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The very productive prefix be- derives transitive verbs from other verbs. Its semantic contribution can be described as to direct the action named in the base form to an affected object. An example is anderje to answer > beänderje to answer to. A be- derivation does not always have a meaning that is different from the base form, however; the addition of be- then only changes the valency of the base form and adds a perfective aspect to it. Frisian has many instances of be- derivations which are unknown (or only sporadically occur) in Dutch.

This prefix may als take nouns and adjectives as base.

General properties
Typical Frisian be- derivations
Derivations without an opaque base
Phonological properties

[+]General properties

The very productive prefix be- derives transitive verbs from other verbs (transitive or intransitive). The meaning of derivations with be- can be described as to direct the action named in the base form to the object. Examples are listed below:

Table 1

Base form	Derivation
anderje to answer	beänderje to answer to
wenje to live	bewenje to live in
harkje to listen	beharkje to listen to
prate to talk	beprate to talk about
riddenearje to reason	beriddenearje to reason out
grave to dig	begrave to bury
driigje to threaten	bedriigje to threaten

In some cases the base form and the be-derivation can have the same object. The addition of the affix be- then adds a perfective aspect to the base form, but does not change the meaning of the base form. Examples are listed below:

De foarsitter (be)tanke de sprekker

the chairman (PREF-)thanked the speaker

The chairman thanked the speaker

De sultan (be)strafte de slaaf

the sultan (PREF-)punished the slave

The sultan punished the slave

In other cases the be- derivation (b) has a different lexical meaning from the base form (a). The difference is shown in the example below.

De baronesse leanne de túnman

the baroness paid the gardener

The baroness paid the gardener

De baronesse beleanne de túnman

the baroness rewarded the gardener

The baroness rewarded the gardener

In most cases the addition of the prefix be- changes the syntactic valency of the verb. While skrieme to cry and sjitte to shoot take a prepositional object (shown in a), the be-derivations beskrieme to regret and besjitte to fire upon take a direct object (shown in b):

Hja skriemde om 'e kanarje

she cried about the canary

She cried about the canary

Hja beskriemde de kanarje

she regretted the canary

She regretted the canary

Ik skeat op 'e liuw

I shot at the lion

Ik beskeat de liuw

I fired on the lion

The verbs struie to scatter, bargje to spill and spuitsje to squirt take a direct object (Theme) and a place indication (or Location) (shown in a). After derivation by bestruie to strew, bebargje to soil and bespuitsje to spray on the noun of the Location becomes the direct object, while the former direct object ends up in an Adposition Phrase (PP) with mei with (as is shown in the b-examples). The prepositional phrase introduced by mei with is not obligatory, whereas the direct object is. Note that there is a slight difference in meaning between the sentences in (a) and (b). The sentences in (b) contain an affected object; it is suggested that the object is "completely covered", while this is not necessarily the case for the sentences in (a):

Hja struiden blommen op 'e kiste

they scattered flowers on.the coffin

They scattered flowers on the coffin

Hja bestruiden de kiste (mei blommen)

they strewed the coffin (with flowers)

They strewed the coffin (with flowers)

Jeltsje barge molke op 'e tafel

Jeltsje spilled milk on.the table

Jeltsje spilled milk on the table

Jeltsje bebarge de tafel (mei molke)

Jeltsje soiled the table (with milk)

Hy spuite ferve op 'e muorre

he sprayed paint on.the wall

He sprayed paint on the wall

Hy bespuite de muorre (mei ferve)

he sprayed the wall (with paint)

He sprayed the wall (with paint)

[+]Typical Frisian be- derivations

There are many applications of be- derivations which are unknown (or only occur sporadically) in Dutch. These applications will be discussed below. Firstly, Frisian has be- verbs with the meaning to obtain the object involved by the action named in the base form. Closely related are be- derivations with the meaning to contract a physical discomfort or a natural need by the action named in the base form. Examples are listed below:

Table 2

Base form	Derivation
buorkje to farm (a)	bebuorkje to obtain by farming
fiskje to fish (b)	befiskje to obtain by fishing
trouwe to marry (c)	betrouwe to obtain by marrying
wrotte to grub (d)	bewrotte to obtain by grubbing
rinne to walk (e)	berinne to catch by walking
skreppe to grub (f)	beskreppe to catch by grubbing
reizgje to travel (g)	bereizgje to catch by travelling

Hy hat net folle bebuorke

he had not much PREF-farmed

He did not obtain much by farming

Hy befiske syn deistich brea

he PREF-fished his daily bread

He obtained his daily bread by fishing

Hy hie in pleats betroud

he had a farm PREF-married

He had obtained a farm by marrying

Hja hat in protte foar Fryslân bewrotten

she has a lot for Fryslân PREF-grubbed

She obtained a lot for Fryslân by grubbing

Ik ha toarst berûn

I have thirst PREF-walked

I got very thirsty by walking

Hy hie honger beskrept

he had hunger PREF-grubbed

Hy became very hungry by grubbing

Hja hie pineholle bereizge

she had headache PREF-travelled

She had got a headache by travelling

In the same category we find be- derivations with the meaning to reach the object by the action named in the base form'. Derivations with this meaning are often obligatory accompanied by a form of the modal auxiliary kinne to can and a negation (for example net not or amper scarcely). Examples are listed below.

