Specificity, definiteness, and modification

Abstract

This paper focuses on complex DPs which contain a PP modifier. The matrix D shows agreement with the embedded D with respect to specificity in such DPs. However, this happens only in some instances but not always. The paper proposes that not all nominals encode specificity in the grammar and that the instances in which agreement obtains are those in which both the matrix and the embedded D encode specificity as a morpho-syntactic feature. The agreement relation within modified DPs in such cases is thus a consequence of syntactic Agree. With all the other instances the specificity of the DP is decided at a semantic/pragmatic level, and depends on contextual factors, as well as on the epistemic state of the speaker. The two DPs are independent from each other with respect to how their specificity is computed and no agreement relation is expected to hold between the two.

Keywords

• specificity
• definiteness
• modification
• prepositions
• agree