walking: semantic feature analysis

8/13/2019 Walking: semantic feature analysis

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0. INTRODUCTION. In my paper I attempt to analyze verbs of walking from the point of view of semantic featres. I will

focs on verbs that refer to motion forwar!s" sing only the legs as the movers" at a spee! lower than that of rnning. This means that"

for e#ample" crawl in the sense $move forwar! on han!s an! knees$ is otsi!e the scope of my investigation" since in this case the legs

are not the only movers. I will also ignore e#amples of ol!%fashione! se" sch as promenade.

In or!er not to have to tackle an enormos nmber of verbs" I have also e#cl!e! from my investigation several le#ical items

that can be labelle! &verb of walking& an! that wol! have satisfie! the criteria given above. 's a reslt of my !ecision" which is

arbitrary an! perhaps not completely (stifiable" I will not be analyzing )* verbs that necessarily imply more than one performer + file"

goose-step" an! certain meanings of march an! parade,- * verbs whose meaning implies the presence of other animate walkers nearby

+lag an! one of the meanings of stalk ,- /* wander an! its synonyms" i.e. verbs referring to walking withot a !efinite aim or !estination

for a relatively long time +ramble" roam" rove etc.,. The following 01 verbs have been consi!ere!2

amble" clmp" crawl" creep" !aw!le" !o!!er" e!ge" grope" hobble" inch" limp" lmber" lrch" march" mince" pace" pa!" pa!!le"

para!e" patter" plo!" prance" prowl" reel" sashay" santer" shamble" shffle" si!le" sklk" sleepwalk" sli!e" slink" slog" sloch"

sneak" stagger" stalk" stomp" stray" stri!e" stroll" strt" stmble" swagger" teeter" tiptoe" to!!le" totter" traipse" tramp" tr!ge"

trn!le" wa!!le" wa!e" wobble

It seems that there are for important aspects of walking" which are referre! to in !ictionaries. These are2 )* the type of the performer"

the walker- * the physical an! emotional state of the walker- /* the manner of walking- an! 3* the prpose of the walker. I have

incl!e! the aspect of spee! +$slow$ vs $4ick$, in manner. Occasionally reference is ma!e to activities that are often concomitant with

walking.

I have se! si# monolingal !ictionaries" of which the Longman Language Activator an! the Cassel Guide to Related Words

can be regar!e! as encyclopae!ic" the latter !escribing only ) verbs. In the tables the !ictionaries are nmber co!e! in the following

way2 the Collins Cobuild English Dictionar +CC5D, % )" the !"ford Advanced Learner#s Dictionar +O'6D, % " the Longman



Dictionar of Contemporar English +6DC5, % /" the Cambridge $nternational Dictionar of English +CID5, % 3" the Longman

Language Activator +66', % 0" an! the Cassel Guide to Related Words +C7R8, % 1. The co!ing is merely se! in or!er to save space.

Otherwise shortene! forms are se! to refer to the !ictionaries as shown above. The terms hea!ing the in!ivi!al colmns in the tables

are taken from the above%mentione! !ictionaries" from the !efinitions an! the e#amples alike. 8hen the !ictionary !i! not show that

any of the featres n!er inspection is typical of the given verb" the verb was not incl!e! in Tables )%3.

I have aske! si# native speakers" one of whom !escribe! only )9 verbs" the others analyze! most verbs. One speaker was

'merican 5nglish" the others :ritish 5nglish. ;ince they analyze! only those verbs that were familiar to them" the nmber of informantsvaries between ) an! 1- 1 verbs were analyze! by si# speakers" / verbs by five speakers" )0 verbs by for speakers" < verbs by three

speakers" verbs + slide an! wobble, by two speakers an! ) verb + paddle, by one speaker.

In !eci!ing whether there is a strong association between a given verb an! a particlar featre" I have sally taken the ct%off

point between two an! three" which means that the association was consi!ere! strong if at least three !ictionaries or three native

speakers matche! the given featre with the given verb. If two !ictionaries or two native speakers paire! a particlar featre with a

particlar verb" I regar!e! this as a sign of a less strong association" bt still an association. This principle was waive!" however" in the

case of those verbs that were analyze! by three or fewer native speakers" where the association was consi!ere! strong if two ot of

three or ot of two speakers matche! the verb with the featre.

1. 8'6=5R

1.1 >5'TUR5 'N'6?;I;



Table ). shows varios types of walkers as fon! in !ictionaries. The hea!ing $other animal$ in the last colmn stan!s for

nspecifie! animals or other than those liste! in the previos colmns" as shown below2

$Other animal$ in Table ).

amble % 2 !onkey- 02 horse plod % /2 mle- 02 !onkey

creep % )2 rabbit prowl % 32 scorpionlimp % 2 bir! slink % 2 fo#

lumber % 2 nspecifie! stra % 2 sheep- 32 cattle

pace % 32 nspecifie!- 02 lion strut % 2 peacock- 02 male bir!

The !ata is base! on the e#amples an! the !efinitions" bt the latter !o not always give this type of information. Two basic types

of walker can be !istingishe!2 hman an! animal. ;ome of the !efinitions" especially those in CC5D an! O'6D contain general terms

sch as $person$ or $animal$" bt in O'6D they are mostly to be fon! in the sage notes" to which the appropriate entry is cross%

reference!" whereas in CC5D they are part of the !efinition. The !efinitions in the other !ictionaries leave the st!ent in the !ark. '

carefl st!y of the e#amples shows animal performers with )0 verbs" bt only @ of these verbs have !efinitions that mention the term

$animal$. The reason for this !iscrepancy may be that !ictionary compilers have to !eci!e whether to incl!e only the typical or whether

to provi!e less typical e#amples. Those verbs that are strongly associate! with animal performers + crawl " creep" prowl an! waddle,

carry !efinitions that incl!e the term $animal$" whereas those that are less typically associate! bt possible with animals + lumber " pad "

sneak etc., show this fact in the e#ample sentences. This is a (stifiable strategy.

It is rarely the case that the animal is frther specifie! in the !efinition" e#cept for crawl in CC5D an! 6DC5" which se $insect$

an! e#cept for waddle in O'6D an! 6DC5" which se $like a !ck$. :t the formlation of the !efinition of these verbs in the other



!ictionaries limits the nmber of possible animal types" as in the case of CID5$s $with short steps" swinging the bo!y from one si!e to

the other$ in the entry for waddle.

