“¿Cabe decir algo más?” An Inquiry into the Historical Development of a Modal and Discursive Verbal Periphrasis in Spanish

Abstract

The main objective of this article is to reassess the pivotal role of semantic change within the framework of grammaticalisation and its intricate relationship with both textual and sentence syntax. To analyse the interaction between semantics and syntax in processes of grammaticalisation, we will study the evolution of the verbal construction caber + INF, which in contemporary Spanish specialises in (i) expressing modal senses, lying midway between dynamic and deontic values, and (ii) a procedural value that limits the speaker’s commitment to what they affirm.

Keywords

• verbal periphrases
• grammaticalisation
• Spanish
• semantics
• syntax