On aspectual coercion in before-clauses: Evidence from processing

Abstract

Sentences with accomplishments in before-clauses are prima facie ambiguous between a strong reading and a weak reading, and two types of theories of these sentences have been proposed. Under-specification theories posit that the before-clauses in question are not actually ambiguous: their only LF corresponds to the weak reading, with the strong reading falling out as a subcase. Rett’s (2020) ambiguity theory, by contrast, claims that the strong reading surfaces by default, with the weak reading only arising if we coerce the embedded accomplishment into an achievement. Under standard psycholinguistic assumptions, coercion incurs a processing cost, and hence, I argue, Rett’s (2020) theory makes processing predictions that under-specification theories do not. I test these predictions via two self-paced reading experiments and find moderate evidence that they are borne out.