Aore information is given by !ictionaries in the case of varios types of hman walkers. 8here more than one hman performer

is typical" this is alrea!y clearly shown in the !efinitions in all !ictionaries2 $people$ or $a grop*large nmber of people$ or a similar

phrase is se!. In terms of the types of hman walkers" the pictre varies" bt it is only the e#amples" if any" that show what types of

walker are possible. ;ome types mentione! in the !ictionaries" e.g. sol!ier" hospital patient" bo#er" reporter" have not been incl!e! in

Table )." becase they can be fon! only once or twice in the e#amples. ' comparative smmary of featre%verb associations is given below2

>5'TUR5; DICTION'RI5; N'TIB5 ;5'=5R;s t r o n g a s s o c i a t i o n

baby toddle crawl " toddle" totter

beetle crawl crawl

brglar creep" prowl

cat creep

!rnken man lurch" reel " stagger lurch" plod " reel " stagger " stumble" shamble

!ck waddle

elephant lumber fat man waddle plod

mo!el sasha

ol! man dodder " shuffle dodder " shuffle" shamble

thief creep" sneak

torist amble

wolf prowl

l e s s s t r o n g a s s o c i a t i o n brglar slink " sneak

cat creep prowl " slink



!og pad pad

!rnken man stumble" totter

!ck waddle

elephant plod

mo!el strut

mose creep" patter

ol! man amble" hobble" shamble hobble

thief prowl

wolf prowl slink

In the table above only those verbs are liste! that are incl!e! in Table ). 's can be seen" ma(or !isagreements between !ictionaries an!

native speakers occr in the following points2

Native speakers associate $brglar$ an! $thief$ with verbs sch as creep" slink " sneak an! prowl " which is perfectly n!erstan!able"

given the !efinitions of these verbs. :t one cannot fin! these associational links to the same !egree in !ictionaries- one e#ample can be

fon! with sneak " an! two e#amples % both in the same !ictionary an! in the same entry % with prowl . ;imilarly" almost all natives fon!

$torist$ typical of amble" bt this link is absent from !ictionaries. Ay informants matche! $baby$ to not only toddle" as in !ictionaries"

bt also to crawl " bt I attribte this to their lack of attention" since crawl in the sense I am e#amining it is not se! of babies.

;ince shamble was analyze! by only three native speakers" one col! arge that there is a fairly strong association between this

verb an! $!rnken man$*$ol! man$.Those verbs that are not liste! in Table ). are associate! with the featres by native speakers as shown below. It is srprising

that none of the verbs dawdle" saunter an! stroll is matche! with $torist$ in !ictionaries" !espite the fact that native speakers fin! these

verbs typical.

;trong association +native speakers,2

brglar% edge" tiptoe thief % sidle

cat % stalk torist % dawdle" saunter " stroll



mo!el % parade

6ess strong association +native speakers,2

baby % teeter elephant % stomp

brglar % skulk mo!el % mince% stride

!rnken man % clump" grope thief % sidle" skulk

Ay informants liste! frther performer types" which are not mentione! in !ictionaries" bt in most of these cases only one nativespeaker mentione! the given featre in connection with a particlar verb. The only e#ception is mince" which was matche! with

$homose#al man$ by two +:ritish, speakers. It is of some interest to note that the same performer type was also se! by the only

'merican informant" who matche! it with prance.

1.2 B5R: 'N'6?;I;

Ach of the information abot verbs can be inferre! from the lists an! the table given above. Native speakers fin! amble typical

of torists an! parade typical of mo!els" bt there are no e#amples in !ictionaries to show this. Crawl " creep" plod " an! slink are

associate! with many more types of performers by natives than shown in !ictionaries. It is interesting to note that C7R8 says $where

totter sggests age as the possible case of an nstea!y walk...$ an! it gives an e#ample containing $ol! cople$" sggesting that ol!

people totter" bt age as a significant aspect is not mentione! in the other !ictionaries- moreover" their e#amples incl!e terms sch as

$the baby$ +CC5D, an! $the chil!$ +O'6D," sggesting the opposite en! of the &age line&. One native speaker matche! totter with $ol!

man$" two speakers matche! it with $baby$" so for them there is a stronger link between $yong$ an! totter than between $ol!$ an! totter .

2. ?;IC'6*5AOTION'6 ;T'T5 O> 8'6=5R

2.1 >5'TUR5 'N'6?;I;

Tables .) an! . show how !ictionaries match the liste! featres with verbs of walking. The hea!ing $other$ stan!s for the

following2



$Other$ in Table .

grope % )" " /" 32 !ifficlt*impossible to see stagger % )2 ill- 02 in(re!

pace % )2 impatient- 02 nervos totter % )2 ill

sidle % )2 catios- " 32 nervos waddle % )" 3" 12 fat

sleepwalk % )" " /" 32 asleep wobble % 12 fat*s4atThe !ata is base! on the !efinitions. The se of certain wor!s" especially a!verbs sch as drunkenl in O'6D$s e#ample for

teeter " or angril in 66'$s e#ample for tramp" can imply that the featre is characteristic or that the featre is possible with the given

type of walking. I therefore !i! not mark a particlar featre%verb combination if the featre was not mentione! in the !ictionary

!efinition of that verb.

'rgably" there is overlapping between some of the featres. $Confi!ent$ an! $pro!$ are in!ee! close" an! it may be the case that

the se of one of these terms or the other !epen!s on the sb(ective choice of the le#icographer. ;ince" however" sometimes one

sometimes the other is se! in !ictionaries" I have kept them separate in Table . There is also some overlapping between $in pain$ an!

$in(re! leg$. The featre $ncertain$ refers to emotional ncertainty" not to partial loss of balance.

The colmn hea!ings +featres, se! in Table . an! those se! in Table /. also show some overlapping. It can be arge! that

some of my state featres +$confi!ent$" $pro!$ or $!isoriente!$, refer to the manner rather than the state" an! some of my manner featres

+$!etermine!$" $rela#e!$" or $relctant$, refer to the emotional state of the walker. I wol! like to claim that all of the above%mentione!

featres can be taken to refer to either state or manner" from or point of view it is of little importance which table incl!es them.

