Journal Article10.1007/BF02342617
A theory of focus interpretation
TL;DR: A range of semantic and pragmatic applications of the theory are examined, and a unitary principle specifying how the focus semantic value interacts with semantics and pragmatic processes is extracted.
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Abstract: According to the alternative semantics for focus, the semantic reflec of intonational focus is a second semantic value, which in the case of a sentence is a set of propositions. We examine a range of semantic and pragmatic applications of the theory, and extract a unitary principle specifying how the focus semantic value interacts with semantic and pragmatic processes. A strong version of the theory has the effect of making lexical or construction-specific stipulation of a focus-related effect in association-with-focus constructions impossible. Furthermore, while focus has a uniform import, the sources of meaning differences in association with focus are various.
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Citations
From a focus particle to a conjunction: Diachronic and synchronic analysis of German zumal
TL;DR: In this article, the German conjunction zumal is analyzed as a subordinate causal conjunction with focus-marking properties, similar to the combination besonders weil, with which it frequently cooccurred in the historical data.
History and grammaticalisation of "doch"/"toch"
Henk Zeevat,Elena Karagjosova +1 more
- 01 Jan 2009
TL;DR: This article investigated the origins of the German/Dutch particle toch/doch in the hope of shedding light on a puzzle with respect to doch/toch and to shed some light on two theoretical issues.
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Context dependence and procedural meaning : the semantics of definites
Richard Breheny
- 01 Jan 1999
TL;DR: This paper argued that the audience's grasp of the properties which definite concepts express is the result of inferential processes which take the linguistic meaning of a definite expression as input, constrained by pragmatic principles.
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