Wide Scope Readings Research Articles

Modals, negation and movement: a reassessment

This article addresses the question of how root necessity modals are able to take scope over negative operators. Previous work has argued that wide scope readings are derived by syntactic movement of the modal over negation. We argue against this view. Reviewing facts from a number of different languages, we show that the availability of wide scope readings is not conditioned by the clause structure in which the modal is embedded, and we show that deriving the wide scope readings in the full range of configurations where they are found requires a number of complications for the movement rules involved. We discuss other issues for deriving the correct interpretations for modals in various negative constructions, and we outline an recent in-situ account of the modal facts (Jeretič 2021a) which avoids the complications that beset the syntactic account.

Exceptional wide scope of bare nominals

One of the strongest arguments in favor of the kinds approach to bare nominals is that they always take narrow scope with respect to other scope bearing operators in the sentence (Carlson 1977; Chierchia 1998; Dayal 2011). The publications supporting the obligatory narrow scope of bare nominals in a wide range of typologically different languages vastly outnumber the ones that claim the opposite. In this paper, we survey the facts from the literature, work out how the kinds approach deals with them, and identify scrambled bare plurals as the ultimate challenge for the kinds approach. Dutch examples illustrate that scrambled bare plurals unambiguously take wide scope with respect to quantifiers and negation, while maintaining kind reference. The kinds approach proves unable to derive the wide scope reading of bare plurals under a surface-oriented composition of scrambled objects. Once we abandon the default kind shift, following Krifka (2004), and allow bare plurals to directly shift to an existential interpretation, we can easily derive the wide scope reading with a local type repair. We conclude that a flexible type shifting approach to bare nominals is preferred over a default kind shift for empirical reasons. EARLY ACCESS

Syntactic Head Movement in Japanese: Evidence from Verb-Echo Answers and Negative Scope Reversal

We investigate the syntax of verb-echo answers in Japanese. We first present two arguments showing that this answer form is best analyzed through overt V-to-T-to-C movement, followed by TP-ellipsis. We further show that verb-echo answers exhibit a scope reversal effect: the otherwise robust wide scope reading of focus-marked phrases with respect to negation is reversed in this construction, a pattern that holds across all grammatical positions. This ubiquitous scope reversal pattern indicates that certain instances of head movement in Japanese are syntactic, contrary to the view (Chomsky 2000, 2001) that head move-ment is to be relegated to the postsyntactic, phonological component.

Information Structure and Scope Interactions: Disjunction Wide Scope Induced by Focus

In this paper we investigate the scopal reading of disjunctions in French negative sentences with pre-schoolers. We posit that the French disjunctor “ou” does not fit the traditional disjunction PPI/non-PPI dichotomy according to which a wide scope is taken by a PPI disjunction and a narrow scope when the disjunction is not a PPI. We hypothesized that focus could be a succesful scopal manipulator. Using Truth Value Judgment Tasks (TVJT), we tested French pre-schoolers' scopal reading of negated disjunctions in a neutral prosody condition and with prosodic focus on the disjunctor in a between subject design. We found that as predicted, prosodic focus often enduced participants to adopt a disjunction wide scope reading whereas a disjunction narrow scope reading was favored in the neutral prosody condition. This confirmed our hypothesis that focus can manipulate disjunction scope paramaters. It also shows that, when the disjunction is focalised, children have access to the disjunction wide scope reading earlier than previously thought. Finally, we can conclude that the distinction between PPI-disjunctor vs. non-PPI disjunctor languages needs to be more fine-grained.

Meaning and Prosody of Wh-Indeterminates in Korean

This article presents an experiment investigating the relative contribution of two different prosodic properties to the interpretation and scope configuration of wh-indeterminates in Korean. The experiment shows that it is prosodic phrasing after the wh-indeterminate that determines whether it is interpreted as interrogative or indefinite. Prosodic prominence on the wh-indeterminate does not contribute to such a distinction; rather, it increases the possibility of a wide scope reading. The results support the theory that prosodic phrasing is crucial in forming wh-questions, and call for consideration of the influence of prosody on scope-taking properties of wh-indefinites.

Lexicalizing disjunction scope

Tiwa (Tibeto-Burman; India) has two disjunctive particles, which give rise to different interpretations in sentences with other operators. I argue that this semantic distinction is not one of inclusive vs. exclusive disjunction, but one of scope. I provide an analysis that captures this scopal distinction: one particle lexicalizes a choice function variable (subject to existential closure high in the structure), and the other lexicalizes an alternative-set former which interacts with higher operators. I also show that wide scope disjunction in Tiwa behaves differently from wide scope readings of English "or", and suggest that they warrant different analyses.

