A Multivariate Analysis of the Diachronic Changes of Delexicalized Verb Zuo (Do): Based on the Diachronic Multiple Corpora (1949−2019)

Based on the diachronic multiple corpora (1949−2019), the present paper examines the diachronic changes of delexicalized verb (do) by using a multivariate analysis. The findings show that (1) delexicalized verb zuo has been more and more frequently used in both translated Chinese and non-translated native, in particular, in translated Chinese, partly due to special functions of delexicalized verb or risk aversion in the process of translation. (2) In translated Chinese, delexicalized verbs zuo are modelled on English delexicalized verb structures, which may be a demonstration of the source text shining-through. And those English sentences with long subjects also prefer to use more delexicalized verb zuo in translated texts, which may be evidence of adaptation to the norms in Chinese language. The interaction of source text shining-through and normalization may have played a role in the diachronic changes of delexicalized verb zuo. This paper argues that translation-induced diachronic changes of delexicalized verb zuo as an anchor point is hoped to provide new insights into the mechanism for translation-induced language contact.