This paper contributes to the debate over the so-called “easy argument
for numbers”, an argument that uses evidence from natural language to support the
metaphysically significant claim that numbers exist. It presents novel data showing
that critical examples in the literature are ambiguous between two readings, contrary
to previous assumptions. It then accounts for these data using independently motivated
linguistic theory. The account developed rescues the easy argument from the primary
challenges leveled against it in the literature and sets the agenda for future work to
determine whether or not the argument is valid.

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• Focus on numbers