A discourse model for überhaupt

Abstract

The German particle "überhaupt" exhibits a variety of uses with seemingly unrelated meanings. Correspondingly, only partial and non-unified theoretical accounts have been proposed. I show how the various intuitions and ostensibly different meanings can be derived from a unified characterization of "überhaupt" as a move to a higher-level question under discussion. The account explains how "überhaupt" could correspond to a single word in German, and it provides additional support for questions under discussion as an important aspect of contexts. http://dx.doi.org/10.3765/sp.7.1 BibTeX info

Keywords

• überhaupt, discourse particle, question under discussion, discourse strategy, focus