Quantifiers are expressions that identify the quantity or the set denoted by the noun they modify. In this section, a list of attested quantifiers in LSC is provided.
Some of the quantifiers identified to express plural sets are many, few, quite, a_lot, too_many, all, some, most, very, many, and great_variety.
a) ix night ix1 friend some go dinner.
‘Tonight we're going out for dinner with some friends.’
b) yesterday people a_lot demonstration.
‘There were a lot of people yesterday at the demonstration.’
c) dh: ix park children few cl(B): ‘person’ cl(B): ‘person’ that’s_it.
ndh: cl(B): ‘person’
‘There are few children in this park.’
d) ix barcelona car too_many.
‘There are too many cars in Barcelona.’
(examples a-d recreated from Quer et al., 2005)
Non-manual markers also contribute to the quantification of information. For instance, puffed cheeks indicate a greater amount of quantity. By contrast, protruding the tip of the tongue, raising the eyebrows and lifting the shoulders indicate smaller quantities.
[shh]
a) ix bank cue.
‘There were loads of people in the cue at the bank.’
pc
b) dh: ix town_hall people go go.
pc
ndh: go
‘A lot of people go to the Town Hall.’
pt
c) students attend exam pass two three that’s_it.
‘Of the many students attending the exam only two or three passed.’
pt
d) dh: theatre audience people cl(b): ‘person sitting cl(b): ‘person sitting’
pt
ndh: cl(b): ‘person sitting’
‘There were very few people sitting in the centre isle of the theatre.’
(examples a-d recreated from Quer et al., 2005)