Wide scope indefinites in Russian: an experimental investigation

This paper contributes to the cross-linguistic study of indefinites by reporting on two experimental studies on the scopal and functional properties of the two Russian indefinites koe- and -to. We show that koe- allows not only wide scope readings out of syntactic islands, but also functional readings, much like English a certain. -to, on the other hand, allows all possible scopal readings and both functional and non-functional readings. We then discuss this state of affairs from the perspective of a number of prominent theories of indefinite scope.

Scope marking and prosody in Hungarian

The paper presents an analysis of the results of three perception experiments that aimed to investigate the scope of postverbal quantifiers in Hungarian. These experiments found no correlations between wide vs. narrow scope readings of postverbal quantifiers and their stressed vs. unstressed pronunciations, contradicting a widespread assumption. In addition to the dominance of scope interpretation that corresponds to the linear order of constituents, previously unnoticed effects of the syntactic or thematic role of the postverbal quantifier and of the type of preverbal operator in the same sentence were found. These might indicate a more complex interaction of several factors or point to a greater role of extra-grammatical effects in determining the scope of quantifiers in Hungarian than previously assumed. The paper also addresses methodological issues that arise in the course of eliciting scope judgments experimentally.

Positive polarity predicates

AbstractThis paper presents Dutch and English predicates that behave as positive polarity items and provides a partial, semantically-grounded classification of this group of PPIs. The items are studied from the perspective of anti-licensing behavior (by negation, either locally or long-distance, in questions, and by weakly negative quantifiers such aslittleandfew). Predicates, unlike quantifiers, do not have wide scope readings (which allow quantificational PPIs such assomebodyto appear in the syntactic scope of negation). Using a mixture of corpus data and introspective judgments, we show that anti-licensing among PPIs is not uniform (mirroring earlier results on NPIs which likewise show considerable variation). Rescuing contexts are likewise shown to differ among PPIs. Some of the PPI predicates show complex interaction with illocutionary force (especially mandative force), and others with differences between presupposed and asserted propositions. High degree predicates, finally, point toward the existence of connections between the marking of degree and positive polarity. PPI status is argued to be the result of a complex interaction between the effects of negation and other nonveridical operators, and other semantic factors, which differ among subclasses of PPIs. Anti-licensing by weak negation correlates fairly well with anti-licensing by long-distance negation, a finding which is (partly) in line with a recent proposal by Spector (2014, Global positive polarity items and obligatory exhaustivity.Semantics and Pragmatics7(11). 1–61) concerning global PPIs. However, we find there to be more variation among the PPIs studied here than the classification of Spector (2014) or any binary classification stipulates.

Aiming at the truth and aiming at success

This paper explores how the norms of belief relate to the norms of action. The discussion centres on addressing a challenge from positive illusions stating that the demands we face as believers aiming at the truth and the demands we face as agents aiming at success often pull in opposite directions. In response to this challenge, it is argued that the pursuits of aiming at the truth and aiming at success are fully compatible and mutually reinforcing. More specifically, the link between the two takes the form of a two-way connection. In addition to succeeding in virtue of getting it right, it is normatively appropriate to get it right in virtue of succeeding. This two-way connection thesis is supported by a wide scope reading of how the truth norm of belief may be satisfied. On this reading, believing p is permissible both as a result of settling the question of whether p in light of the available evidence and as a result of engaging a believer’s agency in making it the case that p.

Why Do Modified Numerals Resist a Referential Interpretation?

No abstract.

Negation, tense and NPIs in Jordanian Arabic

The locus of negation above and below TP has been identified as a parametric choice for language in Ouhalla (1990, 1991) but as options for any language to display semantic and syntactic effects in (Zanuttini, 1997; Ramchand, 2001; Zeijlstra, 2004). I argue in favor of the latter by giving evidence from Jordanian Arabic. Specifically, bipartite negation is between vP and TP while single negation is above TP. Syntactic and prosodic difference between the two patterns are taken as evidence for positing a different locus for each negation pattern. Crucially, I give semantic evidence that each negation type displays different scope readings. Single negation allows for only a wide scope reading of the time adverbial while bipartite negation allows for a narrow scope reading and may allow the wide scope reading. This is instantiated by the proposal that single negation binds a tense variable while bipartite negation binds an event variable. The explanatory power of the two negatives analysis is scrutinized under the empirical breadth produced by the interaction between the two negatives, the Negative Polarity Items and Negative Concord Items. The outcome of the analyses reflect explanatory adequacy for previously reported and new empirical observations.

