The paper aims at elaborating on prefixal verbs, particularly those containing the morpheme durch, with regard to cognitive grammar. The reflections are carried out against the background of cognitive theories. They revolve around phenomena such as metonymy and conceptual metaphors – regarded as ubiquitous processes enabling us to capture the notion of abstract entities, and based on an inborn ability of the human mind to create analogies. The paper is dedicated to metaphorical extensions that play a vital role contributing to the expansion of radial semantic networks described according to Langacker. Crucial prominence is given to conceptual blending that allows to use certain prefixes with noticeable efficacy.
