Reanalyzing Exaggeration in Arabic through Autosegmental and Morphophonological Processes Lenses

Reanalyzing Exaggeration in Arabic through Autosegmental and Morphophonological Processes Lenses | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Reanalyzing Exaggeration in Arabic through Autosegmental and Morphophonological Processes Lenses Maisarah Almirabi This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7203323/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract This study reaffirms findings from existing linguistic literature, including works by Sibawayh (1988), Al-Mubarrad (1994), and Al-Anṣārī (2008), regarding the productive derivation of exaggeration adjectives in Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) from five standard templates: مِفْعال /mif.ˈʕaːl/, فَعُول /fa.ˈʕuːl/, فَعِيل /fa.ˈʕiːl/, فَعِل /ˈfa.ʕil/, and فعّال /faʕ.ˈaːl/. Beyond these templates, some adjectives follow irregular forms. While previous studies acknowledged these forms, they often lacked a systematic analytical approach. This study enhances the field by employing McCarthy's (1981) autosegmental analysis, which highlights two distinct tiers: one for the root and another for deriving the exaggeration adjective itself. Additionally, we applied morphophonological rules to connect root forms to their word realizations, illustrating detailed derivation processes that had not been previously documented. A key methodological contribution of this paper is the introduction of the Exaggeration Adjective Identification Procedure (EAIP). This procedure was developed by adapting the Hyperbole Identification Procedure (HIP) from Burgers et al. (2016) to effectively identify exaggeration adjectives in context. Earlier works, such as those by al-Homsi (2016) and Medallal (2021), often overlooked the dynamic nature of derivation, which shows how derived forms relate to their roots. This study addresses that gap. We illustrate these relationships through phonological rules that connect the results of derivation to the root, highlighting phonological processes like gemination and metathesis. To support these findings and bridge the gap between formal theory and practical usage, we exclusively used data from natural discourse. The present study also tackled inconsistencies in root-template mapping that prior studies on exaggeration adjectives in MSA failed to address. Our findings indicate that the root-template ˈCa.CaC is the standard for the five exaggeration adjective forms, while we also identified other discrepancies caused by medial structures or specific phonological traits in the roots. While much recent research has focused on the functional aspects of exaggeration adjectives in colloquial Arabic, this study provides a complementary perspective centered on the form and structure of these adjectives in MSA. It offers a linguistically rigorous and empirically grounded explanation of exaggeration adjectives, thereby contributing to both the descriptive and theoretical understanding of Arabic morphology. Future research should extend this framework to encompass other Arabic dialects for comparative insights. Humanities/Language and linguistics Social science/Language and linguistics Biological sciences/Psychology Social science/Psychology morphology phonology autosegmental phonological rules MSA Modern Standard Arabic phonological processes Arabic morphophonological Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7203323","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":514373368,"identity":"2e7aaab9-6711-4cf7-ae6d-a1b3701ffcd3","order_by":0,"name":"Maisarah Almirabi","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAA30lEQVRIiWNgGAWjYFACxgYQmcDAwHwMzGdjJ14LWxqEYibSLqBaHjMwxUBIi2774eYPP/fY5elOO/Ptwccf2+T5mBkYP3zMwa3F7Exim2TPs+Ris9u52w1nJNw2bGNmYJacuQ2PlgOJbQw8B5gTt93O3SbNk3CbEaiFjZkXn5bzD5s//jlQD9SS8wykxZ6wlhuJDdI8Bw6DtLCBtCQSoeVhm7TMgeNALWlmkjPSbie3MTM24/fL+fTHH98cqAZqSX4m8cHmtu389uaDHz7i0YINQCJ3FIyCUTAKRgEFAAA1JVZQGXHsrgAAAABJRU5ErkJggg==","orcid":"","institution":"Umm Al-Qura University","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Maisarah","middleName":"","lastName":"Almirabi","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2025-07-24 08:38:18","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7203323/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7203323/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":103528246,"identity":"8f0fd719-1e08-4ed1-99af-1022da7fd7d3","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-02-26 16:26:08","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":580920,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"ExaggerationFinalCopyCopy.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7203323/v1_covered_68c50520-dbe2-49be-8817-d96561467a56.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"Reanalyzing Exaggeration in Arabic through Autosegmental and Morphophonological Processes Lenses","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"morphology, phonology, autosegmental, phonological rules, MSA, Modern Standard Arabic, phonological processes, Arabic, morphophonological","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7203323/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7203323/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eThis study reaffirms findings from existing linguistic literature, including works by Sibawayh (1988), Al-Mubarrad (1994), and Al-Anṣārī (2008), regarding the productive derivation of exaggeration adjectives in Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) from five standard templates: مِفْعال /mif.ˈʕaːl/, فَعُول /fa.ˈʕuːl/, فَعِيل /fa.ˈʕiːl/, فَعِل /ˈfa.ʕil/, and فعّال /faʕ.ˈaːl/. Beyond these templates, some adjectives follow irregular forms. While previous studies acknowledged these forms, they often lacked a systematic analytical approach.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis study enhances the field by employing McCarthy's (1981) autosegmental analysis, which highlights two distinct tiers: one for the root and another for deriving the exaggeration adjective itself. Additionally, we applied morphophonological rules to connect root forms to their word realizations, illustrating detailed derivation processes that had not been previously documented.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA key methodological contribution of this paper is the introduction of the Exaggeration Adjective Identification Procedure (EAIP). This procedure was developed by adapting the Hyperbole Identification Procedure (HIP) from Burgers et al. (2016) to effectively identify exaggeration adjectives in context.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEarlier works, such as those by al-Homsi (2016) and Medallal (2021), often overlooked the dynamic nature of derivation, which shows how derived forms relate to their roots. This study addresses that gap. We illustrate these relationships through phonological rules that connect the results of derivation to the root, highlighting phonological processes like gemination and metathesis. To support these findings and bridge the gap between formal theory and practical usage, we exclusively used data from natural discourse.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe present study also tackled inconsistencies in root-template mapping that prior studies on exaggeration adjectives in MSA failed to address. Our findings indicate that the root-template ˈCa.CaC is the standard for the five exaggeration adjective forms, while we also identified other discrepancies caused by medial structures or specific phonological traits in the roots.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhile much recent research has focused on the functional aspects of exaggeration adjectives in colloquial Arabic, this study provides a complementary perspective centered on the form and structure of these adjectives in MSA. It offers a linguistically rigorous and empirically grounded explanation of exaggeration adjectives, thereby contributing to both the descriptive and theoretical understanding of Arabic morphology. 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