Роль грамматикализации в расширении денотативного пространства глаголов-связок со значением ‘становиться’, ‘делаться’ (на материале английского языка)

Abstract

The object of the article is to single out a group of verbs with the meaning ‘become’ and determine regularities of acquiring this meaning as well as defining the role of grammaticalisation in this process. The research examines how grammaticalisation influences the denotative field of be-coming starting from Old English where it was represented by one linking verb up to New English where 12 linking verbs can be distinguished. Besides, each verb has its part in the denotative field and can be differentiated according to frequency and the ability to collocate with certain predicatives.