Table 3

Base form	Derivation
rinne to walk (a)	berinne to walk
djipje to fathom (b)	bedjipje to fathom
roppe to call (c)	beroppe to shout out to
gapje to yawn (d)	begapje to yawn
skriuwe to write (e)	beskriuwe to reach by writing

De hûn koe de hazze net berinne

the dog could the hare not PREF-walk

The dog could not keep up with the hare

Wy koenen de boaiem dêr net bedjipje

we could the bottom there not PREF-fathom

We could not reach the bottom there by fathoming

Heit en mem sa fier fan hûs, koe er net beroppe

[from a nursery rhyme]

father and mother so far from home, could he not PREF-shout

He could not shout to his father and mother, because they were far from home

Hy koe it stik koeke amper begapje

he could the piece cake hardly PREF-yawn

His yawn was hardly wide enough to bite the piece of cake

Wêr kin ik dy beskriuwe?

where can I you PREF-write?

Where can I reach you in writing?

Another group of verbs with some syntactic restrictions is constituted by derivations with the vague meaning to do something by the action of the base form. Examples are listed below.

Table 4

Base form	Derivation
timmerje to hammer (a)	betimmerje to hammer
mûskopje to whisper (b)	bemûskopje to whisper
breidzje to knit (c)	bebreidzje to knit
raze to shout (d)	beraze to shout

These derivations only occur if they are found in interrogative or exclamation sentences starting with the interrogative word wat what. All reveal a somewhat negative attitude to the situation described. In addition, the verb can be intensified by coordination of the dummy verb(be)dwaan to do. An example of the latter can be seen in (d):

Wat buorman de hiele dei betimmeret?

what neighbour the whole day PREF-hammers?

I wonder what our neighbour has been hammering all day?

Wat soene dy te bemûskopjen ha?

what should they to PREF-whisper have?

I wonder what they are whispering about

Ik begryp net wat beppe allegearre bebreidet

I understand not what grandmother all PREF-knits

I do not understand what grandmother is knitting all the time

Ik freegje my ôf wat se dêr beraze en bedogge

I ask my of what they there PREF-shout and PREF-do

I wonder what they are shouting all the time

According to Dijkstra (1900-1911) it is typically Frisian to use a be- derivation to denote a silly habit of somebody. Two examples are shown below.

Table 5

Base form	Derivation
flokke to swear (a)	beflokke to swear
lipe to whine (b)	belipe to whine

Such derivations are invariably combined with the pronoun alles all.

Dy kearel beflokt alles

that guy PREF-swears everything

That guy swears at everything

Dat fanke belypt alles

that girl PREF-whines everything

That girl whines about everything

Another special group of be- derivations in Frisian are the ones denoting that the object concerned undergoes a change by the action named in the base form. Four examples are listed below.

Table 6

Base form	Derivation
bakke to bake (a)	bebakke to shrink by baking
siede to boil (b)	besiede to boil down
brûke to use (c)	bebrûke to improve by using
legerje to quarter (d)	belegerje to mature

Such be-verbs are ergative, that is, the verb's theme appears as the syntactic subject. The complete tense is formed with a form of the auxiliary verb wêze to be. Examples are listed below:

It brea is bebakt

the bread is PREF-baked

The bread has shrunk by baking

Spinaazje besiedt o sa

spinach PREF-boils.down o so

Spinach boils down a lot

In nij stik ark moat earst wat bebrûke

a new piece tool must first what PREF-use

A new tool must first be used to improve

De tsiis moat noch wat belegerje

the cheese must still what PREF-mature

The cheese still has to mature a bit

If the base form already has a denotation indicating change, the addition of be- does not change the meaning of the base form. It only adds a perfective aspect. Examples are listed below:

Table 7

Base form	Derivation
krimpe to shrink (a)	bekrimpe to shrink
stjurje to clot (b)	bestjurje to clot
sakje to sink (c)	besakje to sink

These verbs are often accompanied by the mitigating adverb wat somewhat:

Dy broek sil noch wat (be)krimpe by it waskjen

this pair.of.trousers shall still somewhat (PREF-)shrink by the washing

This pair of trousers will probably shrink a little in the wash

It bloed (be)stjurret

the blood PREF-clots

The blood clots

De modder op it grêf is al wat (be)sakke

the mud on the grave is already somewhat (PREF-)sank

The mud on the grave has already sunk somewhat

A subdivision of this kind of derivations can be seen in those be-derivations in which the base form refers to performing a conventional action, like traveling, partying and marrying. Such derivations denote a (positive or negative) change of the state of the object by the action named in the base form. Examples are listed below:

Table 8

Base form	Derivation
reizgje to travel (a)	bereizgje to travel
feeste to party (b)	befeeste to party
brulloftsje to celebrate a wedding (c)	bebrulloftsje to celebrate a wedding

Such verb derivations only occur as a past participle, and are always combined with an evaluating adverb (for example hoe how, goed good, min bad). Examples are listed below:

Binne jim goed bereizge?

are you good PREF-traveled?

