Spanish root exclamatives at the syntax/semantics interface

Abstract

In this paper several aspects of the syntax and semantics of Spanish root exclamatives are analyzed. Assuming a multi-layered approach to the CP projection, it is argued that a degree feature is checked in the Focus layer and that the exclamative feature is checked in the Force layer. The former type of checking provides evidence for the hypothesis that focus-related features are checked in different phases of the syntactic computation. The apparent diversity of exclamative structures in Spanish corresponds to a tight set of derivational mechanisms and corresponding interpretive steps.