Semantics:
the analysis of meaning
Based on O’Grady (2000)
Semantics
1.The nature of meaning
1.1.Semantic relations among words
-Synonymy
-Antonymy
-Polysemy and homophony
1.2.Semantic relations involving sentences
-Paraphrase
-Entailment
-Contradiction
1.3.What is meaning?
-Connotation
-Denotation
-Extension and Intension
-Componential Analysis
2.The conceptual system
2.1.Fuzzy concepts
2.2.Metaphor
-A spatial metaphor
2.3. The lexicalization of concepts
-Lexicalization
-Motion verbs
2.4.Grammaticization
-Evidentiality in Hidatsa
3.Syntax and sentence interpretation
3.1.Constructional meaning
3.2.Structural ambiguity
3.3.Thematic roles
-Thematic role assignment
3.4.The interpretation of pronouns
-Principles A and B
4.Other Factors in sentence
interpretation
4.1.The role of beliefs and attitudes
-presupposition
4.2.Setting
4.3.Discourse
-Topics
4.4.Conversational maxims
-Relation
-Quality
-Quantity
-Manner
Introduction
• Semantics: the study of meaning
• Utterances must convey a message
• In this chapter we will cover:
– The nature of meaning
– Some of the properties of the conceptual system
underlying meaning
– Contribution of syntactic structure to the
interpretation of sentences
– The role of non-grammatical factors in the
understanding of utterances.
1.The nature of meaning
• Basic analytical notions used in evaluating the meanings of words.
1.1. Semantic relations among words
Variety of semantic relations between words and phrases.
-Synonymy: Synonyms are words or expressions that have the same
meaning in some or all contexts. Perfect synonymy is rare; for example,
“holiday, adolescent.”
-Antonymy: Antonyms are words or phrases that are opposites with
respect to some component of their meaning. For example, “boy and girl.”
-Polysemy and homophony:
-Polysemy: having two or more related meanings; for
example, “bright”
-Homophony: having two or more entirely distinct
meanings; for example,
“club”.
•Lexical ambiguity
1.The nature of meaning (continued)
1.2.Semantic relations involving sentences
-Paraphrase: Two sentences with the same meaning. The same truth conditions. (examples in the book, p.
227). No two structures have absolutely identical meanings.
-Entailment: The truth of one sentence guarantees the truth of another sentence. Asymetrical.
-Contradiction: If one sentence is true, then the other one is false.
1.3.What is meaning? How is meaning represented in the human mind?
-Connotation: The set of associations that a word’s use can evoke. For example, “winter”  …(p. 228)
-Denotation (referents): attempt to equate meaning of a word with the entities it refers to(p. 229)
-Extension and Intension:
Extension: set of entities that it picks out in the world.
Intension: its inherent sense, the concepts evoked. Probably, corresponds to mental images.
For example, “Prime Minister of Canada”Extension: Jean Chretien
Intension: Leader of the governing party
-Componential Analysis (semantic decomposition): semantic features: woman= +human, -male, +adult (p. 230)
Ditransitive VS Monotransitive verbs; Ditransitives denote a ballistic motion. (p. 231)
2.The conceptual system
How meaning is expressed through the language.
Conceptual system that can organize:
Inner feelings, perceptions, cultural and social phenomena, physical
world
2.1.Fuzzy concepts
Rich, old
-Graded membership: typicality of a member for a concept;
bird = penguin VS sparrow (prototypical)
2.2.Metaphor
Understanding one concept in terms of another
Isn’t reserved for authors and poets!
Time IS Money (Examples, p. 234)
-A spatial metaphor
Happy IS Up
Health IS Up
Death IS Down
Examples of Conceptual Metaphors in
Turkish
Türklerde,
Para NEdir?
Para SIVIdır SUdur
Sıvılar ne yapar?
•Donar
•Erir
•Buharlaşır
•Akar
•Bir kapta toplanır
•Hortumla taşınır
Examples of Conceptual Metaphors in
Turkish (Continued)
•Donar
►AB Romanya'nın fonlarını dondurdu.
•Erir
►Aynı dönemde Galatasaray'ın borsa değeri yüzde 75 eridi.
