Abstract

This paper argues for a meaning of matrix interrogatives as ,Bring it about that it is common ground [whether .. . ]', where [whether .. .] stands for the meaning of an embedded interrogative. This is a modification of the imperative-epistemic approach of Äqvist and Hintikka. The new element is that the common ground, proposed for assertions by Stalnaker, is a central element of the meaning of matrix interrogatives. Evidence comes from non-standard uses of the interrogative form, such as pedagogical, rhetorical, didactic, and deliberate questions and from expectations about the addressee's knowledge, among other things. A comparison of Gerrnan V-to-C interrogatives and imperatives with the meanings of finite verb-final questions and infinite verb- inal clauses (sentence forrns specific to Gerrnan) suggests a new hypothesis about why the finite verb moves to C in Gerrnan: lt seems that this is correlated with the presence of a specification of the addressee in the meaning of a sentence type.