Properties of the Arabic language
5.4 Testing Levin’s Alternations for Arabic
5.4.5 Reciprocal alternations
5.4.5.1 Simple reciprocal alternation (transitive) (195) a. I mixed the sugar into the butter.
b. I mixed the sugar and the butter. (Levin,1993, 59–60) (196) mazaja ‘mix’ verbs (some): Paalafa ‘consolidate’,Pallafa ‘consolidate’,
Paqrana ‘join’, ˇsaabaka ‘connect’, jamaca ‘join’, laPama ‘join’, laah
˙ama
‘unite’, maazaja ‘intermix’, mazaja‘mix’, qarana ‘join’, rabat
˙a ‘tie’, waˇsˇsaja
mixed DEF-cook-NOM DEF-eggs-ACC with-DEF-milk-GEN
‘The cook mixed the eggs with the milk.‘
b. mazaja t
˙-t
˙abbaax-u l-bayd
˙-a wa-l-h
˙alPib-a.
mixed DEF-cook-NOM DEF-eggs-ACC and-DEF-milk-ACC
‘The cook mixed the eggs and the milk.‘
(198) fas
˙ala ‘separate’ verbs (some): ? cazala ‘isolate’, t
˙allaqa ‘divorce’, fas˙ala‘separate’, ? fakka‘disassociate’, ? faraqa‘separate’, faraza‘segregate’,
? farraqa ‘separate’, ? maaza ‘part’, ? mayyaza ‘part’, ? qat
˙aca‘cut’, . . . (199) a. t
˙allaqa l-qaad
˙Pi r-rajul-a can zawjat-i-h i.
divorced DEF-judge DEF-man-ACC from wife-GEN-his
‘The judge divorced the man from his wife.’
b. t˙allaqa l-qaad
˙Pi r-rajul-a wa-zawjat-a-hu.
divorced DEF-judge DEF-man-ACC and-wife-ACC-his
‘The judge divorced the man and his wife.’
(200) * Pals
˙aqa ‘tape’ verbs: Pawt
¯aqa ‘tie’,Pls
˙aqa‘glue’,caqada‘knot’, ˙gallala
‘chain’, ˙garaa ‘glue’, s
˙afda ‘handcuff ’, s
˙affada ‘handcuff ’, barˇsama ‘clinch’, dabasa ‘tack’, las
˙s
˙aqa ‘glue’, lazaqa ‘glue’, qayyada ‘string’, rabat
˙a ‘tie’, rabaqa ‘string’, salsala‘chain’, sammara ‘nail’, . . .
(201) a. Palos
taped Ali-NOM DEF-picture-ACC on-DEF-wall-GEN
‘Ali taped the picture to the wall.’
b. * Palos
taped Ali-NOM DEF-picture-ACC and-DEF-wall-GEN
* ‘Ali taped the picture and the wall.’
Comment:
This alternation is predominantly found with verbs of mixing and amalgamating.
The verbs can imply a degradation of the material integrity of the two objects (patients) participating in the event as is the case for the verb mazaja ‘mix’ or a permanent contact of the two objects without a degradation of their material integrity, as with the verb qarana ‘join’. In the a-variant of this alternation the verbs involve two coequal rolespatient 1 and patient 2. Patient 1 is assigned to the direct object of the verb and patient 2to the object of one of the prepositions maca or bi ‘with’. In the b-variant, the two patients are realized as a conjoined NP: [NP NP2 wa-NP3].
5.4.5.2 Together reciprocal alternation (transitive) (202) a. I creamed the sugar into the butter.
b. I creamed the sugar and the butter together. (Levin, 1993, 61) (203) * mazaja‘mix’verbs (some): Paalafa‘consolidate’,Pallafa‘consolidate’,
Paqrana ‘join’, ˇsaabaka ‘connect’, jamaca ‘join’, laPama ‘join’, laah
˙ama
‘unite’, maazaja ‘intermix’, mazaja‘mix’, qarana ‘join’, rabat
˙a ‘tie’, waˇsˇsaja
˙aqa ‘tape’ verbs: Pawt
¯aqa ‘bind’, Pawt
¯aqa ‘tie’, Pls
˙aqa ‘glue’,
caqada‘knot’, ˙gallala ‘chain’, ˙garaa ‘glue’, s
˙afda ‘handcuff ’, s
˙affada ‘hand-cuff ’, barˇsama‘clinch’, dabasa ‘tack’, las
˙s
˙aqa‘glue’, lazaqa ‘glue’, qayyada
‘string’, rabat
˙a ‘tie’, rabaqa ‘string’, salsala ‘chain’, sammara ‘nail’, . . . Comment:
This alternation is not found in Arabic, since it does not dispose of an element that corresponds to together in meaning or grammatical function. However, Arabic shows other (different) instances of reciprocal alternations. For instance, verbs
of mixing show what one could call the bayna alternation ‘between alternation’
(205). In the a-variant, the first patient is assigned to the direct object and the second patient is realized as the object of one of the prepositions macaor bi‘with’.
