How can GIVE be counterfactual? Polygrammaticalization of pa²¹te³³ 把得 in Huarong Sinitic

This study investigates the polygrammaticalization of the compound GIVE verb pa²¹te³³ 把得 in Huarong Sinitic. Derived from the lexicalization of the verb BA 把 ‘take-hold’ and directional verb DE 得 ‘to get/obtain’, it retains a distinctive [+manner] feature (cf. Zhang, 2011). The grammaticalization process operates at both the morpho-syntactic and the semantic-pragmatic levels. Beyond its core lexical meaning ‘to give’ requiring definite objects, pa²¹te³³ 把得 has grammaticalized via three pathways into five functional markers: causative, passive, benefactive applicative, restrictive focus, and counterfactual conditional. Both its pathway to a passive marker (via a permissive causative stage) and its applicative development show parallels in cross-linguistic data. Notably, its evolution into a counterfactual conditional marker represents a novel, understudied pathway. Initially, its frequent co-occurrence with definite objects prompted reanalysis of the lexical GIVE verb as a restrictive focus marker, adopting a delimitative reading with maximality effect via metonymy. The inherent topicality of pa²¹te³³ 把得-constituent enables its fronting as a frame-setting topic, thus driving its reanalysis as a conditional marker. Subsequently, the counterfactual usage analogized from this focus usage with its restrictive meaning shifting metonymically to contrastive meaning through pragmatic inference, finally yielding to a concessive conditional reading. The conditional pa²¹te³³ 把得 also shows emerging discourse-marker functions implying speaker's negative stance, illustrating (inter)subjectification. These findings significantly advance the typological understanding of GIVE verb extensions in Sinitic languages, particularly identifying a new source for counterfactual conditional use.