Manufactured and inherent pejorativity

In this paper I develop a semantics for pejorative nouns like jerk. As part of this I articulate a typology of [+human] nouns in English, with a primary distinction made between pejorative nouns like jerk and neutral nouns like doctor. The analysis formalizes three observations about pejorative nouns: (i) They are based on generalizations of observable behavioral properties, (ii) they express subjective evaluations, and (iii) these evaluations are gradable. I show that when features (i) and (ii) are provided by the context, neutral nouns like doctor can receive pejorative interpretations. I also argue that pejorative nouns contribute to the semantics as fully at-issue elements contra Potts (2007).