Quantifiers for a Modal Future

Future auxiliaries present a challenge to the classical analysis of modal expressions as existential or universal quantifiers over a contextually provided set of possible worlds: these expressions come with a distinct modal flavor, but their interaction with negation and the fact that future judgments come in degrees of confidence is unexpected if the classical analysis were correct. I show how a uniform quantifier analysis of modal expressions can accommodate the distinct empirical phenomena surrounding future auxiliaries. The resulting analysis extends to address a set of related challenges that have been observed for a quantifier analysis of ability modals.