Open AccessIndefinites in Comparatives
Author(s) -
Maria Aloni,
Floris Roelofsen
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
proceedings from semantics and linguistic theory
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2163-5951
pISSN - 2163-5943
DOI - 10.3765/salt.v21i0.2602
Subject(s) - linguistics , meaning (existential) , semantics (computer science) , german , psychology , computer science , mathematics , philosophy , psychotherapist , programming language
The goal of this paper is to explain the meaning and distribution of indefinites in comparatives, focusing on the case of English 'some' and 'any' and German 'irgend'-indefinites. We combine three competing theories of comparatives with an alternative semantics of 'some' and 'any', and a novel account of stressed 'irgend'-indefinites. One of the resulting theories, based on Heim's (2006) analysis of comparatives, predicts all the relevant differences in quantificational force, and explains why free choice indefinites are licensed in comparatives.