Degree modification and indefinite noun phrases in Spanish

Resumo

In this squib we address indefinite noun phrases when modified by the degree expression muy (‘very’) in Spanish. We focus on Río de la Plata Spanish, although this phenomenon seems not to be restricted to this variety of Spanish only. Assuming that degree modifiers must combine with gradable predicates, the puzzle we aim to solve here is what kind of modification is at play, if any, when an indefinite noun phrase admits muy (‘very’) as an adnominal modifier. More specifically, we will explore the combination of muy (‘very’) with non-gradable indefinite phrases. The hypothesis we will pursue here is that the degree modifier scopes over the entire determiner phrase. In particular, muy (‘very’) measures the proximity of an entity (typically the subject of the sentence) to the prototype denoted by the indefinite noun phrase, boosting some of its salient properties and assigning them to the subject.