Although languages strongly differ from a lexical perspective, research has revealed that hidden lexical similarities exist between languages. This collaborative project will investigate universal characteristics of words with a modal meaning, such as may and can, in ten languages from across the world.
The project, funded by the Dutch NWO (Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek), is a collaboration between various national and international institutions. Member at the ZAS is Prof. Dr. Uli Sauerland.