volition (n.)

A term used in the SEMANTIC analysis of GRAMMATICAL CATEGORIES, referring to a kind of relationship between an AGENT and a VERB. A volitional verb or construction is one where the action takes place as a consequence of the agent’s choice, e.g. Mary left. A non-volitional verb or construction is one where the agent has no determining influence on the action, e.g. Mary slipped. Many verbs allow both interpretations (e.g. X hit Y – accidentally or on purpose?). The notion has also had a contrastive role in the analysis of the meanings of certain AUXILIARY verbs in English: for example, the volitional sense of will in I will go (in the sense of ‘it is my decision to go’) is distinguished from other senses, such as characteristic action (They’ll sit there for hours).