This applies to rates using per or by to specify a unit, or atemporal for + each/every indicating a regular correspondence:

• The cost is $10 per item. 001

• A fuel efficiency of 40 miles per gallon (of gas) 002

• Pizza is sold by the slice. 003

• They charge by the hour. 004

It also applies to expressions that denote a generalization over a set:

• Pets in_general tend to trigger my allergies. 005

• Supposedly, on_average we consume a gallon of milk every day. 006

Contrast Frequency, which describes how often an event occurs.

NPN Construction#

SetIteration applies to the preposition linking two nominals (often the same noun) when the combination carries a meaning of iteration or regular correspondence. This applies whether the nouns are temporal or atemporal:

• day to day tasks 007
• day by day 008
• day after day 009
• We interviewed candidate after disappointing candidate. 010
• We’ll match your contribution dollar for dollar. 011
• They went house to house in search of the fugitive. 012

These exemplify what is known as the NPN Construction: it is syntactically idiosyncratic, as the preposition and second noun cannot necessarily be omit- ted (*We’ll match your contribution dollar.) (Jackendoff, 2008).¹

Not all instances of the construction have an iterative meaning, however:

• morning to night talks 013 (Duration↝EndTime)
• wall to wall carpeting 014 (Extent↝Goal)

Note that in (#007–#014), the scene role technically represents the semantic output of the whole construction. In #013–#014, the function is different from the scene role, focusing on the preposition as a marker of the second nominal.

SetIteration replaces an older and narrower supersense, RateUnit.