A3 - Formal semantics of functional concepts
The project aims at an account of the specific contribution of functional nouns (like weight) to sentence meaning in terms of modern, logically oriented semantics. The leading question is going to be whether the functional nouns form a natural class, i.e. whether their semantic behaviour is homogeneous and distinct from sortal or truly relational nouns (like hand and uncle, respectively) in a way that an adequate description of the semantic effects of their grammatical role would have to refer to these differences. From the answer to this leading question a coherent picture of those constructions ought to emerge that are characteristic for functional nouns. The project research will be carried out within the framework of type-driven interpretation, according to which the function of a grammatical construction flows from the meanings of the sub-expressions in the construction.