verbframed

verbframed is a term in linguistic typology describing languages in which the semantic core of a motion event—the path or trajectory—is encoded primarily by the main verb. In these languages, the verb or a closely linked verbal complex carries directional information such as going up, entering, or leaving, while the manner of motion is often expressed by separate elements or by the verb’s semantics itself. Path meanings may be realized by a specialized verb or by compound constructions, with additional details supplied by aspect, resultatives, or adjuncts.

The distinction is widely contrasted with satellite-framed languages, where the verb tends to encode the manner of motion and directional or path information is expressed by satellites around the verb—such as prepositions, particles, or case markers. The verbframed–satellite-framed distinction is a general typological heuristic rather than a strict dichotomy, and many languages show intermediate or mixed patterns depending on discourse, genre, and syntactic constraints.

Classic discussions often cite Mandarin Chinese and Turkish as representative verbframed languages, while English and German are commonly cited as satellite-framed examples. In practice, languages may shift along a spectrum or employ different patterns across verb classes, registers, or constructions. The concept of verbframed helps linguists analyze how different languages encode the motion of subjects and the associated spatial relationships, highlighting how path and manner information are distributed across verbal and nonverbal elements.