's can be seen from the colmn $other$" the featre list col! be e#ten!e!. Ay informants se! basically the same terms as in

Table ." an! were satisfie! with them" becase only one speaker a!!e! $!aze!$ for one verb" an! another speaker a!!e! $!istracte!$ for

one verb.

The featres were paire! with the following verbs +as shown in Table .,2



>5'TUR5; DICTION'RI5; N'TIB5 ;5'=5R;s t r o n g a s s o c i a t i o nafrai! slink

angry march" stalk " stomp stomp

an#ios pace

ashame! slink

bore! pace" trudge

cheerfl prance

confi!ent swagger march" parade" saunter " stalk " stride" swagger

!isoriente! reel " shamble" stagger

!rnk stagger lurch" reel " stagger

in(re! leg hobble" limp hobble" limp

ol! dodder dodder " shuffle

in pain hobble" limp

pro! stalk " strut " swagger march" stalk " strut " swagger

semi%conscios sleepwalk

tire! shamble" traipse" trudge

nable to control m. reel " stagger " stumble" totter

l e s s s t r o n g a s s o c i a t i o nangry pace pace

ashame! slink " skulk

bore! traipse

cheerfl saunter

confi!ent saunter prance" strut

!isoriente! grope" sleepwalk

!rnk reel stumble

in pain hobble" limp

pro! saunter parade" prance" stride

tire! slouch trudge

nable to control m. dodder " lurch" sleepwalk



ncertain sidle pace

weak dodder " shuffle" stagger

:oth native speakers an! !ictionaries fin! that $angry$ is typical of stomp" bt it is interesting that only !ictionaries associate the same

featre with march an! stalk . There is a strong link between $bore!$ an! trudge accor!ing to native speakers" bt none of the

!ictionaries conslte! establish the same link. It is tre that bore!om an! tire!ness often co%occr" an! $tire!$ is the typical featre given

in !ictionaries. The same is tre for $cheerfl$ an! prance. This is all the more srprising" becase the !efinitions !o not mention any

emotional state e#cept for $confi!ent$ in 6DC5" $e#cite!$ an! $pro!$ in O'6D an! the following e#amples in the entry for this verb

sggest that anger may be more common than cheerflness2 &he pranced into the office and demanded to speak to the manager

+CID5, an! 'e pranced out of the room in a fur +O'6D,. $Disoriente!$" $nable to control movement$ an! $weak$ are matche! with

more verbs by native speakers than by !ictionary compilers. $Tire!$ is typical of traipse in !ictionaries" bt not for native speakers. If we

assme that $confi!ent$ an! $pro!$ are very similar" the significant !ifference between speakers an! !ictionaries is that these featres are

!efinitely associate! with march" parade" saunter " an! stride by speakers bt not by !ictionaries. Informants an! !ictionaries seem to

!iffer in attribting typicality to $ol!$ in the case of shamble an! to $!rnk$ in the case of lurch" bt this conclsion is base! only on

!efinitions. If we e#amine the e#ample sentences fon! n!er the relevant entries" we will realize that speakers an! !ictionaries basically

agree +see also Table ).,.

Berbs that are not associate! with any of the state featres in !ictionaries" in other wor!s verbs absent from Table ." are shown below2

;trong association +native speakers,2

afrai! % creep !rnk % plod

an#ios % creep tire! % plod

bore! % dawdle" plod



6ess strong association +native speakers,2

afrai! % inch confi!ent % amble" mince

an#ios % edge !rnk % crawl

ashame! % creep in(re! leg % clump

bore! % amble nable to control m. % teeter " wade

cheerfl % amble tire! % amble

I can fin! no e#planation for the link between $in(re! leg$ an! clump.

2.2 B5R: 'N'6?;I;

There is agreement between native speakers an! !ictionaries abot which featres are typical an! which are not in the case of

hobble" limp" lurch" sasha" saunter " slog " slouch" stomp" strut " swagger " trundle an! waddle. ;peakers an! !ictionaries more or less

agree abot pace" shuffle" an! slink . ;ome !isagreements +march an! stalk % $angry$ +!ictionaries, verss $confi!ent$ +speakers," prance %

$cheerfl$ +only speakers," trudge % $bore!$ +only speakers,, have alrea!y been !iscsse! above.

Now let s consi!er the verbs not mentione! in Table . Thogh not clear from !ictionary !efinitions" speakers say $afrai!$ an!

$an#ios$ are typical of creep. ;ome confirmation can be fon! in e#ample sentences sch as (he rabbit creeps awa and hides in a

hole +CC5D, or &ara crept carefull down the stairs in the middle of the night and left the house +66', or (he crept downstairs%

an"ious not to wake the bab +O'6D,. ;peakers also fin! a link between $!rnk$ or $tire!$ or $bore!$ an! the way of walking e#presse!

with plod . ;ome confirmation of linking $tire!$ with the verb can be fon! in 66'$s !efinition" which gives the following reasons for

plo!!ing2 $ for e#ample becase the gron! is !ifficlt to walk on" or becase yo are carrying something heavy$. 'n! there is one

e#ample in CID5 that col! sggest bore!om2 $sn#t it boring being a police officer% plodding along the streets all da. 'lthogh the

!efinitions !o not e#plicitly mention the above%mentione! featres" one col! arge that the wor!ing of the !efinitions +$slow" heavy

steps$, implies tire!ness. This implication is less clear for $bore!$ an! $!rnk$.



It is also interesting that amble is associate! with so many !ifferent states by speakers. Dictionary !efinitions an! e#amples

sggest a carefree" rela#e! state" bt there is no in!ication of bore!om" cheerflness" tire!ness" confi!ence.

