“果”与“竟”的平行与对立

The Parallel and Opposition of Guoran(果然) and Jingran(竟然)

现代汉语中,语气副词"果然"与"竟然"是反义词,但在汉语史上,"果"与"竟"在若干义项上是同义词:(1)时间副词"最终、终于";(2)语气副词"果真、果然";(3)语气副词"究竟、到底"。它们的同义关系是平行虚化的结果,而反义关系则是动词语义留存和语境吸收两种机制造成的。

Modal adverbs Guoran（果然） and Jingran（竟然） are antonyms in modern Chinese while in ancient Chinese Guo（果） and Jing（竟） were synonyms in a series of meanings：（1） time adverb ＂finally＂;（2） modal adverb ＂really＂;（3） modal adverb ＂actually＂. The synonymous relation is the result of parallel grammaticalization while the antonymous relation is triggered by semantic persistence and absorption of context.