KANDIDUS ADEGLIANO PAREGRIN PARUS Pengarang YUNITA RENY BANI BILI Dosen Pembimbing 2 YOSEP B. KROON Dosen Pembimbing 1 Fransiskus Bustan Penguji 2 Yunita Reny Bani Bili Penguji 1 Yosep B. Kroon Ketua Penguji

This research aims at identifying (a) the semantic roles played by arguments in the Waerana language, and (b) the semantic roles considered core played by arguments in the Waerana language. In terms of semantic study, the semantic role characterizes the meaning of the relationship between a noun phrase and the predicate of a sentence.The writer used the primary data method, specifically interview and documentation. As a result, the writer identified ten types of the semantic roles played by the arguments in the Waerana language.They are the agent, patient, theme, instrument, experiencer, goal, source, recipient, beneficiary, and locative. Furthermore, the writer identified the core role of a sentence to find out the controller of an argument. As the result, in the transitive sentences, the predicate verbs are connected by the semantic core roles patterns agent + theme, agent + patient, patient + agent, agent + theme + recipient, theme + beneficiary + agent, and agent + beneficiary + theme. In the intransitive sentences, the role goal, source, and locative can also be considered as the core of the sentence if using certain type of Primary A-verbs based on Dixon as follows, Motion-B ARRIVE subtype, Rest-B STAY subtype, and Rest-C PUT subtype. These subtypes deal with motion or rest concerning a locus. The single-core role experiencer mostly appeared in nominal sentences. Meanwhile, the role instrument or known as the adverbial is not identified as a core role. Keywords: Semantic roles, core semantic roles, argument, the Waerana language, East Manggarai Regency.