- Department:
- Department of Spanish and Portuguese
- Campus:
- IU Bloomington
In my research so far, I have investigated semantic notions like gradability and plurality that cut across different syntactic categories. More specifically, I am interested in the syntactic and semantic change undergone by scalar terms (e.g. words meaning almost, barely) as they shed light on current theoretical questions both regarding types of meaning and mechanisms of language change. In my research, I pursue this connection between theoretical endeavor and empirically-based inquiry, grounded in the tradition of Hispanic Linguistics. I often adopt a comparative perspective within Romance with the goal of identifying the contribution of these data to current linguistic theories. This aspect of my research is reflected in the co-edited volume Portuguese/Spanish Interfaces: Diachrony, Synchrony, and Contact, published in 2014 as the inaugural volume of John Benjamin’s series on Hispanic and Lusophone Linguistics.