The Constructive Potential of Nouns with Modal Semantics

The article is devoted to the permeability of semantic and combinatory preferences of nouns that possess or acquire modal semantics. The appeal to the topic of changes in the semantic structure of a word under various external influences on vocabulary is motivated by the needs of the lexicological development and the correction of lexical norms. Observation of active processes in vocabulary leads to conclusions about changes in the compatibility of some words for reasons rooted in their lexical semantics. The question of the valency of a group of nouns, realized in a substantive-infinitive phrase, is considered.

The connecting components in a substantive-infinitive phrase retain their lexical and grammatical features, therefore, when determining the status of the “noun + infinitive” construction, both structurally and syntactically within the sentence, the lexical and grammatical semantics of both members and their combinatory properties are taken into account.

An attempt relevant to this work is made to correlate and link static and dynamic aspects within the language system and to apply this approach to the material under investigation. Existing combinatory dictionaries do not give a complete picture of the combinability of nouns with the infinitive. The analysis of established and occasional constructions opens up mechanisms for replenishing the vocabulary of nouns capable of constructing phrases according to a given model.