3. A'NN5R O> 8'6=IN7

3.1 >5'TUR5 'N'6?;I;

Tables /.) an! /. show the verb%featre*featre%verb associations fon! in !ictionaries. The colmn hea!ing $!ifficlt$ stan!s

for !ifficlty !e to weather" neven gron! or similar cases that are not relate! to physical state. $;winging$ stan!s for $swinging theshol!ers$. The hea!ing $other$ stan!s for the following2

$Other$ in Table /.

amble % 02 short !istance or not going anywhere particlar- 12 even" smooth" ninterrpte!

dawdle% 02 not paying attention to what yo are !oing

dodder % /" 32 shaking

edge % 32 with gra!al movements or in gra!al stages- 02 stopping reglarly or si!eways along*throgh a small space

grope % )" " /" 32 feeling the way with yor han!s

inch % 32 in a lot of short stages- 02stopping reglarlylurch % )" " /" 3" 0" 12 s!!en- /" 3" 02 forwar!s or from si!e to si!e

mince % )2 e#aggerate!ly effeminate- " 32 !elicate- /" 32artificial*nnatral

pace % )" /" 3" 02 p an! !own- " /" 32 reglar steps

pad % " 02 stea!y stroll % 12 many starts an! pases

paddle % )" " /" 3" 02 in shallow water strut % 12 affecte!" self%important

plod % " 02 stea!y stumble% " 02 hitting things



prance % )" " 32 e#aggerate! swagger % )2 hol!ing yor bo!y pright

reel % /" 32 moving form si!e to si!e tiptoe % )" " /" 3" 02 on yor toes

sasha % /2 moving from si!e to si!e totter % /" 32 from si!e to si!e

saunter % 12 even movement traipse % )" /" 32 nwilling*relctant- 02 a long way

slide % )" 2 smooth tramp % )" " 32 long time*!istance

slog % )" /2 long- 2 great effort*!ifficlty trudge % " 02 long time

stagger % 02 moving from si!e to si!e waddle% )" " /" 3" 12 moving from si!e to si!e stalk % /2 long steps wobble% /2 moving from si!e to si!e

stride % )" " /" 3" 0" 12 long steps

The !ata is base! on the !efinitions only. 's can be seen from the above list" some other terms col! also be se! as manner featres.

The most common one se! by le#icographers bt absent from Table /. is something like $si!eways movement$. 'lso $smooth*even$ vs

$many pases$ col! have been incl!e! in Table /. The reason why I have !eci!e! to ignore them is that those aspects of walking that

are referre! to by these manner terms can be inferre! from other aspects !escribe! in Table . or Table /." sometimes Table 3. If" for

e#ample" the walker$s prpose is to avoi! being notice!" the movement is likely to involve pases" becase it is catios. I have not been

able to fin! any cases in which the only !istingishing mark between two verbs of walking was the $smooth$ +Eninterrpte!, vs $pases$

featre pair. The table below helps compare native speakers$ intition with !ictionary !efinitions2

>5'TUR5; DICTION'RI5; N'TIB5 ;5'=5R;s t r o n g a s s o c i a t i o n

bent bo!y slouch

carefl creep" inch creep" edge" inch" tiptoe

clmsy lumber " shamble lumber " reel " shamble" stagger " stumble" waddle

!etermine! march march" stride



gracefl sasha prance

hea! hel! high strut " swagger

heavy trundle lurch" pace" slog " tramp" trudge

irreglar dawdle" limp" toddle

light patter amble" inch" mince" pad " prowl " saunter " slink

noisy shuffle" stomp plod " shuffle" stagger " stumble

4iet sidle inch" slink " sneak

4ick patter prance" strideslow dodder " pace" trundle crawl " dodder " saunter " stroll

small steps dodder " edge" teeter " toddle

stealthy slink slink

nstea!y stumble

Dictionaries say $bent bo!y$ is characteristic of slouch" native speakers agree" bt two of my informants a!!e! another verb"

trudge. To (!ge from the !efinitions of this verb" this is not very srprising. There is a broa! agreement between !ictionaries an!

speakers on assigning the featre $carefl$.

It seems that $carrying something heavy$ is not a salient featre. 's is clear from Table /.)" three !ifferent !ictionaries mention

this featre in the !efinition" bt n!er three !ifferent verbs + plod " stagger an! trudge,. 'fter a scrtiny of the e#amples" two more

verbs can be a!!e! to the list of those that can imply carrying heavy ob(ects + shuffle an! slog ,. :t in all these cases only one !ictionary

marks the given featre for a particlar verb" so that I !o not consi!er these links significant associations. Ay native speaker informants

matche! the featre to !ifferent verbs" two of which + plod an! stagger , are the same as the !ictionary verbs" the other for verbs are all

!ifferent.

;peakers assigne! $clmsy$ to verbs which are partly the same as partly !ifferent from the !ictionary sorces. Native speakers

feel that $clmsy$ is very typical of reel " stagger " stumble an! waddle besi!es the !ictionary verbs +lumber an! shamble,.

There is a fair amont of agreement on $!etermine!$ an! $!ifficlt$. The 4estion mark before plod in the table above in!icates it

is not absoltely clear what cases !ifficlty. Only 66'$s !efinition refers to the gron! as one possible case" bt m! or snow is



referre! to in several e#amples. The weather is mentione! in the following e#ample sentences2 Despite the wind and the rain% the

plodded on until the reached the cottage +CID5, an! We plodded )on* through the rain for several hours +O'6D,. It is therefore very

likely that !ifficlty is !e to the gron! or to the weather" bt it may simply be !e to tire!ness as well. One informant % an

e#perience! teacher of 5nglish % remarke! &having !ifficlty bt col! be !e to a variety of factors&. The same speaker mentione! the

gron! as a possible case of !ifficlty for the verb slog " an! some !ictionary e#amples seem to confirm his opinion2 (he men had to

slog up a steep mudd incline +CID5, an! We slogged up the hill with the wind blowing against us +6DC5,.

Ay informants matche! $feet not lifte!$ with several more verbs than the !ictionaries. There is more !isagreement in assigning$hea! hel! high$. Thogh this is perhaps !eceptive. 'lthogh high hea! is not referre! to in the !efinitions of those verbs that my

informants list" the e#amples more or less carry this implication" since all these verbs e#press a confi!ent" prposefl way of walking"

which is not very likely to be !one with a bent hea!.

's for $heavy$ it is o!! to me that pace shol! be marke! for this featre by two native speakers. erhaps $heavy$ was interprete!

by them as &psychological heaviness& not as &heavy steps&. It is also strange that two speakers shol! have assigne! dawdle to

$irreglar$.

The featre $light$ was se! more freely by my informants" they matche! it with many more verbs than the !ictionaries. One of

those verbs is prance" which is a little srprising if we conslt the !ictionaries. The featre $noisy$ was also matche! with many more

verbs by speakers.

