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3 votes
0 answers
47 views

When and by whom was the term absolutive (case) created?

While the question on the origin of the ergative case (When and by whom were the terms 'ergative case' and 'absolutive case' coined?) is answered, the origins of the terminus ...
Sir Cornflakes's user avatar
4 votes
2 answers
418 views

Word for difference between "in" and "into"

I was wondering whether there are words for the two types of prepositions, or a word for the distinction between them. I understand that the difference between them is that one is a "static" ...
Quintus Caesius - RM's user avatar
0 votes
3 answers
371 views

What's the difference between nominative and absolutive case?

Why do both these cases need to exist? They are both subjects
user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
140 views

What is (or was) the exative case?

Inspired by this finding I'd like to know what the exative case described by Taplin for south-australian languages is or was. It does not seem to be modern terminology any longer, and lists of ...
Sir Cornflakes's user avatar
1 vote
0 answers
256 views

What is the definition of a “case” in grammar?

Among others, according to Wikipedia: "Case" is a linguistics term regarding a manner of categorizing nouns, pronouns, adjectives, participles, and numerals according to their traditionally ...
blackened's user avatar
  • 473
5 votes
1 answer
140 views

The term for the state of a noun

In linguistics, a case is how a noun declines with respect to its grammatical function within a given phrase, clause, or sentence. Is there a linguistics term to refer to the “state” of a noun within ...
blackened's user avatar
  • 473
8 votes
4 answers
17k views

What are the subjective and objective genitives?

I have recently come across the terms subjective genitive and objective genitive, but I don't fully understand them. From what I have read, an example might be 'the love of God', as in 'the love of ...
Au101's user avatar
  • 228
4 votes
1 answer
942 views

What is the meaning of the Latin names of grammatical cases (in general, not in Latin)?

I cannot find any source explaining the Latin names of grammatical cases. I am especially curious in the names of the less common cases, like in Finnish: nominative genitive accusative partitive ...
Honza Zidek's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
857 views

Grammatical case vs semantic case

I'm not sure what these terms mean. In my lecture notes I wrote that grammatical case is used to show the syntactic functions of a nominal syntagm, depending on its relation to the verb. Semantic case,...
lmc's user avatar
  • 939
25 votes
4 answers
5k views

What is "case"?

As a non-linguist, I am confused about the concept of case. What is its definition, as linguists use it? Is it about the different forms that nouns/pronouns can take? Is it about the function of the ...
Szabolcs's user avatar
  • 704
2 votes
0 answers
202 views

What does CGEL mean by 'instability in the system' in their explanation of case?

Consider the following passage from CGEL (p. 458, boldfaced emphasis mine): We look first at the contrast between nominative and accusative case, where we find a considerable amount of variation ...
linguisticturn's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
156 views

Grammatical case for provenience

I am looking for the term for the grammatical case expressing provenience or origin, roughly corresponding to the English prepositions "of, from, out of, made from" as for example: He is from Sweden. ...
jan's user avatar
  • 173
0 votes
1 answer
473 views

What motivated the terms 'ergative' and 'absolutive'?

Source: p 195, Understanding Syntax (4 ed, 2014) by Prof. Maggie Tallerman PhD in Linguistics (U. Hull) ERGATIVE is the case of A – the subject of transitive verbs. ABSOLUTIVE is the case of both ...
user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
114 views

How can it be decided whether two grammatical cases should be taken to be just homophonous (i.e. as separate) or actually equal?

I've come across this in multiple grammars: Two grammatical cases (e.g. ergative and instrumental) are said to be "homophonous" - they make use of the (apparently?) same marker and yet, they are ...
maj's user avatar
  • 346
5 votes
1 answer
175 views

What is "contacting case"?

According to Wikipedia, the Bats language of Eastern Georgia has a case called "contacting", but no description is offered as to its function. I checked the Russian and Georgian versions of the page ...
hippietrail's user avatar
  • 14.8k
7 votes
3 answers
629 views

Is there a name for the "case" that is a conflation of nominative and accusative?

In Indo-European languages, the neuter is often characterized by syncretism between nominative and accusative. There are other examples of syncretism and also historical change where the nominative ...
James Tauber's user avatar