Stackability of Modalities

Abstract

This paper examines the stackability of the deontic modalities,permission, ability, obligation and necessity, in Portuguese, Malay, Korean and English. Principles are developed in the form of predictions about the possible logical combinations of these modalities and tested by means of sentences submitted to the judgment of native speakers. It was found that these principles and logical combinatory possibilities are applicable to these four languages, and it is concluded that there is a high probability of application to any natural language in which these modalities are grammatically realized.