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In:The Diachrony of Word Class Peripheries
Edited by Tanja Ackermann and Christian Zimmer
[Studies in Language Companion Series 238] 2025
► pp. 60–80

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Chapter 3
Adjectival adverbs or adverbial adjectives?

How to explain synchrony with diachrony

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Published online: 7 November 2025
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https://doi.org/10.1075/slcs.238.03pau
Abstract
As opposed to other Indo-European languages, German displays a large class of adjectives that can be used in adverbial function without further morphological marking. Since it is often assumed that these elements share both adjectival and adverbial properties, they cannot be conclusively assigned to either word class. In this chapter, we intend to discuss synchronic and diachronic observations in order to shed new light on the historical development and grammatical properties of these elements. More generally, we explain the formal distinction of adjectives and adverbs by assuming various stages in the grammaticalization process, which also account for the different synchronic properties of these elements.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Synchronic approach
  • 3.Diachronic approach
  • 4.Towards a unified analysis
  • 5.Conclusions
  • Notes
  • Further abbreviations used
  • References
References (37)
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Cited by (1)

Cited by one other publication

Hübener, Carlotta J.
2025. German noun-participle combinations as peripheral adjectives. In The Diachrony of Word Class Peripheries [Studies in Language Companion Series, 238], ► pp. 101 ff. DOI logo

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