Az Eszterházy Károly Tanárképző Főiskola Tudományos Közleményei. 2004. Vol. 4. Eger Journal of English Studies. (Acta Academiae Paedagogicae Agriensis : Nova series ; Tom. 30)

ÉVA KOVÁCS The Diachronic Development ofPhrasal Verbs in English

118 Éva Kovács observes that metaphorical shifts in prefixed and phrasal verbs affect only the root of the verb, not the particle and the particle usually preserves directional meaning. 3 Meanings of prefixes in OE and ME 3.1 Meanings of prefixes in OE A standard grammar of Old English lists the following prefixes OE prefix Meaning Modern German cognate (a) áaway, out erbe-, biabout, around be-, beiforforth, away verfullfull vollgetogether geofoff, away abtoapart, away zert>urhthrough durch(b) forötowards fortoferover überupup, away aufütout, away ausymbaround umThe prefixes in (a) express 'perfective', 'intensive', or 'completive' senses (Quirk and Wrenn 1957: 109-19), while the ones in (b) are said to have only 'adverbial' or concrete senses. Although Quirk and Wrenn list üt-, and up- as prefixes, Brinton (1988: 280) notes that they are extremely rare as verbal prefixes in Old English. Brinton (1988: 22) argues that "when not purely spatial in meaning, all these prefixes may, like the post-verbal particles in Modern English indicate the goal of action. Thus, they are better analysed as expressions of telic aktionsart than of perfective or intensive aspect." For an understanding of the development of aktionsart meaning in these forms, it is important to note that in their concrete sense, the above prefixes except ge- and full- all have a directional meaning cf movement from or to.