The syntax and semantics of degree expressions in Spanish
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.7557/1.9.2.5575Keywords:
degree, adjectives, positive degree, comparative, superlative, scaleAbstract
This article provides an overview of the syntax and semantics of degree in Spanish, eventually suggesting that degree structure should be viewed as equivalent to aspect in the verbal domain. §1 introduces several of the themes that will be discussed in the article, while §2 introduces the semantics of degree. §3 discusses the basic syntactic properties of degree, particularly with adjectives. §4 introduces the notion of scale, which we will argue should correspond to Aktionsart in the verbal domain. §5 analyses positive degree, and explains how it differs from a scale both in syntax and in semantics. §6-§8 discuss comparative and superlative degrees, first their morphological facts (§6), then the specific properties of comparatives (§7) and finally those of superlatives (§8). The article ends with some conclusions in §9.
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https://doi.org/10.1075/rllt.13.08fab
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Fábregas, A. 2017. The syntax and semantics of nominal modifiers in Spanish. Borealis 6, pp. 1-102. https://doi.org/10.7557/1.6.2.4191
Farkas, D. & K. Kiss. 2000. On the comparative and absolute readings of superlatives. Natural language and linguistic theory 18, pp. 417-455. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1006431429816
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Hankamer, J. 1971. Constraints on deletion in syntax. PhD thesis, Yale University.
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Hay, J. 1998. The Non-Uniformity of Degree Achievements. Talk presented at the 72nd Annual Meeting of the LSA, New York, NY
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Heim, I. 1999. Notes on superlatives. Unpublished Manuscript, MIT.
Heim, I. 2000. Degree operators and scope. Proceedings of SALT 10, pp. 40-64. https://doi.org/10.3765/salt.v10i0.3102
Hellan, L. 1981. Towards and integrated analysis of comparatives. Tübingen: Narr.
Hoeplelman, J. 1983. Adjectives and nouns: a new calculus. In R. Bauerle et al. (eds.), Meaning, use and interpretation of language. Berlin: De Gruyter, pp. 190-220.
Izvorski, R. 1995. A DP-shell for comparatives. In A. Bisetto et al. (eds.), Proceedings of CONSOLE III. The Hague: Academic Graphics, pp. 99-121.
Kamp, H. & B. H. Partee. 1995. Prototype theory and compositionality. Cognition 57, pp. 129-191. https://doi.org/10.1016/0010-0277(94)00659-9
Kamp, H. 1975. Two theories of adjectives. In E. Keenan (ed.), Formal semantics of natural language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 23-55. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511897696.011
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2020-10-07
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Fábregas, A. (2020). The syntax and semantics of degree expressions in Spanish. Borealis – An International Journal of Hispanic Linguistics, 9(2), 1–112. https://doi.org/10.7557/1.9.2.5575
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