@cite{boneh-doron-2013} — Hab and Gen in the Expression of Habituality #
In Genericity (Mari, Beyssade, Del Prete eds.), OUP, Oxford Studies in Theoretical Linguistics 43.
Core Claim #
HAB and GEN are distinct covert operators, not a single operator with
different parameters. They share the same quantificational skeleton
(covertQ in CovertQuantifier.lean) but differ in:
- Quantificational force: HAB is a modalized existential quantifier over sums of events; GEN is a modalized universal quantifier.
- Restrictor requirement: GEN requires an explicit restrictor (e.g., "after dinner" in ex. (4a)); HAB does not — it uses INIT to anchor to an initiating event.
- Structural position: HAB sits low as a VP adverb selected by AspP; GEN sits high in MoodP (parallel to would).
The chapter provides English evidence from three habitual verb forms: the simple past tense form, the periphrastic used to, and would.
English Habitual Forms (Table (41)) #
| Form | Viewpoint aspect | Perspective |
|---|---|---|
| simple form | imperfective/perfective | internal/retrospective |
| used to | imperfective | retrospective |
| would | imperfective | internal |
Connection to Existing Infrastructure #
CovertQuantifier.lean: shared skeletoncovertQ;gen_is_covertQandhab_is_covertQshow both operators instantiate it.Aspect/Core.lean:ViewpointAspectB— theaspectCompatibilitybridge connects B&D's Table (41) to the aspectual infrastructure.DelPrete2013.lean: Del Prete's Same-Object Effect (SOE) is the Italian analogue of the same-object readings in B&D's exx. (4b), (6b), (7b). ThesameObjectParalleltheorem makes this connection explicit.
Quantificational force of a covert operator.
@cite{boneh-doron-2013} §6.2.1: HAB is a "modalized existential quantifier over sums of events"; GEN is a "modalized universal quantifier" (Krifka et al. 1995).
- existential : QForce
Existential: HAB ∃-quantifies over event sums via ITER.
- universal : QForce
Universal: GEN ∀-quantifies over individuals/events meeting the restrictor.
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Configuration for a covert quantifier, recording the structural
differences between GEN and HAB beyond the shared covertQ skeleton.
- force : QForce
Quantificational force (existential vs universal)
- requiresExplicitRestrictor : Bool
Whether the operator requires an explicit restrictor in the clause. GEN requires one (e.g., "after dinner"); HAB uses INIT instead.
- isModal : Bool
Whether the operator is modalized (references a modal base MB). Both GEN and HAB reference MB in their denotations (eqs. (13), (21)).
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- Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.instBEqCovertQConfig.beq x✝¹ x✝ = false
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GEN configuration: universal, requires explicit restrictor, modal.
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- Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.genConfig = { force := Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.QForce.universal, requiresExplicitRestrictor := true, isModal := true }
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HAB configuration: existential, no explicit restrictor needed, modal.
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- Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.habConfig = { force := Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.QForce.existential, requiresExplicitRestrictor := false, isModal := true }
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GEN and HAB have distinct configurations despite sharing covertQ.
The three English verb forms that express habituality.
@cite{boneh-doron-2013} §6.1, ex. (1): "In the good old days, people dressed/used to dress/would dress elegantly to go to the opera."
- simpleForm : HabitualForm
Simple past tense form: "people dressed elegantly."
- usedTo : HabitualForm
Periphrastic used to: "people used to dress elegantly."
- would : HabitualForm
Periphrastic would: "people would dress elegantly."
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Whether a habitual form admits perfective aspect.
@cite{boneh-doron-2013} Table (41): only the simple form admits perfective; the periphrastic forms are imperfective only.
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- Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.admitsPerfective Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.HabitualForm.simpleForm = true
- Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.admitsPerfective Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.HabitualForm.usedTo = false
- Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.admitsPerfective Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.HabitualForm.would = false
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Whether a habitual form has a retrospective perspective.
@cite{boneh-doron-2013} Table (41): the simple form can be either, used to is retrospective, would is internal (not retrospective).
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- Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.hasRetrospective Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.HabitualForm.simpleForm = true
- Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.hasRetrospective Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.HabitualForm.usedTo = true
- Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.hasRetrospective Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.HabitualForm.would = false
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Whether a habitual form requires actualization (habit must be instantiated by actual episodes in the world).
@cite{boneh-doron-2013} §6.3.2, ex. (42): used to requires actualization; the simple form and would do not.
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- Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.requiresActualization Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.HabitualForm.simpleForm = false
- Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.requiresActualization Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.HabitualForm.usedTo = true
- Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.requiresActualization Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.HabitualForm.would = false
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Which viewpoint aspects each habitual form is compatible with,
connecting B&D's Table (41) to ViewpointAspectB in Aspect/Core.lean.
The simple form admits both imperfective and perfective; the periphrastic forms are imperfective only.
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- Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.aspectCompatibility Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.HabitualForm.simpleForm x✝ = true
- Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.aspectCompatibility Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.HabitualForm.usedTo Semantics.Tense.Aspect.Core.ViewpointAspectB.imperfective = true
- Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.aspectCompatibility Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.HabitualForm.usedTo Semantics.Tense.Aspect.Core.ViewpointAspectB.perfective = false
- Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.aspectCompatibility Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.HabitualForm.would Semantics.Tense.Aspect.Core.ViewpointAspectB.imperfective = true
- Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.aspectCompatibility Phenomena.Generics.Studies.BonehDoron2013.HabitualForm.would Semantics.Tense.Aspect.Core.ViewpointAspectB.perfective = false
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Periphrastic forms reject perfective aspect.
