Yimei Xiang ∙ 向伊梅

About Me

• My name is Yimei Xiang (向伊梅), pronounced as [i: mɛɪ, ɕiɑŋ].
• I’m an Assistant Professor at Rutgers Linguistics, specialized in formal semantics, syntax-semantics interface, philosophy and language, and Chinese & East Asian linguistics. I study how meanings are drawn from complex structures, and how logic is manifested in human languages. I completed Ph.D. in Linguistics at Harvard Univ. in 2016 and B.A. in Chinese at Peking Univ. in 2010.
• My current research program focuses on the following topics:
  • questions with complex structures;
  • questions under attitudes;
  • higher-order readings and mention-some readings of questions;
  • polarity items and free choice items;
  • multi-functional words in East Asian languages;
  • compositionality (categorial, variable-free) and binding
• CV (updated to July 2022)
• Email: yimei.xiang AT rutgers.edu

Updates of research projects

My work on questions, free choice, and the Mandarin particle dou, starting from my 2016 dissertation Interpreting questions with non-exhaustive answers, have been superseded by peer-reviewed journal articles, with substantial reworking and rewriting. For details, please visit this page.

Recent & Ongoing

• Papers recently published/accepted (since 2020)
  • Zhu, Ziling, and Yimei Xiang. 2022. *Be surprised whether: question-to-cleft reduction. Proceedings of Amsterdam Colloquium 23. [Longer version in prep for NELS 53.]
  • Xiang, Yimei. Accepted. Quantifying into wh-dependencies: Multiple-wh questions and questions with quantifiers. Accepted by Linguistics and Philosophy. Latest version: 07/20/2022. 
  • Xiang, Yimei. 2022. Relativized Exhaustivity: mention-some and uniqueness. Natural Language Semantics 30 (3): 311–362. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11050-022-09197-3 (Free access link; presentation: video and slides)
  • Xiang, Yimei. 2021. Binding without variable: Solving the under-generation problems. Proceedings of SALT 31: 1–20. (OSF page) (Paper)
  • Xiang, Yimei. 2021. Higher-order readings of wh-questions. Natural Language Semantics 29 (1): 1–45. DOI: 10.1007/s11050-020-09166-8 (Free access link; Lingbuzz link)
  • Xiang, Yimei. 2021. A hybrid categorial approach to question composition. Linguistics and Philosophy 44:587–647. DOI: 10.1007/s10988-020-09294-8 (Free access link; Lingbuzz link)
  • Xiang, Yimei. 2020. Function alternations of the Mandarin particle dou: Distributor, free choice licensor, and ‘even’. Journal of Semantics 37(2): 171–217. DOI: 10.1093/jos/ffz018 (Link for free-access, Lingbuzz link)
• Other news
  • December 2022 to March 2023. Maternity leave and parental leave.
  • June 2022. Joined the editorial board of Natural Language & Linguistic Theory. 
  • March 2022. Invited talks at TaLK 2022 @ Keio and UConn Logic Colloquium. (video and slides)
  • February 2022. Joined the editorial board of Natural Language Semantics.