‘smell’, Piktaˇsafa ‘detect’, Pistaˇscara ‘sense’, lah
˙ad
¯˙a ‘discern’, laah˙ad
¯˙a ‘notice’, lamasa ‘feel’, maqala ‘notice’, samica ‘hear’, tabayyana
‘perceive’, ˇsamma ‘smell’, . . .
(261) a. ˇsamam-tu cit
smelt-I Salma for-perfume-GEN-her
* ‘I smelt Salma for her perfume’
Comment:
Unlike the body-part possessor alternation, this alternation does not involve a body part of the object, but some of its attributes. In the a-variant, the possessor and the attribute are the direct object of the verb and are realized as a single NP constituent, where the possessor is the genitive of the attribute. In the b-variant, the possessor is realized as the direct object and the attribute is realized as a prepositional phrase headed by li orcalaa ‘for’.
This alternation does not require morphological marking.
5.4.6.2 Attribute object (262) a. I admired his honesty.
b. I admized the honesty in him. (Levin,1993, 74–75) (263) Pah
˙abba ‘love’ verbs: Pacd
˙ama‘glorify’,Pacazza‘cherish’,Pa ˙gbat
˙a‘envy’, Pah˙abba ‘love’, Pat
˙aaqa ‘tolerate’, Paat
¯ara ‘prefer’, Pajalla ‘glorify’, Pallaha
‘idolize’,Panifa ‘reject’, Pb ˙gad
˙a ‘abhor’, caˇsiqa ‘love’, caafa ‘detest’, h
˙asada
‘envy’, fad
˙d
˙ala‘prefer’, ictabara ‘consider’, Pizdaraa ‘debase’, kariha ‘hate’, maqata ‘abominate’, . . .
(264) a. yuqaddiru l-mudiir-u s
˙idq-a
appreciatesDEF-director-NOMhonesty-ACC
s-sikritiirat-i.
DEF-secretary-GEN
‘The director appreciates the honesty of his secretary.’
b. yuqaddiru l-mudiir-u s
˙-s
˙idq-a fii
appreciatesDEF-director-NOM DEF-honesty-ACC in s-sikritiirat-i.
DEF-secretary-GEN
‘The director appreciates the honesty in his secretary.’
(265) d
˙aacafa ‘double’ verbs: ˙gallaa‘increase’, s
˙accada‘rise’, t
˙a ‘decline’, nammaa ‘grow’, naqas
˙a ‘dimin-ish’, Panzala‘decrease’, nazzala ‘decrease’, raxxas
˙a ‘lower’, Proxas
˙a‘lower’,
caad
˙ama ‘swell’, d
˙aacafa ‘multiply’, d
˙aaPala ‘dip’, dahwara ‘plummet’, dan-naa ‘decrease’, qahqara ‘decrease’, . . .
(266) a. zaada-t l-munad
¯˙d
¯˙amt-u t
¯aman-a n-naft
˙-i.
increased-F DEF-organization-NOM DEF-price-ACC DEF-oil-GEN.
‘The organization increased the price of oil.’
b. zaada-t l-munad
¯˙amat-u fii t
¯aman-i n-naft
˙-i.
increased-F DEF-organization-NOMin price-GEN DEF-oil-GEN
‘The organization increased the price of oil.’
(267) ? madah
˙a ‘praise’ verbs: Pacd
¯˙ama ‘glorify’, Pat
¯aaba ‘recompense’, Paajara ‘recompense’,Pabbaxa ‘decry’, Padaana‘condemn’,Pajalla‘honor’, Pannaba ‘castigate’, Paqd
¯aca ‘insult’, cad
¯˙d
¯˙ama ‘honor’, cad
¯ala ‘blame’,
caaqaba ‘punish’, cannafa ‘reprimand’, ˇsajaba ‘denounce’, ˇsakara ‘thank’, ˇsatama ‘insult’, h
˙ayyaa ‘greet’, d
¯amma ‘reprimand’, bajjala ‘praise’, bakata
‘castigate’, hajaa ‘dispraise’, hannaPa ‘congratulate’, Pintahara ‘rebuke’, Pintaqada ‘criticize’,Pistahjana ‘reprove’,Pizdajara ‘rebuke’, jaamala ‘com-pliment’, jaaza ‘compensate’, madah
˙a ‘praise’, qad
¯afa ‘insult’, saamah
˙a
‘forgive’, sabba ‘insult’, wabbaxa‘chasten’, zajara ‘rebuke’, . . .