It is interesting that $4iet$ is felt to be very typical of amble by speakers bt not by le#icographers" an! the same featre is felt

very typical of pad an! slide by le#icographers bt not by my informants. Otherwise there is a basic agreement abot creeping"

prowling" slinking an! tiptoeing being typically 4iet.

Dictionaries an! speakers flly agree on which verbs characteristically imply a rela#e! way of walking. There is" however" less

agreement on which verbs refer to a relctant" nwilling way of walking.

's far as $slow$ is concerne!" native speakers !o not fin! it as typical of lumber an! trudge as !ictionaries. Otherwise" there is

not mch !isagreement. The !ictionary !efinitions I have e#amine! !o not e#plicitly say that inching an! pattering involve small steps"



the emphasis in the !ictionaries is more on $carefl$ an! $light$ respectively. :t being carefl is likely to imply small steps" an! my

informants !efinitely fin! small steps very typical of inch an! patter .

3.2 B5R: 'N'6?;I;

;peakers an! !ictionaries on the whole agree on which featres are typical of a given verb. :elow I have spplie! a list of cases

where certain featres are strongly associate! with a particlar verb either only by speakers +&s& in the list, or only by !ictionaries +&!&

in the list,. I mst warn the rea!er again that Tables /.) an! /. are base! on the presence*absence of the relevant or a synonymos

wor! +$bare feet$" $carefl$ etc., in the definition. Only strong association is e#amine! belowG

dawdle % relctant +s, slide % 4iet +!,

edge % carefl +!," slow +!, slouch % bent bo!y +!,

hobble % slow +s," small steps +s, stagger % clmsy +s," irreglar +s,

inch % small steps +s, stomp % noisy +s,

limp % feet not lifte! +s," nstea!y +s, stride %!etermine! +s," hea! high +s," 4ick !

lumber % clmsy +!," heavy +s," slow +!, stroll % slow +!,

lurch % nstea!y +s, strut % hea! hel! high +!,

march % hea! hel! high +s, stumble % clmsy +s," !ifficlt +s," feet not patter % small steps +s, lifte! +s,"

nstea!y +!,

prance % hea! hel! high +s," light +s, tiptoe % carefl +s," light +s,

prowl % stealthy +s, toddle % small steps +!,

shamble % nstea!y +s, tramp % heavy +!,

shuffle % small steps +s, trudge % heavy +!," relctant +s," slow +!,

sidle % stealthy +s, waddle % clmsy +s," small steps +!,



4. URO;5 O> 8'6=5R

4.1 >5'TUR5 'N'6?;I;

Table 3. gives a smmary of featre%verb pairs as fon! in the !ictionaries. The hea!ing $other$ stan!s for the following2

$Other$ in Table 3.

stomp % " 02 to show that yo are angry strut % /" 3" 02 to try to look important*impress others

tiptoe % " 02 to avoi! making any noise

The !ata is base! on the !efinitions. I a!!e! two featres that are absent from !ictionary !efinitions2 $to frighten somebo!y$ an!

$to kill time$. ' comparison of speakers an! !ictionaries is given below2

>5'TUR5; DICTION'RI5; N'TIB5 ;5'=5R;s t r o n g a s s o c i a t i o nto avoi! being notice! creep" sidle" skulk " slink " sneak creep" sidle skulk " slide" slink "

sneak " tiptoe

to be a!mire! parade parade

to attack sb*!o sth illegal prowl " skulk creep" prowl

to attract attention sasha prance" stomp

to get throgh narrow s. edge" inch

to show off parade" sasha" strut

l e s s s t r o n g a s s o c i a t i o nto avoi! being notice! prowl " slide" sneak inch" prowl

to be a!mire! prance prance

to attack sb*!o sth illegal sneak sneak

to attract attention parade" prance sasha" strut



to frighten sb creep" stomp

to show off prance

Dictionaries an! speakers agree abot which verbs are associate! with trying to move nnotice!. The only significant !isagreement is

tiptoe" where for of my informants felt that $to avoi! being notice!$ is a typical featre. The !efinitions an! the e#amples in the

!ictionaries I se! pt the emphasis on trying not to wake somebo!y" which is !ifferent from trying to escape nnotice!.

There is also agreement abot parade an! prance being associate! with the prpose of winning a!miration. :t there is

!isagreement concerning the featre $to attack sb*!o sth illegal$. Aost of my informants matche! this featre with creep" bt no

!ictionary !efinition mentions this prpose. I have fon!" however" three e#amples that confirm native speakers$ intition2 (he cat crept

silentl towards the bird +O'6D," &he crept through the long grass till she was in a position to fire +CID5, an! $ watched a cat creep

up behind a bird +66',. Two of these refer to animals attacking other animals. >or of the !ictionaries I se! emphasize that the

performer of sklking has ba! intentions" yet my informants !i! not match skulk with $to attack sb*!o sth illegal$ or $to frighten sb$. The

4estion mark in Table 3. for sneak in the $to attack sb...$ colmn shows that O'6D$s !efinition is not totally clear. It says &people sneak

when they are !oing something they feel gilty abot&" bt the e#ample 'e sneaked out of the restaurant without paing +O'6D,

sggests an illegal act.

Dictionaries match sasha an! prance with $attract attention$" bt speakers feel stomp is also typically associate! with this

featre. There is no confirmation in !ictionaries. ;howing off" speakers feel" is typical of parade" sasha an! especially strut " an! canalso be linke! to prance. The e#amples an! O'6D$s !efinition confirm this for parade" an! 66'$s !efinition &...showing that yo think

yo are important or impressive Hmy emphasis& partly confirm this for strut . :t no confirmation is fon! in the case of sasha an!

prance.

4.2 B5R: 'N'6?;I;

Native speakers matche! some of the featres with the following verbs" which are not liste! in Table 3.2

;trong association2



amble % to kill time march % to be a!mire!

crawl % to avoi! being notice! stroll % to kill time

dawdle% to kill time

6ess strong association2

march % to attract attention mince % to show off

5. ;UAA'R? O> 1.%4.

