Already : just scalarity

Abstract

The particles still and already are commonly thought of and analyzed as particles that mirror each other. The particle still has been robustly argued to have an additive presupposition in the same vein as particles like too. However, I argue that a dual semantics for already, as all previous accounts attempt to implement, is untenable, motivated by asymmetries between the two particles. Instead, I propose that already has no additive presupposition but instead an even-style scalar 'likelihood' presupposition enriched with an exhaustivity operator. Such an analysis offers empirical improvements over previous analyses, notably in its ability to directly capture the earlier-than-expected inference conveyed by already.