Semantics Flashcards
Semantics
Study of meaning in human language
Synonymy
- Words/expressions that have same meaning in some/all context
- Inefficient for language to have 2 words/phrases with absolutely identical meaning, perfect synonymy rare
Antonymy
•Words/phrases opposites with respect to some component of meaning
Polysemy
- Word has 2/more related meanings
* Bright = shining/intelligent
Homophony
single form has 2/more entirely distinct meanings
•Assumed there are separate words with same pronunciation rather than single word with diff meanings
•Need not have identical spellings
Polysemy + homophony
create lexical ambiguity: single form has 2/more meanings
•Surrounding words + sentences usually make intended meaning clear
Paraphrase
- Two sentences with same meaning
- Truth conditions: true under same circumstances
- Never perfect because of subtle diff in emphasis
Entailment
- Truth of one sentence guarantees truth of another sentence
- Prince is a dog. Prince is an animal.
- Reverse does not hold: prince is an animal, he can be any animal
Contradiction
- One sentence true, other sentence must be false
* Charles is a bachelor. Charles is married.
Connotation
- Set of associations word’s use can evoke
* Make up word’s connotation, but not its meaning
Denotation
- Equate meaning of word/phrase with entities to which it refers
- Still not meaning
- Winter = season betw winter solstice + spring equinox
Extension + Intension
Extension: set of entities it picks out in world
Intension: inherent sense, concept it evokes
•Correspond to mental images
•Woman = women (extension)/female, human (intension)
Componential analysis/semantic decomposition
represent intension by breaking it down into smaller semantic components
•Semantic features
•Allows us to group entities into natural classes
•Useful for stating generalizations
•GO: positional change/possessional change/identification change
Verb Meaning + Subcategorization
- Componential analysis reveals subtle semantic contrast
* Meaning differences help determine type of complements particular verbs can select
Structural Ambiguity
- Component words can be combined in more than 1 way
- Two interpretations can be depicted as
- [wealthy men] + women/wealthy [men + women]
- manner words are grouped together in syntactic structure reflects way meanings are combined
Thematic Role Assignment
- verb: agent, theme
- to: goal
- from: source
- at: location
Thematic Role Assignment
- A P assigns thematic role to its complement NP
- A V assigns a theme role, if it has one, to its complement NP
- A V assigns an agent role, if it has one, to the subject
thematic grid
info about thematic roles assigned by particular lexical item
Deep Structure + Thematic Roles
•Roles are assigned in deep structure, not surface structure
•NP’s initial position in syntactic structure (Merge), determines its theta role
“who did what to whom”
Interpretation of Pronouns
- Pronominals: he, she, him, her
- Reflexive: himself, herself
- Interpretation determined by antecedent
- Reflexive pronoun typically must have antecedent in smallest IP containing it
c-commands
•NPa c-commands NPb if the first category above NPa contains NPb
Principle A
reflexive pronoun must have a c-commanding antecedent in the same minimal IP
Principle B
pronominal must not have a c-commanding antecedent in the same minimal IP
theme
undergoes action change of state change of possession change of location undergoes set of possible changes umbrella term
Theta roles
shown in the Lexicon in a theta grid
