Complement Alternation in Removal Verbs: Biblical vs. Modern Hebrew / חילופי המשלימים של פועלי הסרה בלשון המקרא בהשוואה לעברית בת ימינו

Removal verbs select two complements with the semantic roles of locatum and location. In many languages, these complements vary in their syntactic realization. Some verbs realize their complements in what we call frame A, where the locatum is the direct object of the verb. Other verbs realize their complements in frame B, where the location is the direct object. The complements of a third group of verbs alternate in their realization between the two frames A/B. In the present study, we first survey the distribution of removal verbs in biblical Hebrew among the three classes: A, B, A/B. We then examine those verbs which have remained in use in modern Hebrew. Our main finding is that the distribution of these verbs is determined by their biblical distribution; namely, they maintain the basic semantic schism between verbs which realize their arguments in frame A (whether or not they also alternate in A/B), and those which realize their arguments in frame B only. This consistency uncovers an aspect of modern Hebrew syntax that is an organic development of biblical Hebrew syntax.