(268) a. madah
˙a l-mudiir-u s
˙idq-a s-sikritiirat-i.
praised DEF-director-NOM honesty-ACC DEF-secretary-GEN
‘The director praised the honesty of his secretary.’
b. ? madah
˙a l-mudiir-u s
˙-s
˙idq-a fii
praised DEF-director-NOM DEF-honesty-ACC in s-sikritiirat-i.
DEF-secretary-GEN
‘The director praised the honesty in his secretary’
(269) * Paraada ‘want verbs (most verbs): Pah
˙abba ‘like’, Paat
¯ara ‘prefer’, Paraada ‘want’, caaza ‘want’, h
˙abbad
¯a ‘prefer’, ba ˙gaa ‘desire’, fad
˙d
˙ala
‘prefer’, Piˇstahaa ‘seek’, Pih
˙taaja ‘need’, Pibta ˙ga ‘aim’, Piltamasa ‘want’, raama ‘want’, rajaa ‘hope’, tamannaa ‘wish’, wadda ‘want’
(270) a. ta-h
˙taaju ˇs-ˇsarikat-u xibrat-a-hu
F-needs DEF-company-NOM experience-ACC-his
‘The company needs his experience.’
a. * ta-h
˙taaju ˇs-ˇsarikat-u l-xibrat-a fii-hi.
F-needs DEF-company-NOM DEF-experience-ACC in-him
* ‘The company needs the experience in him.’
Comment:
This alternation allows the possessor and the attribute to be realized as a single nominal phrase in the a-variant and in in the b-varaint as two distinct constituents, where the attribute is realized as direct object and the possessor as object of the preposition fii ‘in’. This alternation requires no morphological marking.
5.4.6.3 Possessor and attribute alternation (271) a. I admired him for his honesty.
b. I admired the honesty in him. (Levin,1993, 75–76) (272) Pah
˙abba ‘love’ verbs: Pacd
˙ama‘glorify’,Pacazza‘cherish’,Pa ˙gbat
˙a‘envy’, Pah˙abba ‘love’, Pat
˙aaqa ‘tolerate’, Paat
¯ara ‘prefer’, Pajalla ‘glorify’, Pallaha
‘idolize’,Panifa ‘reject’, Pb ˙gad
˙a ‘abhor’, caˇsiqa ‘love’, caafa ‘detest’, h
˙asada
‘envy’, fad
˙d
˙ala‘prefer’, ictabara ‘consider’, Pizdaraa ‘debase’, kariha ‘hate’, maqata ‘abominate’, . . .
(273) a. yuqaddiru l-mudiir-u l-mustaxtadam-a li-s
˙idq-i-hi.
appreciatesDEF-director-NOM DEF-emloyer-ACC for-honesty-his
‘The director appreciates the employer for his honesty.’
a. yuqaddiru l-mudiir-u s
˙-s
˙idq-a fii l-mustaxtadam-i.
appreciatesDEF-director-NOM DEF-honesty-ACC in DEF-emloyer-GEN
‘The director appreciates the honesty in the employer.’