•Buharlaşır
►Deniz Feneri olayında kimlerin alın teri paraları, ne şekilde ve hangi ahlaksız
oyunlarla buharlaştırıldı… Buharlaşan milyonlarca Avro kimlerin, hangi “büyük”
şahsiyetlerin bugünkü servetini oluşturdu?
►İspanyol kasası kurudu
►Yunanistan Maliye Bakanı George Papaconstantinou, "Ülkede durgunluğun
tahmininden uzun sürmesinin sebebi bankaların kurumuş olması" dedi.
Examples of Conceptual Metaphors in
Turkish (Continued)
•Akar
►Ali Ağaoğlu aşkına para akıttı
►ABD muhaliflere para akıttı
►Mektubunda Usulsüz yöntemler ile bir kişiye birden
fazla kredi kartı yollatıp aylık gelirlerini 4 bin TL gibi bir
rakama çıkartan arkadaşlarının musluk akarken cebimi
doldurmam gerektiğini söylediklerini anlatan ihbarcı
bankacı H.B. sözlerini şu çarpıcı iddialar ile sürdürüyor…
Examples of Conceptual Metaphors in
Turkish (Continued)
•Bir kapta toplanabilirler
►Her ay polislerden 10, amirlerden 20 lira
toplanan paralar bir havuzda biriktiriliyor ve
evlenen, çocuğu olan, hastalanan polislere küçük
hediyeler alınıyor. Ancak toplanan paralar ile
yapılan harcamalar arasında ciddi farklılıklar
olduğu belirlenmiş durumda.
•Hortum yardımıyla hareket ettirilir
►Çalıştığı bankasını hortumladı
2.The conceptual system
(Continued)
2.3. The lexicalization of concepts
Communities probably do not have different conceptual
systems, but languages differ from each other in terms of
how they express particular concepts.
-Lexicalization: concepts encoded in the words of a
language. (Example, “snow” in Inuktitut, p. 235)
-Motion verbs: conflation pattern : motion +
(manner|path|moving thing) = single verb
2.4.Grammaticization
Concepts that are expressed as affixes or non-lexical
categories.
-Evidentiality in Hidatsa
(p. 239)
3.Syntax and sentence interpretation
Positioning of words and phrases in syntactic structure
helps determine the meaning of the entire sentence.
The principle of compositionality: meaning of a
sentence is determined by the meaning of its
component parts and the manner in which the are
arranged in syntactic structure.
3.1.Constructional meaning
Part of the meaning can come from the construction.
The judges laughed the poor guy out the room.
Jerry baked Lou a cake.
3.2.Structural ambiguity
Sentences diagrammed more than one way.
Nicole saw the people with binoculars.
3.Syntax and sentence interpretation
(continued)
3.3.Thematic roles
Agent, theme, source, goal, location, and so on.
-related to particular aspects of word meaning
The magician changed the ball into a rabbit.
-Thematic role assignment
at
<location>
from <source>
-Deep structure and the thematic roles
Which book should the students read?
3.4.The interpretation of pronouns
-pronominals: he, him, she, her
-reflexive pronouns: himself, herself
-antecedent (a word replaced by a pronoun): reflexive pronouns must have an antecedent in the
smallest S
containing it.
That boys teacher admires himself.
-Principles A and B
NPa c-commands NPb if the first category above NPa contains NPb.
-Principle A
A reflexive pronoun must have an antecedent that c-commands it in the same minimal S.
-Principle B
A pronominal must not have an antecedent that c-commands it in the same minimal S.
The boys teacher admires him.
4.Other Factors in sentence
interpretation
Besides structure, information of pragmatics is also necessary to interpret a sentence.
Pragmatics includes attitudes, beliefs, understanding of the context, knowledge of
how language is used to inform, persuade, and mislead.
4.1.The role of beliefs and attitudes
-Likely characteristics of people
a. The judge denied the prisoner’s request because he was cautious.
b. The judge denied the prisoner’s request because he was
dangerous.
-presupposition
-McGee was assassinated in 1868.
4.2.Setting
-spatial deictics: this, here, that, there
4.3.Discourse
-Topics
4.4.Conversational maxims
-Relation
-Quality
-Quantity
-Manner