's we have seen" native speakers an! !ictionaries !o !iffer" bt this !ifference is smaller if we also se the e#amples. If we

assme that everything in the e#amples an! all the e#amples reveal only the typical" the characteristic" then we can freely rely on them. I

have base! my tables an! comparisons mostly on the !efinitions" becase I feel the e#amples are not always reliable from this point of

view. It is reassring to know" however" that on the whole there are no nbri!geable gaps between native speakers$ intition an! what

!ictionaries say.

6. UN7'RI'N 5JUIB'65NT;

The list below is base! on OrszKgh +)<@1,. The 5nglish verb is followe! by its ngarian e4ivalents. I will list my sggestions"

if any" in the line below the list of the ngarian e4ivalents either in the form of a!!ing frther verbs if they are goo! e4ivalents or in

the form of a wor! crosse! over" e.g. besrran" if I think the ngarian verb given in the !ictionary is mislea!ing. 'n e#planation will

sometimes follow my sggestions. The featres mentione! in connection with the ngarian verbs are base! partly on the +agar

&,inonimas,t.r " partly on my own intition. ;ome ngarian verbs are se! only or pre!ominantly with a prefi#.

amble baktat" ban!kol" ballag" men!egLl

baktat" an!alog- baktat is fairly 4ick an! stea!y" whereas amble is slow



clmp !Mng*!bMrg*sPlyos lLptekkel (Kr" nehLzkesen megy

!obog" !bMrMg

crawl csPszik" mKszik" kPszik" siklik" HszemLly vKnszorog" vonszol(a magKt

csPszik" kPszik" siklik" HszemLly vKnszorog" vonszol(a magKt in the sense I am sing the verb

creep csPszik" mKszik" kPszik" +lassan, vKnszorog" belopQ!zik"

csPszik" +lassan, vKnszorog" besrran" oson" lopako!ik- besurran is not the best becase it implies a 4ick

movement" thogh native speakers matche! $light$ an! $brglar$ with creep

!aw!le kQszKl" csatangol" an!alog" !Mng" cselleng

l!MrMg" tLnfereg" rKLrsen kQszKl etc.

!o!!er botorkKl" totyog" csoszog

no sggestion

e!ge ol!alvKst*fer!Ln hala!

in one sense2 Ktfrako!ik" in the other2 lopQ!zik" oson" +kMzelebb, hPzQ!ik

grope a sMtLtben tapogatQzva keresi Pt(Kt

tapogatQzik" botorkKl

hobble sKntt" sKntikKl" biceg" bizonytalanl (Kr

no sggestion

inch lLpLsrl lLpLsre elrenyoml" lassan hala!

lopQ!zik" oson" lopako!ik" Kt*be% etc. evickLl

limp biceg" sKntikKl" sKntt" hPzza a lKbKt" vKnszorog

no sggestion

lmber nehLz lLptekkel (Kr*megy" nehLzkesen csoszog" baktat



baktat" becase lumber is slow- ballag an! cammog are goo! especially if we want to emphasize

heaviness

lrch tKntorog+va (Kr," !lMngLl" be%etc.tKmolyog

no sggestion

march menetel" vonl" masroz

menetel" vonl" be*ki% etc. viharzik

mince kLnyeske!ve*finomko!va*affektKlva (Kr*tipeglibeg

pace nagy lLptekkel rQ(a" lLpLsben*lassan megy*hala!" lLpke!"

kimLrt*meggon!olt lLpLsekkel megy" fel%alK (KrkKl

no sggestion

pa! gyalogol" ktyagol" halk*nesztelen*tompa lLptekkel hala!*fel%alK (KrkKl

gyalogol" ktyagol" becase they !o not imply $light$" $soft$- lLp!el

pa!!le sKrban*csatakban*vzben (KrkKl*tocsog

no sggestion

para!e !szfelvonlKson rLszt vesz" !szmenetben elvonl*felvonl" parK!Lzik*pKvKsko!ik

!szfelvonlKson rLszt vesz" !szmenetben elvonl*felvonl in the sense I am e#amining- the verb vonul can imply" at least

to me" that the performer is trying to show off

patter tipeg%topog" Msszevissza (KrkKl*lLpeget

no sggestion

plo! baktat" cammog" keservesen*nehezen hala!*megy" nehezen sze!i a lKbKt

baktat" becase plod is slow- ballag" caflat- verg/dik is not very goo!" becase" althogh it implies

!ifficlty" it is not stea!y as plod is



prance bszkLn (Kr%kel" peckesen lLp!el

vonl" especially with verb prefi#es

prowl prL!a tKn (Kr" zsKkmKnyt keres" barangol" csatangol" kQborol" kQ!orog" !Mng" tekereg" csavarog

QlKlko!ik" settenke!ik" lopako!ik" portyKzik cirkKl" barangol" csatangol" kQborol" kQ!orog" !Mng"

tekereg" csavarog

reel tKntorog" inga!ozik" tKmolyog

!lMngLlsashay megy" lLpke!" sasroz" sasszLzik

libeg" vonl especially with a verb prefi#

santer gyeleg" kQszKl" barangol" kQ!orog" l!MrMg" lLzeng" !Mng" csatangol" csKszkKl" korzQzik

none of the ngarian verbs liste! above is goo! as saunter is typically followe! by a particle*preposition an!

cannot be se! as an intransitive verb on its own. ;ometimes csatangol an! cs.s,k.l can be se! +santer !own the

corri!or*roa!,- ballag" sLtKl

shamble cammog" totyog" csoszog" hPzza a lKbKt

cammog" totyog- vKnszorog

shffle csoszog

no sggestion

si!le ol!alog" sompolyog" lopako!ik" lopQ!zik" srran

oson" somfor!Kl" ol!alog

sklk QlKlko!ik" settenke!ik" sompolyog" elsompolyog" elol!alog

lopako!ik" lopQ!zik" oson

sleepwalk KlmKban (Kr

no sggestion



sli!e meglLp" meglQg" elillan" eloson" kicssszan" kioson

srran" especially with a verb prefi#

slink QlKlko!ik" settenke!ik" lopako!ik" elsomfor!Kl" elol!alog" beoson" belopako!ik" belopQ!zik" besomfor!Kl

