Lecture 4 Semantics Flashcards
- Semantics
Description: The branch of linguistics that studies the meaning of words, phrases, sentences, and texts. It explores how meaning is constructed, interpreted, and conveyed in language, as well as the relationships between signs and their meanings.
- Referential, Social, and Affective Meaning
: Referential Meaning: The literal or primary meaning of a word or expression, which refers to the actual object or concept it denotes. For example, the referential meaning of the word “dog” is a domesticated canine.
- Social Meaning: The implications or connotations that a word or expression carries in a social context, reflecting social relationships or cultural norms. For instance, using “ma’am” or “sir” conveys respect.
- Affective Meaning: The emotional or subjective value associated with a word or expression, which can evoke feelings or attitudes. For example, the word “home” may evoke warmth and comfort.
- Prototype
Description: A cognitive reference point that represents the most typical or ideal example of a category. Prototypes help in categorizing and understanding concepts; for instance, a “robin” may serve as a prototype for the category “bird,” as it exhibits most of the characteristics associated with birds.
- Semantic Field
Description: A set of words or expressions that are related in meaning and belong to the same domain. For example, the semantic field of “color” includes words like “red,” “blue,” “green,” etc. This concept helps to organize vocabulary within a specific context.
- Family Resemblance
Description: A concept introduced by philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein, referring to a way of categorizing objects or concepts based on overlapping similarities rather than a strict set of defining characteristics. For example, games may share features (like competition, rules, and play) but do not all have a single defining trait.
- Fuzziness
Description: The idea that meanings are not always clear-cut or strictly defined. Many concepts have indeterminate boundaries, which can lead to ambiguity or vagueness. For example, the term “tall” is fuzzy because it can vary significantly depending on context.
- Semantic Properties
Description: Features or characteristics that help define the meaning of a word or expression. These properties can include aspects like number (singular vs. plural), gender, and animacy. For example, the semantic properties of the word “cat” include being an animate, domestic animal.
- Lexical Ambiguity
Description: A situation where a word has more than one meaning, leading to potential confusion in interpretation. For instance, the word “bank” can refer to a financial institution or the side of a river.
- Synonymy
Description: The relationship between words that have similar meanings. Synonyms may vary slightly in connotation or usage but generally convey the same idea. For example, “big” and “large” are synonyms.
- Polysemy
Description: A single word having multiple meanings that are related by extension. For example, “head” can refer to the part of the body, the leader of a group, or the top of a column.
- Homonyms
Description: Words that are spelled and pronounced the same but have different meanings. An example is “bat” (the flying mammal) and “bat” (a piece of sports equipment).
- Antonyms
Description: Words that have opposite meanings. Antonyms can be classified into two types:
- Gradable Antonyms: Pairs of words that exist on a continuum, such as “hot” and “cold,” where there are degrees in between (e.g., warm, tepid).
- Complementary Antonyms: Pairs of words that represent absolute opposites, such as “alive” and “dead,” where no middle ground exists.
- Converseness/Relational Pairs
Description: Pairs of words that express a mutual relationship, such as “parent” and “child” or “buy” and “sell.” These pairs imply a reciprocal relationship where one term necessitates the existence of the other.
- Semantic Roles
Description: The functions that participants play in the context of a sentence or event, often described in terms of who is doing what. Common semantic roles include:
- Agent: The doer of the action (e.g., “The chef” in “The chef cooked the meal”).
- Theme: The entity that is affected by the action (e.g., “the meal” in the same example).
- Experiencer: The entity that perceives or feels something (e.g., “She felt joy”).
- Metaphor
Description: A figure of speech that involves describing one concept in terms of another, suggesting a similarity between the two. For example, “Time is a thief” implies that time can take away moments in a way similar to a thief taking possessions.
