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Linglib.Theories.Semantics.Lexical.Verb.ChangeOfState.Theory

Classification of change-of-state verbs by the direction of state change.

  • cessation: Activity ceases (stop, quit, cease, finish)

  • Presupposes: P was happening

  • Asserts: P is no longer happening

  • Example: "stopped smoking" → was smoking, now isn't

  • inception: Activity begins (start, begin, commence)

  • Presupposes: P was NOT happening

  • Asserts: P is now happening

  • Example: "started smoking" → wasn't smoking, now is

  • continuation: Activity persists (continue, keep, remain)

  • Presupposes: P was happening

  • Asserts: P is still happening

  • Example: "continued smoking" → was smoking, still is

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      A lexical entry for a change-of-state verb.

      Bundles:

      • Surface form ("stop", "start", etc.)
      • Change type (cessation, inception, continuation)
      • Whether the state change is reversible (default: true)

      The activity predicate P is NOT part of the entry — it's supplied compositionally.

      • form : String

        Surface form

      • cosType : CoSType

        Type of state change

      • reversible : Bool

        Can the state change be undone? (stop → start → stop)

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            "finish" — cessation verb (often irreversible in context)

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              The presupposition triggered by a CoS type, given the activity predicate P.

              • cessation: presupposes P (the activity was happening)
              • inception: presupposes ¬P (the activity wasn't happening)
              • continuation: presupposes P (the activity was happening)
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                The assertion made by a CoS type, given the activity predicate P.

                • cessation: asserts ¬P (the activity is no longer happening)
                • inception: asserts P (the activity is now happening)
                • continuation: asserts P (the activity is still happening)
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                  Combined semantics of a CoS predicate as a presuppositional proposition.

                  Given an activity predicate P, returns a PrProp with:

                  • presupposition: the expected prior state
                  • assertion: the expected result state

                  This is the core semantic contribution: CoS predicates are presupposition triggers that constrain both the prior and current states.

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                    Negation preserves presupposition (hole property).

                    "Mary didn't stop smoking" has the same presupposition as "Mary stopped smoking": both presuppose she was smoking.

                    This is a defining property of presupposition triggers and enables the classic test: if the presupposition projects through negation, it's a presupposition, not an entailment.

                    Cessation and inception have complementary presuppositions.

                    • "stop P" presupposes P
                    • "start P" presupposes ¬P

                    These are exact complements: at any world, exactly one presupposition is satisfied.

                    Cessation and continuation have the same presupposition.

                    Both "stop P" and "continue P" presuppose that P was happening. The difference is only in the assertion about the result state.

                    For cessation, the assertion is the negation of the presupposition.

                    "stop P" presupposes P and asserts ¬P. This captures the change: from P being true to P being false.

                    For inception, the assertion is the negation of the presupposition.

                    "start P" presupposes ¬P and asserts P. This captures the change: from P being false to P being true.

                    For continuation, the assertion equals the presupposition.

                    "continue P" presupposes P and asserts P. No change occurs; the predicate reports persistence.

                    All CoS predicates shift under belief (@cite{tonhauser-beaver-roberts-simons-2013}: Class C).

                    The presupposition is attributed to the speaker by default, but shifts to a belief holder in embedded contexts:

                    "John believes Mary stopped smoking" → Presupposes that JOHN believes Mary was smoking (not the speaker)

                    This is captured by returning true for all entries.

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                      All CoS predicates have OLE (Optional Local Effect) = yes.

                      The presupposition can be locally satisfied in conditionals and disjunctions:

                      "If Mary was smoking, she stopped" → No presupposition projects (locally satisfied by antecedent)

                      This is a defining characteristic of soft triggers.

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                        All CoS predicates have SCF (Strong Contextual Felicity) = no.

                        The presupposition need not be established in prior discourse:

                        A: "What's new with Mary?" B: "She stopped smoking." → Felicitous even though A didn't establish Mary smoked

                        This distinguishes soft triggers from hard triggers like "too".

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