(274) ? madah
˙a ‘praise’ verbs: Pacd
¯˙ama ‘glorify’, Pat
¯aaba ‘recompense’, Paajara ‘recompense’,Pabbaxa ‘decry’, Padaana‘condemn’,Pajalla‘honor’, Pannaba ‘castigate’, Paqd
¯aca ‘insult’, cad
¯˙d
¯˙ama ‘honor’, cad
¯ala ‘blame’,
caaqaba ‘punish’, cannafa ‘reprimand’, ˇsajaba ‘denounce’, ˇsakara ‘thank’,
ˇsatama ‘insult’, h
˙ayyaa ‘greet’, d
¯amma ‘reprimand’, bajjala ‘praise’, bakata
‘castigate’, hajaa ‘dispraise’, hannaPa ‘congratulate’, Pintahara ‘rebuke’, Pintaqada ‘criticize’,Pistahjana ‘reprove’,Pizdajara ‘rebuke’, jaamala ‘com-pliment’, jaaza ‘compensate’, madah
˙a ‘praise’, qad
¯afa ‘insult’, saamah
˙a
‘forgive’, sabba ‘insult’, wabbaxa‘chasten’, zajara ‘rebuke’, . . .
(275) a. madah
˙a l-mudiir-u s-sikritiirat-a li-s
˙idq-i-haa.
praised DEF-director-NOM DEF-secretary-ACC for-honesty-GEN-her
‘The director praised the secretary for her honesty.’
b. ? madah
˙a l-mudiir-u s
˙-s
˙idq-a fii s-sikritiirat-i.
praised DEF-director-NOM DEF-honesty-ACC inDEF-secretary-GEN
‘The director praised the honesty in his secretary’
(276) * Paraada ‘want verbs: Pah
˙abba‘like’,Paat
¯ara ‘prefer’,Paraada ‘want’,
caaza ‘want’, h
˙abbad
¯a ‘prefer’, ba ˙gaa ‘desire’, fad
˙d
˙ala ‘prefer’, Piˇstahaa
‘seek’, Pih
˙taaja ‘need’, Pibta ˙ga ‘aim’,Piltamasa ‘want’, raama‘want’, rajaa
‘hope’, tamannaa‘wish’, wadda ‘want’, . . .
(277) a. ta-h
˙taaju-hu ˇs-ˇsarikat-u li-xibrat-i-hi
F-needs-him DEF-company-NOM for-experience-GEN-his
‘The company needs him for his experience.’
a. * ta-h
˙taaju ˇs-ˇsarikat-u l-xibrat-a fii-hi.
F-needs DEF-company-NOM DEF-experience-ACC in-him
* ‘The company needs the experience in him.’
(278) * raPaa ‘see’ verbs: Pabs
˙ara ‘discern’, Padraka‘notice’, ˇsamma ‘smell’, Piˇstamma ‘smell’, Piktaˇsafa ‘detect’, Pistaˇscara ‘sense’, lah
˙ad
¯˙a ‘discern’, laah˙ad
¯˙a ‘notice’, lamasa ‘feel’, maqala ‘notice’, samica ‘hear’, tabayyana
‘perceive’, ˇsamma ‘smell’, . . .
(279) a. * ˇsamam-tu salmaa lict
˙r-i-haa smelt-1.PS.SG salmaa for-perfume-her
* ‘I smelt Salma for her perfume’
b. ˇsamam-tu l-ct
˙r-a fii salmaa.
smelt-1.PS.SGDEF-perfume-ACC in Salma
‘I smelt perfume in Salma.’
Comment:
In this alternation the possessor and its attribute alternate in the object position.
In the a-variant the attribute is realized as the object of the preposition li ‘for’.
In the b-variant, the possessor is realized as the object of the locative preposition fii ‘in’.
5.4.6.4 Possessor subject (transitive)
(280) a. Mark terrifies me with his singlemindedness.
b. Mark’s singlemindedness terrifies me. (Levin,1993, 76-77) (281) sallaa‘amuse’class: dammara‘break’, faajaPa‘surprise’, fatana‘seduce’, haddada ‘menace’, hamma ‘sadden’, hammasa‘enthuse’, istafazza ‘provoke’, jad¯aba ‘attract’, jarah
˙a ‘hurt’, mattaca ‘amuse’, qazzaza ‘disgust’, raaca
‘disgust’, sarra‘gratify’, waasaa ‘console’, zaczaca‘distabilize’, . . .
