Explaining meaning: The interplay of syntax, semantics, and pragmatics

Introduction Traditionally, one of the usages of the prefix po(often called delimitative or attenuative) is associated with some characteristic of an event being lower than the expected value: an event lasting for a short period of time, a small quantity of the theme consumed, etc. According to Filip (2000, pp. 47–48) “[t]he prefix pocontributes to the verb the [. . .] meaning of a small quantity or a low degree relative to some expectation value, which is comparable to vague quantifiers like a little, a few and vague measure expressions like a (relatively) small quantity / piece / extent of.”