Abstract

The paper discusses two types of quantifier particles in Hungarian that both participate in reiterated constructions. One type follows and the other precedes its host, which makes it easy to compare them. The particles that follow their hosts are argued to be heads on the clausal spines of independent propositions. Host+particle does, but need not, occur in reiterations, and the particles do not build quantifier words. In contrast, the particles that precede their hosts are argued to be quantifier-phrase internal. Particle+host must occur in reiterations, and the particles build quantifier words. The two types of reiterated constructions also differ in having their own distinctive internal “connectives” and in forming strict vs. non-strict negative concord expressions. The paper focuses on syntax, with some attention to semantics. It argues for propositional coordination for both types, and propositional quantification for the second type. Constituent-size reiterations are derivable via ellipsis, raising the question whether they are necessarily so derived. The paper concludes with data from Bosnian, French, Japanese, Malayalam, Mandarin, Persian, Russian, Sinhala, Telugu, and Turkish, which indicate the cross-linguistic interest of recognizing the two types of particle constructions.

Highlights

  • There is a substantial literature on English both_and, either_or, whether_or, and neither_nor constructions, especially relating to how the possibly mismatched positions of either and or come about and how the position of either correlates with the scope of the disjunction

  • Kratzer & Shimoyama use it for the equivalents of Someone/Everyone sleeps, for reasons related to Hamblin semantics. (In this paper, we are not concerned with quantifier words.) On the other hand, the ellipsis‐free versions of “particle+host” reiterations are straightforward rep‐ resentatives of propositional quantification

  • This paper argued that there exists a cross‐linguistically prevalent distinction between two types of quantifier particles

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Summary

Introduction

There is a substantial literature on English both_and, either_or, whether_or, and neither_nor constructions, especially relating to how the possibly mismatched positions of either and or come about and how the position of either correlates with the scope of the disjunction. The reiterated quantifier particle constructions are propositional (type t) coordinations, Junction Phrases in the sense of den Dikken (2006). They involve ellipsis or structure‐sharing when they look like constituent coordinations. The detailed investigation of Hungarian is followed by a look at ten languages that likewise exhibit reiterated quantifier particle constructions, some of them plau‐ sibly both types. These data are interesting, among other things, because they raise questions about how to provide a unified semantics for the particles in their various roles. Sec‐ tion 6 points out various cross‐linguistic counterparts, no morpheme of English presents itself as a good gloss option

Systematic differences between is‐type and mind‐type particles
Constituent order
Different optional connectives inside the tuples
Interim summary
Istoo’ and semnor’ are heads on the clausal spine
JP as a complement of an unpronounced quantifier
Towards interpretation
Unpronounced Q is a contentful propositional quantifier
Propositional coordination and quantification
Negative concord
Hungarian X is Telugu X‐VV
Russian to X Turkish bir X
A I or TO
X sem sem X ni X ni X ni X ne X ne X X vat
Conclusion
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