(282) a. faajaPa caliy-un Pas
˙diqaaP-a-hu bi-quduum-i-hi.
surprised Ali-NOMfriends-ACC-his with-coming-GEN-his
‘Ali surprised his friends with his coming.’
b. faajaPa quduum-u caliy-in Pas
˙diqaaP-a-hu.
surprised coming-NOM Ali-GEN friends-ACC-his
‘Ali surprised his friends with his coming.’
Comment:
This type of possessor-attribute alternation is also available in Arabic. It is mainly found with psych verbs of the class sallaa ‘amuse’. These verbs involve causing a psychological state with some attributes of the agent (possessor) or with some concrete activity of him. The possessor and his attribute (or activity) (as in (282b)) alternatively appears in subject position. In the a-variant, the attribute/activity is assigned to the object of the preposition bi ‘with’. In the b-variant, the attribute/activity is realized as subject. It can appear in combination
with the possessor as one NP constituent, but it can also appear as a single constituent, hence, the similarity to the subject instrument alternation. This alternation does not require a morphological marking.
5.4.6.5 Possessor subject (intransitive) (283) a. Meat fell in price.
b. The price of meat fell. (Levin,1993, 77–78)
(284) tad
˙aacafa ‘double’ verbs: ˙galaa ‘increase’, s
˙acada ‘rise’, t
˙afara ‘jump’, t˙alaca ‘increase’, habat
˙a ‘decrease’, Pinh
˙adara ‘decrease’, Pinfajara ‘ex-plode’,Pinhaara‘fall’,Pinxafad
˙a‘lower’,Pirtafaca‘increase’,Pizdaada ‘grow’, nakas
˙a ‘decline’, namaa ‘grow’, naqas
˙a ‘diminish’, nazala ‘decrease’, qafaza
‘jump’, raxas
˙aaPala ‘dip’, tadahwara ‘plummet’, tadannaa‘decrease’, taqahqara
‘decrease’, taraajca ‘diminish’, zaada ‘grow’, . . .
(285) a. zaada n-naft
˙-u fii t
¯-t
¯aman-i increased DEF-oil-NOM inDEF-price-GEN.
‘The oil increased in price.’
b. zaada t
¯aman-u n-naft
˙-i.
increased price-NOM DEF-oil-GEN
‘The price of oil increased.’
Comment:
The verbs participating in this alternation are derivationally related to verbs of the class d
˙aacafaa ‘CAUS-double’, a class of calibratable change of state, whose verbs participate in the attribute object alternation (see5.4.6.2) and only select inanimate subjects (possessors). In the a-variant, the possessor is realized as the subject and the attribute is realized as a prepositional phrase headed by fii ‘in’.
In the b-variant, however, the possessor and its attribute are realized as a single subject NP. This alternation does not require morphological marking.
5.4.6.6 As alternation
(286) a. The president appointed Smith press secretary.
b. The president appointed Smith as press secretary. (Levin,1993, 78–79) (287) cayyana ‘appoint’ verbs: Paclana ‘declare’, cayyana ‘appoint’, ˇsa ˙g ˙gala
‘appoint’, baayaca ‘elect’,Pintaxaba ‘elect’,Pixtaara ‘select’, raˇsˇsah
˙a‘select’, raqqaa ‘upgrade’, tawwaja‘crown’, wad
¯˙d
¯˙afa ‘appoint’, . . . (288) a. cayyana l-malik-u l-kaatib-a waziir-an
appointedDEF-king-NOM DEF-author-ACC minster-ACC
li-t¯-t
¯aqaafat-i.
for-DEF-culure-GEN
‘The king appointed the author culture minister.’
a. cayyana l-malik-u l-kaatib-a ka-waziir-in appointed DEF-king-NOM DEF-author-ACC as-minster-GEN
li-t¯-t
¯aqaafat-i.
for-DEF-culure-GEN
‘The king appointed the author as culture minister.’