In the b-variant, however, the two patients are objects of the preposition bayna
‘between’ (as a plural NP or as two conjoined NPs) (see section6.3.3).
(205) a. mazaja t
˙-t
˙abbaax-u l-bayd
˙-a bi-l-h
˙alPib-i.
mixed DEF-cook-NOM DEF-eggs-ACC with-DEF-milk-GEN
‘The cook mixed the eggs with the milk.’
b. mazaja t
˙-t
˙abbaax-u bayna l-bayd
˙-i wa-l-h
˙alPib-i.
mixed DEF-cook-NOMbetween DEF-eggs-GEN and-DEF-milk-GEN
‘The cook mixed the eggs and the milk.‘
5.4.5.3 Apart reciprocal alternation (intransitive) (206) a. I broke the twig off (of ) the branch.
b. I broke the twig and the branch apart. (Levin, 1993, 61) (207) * fas
˙ala ‘separate’ verbs (some): cazala ‘isolate’, t
˙allaqa ‘divorce’, fas˙ala ‘separate’, fakka ‘disassociate’, faraqa ‘separate’, faraza ‘segregate’, farraqa ‘separate’, maaza‘part’, mayyaza ‘part’, qat
˙aca ‘cut’, . . . Comment:
This alternation is also not available in Arabic, since there is no element in this language that corresponds in meaning and function to apart. In the b-variant of the English example in (207), apart indicates the resulting configuration of some action involving a separation of an object from another (ground) object.
5.4.5.4 Simple reciprocal alternation (intransitive) (208) a. Brenda agreed with Molly.
b. Brenda and Molly agreed. (Levin,1993, 62–64)
(209) ta-laaqaa ‘INTR-meet’ verbs: Pi-ltaqaa‘INTR-meet’, ta-s
˙aadafa ‘INTR -meet’, ta-s
˙aadaqa ‘INTR-befriend’, ta-daacaba ‘INTR-banter’, ta-jaalasa
‘INTR-meet’, ta-laacaba ‘INTR-play’, ta-laaqa ‘INTR-meet’, ta-qaabala‘INTR -meet’, . . .
(210) a. Pi-ltaqa-t salmaa maca s
˙adiiqat-i-haa
INTR-met-FSalma with friend-GEN-her
‘Salma met with her friend.’
b Pi-ltaqa-t salmaa wa-s
˙adiiqat-a-haa
INTR-met-F Salma wa-friend-ACC-her
‘Salma and her friend met.’
(211) ta-maazaja ‘INTR-mix verbs: ta-Paalafa ‘consolidate’, ta-Pallafa ‘INTR -consolidate’, Pin-qarana ‘INTR-join’, Pi-ˇsatabaka ‘INTR-connect’, Pi-jtamaca
‘INTR-join’, Pi-ltaPama ‘INTR-join’, ta-maazaja ‘INTR-intermix’, Pi-rtabat
˙a
‘INTR-tie’,Pin-was
˙ala‘INTR-connect’,Pi-xtalat
˙a‘INTR-mix’, ta-xallat
˙a‘INTR
-INTS-mix’, ta-zaawaja ‘INTR-pair’, . . .
(212) a. Pi-mtazaja l-bayd
˙-u bi-d-daqPiq-i.
INTR-mixed DEF-eggs-NOM with-DEF-flour-GEN
‘The Eggs mixed with the flour.’
b. Pi-mtazaja l-bayd
˙-u wa-d-daqPiq-u.
INTR-Smixed DEF-eggs-NOM and-DEF-flour-NOM
‘The Eggs and flour mixed.’
