Public Policy Implications for Language Education: A Case Study of the 'v qian v hou' Iterative Construction in Chinese

This study investigates the semantic clustering of distinctive collexeme verbs in the iterative construction "v qian v hou" based on the BCC corpus using collostructional analysis. By incorporating prototype category theory and image schema, the study explores the prototypical semantics and extension mechanisms of this construction. The research reveals that the prototypical meaning of this construction is " (the subject) repeated and continuous movement forward and backward", with motion verbs being the prototype verbs, carrying the meanings of repetition and continuity. Through spatial image schemas, metonymy, metaphor, and other mechanisms, the semantic extension to "universal meaning" and "modal meaning" is achieved. The semantic structure of the construction “v qian v hou” is formed under the influence of dual internal factors. On one hand, it generates prototypical and extended semantics through mental scanning methods of sequential and summary scanning; on the other hand, from a cognitive perspective, it combines factors such as encyclopedic knowledge and construction context to jointly form the semantic structure of this construction.