On Knowledge and Development of Open/Closed Adjective Distinction in English by Korean Speakers

Adjectives such as short and strong are associated with an open scale lacking endpoints whereas adjectives such as dry and empty are associated with a closed scale having endpoints. Such a distinction has linguistic consequences. Proportional and maximality modifiers identifying closed scales are felicitous exclusively with closed adjectives. Semantic entailment patterns also distinguish the two: continuations cancelling reaching the endpoint are felicitous exclusively with open adjectives. With this backdrop, this paper explored Korean speakers’ sensitivity to the open/closed distinction, exploiting three diagnostics above. We found that for all three diagnostics, advanced learners reliably made the relevant distinction whereas intermediate learners made the relevant distinction only for maximality modifier diagnostic. Rather surprisingly, advanced learners behaved like control group, closely resembling the controls. We argued that the advanced learners have fully developed the right semantics of open/closed adjectives and intermediate learners are also developing their sensitivity to the distinction, but at this stage, such sensitivity is not yet fully in place, thereby exhibiting fluctuation.