Modal Periphrasis in Spanish Language

The article is dedicated to the study of modal periphrasis in analytical Spanish. They are represented by a number of verb constructions and they are very common and preferred by many of native Spanish speakers due to their ability to convey the nuances of modal meanings most accurately. Those who are learning Spanish as a foreign language have the opportunity to emphasize their high level of proficiency in it by using modal periphrasis. Nevertheless, among scientists we find many differences in understanding the nature and mechanisms of interaction of the components of periphrasis. Thus, the criterion of the necessity of losing of the initial semantics of the verb that changes as a condition for including a syntactic construction in the group of periphrases does not stand the test for constructions denoting the beginning and end of an action comenzar a + infinitivo, terminar de + infinitivo, where there is no loss of semantic meaning in the verbs comenzar, terminar and their synonyms, as well as in the verb deber in deber + infinitivo, if according to the recommendation of the Grammar of the Royal Academy of Spain, it were used only to express obligation or necessity. As a result, the very belonging of some syntactic verb constructions to the group of periphrasis is called into question, and the concept of verb periphrasis becomes unclear. The term verbal construction, which is used in the domestic tradition, seems more appropriate, as it implies syntactic combinations with varying degrees of merging of components. For the objects under study, this factor is important, since the change in the modal meanings of these syntactic constructions depends on the change in the degree of adhesion of their components: a less free construction implies a change in its modal meaning, and vice versa, in a relatively free construction, the primary semantic meanings of both verbs are preserved. Another problem in teaching verb periphrasis is neglecting the meaning of the second impersonal component, and presenting the paraphrasis as a fixed mathematical formula.