Image Schema of the Verb “Sè” in Igbo Semantics

Abstract

The study of conceptual interaction has attracted the attention of many scholars. Analyses have been done on different areas of this field of study in English. Hardly has any work been done on cognitive semantics in the Igbo language. This study therefore looks at the semantics of the verb se$. Using a descriptive method, the meanings of the verb are analysed in the light of image schemas. The findings reveal that the meanings of the verb follow three image schemas: the containment, path and force schemas. It also reveals that the verb root is not an empty dummy as some writers contend.