On the Semantics and Pragmatics of â(An)otherâ in Finnish: Comparing toinen and muu

Elsi Kaiser

ChapterÂ 4 On the Semantics and Pragmatics of â(An)otherâ in Finnish: Comparing toinen and muu

In: Other: Ambiguity, Constraints, and Change

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Elsi Kaiser

Elsi Kaiser University of Southern California

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Type:: Chapter

Pages:: 100â130

DOI:: https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004744196_005

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Abstract

The expression (an)other and its crosslinguistic counterparts offer a window into how language expresses additivity and (nonâ)identity. It has been noted that in many languages, the additive and non-identity meanings of (an)other are expressed with distinct lexical items. I present new data from Finnish (Finno-Ugric) that diverges from this typological pattern. I show that the two lexical items that, at first glance, seem to be the Finnish equivalents of English (an)otherâtoinen and muuâdo not map onto additive vs. non-identity contrast. I show that toinen can have both additive and non-identity readings. I propose that its core meaning is additive, which I argue can be derived from anaphoricity and distinctness. I suggest that non-identity construals of toinen are triggered by discourse-contextual factors. Furthermore, given that toinen also has an ordinal meaning (âsecondâ), I show that additive readings of toinen are constrained to mean âsecond,â in line with the Strongest Meaning Hypothesis. The second expression, muu, seems to only allow non-identity readings. I argue that its meaning involves context-sensitive exclusion, namely a process of set complementation. I propose that muu operates on a (contextually constrained) set of elements defined by the noun that muu modifies, excludes from this set the member that refers to the antecedent, and picks the complementary set. This means that the non-identity construal exhibited by muu has an entirely different source from the non-identity construal exhibited by toinen. To support my analysis, I discuss asymmetries in the use of locative expressions derived from toinen and muu, as well as referential differences in the interpretation of toinen and muu when they modify collective nouns. This work highlights the benefits of looking at typologically diverse languages and has implications for our understanding of the range of lexicalization in human language.

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Other: Ambiguity, Constraints, and Change

Series:Â Syntax and Semantics, Volume: 45

Cover <i>Other</i>: Ambiguity, Constraints, and Change

E-Book ISBN:: 9789004744196

Publisher:: Brill

Print Publication Date:: 13 Nov 2025

Subjects
- Languages and Linguistics

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Part 1 Formal Approaches

Part 2 Diachronic Approaches

Part 3 Corpus-Based and Typological Approaches

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ChapterÂ 4 On the Semantics and Pragmatics of â(An)otherâ in Finnish: Comparing toinen and muu

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Other: Ambiguity, Constraints, and Change

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ChapterÂ 4 On the Semantics and Pragmatics of â(An)otherâ in Finnish: Comparing toinen and muu