CP-Negation and the Domain of Quantifier Raising

CP-Negation and the Domain of Quantifier Raising

Scopeless quantity words in Shona

In Shona (Bantu, Zimbabwe), bare plurals and bare singulars seem to have different scope possibilities with respect to a class of modifiers which I term “scopeless quantity words” (including numerals, shoma ‘(a) few’, and ose ‘all’). I argue that this is due to two factors. First, the scopeless quantity words are intersective modifiers rather than quantifying determiners, so that DPs containing them denote entities rather than generalised quantifiers. Second, transitive sentences involving plural arguments are usually interpreted using the **-operator, which gives a cumulative reading; the apparent wide and narrow scope readings of bare plurals are both subcases of this reading, but a narrow scope reading for bare singulars cannot be subsumed by the cumulative reading. I also discuss the scope behaviour of a quantifying determiner, oga-oga ‘every’, which shows a subject/object asymmetry: in subject position, it appears to show the expected scopal ambiguity, but in object position, it appears to have the same readings as a scopeless quantity word; I argue that this is because of the location of existential closure. This adds to the evidence suggesting that many words giving quantity are intersective modifiers rather than quantifying determiners or adverbial quantifiers.

On The Absence of Scope Reconstruction in Tough Subject A-Chains

On The Absence of Scope Reconstruction in <i>Tough</i> Subject A-Chains

A Descriptivist Refutation of Kripke's Modal Argument and of Soames's Defence

AbstractThis article systematically challenges Kripke's modal argument and Soames's defence of this argument by arguing that, just like descriptions, names can take narrow or wide scopes over modalities, and that there is a big difference between the wide scope reading and the narrow scope reading of a modal sentence with a name. Its final conclusions are that all of Kripke's and Soames's arguments are untenable due to some fallacies or mistakes; names are not “rigid designators”; if there were rigid designators, description(s) could be rigidified to refer fixedly to objects; so names cannot be distinguished in this way from the corresponding descriptions. A descriptivist account of names is still correct; and there is no justification for Kripke's theory of rigid designation and its consequences.

TWO OBJECTIONS TO WIDE-SCOPING

Wide-scopers argue that the detachment of intuitively false ‘ought’ claims from hypothetical imperatives is blocked because ‘ought’ takes wide, as opposed to narrow, scope. I present two arguments against this view. The first questions the premise that natural language conditionals are true just in case the antecedent is false. The second shows that intuitively false ‘ought’s can still be detached even WITH wide-scope readings. This weakens the motivation for wide-scoping.

Discourse Prominence and Pe-marking in Romanian

AbstractReferential expressions are used to introduce and continue reference to entities with particular referential properties, but also with particular discourse properties. In this paper we investigate the referential and discourse properties of pe-marked indefinite direct objects in Romanian, which are an instance of Diff erential Object Marking (DOM). Pe-marking is generally obligatory for definite noun phrases but optional for indefinite ones. The optionality of pe marking with indefinite descriptions constitutes the focus of the present article. We will show that, on the one hand, pe with indefinite descriptions allows the realization of referential properties such as specific or wide scope readings, but that on the other hand, pe also signals discourse prominence, in particular in such contexts where referential properties are neutralized. We assume three parameters for discourse prominence, namely referential persistence, the topic-shift potential and the type of anaphoric referring expressions. We used these three parameters in a web-based story continuation experiment. The findings of the experiment revealed several interesting patterns: (i) that pe -marked direct objects are referentially more persistent than their unmarked counterparts, (ii) that pe -marked direct objects show a systematic preference to become topics two or three sentences after being introduced in the discourse, and (iii) that (modified) definite NPs were chosen to refer back to the referent of the marked as well as to the referent of the unmarked direct object. On the basis of the first two parameters we conclude that the relevant discourse contribution of pe is to signal to the hearer that subsequent information about that referent will follow, whereas the third parameter indicates that the referent of the pe -marked indefinite is not necessarily associated with a high level of activation. The general findings of the experiment support Kehler et al.'s (2008) intuition to differentiate between referential persistence and the activation level of the referent.

