On the gradient acceptability of quantifiers scoping over questions

Abstract

Questions with quantifiers such as Which book did every student read? can allow for pair-list answers. However, whether or to what extent such pair-list answers are acceptable varies for different types of quantifiers. Recently, van Gessel and Cremers (2021) experimentally tested the acceptability of pair-list answers for questions with different types of quantifiers, and discovered a full gradient in their acceptability judgments. In this paper, we start with the intuitive idea that pair-list answers are expected if we let quantifiers take scope above questions, and show that we can extend inquisitive semantics in a principled way using independently motivated ingredients to derive such wide-scope readings that expect pair-list answers for various quantifiers. We also identify factors that contribute to their gradient acceptability.