QlKlko!ik" settenke!ik" becase slink is se! with a particle*preposition" it is not se! on its own- $ashame!$ is best

e#presse! as oldalog " somford.l " sompolog or kullog

slog nehezen*alig vonszol(a magKt

cammog" caflat" vKnszorog" be*ki% etc. verg!ik sloch lomhKn*esetlenl*nehLzkesen (Kr*csoszog*megy" behPzott nyakkal*meggMrbe!ve*fe(Lt

lQgatva elkllog*elol!alog

sggestion2 gMrnye!ten megy*(Kr

sneak settenke!ik" sompolyog" lopako!ik" QlKlko!ik" eloson" elol!alog" elsomfor!Kl" elsompolyog"

belopQ!zik" beoson" besomfor!Kl" besompolyog

settenke!ik

stagger tKntorog" tKmolyog" inga!ozik" imbolyog" !lMngLl

no sggestion

stalk titokban kMvet" cserkel" lesbl*cserkLszve va!Kszik" lopako!ik*lopQ!zik

vki tKn" kimLrt*peckes lLpLsekkel v bszkLn*mLltQsKgtel(esen (Kr*elvonl" peckesen lLp!el" nagyokat lLp

sggestion2 be*ki% etc. viharzik" be*ki% etc. vKgtat- titokban kMvet" cserkel" lesbl*cserkLszve va!Kszik"

lopako!ik*lopQ!zik vki tKn

stomp !obog" toporzLkol" pa!lQt veri lKbbal

be*ki% etc. viharzik*ront*vKgtat" !bMg- toporzLkol" pa!lQt veri lKbbal

stray eltLve!" +el,tLvelyeg" +el,kQborol" elbitangol



elcsatangol" elcsKszkKl

stri!e nagyokat*hosszPkat lLp" lLpke!" lLp!el

no sggestion

stroll (Kr(a az tcKkat" kQborol az tcKkon" csatangol" kQszKl" tLnfereg" cLl nLlkl (KrkKl

sggestion2 an!alog" sLtKl- csatangol" tLnfereg

strt peckesen*bszkLn lLp+!el," feszt" mellet !lleszt" fennhor!(a az orrKt" pKvKsko!ik" illegeti%billegeti

magKtsggestion2 vonl- fennhord0a a, orr.t " p.v.skodik an! mellet d1lles,t nee! not imply movement

stmble csetlik%botlik" botla!ozik

botorkKl" bk!Kcsol

swagger fesztelenl (Mn%megy" nagy bszkLn%nagykLpSen (KrkKl

no sggestion

teeter billeg" libegen (Kr*lLp!el" himbKl(a magKt

imbolyog" tKntorog- billeg nee! not imply movement

tiptoe lKb((hegyen megy

no sggestion

to!!le totyog" tipeg" (Kr

no sggestion

totter tKmolyog" inga!ozva (Kr" csetlik%botlik" tKntorog" !lMngLl

totyog" imbolyog

traipse bolyong" kQvKlyog" kQszKl" (KrkKl" cselleng" csavarog" (Mn%megy" cLltalanl

rQ

sggestion2 cselleng" csavarog- v.ns,orog " cammog can imply $tire!$



tramp be(Kr(a az orszKgot" (Kr(a az tcKkat" sLtKl" (KrkKl" gyalogol" csavarog"

kQszKl" kQborol" bolyong

sggestion2 baktat" trappol

tr!ge vKnszorog" nehezen (Kr" cammog" ktyagol" vonszol(a magKt" hosszP Ls fKrasztQ gyalogtat tesz meg

no sggestion

trn!le gMr!l" grl

gMr!l" grl- cammog" vKnszorog" ballagwa!!le totyog" kacsKzik" !McMg

no sggestion

wa!e KtgKzol" gKzol

no sggestion

Table 1. WALKE in di!tionaries

B5R: baby beetle brglar

cat criminalgang

!og !rnkenman

!ck elephant fatman

mo!el mose ol!man

thief torist wolf otheranimal

amble /"0 "0crawl )""/"3

creep / "0 )!o!!er "/"3hobble "/inch 0limp lmber 3 lrch "3"1 pace 3"0 pa! 0 )"/ patter / 3 plo! /"0 prowl / "0 3reel )""/"3



sashay )shamble 0 "/shffle "/"0slink sneak 0stagger )""/"3"0

"1/

stray ) "3strt "0stmble "0

teeter 3to!!le )""/"3totter ) )"1 1tr!ge /wa!!le )"3 )""3"

1wobble 1

Table 2.1 "#$%&'AL(E)*T&*+AL %TATE *, WALKE in di!tionaries

B5R: afrai! angry an#ios ashame! bore! cheerfl confi!ent !isoriente! !rnk in(re! leg!o!!er gropehobble )" " /" 3limp )" " /" 3" 0lrch 1 1

march )" /" 3" 0 pace 0" )" " 3 0 para!e prance /reel " /sashay /santer 1 /" 0shambleshfflesi!lesklk 0 sleepwalk



slink " /" 0 " /" 0slogsloch )" 3stagger )" " 0" 1stalk )" " /" 3stomp )" " /" 3" 0stri!e 0 0strtstmble 0swagger )" " /" 3" 0

totter )traipsetr!getrn!lewa!!lewobbleTable 2.2 "#$%&'AL(E)*T&*+AL %TATE *, WALKE in di!tionaries -!ontd

B5R: ol! in pain pro! semi%conscios tire! nable tocontrol

movement

ncertain weak other

!o!!er " /" 3 grope )" " /" 3hobble " 0limp 3" 0lrch /march

pace )" 0 para!e 0 prance reelsashaysanter /" 0shamble " /" 0 /shffle 0si!le )" 3 )" " 3sklk sleepwalk )" " /" 3slink



slog )sloch /" 3stagger 1 0 )" 0stalk )" " /" 3stompstri!estrt )" " /" 3" 0stmble 0 3swagger )" " /" 0totter 3 )

traipse )" " /" 3" 0tr!ge )" " /" 0trn!le )wa!!le )" 3" 1wobble 1Table 3.1 )A++E *, WALK&+/ in di!tionaries

B5R: bare feet bent bo!y carefl carryingsth heavy

clmsy !etermine! !ifficlt feet notlifte!

