Extension and its Limits

Book excerpt: The present volume focuses on a special topic – on the one hand, found at all levels of language organization, and presumably present in language since its origin. On the other hand, this issue – extension – has only relatively recently become the subject of serious study and, as such, it is still a largely unexplored, fresh, and exciting object of linguistic pursuit. Equipped with multiple linguistic tools, the contributors investigate, among others, such facets of extension as its regularities, directions, possible limits, and methodologies that can best account for it. By doing so, they provide significant insights into the following research areas: the multidimensional nature of the lexical item; the influence that metaphorical and metonymic extension of lexical items has on these items’ grammar; as well as the semantics and, in particular, the polysemy of constructions. Richly illustrated with examples from several languages, including English, French, Polish, Russian, and German, this volume enhances the understanding of the nature of extension.