(213) Pi-xtalafa ‘INTR-differ’, ta-caarad
˙a ‘INTR-differ’, ta-ˇsaawara ‘INTR-consult’, ta- ˙gaazala ‘INTR-flirt’, ta-h
˙aawara ‘INTR-discuss’, ta-d
¯aakara ‘INTR-talk’, ta-baah
˙at
¯a ‘INTR-negociate’, ta-baasat
˙a ‘INTR-banter’, ta-daarasa ‘INTR -discuss’, ta-daawala ‘INTR-negociate’, ta-faatah
˙a ‘INTR-discuss’, ta-faawad
˙a
‘INTR-negociate’, ta-kaataba ‘INTR-write’, ta-maazah
˙a ‘INTR-banter’, ta-qaayad
˙a‘INTR-negociate’, ta-raasala‘correpond’, ta-saawama‘INTR-negociate’, ta-waafaqa ‘INTR-agree’, ta-xaat
˙aba ‘INTR-talk’, ta-xaalafa ‘INTR-disagree’, . . .
(214) a. ta-raasala l-jundiyy-u mac caaPilat-i-hi.
INTR-corresponded DEF-soldier-NOMwith family-GEN-his
‘The soldier corresponded with his family.’
b. ta-raasala l-jundiyy-u wa-caaPilat-a-hu.
INTR-corresponds DEF-soldier-NOMand-family-NOM-his
‘The soldier and his family corresponded.’
Comment:
Most verbs found with this alternation are derived from verbs participating in the transitive reciprocal alternationin section 5.4.1.8. The relation between the a-variant of the alternation and the b-variant is in a broad sense a paraphrase relation (Levin, 1993, 63). However, it is not a bidirectional entailment relation.
The meaning of the a-variant can be entailed from the meaning of the b-variant and not vice versa. Thus, x and y correspond with each other entails that x corresponds with y or/and y corresponds with x. However, x corresponds with y does not entail that x and y correspond with each other.
The a-variant has the frame ‘V NP1 [pp maca/bi NP2] and the b-variant involves the frame ‘V [NP NP1 wa-NP2]. The alternation does not impose a morphological marking on the verb.
5.4.5.5 Together reciprocal alternation (215) a. The eggs mixed with the cream.
b. The eggs and the cream mixed together. (Levin, 1993, 64) Comment:
This is the intransitive version of thetogether reciprocal alternation and is also not available in Arabic. However, other language-specific forms of reciprocal alternations are available (see section 6.3.3 for more details).
5.4.5.6 Apart Reciprocal Alternation (216) a. The twig broke off (of )the branch.
b. The twig and the brach broke apart. (Levin,1993, 64–65) Comment:
The intransitive version of theapart reciprocal alternation is also not available in Arabic.
5.4.5.7 Fullfilling alternation
(217) a. The judge presented a prize to the winner.
b. The judge presented the winner with a prize. (Levin,1993, 65–66) (218) jahhaza ‘equip’ verbs: jahhaza ‘equip’, sallah
˙a ‘arm’, zawwada ‘provi-sion’, waafaa ‘furnish’, . . .
(219) a. * jahhaza-t ˇs-ˇsarikat-u l-h
˙awaasiib-a
equipped DEF-company-NOM DEF-computers-NOM
li-l-mustaxdamiina.
to-DEF-employees-GEN
‘The company equipped the employees with computers.’
b. jahhazat ˇs-ˇsarikat-u l-mustaxdamiina equipped DEF-company-NOM DEF-employees-ACC
bi-h˙awaasPib-i.
with-computers-GEN
‘The company equipped the employees with computers.’
(220) * Pacat
˙aa ‘give’ verbs: Pact
˙aa ‘lend’,Pacaara‘give’, Paata‘lend’,Pajjara
‘lease’, Paqad
˙a ‘lend’, Phodaa ‘present’, baaca ‘sell’, karaa ‘lease’, mallaka
‘CAUS-own’, manah
˙a ‘give’, naawala ‘hand’, . . .
(221) a. Pahdaa l-malik-u sajjaad-an li-l-waziir-i.
donated DEF-king-NOMcarpet-ACC-IND to-DEF-minister-GEN
‘The minister presented a carpet to the minister.’
b. * Pahdaa l-malik-u l-waziir-a bi-sajjaad-in.
donated DEF-king-NOM DEF-minister-ACC with-carpet-GEN-IND
‘The minister presented the minister with a carpet.’
