‘어떻게’ 의문문의 의미와 구조

Abstract

This study aims to explain why the Korean interrogative adverb ettehkey is interpreted in various ways such as [manner], [method], [result], and [discourse-based reason] unlike other Korean wh-words. Focusing on event structure and the syntactic distribution of ettehkey, the study addresses two issues: (i) the relational structure among these four meanings of ettehkey, and (ii) the correlation between the interpretation of ettehkey-questions and their syntactic structures. The analysis shows that the meanings of ettehkey can be divided into those that target the internal causal structure of an event and those that concern the external causal structure. The readings of [manner], [method], and [result] inquire into the internal processes and resultant states of an event, whereas the [discourse-based reason] reading focuses on external causal factors such as background circumstances or the speaker’s motivations. This semantic distinction is consistently reflected in syntactic distribution. Ettehkey in its [discourse-based reason] reading, like way ‘why’, appears in clause-initial position and is realized as an adjunct to TP or MP, taking wide scope. In contrast, ettehkey in the [manner·method·result] readings is most naturally interpreted when directly adjoined to V or V′ within the predicate phrase. These findings demonstrate that the various meanings of ettehkey are systematically correlated with its syntactic position, revealing a principled mapping between meaning and syntax.