Particle Homonymy in the German Language

Abstract

The purpose of this article is a systematic description of homonymous particles of the German language. The author turned to this issue since there is a need to reveal the conditions under which the particles ja, doch, bloß, nur, eben and schon can exhibit homonymous properties. Contextual and component analysis as well as the descriptive method are used in the study. The specific features of each class of particles are studied, in accordance with which, cases of the use of particles in the appropriate role are described. Based on the analysis of factual material from the DWDS и DECOW 16A corpora, the following criteria for identifying homonymous particles are proposed: functions; position in the sentence structure; scope of application; presence/absence of stress. Modal particles are represented as causal connectors capable of establishing logical connections between sentences and simultaneously conveying the speaker’s attitude; contrastive (stressed) particles are markers of contradictory or complementary contrast; focus and intensifying particles are associated with one word in a sentence and can be interpreted at the level of the phrase. It is suggested to consider modal and contrastive particles as grammaticalized units; discursive particles act as pragmatized elements; the meaning of focus and intensifying particles can be interpreted in a narrow context since they retain some of their semantics. The paper makes a contribution to the description of German particle homonymy. The results obtained can be used in practical German classes during senior years at language universities and in the course of theoretical grammar of the German language.