Adjectives or Verbs? The Case of Deverbal Adjectives in -ED

Abstract

Among the different ways an adjective can be formed, one of them is the use of the past participle of a verb, as in, for instance: The house was tucked far back from the main road. This process is not a straightforward case of derivation: an ambiguity often remains as to the status of the V-ED form, between adjective and verb, especially with adjectival passives. The aim of this article is to show how verbs can be “stabilised” into adjectives. With excited in they were excited, the stabilisation is complete, whereas with locked in the door was locked, the deriving verb can be reactivated, as in the door was suddenly locked. The parameters surveyed are: the semantics of the verb, agentivity (recoverable or not), prefixing (for instance the prefix be- in bedecked or the negative prefix un- in unchecked), lexicalization (particularly the contribution of the noun in a collocation of the type abandoned child) and, finally, syntax (attributive or predicative position). The conclusion which is reached is that instability is inherent to the use of V-ED adjectives as any variation (the presence of an adverb for example) can change their interpretation. The process of stabilisation is seen as linked to two major parameters: the suppression of the origin of the potential change of state and the backgrounding of agentivity.

Keywords

• past participle
• participial adjectives
• derivation
• agentivity
• passive
• referential stabilisation