Structured anaphora to quantifier domains

The paper proposes a novel analysis of quantificational subordination, e.g., Harvey courts a woman at every convention.She is very pretty. vs. She always comes to the banquet with him. — in particular of the fact that the indefinite in the initial sentence can have wide or narrow scope, but the first discourse as a whole allows only for the wide scope reading, while the second discourse allows for both readings. The cross-sentential interaction between scope and anaphora is captured in terms of structured anaphora to quantifier domains, formalized in a new dynamic system couched in classical type logic that builds on the Dynamic Plural Logic of van den Berg [9]. Given the underlying type logic, compositionality at sub-clausal level follows automatically. Modal subordination is analyzed in a parallel way, thereby capturing the parallels between the individual and modal domains repeatedly argued for in the literature. We also outline the analysis of several other phenomena in terms of structured anaphora: exceptional scope, weak/strong donkey readings, anaphoric/uniqueness-implying definite descriptions and interactions between same / different and quantifier scope.

The Scope of the Negative Loʾ in Biblical Hebrew (review)

Hebrew Studies 48 (2007) 362 Reviews the term corpus, he does not overtly state a commitment to a corpus linguistics approach to Hebrew Text. However, his approach does offer a corpus of “finite size” for “sampling and representativeness” which comprises texts that might be termed “standard reference.” Should these texts be compiled into “machine readable form,” the basic requirements for a corpus linguistics approach would be in place. In this regard, it is claimed that a well-chosen corpus “provides a yardstick by which successive studies can be measured…new results can be directly compared with already published results without need for recomputation” (see http://bowlandfiles.lancs.ac.uk /monkey/ihe/linguistics/contents.htm ). Elizabeth R. Hayes Wolfson College, Oxford Oxford, England erussell.hayes@gmail.com THE SCOPE OF THE NEGATIVE LO} IN BIBLICAL HEBREW. By F. P. J. Snyman. Acta Academica Supplementum 3. Pp. vii + 315. Bloemfontein: UFS-SASOL Library, 2004. Paper. Snyman offers an exhaustive, computer-assisted study of the syntax (distribution ) and semantics (scope) of the Biblical Hebrew particle lo} ‘not’ to replace the “inadequate and incomplete” treatment thereof in existing grammars (p. 38). The study is a welcome contribution on this account. To describe adequately the “syntactic richness of this negative element” (p. 38), however, he invokes the full panoply of theoretical devices of Chomsky’s Minimalist Program, the dominant approach to generative grammar. As I suggest below, the full complexity of this theoretical framework is probably not required to analyze the syntactic phenomenon and may serve instead as a barrier to Hebraists together with the 300-page length. Because Snyman invokes the latest theorizing on explanatory adequacy within generative grammar (cognitive psychology), he is immediately embroiled in the difficulty of studying the tacit knowledge of native speakers of Biblical Hebrew. He suggests that “the adequacy of the description will be proportionate to the amount and variety of the material upon which it is based” (p. 2), and accordingly extends the scope of the study to the entire “huge corpus” of Biblical Hebrew, further invoking “the remarkable uniformity of the BH text” (p. 3). In terms of methodology, we might reasonably question this assumption of “uniformity.” On the one hand, the Biblical Hebrew corpus can readily be divided into five to ten sub-corpora by dialect markers (e.g., see V. DeCaen, Hebrew Studies 48 (2007) 363 Reviews “Hebrew Linguistics and Biblical Criticism: A Minimalist Programme.” Journal of Hebrew Scriptures 3 [2000–2001] and republished in Perspectives on Hebrew Scriptures, ed. E. Ben Zvi, 2006). On the other hand, we also know that the syntax of negation is especially liable to change; an obvious example is the history of negation in Modern English (see further, e.g., L. Horn, A Natural History of Negation [Stanford: CSLI, 2001]). The study is initially motivated with two examples of negation: Deut 7:7 and Exod 20:10. Snyman concludes that the possibility of reading the negation with wide or narrow scope “could lead to great confusion as to the exact meaning” (p. 6). In Deut 7:7, the adverbial phrase is negated (“not because ”), as the majority of translations confirm; the NIV and GNB suggest, however, that the negation has scope over the entire verse (“did not set, did not choose”). I would be prepared to argue that the wide-scope reading is not available. Similarly, the case of Exod 20:10 appears to be more an artifact of rendering into Germanic languages an awkward apposition under wide scope than a real example of a possible narrow-scope reading. However, there are other significant problems in the analysis of Biblical Hebrew negation that do merit the study that they receive in sections 5.8 and 6.5.2 (discussed below). Chapter 2, which is arguably two chapters in one, is a parade example of methodological rigour. In the first part, he describes in detail the morphological and prosodic variants of lo} to eliminate potential noise. He also flags twenty examples of qere/kethib but, curiously, fails to remove these from the database—as linguistic rigour dictates. In the second part, he offers an overview of previous treatments (both grammars and dictionaries), admittedly not exhaustive but a sufficient “basis as...