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The use of an elaborate system of co-verbial constructions is the hallmark of the Hungarian language and one of the biggest challenges a translator or a learner of this language has to face. Co-verbial constructions consist of verbs, or their derivates, accompanied by a limited number of prefixes or particles that modify their meanings. They not only perform numerous syntactic and lexical functions, which is important in terms of language production, but also are able to change the meaning of the verb completely. The aim of this study is to trace the cognitive motivation behind the use of Hungarian co-verbial constructions with össze/szétand to show that the meanings developed by these constructions can be organized with reference to prototypical scenes structured in the form of a radial category.

AbstractThe aim of the paper is to present modes of grammatical representation of affirmation in Serbian and English. I will explore the hypothesis that affirmation is a type of modality and its expression involves syntactic and morphological markers. The formal expression of strong types of affirmation modality is characte­rized by the preference for long, full and stressed variants of modal auxiliaries Alternatively, affirmative verb forms may be intensified by additional suprasegmental elements, such as intonation, or even para­linguistic tools, gestures and non-verbal ways of reinforcing a statement. This seems to confirm the general function-form isomorphism requiring the more complex mental events to be represented by more complex structures. I will argue that this requirement may initiate the process of auxiliation, perceived as a search to find a more adequate means for expressing affirmation modality.