(289) * s
˙awwara ‘represent’ verbs: caamala ‘treat’, cadda ‘count’, carafa
‘know’, carrafa ‘define’, ˇsaxxas
˙a ‘diagnose’, h
˙asiba ‘conseive’, s
˙awwara ‘rep-resent’, fassara ‘interpret’, Pistah
˙ad
˙ara ‘recollect’, qabila ‘accept’, qaddama
‘present’, raPaa ‘see’, tat
¯akkara‘remember’, tas
˙awwara‘imagine’, tamat
¯t
¯ala
‘recollect’, taqabbala ‘accept’, taxayyala ‘imagine’, was
˙afa ‘describe’, . . . (290) a. * yucaamilucaliy-un s
˙adiiq-a-hu Pax-an.
treats Ali-NOMfriend-ACC-his brother-ACC
* ‘Ali treats his friend a brother.’
b. yacaamilucaliy-un s
˙adiiq-a-hu ka-Pax-in.
treats Ali-NOMfriend-ACC-his as-brother-GEN
‘Ali treats his friend as brother.’
(291) * sammaa ‘name’ verbs: Pasmaa ‘call’, kannaa‘rename’, laqqaba ‘dub’, nacata ‘term’, naadaa ‘call’, sammaa ‘name’
(292) a. samma-t salmaa mawluud-a-haa kariim-an.
named-F Salma kid-ACC-her Karim-ACC
‘Salma named her kid Karim.’
5. * samma-t salmaa mawluud-a-haa ka-kariim-in.
named-F Salma kid-ACC-her as-Karim-GEN
* ‘Salma named her kid as Karim.’
Comment:
This alternation is characteristic for some verbs taking two accusative objects, where the second object is the predicate of the first object. In both variants of the alternation the theme is realized as the object. The predicate, however, can be realized as the second object in the a-variant or as object of the prepositional phrase headed by ka- ‘as’ in the b-variant.
5.4.6.7 Time subject alternation
(293) a. The word saw the beginning of a new era in 1492.
b. 1492 saw the beginning of a new era. (Levin,1993, 79–80) (294) raPaa ‘see’ verbs (some): ˇsahida ‘see’, raPaa ‘see’, carafa ‘know’
(295) a. ˇsahida l-caalam-u Pinhiyaar-a l-Piˇstiraakiyat-i fii saw DEF-world-NOMcrash-ACC DEF-communism-GEN in sanat-i 1990.
year-GEN 1990
‘The world saw the crash of communism in 1990.’
b. ˇsahida-t sanat-u 1990 Pinhiyaar-a l-Piˇstiraakiyat-i.
saw-F year 1990 crash-ACC DEF-communism-GEN
‘The year 1990 saw the crash of communism.’
Comment:
This alternation is manifested with some verbs of perception. The time is realized as the oblique constituent in the a-variant of the alternation and as the subject in the b-variant. The alternation does not require morphological marking.
