The meaning and grammatical function of “A le (了) B B le (了) A”

Abstract

This study considers the grammatical function and constructional meaning of “A le (了) B, B le (了) A” (after doing A, do B, and after doing B, do A), clarifying that this structure typically describes a situation of an “event that progresses with difficulty.” While the AABB verbal reduplication is a form describing an event as one “state,” understood from the summary scanning, “A le (了) B, B le (了) A” is considered a form describing an event as one “situation,” understood from the sequential scanning.