Comment:
Thefulfilling alternation is not available in Arabic. In English, it is characteristic for verbs of fulfilling like credit, entrust, etc. In the a-variant, the theme of possession transfer is realized as object and the recipient as the object of the preposition li‘to’. In the b-variant, the recipient is assigned to the object and the theme to the object of the preposition bi‘with’. Verbs of possession transfer in Arabic are only found with one of these variants.
5.4.5.8 Image impression alternation
(222) a. The jeweller inscribed the name on the ring.
b. The jeweller inscriber the ring with the name. (Levin, 1993, 66) (223) waˇsama ‘tattoo’ verbs: t
˙araza ‘embroider’, t
˙arraza ‘embroider’, naqaˇsa
‘engrave’, raˇsama ‘stamp’, waˇsama‘tattoo’, wasama‘imprint’, . . .
(224) a. waˇsama Pisom-a-haa calaa diraac-i-hi.
tattooed name-ACC-her on shoulder-GEN-his
‘He tattooed her name on his shoulder.’
b. waˇsama diraac-a-hu bi-Pisom-i-haa.
tattooed shoulder-ACC-his with-name-GEN-her
‘He tattooed his shoulder with her name.’
(225) * zaxorafa‘ornament’verbs: ˇsaxbat
˙a‘scratch’, t
˙abaca‘print’, dawwana
‘scribble’, kataba ‘write’, nah
˙ata‘carve’, nasaxa ‘copy’, raqana ‘type’, rasama
‘draw’, xat
˙t
˙a‘scribble’, xat
˙t
˙at
˙a‘scribble’, xadaˇsa‘scratch’, xarbaˇsa ‘scratch’, . . .
(226) a. rasama s
˙urat-a-haa calaa l-jidaar-i.
drew image-ACC-her on DEF-wall-GEN
‘He drew her image on the wall.’
b. * rasama l-jidaar-a bi-s
˙uurat-i-haa.
drew DEF-wall-ACC with-image-GEN-her
‘He drew her image on the wall.’
Comment:
Theimage impression alternation exhibits the same properties as the spray/ load alternation. The difference lies in the end result associated with the event in both cases. The spray/load alternationinvolves an end result which consist of a change of location of an object, whereas the image impression alternation involves the end result of an image being created on a specific surface. Therefore, it does not involve the “holistic/partitive” effect. The alternation does not require a morphological marking.
5.4.5.9 With/Against alternation (227) a. Brian hit the stick against the fence.
b. Brian hit the fence with the stick. (Levin,1993, 67–68) (228) s
˙araqa ‘cuff ’, daqqa‘hit’, faˇsaxa
‘spank’, falaqa‘hit’, kasaca‘hit’, lat
˙aca‘spank’, lat
˙ama‘spank’, lakaPa‘punch’, lakama ‘punch’, lakaza ‘punch’, lakka ‘punch’, . . .
(229) a. * d
˙araba saliim-un l-mit
˙raqat-a calaa l-jidaar-i.
hit Salim-NOM DEF-hammer-ACC againstDEF-wall-GEN
‘Salim hit the hammer against the wall.’
b. d˙araba saliim-un l-jidaar-a bi-l-mit
˙raqat-i.
hit Salim-NOM DEF-wall-ACC with-DEF-hammer-GEN
‘Salim hit the wall with the hammer.’
Comment:
This alternation as found with verbs of the class hitin English does probably not exist in Arabic. Candidate verbs of contact by impact like d
˙araba ‘hit’ or s
˙afaca
‘spank’ are found with the b-variant of the alternation, but not with the a-variant.
The object of the prepossition bi-is mainly understood as the instrument of the action.
5.4.5.10 Through/With alternation
(230) a. Alison pierced the needle through the cloth.
b. Alison pierced the cloth with a needle. (Levin,1993, 68–69) (231) * xaraqa ‘perforate’verbs: ˇsaddaba‘prune’, t
¯aqaba ‘bore’, barada‘file’, xarama ‘hole’, xaraqa ‘pierce’, xaraza ‘transfix’, xazama ‘pierce’, . . .
(232) a. * xaraqa l-xayyaat
˙-u l-Pibrat-a cabra pierced DEF-tailor-NOM DEF-needle-ACC through
¯t-t
¯awb-i.
