The semantics behind the inference: How first language quantifier systems shape scalar reasoning in second language learners

This study investigates how L1-Japanese learners of English pragmatically enrich quantifiers in the L2, focusing on the role of L1 semantics, lexical competition, and contextual informativeness. Our central aim was to chart cross-linguistic and interlanguage differences in the underlying quantifier systems of English and Japanese, and to assess how these shape the lower and upper semantic thresholds of scalar terms like some . Using the gumball paradigm developed within a Constraint-Based framework, we elicited gradient naturalness judgments across two experiments to map how some is distributed over fine-grained numerosity continua. In unpressured contexts with limited competitors (Experiment 1), L2 learners patterned closely with native English speakers in their interpretations of some , suggesting emerging target-like intuitions. However, when the lexical alternatives a few and most were introduced alongside some (Experiment 2), systematic L1-based transfer effects emerged: learners interpreted a few and most in line with their Japanese counterparts (sukoshi , hotondo), displaying narrower or delayed acceptability ranges. These transfer patterns disrupted scalar coordination, resulting in an expanded acceptability window for some and a unique scalar reasoning profile. Together, the results map how cross-linguistic differences in quantifier systems affect L2 learners’ scalar representations and highlight the need for models of inference development to incorporate language-specific constraints on quantifier meaning alongside consideration of pragmatic mechanisms.