Valence refers to the number of arguments a verb requires in a sentence. Most verbs are monovalent, requiring a subject, while bivalent verbs require a subject and direct object, and trivalent verbs require an indirect object. Valence is related to transitivity but not identical.
Valence indicates the number of arguments associated with a particular verb in a sentence. Most verbs are at least monovalent; this means they have an argument, which is the subject of a sentence that is performing the action indicated by the verb. There are also bivalent verbs, which require both a subject and a direct object upon which the action is performed, and trivalent verbs which also require an indirect object which is part of the action. The valence is related to the transitivity of the verbs, although they are not identical concepts, since the transitivity is based solely on the objects and not on the subject.
The valence of a verb is determined by how many arguments a sentence must have in order for it to make sense. There are few words that are avalent, meaning they don’t require an argument, not even a subject. The word “it’s snowing,” for example, doesn’t really require a subject, and the phrase “it’s snowing” is often used simply for grammatical clarity.
Most commonly, however, verbs are at least monovalent, meaning they require a single argument to make sense. Verbs with this valence type must have a subject, but they don’t need any object type. Words like “sleep,” “dance,” and “jump” can all be monovalent since they don’t require a target for the action. However, they do require a subject who is performing the deed.
Bivalent verbs are those that require both a subject and a direct object upon which the action is performed. The word “thrown”, for example, often has this meaning in a sentence like “I threw the ball”, since it requires both a subject and the object to throw. A trivalent verb also requires an indirect object that is part of the action, such as the word “give”. In the sentence “I gave my friend a present,” the verb requires the subject and direct object, “a present,” as well as the indirect object that is the target of the action, “my friend.” Valence reduction can occur when a word is presented with fewer arguments than might otherwise be required, such as “I give money.
Transitivity is a concept closely related to valence, although they are not identical. The transitivity of a verb is based only on the number of objects required, without considering the subject. While the word “thrown” in the sentence “I threw the ball” is bivalent, it is considered monotransitive, requiring only one direct object. A monovalent verb is seen as intransitive, and trivalent words are considered ditransitive.
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