DEF-cloth-GEN
‘The tailor pierced the needle through the clothes.’
b. xaraqa l-xayyaat
˙-u t
¯-t
¯awb-a bi-l-Pibrat-i.
piercedDEF-tailor-NOM DEF-cloth-ACC with-DEF-needle-GEN
‘The tailor pierced the clothes with the needle.’
Comment:
This alternation is also not available in Arabic. In English, the main characteristic of the verbs participating in this alternation is the realization of the instrument as the theme. The theme corresponds to the object moved into contact with the locative object. In the b-variant, the instrument is assigned to the object of the preposition with. As is the case with the with/againalternation, candidate verbs in Arabic are found only in the b-variant of the alternation.
5.4.5.11 Blame alternation
(233) a. Mira blamed the accidend on Terry.
b. Mira blamed Terry for the accident. (Levin, 1993, 69) (234) caataba ‘blame’ verbs: Paaxad
¯a ‘blame’, Paxad
¯a ‘blame’, , caaba ‘fault’,
caataba ‘blame’, cataba‘blame’,cayyaba ‘fault’, Pistankara ‘condamne’, . . .
(235) a. caataba-t l-Pumm-u l-Pihmaal-a calaa blamed-F DEF-mother-NOM DEF-negligence-ACC on Pibn-i-haa.
son-GEN-her
‘The mother blamed the negligence on her son.’
b. caataba-t l-Pumm-u Pibn-a-haa calaa blamed-F DEF-mother-NOM son-ACC-her for l-Pihmaal-i.
DEF-negligence-GEN
‘The mother blamed her son for his negligence.’
(236) * 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’, hayyaa ‘greet’, damma ‘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’, . . . (237) * 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’, . . .
(238) a. * wabbaxa-t l-Pumm-u l-Pihmaal-a calaa repoved-F DEF-mother-NOM DEF-negligence-ACC on Pibn-i-haa.
son-GEN-her
‘The mother reproved the negligence on her son.’
b. wabbaxa-t l-Pumm-u Pibn-a-haa calaa reproved-F DEF-mother-NOMson-ACC-her for li-Pihmaal-i.
DEF-negligence-GEN
‘The mother reproved her son for (her) negligence.’
Comment:
Arabic has its own version of theblame alternation. Unlike English, the two roles (theme and predicate 1), which alternate in the oblique position, are both object of the same preposition calaa‘on/for’. As in many other alternations, it is a mere position alternation. The same argument structure ‘V NP NPcalaa P’, is assigned to the thematic structure ‘agent predicate theme’ and ‘agent theme predicate’.
Non-alternating verbs like Pah
˙abba and madah
˙a ‘praise’ verbs are found with the b-variant only. This alternation does not require morphological marking.
1The predicate is one of the roles used in English VerbNet and also in Arabic VerbNet (see section9.1.2)
5.4.5.12 Search alternation
(239) a. Ida hunted the woods for deer.
b. Ida hunted for deer in the woods.
c. Ida hunted deer in the woods. (Levin,1993, 70–71) (240) fattaˇsa ‘search’ verbs: fattaˇsa ‘search’
(241) a. fattaˇsa kariim-un d-daraj-a can l-mustanadaat-i.
searched Karim-NOM DEF-drawer-ACC for DEF-documents-GEN
‘Karim searched the drawer for the documents.’
b. fattaˇsa kariim-un can l-mustanadaat-i fii d-daraj-i.
searched Karim-NOMfor DEF-documents-GEN in DEF-drawer-i
‘Karim searched for the documents in the drawer.’
c. * fattaˇsa kariim-un l-mustanadaat-a fii d-daraj-i.
searched Karim-NOM DEF-documents-ACC in DEF-drawer-i
‘Karim searched the documents in the drawer.’
(242) * fattaˇsa ‘search’ verbs (some): ˇsamˇsama ‘rifle’, bah
˙at
¯a ‘search’, dawwara ‘search’, naqqaba ‘excavate’
(243) a. * bah
˙at
¯a kariim-un d-daraj-a can l-mustanadaat-i.
searched Karim-NOM DEF-drawer-ACC for DEF-documents-GEN
‘Karim searched the drawer for the documents.’
b. bahh
˙at
¯a kariim-un can l-mustanadaat-i fii d-daraj-i.
searched Karim-NOMfor DEF-documents-GEN in DEF-drawer-i
‘Karim searched for the documents in the drawer.’
c. * bahh
˙at
¯a kariim-un l-mustanadaat-a fii d-daraj-i.
searched Karim-NOM DEF-documents-ACC in DEF-drawer-i
‘Karim searched the documents in the drawer.’