Are you in good condition after your travels?

Hoe bist befeeste?

how are.you PREF-partied?

How is your condition after the partying?

Ik bin bêst bebrullofte

I am well PREF-celebrated.wedding

I am fine after celebrating (the) wedding

The last category of typical Frisian be- derivations contains verbs with the meaning to process the object concerned completely by means of the action named in the base form. Examples are listed below:

Table 9

Base form	Derivation
bakke to bake (a)	bebakke to bake
klopje to beat (b)	beklopje to beat
wuolje to wrap (c)	bewuolje to wrap

These verbs always go with a prepositional phrase starting with yn in

Sûker yn in keek bebakke

sugar in a cake PREF-bake

To bake sugar in a cake

Aaien yn in besleek beklopje

eggs in a dough PREF-beat

To beat eggs in a dough

In skilderij yn in tekken bewuolje

a painting in a blanket PREF-wrap

To wrap a painting in a blanket

The special applications of the prefix be- in Frisian as discussed above have in common that the meaning of the base form changes the meaning of the new verb. In Dutch, on the other hand, the meaning of the base form and the derivation are mostly the same and there is only a change in valency and aspect. One can say rijden op een paard or een paard berijden, both meaning to ride a horse. In Frisian the meaning of the base form and the be- derivation differs. In Ljouwert yn in oere beride to drive to Leeuwarden in one hour or honger beride to get hungry by riding, we are not concerned with the activity ride to ride with Leeuwarden and honger as objects, but about reaching Leeuwarden in a specific time and about getting hungry by the action of riding.

extra

Etymology

The affix be- is probably a weakened and unstressed form of the preposition by at. Tamminga (1963:202) observed a contemporary residue in that some writers vary in the spelling of adverbials, like bynammen particularly and benammen, or between bytiid early and betiid. In the verbal area, the unstressed variant has monopolized the field since a long time, resulting in the prefix be-. However, the original meaning of by at can still be recognized in derivations like behearre to belong to, bestean to exist, bekomme to recover and beroppe to shout out to.

[+]Derivations without an opaque base

Some be-derivations do not have an independently occurring base form. Examples are listed below:

Table 10

Base form	Derivation
*darje	bedarje to land up
*sauwe	besauwe to be amazed
*koarje	bekoarje to charm
*steegje	besteegje to spend
*djerre	bedjerre to spoil
*telje	betelje to pay
*seare	beseare to hurt
*pale	bepale to determine
*seffe	beseffe to realize

This list is not exclusive; some more cases can be found in Veenstra (1988:140).

[+]Phonological properties

The prefix is pronounced as [bə]. As the prefix contains a schwa, it never bears the stress of the derivation, an effect of the so-called schwa restriction.

extra

Literature

Veenstra (1988) is an extensive general study on verbs derived by the prefix be-, in particular on aspects of argument structure. Good shorter teatments are Hoekstra (1998:144-147) and Tamminga (1963:201-205). The latter also has some etymological notes. Shimizu (2013) concentrates on the meaning nuances that are not found with this prefix in Dutch and German. He hypothesizes that the reason for their existence relates to the fact that Frisian lacks productive suffixes like Dutch ge- or German er-, and that Frisian be- therefore developed senses which in the related languages are accounted for by those other suffixes. More details in Versloot (2006).

References

Dijkstra, Waling1900-1911Friesch Woordenboek (Lexicon Frisicum)Meijer & Schaafsma
Hoekstra, Jarich1998Fryske wurdfoarmingLjouwertFryske Akademy
Shimizu, M2013Die be-Verben im Westerlauwersschen FriesischTwenty-Nine Smiles for AlastairStifting FFYRUG
Tamminga, Douwe Annes1963Op 'e taelhelling. Losse trochsneden fan Frysk taellibben. IBoalsertA.J. Osinga
Tamminga, Douwe Annes1963Op 'e taelhelling. Losse trochsneden fan Frysk taellibben. IBoalsertA.J. Osinga
Veenstra, Durk H1988Oer de grammatika fan be-ferbaDyk, S. & Haan, G.J. de (eds.)Wurdfoarried en wurdgrammatika, LjouwertLjouwertFryske Akademy136-174
Veenstra, Durk H1988Oer de grammatika fan be-ferbaDyk, S. & Haan, G.J. de (eds.)Wurdfoarried en wurdgrammatika, LjouwertLjouwertFryske Akademy136-174
Versloot, Arjen P2006In klankrike taalFriesch Dagblad24-061

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About this article

Author(s): Siebren Dyk, Gerbrich de Jong

Category: Frisian Morphology

Keywords: prefixverbperfectivevalency

Version: 1.0, July 2017

Version history:

version	editor(s)	date	remarks
1.0	Siebren Dyk	July 2017

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