The simple form accepts both viewpoint aspects.
An English habituality datum.
- sentence : String
- form : HabitualForm
- felicitous : Bool
- operator : String
Which operator the chapter's analysis assigns to this reading. Under B&D's proposal, the simple form typically involves Hab, would involves Gen, and used to involves Hab + aspectual marking.
- exNumber : String
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Ex. (4a): "Mary smokes a cigarette after dinner" — GEN with explicit restrictor "after dinner". Felicitous because the restrictor supplies Gen's required restriction over events.
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Ex. (4b): "#Mary smokes a cigarette" — No explicit restrictor, so Gen cannot apply. Hab applies but the singular indefinite "a cigarette" scopes over events, forcing a same-object reading (smoke the same cigarette repeatedly), which is infelicitous.
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Ex. (6b): "A flower grows out behind the old shed" — singular indefinite under Hab forces a same-object reading: the same flower grows out repeatedly. This is the same-object phenomenon that @cite{del-prete-2013} calls the Same-Object Effect (SOE).
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Ex. (7b): "#Max killed a rabbit repeatedly" — singular indefinite under adverbial repeatedly forces same-object (same rabbit killed over and over), which is pragmatically absurd.
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Ex. (2c): "#In the good old days, people would dress elegantly" — would (Gen) is infelicitous even with a discourse context ("At the opera"). Gen requires an explicit in-sentence restrictor (e.g., a purpose clause "to go to the opera"), not just a contextual presupposition.
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Ex. (2d): "In the good old days, people would dress elegantly to go to the opera" — felicitous because "to go to the opera" provides the restrictor for Gen.
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Ex. (42a): "She went to work by bus" — simple form, TRUE even with a single episode. Can be read episodically or as a one-episode habit.
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Ex. (42b): "She would go to work by bus" — would (GEN), TRUE even with a single episode. Gen is about what happens in normal worlds, not about actual iteration.
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Ex. (42c): "She used to go to work by bus" — used to, FALSE in single-episode context. Used to requires actualization: the habit must be instantiated by multiple actual episodes.
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Ex. (48a): "The London Bridge used to stand on the Thames" — used to (Hab) is compatible with individual-level predicates because Hab is an aspectual operator that selects for states.
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Ex. (48b): "*The London Bridge would stand on the Thames" — would (Gen) is incompatible with individual-level predicates when the subject is definite. Gen requires a restrictor, but a definite subject cannot serve as one, and "stand on the Thames" (individual-level) is incompatible with an episodic restrictor. Contrast with (47a), where the indefinite singular "a French teacher" provides Gen's restrictor.
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Ex. (3a)/(47a): "a French teacher would know Latin" — would (GEN) accepts an indefinite singular subject because Gen takes a nominal restrictor (the indefinite provides it). First introduced as (3a), discussed fully in §6.4 as (47a).
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Ex. (3b)/(47b): "*a French teacher used to know Latin" — used to rejects an indefinite singular subject. Used to involves Hab, which quantifies over events (not individuals). The indefinite singular "a French teacher" cannot serve as a restrictor for Hab's event quantification, unlike Gen which quantifies over individuals and can bind the indefinite as a nominal restrictor.
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The restrictor contrast (4): "Mary smokes a cigarette after dinner" (✓) vs "#Mary smokes a cigarette" (✗). Gen requires an explicit restrictor; without one, Hab applies but the singular indefinite forces same-object.
The would restrictor contrast (2c-d): would (Gen) is infelicitous without an explicit in-sentence restrictor (2c), but felicitous with a purpose clause (2d). Same underlying mechanism as the (4a-b) contrast.
The restrictor requirement is consistent across forms: both the simple form (4a-b) and would (2c-d) show Gen needs an explicit restrictor.
The same-object effect (6b, 7b): singular indefinites under Hab force a same-object reading. When pragmatically implausible (7b), the sentence is infelicitous.
This is the English counterpart of @cite{del-prete-2013}'s SOE in Italian. Del Prete's "Gianni leggeva un libro di filosofia" (HAB blocked, SOE implausible) parallels B&D's "#Max killed a rabbit repeatedly."
The actualization contrast (42): simple form and would are true even with a single episode; used to requires actualized iteration.
Actualization requirement matches function: used to requires actualization; simple form and would do not.
Individual-level predicate contrast (48): used to accepts individual- level predicates (it selects states); would rejects them when the subject is definite (Gen needs a restrictor the definite can't provide).
The would vs used to puzzle (3)/(47): would accepts an indefinite singular subject; used to does not. This follows from would involving Gen (which can bind the indefinite as a nominal restrictor) while used to involves Hab (which quantifies over events, not individuals).
(47) and (48) together show that would's acceptability depends on whether Gen's restrictor can be filled: indefinite singular fills it (47a ✓), definite subject with individual-level predicate does not (48b ✗). Meanwhile used to is the mirror: rejects indefinite singular (47b ✗) but accepts individual-level predicates freely (48a ✓).
Only the simple form admits perfective aspect; periphrastic forms are imperfective only (Table (41)).
Would lacks retrospective perspective; the other forms have it (Table (41)).