Syntactic function NPab{N1=N2}
abstract complex noun; construction type: N1 is conjoined with N2 which is taken as synonymous in the context
[THE BRACKET NEEDS TO BE TRANSFERRED TO THE FIELD "CONSTRUCTION TYPE"]
It is often excruciatingly difficult to decide whether N1 or N2 do or do not contribute significantly different nuances in a given compound. Nor would it be correct to assume that there would always be unanimity among native speakers of classical Chinese on this matter. On the other hand, it seems important to distinguish between compounds in which a broader meaning is indicated by two contrasting nouns on the one hand, and the cases where a new more explicitly general noun is formed by two nouns that are taken to be synonymous. For example, in 死亡 "death" the reference is NOT to any kind of ceasing to exist, so that whereas there is a difference between the consituent words here, this difference is not operative in the word formation here (according to our present analysis which is - of course - very much open to discussion). Finally, one should remember that all these bracketed syntactic specifications can and must now be moved into the newly established field of "construction type".
Usage
- Lexical entries:
- Found 224 attributions