On degree minimizers in Spanish

  1. Isabel Pérez-Jiménez 1
  2. Silvia Gumiel-Molina 1
  3. Norberto Moreno-Quibén 1
  1. 1 Universidad de Alcalá
    info

    Universidad de Alcalá

    Alcalá de Henares, España

    ROR https://ror.org/04pmn0e78

Journal:
Borealis: An International Journal of Hispanic Linguistics

ISSN: 1893-3211

Year of publication: 2020

Issue Title: The grammar of degree and scales in Spanish

Volume: 9

Issue: 1

Pages: 69-86

Type: Article

DOI: 10.7557/1.9.1.5367 DIALNET GOOGLE SCHOLAR lock_openOpen access editor

More publications in: Borealis: An International Journal of Hispanic Linguistics

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Abstract

The goal of this paper is to provide both a description and an explanation of the combination of minimizers (ligeramente 'slightly') with gradable adjectives in Spanish. According to Kennedy & McNally (2005) these elements are degree items that are sensitive to the scalar structure of adjectives and are combined with closed scale, minimum standard adjectives. Unexpected combinations, according to this semantics, are considered as cases of coercion. In this paper we propose that minimizers create derived adjectives. They are modifiers of the adjective's granularity, which allow the selection of the standard of comparison to take into account a greater number of degree distinctions. From this proposal, this article shows that unexpected combinations of ligeramente with gradable adjectives, such as un cine ligeramente lleno ‘a slightly crowded cinema’, can be explained without the need to propose that a coercion process takes place.

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