5.4.6.8 Instrument subject alternation (296) a. David broke the window with a hammer.
b. The hammer broke the window. (Levin, 1993, 80) (297) Change of state verbs: caddana ‘metalize’, callaka ‘caramelize’, caqqada
‘complicate’, caqqama ‘sterilize’, ˇsawwat
˙a ‘grieve’, qaddasa ‘make holy’,
cakkara ‘discolor’, h
˙ayyada ‘neutralize’, Paddaba ‘make erudite’, Pacazza
‘glorify’, h
˙araqa‘burn ’, fatah
˙a ‘open’, ˙galaqa ‘close’, Pajjaja‘fan’, Palhaba
‘fan’, Panaara ‘light’, Pannaqa ‘make elegant’, Pancaˇsa ‘reanimate’, Paws
˙ada
‘close’, xas
˙s
˙aba‘fertilize’, t
˙arrafa‘radicalize’, ballala‘wet’, basotara ‘pasteur-ize’, bassah
˙a ‘simplify’, dah
˙ad
˙a ‘falsify’, dahowara ‘deteriorate’, Pawqada
‘light’, Paws
˙ada ‘close’, Pistas
˙lah
˙a ‘reforme’, Pazzama‘aggravate’, caqqada
‘complicate’, s
˙aqala ‘shine’, lammaca‘glaze’, dah
˙wara‘deteriorate’, dajjana
‘domesticate’, faaqama‘aggravate’, falt
˙ah
˙a‘flatten’, fannada‘nullify’, garraba
‘make strange’, gayyara ‘change’, hajjana ‘hybridize’, laxxas
˙a‘summarize’, nawwaca‘diversify’,Pawojaza ‘abbreviate’, xattana‘circumcise’, Payoqad
¯˙a
‘waken’, . . .
(298) a. jaffafa-t salmaa l-malaabis-a bi-l-mikwaat-i.
dried-F Salma clothes-ACC with-DEF-pressing-iron-GEN
‘Salma dried her clothes with the pressing iron.’
b. jaffafa-t l-mikwaat-u l-malaabis-a.
dried-F DEF-pressing-iron-NOM clothes-ACC
‘The pressing iron dried the clothes.’
(299) * Pakala ‘eat’ class: Pakala ‘eat’, ˇsariba ‘drink’, t
˙acima ‘eat’, . . . (300) a. Pakal-t t
˙-t
˙acaam-a bi-ˇs-ˇsawkat-i.
ate-sheDEF-food-ACC with-DEF-fork-GEN
‘She ate the food with the fork.’
b. * Pakala-t l-furˇsaat-u t
˙-t
˙acaam-a.
ate-F DEF-fork-NOM DEF-food-ACC
‘The fork ate the food.’
Comment:
This alternation is found with a large number of verbs including a large spectrum of change of state verbs. The main property of this alternation is the ability of the instrument to appear as the subject. Thus, in the a-variant, the instrument is realized as a prepositional constituent headed by bi ‘with’ or by the compound preposition bi-waasit
˙at-i‘with-the-mediation-of’. The agent, the animate entity using the instrument in the action, is assigned to the subject. In the b-variant, the agent is omitted and the instrument is assigned to the subject. However, not all verbs taking an instrumental oblique are found with the b-variant of the alternation. Thus, verbs like Pakala ‘eat’ or raPaa ‘see’ can appear with an instrument oblique, but do not allow the instrument to occupy the subject position. This has to do with the nature of the instrument selected by the verb.
Only so-called intermediary instruments are allowed to appear in subject position.
Enabling instruments appear in the a-variant of the alternation, but not in the b-variant.
5.4.6.9 Abtract cause subject alternation (301) a. He established his innocence with the letter.
b. The letter established his innocence. (Levin, 1993, 81) (302) Alternating verbs: Pat
¯bata ‘prove’, barhana ‘prove’, Palgaa ‘nullify’, bayyana ‘show’, barrara ‘rationalize’,Pasqat
˙a‘deduct’, . . . (303) a. Pat
¯bata baraaPat-a-hu bi-r-risaalat-i.
proved innocence-ACC-his with-DEF-letter
‘He proved his innocence with the letter.’
b. Pat
¯bata-t r-risaalat-u baraaPat-a-hu.
proved-F DEF-letter-NOMinnocence-ACC-his
‘The letter proved his innocence.’
Comment:
This alternation shows similarities with the instrument subject alternation. The difference lies in the nature of the element occupying the oblique position in the
a-variant of the alternation and the subject of its b-variant. Here we have an
“abstract cause”, that is, a cause with an unpredictable implication in the execution of the action described by the verb.
