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Part of
Current Theoretical and Applied Perspectives on Hispanic and Lusophone Linguistics
Edited by Diego Pascual y Cabo and Idoia Elola
[Issues in Hispanic and Lusophone Linguistics 27] 2020
► pp. 215–232

Chapter 10
Developing epistemic meaning

A diachronic study of the Spanish adverb a lo mejor

| Indiana University

The present paper focuses on the development of the Spanish adverb a lo mejor, originally meaning ‘to the best’ as it develops from a prepositional phrase indicating a destination or goal to an epistemic modal adverb which expresses the speaker’s doubt concerning the proposition. It is shown that the semantic change came about due to a combination of local and contextual factors. Chief among them is the pre-verbal positioning of a lo mejor, its occurrence with achievement predicates, and implications of futurity. In becoming an epistemic adverb, the change follows Traugott’s Tendency III for semantic change which states that “meanings tend to become increasingly based in the speaker’s subjective belief state/attitude toward the proposition” (1989, p. 35).

Keywords: semantic change, epistemic modality, subjectification, lexical aspect
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2. A lo mejor in synchrony
  • 3.Diachronic functions of a lo mejor
    • 3.1The 14th and 15th centuries: Directionality and use as a manner adjunct
    • 3.2The 16th and 17th centuries: Temporal use and temporal-modal use
    • 3.3Epistemic use
  • 4.Semantic change
  • 5.Discussion
    • 5.1Other factors affecting the semantic development of a lo mejor
    • 5.2Subjectification
  • 6.Conclusion
  • Note
  • References
Published online: 4 June 2020
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/ihll.27.10jar
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