On the Expression of Action Phases in German and South- and West-Slavic Languages

The organization of action into temporal phases is examined, & three major phases are distinguished: ingressivity, continuity, & completivity. The linguistic means to express these phases in Polish, Czech, Slovak, Russian, Slovenian, Serbo-Croatian, Bulgarian, & German are examined. Two strategies are found in Slavic langs: (1) three-element structures of morphologized constructions consisting of phase V & full V (Bulgarian, Russian), & (2) two-element constructions of the same type for ingressivity & completivity (the other langs). Continuity is also expressed with adverbials in all languages that use the comparative form "spatially remote/distant." 2 References. AA Tr & Modified by Z. Dubiel