Perception verb complements in Akatek, a Mayan language

184 5. PERCEPTION VERB COMPLEMENTS IN AKATEK
The auxiliary ske' functions as a matrix predicate for the type2 complement
amula `your working'. The role of ske' as a matrix predicate
for type2 complements is explored in section 3.4.5. The complex construction
consisting of ske' and its complement is not a type2 PVC
as illustrated by the ungrammaticality of example (132-b). The set
B pronominal a x of the modal auxiliary ske' cannot be changed to
the set A pronominal a x a- denoting the subject of the PVC predicate
mulna `work'. In turn, ske' can optionally take aspect and a
complementizer, as demonstrated in (133).
(133) x-;-y-ab' ix Mikin tol chi-;-ske'
PERF-B3-A3-hear NCL Micaela COMP IMPF-B3-be.able
s-b'itni ix unin
A3-sing NCL child
`Micaela heard that the child can sing.'
The degree adverb wal `really, a lot' can modify adjectives, nouns
and verbs. Example (134) shows the latter two uses.
(134) a. wal no' chee
really NCL horse
`There are a lot of horses.'
b. wal chi-;-mulna naj
really IMPF-B3-work he
`He works a lot/ too much.
Wal can modify type2 PVCs as can be seen in the examples in (135).
(135) a. x-;-y-il ix Mikin wal a-ma'-on
PERF-B3-A3-see NCL Micaela really A2-hit-SUF
in-an
B1-CL1s
`Micaela saw howmuch you hit me.'
b. x-;-y-ab' ix wal aw-ok'-i
PERF-B3-A3-hear she really A2-cry-ITV
`She heard how much you cry.'
Frequency adverbs like juntajel `each time' in (136) or hunel `once'
in (137) can modify type2 complements.
(136) x-;-y-il ix Mikin in-a-ma'-on juntajel
PERF-B3-A3-see NCL Micaela B1-A2-hit-SUF each.time
`Micaela saw every time you hit me.'