Hélène de Penanros

Šauti šautuvu or iš šautuvo? About two constructions of the instrument in Lithuanian

In Lithuanian, the instrument of verbs of shooting may be formulated in two different syntactic constructions: the instrumental case or the preposition iš. These two constructions are often considered to be synonyms. A detailed study of numerous contexts where these constructions appear shows that they are not equivalent but correspond to two different representations of the event shooting: the instrumental case defines the process, providing it with qualitative determinations, whereas the preposition iš constructs the exteriorization of the projectile. We will show that these hypotheses on the semantics of the instrumental case and of the preposition iš permit one to account for the different uses of the two constructions and for their differences in acceptability, should differences arise. This analysis is based on the Theory of Predicative and Enunciative Operations of A. Culioli. It argues for the thesis that grammar and lexicon are not to be dissociated.

Keywords: case, instrumental, preposition, synonymy, relator, semantics, syntax, predicative operations, enunciative operations