5.4.6.10 Locatum subject alternation (304) a. I filled the pail with water.
b. Water filled the pail. (Levin,1993, 81–82)
(305) gamara flood’ verbs: Pacdaa ‘contaminate’, Pa ˙gˇsaa ‘cover’, Pa ˙graqa
‘flood’,Pah
˙aat
˙a‘cloak’,Pat
˙t
˙ara‘frame’,Patraca‘fill’,Pawsaxa‘dirty’,Pazaana
‘embellish’, cas
˙s
˙aba ‘bind’, cabbaPa ‘fill’, callama ‘sign’, ˇsabbaca‘saturate’, ˇsarraba ‘fill’, d
˙ammada ‘bind’, ˙gaˇsˇsaa ‘cover’, ˙gat
˙t
˙aa ‘cover’, ˙gamara ‘flood’,
˙gamma ‘cover’, h
¯˙aa ‘staff ’, kabbala ‘bind’, kallala ‘crown’, kammama
‘muzzle’, kasaa ‘cover’, lah
¯a ‘dirty’, malaPa ‘fill’, najjasa ‘dirty’, naqqat
˙a ‘dot’, qamat
˙a‘bind’, qammat
˙a ‘bind’, qayyada ‘tie’, ras
˙s
˙aca ‘gar-nish’, raqqaca ‘patch’, sat
˙t
˙ara ‘line’, sadda ‘cloak’, satara ‘cover’, sayyaja
‘fence’, was
˙ama ‘flack’, wasica ‘encircle’, wassaxa‘dirty’, zaana ‘embellish’, zawwaqa ‘garnish’, zayyaa ‘cover’, zayyana ‘garland’
(306) a. malaPa n-naadil-u l-kaPs-a bi-l-maaP-i.
filled DEF-waiter-NOM DEF-glass-ACC with-DEF-water-GEN
‘The waiter filled the glass with water.’
b. malaPa l-maaP-u l-kaPs-a.
filled DEF-water DEF-glass-ACC
‘The water filled the class.’
Comment:
Similar to the instrument alternation, the locatum alternation is manifested in two alternating structures: ‘V NP1 NP2 biNP3’ and ‘V NP3 NP2’, where NP2 is a location or a container and NP3 is the theme being moved into it. This alternation requires no morphological marking.
5.4.6.11 Location subject alternation (307) a. We sleep five people in each room.
b. Each room sleeps five people. (Levin,1993, 82-83) (308) Paqalla ‘carry’ verbs: Paawaa ‘lodge’, Paqalla ‘carry’, Paskana ‘lodge’,
Pawaa ‘reside’, ˇsama/ila ‘contain’, d
˙amma ‘contain’, Pih
˙tad
˙ana ‘house’, Pih˙tawa ‘contain’,Pistawcaba ‘contain’, sakkana ‘house’, wasica‘contain’
(309) a. Paqalla s-saaPiq-u z-zabuun-a fii sayyaarat-i-hi.
carried DEF-driver-u DEF-customer-ACC in car-GEN-his
‘The driver carried the customer in his car.’
b. Paqalla-t s-sayyaarat-u z-zabuun-a.
carried-F DEF-car-NOM DEF-customer-ACC
‘The car carried the customer.’
Comment:
This alternation describes the property or the capacity of some location with respect to the action named by the verb (Levin, 1993, 82). It is manifested in the b-variant with the realisation of the location as the subject and the theme as object.
5.4.6.12 Container subject alternation
(310) a. I incorporated the new result into the paper.
b. The paper incorporate the new results. (Levin, 1993, 82) (311) One alternating verb: d
˙amma ‘include’
(312) a. d
˙amma l-manzil-a Pilaa mumtalakaat-i-hi.
included DEF-house-ACC to properties-GEN-his
‘He included the house into his properties.’
b. d˙amma-t mumtalakaat-u-hu l-manzil-a.
included-PLproperties-NOM-his DEF-house-ACC
‘His properties included the house.’
Comment:
This alternation is found with one Arabic verb, but it could potentially be found
This alternation is found with one Arabic verb, but it could potentially be found