Semantics Flashcards
Due: 10/06/2024
Semantics
The study of meaning in language (confined to aspects which are relatively stable and context-free)
*Study of the meaning of morphemes, words, phrases, and sentences
Pragmatics
Concerned with speaker variation, different meanings in different contexts
Hyponomy
A semantic relationship between a more general term and a more specific term
Ex) flower = rose
Signifier
The word (the name for a meaning)
Signified
The concept (the ‘meaning’ of the word)
Meaning
- the thing to which the speaker of that word should refer to
- the thing to which the hearer of that word believes is being referred to
Very abstract and has a few meanings - these make the most sense!
Refer
Having something particular in mind when saying a word
‘Sense’ of meaning
The definition that lives in the dictionary
Referent
The meaning of a word that can differ from occasion to occasion
Speaker-Reference
What the speaker is referring to using some linguistic expression
*This is not included in the study of semantics!
Linguistic-Reference
The systematic denotation of some linguistic expression as part of a language
Extension
The set of all potential referents for a referring expression
Prototype
A typical member of the extension of a referring expression
Ex) robin & bluejay = prototypes of a bird
Stereotype
A list of characters describing a prototype
Ex) beak, two legs, wings = bird stereotypes
Coreference
Two linguistic expressions that refer to the same real-world entity - past, present, and future
These are NOT synonymous words
Anaphora
A linguistic expression that refers to another linguistic expression (deals with the relation between two linguistic expressions)
Deixis
A deicitic expression has one meaning but can refer to different entities depending on the speaker’s spatial/temporal orientation
Ex) right, left, you, here, here, there
Semantic meaning vs. Speaker meaning
Semantic Q: can you get me an apple?
Semantic A: Yes, I am physically capable of doing that.
Speaker Q: Can you get me an apple?
Semantic A: person reaches for an apple and gives to speaker
3 Main Components of Semantic Meaning
- The context
- The meanings
- Morphological & syntactic structure
Compositional (formal) semantics
Study the variety of grammatical patterns which occur in individual languages & across the languages of the world
- a subfield of semantics
Lexical semantics
Interested in the meanings of words & the relations among words’ meanings
Thematic role
verb, noun, adjective etc.
Denotative meaning
The ‘logical’ meaning, which indicates the essential qualities of a concept which distinguish it from other concepts
AKA the dictionary definition
Connotative meaning
The additional or associated meaning, which is attached to the denotative, conceptual meaning - metaphors, context, etc.
Social meaning
It is the meaning that a word possesses by virtue of its uses in particular social situations and circumstances.
Thematic meaning
It lies in the manner in which a message is organized for emphasis.
Agent
The entity that performs the action
Theme
The entity that is involved in or affected by the action
Instrument
If an agent uses another entity in performing an action, that other entity takes the role of instrument
Benefactive
The noun or noun phrase that refers to the person or animal who is meant to benefit from the action of the verb.
Experiencer
A feeling, perception, or state – we see, know, or enjoy something & we don’t perform an action, we are experiencers
Gradable
One main kind of antonym – they can be used in comparative constructions; the negative of one member does not necessarily imply the other.
EX) NOT old doesn’t necessarily mean young
Non-gradable
Second main kind of antonym AKA complementary pairs – they are not normally used in comparative constructions & the negative DOES imply the other.
EX) NOT dead = alive
Reversives
Opposite words that don’t mean the negative of the other
EX) untie-tie, unpack-pack
Hyponomy
When the meaning of the form is included in the meaning of another.
Homophony
When two or more differently written forms have the same pronunciation but different meanings.
EX) sea & see
Homography
When two or more forms are the same when written but pronunciation & meaning differs.
EX) Read (red) & Read (reed)
Homonymy
When one form, written or spoken, has two more unrelated meanings yet have the same pronunication and spelling.
EX) bank of a river, bank as a finance instituion
Polysemy
Multiple meanings that are all related by extension
EX) top = top of head, top of company, top the glass etc.
Metonymy
This relationship is based on a close connection iin everyday experience
Ex) car-wheels, king-crown
Collocation
Those words which tend to occur with others.
Ex) husband-wife, knife-fork, hammer-nail
Analytic Sentences (Linguistic Truths)
A sentence that is necessarily true simply by virtue of the words in it - we do not need to check on the outside world to verify the truth
Contradictory sentences
False by virtue of the language itself (blatant lies) - no need to check the outside world for truth because we know it is false.
Synthetic sentences
May be true or false depending on how the world is. They can’t be true or false due to the words that comprise but the truth must be verified empirically.
Entailment
A proposition (expressed in a sentence) that follows necessarily from another sentence.
Must be unidirectional
Ex) Martina aced chemistry entails Martina passed chemistry
Paraphrase
When entailment works both ways instead of unidirectional (aka synonomous sentences)
Presupposition
A proposition (expressed in a sentence) that must be assumed to be true in order to judge the truth or falsity of another sentence.
