Expletive Negation (B02)

• Subject Area: General and Comparative Linguistics, Experimental Linguistics, Typology, Non-European Languages
• Term: since 2026
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 551281144

The project uses expletive negation, i.e., surface negation seemingly carrying no negative import (thus, a case of noise), as a window to investigate alternative, more nuanced signal composition processes in the grammar of natural language. Three cross-linguistically recurrent environments hosting expletive negation will be investigated: (I) attitude verbs, (II) temporal, modal and other functors, and (III) comparatives. Each environment will be investigated for: (a) semantic properties, (b) clausemate behavior and (c) pragmatic effects.

• DFG Programme: Collaborative Research Centres
• Subproject of: SFB 1760: SiNoSi: Silence, Noise and Signal in Language
• Applicant Institution: Universität Konstanz
• Project Head: Professorin Maribel Romero, Ph.D.