gracefl hea! hel!high

heavy irreglar

ambleclmp ) )""3"0crawlcreep "/"3"0!aw!le!o!!er e!ge "0grope )""/"3

hobble )"3inch )""0limp )"3"0lmber )""/"3 lrch 3"0"1march )""/"3"0mince pace pa! 0 pa!!le "3 patter plo! 0 F"/F"0 )""3"0



prance prowl reelsashay )"3santer shamble 0 )""/"3"0 )""/"3shffle )""/"3"0si!lesklk sli!e

slink slogsloch )""/"3sneak stagger stalk stomp )""/"3"0stri!e 0"1strollstrt )"/"0stmble 0swagger teeter tiptoe "/to!!letotter traipse

tramp / )""/"3tr!ge 3 "3 )"/"0trn!le )"wa!!lewa!e )""3wobble



Table 3.2 )A++E *, WALK&+/ in di!tionaries -!ontd

B5R: light noisy 4iet 4ick rela#e! relctant slow smallsteps

stealthy swinging nstea!y other

amble )""/"3"0 )""/"3"0 0"1clmp /"3"0 /"3"0crawl )""3creep )""/"3"0 )""3"0 !aw!le "3"0 0!o!!er "3" "/"3 /"3e!ge )""3"0 / 3"0grope )""/"3hobble 0 ) 0inch )""/"3"0 3"0limp /"3"0lmber )""/"3"lrch 0 )""/"3"0march )""/"3"0mince ) )""/"3 )""/"3 pace "/ )""/"3"0 pa! )""/ )"/"0 ) "0 pa!!le )""/"3"0 patter "/ 3 "3 plo! )""/"3"0 "0 prance )""3 prowl )""/"3"0reel )""/ /"3sashay /



santer )""/"3 )""/"3"0 1shamble /"3"0shffle /"0 /"3"0 si!le /"0 /sklk ) "/"0sli!e )""/ )"slink /"3"0 ) )"/slog )""/sloch )sneak )""/"0 "/"3

stagger )"/"3"0"1 0stalk /stomp "0stri!e )"/"3"0"1 )""/"3"0"1stroll )"/"3"0 )""/"3"0"1 1strt 1stmble "/"0 "0swagger /"3"0 )teeter "/"3tiptoe )""/ )""/"3"0to!!le ) )""/"3 )""/totter )""/ /"3traipse )"/"3 / 0tramp ) )""3tr!ge )""/"3"0 "0trn!le )"wa!!le ) )""/"3"1 )""/"3"1

wa!ewobble /



Table /. $Other$ means

amble % 02 short !istance or not going anywhere particlar" 12 even" smooth" ninterrpte!!aw!le% 02 not paying attention to what yo are !oing!o!!er % /" 32 shakinge!ge % 32 with gra!al movements or in gra!al stages" 02 stopping reglarly or si!eways

along*throgh a small spacegrope % )" " /" 32 feeling the way with yor han!sinch % 32 in a lot of short stages" 02stopping reglarlylrch % )" " /" 3" 0" 12 s!!en" /" 3" 02 forwar!s or from si!e to si!emince % )2 e#aggerate!ly effeminate" " 32 !elicate" /" 32artificial*nnatral pace % )" /" 3" 02 p an! !own" " /" 32 reglar steps pa! % " 02 stea!y pa!!le % )" " /" 3" 02 in shallow water plo! % " 02 stea!y prance % )" " 32 e#aggerate!reel % /" 32 moving form si!e to si!e

sashay % /2 moving from si!e to si!esanter % 12 even movementsli!e % )" 2 smoothslog % )" /2 long" 2 great effort or !ifficltystagger% 02 moving from si!e to si!estalk % /2 long stepsstri!e % )" " /" 3" 0" 12 long stepsstroll % 12 many starts an! pasesstrt % 12 affecte! postre of bombastic self%importancestmble% " 02 hitting thingsswagger% )2 hol!ing yor bo!y pright

tiptoe % )" " /" 3" 02 on yor toestotter % /" 32 from si!e to si!etraipse % 02 a long waytramp % )" " 32 long time*!istancetr!ge % " 02 long timewa!!le% )" " /" 3" 12 moving from si!e to si!ewobble% /2 moving from si!e to si!e



Table 4. ""*%E *, WALKE in di!tionaries

B5R: to avoi! beingnotice!

to be a!mire! to attack sb or!o sth illegal

to attractattention

to frighten sb to get throghnarrow space

to kill time to show off other

creep " /" 3" 0e!ge 0 0inch 0 0 para!e )" /" 3" 0 /" 0 prance )" / )" /

prowl 3" 0 )" " /" 3" 0sashay " /" 3si!le )" " /" 0sklk )" /" 3 " /" 3" 0sli!e " /slink )" " 3" 0 sneak )" / F" 0stomp " 0strt /" 3" 0tiptoe " 0



Table 3. $Other$ means

stomp % " 02 to show that yo are angrystrt % /" 3" 02 to try to look important*impress otherstiptoe % " 02 to avoi! making any noise

R5>5R5NC5;

Crowther" onathan +e!,. )<<0. !"ford Advanced Learner#s Dictionar. O#for!2 O#for!University ress

ayakawa" ;.I. an! 5gene 5hrlich. )<<3. Cassel Guide to Related Words. 6on!on2Cassel.

=irkpatrick" :etty +e!,. )<@. Roget#s (hesaurus of English Words and 2hrases. arlow26ongman 7rop U= 6t!.

6evin" :eth. )<</. English 3erb Classes and Alternations. Chicago2 The University ofChicago ress.

/3



O. Nagy" 7Kbor an! Vva Rzsiczky. )<@. +agar &,inonimas,t.r . +ngarianDictionary of ;ynonyms., :!apest2 'ka!Lmiai =ia!Q.

OrszKgh" 6KszlQ. )<@1. Angol-+agar 4ags,t.r $-$$ . +' Comprehensive 5nglish%ngarian Dictionary I%II., :!apest2 'ka!Lmiai =ia!Q.

rocter" al +e!,. )<<0. Cambridge $nternational Dictionar of English. Cambri!ge2Cambri!ge University ress.

;inclair" ohn +e!,. )<<0. Collins Cobuild English Dictionar. 6on!on2 arperCollinsblishers.

;mmers" Della +e!,. )<</. Longman Language Activator . arlow2 6ongman 7rop U=6t!.

;mmers" Della +e!,. )<<0. Longman Dictionar of Contemporar English. arlow26ongman 7rop 6t!.

walking: semantic feature analysis

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