(244) * tah
˙arraa ‘investigate’ verbs: Pistaqs
˙aa‘survey’, tah
˙arra‘investigate’, taqas
˙aa‘survey’
(245) a. * taqas
investigates DEF-events-ACC for DEF-truth-GEN
‘He investigates the events for truth.’
b. * taqas
investigates for DEF-truth-GEN in DEF-events-GEN
* ‘He investigates for the truth in the events.’
b. taqas
investigates DEF-truth-ACC in DEF-events-GEN
‘He investigates the truth in the events.’
Comment:
The search alternation is a tripartite alternation. The object being sought of during the action can be realized as the direct object (239c) or as the object of the preposition for in (239a) and (239b). The location, however, can be either realized as direct object of the verb (239a) or as the object of a locative preposition (239b) and (239c). In Arabic, there are no verbs showing all three variants of this alternation. The verbs of the class fattaˇsa‘search’ are found with the a- and b-variants but not in the c-variant. Other semanticly related verb classes are found with one of the variants only. This alternation requires no morphological marking.
5.4.5.13 Body-Part possessor ascension alternation (246) a. Selina touched the horse on the back.
b. Selina touched the horse’s back. (Levin,1993, 71–72) (247) lamasa ‘touch’verbs (some): baasa‘kiss’, lat
¯ama‘kiss’, lamasa‘touch’, qabbala ‘kiss’, qaras
˙a ‘string’
(248) a. lamasa-t l-mumarridat-u s
˙-s
˙abiy-a calaa xadd-i-hi.
touched-F DEF-nurse-NOM DEF-child-ACC on DEF-jowl-GEN-his
‘The nurse touched the child on the jowl.’
a. lamasa-t l-mumarridat-u xadd-a s
˙-s
˙abiy-i.
touched-F DEF-nurse-NOM DEF-jowl-ACC DEF-child-GEN
‘The nurse touched the child’s jowl.’
(249) s
˙afacat ˇs-ˇsaabat-u l-mutah
˙arriˇs-a calaa slapped DEF-young-woman-NOM DEF-harasser-ACC on wajh-i-hi.
face-GEN-his
‘The young woman slapped the harasser on his face.’
b. s˙afacat ˇs-ˇsaabat-u wajh-a l-mutah
˙arriˇs-GEN. slapped DEF-young-woman-NOMface-ACC DEF-harasser-GEN
‘The young woman slapped the harasser’s face.’
(251) * qat
˙ara‘split’, ˇsaqqa‘cleave’, ˇsarrah
˙a
‘cut’, batala ‘cut’, batara ‘truncate’, batta ‘cut’, battala ‘cut’, bazala ‘clip’, fas˙s
˙ala ‘truncate’, fas
˙as
˙a ‘rip’, fallad
¯a ‘cut’, faraa ‘clip’, farama ‘fleece’, faxata ‘cut’, jad
¯ama‘cut’, jabba ‘truncate’, jadaca‘cut’, jaraza‘cut’, jazala
‘chop’, jazama‘clip’, jazza‘snip’, jazzaPa‘shear’, mazzaqa‘rip’, qas
˙s
˙a ‘chop’, xazala ‘truncate’
(252) a. * qat
˙aca s-sikiin-u l-jazaar-a fiiPus
˙buc-i-hi.
cut DEF-knife-NOM DEF-butcher-ACC in finger-GEN-his
‘The knife cut the butcher’s finger.’
b. qat
˙aca s-sikiin-u Pus
˙buc-a l-jazaar-i.
cut DEF-knife-NOM finger-ACC DEF-butcher-GEN
‘The knife cut the butcher’s finger.’
Comment:
This alternation is found with verbs of contact (with or without impact). It involves a patient and his body part. In the a-variant, the patient is realized as direct object of the main verb. The body part is realized as a PP headed by a locative preposition. It alternates with a construction where the patient and the body part are realized as one constituent (as the direct object). In Arabic, this alternation does not require morphological marking.