本文是一篇英语语言学论文，本文认为，基式动词到动词重叠式之间的界性调整可进一步解释动词重叠式的附加语义，并提出，动词重叠式具有增减共存的附加语义。
Chapter One Introduction
1.1 Research Background and Research Object
Verb reduplication is a special composite structure within the verb category, characterized primarily by the following two aspects: First, the transformation of a base verb into verb reduplication involves morphological changes, achieved through the repetition of a verb to represent the superposition of two verbs with identical lexical meanings and forms. Second, the superposition of these two verbs with identical lexical meanings results in a semantic difference from the base verb; that is, the reduplicated verb must acquire additional meanings to be considered a true verb reduplication (He Rong, 1962). As verb reduplication, it must simultaneously exhibit both of these feature.
The question of which forms can be termed verb reduplication is a fundamental issue that linguists must first clarify when studying verb reduplication. It is generally accepted that verb reduplication includes forms such as “V一V”, “V了V”, and “VV”, among others. The academic community largely agrees that “VV” represents the most basic form of verb reduplication, formed directly through the morphological superposition of the verb “V” (Chang Jian, 1981; Zhu Dexi, 1982). Verb reduplication has only one form, which is “VV”. Li Renjian (1964) pointed out that there should be no phonological pause within verb reduplication, and no elements can be inserted between the verbs in verb reduplication. Only when the verb “V” is reduplicated into “VV” without any intervening elements does it qualify as verb reduplication. Shi Youwei (1997) also contends that, in a strict sense, verb reduplication exists in only one form, that is, the “VV” form. This thesis adopts the above viewpoints, positing that only a form in which two verbs are formally repeated and closely connected without any other components in between can be called verb reduplication, and there is only the “VV” form.
1.2 Research Questions
This study, based on the bounded exhibited by verb reduplication, explores the boundedness adjustments that occur when the base verb undergoes reduplication. It aims to address the following three questions:
(1) What are the commonalities and differences in boundedness between the base verbs and verb reduplication?
(2) When a base verb combines with a reduplicated verb, how is the boundedness adjustment of the verb reduplication achieved?
(3) How does verb reduplication achieve its additional semantics of “coexistence of diminution and augmentation” during the process of boundedness adjustment?
Chapter Two Literature Review
2.1 Foreign Research
It should be noted that verb reduplication is not unique to the Chinese language. As a grammatical device, reduplication is widely distributed across many languages in the world’s major language families. Zhang Min (1997) found that almost every morphological pattern of reduplication in Chinese has appeared in one or several other languages, and the core semantics expressed by Chinese reduplication are also found in other languages. Moreover, other languages contain a large number of reduplication patterns and semantic types that do not exist in Chinese. This indicates that the semantics of reduplication have universality and are not arbitrary.
Most foreign scholars have approached the semantics of verb reduplication from the perspective of linguistic iconicity. They have pointed out that verb reduplication can express meanings such as plurality or intensity. According to Edward Sapir (1921), reduplication, or the repetition of all or part of a root element, is a natural and widespread phenomenon across languages. This grammatical process is generally used to convey concepts such as dispersion, plurality, repetition, habitual actions, extension of volume, increased intensity and continuity. Wang Shu (2016) interprets two key points from Sapir’s statement: 1. The symboli
